Here's some video from Payton's birthday the other day:

Everyone keeps referring to me as being Oliver's "mommy," mainly my own parents. Which I don't like. I used to not mine being a pet's mommy, but now I guess I've grown adverse to it since my not wanting kids has matured even more. Or maybe it's just my parents using it, I don't know. I tell them to call me his "Nanny." I should note that "nanny" around here isn't used in the "conventional" sense, as in, caretaker of children. "Nanny" is the name you call your godmother. My mom was like "Well then, who's the mother?" And I said, "No one. I'm the nanny, though." FYI, I'm also my sister's dog's nanny. I'm technically Payton's nanny, but she doesn't call me that. Then again, I don't call my nanny "nanny" either, hee. (But in my defense, I had two older sisters, so whatever they called someone, I called them that. Since they just called her Aunt Jen, that's what I called her, and still do.)

I'm not the biggest fan of small town life, some definite disadvantages. However, some pluses, too. See, here, you're familiar with relatives as distant as your fourth cousins. This comes in handy, well, depending on the relatives -- as some will be more than happy to steal from you. (Yeah, that's happened plenty.) When I went to open a new bank account at a local bank, I just walked up to somebody, and then I recognized her name. I didn't know if she recognized me, but she did. As when she was typing my information in, she sat for a second and was like "You're my cousin." So, she's technically my personal banker now, and I know she can't screw me over. All I have to do is tell my grandmother and the news would make it to the proper channels. Hooray!

Also, when I had headed out for the vet with Oliver, the ER vet apparently called our house to check in on him and made sure to let us know to just call them if we need anything. He was also happy to hear Oliver was still doing fine. So, that was definitely sweet.

Last thing's last: I never thought I'd get to use this icon again. Thanks for stepping down, Sarah Palin! Holla!

Well, I haven't updated in a while. And I haven't really been able to comment too much on the f-list either. I've been rather busy, so you know, good excuses lessens the guilt and such. (Though, I was able to make some time to make a rather slashy slideshow bday present for angeliksmall featuring her and my favorite two evil psychos, The Master/The Joker. I am a naughty girl.) So, here's an update on what's been keeping me away.

Oliver. The little kitty's doing fine, but still worrying me a little. And I'm kind of the only caregiver now. My sister and her husband (and their doggie, sadface :() went on a road trip to Michigan to visit his family for a couple weeks, so I'm by myself. Meaning, when he's meowing and I want to sleep in late, can't really do that. When he needs to eat, I have to feed him. My mom tries every now and then, but she can't get him to sit still for her. And sometimes, he really just wants to snuggle. Which is sweet, but I can't always do that if I have to go do something. To get all the bases checked, and because he's probably about four weeks old and still doesn't quite have the digestive routine thing, I called and took him to a vet for a full check up. He was a very good boy and got lots of compliments on how cute he was. (Attaboy, Oliver!) The vet was really nice and even asked me how I knew so much about cats. I laughed at admitted this past week had been a big crash course for me. He got a clean bill of health, no parasites or anything. She was nice enough to give him a few dabs of Advantage for free to get rid of the fleas. He's gaining weight, gained five ounces since we took him to the ER vet. He goes back in three weeks to see if he weighs enough to get his first round of vaccines. She also asked me if we were going to get another little kitten or had one for him to play with and that they need to socialize. I said no (I mean, my parents are nice enough to pay Oliver's health fees right now, and I can't just ask them to do that again for no need) but that we do have a mini cocker spaniel, my sister's, whose on vacation right now, but she should play with him. She told me cats aren't solitary and she just wants to make sure he's got someone to play with. She seemed content with the presence of Sugar, so hopefully that'll be enough for Oliver til maybe he gets a little older and I get a little more money and maybe can get Gracie all her shots and get her spayed and bring her in as an indoor cat.

( Cut for length, but read more, including a new job interview and Payton's birthday )
So yes, really long post, and I kept most of these things short.

So, first off, Happy Canada Day to all who celebrate it!

Secondly, yay! Glad you all enjoyed Oliver. He can be a brat sometimes, but he's so darn tiny. It's hard not to let him get away with it.

So, today is my niece Payton's fourth birthday. I went to see her yesterday to ask her what she wanted to do today. These are some conversations we had.

