December 2

Here I sit at my new desk at my new job. I was EXTREMELY lucky to land such a good position so quickly. Between this job and my severance package, I actually made a profit which I used to pay off one of my credit cards...the one my former friend ran up with her shit. No more monthly reminder of my naive stupidity. Thanksgiving went well with my grandparents, they both seem to be doing okay. I visited with my aunt on the way back home, and got in very late. I still have free wireless internet in my condo, one of my neighbors must have a signal. This is the reason I decided a laptop was a good idea. Tonight's trivia, I hope I don't fall asleep.

November 12

I have had 2 interviews and both went great! I've already been offered one job and I might be offered another one sometime today. Looks like everything is going to be okay afterall. I didn't think anyone was hiring, but who knows, maybe having a new job will be a good thing. I'm kind of enjoying spending everyday at home with my feet up catching up on my DVR recordings. There's a lot of them, on top of Netflix. I need to be more selective.

November 4

My greatest fear came true on Monday morning; I was laid off. Me & 25 other people, including a direct co-worker. I broke down and cried in my boss's arms like an idiot, but she was understanding. They kept saying it wasn't my fault, I'm a great employee, everyone likes me, it's just the economy. The entire company was in trouble, it was us or everyone. Fortunately, I'm receiving a decent severance package. Between that, my savings, and the tax refund I'll be getting at the beginning of February, I'll be fine for awhile. Of course, I've never been one to rest on my laurels, I've already started interviewing for another job, and I think there might be one with the temp agency I've registered with, it's a calling center job, which is perfect for me. I should know something within a week. Think positive thoughts.

October 29

I had an interesting weekend. This past Saturday I went to the ballet for the first time with a friend's free tickets, Mozart's Magic Flute. Never been so bored in my entire life. (Excluding Sunday morning church requirements while I was growing up) I actually bribed my friend with some Subway sandwiches if we could leave during intermission. Anyway, the next day I went to an NKU alumni meeting and had a pretty good time. I talked to some interesting people and got a nice pen set. Every time the servers came around with hor derves I couldn't resist, I didn't eat lunch before hand. Another one of my friend's car is on it's last legs, she's trying to decide on a new one and I'm trying to steer her to getting something green and fuel efficient like a Prius.

October 19

Finally the AC unit is out of my window. Now I just have to wait for my Uncle to come help me load it into my car so I can haul it away. At least I don't have to listen to the rain banging on it anymore. This weekend I finally busted out my space heater & Snuggie it got so cold, of course I stayed nice and toasty. Who needs central heat? I don't even know if it's hooked up, I suppose I could try it to see. The AIDS walk had a good turn out, it was a little muddy, but other than that everything went great.

October 9

My huge A.C. is still in the window even though I haven't used it since the end of August, it's too heavy for me to lift, and Kenny hasn't had time to come over to help me with it. I'm still debating on whether or not to get a dog, I'm thinking toy poodle or maybe a maltese, but I don't know if I'm home enough to really be able to take care of it. What if he barks when I'm away at work? Not to mention Luci's reaction. Perhaps I should foster a dog first.

October 1

Fall is my favorite time of year. It's finally becoming chilly out, which is good, I prefer football weather anyway. So far the new shows are fairly mixed on quality, Eastwick & Melrose Place both suck, I've already deleted them from my DVR, but Flash Forward looks pretty good. I've given up on The Ultimate Fighter, those flabby heavyweights are boring and the show isn't as good as it used to be anyway. Hoarders is over for the season, but something else will probably come along. I like Vampire Diaries & NCIS, and The Cleveland show is hilarious. Last night we didn't do so well at Trivia, I screwed up the final question. There's always next week.

September 22

Most of my shows are back on the air, good thing I have DVR, I would miss at least half of them without it. Yesterday I had an eye exam and found out my vision is no where near as bad as I thought, my own Optometrist is twice as near sighted as I am and she says she's only moderately near sighted. Anyway, I'm ordering some glasses for back up tonight and they're not cheap, even with my insurance discount. I wanted to go see Blink 182 & Fall Out Boy next month at the Amplitheater, but I can't do both. I definitely need glasses more than I need to go to another concert. I don't think I'm going to need the AC for the rest of the year, I can go ahead and yank it out of the window until next Summer.

