miasma

...and no time to say it. i have been working WAY TOO MUCH, yet everything is in the air and i'm not sure and everything is super-temporary and i have all these major decisions looming over my head. i'm very tired and sick a lot of the time right now.

i can't wait to go camping with my friend Laurel in three weeks. that will be the freaking best. i love camping. and i love Laurel, and it's her birthday, so it's going to rule.

what else, hmmm, D is playing keyboard for my enjoyment this evening. he is quite the talented fella.

i filed my federal taxes earlier today, i reckon i'll do the state taxes after i finish this little blog post.

tonight we watched No Country For Old Men and i guess that was really awesome, but wtf _happened_ at the end? wtf indeed. nice texture, lots of mumbling; felt rather confused and dissatisfied when it ended.

went to the park today for a couple hours and sat in the sun with some old pals i hadn't physically seen for several months. was nice. had baguette & goat cheese, some cucumber with random spices - i think garam masala, coriander and a little salt, it wasn't that great but didn't taste bad, and a China Cola - it's sans caffeine. been on a little health kick lately, no drinking, no smoking, no unnecessary medications, no caffeine... my body is a temple. right.

at Rainbow, i picked up these little buddies - they were instantly bummed and droopy in the rare SF heat, but they still smell really good.

seems i had something to say after all.

i subscribed to National Geographic. it's only $15 for 12 issues! this may be a hallmark of getting old, but i don't care. i'm always psyched when i go to an appointment somewhere and i find issues of NG because they have the craziest pictures and interesting stories, and i always want to steal them, but i don't because i think stealing is wrong.

for instance... i was standing at the corner by my apartment this afternoon, waiting to cross the road, when i heard, "GO GO GO!!!" i turned to see two young boys, i'd say around 10-12 years old, riding their bikes up the sidewalk towards me, one with a car stereo in his hands - cords dangling everywhere. they whizzed past me and did some dumb maneuver in the intersection that caused drivers to yell, yet managed to escape unharmed and ride off into the projects, of course. i wish i could have maced the little shits. all this time i blamed the crackheads and hobos. grrr.

this morning, D and i went to brunch at the cheap place he likes at 19th & Valencia - i don't know what's it's called. Valencia Pizza & Pasta? anyway, they have super cheap breakfast and each person gets a whole piece of fruit included with their entrée. today we got oranges. we've gotten pears, bananas, and apples before. our entire meal came to $12.31 and we were too full to finish.

on the way back, we went down Caledonia Alley to check out a new-ish Swoon wheatpaste. here are some pics from the alley:

Mumiez, Girafa, Swoon, Remio, etc

Swoon

Herrow & Mildred

flowers made from plastic bags

These are a few of my favorite things about my new job:

1. My commute. I ride my bicycle there and back when the weather is tolerable and/or I don't have to carry a bunch of stuff. According to Google, it's about 1.8 miles each way, which is more than I thought. I seem to make it in about 15 minutes. I'm slow because I haven't exercised regularly since before my last job that I had to drive to every day.

2. Location, location, location! I'm near the Campers store, Café Madeliene, the Apple store, Macy's, Betsey Johnson, my bank, Walgreens AND Rite Aid, agnés b., Armani, Paperwhirl, Benetton, BART, Westfield mall - basically, everything.

3. My desk. It's just the right height and my lamp is nice. My chair could be a little higher, but I have yet to have back or shoulder problems except for on the first day when I was all nervous and excited.

4. My schedule. I work 5 hours a day, 4 days per week. This leaves me enough time to work on other projects, like helping out with Hi-Fructose and working on another site for a friend. I even have time to paint and draw. Amazing, I know!

5. The bathroom. It's nice! WAY nicer than my last work-bathroom experience.

6. The dress code. There isn't one. Hooray!

7. The content. Being in the know about loads of neat stuff going on and around town is kinda priceless.

8. My computer. It's fast and can handle many, many applications and files open at once.

9. The possibilities. There are going to be lots of changes and upgrades in the near future, and there aren't many people there with experience managing online content both from an editorial and a technical standpoint as well as a media and content producer. I'm psyched to be involved in organizing and setting up new protocols and systems. Templates, grouping like items, standards - love it. I love me some structure.

10. The pay. Nuff said.

Yep, all good. So far, of course, everyone has been really nice. I even ran into an old friend, so there's a familiar face. There's been no attitude, no machismo - let me say what a relief it is to work in a mostly feminine atmosphere. I'm sure there's some catty drama brewing in the shadows, but for now, everyone is still civil and on their good behavior. Judgment has yet to be passed, lines yet crossed, differences yet discovered. I'm still just the girl in the corner who sits by Hayley and has a weird name. I'm the girl who has quiche, mixed greens, and half-decaf coffee for lunch almost every day. The fellas act like PEOPLE rather than acting like they're the MEN and so they know everything and decide everything. I think the ratio of male to female is probably 40/60, but the environment is decidedly human, informal and modern. The big boss sits in the same room with all the rest of us. People bring their dogs to work. This morning when I went up to the 4th floor to retrieve something from the printer, the entire sales department was nodding along with (or at least tolerating) The Twist-inducing rumble of The Doors' "Break on Through." That's my favorite Doors song. It bodes well.