The Daily Show in Ohio!!!

Yes, The Daily Show is here in the lovely state of Ohio, gracing the campus of The Ohio State University in Columbus for Indecision 2006, or as they're calling this week, the "Midwest Midterm Midtacular." Hee! Why are they here, you may ask? Well, in case you haven't heard, Ohio is the battleground state. Apparently, no president has been in office without Ohio's vote, so according to Jon Stewart, we are either the deciding state (are we *gasp* "The Decider(s)?")...or we're...from the future! Too funny.

Anyway, it should make what is normally one of the most snarky, satirical, and sarcastic shows on TV even funnier to those of us who live here in Ohio. I mean, they've already pinned us as high school football freaks who think Applebee's is the place to be (just for the record, Applebee's is not that great IMHO). Oh, and to see the montages of the political ads...excellent! Democrats, "It's Time for a Change" and Republicans, "They Love Terrorists and Will Raise Your Taxes." Both are so true...it's insane how many ads are on right now. I think I'll just watch TDS to get a synopsis of them this week, rather than subjecting myself to the torture that is the onslaught of political commercials...which I think would eventually make my ears bleed!

Sooooo...thank God for Tivo! Thanks to it, I can record my beloved TDS whenever I want. That, or watch clips on the Motherload (seems they're trying to put each episode in its entirety, divided into parts). In either case, I can't wait to watch Jon Stewart and his "reporters" work their magic. I will definitely stay tuned!

Tags: midterm elections, elections, politics, The Daily Show, Ohio, Democrat, Republican

Yay! It's 73 Degrees Today.

It is indeed a bonus when it's in the mid-70s at the end of October, when Daylight Savings ends, and I feel like I have to go to bed as soon as the sun sets. I tell ya, I definitely get the "winter blues" bad. Or is it SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder)? Either way, I feel like hibernating most of the winter, and I know that's not healthy. But, I just have less energy and am more prone to moodiness this time of year. I need to live somewhere where the seasons change, but fall and winter don't necessarily mean being doomed to 3-4 months of gloomy, rainy days. I tell ya, southwest Ohio has nothing on Seattle. At least that's my humble opinion...

Doesn't help that my job sucks, my company's being sold, and I generally feel like not much is going right. I know, it could be worse...but every time I say that, it actually does get worse (namely feeling like my job couldn't get worse...and then learn my company might not exist this time next year)...so I better stop saying that, lest I find myself homeless or something.

Tags: diary, journal, work, weather, depression, winter blues, SAD, winter, fall, Ohio, Seattle

Retracting "Argh!"

Okay, I'm still upset that my company has been put up for sale, but I can't really blame them (too much) for how we found out about it. Seems the The Wall Street Journal scooped the news about the sale, and pulled a fast one on the higher-ups at my company, who were bound by SEC rules not to say a word about the sale.

I bet the folks who wrote the article gave themselves a high-five about it, but I bet they have no idea the impact it had on those of us who work here. Or if they did, they didn't care about the thousands of people who suddenly were faced with the possibility of not having a job in 6-12 months. Makes me like journalists a little less when I'm the one who's being affected.

Tags: journal, journalists, diary, Wall Street Journal, employment, jobs, work

Argh!

My company is going up for sale, and you want to know how I found out about it? An author sent in a copy of the article in The Wall Street Journal. I mean, you think they'd have a company meeting before the news came out, or even before the third quarter earnings are announced tomorrow, when the sale will be announced. For us to find out about it through the grapevine is inexcuseable. Things are bad enough in my department now. This is just icing on the cake. Although I suppose things could get better, depending on who buys us...

