Learning experience

I recently learned something new about my love interest. He is deep in debt with his credit card company harrassing him because he put all his college tuition, books, fees, etc. on his credit card. He graduated in 2006. He thought if he cashed in his 401K plan at work, he could pay off his debt. He asked my opinion on that.

When he first mention he had student loans to pay off still, I naturally thought he meant the government student loan kind that one can deduct off your taxes. One gets 10 years to pay those off and low interest that no credit card could compete with. Apparently his parents did not teach him about financial aid packages.

I was polite enough not to ask what the hell was he thinking putting on his college bills on a credit card and why didn't his parents help him out. I simply stated that 401k plans are not savings accounts, they are retirement funds. I further explained if he cashed his in to pay off his credit card that he will be paying income tax on that amount he takes out. I didn't mention all the early take out fees he would pay too, I was being polite. I told him my former manager emptied her husband's 401k to pay off their credit card debt and their H&R Block person freaked when she saw what they owed in taxes. Need I say more what a unwise idea that is if one is not prepared to pay a heavy tax bill next year. Posty later. Bye!

That bastard

After my 30th birthday I desperately searched for a man online to only get one date. That date was not interested in me. Months later he emailed wondering what happened to me and we became email pals for about a year now.

Today he emails stating he might not have given me enough of a chance and wants me to send more photos to convince him to take me out again. Excuse me? I think HE should be on his knees kissing my ass begging for ME to give him another chance. I fail to see why I should.
Post later. Bye!

I wish to be a hermit

Well this past week at work I was called a pessimist and told I need to volunteer. With all this unsolicited advice, I wish to be a hermit to get away from these people who won't get out of my face.

1st the pessimist part. I explained to one of the janitors who bought my book that I gave up trying sell my books so I'm a pessimist since I'm not trying very hard. Excuse me? I sold 11 copies to friends and family who bought them simply because I wrote it. I had it listed on amazon.com for 2 1/2 months and sold 0 copies. I am not going to every book store owner in the city begging to sell my books. I am an unknown author, how am I going to compete with books that have be reviewed and advertised? I hate to remove stars from my friends' eyes, but that is what I am up against. He did speak to the guy working in the gift shop about my book and oh, he has to ask the manager about it. Before anyone else goes into how other unknown authors made it big, please remove the stars from your eyes, walk into a bookstore, and look at the clearance table. Not every book published becomes a best seller. That is not pessimism, that's reality.

Now the I need to volunteer part. I was telling the new guy how boring I am at home. I play with my cats, watch movies, play on the computer, go shopping, and work on my stories. He says I need to volunteer for Hope Ministries because "we need to get you out of your house". I explain I did the volunteer thing and didn't care for it. Hope Ministries is always taking volunteers, besides I might meet someone. Yeah, like I met nobody at my other volunteer gigs. I am through with volunteering. I told him that if I need to get out more, I will go shopping. I wish he would get out of my face, I feel like a science project or makeover project.

Anyway, we were busy at work. Drake Relays are this week so we are sold out. Even if someone is stranded on the highway and needs a car, we don't have any. I guess the car rental next door has a problem with their city manager overbooking them. Sure it is nice to make money, but can't screw yourself out of cars in the process. Then on top of that, they are working with a skeleton crew, which means always short handed on car washers and long lines at the counters. I think their new city manager is too ambitious. Better go to bed now. Post later. Bye!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!

I hope your day is better than mine.

I get awoken just before 10:00 by the carpet cleaners because the damn bitches in the manager's office never called me to say when they were coming so I could be ready (I prefer not to be in the shower when people knock) so the guy offers to come back tomorrow. No, I just need a minute to pick things up. He needs a minute to get the machine ready. Open the balcony door so the cats are safe from the noise and escaping. Pick up living room, bedroom, and closet. Get my socks wet, cause I'm in my pj's and bed socks, walking to a chair in the dining room. Guy finishes saying he couldn't get all the cat hair so I might want to go over it with a vaccuum to get all the cat hair. I grab the cat hair off the carpet with my hands. He also said not to place the wood and metal furniture back for 2-3 hours because the wood stains and metal rusts in contact with the shampoo. I watch Malcolm in the Middle episode and walk on carpet to change into slippers and sweatpants. I have to get these sopping wet socks off.