September 14

Creed was great, as usual, on Saturday night. After the show I bought a t shirt from a vendor for $10, that was pretty cool. I don't know why anyone would pay $35 for a t shirt. The trip to my Grandparents house during my vacation was a little depressing, my Grandmother isn't quite all there anymore, mentally. Sometimes she says things that don't make any sense, at least they've got the home care provider there to help them out.

August 31

New season of Tool Academy last night, the new tools are even bigger jerks than last time. Most of these guys are ugly. I'm trying to develop a liking for beer, since it's cheaper than the chick drinks I usually order when I go out. $3.00 for a domestic is better than $6 or $7 for a margarita. I think Coors Lite is a little better than the others I've tried, it's not as strong tasting, I still have to drink it out of a glass though.

August 24

Yesterday I was walking out of my condo to head to the animal shelter and one of my Muslim neighbors in traditional head to toe religious garb with her head covered was making a call on her cell phone, which was really high tech looking, nicer than mine, which I thought was kind of funny. I'm almost out of my cell phone contract, in October I can switch to Verizon, and will actually have decent coverage. In September I'm requesting a week of vacation so I can drive up to Kentucky and visit my Grandparents, I haven't seen them since Christmas.

August 18

It's been a year this month, this week in fact, since my former "friend" the drunk walked out of my life and I've never been happier. I still don't know how I could have been so blind or naive to let someone treat me that way. Like most drunks/addicts, I'll be she never gave me a second thought once she moved on to her next target. I was just a non-person to her, a mark to enable her addiction. Never again. I am in a better place now, literally. Live and learn.

August 10

I have bought some rather unattractive new curtains for the living room. They are completely functional and not decorative. Supposedly they will keep out 90% of the sun's rays and also give me some more privacy since the blinds have gaps in them. They might also keep the room a little cooler for Luci when I'm not home. School started back today and I had to sit and wait at the intersection for ten solid minutes. I hate this time of year. It might be worth just turning the other way every morning even if it is a little out of my way to go around the school crossings.

August 9

UFC 101 was a joke. I should have just gone to see Star Trek instead. First Amir gets his fight stopped as he's getting back up, then Forrest Griffin gets knocked out by some piddly assed little jab my Grandmother could have shaken off. It will be a while before I pay to see another fight. On a positive note, it looks like I'm getting to keep my cable, Comcast made me a pretty good offer.

August 6

I found the perfect antenna, I have all the local channels. Now I just need to figure out how to make it work with my VCR. This is frustrating. They moved me to a new cubicle at work, I don't have as much space as I used to, but the acoustics are better.

August 4

It looks like I'm about to lose my cable at the condo. For the past couple of years I've been paying $20 a month for full cable. It seems that if you pay for the basic limited package of cable quality local channels you also get regular cable because the cable company can't split the signal. I mean, it's just a simple set up and I still use a VCR, but it's only $22 a month or so after taxes. Now they've figured out a way to split the signal, and everyone with regular cable is going to get a digital box to keep the riff raff like myself from getting channels over 27, so after September 15 I'm going to be without cable, since I refuse to pay $60 a month for it and I can get the local channels for free now that everything's gone digital. I just need a decent antenna.

August 1

The Rascal Flatts were great last night, I had lawn seats, but once they hit the stage I was on my feet the whole time so it didn't matter. A woman sitting next to me in the grass was obviously past her limit, party wise. She threw up in the grass and a couple of employees came over to check on her. People were laughing and taking pictures of her on her cell phone. Meanwhile, her friends just disappeared on her, some friends. I hope she got home okay. Me & my friend that I was supposed to come with had to go separately and we never did see each other, I'm still waiting to hear from her to see if she had fun. Turns out, for $10 extra I could have upgraded my seat, but at least it didn't rain. I have pretty good pavillion seats to see Creed next month at the same location, which will be even better. I just hope their album comes out before the show.