Tags: journal, diary

My Civil Duty

Ah, jury duty. It's something that everyone dreads getting the call for. I was called about 2 years ago to serve on a federal jury, and I ended up being selected for it. Was an interesting experience, that's for sure. Now I got called for county jury duty, and this time I might escape having to sit in the jury box. While the experience itself doesn't bother me, the timing of it all does. That, and I live 2 counties away from where I work...so when I'm not chosen, I have to drive 1.5 hours back to work. Fun! Luckily, there's only one more day of this, and then I'm free! A small part of me wants to be chosen to sit on a jury tomorrow, because then I will more than likely miss the day-long meeting I'm supposed to be in on Thursday. Nothing would please me more, hee hee. :)

Tags: jury duty, jury, jury selection, civil duty

Is there gas price fixing going on?

The mid-term elections are just around the corner, and as we all know, oil execs love the Republicans probably more than they do their own families. There's a new Gallup poll which shows that Americans are suspicious that the elections have something to do with the sharp drop in oil prices, to the tune of 42%. But as this fellow blogger points out, nearly two-thirds of those polled are registered Democrats.

More than likely, it's the market forces that are driving the prices down as they have every year around this time; that, and all of the horrible and terrible things predicted to happen did not: bad hurricane season, conflict with Iran, and OPEC rcutting their supplies to raise prices (which I just heard they're going to do), to name a few. But really, who can blame people for thinking this? With all of the crap that this administration and its GOP lapdogs have pulled, it's no wonder we think they can control the price of gas.

What do I think? It's tempting to think that Bush and his cronies have something to do with it, but in all honesty...I don't think it's the case. However, that will not stop me from being just a little bit excited when filling my tank costs less than $20, like it did a few weeks ago. I'm just going to enjoy it while it lasts, because I know that it won't last long.

Tags: politics, gas prices, oil prices, election, mid-term election, Republicans, Iran, OPEC

Ohio Election 2006: Get Ready for More Shenanigans

I couldn't wait to post this until tomorrow, so I'm taking my lunch break to post this NOW. Apparently, Ken Blackwell is at it again in Ohio. This time, he's purged voter rolls. On October 1st, letters went out to places like apartments, universities, etc. with high turnover, stating that if you did not respond or take action, you'd be removed from the voter rolls. So, thousands of people could show up to their assigned polling place, only to be told they weren't registered, thereby forcing them to use provisional ballots...which aren't counted accurately (if at all, if you ask me).

There are some people trying to take legal action, but it's not looking good. An injunction from a federal court judge would be needed to reinstate all of the voters who have been purged from the system. We are running out of time! And I swear, if I get told I'm not registered to vote at my location, Blackwell will be getting some serious complaints from me. If there are going to be any protests, sign me up, because he has taken away one of our most sacred rights as citizens of the United States, the right to vote and have it be counted fairly.

Tags: politics, election, mid-term election, Ohio, voting, voters

Republicans to Lose Power? I'll Believe It When I See It.

The latest poll from MSNBC and The Wall Street Journal shows that people are generally pissed off with the Republican party. Bush's approval rating is 38%, and the disapproval rating for Congress is 84% (only 16% approval). That spells bad news for the current majority party, methinks...heh heh heh. :) Not that Democrats are highly favored either, but people just want a change. It's about damn time!

Why am I not more excited? Well, with the 2004 elections being fixed in Ohio, I am wondering what Karl Rove has up his sleeve to protect his precious president from being impeached. Because you know he will be if the Democrats get control of both the House and Senate. But then, that'd leave us with Cheney as our president...and I don't know which is worse, him or Bush. Could we just impeach both of them? Then we'd get the Speaker of the House, who will more than likely be a Democrat (the House has a better chance of changing power than the Senate). Woo hoo! I can dream, can't I? :)

Tags: election, mid-term election, republican, democrat, Bush, Cheney, approval ratings, congress, house, senate

Personal Trainers Are the Bomb!

Ow...ow...OW! Okay, now that I've gotten that out of my system...

Last night I went back to my personal trainer, who I haven't seen for about a month due to some circumstances beyond my control, mainly my grandfather's passing, and then my gallbladder deciding to freak out on me (which is still an issue, by the way). My God! He put me through the wringer, to put it nicely. I can barely move my legs, and my abs are starting to hurt...so even breathing is a bit painful. But, it's what I signed up for...and what I pay him to do!