Do litterbox and food/water. Change clothes. Take cats outside. We go over to the playground. 40 minutes later it is time to go home. Where's Frodo? I cry his name for 15 minutes trying to find this cat. I heard one meow near the playground but couldn't find him. Precious keeps running back across the street, I presume cause Frodo likes to hide in the bushes across the playground or maybe just chasing birds. I check the woods behind the playground. Last I saw Frodo he was behind the garage so I check there and stomp through the thorns and brush. Frodo! Behind the neighbors' fence trapped. How did he get over there? He must have climb a tree and jumped over but couldn't get back. The fence is chest high so I can't bend over and grab him. My sneakers won't fit in the fence holes. He got frightened when I managed to toss a branch over so he can climb up, so put branch back. There was a tree, but then I thought "How am I going to jump back over"? I found a gate latch but there were so many boards against it that I couldn't open it. So I'm looking around for something to help Frodo get over the fence. I finally had to go back home and get the cat tower and Frodo wants to smell the flowers. I call and call him to come, but hides under the porch. I climbed a tree ripping my sweatpants when they got caught on the fence and stuck for a minute not able to get down, and then had to chase Frodo around the neighbors' yard with him hiding and hissing at me. If he was mad at me, I was pissed off with ripped pants. He climbed a tree near the fence and stopped. I grabbed him scratching and yowling. I pried him off my shirt and dropped him over the fence. Stepped over on cat tower and climb down tree. It took me a hour to get the cats back inside. Then they follow me to the door, but Frodo is still not ready to come in. After chasing him down, I carried him back in. I check the damage in the mirror of my pants. I have cuts on my skin.

I changed clothes and went to exercise at the new exercise room. I did the treadmill and bicycle. Then I lifted the tiny weighs and got out my jump rope. I was there about 40 minutes. The equipment make you do a 5 minute cool down. Now I am watching Dr. Phil about violent teenagers in a family and parents saying "That's the only way I can control them!" Yeah, try controlling my cats. Post later. Bye!

Vet visit

Took Precious to the vet. He inspected and then washed his eye. He found inflammation but nothing serious like cornea ulcers, whatever that is. So he gave me steroid eye drops to put in every 8 hours to rid the inflammation, for 2-4 days. Precious was very good at the office letting the man do uncomfortable things to his eye, he must be in pain. Since I got up earlier than usual, I went back to bed when I got home. I got the first eye drop in w/out much more than a meow when he saw me with the bottle. 2nd wasn't so easy. Precious squirmed and shut his eye and I missed 4 times until hitting the jackpot. I think it was more of a 3 drop squirt, but I was getting impatient. Even better, goo is coming out of his other eye. I have to check now for squinting. He is sleeping right now so it is hard to tell.

If I thought I had adventure, it was nothing compared to my coworker. Her stepdaughter called to say her brother bit her leg, breaking the skin and bleeding, so she wants stepmom to come pick him up. NO. For starters she never picks up her stepchildren, her husband does that so she doesn't have to deal with the ex-girlfriend. She explains to the stepdaughter that she is at work until after she goes to bed. But her father will be home from work soon so she will give him a call. It was a lengthy call with my coworker pulling the phone cord into the backroom so we didn't hear the entire conversation. She is fed up with taking the kids simply because this woman can discipline her own kids and wants to move forward with taking custody of them before he is completely out of control. This woman apparently called the police last week because her son ran around the house calling her bad names I shan't repeat. Sadly, the police had better things to do than arrest an 8-year-old boy for calling his mother bad names. The husband calls over and trade insults as usual with the ex-girlfriend. Then he refused to drive over her house to pick up the son because it was not his weekend and her lack of discipline is not his problem. She has to bring the son if she can't control him. She puts down the phone and announces to her daughter that Daddy doesn't care about her leg. I'm unsure at what point he threaten to sue for custody if she can't control her kids, which led to more insults at each other. My coworker was displeased he mentioned their plot to take over custody cause now she will be up in arms. Then she called the manager to explain her situation and left work 4 hours early to deal with this problem. I wished her good luck when she left. She is going to need it.

Post later. Bye!

Squinting cat

My Precious has been squinting his right eye lately with goo coming out and running down his nose. I scratch his cheek to relax his eye muscles. I checked out Petco.com and it said squinting indicates pain while goo can mean nothing or an infection. It said to see a vet right away when your cat squints. Guess I will be making an appointment tomorrow. Post later. Bye!