July 27

Last night was fun, me & a friend went to Dave & Busters and I won a huge beach towel, which I really needed for when I go to the gym. They finally have the jacuzzi up and working, after not working for I don't know how long. Daisy De La Hoya (or whatever her real name is) picked London on Daisy of Love last night, the loser rock star as her final choice. At first I was like, are you kidding? Picking him over 12 Pack or Flex? Then it occurred to me, she's a bigger loser than he is, and really, they're perfect for each other. Besides, it will probably be over by the reunion show anyway. I wonder how much these guys are paid up front to go on reality shows? I could use some money now, to buy an AC condenser, and maybe a dining room table. Perhaps I'll be on the lesbian version of the Bachelorette.

July 20

What a boring weekend. My friend that I was going to hang out with on Saturday had other plans, and I ended up staying at home on Saturday night. On a positive note, I now have internet at home in the condo, it's pretty cheap and it works really well. No ugly cables or wires running all over the place either, I only plug it in when I'm using it. I'm really wanting to visit New Orleans sometime this Summer, I've never been to the French Quarter and it sounds like a lot of fun. Perhaps in September.

July 13

Saturday night we went to Dave & Busters to play games and show Barbara's new gf how to do the coin games. Sadly, I missed UFC 100, which was playing in the game room, since my friends don't care anything about the UFC, but at least Dan Henderson knocked out Michael Bisping, finally. My shoulders are still sore from the boxing game, but it was fun. So sad that the gay penguins in the San Fran zoo split up over a girl, but at least they're all on good terms. Little "Pepper" is still alone and needs a mate though.

July 10

Me & my friend Barbara are going to see Rascal Flatts July 31 at the Amplitheater! We got a really good deal on the tickets, and we can get there by MARTA so there's no parking fees. I'm still hoping to see Creed in September, and of course Dragon Con, so I'll have to budget my spending accordingly. Perhaps lawn seats to Creed and then I can still buy a t-shirt.

I just heard that Christina Applegate once dated Brad Pitt back in 1989 and dumped him at the MTV music awards because she didn't think he was good enough, I'll bet she regrets that decision now. I remember after 7 came out and he was engaged to Gwyn Paltrow, seems like 100 years ago, now.

July 6

Why am I so angry? For the past two days I've woke up angry and gone to bed angry and I don't know why. I don't think I'm PMS'ing, but it's possible. Perhaps I just need some chocolate. July 4th was fun at Cenntennial Park, Vertical Horizon played, and then we watched the fireworks. Traffic was horrible as usual, I don't know why Kenny didn't want to just take Marta, so much more convenient. People were selling Michael Jackson tribute t-shirts in front of the Park, I'm sure they made a killing. The memorial is tomorrow at the Staples Center, I might watch some of it online.

June 26

How surreal that Farrah Fawcett, icon of the 70's and Michael Jackson, icon of the 80's passed away on the same day. I had a poster of Michael in my bedroom when I was 13 from the Thriller years. I remember watching the Beat it video trying to memorize the dance moves so we could do them ourselves. My uncle Jerry had the famous Farrah poster in the red bathing suit in his room for years. I think Michael's death was due to the abuse of painkillers, and his perpetually being underweight his entire adult life, but we will see.

June 24

I wonder if I should be worried about the headaches I've been getting for the last couple of days. Usually, a headache at the end of my cycle is normal and will go away with a couple of Advils, but it's been several days and I don't know what could be causing them, other than the heat & pollen. Last night at 10:00 I broke down and took a leftover painkiller I had in my medicine cabinet, by the time I went to bed I did feel better. It might be worth the expense to install a ceiling fan in my condo, since heat rises. My neighbor loaned me her handyman last Friday and he nailed down the loose floorboards in my kitchen in less than 45 seconds, one less thing I have to worry about in my condo. I was able to repair the broken pipe under the bathroom sink by myself, so I'm pretty happy at the moment. I have some pretty nice neighbors, including another lesbian in the basement who noticed my gay pride bumper sticker and asked if I was going to Pride this weekend, which I thought had been moved to October. I'll have to look into it.