I had asked her to think about what she wanted. I showed her pictures of Oliver and she got excited.

ME: Yes, that's Oliver. We can see him after we go shopping if you want.
PAYTON: Let's go now. We go see the cat now.
ME: No, we'll see the cat tomorrow. After shopping.
PAYTON: No, let's go now. I want to see the cat now.
ME: No, tomorrow. Do you know what you want? A movie? A dress?
PAYTON: I want that cat.

ME: So, it's your birthday tomorrow!
PAYTON: Yes!
ME: How old are you going to be?
PAYTON: Six.
ME: No, you're not. Hadyn's six. How old are YOU going to be?
PAYTON: SIX!
....
ME: You're going to be four.
PAYTON: Okay. I four.

PAYTON's looking at her birthday party decorations and cards - Tinkerbell-themed. She opens up a blank card.
PAYTON: Oh, it says happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me...I gotta go show Leighton [her brother] this.
(A few minutes later)
PAYTON: I showed Hadyn [her other brother]. He said it's terrific!

BONUS: From my f-list:
A friend is a teacher, and here is something one of her little students, who's six, shared during oral news time:
"Michael Jackson is dead. My mummy cried when he was dead. My daddy didn't cry. He was sick and he had a heart attack. Not my daddy, Michael Jackson. He used to be brown like me but then he gave himself an injection and turned himself into white. I think that is very silly because brown is better because you don't get sunburn like teacher and Evelina. He was good at dancing and used to do this: SHAMONE! *grabs crotch*"

So, as requested, some pics of Oliver. These are actually screencaps of some quick video I did, as my digital camera is somewhere I do not know and very much not charged. So, there should be better quality ones when that happens. Some of the latter ones are rather dark, but brightening didn't help at all, so just do your best to squint. I racked up 19 images of various poses, if you will, so enjoy!


( +18 )

So, it seems the kitten is here to stay -- in more ways than one. That kitten is a survivor, he's a fighter. He's an escape artist. No matter what little enclosure we fixed for him, he got out. He is very, very sneaky. We finally found a box he couldn't get out of. Hooray for us!

I should say that he has been named. After my dad tried something out that none of us liked (he named him after one of John's old friends he mentioned once, thinking he'd win points with John, why? Well, just don't ask. It's my dad. I don't ask about anything. It's a good life that way), we floated around some other ones. I had some token cat names that I had stored up in the ol' noggin' (Moony, Rochester - in case anyone got the joke, etc.) but John and Sara didn't care for any. And neither did I. I like the names, but none fit this little scamp. So, I stayed with the literature theme and said "Oliver" as in Oliver Twist, a fellow orphan. I was telling Sara and then I laughed, "They even had a Disney cartoon based on it. Oh, and heh, Oliver was a cat in that." To which Sara replied, "He was a white cat, too, wasn't he? Yeah, let's go with Oliver." So, he's Oliver, Ollie for short, or Goob(er) which I call him often. He may also answer to "Oscar" as that's what my mother keeps calling him.

(You'd think I'd have "Why Should I Worry?" stuck in my head often now, but I actually am more prone to re-enacting the beginning of The Lion King and singing "Circle of Life." That's the kind of nerd I am. Dig it?)

So, Oliver's doing fine. Thanks so much to polarsun for the help! I found that book you talked about at the local library and checked it out. Hooray! After a few days of tummy issues and trying home remedies in an expert book as well as on various Internet sources, all signs pointed to red flag and the need for vet attention. It was Saturday night, so we had to look into an emergency vet service. We went, they checked him out and helped him with his tummy issue, and he's doing better. The past few days, I can't count how many things I've done to a cat that I never thought I'd be willing to do. I'm just glad that it's over (hopefully). I made the call, though Sara drove and John rode, and I filled out the papers and such, so the cat's now under my name there. I guess he really is mine now, though Sara helps. Of course, she and John are going to see his parents on a long road trip to Michigan for 2 weeks, so this should be fun.

