Yummy, Ergo, Lucy, Pain

We ordered from yummy.com again last night... and the food seriously arrived w/in 30 minutes. It's WILD! They gathered 62 items in 20 minutes, I'm in awe! The speed to which they come almost makes it worth the cost. Albertsons (aka. Jewel) also delivers. I looked at their prices & they might be cheaper overall, but they don't have same day delivery AND their site is annoying & difficult to navigate through, which makes shopping take FOREVER! That goes against the whole point in online shopping. I'm supposed to be saving time. I got so frustrated last night after finding only 5 items that I said screw it & ordered from Yummy. The food was here w/in 30 min & I was DONE w/it! (I feel like a 5 year old when I say that damn word) :)

All week I was planning on going to the farmer's market down the street today... but last night w/o thinking I ordered a bunch of fruits & veggies! I guess I could've gone down there to get some flowers (my favorite thing there) but it just didn't seem worth the trouble.

This past week my right wrist has really started to hurt me BAD! Carpal Tunnel symptoms. I've always had a weak wrist as does my mom & aunt. My aunt even had surgery on hers. I'm on the computer most of the time and I think I've found the main problem. I position my keyboard to line up with my left hand. I position the mouse to line up with my right hand. So, if I only typed w/my right hand & always had my hand on the mouse I would do really well. The problem comes when I move my right hand over to type. Then all of a sudden my wrist is bending at a 30 degree angle... NOT GOOD! I think it's about time to invest in a ergonomic keyboard. I really like the one pictured. It's from Best Buy for $60. I don't think that's too bad. Hopefully I'll also be able to convince my boss to get one for me at work. I mean, I'm on the computer more there than anywhere else. He is really strict about hardware though, so I might have to do a little begging :-/

Watching I Love Lucy episodes are like medicine. I laugh SO much... as does Dave and he NEVER laughs at movies. Yeah, a little chuckle or a "ha" here & there but never laughing. I love it!

All & all life has been more down than up... my health is deteriorating, I'm extremely unmotivated, and confused... but I've learned a lot of valuable things this past week, so I'm trying to focus on that. Regardless, I need to get out of this f'in slump! And to do that I think I have to find my 'thing'... whatever that is!?!? But that will probably have to be put off a bit, I've got laundry & cleaning to do today... but I'll probalby just get to the laundry. We're out of unmentionables & doing laundry after work SUCKS!

Lots of Media...

Not that my opinion on books or movies is or should be the end all or be all... I just like documenting my media experiences.

Audiobooks:

Naked, by David Sedaris. This is my least favorite of the 4 David Sedaris books that I have listened to, but I still really liked it. I admire his style of thinking & writing a lot. I listen to his audiobooks in the car on the way to & from work and it actually makes me look forward to the drive a bit. It makes the stressful & horrible drive 1000x more enjoyable.



Holidays on Ice, by David Sedaris. Initially I was disappointed in this book. It wasn't like the other 2 I had listened to before this (Me Talk Pretty One Day & Dress Your Family in Corduroy & Denim). However, one of my methods in judging books & movies is if they get me thinking of them later. I wasn't expecting the dark humor & disturbing issues addressed, but once I thought about it a little more... I really liked it!


DVD:

If you find your time valuable, then avoid Failure to Launch starting Matthew McConaughey & Sarah Jessica Parker. Don't get me wrong, Mr. McConaughey can be nice to watch... but after a while it gets tiring watching him play the same character. I'll admit there were a few funny lines, but not enough to save the stale script. Want to see Matthew doing the same thing in a more interesting way? Just re-watch How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days.



The next I Love Lucy DVD came in to day from Netflix (Season 1, Disk 6). Though I haven't seen it I am confident in saying that I'm going to LOVE it! :)






Syriana, this movie kept me on my toes. The acting was good, I just felt like there was something missing, but I can't put my finger on it. Due to computer problems & needing to sleep I was forced to watch the movie in 2 parts, which I hate. I think of a movie as an 'experience.' I feel like it should be watched straight though, from beginning to end the way that it is intended to be watched to get the full impact. When I turned the movie off I was anxious to find out what was going to happen. By the time I put it on again 2 days later, the hype was gone & I calmly watched the climax... I ended up getting a bit bored. Despite that, I still think it is a good movie for people to see! And though I like George Clooney as an actor & I think he did a good job in Syriana, I'm not sure I agree with him getting an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor... but congrats to him anyway :)

The Family Stone is a christmas move starting Sarah Jessica Parker, Luke Wilson(yea!), Rachel McAdams, Claire Danes, Dermot Mulroney, Diane Keaton, & a few others. All of the actors made some good & bad decisions. The script wasn't all that great, but what do you expect from a modern christmas movie!?! Somehow it made me laugh & cry... it's not a 'must see' just in the pile of 'if it's on I'll watch it.'