June 18

Tonight I can pick up my huge Pink Floyd Collections wall print, it's all ready and dry mounted. I am finally finished with all the painting in my place, and have nailed my Michelangelo print over the mantel, I think I'm finished. The only thing left is buying moulding & a dinette table, but since I have no money for that right now, it will just have to wait. This upcoming Saturday I'm going to a pet store open house to look at some rescued chihuahuas for adoption, at the end of the Summer when the temperature drops, I might take one in as a foster parent. If Luci can get along with them, I could even adopt. Now that I own my place, and have a larger area for a small dog to run around in, I think it could work. Besides, I really don't have any neighbors that would hear yipping, so I don't have to worry about disturbing anyone. Tomorrow it's supposed to get up to 97 degrees, so I might leave the AC on low, auto so it will kick on for about 10 minutes once an hour for Luci. I will test it out tonight to see how well that works.

June 9

I don't think this Summer is going to be as extreme as it was a couple of years ago when we had triple degree heat. The average temp during June-July is early 90's, so I think me & Luci will be okay. I bought an indoor digital thermostat to see how hot it really is in the condo. Last night with the patio door half open and the fan blowing it was 85 degrees, which is comfortable. This morning it was 81 degrees, I just need to see how hot it gets at 3:00 or so which is probably the hottest time of the day.

Raising the Bar is turning out to be a pretty good show, now that CSI Miami is in reruns, I think I'll keep watching it. I'm glad Zach got that mop top cut, the 90's have been over for some time now. Poker tonight at 7:00, then laundry. Fun, fun.

June 4

I bought a Snuggie last night, it was on sale at Target. I know it will be December before I'll have any use for it, but I thought if I waited until then it might be twice as much. Perhaps I'll go to a Snuggie pub crawl like they had in Chicago a little while back. We came in second place last night at Trivia and won $25 toward our check, which means I almost ate for free, that's always cool. Some nights the questions are so ridiculous we end up washing out early, but last night they were pretty easy, only 2 sports questions. What's up with Eminem? He looks like roadkill backed over twice or something. It also looks like he aged 10 years in the last ten months, must have been all the pills he's been abusing. Another overrated, undertalented rapper that likes to stir up shit.

June 1

I have a window unit AC in my bedroom, but I'm not sure it was such a good idea. For one thing, it's HUGE. It took two of us to lug it up the stairs and mount it in the window. For another, it's tipping out the back end because of it's weight and I don't have a mounting bracket or anything. It sits very snugly in the window, I don't really think it will fall out, but I am a little concerned about the strain on my window for the next 3 months. Perhaps I should just buy a portable on Craigslist. In the meantime, I moved the fan back to the bedroom during the day, since that's where Luci has camped out for most of the time. I'm not really sure why, it's at least 10 degrees cooler in the living room and there's the balcony window to look out of. Now that I got the room darkening curtains I think it will be a little more comfortable for her.

May 29

I am starting to rethink the whole air conditioning thing, I mean, I can handle it, but what about Luci? Cats don't sweat like humans, and when it gets above 85 degrees, I need to at least leave the fan on while I'm at work for her. Now that we're on the second floor, it's going to be a lot warmer than it was in the basement studio. Hopefully, a decent window unit will solve my problems. I just hope it's safe to leave one of those things in my window all the time when I'm not home. I live upstairs, so I guess it's safe. The only way anyone can break in is with a ladder, of course anyone who wants to break in now just needs a hammer to smash the window, so maybe I'm worrying about nothing.

I need to get back to the gym now that I've finished painting and decorating, I had no energy last night to do anything except sit in front of the fan and watch Dog the Bounty Hunter. Maybe a 5 hour energy shot is what I need to get back into the swing of things. Of course I still need to get my subway-size Pink Floyd poster dry mounted, in fact, I think I'll do it today after work.

May 23

Painting is hard work, my fingers are sore, my shoulders are sore and my head hurts from breathing in paint fumes. I'm almost finished, all that's left are touch ups. The posters I ordered online are here, James Dean for the bedroom and a Pink Floyd wall size print for the dining room. I think I'll have to have it mounted on a board like I did with my Michaelangelo, it's too big for a regular frame. The bathroom is the only room I'm really not happy with, it's going to need more than a few touch ups. I'm not entirely sure I chose the right kind of paint. At any rate, I hope to be finished painting by this evening.