But, the vet was rather inexpensive. They gave us a huge discount and my mom let me use the card to pay for it. Basically, we were looking at a little under $150 in fees at the emergency clinic, but the vet told he just wanted to charge us $50 since the procedure he did wasn't much. I think that since we mentioned we were handrearing an orphaned cat, that got us points with him. I didn't catch his name before we left, but my sister realized afterwards. We know his family, they're a very well known family in the area. My dad's really good friends with his aunt. He actually called her when we found the cat for help, and she said that when the cat gets better, if we needed someone to find a home for him to call her nephew -- who was the vet! Apparently he also does placement for little puppies and kitties, so I'm definitely sticking with the combination of theories 1.He's just nice 2.We got brownie points for taking the kitten in.

So, this was my Oliver update post. And there will probably either be more, or spans of absences without posts as he's keeping me very busy.

(Also, site recommendation that helped out: http://justanswer.com - it's a pay service, but a very cheap one in terms of the possible important answers you'd get. Just saying.)

So, Linda Holmes over at NPR's Monkey See continues to have a winning way with words:

The Unpredictable, Stubbornly Unusual Farrah Fawcett

Michael Jackson: The Moment That Made Him The King Of Pop

And I think that in addition to breaking the Internet, MJ also proved that on Twitter, context really is overrated sometimes. So few times was he mentioned by name, but you knew what someone was talking about.

(OT: I've been writing most of my titles in APA biblio format. Go figure. Thanks, college.)

Okay, so, I know I have cat people on my f-list, and that usually means kitten people, as well, right?

So, to the knowledgeable cat people (bolded to grab your attention, did it work?), I present a predicament to you.

So, a few years ago, a baby cat wandered our way. I named her Gracie, she was sweet. Thanks to my uni student status, never had the money to get her fixed yet, so she's had a few litters. (And yes, I will get her fixed when I have the actual money, if anything because I know each heat cycle increases a cat or dog's risk of cancer.)

For the current litter, she had them well-hidden. Until my sister and brother-in-law's little dog found them. So, she moved the litter. We don't know where they all are. Or even if they're still around. We do know where one is. One still young baby boy kitten. We have no idea how old he is, but his eyes are open. So he's not brand new. They found him walking around crying, and then they found Gracie and put him next to her. She wouldn't have anything to do with it. We don't know if there's something wrong with him or if he was just messed with too much. But, she's abandoned him. And My brother-in-law, John, felt bad and guilty. So, he and my sister have been taking care of him. He still needs to be fed, and he still needs help pottying with a wet towel to his bottom to get it going. We got some formula and a bottle from a vet and they also got another one from the store and other places. He's been washed a couple times in Dawn dish soap because he was covered in bugs of various sorts. So he's inside now. We gave him lots of little blankets and put him in the dog's kennel. We thought he was locked tight in it, but he's not. No matter what we closed up, he somehow found bars that were wide enough to sneak out through. He's a climber. And he's got crazy loud lungs, methinks.

He's been eating and pottying pretty regularly. His cries started to get really weak for a little while, though, and he's eating less. (We kind of had to screw the whole 2-hour thing, since he would eat so little sometimes. So we'd just check and see if he was hungry every half hour or so.) He slept all night, just fine. So, that's a good sign. And the climbing and loud meowing, good sign he's strong. He's a fighter. His meowing's back to normal. But his eating is still not 100%.

The main problem is that John is a huge hypochondriac. After doing some more research on baby kittens, he found some stuff about round worms and how they can be dangerous for humans as they're not natural hosts. He's convinced the kitten has it because he's also convinced it has a potbelly (though none of us can see it). Thus, he now wants nothing to do with the kitten. And my sister's on vacation this week, but she'll have to go back to work soon and she has stuff to do. I might be able to convince my parents to cough up the vet money, but my mom keeps calling and asking what to do with an orphaned cat in general. We got it down.

In order to get John back on the case, the cat would have to get a clean bill of health. And I don't know if they run tests on cats this young nor give them preventive shots, you know? I don't know, maybe I'm wrong, do they? What kind of prices are we looking at here?

I ask because I'm not worried about round worms, never got any and we used to have tons of cats growing up. I didn't want to start being a care giver to the cat because I get stressed and worried so easy. And now that it looks like I'm going to be in charge of it, I'm already stressing out. I can't stop checking on it and worrying if it's just being whiny because it can't find it's mama or if something's really wrong and I won't know it. I worry if I'm not feeding enough. I stress if I have to go somewhere and I don't know if someone else has done something with him, like feed and potty him, so I won't need to. And it sucks because for all the people that live in this house, it's sure hard to catch one of them here and available.