It was interesting, but he had me do a circuit like I've never done before, which involved step work, lunges, mountain climbers (think doing pushups, but with switching out your legs), squats, and then a boatload of crunches and hip raises using a fitness ball. Holy moly! I'm kind of hoping he has me do that from now on, because it really works what I want to be worked.

Then, in a few weeks, I will be taking ice skating lessons with my boyfriend (that's another entire blog entry - we worked things out, basically). Between the two, I should have a nice lower body, methinks...and that's the area I am most concerned with. I'm also hoping it will help me when he wants to go skiing, because the last time I went...my legs just could not take the strain, and I ended up sitting at the lodge by myself. No fun! Well, neither is the punishment my trainer is putting me through, but as long as I get the results I want...it's okay by me. :)

Tags: exercise, fitness, skiing, ice skating, personal trainer, journal, diary

What Burns Me Up!

Okay, so my department...the 4 people left in it...had its monthly staff meeting today, which went okay until my manager said these words, "we will not necessarily be replacing everyone who's left (that's 3 people now). We will be looking at workload and capabilities to determine how many people we will be replacing." So basically, we had 6 people before, but now 4 people will work just fine...and 5 might give us all the breathing room we need. Wrong!

Now, we are finally getting around to replacing the person who left in August, but only because the third person resigned...shortly after we were told we wouldn't be replacing the August departee. And now we may not be replacing the two other people we're supposed to get? WTF??? It really was all I could do not to jump up and yell, "What the f*ck are you trying to do to us, kill us all??? Dash any hope of this department getting any better? Because you sure are doing one heck of a job, if that's the case." I mean, really...I know that they *might* replace all of the people who've left, but the fact that they're even considering not replacing everyone just blows my mind...especially when we're being asked to take on yet another type of project in addition to the ones we're struggling to keep up with now.

The morale of this department is already at the bottom of the ocean. We're all overworked. We keep losing people because of the workload and morale. We could really use some hope around here, and having a full complement of project managers would sure help! We aren't just machines with certain levels of capacity...we are human beings with emotions and limits. Heck, even machines have limits...and they break down when they're asked to do too much. Humans are much more fragile, but I'm not sure if our manager realizes that.

I mean, she told me I was getting "needlessly upset" by this news. If she actually understood us when we tell her about our huge workloads and general depression over the circumstances this department is facing, maybe she wouldn't see it as needless. Just because she is unemotional does not mean my getting upset is needless. Just because she thinks it's needless does not make it needless. If they were actually going to do something to help this department, then it would be. But from what I can tell, they don't listen to us even when we jump up and down and scream in front of them that we're overworked and PISSED OFF about how we're treated! They don't do anything about it when people leave because of it!

God, I hope this thing with the vendor works out (them opening an office locally). I'm not sure how much more of this I can take. I've actually started a list of complaints to go to HR about, since it seems they want details on my manager. Well, I have them, and they're going to learn everything they want to know first-hand. I'll make dead sure of it.

Tags: work, employment, management, mismanagement, downsizing, RIFs, morale, workload, employees

Finances, Budgets, and Debt, Oh My!

This is yet another post that doesn't exactly entertain me, but it is weighing heavily on my mind...and that is the sad state of my finances! I can't seem to get my head above water. It's really depressing, and no matter what I do, I can't seem to get ahead.

So, I've gone back to doing freelance writing, mainly in the form of keyword articles and article rewrites, as they really don't require too much thought. However, I'd rather do this than what I've done before, and that's doing Tarot readings online (shhhhh!). I also have the option of proofing URLs for $15 per hour, which is really good and easy work...yet I can only look at URLs for so long before they all start to look the same! I hope between the proofreading and keyword article writing, that I can pull down an extra $500 per month. That would help dig me out of the hole that I'm currently in.