May 17

I have spent all weekend cleaning & painting my new condo. I'm tired and sore but it feels great to finally be a homeowner. The living room is done, and the foyer, last night I did the bathroom and that took forever, but I think it looks pretty good. The bedroom shouldn't be as hard, but I'm not sure how long the kitchen is going to take. I got my mini-fridge, but since it was stored on it's side when I picked it up, I have to wait 24 hours before I can even plug it in. Oh well, at least it's in place. One thing is that I might not have air conditioning, the outside unit is missing and I didn't find this out until after I had signed the contract, I don't know if it's the responsibility of the previous owner or mine, but I've gone without AC before. I think I'll be okay.

May 12

A Million Little Pieces is turning out to be a really good book, I wasn't able to put it down. I've heard that parts of it were fabricated and Oprah got mad and really let him have it when he was on her show. There's a part where he claims to have had root canal surgery on two teeth with no anesthesia, no Novocaine and no pain killers, because he's an addict and couldn't have any. Just a couple of tennis balls to grip while he's in the chair. For his sake, I hope that part WAS fabricated. That's worse than any kind of torture they could dream up down at Gitmo.

My electricity is almost on, and it's a good thing, because I think the broker is losing patience. It's not my fault, but this should have been taken care of a month ago. If they try to squeeze more closing cost money out of me I'm going to be really angry.

May 7

It looks like I might be closing on my condo tomorrow afternoon, finally. It all depends on if the electricity is back on by tonight. I'll find out in a few hours. Kenny has been great, letting me crash in his guest room. I've been trying to be helpful, loading the dishwasher, fetching the mail, cleaning up in the bathroom to make up for it. We've hardly seen each other all week, so at least I don't feel underfoot. Luci is comfortable in the guest room, but the dogs keep stealing her food, so I have to keep hiding it behind boxes. The first thing I'm going to do once I'm in my condo is plug in the stereo and blast my new Peroxwhygen CD. I haven't even listened to it yet. I like to listen to music when I'm cleaning. Hope it doesn't disturb the neighbors.

May 3

I am out of my ratty studio apartment! But, I am not in my condo. Instead, I am sleeping on a guest bed in my uncle's house because I haven't closed on the condo yet, since there's no electricity. I know I'm taking a huge chance that I might end up homeless, but I really had no choice. I couldn't do a pro rate on the studio, it was either be out by the 1st of the month or pay for a full month, and I didn't want to do that. Hopefully I will be in the condo within a week.

April 29

Tonight is the last night I will spend in my ratty studio apartment and then tomorrow afternoon I start moving my stuff into the condo. I think I will give the place a good cleaning before I start painting. I'm not sure what to do about Luci, she can't be there while I'm painting, but I don't want her traumatized by moving everything out of the apartment either, I know how much she hates upheaval. I still need a large box for my kitchen, but almost everything is packed and ready to be moved. Still not sure how I'm going to get the couch up a flight of stairs, it must weigh more than I do.

April 27

Woo-hoo! Creed is getting back together for a new album called "Full Circle" I've been waiting 6 years. I always knew they would get back together eventually. On an equally positively note, I bought all my paint yesterday, various shades of white and purple for the condo. I hope the oven works.

April 25

This pollen is disgusting. My contacts are so dried out by 7:00 in the evening I have to pop them out because they're useless. Tomorrow afternoon I'm going to the eye doctor to get some glasses for back up. Better than nothing. Fortunately I have vision insurance. On a positive note, my electric & gas will be turned on before Tuesday when I sign the papers to move in to my condo. I would have moved in anyway, but it will be nice to have electricity & hot water. I think I will buy the paint tonight for the walls, now that I've decided on the colors I'll be using.

April 23

I have a closing date! I move into my condo on the 28th! I am so excited, I think I will request a half day so I can head home after I sign the papers at the Law Office and start painting right away. Perhaps if I finish painting on Tuesday I can move in Wednesday night. I know Luci is going to love the view of the wooded area in the back of the building. Turns out my fridge won't be delivered until May 5, oh well. I should have ordered sooner. This will give me time to figure out what I'm going to do about the gas stove which may or may not work. Since I won't be doing much cooking with no fridge, there's no hurry to replace the stove. I just hope I can get my cable switched over quickly.