And then there was the whole anger thing yesterday. The cat caring just reminded me that I have the free time to take care of it. But then I feel like a bitch because I don't want to get up every few seconds to make sure it's still okay. I don't want to start something and then worry about having to stop in the middle of it because something's wrong with the cat. And it also just makes me remember that I have nothing else going on, and then I feel angry and lame. The stress plus the actual caregiving is just a lot of energy. And I'm so lazy. Doesn't mean I won't do it, just means I feel guilty for even musing with not wanting to.

So, as I said a few posts ago, I wanted to do a pic spam for a few people who I knew could use it. (Again, you guys know who you are!)

Preview:


( +16! )

The first one that came to mind was Liz Lemon. So, we'll go with that. (Pre-Liz, though, probably would've been Daria, as cliche as it sounds.)

If you're an American with a rather rampant case of insomnia, in one form or another (my poison's restless leg syndrome, FYI, yes it does exist), it pays to have an Australian friend on your AIM buddy list. Case and point: purple_smurf was able to make my daily (well, nightly technically) battle with insomnia in the wee hours of the morning rather enjoyable versus its usual intolerable quality. Noted! (Danke Smurfette!)

Another thing I learned: HBIC/Oscar Winner/Lady from Kindergarten Cop Linda Hunt has joined the cast of NCIS: Spin-off. (I shall be calling the show that because it's still better than the actual NCIS: Los Angeles name.) Niiiiice!

Finally, never go to http://twitterfall.com if you have something to do. It won't get done.

Life truly is a classroom.

And the Internet is what we go on during class when we're pretending to pay attention.

First off, so glad everyone enjoyed the Nice Blokes post! You guys are so sweet, and I'm glad you all got a kick out of it. (And for some, so happy I could help with a bad day!) Proof that my validation level is sensitive to change: it was rather nice to read how many of you actually read and enjoyed the commentary. Hooray!

Also, quick welcome to some newbies to my f-list: aeon_entwined and aracaneamaranth! I'll try not to make you rethink your friending me for a while, but I can't promise anything! ;)

So, it was a good morning yesterday, albeit the usual one that involves the lingering effects of a nightly insomnia bout. I woke up to this, and later in the day, I actually got two e-mails from friends who linked me to a mention of the pics on a blog-that-shall-not-be-named-because-of-its-twat-runner. Am I that simplistic? Predictable? Okay, yes and yes. But whatever. As long as such traits result in celebrating hot guys, I'm in.

Yesterday I didn't do much. I went to my nephew's second to last baseball game of the year. His last is today. It was at the ballpark that makes the really good popcorn, so no way was I missing that. The game the day before was not the easiest to watch. I swear, that team they were playing was on steroids. You could hear the sound of those kids (this is coach pitch, so you're looking at kids like 8 and under) hitting the ball across the park. They were also much more aggressive than you'd expect. I've seen tough little boys, but these guys were out for blood, as my sister commented to me after the game. Seriously, those kids should be tested for steroids and corking their bats. Who do I see about this?

( Cut for length )

Also, I know the other promised pic spam was "Fierce Gingers," but that will have to wait a little. I actually have an unscheduled one to get to today because a couple people need it. (You'll know who you are when you see it. ;))

So, thanks to everyone chiming in on the poll. I know I stipulated yesterday many of the things were to be done, well, yesterday. Perhaps I should have used the term "today" more loosely specifically one that meant today today, not today yesterday (or yesterday today, whatever you prefer). After catching up on the season premiere of True Blood with my sister and brother-in-law, who are both far more addicted to the show than I am, especially the brother-in-law -- go figure, I ended up taking a late nap. The nieces and nephews ended up coming over because my other brother-in-law came over to mow the lawn. My niece Payton was of course nice enough to end my nap when she arrived, as she ran into my room shouting "Hey! Wake up! Wake up!" They stayed for a couple hours, being their wild selves. I started collecting pics for the pic spam, but was too tired to post by the time I finished. So alas, here it is.