In the meantime, I have cut down on my spending, but unless I cut out my cable (which is basic, by the way), there really isn't anywhere else I can limit my spending. My commute is 60 miles round trip each day, and luckily I have an okay car for gas mileage (not stellar, though). I only have a cell phone, no land line. My utility costs are not exorbitant. And I've gone from getting my hair cut every month to every other month (have to get the color done every month, though...I have stubborn gray that store-bought stuff just doesn't cover). I'm about ready to switch from cable Internet to DSL through AT&T Yahoo, as it would definitely be cheaper...but only for a year! Guess I could eat out not as much...but I only go maybe once or twice a week out to lunch, and less than that for dinner.

The big problem is that I really can't afford where I live. I should live some place that's about $100 cheaper per month. Unfortunately, I can't do anything about that until my lease is up in February. Or, I can hope and pray that Lachina hires me and pays me a living salary for the type of work I do, not the bare minimum like my current company does. Because I don't want to have to "moonlight" any longer than I have to. It drains my energy, to be honest...and I don't have much to begin with!

Oh, and I have signed up with MyEnvelopes.com...again...to see if that will help me get my finances under control. My problem is that I have ADD when it comes to this...or more likely, severe procrastination when it comes to financial planning, budgets, and spending plans. Not sure how to overcome it either, as I have tried and tried to keep a system going, only to let it go after a month or two. I know, I know...it's all in my head. But I've even hired a financial "coach" and he wasn't able to help me with this. GAH!

In any case...I just wish that a big pile of money would fall in my lap, heh. That would solve all of my problems, right? No, but it still would be nice...

Tags: finances, financial, money, budgets, spending plans, debt

Fafarazzi!

What, you haven't heard of Fafarazzi? Maybe that's because unlike me, you could care less if Madonna adopts a baby from Malawi, or Tara Reid's boobs fall out of her dress for all of the world to see. It's a fantasy celebrity league, much like fantasy football or baseball leagues, and I'm a new member, thanks to a fabulous Production Diva I work with. Our team is called, aptly enough, G.L.O.P. (Glorious Ladies of Production). You get points for each one of your celebrities doing something to earn them an honorable mention in the media, such as what I mentioned above.

There are 6 of us, and a lot of us were new at the time of the draft, including me. I was under the impression that the 6 of would share a team of celebrities, but that was not the case. We each had our own pool of celebrities who'd go through a "draft" just like in sports. So when the draft came up, I did nothing. Granted, I got lucky and got Anna Nicole Smith and Kevin Federline on my team, but the rest of them were duds as far as I was concerned. So, I've been trying to improve my team, drop Patrick Dempsey, add Christina Aguilera...although I added Patrick Dempsey back in, just because of all the hoopla surrounding a supposed fist fight on the set of Grey's Anatomy (apparently he and Isiah Washington got into a tiff...whether or not it involved fists, we don't know). So far, it's gotten me nothing. But, it was worth a shot!

Anyway, I am now in third place, having been in 4th place for quite some time. The loser has to buy Halloween candy for the rest of the folks in the league, so even if I had lost, it would have been not that bad. However, now that I know the rules of the game...watch out! I am planning on winning the next round, muhahahahaaaaaaa! (Okay, maybe I need to get a life?)

Tags: gossip, celebrities, tv, pop culture, fantasy leagues, Tara Reid, Anna Nicole Smith, Kevin Federline, Christina Aguilera, Patrick Dempsey, Madonna

A Little Ditty, About Jack and Sayid, and Sun, and...

Okay, so I'm still hooked on Lost. Granted, it's only the second show of the season, but there's no way I'll stop watching it, unless they kill of all of the people I just mentioned. What is it with this show? Do I enjoy the punishment of having questions raised with Every. Single. Show? I guess so. I mean, why is Ben going to set Jack free, if he does what he says? Why are they having Kate and Sawyer do chain-gang work? Why did Sayid think the Others would go to the fire he built, rather than the boat tethered to their dock (and in clear view of the fire)? Why, why why? *sigh* Guess I'll just have to tune in and see...for more torture. Again, damn you J.J. Abrams!