OK, that's enough for now... :)

Tony Royster

My sister just shared this YouTube video w/me... This kid is 12 & is AWESOME!



YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMn2ZC8m-DM

Thanks Jen!

Prescriptions for Preschoolers

My right eye is messed up AGAIN in a different way! I think it is due to an eyelash that wandered behind my eye that I went after. It feels bruised & the bottom lid is swollen... not pretty. I went to Walgreens for lunch to fill a prescription from my eye doctor. It is for the previous problem, but I figured that the medication would probably help. Just in case the initial problem was still there.

Anyway, once they filled the prescription I asked the woman what the drops actually did. "If you step over here I can bring someone over to explain it to you." This woman came over, picked up my prescription, & read the prescription information to me. I HATE THAT CRAP!!! I KNOW how to read, but I didn't know that information was going to be there... in the bag to read. It's not like it was hard to understand either.

Common Uses: "This medication is a corticosteroid used to treat swelling, itching, redness, and irritation of the eyes and eyelids...."

Congrats, your pharmaceutical school gave you the ability to read... now you get a white coat! Grow a brain & just point me in the right direction, please!

Puppy Snatcher

This is too cute.



youtube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBYI_OONSNc

Note: I don't think it's right for that dog to be tied up on such a short chain :(

So Happy to Entertain You

Despite all of the loving and planning that I've done in my life. All of the thinking and hoping. The reasonable and well thought decisions, the good intentions, unconditional love and support... right now I feel like my life is just a joke.

1/2 way there!

I just completed carpayment booklet 1 of 2!!

YEA!

Sleep deprivation (very long)

Basically, from the time that I started working here until now I have gotten more and more and more behind on sleep... and it has really started to catch up to me this last month. I don't have insomnia, my sleep deprivation is completely because of my stupidity.

With hopes of getting motivated to make a change, I decided to do some research to see the negative side effects from sleep deprivation. I came across a study done by the National Sleep Foundation. They surveyed Americans and put them into 5 categories. I fall into the category of "Dragging Duo's." The description is summarized as:
"Members of this segment tend to be out of bed early, work long hours and not get the amount of sleep they feel they need to function at their best. Most say their partner has some symptom of insomnia. Their sleep habits have some negative impact on their daily lives and relationships."

Week nights I don't lay down until after 11:30, sometimes as late as 12 or 1. My alarm goes off at 7. With every day of the week that goes by I get deeper & deeper into the hole with lack of sleep. By Friday I'm worthless. People encourage me to "go out & do things," but I literally don't have the energy. I'm done.

When the weekend finally gets here I crash into it. I try to sleep as much as possible, while not totally screwing up my "sleep schedule," but what schedule is there really? I guess I'm just used to doing that before my lamictal days.

I'm sure that Dave's schedule doesn't help. He doesn't go to sleep usually until b/w 2:00-4:00 am on weekdays. When he gets into bed, 90% of the time I wake up. I'm able to fall asleep again within a 1/2 hour, but it totally interrupts my sleep.

I don't blame him though, when we lived together before it wasn't as bad because we had a real bed, but when someone else gets on an air mattress you're up, literally. Then if he gets out of the bed, I drop down at least 2-3 inches. It's not a slow sinking, but literally a drop. It's also really loud. He does his best to be quiet, but there is nothing he or anyone can do to prevent that.

Anyway, I am fully aware that I have to do something. I have to take more responsibility and just f'in lay down earlier!!! It's harder than it sounds. One of the symptoms below is working more than 40 hrs/week. On a technicality since I get an hour in the middle of my day for lunch, thus "not working" I do "work" 8 hrs.

But somehow the people who work "9 to 5" are also considered to work for 8 hours, so how the F*&% are the people working 9-5 getting paid & viewed to work the same amount of hours as me when I have to be here from 8-5, or 8:30-5:30!?!?!?!?!? Do they not eat lunch, NO! It's bullshit! I work f'in 45 hour weeks! Not 40 hr weeks like I get paid for. This country is a piece of shit and is twisting the work day trying to squeeze the life out of the people working in it. And honestly, I would be a lot more productive if I had only 7 hours to complete my tasks as opposed to 8. To help correct this I have started to not take lunch. Work through it & leave 1/2 hr early. Thus being in this place for 8 1/2 hrs which I can handle a lot more easily. On a human factors level not taking a big break isn't 'healthy,' but my little blogging breaks take up that 1/2 hr of lunch through out the day... so I am being somewhat honest by not leaving after 8 hours.