As for the theme, I should preface it. Obviously, I've never met any of these blokes, but I've heard nothing but nice things about them. You'll also see that I am a sucker for geekiness, autograph-signing, and sweet dads. (I do think it's interesting everyone voted for this one. Kinda worried, though. Anyone out there need reassurance of nice blokes for a specific reason? Need to talk? I just went to a memory of my linguistics professor introducing us to morphology. He started a sentence "Men are..." looking for a noun, and someone said, "Pigs." To which he replied, "Okay, who has the bad story? Who got hurt?") Well, not all men are pigs. And lucky for us, Circe's only a myth, so she won't be changing things anytime soon.

( 19 blokes behind the cut )

Well, this post took a large amount of time. Luckily, series one of Doctor Who 2005 has a mini-marathon on Sci-Fi channel this morning, so yay for background entertainment!

So *hugs* all around. Thank you all for the lovely comments on the last post. :) They were sweet, and it's always comforting to find out when someone cares. Naturally, it was more than just the rejection that was bothering me. But it's just something I have to deal with on my own. And thanks to bluetonguedlion and mirandafox for distracting me on AIM. Truly needed. :)

I brushed myself off and made a Plan B as well as a Plan C and some other alpha-named plans. I sent in my resume to a small law practice for a litigation assistant/runner. If I don't get that, I was debating on taking the summer off and just applying to be a substitute teacher for the next school year. It'd be a part time job, at best, but if I can get some tutoring gigs in the evenings, as well, it'd be decent money. 1.I do qualify, all you need to sub in this parish (we don't have counties*) is an Associate's Degree at the very least. 2.It'd be something to do for a year or so while I debate moving to a different city with better job offerings.

I was thinking about maybe putting in some daycare hours, but before I even had time to muse about it, my mother said offhand, "Just whatever you do, don't go back to working at a daycare." So, maybe for once, I should actually take her advice.

And now, because I'm bored, here's a long poll:


Poll #1416133 Today Today
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

What themed pic spam should I do today?

Which fan site should I update first?

Should I take the summer off and wait to substitute teach?

What should my reading material be today?

Which foreign language should I start to learn?

So, yesterday, I had that second interview, this time for a Desktop Publisher job, I mentioned the whole thing in a previous post. I didn't get the chance last night, but I was going to post a rather happy entry about how I felt this past interview went better. I made them laugh really hard a few times, and they seemed impressed by. I also made an 'Eats, Shoots, and Leaves' joke and one of them got it. Not to mention I saw one mouth 'Wow,' when I talked about all the added duties I had at my university's press. I didn't think I'd get that job, but I thought it would at least have put in another good impression for the part time position.

I got a letter just now, mail comes early, even on the weekends. It had two letters in it. From the library. Both rejections. Over four years of library service and over two being a supervisor, even using the same library system they use, a BA from a well-respected university, and I'm not even qualified to be a part time assistant. I don't know, I didn't think I'd take it this hard, but I'm just drowning in pathetic self-pity and trying not to cry. I mean, it wasn't my last resorts or anything. But rejection is rejection. And that's never fun. But I've gotta get used to it.

Sorry for the quiz spam, I just kind of got excited. I got Violet/purple -- my fav color, FYI -- for my aura! Yes, I am a geek.

Also, I am doing small-time consuming things until I have to leave for 2nd interview. I can't just sit still. Not capable of it. I'm apparently a three year old.

Your Aura is Violet

Idealistic and thoughtful, you have the mind and ideas to change the world. And you have the charisma of a great leader, even if you don't always use it! The purpose of your life: saying truths that other people dare not say Famous purples include: Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Susan B. Anthony Careers for you to try: Political Activist, Inventor, Life Coach

Nicked from tanyareed

Your Gift is Intellect

You are a big thinker, and you're always playing with new ideas. You are curious about the world. You enjoy learning and developing new theories. You enjoy researching, analyzing, and solving problems. Thinking hard feels good! You're the type of person who finds most mental tasks to be easy. You love to stretch your brain.

So, I know I mentioned there were 2 positions I applied for at the library. One was a part time library assistant, the other was a desktop publisher, who does stuff like Graphic Design and some video editing/production apparently. I figured they weren't considering me for the Desktop Publisher position because I had experience with the necessary software, but no more than a year in a professional environment.