Tags: drama, television, tv, Lost

I Love Technorati!

Okay, so I'm finally getting around to getting my blog on Technorati. Yay!

The Blame Game and North Korea

Yesterday morning as I was watching the Today Show, getting ready to go to work, I watched Senator John McCain officially go over to the Dark Side. It was really all I could do not to jump through the TV set and slap him upside the head. I mean, here we are presented with the ginormous problem of North Korea detonating a nuclear bomb underground, and this man has the gaul to blame the Clinton administration for the "failed" North Korea diplomacy? While I'm sure that there is at least some blame to be laid on the Clinton administration, there's enough of it to go around for both the past administration and this current one.

And really, the problem isn't who to blame. It's the fact that, oh, I don't know...North Korea has the capability to produce a nuclear bomb, and that they are threatening to use force! What?!? How did it get to this? Oh yeah, we never really paid much attention until now. So maybe, we should be pointing fingers, because perhaps if we hadn't marched into Iraq thinking we'd be greeted with flowers 4 years ago, we might have paid more attention to this. Then again, we probably wouldn't have paid any attention to them, simply because they're not sitting on an oil reserve we want so desperately to control.

For us to refuse negotiations is simply outrageous. China and Japan do have more at stake, but so do we if they ever develop that missile that could reach the western shores of the United States. But wait, it's like all potential problems with this government. We don't really worry about them until it's too late (Katrina, 9/11 - and yes, I do blame this administration for basically letting it happen). What will it take, a nuclear missile headed in our direction for anyone to do anything? I certainly hope not, because nuclear armageddon is not something anyone should ever have to face, not even the worst of the human race.

Okay, so maybe I'm being melodramatic. I can't help it. I feel like the world is falling apart, and my own little world is starting to crumble as well. My job is getting worse everyday, my relationship is for all intents and purposes over, my grandfather passed away not too long ago, and winter (my most dreaded season) is on its way. Granted, my house hasn't burned down (my cousin's wife's brother's house did...total loss), so maybe I should just keep that thought in my mind when it feels like nothing's going right. Something else could go wrong, but I certainly hope not.

Tags: North Korea, politics, Bush, Clinton, nuclear, democrat, republican

North Korea Gets Condemned

You know, this is awful, horrible, and terrible that North Korea has probably detonated a nuclear bomb. Did I say horrible? Well, it is. And that's about the strongest condemnation they're going to get. If this were Iran, we'd be invading right now. It'd be the excuse this administration is looking for.

Not that I advocate by any means whatsoever invading another country, but I find the different treatment of the two countries a bit hypocritical. Why have we basically let North Korea have a nuclear weapon? Because - ta da! - they don't have oil! They don't have squat, actually. But the amount of pressure that was being put on them to stop their nuclear weapons research was insignificant in comparison to the pressure Iran is receiving, and rightfully so. I mean, Iran is a country that sits on one of the largest oil reserves in the universe, and it wants to use nuclear energy? Come on. They want a nuclear weapon for the same reason every country does, so they can basically say, "leave us the f*ck alone, or we'll unleash our nuclear arsenal on you."

But, it's precisely because they sit on top of the largest oil reserve in the universe that we have been paying so much more attention to them. Kim Jong Il is like a small child who will do anything to get attention, and he's been trying to the last few months. Well, now he has it, in spades...or should I say, megatons?

Now, it hasn't been proven that it was indeed a nuclear test, but I think it's best if we all just assume it was, and go from there. Do they get a slap on the wrist from the UN? Yes. Do they get harsh sanctions? I would think so. Do they get invaded? Not on your life.

