THE PERFECT END TO THE PERFECT WEEKEND

Ever wonder how to top off a weekend of pain in just that perfect way?

 

Imagine you spent your entire weekend working like a crazy person (20 some hours combined Sat & Sun) at the end of a week working like a crazy person.

 

Tomorrow's going to suck. It's going to start sucking bright and early and continue at least all day.  At a minimum, Tues & Wednesday  too.

 

So now it's about 6pm Sunday and you're off the hook (at least for the remainder of the day) and now you are wondering how to finish off such a weekend.. humm? Bar? Sushi? Movie? Bottle of wine, movie on the couch? Nice long walk with the dogs?

 

How about a 3.5 hour trip to the Emergency Room!!??!?!

 

Yeeeeeaaaaahhhhh!

 

So I left work and went to the gym, I spent the weekend living off of donuts and pizza. I really felt like it was time to get some exercise. I ran on the treadmill a little over 2.5 miles and had to stop because my ribs we starting to hurt again. So I stopped.

 

I went out to run errands and when I was in Target I bent down and heard and felt a loud pop. Last time was different, I felt the pop- this time I heard it too and its different.. much more excruciating. I literally thought I had snapped a rib.

 

I managed to get myself home (I couldn't get a hold of the husband since he was out doing yard work) and after Rob showered and brushed his hair he took me to the emergency room.

 

Start to finish it was about 3.5 hours. The doc didn't see any breaks in the bone but said he couldn't rule it out completely, I did most defiantly tear my intercostal muscles (between the ribs). They gave me a shot of vicodin and gave me a prescription of an anti-inflammatory and vicodin. Warned me that developing pneumonia is common with this type of injury (because breathing is so fucking painful).

 

Great! Something to look forward to.

 

See? The perfect end to the perfect weekend? And you thought it couldn't be done..

NO GOOD

OMG. I am so fucking tired I can barely type.

On Tuesday afternoon (on two hours notice) we were told that this project that we've been working on for months, that was scheduled to completed over a period of 2-4 weeks (which was still pretty unreasonable given the resources and the qualifications of the people involved) was now being compressed into 6 days.

Yep. Not a typo. 6 days.

This is hands down the most insane project I have ever seen. I had to work like a crazy person to get 11 documents drafted and approved by EOB Friday, now we've got 4 days (and cannot affect current production during that time) to get them executed and interim reviewed. One of them is 377 pages alone.

Already we've had one break completely from the start.

Press the On button.
The system powers up and the HMI displays the Main Menu Screen.

Uh.. nope. Nothing. Not doing anything. No light up, no go. Nothing.

Mandy now what? Triage. Move on to something else. Call the vendor at 8am Monday.

Had another fail yesterday. Done with it? Nope 3 days to fix it and finish testing.

This is being driven for 2 reasons: 1 they think the FDA is going to come in Oct and they said they would be finished with this on the last inspection and 2: someone is trying to impress France (corporate).

In the meantime, they are KILLING people. I have worked 65 hours since Wed. I am leaving in 20 min to go back and I expect to be there until about 9 or 1o again tonight.

I'm tired. I am frustrated. I want to throw things.

Worse yet- I have completely lost my sense of humor.

No good will become of this.

THE TIME HAS COME?

So, The Big Dick has gone to court to argue that he need only preserve records central to his job as the official who presides over the U.S. Senate, or relating to specific tasks assigned by the president.

Therefore, any records that he interprets to exist outside of this definition, he can destroy at his leisure. This (among other interesting topics) includes all of Cheney's records related to the Super Secret Energy Meeting with Oil Executives that eventually drove the Bush Energy Policy.

Yesterday, the Judge ruled against this bullshit argument and also stated that "Any violation by the preliminary injunction is punishable by immediate contempt -- including the power to jail the offender."

This is going to stop Cheney? No chance. I image he'll use the paper this ruling was printed on as the ignition source to burn everything he deems none of the business of the general American public.

But stop for a minute, just think. What if, he violated this injunction, actually got caught, and hauled off to jail? How hilarious would that be?

It will never happen, I know. But you can't help but bask in the amusement of the whole thing.

WELL PLAYED

I am stuck on the couch for the evening. I am probably going to be stuck on the couch for the weekend.

This so sucks.

SUCK. SUCK. SUCK. SUCK.

So this past Monday during my outdoor soccer game, I had a collision with some asshole, who nailed me just perfectly in my ribs on my left side that it bruised my ribs.