April 15

I am so glad I filed my taxes back in February, I can't imagine waiting until the last minute. My electricity is back on after a 24 hour blackout caused by the massive wind storm here in Atlanta a couple of days ago, but my cable tv is still out. If only the digital switch over had already taken place then I would still get good reception on the local channels. I've already missed CSI Miami & Reaper. I really do not want to miss The Ultimate Fighter tonight, then I'll really be pissed.

April 8

Why am I gaining weight? Is it the extra time I'm spending in bars playing trivia & poker with my friends? Bar food is starchy, maybe I'll start ordering salads. Friday night I got drunk for the first time since Spring Break '94 in Daytona Beach after my friend's visitation and got some ribbing about it the next day. I'm really not much of a drinker. This weekend I'm doing the Hollywood Diet. Anything to lose 5 pounds or so. After that, it's the Atkins Diet.

April 1

I hate April Fool's Day. I have always hated practical jokes, and having a national holiday devoted to something stupid has always seemed ridiculous. Good news is I'm finally getting my condo, after a year and a half of looking. The appraisal came back with the right amount and the new closing date is somewhere around the 15th. Bad news... one of my friends I play cards with died of a heart attack last night. He couldn't have been 35 years old, and he had five kids. None of us saw this coming. I'm going over to their house tonight, perhaps I should take a potted plant or something.

March 21

Looks like a happy ending for Battlestar Galactica, or as close to one as can be expected. I knew President Roslin would probably die in the finale of her cancer, but it was still sad when it happened. Nice that almost everyone else survived though, and seeded Planet Earth on top of that. More good news, my uncle was mistaken about the rebate only going into effect if you buy a house in April, the rebate is in effect from January thru November of this year. I just have to wait for good news from the appraisor, and then it looks good to go, even if I am getting screwed with a 7.5 % interest rate when the national average is like 5.5% Oh well. I'll know something in a few days.

March 16

After a series of disappointments, it looks like I might actually get my condo! I've signed all the paperwork and am just waiting to hear from my realtor about the closing date. I might need to work out a deal with my landlord so I won't be out on the street for 2 weeks, fortunately I've already had a couple of friends offer me their space if that happens. Personally, I really don't want to move my stuff twice, so it makes more sense to work something out with my landlord. My Uncle tells me the stimulus rebate for first time homeowners ( or homo-wners, in my case) doesn't go into effect until April 15? I hope that isn't accurate. It would sure suck to miss out on $3000 by a couple of weeks. Hopefully, he's got the tax deadline confused or something.

March 11

I am so close to getting my condo, but I'm afraid the proverbial rug will be yanked out from under me, once again. It happened last year, just as I was preparing to move into the new condo, on April 1, we found out it wasn't FHA approved and we had to release the offer. So far, this one looks promising, my finanacing is in place and I'm just waiting to hear from my realtor. Oddly enough, the new move in date will also be April 1, one year later. I'm afraid to get my hopes up.

March 3

I can't believe Life On Mars has been cancelled already. Why do my favorite shows always get cancelled after one season? My So-Called Life, Boomtown, UC Undercover, Gary the Rat, etc, etc. At least we'll get a series finale, since they have a couple of months notice. Now there won't be a spinoff in the 80's like Ashes to Ashes in the UK. Maybe I'll see if I can get a hold of the Brittish version and see what happens then.

March 1

A few nights ago, I was nodding off in front of the tv, as I've found myself doing quite a bit lately, and I decided it was time to get up to take my contacts out so I could get ready for bed. Somehow, I managed to lose my balance and slam face first into the corner of the bathroom door. Now I have a semi-black eye on my left eyelid. I've never had a black eye before, I have a fairly non-confrontational personality, I've always been able to coast thru life without much conflict or drama. Hopefully it will be back to normal in a few days.

February 23

Was anyone really surprised when Heath won? I wasn't. I was a little more surprised by the song and dance number Hugh Jackman did at the beginning of the show, I've never really thought of him as a song and dance guy. Usually they have a comic host to make it less boring, but this year's show wasn't bad. Nobody made any horrendously long speeches, I don't remember the orchestra cutting anyone off, like last year. I especially liked Sean Penn's acceptance speech and chastising California voters for passing Prop 8.