But, I have no idea what the solution is. There really is none, because once a country knows how to produce nuclear weapons, it's all but impossible to stop it. That scares the bejesus out of me. I mean, who's going to stop N. Korea from bombing S. Korea? Kim Jong Il is crazy enough to do it. So let's just hope that it will take them another 10 years to build another bomb to detonate? One can only hope.

Tags: Iran, Iraq, oil, nuclear, North Korea, politics

Grey's Anatomy

Oh, how I love Grey's Anatomy. The writing is fantastic, the actors are perfect for their roles...and like Lost, there's so much eye candy, what's not to like?

Granted, I'm not that harsh of a critic, like some of the folks on the Television Without Pity forums, but still. I keep reading posts that people don't actually talk like the characters do (snarky, sarcastic, clever). Huh? Not that I'm all that clever, but I am sarcastic and snarky. My friends and I all are. I wonder if it's because of how they look that people say this? I wonder. I mean, take a look at the cast photo to the right. Yeah, doctors can be hot, but I have yet to be in a hospital where the entire surgical staff could all be models. Okay, well...not all of them, but you have to admit that most of them could.

Anyway, I loved the episode last night. The speech Meredith gave to Finn and Derek was priceless. They've turned dating her into some sort of pissing contest, and she totally called them on it. Granted, she did sort of ask for it by telling them she'd be dating both of them. But still. It just goes to show that humans are not that far removed from our basic instincts. When two males are vying for the attention of one female, competition of some sort will ensue, heh. It's just that when it's humans doing the competing, it's fun to see one guy bring coffee, and the other guy bring coffee cake. Love it!

Now, who am I vying for? I have a soft spot in my heart for Derek, even though he is for all intents and purposes a pompous ass. But there's something about him that I just can't put my finger on. Perhaps it's because if I were Meredith, I'd go for the relationship that wasn't one-sided. We know she still loves Derek, and now we know after last week's episode, he loves her. Yes, he's still married...but not for much longer, I think. She likes Finn, but I don't see him holding her attention for that long...and that spells doom for that relationship.

As for Addison and McSteamy (Mark, the man she cheated on Derek with...his best friend), she should totally go for it with him. He loves her. It's more than just sex, and I think if she's willing to let go of Derek, she'll find she loves him too. Although, letting go of a marriage is hard, I think having someone like Mark waiting in the wings would make it just a tad bit easier. Of course, I've never been married, so maybe not.

Anyway, I am officially hooked on this show...and it's a show that I know won't frustrate me beyond belief like Lost. Yay for Grey's Anatomy! Don't let me down by becoming anymore of a soap opera than you already are!

Tags: television, tv, Grey's Anatomy, Lost

Lost about Lost

Okay, so I got hooked on quite possibly the most frustrating show on TV right now starting with Season 1. Why do I think it's so frustrating? Because for every answer you get, they bring up 500 more questions, some of which will be answered, most of which will be ignored. And last night was no exception to that rule.

I mean, the Others live in a white picket fence community on this island? WTF? It's been hinted they are left-overs from the whole Dharma thing, but somehow I doubt that's the whole truth. Why do I doubt that? Because usually when I think something's true on this show, it turns out not to be, or it's only partially true, yadda yadda yadda. But, although I am already frustrated, I will continue to watch because, dammit, they sucked me in yet again! Damn you J.J. Abrams!

Anyway, aside from all the frustration with it, I do like the scenery. Yes, Jack is a bit of an ass...but I've always liked Matthew Fox. (And what is it with ABC and doctors named Shepherd?) Sawyer's not so bad either, for a bad boy. I want some more Sayid and Jin, to be honest. And if I were either a lesbian or a guy, I don't think I could choose amongst all the women for my favorite. They are all stunning. Between this and my other favorite ABC show Grey's Anatomy, I think that this network has cornered the market on good-looking actors.

So, we shall see if Lost frustrates me to the point of not wanting to watch it anymore, or if it will somehow manage to keep me interested enough to see the season through. With all of the TV I watch, I could manage to drop a show...

Tags: Lost, TV, television