Nate gave Dave advice a while ago, which I agree with. He says that a job won't suck as much if you're not exhausted. Is my lack of sleep the reason that I'm frustrated with my job? Probably not, but I'm sure that it's a significant factor in the equation.

Anyway, I have to get back to working. Numbers need to be crunched. You can read about the study here. At www.sleepfoundation.org. Below is the section on me, a Dragging Duo. (the italicized bullets don't apply to me, but are on the list).

Who are Dragging Duos?
-More than any other segment, Dragging Duos are likely to be partnered(80%, compared to 67% overall).
-Most Dragging Duos are employed(76%, compared to 65% overall) and many are putting in long hours on-the-job, working over 40 hours per week(55%, compared to 42% overall).
–Dragging Duos are more likely than the average working adult to be employed in technical(33%, compared to 27% overall) or professional managerial(21%, compared to 15% overall) occupations.

How are the Dragging Duos sleeping?
-Compared to the average sleeper, Dragging Duos are less likely than the other segments to report that they “had a good night’s sleep”every night or almost every (35%, compared to 49% overall).
-Many Dragging Duos feel that they are getting less sleep than they need to function at their best (41%, compared to 23% overall). They try to make up their sleep on the weekends by sleeping an average of 7.8 hours (compared to 6.8 hours during the week).
-Dragging Duos tend to rise early during the week, as most are out of bed by 7:00 am (72%, compared to 63% overall).
-The Dragging Duos appear to bring their work home with them, since many (30%) say that at least a few nights each week they are still engaged in activities relating to their jobs within an hour of going to bed(compared to 18% overall).
-Dragging Duos are the most likely of all the segments to be able to fall asleep in less than fifteen minutes(83%, compared to 53% overall).
–In fact, it only takes Dragging Duos an average of about 11 minutes to fall asleep on most nights (compared to 23 minutes overall).
-Most Dragging Duos report that their partner has at least one symptom of insomnia(92%, compared to 76% overall).
–Yet, more so than the average sleeper, they prefer to(73%, compared to 62% overall) and do usually sleep with their significant other(71%, compared to 61% overall).
-Only 19% of Dragging Duos feel they have a sleep problem, which is very similar to all adults (21%). And, they are no more likelythan the typical adult to be at risk for any sleep disorder(34%, compared to 34% overall).


How does the Dragging Duos' sleep habbits impact their daily lives?
-The sleep habits of the Dragging Duos do appear to have some negative impact on their daily lives and relationships.
-During their wake time, some Dragging Duos say that they feel tired, fatigued or not up to parat least three days each week (36%, compared to 29% overall).
-Many Dragging Duos say that because they are too sleepy they have missed events or activities and/or have made errors at work at least once in the past three months (37%, compared to 28% overall).
-Furthermore, either their or their partner’s sleep disorders have caused little problems with their relationship(33%, compared to 25% overall) and about one-fourth say that being too sleepy has affected their intimate relationships(25%, compared to 19% overall).
-More than any other segment, Dragging Duos report that their sleep problem affects their operating a motor vehicle, with 73% having driven while drowsy during the past year (compared to 60% overall) and 48% having nodded off or actually fallen asleep at the wheel (compared to 37% overall).

*I wish today was Friday*

There is a New Elmo!

Need to laugh? Go Here!!!

Weekend with hang-ups & yummy.com

I'm just now getting around to posting about last weekend, though it wasn't the most eventful one... there are a few things that were cool to note:

I'm finally getting a chance to "decorate" a bit. That sounds more glamorous than it really is. I got a few things for the bathroom. A ring to hang a hand-towel, hooks for our bath towels, NEW towels that are oversized & oh-so-soft, and a shelf-unit thing for the corner of the shower. (I was really excited about my new towels as you can see!)