This morning, the head of human resources that I met yesterday called. She told me they hadn't decided on the library assistant position, but she noticed my resume and application said that I was familiar with Adobe Photoshop and Windows Movie Maker and some other programs. She said, "Now, we have another position open...it's called 'Desktop Publisher,' would you be interested in coming in to interview for that?" I mentioned that I was familiar with the position, and I had actually applied for it. So, I go in to interview for that particular position tomorrow morning at 10:30AM.

She asked me if I had a portfolio, and I was like "Um, sure, I'll bring some stuff in." I somehow managed to gather some decent stuff. I do have a couple things I used for my 'internship' last summer. And I'm counting that as "professional." I also threw in some stuff I did for personal use, not fansite-y stuff, but family-related and some other projects. I also attached some videos I made/edited for my sister's wedding anniversary that was decent. I burned it on a CD and printed some of the pieces out on plain paper to give them something visual that's quickly accessible sans computer. I guess that'll do, right?

As for as benefits go, the desktop publisher is full time, only $11.36/hr, but still full benefits. Which would be nice. The assistant job is just paid holidays, vacation, and sick leave, which kicks in after six months. But still, that's nice, too.

So, I'm thinking, even if I'm underqualified for the desktop publisher job, the human resources lady must have not walked away without too many negative thoughts of me after the interview or she wouldn't have offered me the chance to interview for another position, right? Meaning, I still have a good chance of getting at least the library assistant job.

I guess we'll see. All I know is that either job's pay will go relatively far. I was crunching numbers, and right now, I'm not sure I'll be able to move out anytime soon. I want to put away several month's worth of student loan payments. And even maybe start paying some earlier than the ending of the grace period (December). Housing and stuff isn't expensive in the area, but I'm still living on the safe side for now.

Happy Birthday to rouji! Go eat at Houlihan's today and think of me! Or read Remus/Sirius fic. Your call!

Happy Birthday as well to Hugh Laurie! Don't get birthday cake in that beard of yours! Also, if anything makes you think of me...DO THAT!

Also, Happy First Day of the Birthday Countdown for bluetonguedlion! (Why I almost put "dragon" instead of "lion" I don't know...)

So, a requirement for the library position was a computer skills test. I kept waiting for the workplace center to call me, but they never did. Until yesterday morning. At 8 AM. I was half-asleep and didn't have my glasses on, so I had no idea what time it was, which hurt when they were trying to schedule a time for me to go in. I agreed on 12:30. I had to take it that day because my interview was, well, today. So there was that, coupled with an already sleep-lite night. (I know what triggers the RLS, but I can't escape the trigger at the moment. So, I just have to deal with it.)

I get directions to the place, and then hop in and go to Lake Charles. I actually passed it up once because I got distracted since there was a sheriff's care behind me and I could only concentrate on that in my rearview mirror. Anyway, turned around, and when entering the parking lot, this idiot was backing up and was not watching where he was going. I started swerving to the right, thankfully no one was parked in that area. I thought I had gotten far enough back for him not to hit me. But the idiot just kept going and was never looking back. I was finally able to get the signal to my hand to honk the horn so that I would not be hit. He then saw me, and just casually waved as though he had done nothing wrong. So, anxiety level at that moment shot up some. And for me, it takes a while to get completely calmed down. I was a little disoriented walking into the building, the extreme heat wasn't helping.

I took the computer test, which tested me on Windows 2000, Typing, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft Excel. I was rusty, but I managed. What was stupid is that the little simulation thing was very specific on some procedures, so if I went to do a roundabout way for a task, it was marked as incorrect. Gah, it was so frustrating. And then some of the stuff I had never even known about before. I have working knowledge of Excel and can make it work for me and do stuff a lot of regular office workers don't know, but I did not sit there and study the manual for certain tasks. Some I was able to figure out, actually. Others, I was like "What?" I felt like an idiot. When I finished the test, I headed out.

( Some paragraphs may contain slight TMI )

As for the job interview, well, I felt like I kept repeating the same thing over and over again. Which I hate doing. And I worry made me sound limited. Then again, it's a library position and I talked about my library experience. That's not horrible, right? I've done job interviews before, this one threw me off, though. I don't know why. But I had a bad case of kicking myself afterwards realizing there were better answers I could have and should have given. (They also asked me about strengths, weaknesses, how my best friend would describe me. I almost felt like was in a pageant, as well.) They said they'd let me know in a few days after all the interviews are done. I guess we'll see.