Anyone who's had bruised ribs knows the pure discomfort that it entails. Typically it's a long healing time injury, so great. Lucky me.

I wasn't by any means to the point I couldn't function, it was just very tender and uncomfortable.

Then last night was mt indoor soccer game. It all started out well.. I got knocked down by some other asshole and I remember thinking when it happened: Oh thank God he hit me on the right side, the left side would have really hurt.

Just under 2 minutes from the end of the game, I scored a goal (YEAH ME!) and when it went in, I threw my hands up in celebration and

POP

I felt it pull. The muscles on my back in between my ribs on my left side that were fatigued from the bruising pulled. And pulled bad... it was excrusiating. It took everything I had not to go down on my knees in tears.

I can't do anything. Damn core muscles, the ones you use for everything. Standing up, sitting down, picking up something, pushing a door, pulling a door, washing your fucking hair.. everything.

There's nothing I can do to really make it stop, some positions just put less pressure on the injury than others.. standing is better than laying down, and sitting is sorta in the middle. Coughing or sneezing makes me want to stab myself in the head.

I have some muscle relaxers, which really don't do much more than take the edge off, but hell it's better than nothing. Wine seems to help too.

I can forsee my weekend now. Muscle relaxers, wine, and crappy TV..

May as well drink the good stuff.

17 Sep 08

16 Sep 08

14 Sep 08

First stop, no unleaded no midgrade.



Second stop, nothing but unleaded, maximum of 10 gallons.

13 Sep 08

Sitting in line at the gas station for gas. I still can't even believe it.

12 Sep 08

11 Sep 08

10 Sep 08

09 Sep 08

08 Sep 08

07 Sep 08

06 Sep 08

05 Sep 08

ETHICS

Good God.

 

Just when I thought I had pretty much seen and heard it all as far as the flat out lines and blatant bullshit to be dished out in this Presidential Campaign then I saw this headline:

 

Karl Rove Says McCain Campaign Ad Went 'Too Far'

 

Karl Rove? This must be some poor bastard who has the same name as The Decider's personal "Turd Blossom"..

 

Nope. It was the actual Karl Rove.

 

Admittedly, his criticize was bipartisan. But seriously, Karl Rove who achieved the pinnacle of political sleaziness by using blatant bullshit along with completely blatant lies as a basis for terror- the tool that he used ultimately used to get The Decider re-elected..

 

You have got to be shitting me.

 

It's like being chastised for ethics by Satan himself.

 

This not even a week after:

 

Republican strategist John Feehery acknowledged that facts are far less important than themes when it comes to shaping the opinion of voters in the remaining weeks leading up to the November 4 elections.

Are you reading this?

This guy admitted ON THE RECORD that facts are not as important as the themes you feed the American people- If you can construct a theme (whether based on blatant lies or on overstretches truths)  and get people to believe in it, then that's the way you win and that makes it okay.

It baffles me that they think Americans are so stupid as to be less concerned with actual facts than of the glitzy catch phrase.

And at the same time, it scares the hell out of me that this may actually be true.

 

HYSTERIA

Ever have one of those moments that you think maybe you've shifted into a plot on the Twilight Zone or the beginning of an X-Files?

I had one of those yesterday.

The dealership gave me a loaner so I could go run errands and not be stuck there while they work on my car; it's free, I just had to put back the gas I used. Fine, no problem- I used about a gallon.

Earlier in the morning, ladies in the salon were talking about not being able to find gas because gas stations were running out and how the gas they were able to find the previous night was $4.79 and some ever saw it over $5 dollars..?? What the fuck?

I distinctly remember gas Friday morning on my way to work at the gas station I always pass being $3.65 (I have gotten into the habit of checking it every day).

They were also talking about lines. What? Lines at the gas station? You mean like that shit you see archive footage of from the 70's? One lady said she had to wait in line over 30 minutes to fill up and that after finding 3 stations that were out of gas.

This is insanity.

I filled up my gas tank Thurs morning. They were predicting landfall late Friday, so I figures gas would go up a bit after landfall and while they assessed the damage and what not.

How the FUCK can gas go up (there were places is Raleigh selling it over $5 a gallon) over $1.50 in a matter of hours before the fucking hurricane hit? I mean shit- they don't know what if any damage there was going to be.

That my friends is PRICE GOUGING! What a bunch of god damn bullshit!!

