Movie time

I just love Mexican movies. They are so un-Hollywood. All passion and pain and un-happy endings. I just finished watching El Crimen del Padre Amaro and not only do you get all the religion and the bruja and the innocent virgin, you get Gael Garcia Bernal to boot. It just doesn't get much better.

Friday Pay Day 2nd to the Last Day of the Month

I really don't like that my life has turned back into revolving around month-end. But it appears that it will be like this for a (lot) while longer. I am taking a VACATION in September but that is pretty much it. The rest of the decision and all that dilemma stuff has been back-burnered. It's fine, Fall here is not so bad and I have a lot of sweaters I miss wearing.

I checked my checking account this morning and found an odd paycheck amount, so it appears I have bonused. Wasn't much, but for being here 2 months it was okay. It's not like I have exceeded any crazy set standards for closing files. But I'll take it - I found airfare for $363 in September and barring a hurricane I should be fine paying it out of this check (but I might wait).

Kimberley was here for a week and I surely hope she enjoyed herself, I know I did. It was nice to get back to the beach too, hopefully she will post some pictures on her Rivergirl blog, since I never looked at them on her camera.

Barb (here at work) just walked in and informed me it's casual day (last Friday of the month) and OF COURSE I forgot so here I am in REGULAR CLOTHES (not that I am ever very far from casual dress anyway) but I really wanted to wear some Birkenstocks today. Crap.

Besides work, not much else going on lately, looking forward to a weekend, and the cleaning and exhorbitant spending that comes along with it.

You're getting bored, aren't you?

Starting over >Sigh<

I feel like it's November 2004 all over again.

Lost, all is lost. I had CompUSA back up my documents, pictures and music, but everything else, all of my favorites, is gone. Tonight I am just trying to make things look normal again. It sucks.

But I'm back, and I guess I have something to do...

Sad situation

My computer crashed and I am sad. If you have anything to say to me, comment here. I am a wreck about it but oh well.

Happy Birthday to Becky!

I just had to say it because it is still 7/21 here. I am really tired but HAPPY BIRTHDAY to one of my most LOYAL of readers, BECKY!

Woo hoo!

I just have to say...

I am watching the morning news like I do every morning with my coffee and 45 cigarettes, and the big news (besides Lebanon, which is a whole other kettle of fish, since they are capitalizing on how Israel is bombing the smack out of Lebanon and reporting on how many people have been killed daily and AGAIN the war in Iraq is quietly looming in the background, where 1000s have been killed senselessly... oh I'll just stop now) is the heat that is coming this weekend. Today it will be 82 (oh NO!) but tomorrow it will allegedly be 92 and then in the 100s by the weekend. The news here shows a picture of the Willamette Valley (that stretch that runs from like Vancouver WA down to beyond Salem and Eugene I guess, I don't know, I just have lived here most of my life) and the newscaster says ..." and the whole Willamette Valley is in the 'Red Zone'!"

Well, shit, sister, you guys are the ones that painted it red!

I am sick to death of being told what to think. I swear to God I am just going to start watching "Roseanne" reruns or something in the morning. The rest of the sheep around here can watch this sensationalism...

Feeling mellow and a little bit hairless

Kimberley gets here tomorrow night around 10:30 and I guess my apartment is clean enough. You know I never really took the time to COMPLETELY unpack. Since I needed some sort of shelving unit for my various and sundry items of CRAP, and then decided that perhaps I may not be here FOREVER, I just sort of stopped. It's comfortable, nobody ever comes over, and I am sort of transitional right now anyway. I think. I don't know.

Work was slower today, that's good, because yesterday sucked, and it just goes like that, round and round, up and down, the rollercoaster that is my career. I went and got my hair taken care of (cut, colored and removed with hot wax) this evening, and now I am just sort of killing time and washing towels.

Elizabeth thought I should post today, but frankly, I have nothing to report. I did watch Farenheit 9/11 Saturday. I think I will save my emotional ranting and raving for another day, as I know I have it in me. Tonight I am just sort of mellow.

Except to say that sorry son of a bitch is an embarrassment to all of us and the sooner he is out of office the better. What a trend. This country's politics take the cake. The media can go on and on about what is happening with the Mexican presidential election, but it is no better nor worse than this country's political circus. Maybe I will just find an island to live on somewhere and just disassociate myself completely.

No real wind in my sails tonight. I should just go finish some chores and walk the trash out. Yeah I think that's what I'll do.

Just another "Day"

You're probably thinking to yourself, wow, Joyce must be neglecting her blog because the occupancy certificate on building B posted and building C must have platted! Well if you are, you're wrong! None of the above. There is a rumor that the CofO posted this afternoon but of course nobody has phoned me... There are just a ton of people that needed to move in and can't, and it's sort of sucky in that regard, but next week should be a doozy with closings.