That intoxicating catnip

Shopping today, I found a dried catnip bunch of the buds that is the most potent of the catnip plant. My cats never cared for catnip so I thought I'd give it one more try. Frodo found it too in the sacks and went bonkers ripping at the plastic cover. I have catnip all over my hallway and in Frodo's fur. Precious sniffed it and walked away. Oh well. I now have the leftover sprigs in a bud vase by the door in case Frodo needs more to sniff. Post later. Bye!

Funny

I am scrambling to close with people keep coming to the counter, delayed flights with a customer flying on stand by who never called to say he is coming tomorrow (never shows up), and a lady need to exchange cars right before we close (which means she needs to transfer her stuff to the 2nd car and I have to wait for the key to be returned). Anyway, the car rental next door goes home. Guys come up asking if the person next door is here, they have a reservation. Door's closed, empty drawers are left oepn: I'd say they went home. Where are the cars parked? Right outside the door. Can we just get our car, the keys are in them, and take off? Well, if you have a screwdriver you can probably steal one, but you might be arrested for driving a stolen car. They've gone home, there is nobody working at that car rental. They get on their reservation phone and next door's phone rang, with nobody answering because they are closed. I rent them a car.

Yes there are larger airports open 24 hrs. where the cars are parked down the street and everyone has to take a shuttle bus to get to them, the keys are in the cars in the secured lot. But in Des Moines where all car rentals' cars are parked outside the door, FAA says the cars have to be locked at all times so they have to get keys from us, which means we have to be open to get a key. Welcome to Des Moines. Post later. Bye!

My shadow

Had my 3rd date with Mr. Email. We visited the Botanical Center, greenhouse and outside gardens in the cold wind. Why the website says 2 hours to walk through everything is beyond me, it took us 30 minutes. He pretty much jabbered away walking behind me as a I walked around. Half the time I wasn't listening. I turned my head to speak to him so he could hear me. Though it was hard to hear anyway with the waterfall roaring. People think we should be handing hands and smooching, but no, pretty much no physical contact this time either. I tossed a penny in the fish pond and he did too. I asked if he finished my novel. He did last week. I can't recall what he said about it cause it was one of those generic terms like good, ok, fine so I'm unsure of his thoughts of it. He didn't need food at the Cafe and I didn't see anything I liked in the gift shop. He shadowed me even in the gift shop too.

I think he has a thing about walking me to my car. Sorry I'm unaccustomed to someone walking me to my car, perhaps he's just a gentleman. I asked if he wanted to go to the zoo next and he said yes. I asked if he needed directions. No I'll find it, he says. I said go that way to 9th St, which turns into SW 9th and the zoo is on SW 9th. He wanted to stop on the way to get a pop and offered to get one for me with his buy one get one free caps. I said no. Guess what, 9th St is closed due to construction. Had to take the long, scenic route. But at least I knew where I was going. I waited for him and he didn't take too long.

He still walked behind me through the zoo. I think we were the only people there. I asked if he wanted anything from the cafe and he wanted a pop, but not hungry. I ordered a hamburger and fries meal, my appetite kicked in. He ordered a cheeseburger and fries meal. He said thank you for reminding him to eat, he didn't have breakfast and starting to get hungry. One of the birds got in and stared at us. It even jumped on the table. We did not feed the bird and the cafe guy chased it out. He offered his fries because he ate too fast his stomach disagreed with him. We watched the sea loins and harbor seal get fed. He did say he wanted to see the big cats since there was an enlosure to see them. I felt so sorry for the tigers pacing back and forth in their cages. Poor things. I put in money in the rain forest collection and he did too. We passed up the petting zoo of goats and llamas. I got a bunch of stuffed animals and he got a postcard and bookmark. I saw the cutest thing for my baby niece, but her birthday is in November, a stuffed animal on a leash and harness. She would love that, but I don't want to spoil her too much. I asked if he wanted to call it a day or go somewhere else. No, we can call it a day. He walked me to my car. The End.

The cats sniffed the stuffed animals but have yet to chew on the tags. I stepped on Precious's paw in the kitchen. I try to be careful. Frodo went up to him and licked his cheek. They are so sweet. Post later. Bye!

New saying

I was thinking of my future class reunion that will come around in a couple more years and thinking of all the people who left me behind for greener patures, thus leaving me behind out in cold. And how I have improved since then. Anyway, I came up with a good saying for my next book.

If I never let you suffer out in the cold, you will never learn to make your own fire.

I may be a paid writer yet. Post later. Bye!