February 22

I had the best birthday in recent memory! My uncle Ken & his roommate took me to Dave & Busters where we won over 3000 tickets playing the coin push game & trivia. You can get tons of tickets playing trivia. I used them to get this travel chess & wine set, a wooden box with a checker board on the outside and glass figures for the chess pieces inside. There is also some wine stuff, but I'm not sure how to use some of it. I didn't get to see Madea but I'll probably wait for the dvd like I usually do. The Oscars are tonight, which is always fun. I'm not sure who I'm rooting for, like last year I haven't even seen most of these movies yet, but I'm looking forward to seeing Milk & The Wrestler.

February 20

39 years old. Wow. I just feel weird. I woke up to leg pain, probably from my work out last night, I think I might have overdid it agan, but other than that it's been nice so far, Terri Clark sent me a birthday greeting and my co workers gave me a card & a Starbucks gift certificate. I'm hoping my uncle Kenny will call later and we'll have dinner like we usually do on my birthday. Perhaps Dave & Busters, I have quite a few points racked up for the prize room.

February 13

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Valentine's Day sucks. If you're in a relationship it never lives up to what it's supposed to, and if you're single like me, it's just a reminder of how you're alone and terminally single. I just try to be thankful for what I do have right now, even if I don't have a girlfriend. I have a very good job and health insurance. My family loves & accepts me and my grandparents, while not in perfect health, are still around and retain their mental facilities. I have several good friends to play cards and trivia with. I have my health. Speaking of which, I donated blood last night, and was pretty tired afterwards. I didn't go to the gym or anything, I don't think you're even supposed to after giving blood. I was hoping to get a Red Cross t shirt, but they weren't giving them out. Maybe next time. Some guy who received a stem cell transplant for his leukemia is now cured of his HIV because the donor had some sort of antigen that made him immune to the virus. Now that we have a good man in the White House maybe we can finally research stem cells to their full potential.

February 10

This morning I came to work and saw a huge banner with "Happy Birthday" strewn across my cubicle and a coffee cake! Sadly my birthday isn't until the 20th, which I had to tell my coworkers. Oh well, not that I don't appreciate the effort. Facebook is a funny thing, I've reconnected with several people from high school, some of whom I didn't even like back then, but if they're willing to pretend we were always friends where's the harm?

February 4

Last night was the Poker Tournament, I didn't do badly, but I didn't win either. Instead, I stuffed myself on pasta and felt a little light-headed as a result of all the carbs. One of my friends was nice enough to buy me a drink, I like chick drinks. I should probably try something different once in a while, like a rum & coke or the like. I tend to stick to my routine a little too closely. Life in Mars is turning out to be a pretty good show, I like the lead actor, and it seems to follow 1973 pretty well. Of course, I was 3 years old at the time, so I'm not remembering, only going on what I've read about the time period. Funny to think about how they didn't even have Diet Coke back then, if you wanted a low calorie soft drink you had to order Tab which would have been made with saccarine. Nasty. The music that year was pretty good though, I listen to the 70's channel on my Sirius radio all the time. Tonight will be my first night back at the gym since my surgery, so I have a lot of catching up to do.

February 3

I can't believe I'm about to turn 39. I suppose it's better than 40. I'm driving a friend to the airport after work, than heading straight to play in the quarterly poker tournament. I did really well this quarter, I think I'm ranked 9th or something overall. I kind of wish I hadn't given away my winter coat, I could really use something thicker than my hoodie, even if that coat was way too big. Perhaps I should just go ahead and buy something thicker. The leather jacket sure doesn't keep me warm, it's more for looks. I'll swing by the mall later and see what I can find.

January 28

I talked to my Dad last night, my Stepmother called me by accident, apparently my number is right next to my half-sister's (also named Michelle) in her phonebook. I knew right away what happened when I picked up the phone and she started talking in Spanish. Anyway, I talked to my Dad for a few minutes, and things are not going well in California, the state's out of money and people receiving unemployment checks might not get anything in the mail next week unless the government helps them out. They need to tax those movie stars making millions of dollars on crap movies like "Love Guru" and the like, or maybe make them start paying a "Bad film tax" if the movie is pure crap they have to personally start funding they state's shortfall. Finally, a chance to get even with Joe Eszterhas for "Showgirls."