I really really love working at places that have mechanical shops. I think I've borrowed the electrical drill from here at least 6 times. I've also gotten a lot of advice & help from the guys in the back. I love it!

~~~
We did it... on Sunday we ordered our groceries online from Yummy.com!! The prices were the same as Albertson's, but w/o the "preferred savings." The thing we couldn't believe is that they have 30 minute delivery! I was in shock! We placed our order on Sunday night at about 8:30 and they were in our kitchen by 9:00!!! WE can't even pick out our groceries in 30 minutes! It was VERY impressive!

Now I am a complete online junky! Groceries, movies (netflix), paying bills, etc... All we need now is a laundry service & we're good to go :)
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I'm sure that there is more, but my lunch break is over & I actually have things to work on. Data Analysis... Yea!

"Phone telepathy"

Hopefully this will be the last "news" entry for the day:

From CNN.com

Phone telepathy: You knew it was true
POSTED: 8:32 p.m. EDT, September 5, 2006

NORWICH, England (Reuters) -- Many people have experienced the phenomenon of receiving a telephone call from someone shortly after thinking about them -- now a scientist says he has proof of what he calls telephone telepathy.

Rupert Sheldrake, whose research is funded by the respected Trinity College, Cambridge, said on Tuesday he had conducted experiments that proved that such precognition existed for telephone calls and even e-mails.

Each person in the trials was asked to give researchers names and phone numbers of four relatives or friends. These were then called at random and told to ring the subject who had to identify the caller before answering the phone.

"The hit rate was 45 percent, well above the 25 percent you would have expected," he told the annual meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science.
"The odds against this being a chance effect are 1,000 billion to one."

He said he found the same result with people being asked to name one of four people sending them an e-mail before it had landed.

However, his sample was small on both trials -- just 63 people for the controlled telephone experiment and 50 for the email -- and only four subjects were actually filmed in the phone study and five in the email, prompting some skepticism.

Undeterred, Sheldrake -- who believes in the interconnectedness of all minds within a social grouping -- said that he was extending his experiments to see if the phenomenon also worked for mobile phone text messages.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This seems really farfetched and that the study probably wasn't too extensive, but I also can't say that it's never happened to me. Ironically it happened 2x yesterday. Once w/an e-mail & another w/a phone call! Eh, who knows... but they'll have to do better than 45% to get me!

Big Comeback

Yesterday the LA Dodgers were down going into the 9th inning, then they hit 4 consecutive homeruns to tie the game! Then finishing up in the 10th to win the game 11-10 against San Diego. That's pretty impressive I have to admit.* Unfortunatly, I've been unsuccessful at finding a video that I can post here of the event. I guess diehard Dodger fans haven't jumped onto youtube yet.

*No worries... I'm still a Cubs fan!!! & YEA for them winning over the Phillies (11-6)!!

Ticket Tailgaters

I was given an article by our library yestderday from the Corvallis Gazette Times (9-11-06).

Oregon Launches tool to carck down on tailgating
State is first in US to use system

I guess Oregon, Arizona, New Mexico and Tennessee are taking steps to "crack Down on Tailgating!" To do this they're bringing technology into it. There is an upgraded lazer that pinpoints the distance between cars. It's been used in Hong Kong, Australia and parts of Europe for years now and Oregon starting trying the tool last year.

I personally HATE tailgaters. It's such an ignorant thing to do. People seem to think that being 3 feet away from someone's bumper is going to get them somewhere sooner! When in reality it's just asking for a rear-end collision. Reading the article I was hoping that California would be on that list, but not yet :-( To upgrade to these lazers it would be $600-700 each. That would be a major cost for Cali. My proposed solution to pay for that? Just ticket all LA born drivers! V6 + engine? Double the fine! :) It's like the drivers here went through extensive training on how to be bad drivers!

Jiffy Lube Scams

The video below was sent to me by a friend. NBC4 did an investigation on 9 different Jiffy Lube locations. Repeatedly the undercover investigators were charged for services that the employees NEVER performed!

The video below is of the investigated report. The report was aired in 3 parts. It's 10 minutes long, so if you don't have time for the entire video I recommend watching at least the first part (~4-5 min).
Part 1 shows what they did to find out how Jiffy Lube was scamming their customers.
Part 2 shows Jiffy Lube's initial reactions.
Part 3 is of what Jiffy Lube is doing/has done to correct the problem.

Mechanics have the general reputation for ripping people off. Charging too much, telling you that you have problems with your car that aren't there, etc. It just happened to Dave last week. Somehow his battery got drained, probably due to leaving the lights 1/2 on. Anyway, after getting a jump & stopping by a mechanic shop they looked at his car for all of 2 seconds & told him that he needed a new alternator. How much? $250! He declined. Instead he drove the car home, let it sit idle for a long time to charge the battery. I brought home a voltmeter, tested the alternator and it was FINE!!! I always expect the mechanics to attempt to screw you, but I thought that they actually performed the service!

WTF is wrong w/this world! I don't know how they do that... I think the guilt would end up consuming me!