I didn't think much about it but I think I figured that by the time I needed to go top off the loaner that the hysteria will have died down some.

The prices seemed to have come down (the governor started threatening gas stations so that probably helped), when I got to the gas station is was $3.69. Low and behold, the place was fucking mobbed. Lines for each pump 3 cars deep. It took me about 15 minutes to get my gallon of gas.

On the way home I noticed some gas stations were back down to reasonable and some not; the one closes to my house was $4.39 (this not 30 min after paying $3.69 not even 15 miles away).

The cops have been called all over the city to gas stations, people are pissed and they are being assholes. Some stations have cops station there because they have had to call them multiple times. So much for that Bible Belt thing, huh??

This is absolutely ridiculous. This is the kinda shit that makes me want to go live in a cave somewhere or figure out how to make a car that runs on cat turds.

WILD WEST VIRGINIA WHITE WATER RAFTING & STRIPPER SPECTACULAR

I suck. I know.

I haven't been very good about posting here as of late. I think things just sorta got away from me leading up to the wedding and since.

This weekend, Rob is up somewhere in the middle of West Virginia. Camping.

*shutter* I hate the mere thought of camping.

One of his friends come college is getting married and this is the bachelor party. They are camping and doing some white water rafting, all near Southern Exposure strip joint.

It's been a while since the husband has seen all these guys, so here's hoping they have a hell of a good time.

In the meantime, I am home unsupervised this weekend. No idea what all I am going to do with myself. I have some errands to run this morning and an 8K race in Greensboro tomorrow.

Who knows? Maybe it will be a repeat of last weekend and I'll sit on my ass and not do a damn thing.

Decisions, decisions.

04 Sep 08

03 Sep 08

02 Sep 08

01 Sep 08

GOODBYE HANNA

What's left of Hanna's eye is over Raleigh right now and I am sitting here on the porch writing this.

We got quite a bit of rain over night and it looks like there's been some localised flooding (about another inch and our pool will be flooding as well) and some down trees and such around the area. The gusts of wind are pretty muted so it looks like all and all the worst (which wasn't much) is about over.

I expect it's going to rain for a few more hours and then that will be it.

And it looks like Ike is heading towards Florida and not us, as of now anyway, so that's good new for the Carolinas.

I am still not quite sure what I am going to do with myself this weekend- I am not very ambitious and since we original plans got knocked all to hell I seem to be just at a loss. I believe Rob is still planning on going to tailgate & to the NC State Game (I'm on the fence about that too), I guess we'll just wait and see.

For now, I think I'll make some breakfast.

HELLO HANNA

Fine. Fine. Fine.

Much to my dismay, Tropical Storm Hanna has pretty much managed to complete destroy my weekend plans- and it hasn't even arrived.

Originally, I was supposed to run a 5K race tomorrow morning then tailgate in the afternoon before the NC State Game. Sunday, we were either going to the beach or I was going to spend the day at the pool.

Enter Hanna.

The 5K race has been delayed until next week.

I refuse to tailgate in a Tropical Storm/Hurricane so the game's out too (maybe for Ohio State or for a playoff game for my Rams, but NC State vs William & Mary? Fuck that).

While it looks like there will be plenty of available parking for a change at the beach on Sunday; that along with my possible pool time is out too.

Damn.

We probably aren't going to be much more than some wind and rain. I think they are saying 2-4 inches and 40-60mph winds. That's fine. We need the rain.

I just finished shoving all of our outdoor furniture in the pool shed Jenga-style: 4 tiki torches, 2 lounge chairs, 3 end tables, 4 plastic chairs, 4 lawn chairs, an umbrella, the glass table and all four accompanying chairs. Damn, I am good. All the plants are in or on the floor of the screened in porch.

I'll fine with Hanna, but I don't want anything to do with Ike. Ike went from a Tropical Storm to a Cat 4 in about a minute & a half. I can't even grasp the damage if that thing slams into the Carolinas.

*shutter*

Everyone around here is still a little gun shy from Fran, which apparently did a lot of damage- some people didn't have power or water for weeks. I think someone told me Capital Blvd was closed for like 4-5 days. I can't imagine.

All that shit is staying in the pool shed until at least we know where Ike is going.

31 Aug 08

30 Aug 08

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26 Aug 08

We've oversold your flight, but your business is important to us. Please proceed to the Self-Rebooking Center. Pick up red phone and shove up ass. Thank you and have a nice day.

25 Aug 08