You know, my life one year ago was SO MUCH DIFFERENT than it is right now. It's amazing what a difference a year makes. It's amazing what a difference FIVE MONTHS makes (fuck, I can't believe I've been back for 5 months). Last year the job I had was for 4 hours (with a half hour break, no less) three nights a week. And still I claimed exhaustion. Now, I work from 7am til 5:30 or 6, and though there is some lag time in there, when it's busy it is BUSY. I find myself having plunged back in to the reality that is escrow without much of an ease-in period (I mean, come on, first I am sitting for 2 months doing next to nothing, and the next thing you know I have in the neighborhood of 60 active files open. What is THAT all about?). I get home from work and the last thing I want to do is go out. Which is different from last year, too.

I also didn't have access to movies like I do here. Movie theatre (love the VIP) was always fun, but I maybe went to the movies 6 times, and mostly because there wasn't really anything I wanted to see. We didn't necessarily get ALL the movies. Then too I didn't have a rental account at Blockbuster (hassle, and also I could only play dvds on my computer, which sort of was awkward). So I missed about a year of movies I might have seen had I stayed here in the states for that time. Except of course during the hurricane, when I watched just about every movie Laura had, and on my computer to boot, for lack of any other resource.

Tonight (well, this week anyway) I received my three Netflix movies - "A Day Without a Mexican", "The Day After Tomorrow" and "Farenheit 911". I wonder what I was going for there. Anyway, I watched "A Day Without a Mexican" last night, and I do have to say, it was a pretty good flick. I encourage everyone to see it, as it is humorous and actually does have a good message (good point?). It sort of dragged in the end though, for a short movie, but I really enjoyed it.

I just finished watching "The Day After Tomorrow" and good LORD did that stress me out. I am not good with action films to begin with, not sure why I chose it, I think I was thinking that I should just rent all the movies I missed (whether I wanted to see them or not). Anyway, it was good and everything, but now I sort of have a tension headache and my neck is a little stiff... action flicks. So the beauty of it is they all end up in Mexico in refugee camps (funny, the Mexicans stopped the US citizens at the border and people were outraged) and when they needed to get a message to the president, they ran all the way there to give him a one-line message (like there are no cel phones in Mexico. Whatever, I give up on people here).

Tomorrow I have some purchases to make, and I have to clean like a bitch, and I may lay out some, and then I promised Tom I would pick him up from work and take him grocery shopping in exchange for borrowing his tent (well, you know, it just works out that way). Then I guess I will watch the last movie so I can get good and irritated. Maybe I am just looking for reinforcement in my decision. I don't know.

So this was a worthwhile read, wasn't it?

My neck is killing me. Going to pop some Advil and go to bed.

Hell is a brand new condominium.

Work has been a BITCH this week. It's only Tuesday and it feels like it should be Thursday already. Kim is coming next week so I will be a cleaning fool this weekend (something to look forward to...) and she has been slaving away at planning our trip to George, WA for the Pearl Jam concert. Me? I have been staple-gunned to my desk and the phone and the email and you know, I guess back in January when I was thinking I wouldn't mind escrow again I forgot all about the LIVING HELL THAT IT IS. Janet popped on this afternoon and then had to go pretty quickly, didn't get a chance to talk to her, and then Liz popped on after a week and I was right in the middle of a phone call AND an email so I had to miss her. I think she blocked me for the afternoon! Dang.

Not sure it will get much better but it sure doesn't hurt to try me. Allegedly that GOD DAMNED subdivision's (well, one building of it anyway) certificate of occupancy will be posted tomorrow and then the shit pretty much hits the fan (like it hasn't been anyway - everyone is calling ME to find out why it isn't posted. Um hello, I have nothing to do with it). But you know, I have lags in between sometimes...

That's it, thought I would post mid-week. Not much else. See ya.

Not telling

Okay. The problem is I can't really SAY anything because I don't know who (if anyone) at work might read this. Well I know of one guy but I don't really work for/with him anymore but he IS industry and this industry is TINY.

Anyway, I am plugging along at it (the decision) and realizing right now it is probably the best one for me. Is that cryptic enough?

I haven't had much to say for the week. It's been insanely busy at work and me without an assistant is just not a good thing. Where is Jodi when I need her? Henceforth, I am on my way into the office as soon as I finish this coffee and this entry. I just need to get a grip on some things there that cannot be gripped with the phone ringing. It's early enough now that if I want to lay in the sun still I have plenty of time to do so.

Nothing controversial going on in my life really, no big issues that cause me to climb on my soapbox and expound, I haven't made out with anyone recently... pretty boring stuff. This, my friends, is me aging. And honestly, I am not ready to be "done" yet. I don't think that makes me a bad person.