January 27

My surgery went great, I didn't feel a thing. I don't even remember anything, one minute they were telling me to roll over on a blue mat, the next thing I know they're rolling me into recovery. I'm just glad it's over. Afterwards, two of my friends picked me up and we had breakfast together. I didn't even fill the scrip he gave me for painkillers, that stuff's too addictive.

January 23

My surgery is scheduled for Monday morning, 8:00 a.m. Should be a fairly simple procedure, and one of my friends is going to swing by afterwards and drive me home. I've never been knocked out by anesthesia before though, so I had to give a blood sample and sign a form promising I wouldn't sue if I croaked during surgery. I keep thinking of the Weird Al video for "Like a Surgeon" where these incompetents are watching cartoons on the heart monitor and a lion is randomly sauntering thru the operating room. Hope it goes well.

January 20

Today is such an exciting day! Not only is it historic, but you can practically feel the goodwill and excitement coming off the masses every time you turn on the tv. Unfortunately I don't have streaming video on my work computer, so I'll have to wait until I get home to watch the Inauguration, but perhaps the tv at the club where I play cards will be on the coverage instead of American Idol for once. Who wants to listen to bad karaoke anyway?

January 19

Holy Frak! Ellen Tigh is the fifth and final Cylon. That didn't surprise me all that much, I knew it would be a familiar face that was no longer in the fleet. What surprised me was that the 13th tribe from Earth were all Cylons. Kind of makes me wonder what year the Battlestar is set in, if Earth was nuked 2000 years ago.

January 16

This cold weather totally sucks. Part of the reason I left Cincinnati was to escape cold weather, not to mention snow & sleet. Don't even get me started on black ice. At least I didn't have to scrape frost off my window this morning. I hate doing that. My doctor's visit went well, looks like I'll be having some minor outpatient surgery in the near future, no big thing. I read a really amusing Michael Phelps interview while I was waiting in the lobby, and the doctors were all really nice. Hopefully this will all be over within a week.

January 14

I just found out that Reaper isn't coming back until March 17. Grrr! I suppose I shouldn't complain, usually my favorite shows are cancelled midseason. I'm still waiting to hear from my realtor about the condo we looked at, it has to be FHA approved for me to get a loan.

January 13

Last night me & my realtor looked at a couple of condos, one was locked and we couldn't get in, but we'll come back to that one. The next one was actually very nice, really nice kitchen, but the fridge & oven were gone, I'm guessing it was a foreclosure and the previous owners stripped it of everything of value. The dishwasher's still there. It will be really nice once it's fixed up, but I don't know what's up with all the wall size mirrors in every room. Those have got to go. I'll also need to paint & varnish. I'm thinking a mini fridge, hot plate & toaster oven on a microwave cart is all I really need, I don't need to spend $1000 on appliances that I won't use that often anyway.

Jan 5

I had a decent weekend, Friday I get a call from my former friend's sister asking me if I would like to meet her and her other sister for dinner at a seafood place in Marietta. After stuffing ourselves on crab legs we went shopping and I bought a new GT Express 101 for my kitchen, I've been wanting one for ages. They're nice people, I'm glad they invited me. Saturday me & another friend played trivia at Barnacles, and would have done well if I hadn't missed the bonus question, oh well. Oysters are yummy. Sunday I played cards at the Stagedoor and found another possible realtor who gave me her business card, so if my realtor doesn't call me soon, I will have no shortage of alternatives.

Jan 4

My head hurts and I'm in a bad mood.

Jan 2

Wow, a new year. New Year's Eve wasn't bad, I spent it with my friends at the Stagedoor and we watched the ball drop on tv. The music wasn't bad and there was plenty of parking. I ended up sitting with this straight couple which was kind of weird, the husband kept putting his hand on my knee. I still need to buy some calenders, I always wait until January to buy them at 75% off.