Oh, I rented "Hotel Rwanda" last night. Oh my hell. Oh my bloody hell. See, if I was a more informed, more politically inclined person I would have known all about it when it happened. But I am just one of those people that Joaquin Phoenix described in the movie, when Don Cheadle told him that maybe Joaquin's horridly explicit footage of the genocide might be the Rwandans' only chance to get the super-powers involved and save them. Joaquin said, pretty much, yeah, they will probably see it, say 'that's terrible', and go back to eating their dinner. It bothers me, that line, because I am sure I did that. But mostly because I just never involved myself with stuff like that, I mean, I don't know enough about any of that stuff to think more than passing thoughts. The trouble today is that we are so desensitized to everything around us, thanks to the blockbuster movies and the media showing us atrocities that just seem like more movie footage. But I won't make excuses - it is our responsibility as human beings to understand some of this, and do what we can. I just don't know what that is right now. The whole thing sparked some pretty intense dreams for me, which leave me feeling like I need to do something (though I don't know what), and I always try to listen to the really instense dreams, especially when it is almost as if you can hear them outloud (no, I am not crazy).

I also rented "Meet the Fockers". I turned it off at about the scene where they just got to the Fockers' house. I could foresee too much bedlam that would make me nervous and frankly, I am not a big sequel fan. My expectations are too high. Plus, I never really forgave the girlfriend in "Meet the Parents" for not being at all supportive of her boyfriend during such a horrible experience. So as much as I love Babs, I couldn't see wasting the better part of an additional hour and 45 minutes on the thing. I know one thing, I will never get a job as a film critic.

Okay, enough is enough, got to go to work...

Happy Birthday to Joe~

Welp, I got me some work to do. I have made my decision and now comes the hard part, but I am tough and I can do it and I have some really, really good friends who have offered to help me out. So there you go. I am not giving it up completely via blog but I will soon enough. Those who I know well know the decision. Those who I know well knew the DILEMMA.

So it's the fourth of July, and I don't really have much planned but to lay in the sun with Kim in a little while. Other than that just gonna chill and take advantage of my day off.

Yesterday I had to work, which was fine, because I organized that STUPID SUBDIVISION (now I am sort of wondering why I feel I have to learn how to do them...) into something somewhat manageable. The occupancy certificate has not yet been posted on the B building, and 14 people are anxiously awaiting that so they can close and move in. Which means the second it is posted I am going to be working like a hound. And then I heard a rumor that building C has platted, which has not yet been confirmed, which just adds a little bit more fun into the bedlam. Or a little more bedlam into the fun. Whichever.

Not much more to report, even though I didn't have a BUSY day yesterday, it was still exhausting, to the point where I had to go home and immediately nap - not good. Or maybe I am just not shaking the afternoon-nap routine. Hmm. Maybe I don't have to...

Also - Happy Birthday to Joe C - Karaoke Joe! And to the office boy John as well, but he doesn't read this. I wish I was down in Cancun and celebrating with the grand MC himself ~ but alas, I am here, typing at 7:26am and listening to channel 944 ~ Feliz Cumpleaños!

Happy Birthdays ~

Yesterday the 30th was my mom's birthday so a happy birthday goes out to CGtheGHB. She doesn't read this (no internet) and so she probably won't even know I am a day late. Today is my dad's birthday, he would have been 80. 80! I think that would have probably scared the crap out of him if he were still alive. I can't even imagine.

So I got up this morning, hosed off, and went errand-running. Went to Langdown (the greenhouse where I have been buying flowers for the grave since like 1981) and got some flowers, then went up to the grave and chatted for a little while. Then down to Target, then over to Fred Meyer, and then home to unload. Then I went over to Mom's again and got her car and took it to the car wash, and then I came home and chatted on the phone with Kimberley, and then went and got my pedicure and wax situation taken care of (Xiang is now moving down BELOW the lip... so now I have a beard. Great.), and now I am home and thinking I should nap a bit or at least relax some. Or put the fan together that I bought. Because I broke down and bought one. It's just a table fan but it will work out fine in the bedroom. It oscillates. It'll be fine.

Not much else new, but I will say that I confirmed with Nicky (my boss) that even though I only closed 15 files for June (hey man, it's only been 2 months) I am not fired. So that's the good news. I also went to the eye doctor - they have this new machine that takes a photo of your retina and I am happy to report that mine are healthy as little horses. Got some new contacts and they feel 4000 times better than the ones I got at Sam's Club. So that's good.

I spoke with Kimberley on the phone today, as I said, for like, I don't know, an hour and a half (she was with me in the car wash), and she really made a lot of sense to me (told me what I wanted to hear?) about the dilemma that I am in. I think I am leaning in one particular direction, and though I still need your positive vibes (thank you all for them thus far, seriously, they really help) I think I need to formulate a plan of action and just get to it. If I do what I think I might, it's pretty darn exciting and this means good news for you - you get to read about a little bit more than just my stupid boring day to day life as an escrow officer... but we'll see. We'll truly see.