catching up to me

I think I've overextended myself. I wasn't doing anything for a while, so when I finally found interesting new hobbies and things to do with myself, I got all excited and tried to take on as many as I could at once. But, now, reality is setting in for me. I've got lengthy classes/meetings/groups just about every week night, and masses of work to do on the weekends (which are also reserved for out-of-town trips and special events/outtings). I'm so tired at work right now that the prospect of attending my production class tonight is practically overwhelming. I've got two things that I absolutely can't skip out on - my writing class and my new volunteer position as a children's grief support group facilitator, and the other things are kind of starting to fall through the cracks. As interesting as learning sound editing and production is, I think I've got to limit the amount of time that I spend at the radio station. As reluctant as I am to do it, I guess it's not really that big of a quandry for me; I don't feel like I'm being irresponsible for cutting back my hours and no one is going to miss out on anything by my not being there (unlike with the other stuff). In the meantime, I'm soooo sleepy!

don't forget your waitress

New favorite website: www.bitterwaitress.com. Check it out, lots of funny stuff about poor tippers. Other than that, not much time to blog, got lots to do and even more to catch up on!

belated ouches

I believe that while I was waxing poetic about what a lovely day I had walking around San Francisco on Sunday, I neglected to mention something that happened to me. In typical me fashion, I was clumsy and I tripped...twice, rolling my ankle both times, causing much pain and quick and embarassed glances at the faces of everyone around me. In not typically me fashion, I actually managed to hurt myself. Of course, I didn't realize it at the time and didn't really notice the extreme pain in my left foot until I got home that evening (and every day since then), and have been hobbling around work for the last three days trying to not to do any more damage than necessary. Anyway, I finally went to the doctor today because the darn thing hurt like the bejesus last night when I was trying to run errands after work and I decided I needed to resolve once and for all what in the heck was going on with my foot. The doctor was pretty nice, not nearly as annoyed as he could have been for having me as a patient. For example, here's a sample of our conversation:
Dr: So, did you notice any swelling when you hurt your foot?
Me: Um, no. Well, I don't think so... I was wearing flipflops all day, so it could've swelled and I wouldn't have really felt it, but no, I don't think so.
Dr: Okay, did you notice any bruising afterward?
Me: No, no bruising.
Dr: Okay, let's look at your other foot to compare them.
Me: (taking other shoe & sock off)
Dr: Hmm....there's swelling and bruising.
Me: Oh, um, yeah. Sorry, I guess I'm kind of unobservant.
The doctor told me that I had sprained my foot, shouldn't have been walking around on it, should've instead been icing it and whatnot, and thereby prohibited me from walking around on it for the next four days. Sweet. Hobbling around in an ace bandage is exactly what I wanted to do this weekend. At least it wasn't as bad as the time I got a really wicked sunburn right before a dermatologist's appointment.

a step toward civil rights

Good news on the civil rights front, and one of the many reasons I'm proud to live in the Bay Area: sfgate.com .

enjoyable rarities

I spent this past weekend out of the house for a change. Saturday, I read scholarship applications for the California Alumni Association, of which I am a member and from whom I received a couple of scholarships when I was a student. It was an interesting experience, to read into the personalities of the next generation of Cal students. At first I was a little boggled that one of the students who was reading with me had "Class of 2007" written on his name tag, but the thing that really blew me away was the realization that the potential incoming freshmen were born in 1987!!
On Sunday, I enjoyed a lovely sunny day in San Francisco. I met up with a couple of girlfriends and we had brunch/lunch at a cute little restaurant in the Marina, then walked down to Fisherman's Wharf where we sat in a little secluded courtyard and drank beers while listening to a folk guitarist perform. From there, we strolled/battled tourists down to Pier 39, where we were so overwhelmed by the crowds that we decided to just go back to the marina and lay out on the grass on the Marina Green. The afternoon was capped off with a trio of beautiful pedicures, a welcome treat to walking-weary feet. A common chorus heard in the clear, warm day: "I can't believe I live here!" San Francisco just can't be beat on nice Spring afternoons.

research and trivia

In the course of my job, I have to do a lot of research on mundane municipal laws. In the process, however, I sometimes discover unusual facts and trivia about our great nation. For instance, do you know where the Pumpkin Capital of the World is? Find out here: http://www.mortonchamber.org/. Also of note, though I'm not sure what note that might be, did you know that Berkeley has a "Gay and Lesbian Index" of 311? Apparently the national "index" is 100. You can figure out what in the heck this means here: http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=9862 . Just thought I'd share these exciting little tidbits.

two for two

A) It's Friday...woo-hoo! B) It's sunny...woo-hoo! It's a rare occasion when you get two woo-hoo's in one day. Woo-hoo!

blogging in boredom

I got to work at 9:10 this morning and was already bored by 9:23. How's that for efficiency? I've decided to bury myself in years-old research, interspliced with personal essay writing.

blogger going bonkers

Blogger has been kind of buggy the last few times I've tried to post from work. Maybe the bosses have caught on and disabled some sort of interface-y thing-a-majig.

my sally field

They like me, they really like me. Or, at least they tolerate me to the point that I'm encouraged to keep writing. I had my first essay "workshopped" in class last night, and though I feared the worst (calling it "the dissection" to my mom on the phone earlier in the day), it wasn't that bad. My teacher described me as a "natural writer" and other students said they not only identified with the piece but they took actual pleasure in reading it. I did, of course, receive some helpful criticisms; for instance, I seem to have completely forgot about paragraph structure and the importance of indenting in the last few years of being out of school. All in all, though, the commentary was positive and I was so wrapped up in ideas for the essay and other pieces that I had difficulty falling asleep last night.

winners and losers

Went to Reno (aka "the biggest little city in the world") this past weekend. I actually hit a small jackpot on a slot machine and came out ahead for the weekend. The boy also had good luck (or maybe it's skill), and placed "in the money" in a sizable poker tournament. Inhaled lots of secondhand smoke (I wish the casinos were in California, so they'd have to be smoke-free), and had to leave for a little while on Saturday just to breath fresh air and relieve my sinuses. My clothes all reek from the recycled air and my contacts will have to be discarded asap. I wonder how the employees and dealers handle it.

before the firing squad

I turned in my first essay for my writing class. The guidelines: it had to be 6-8 pages, double spaced. That's all. No other suggestions, tips, requests, topic ideas, nothing. It's to be dissected by the class during next week's session. My friend offered to take me out for a beer after the evaluation, I think I may need it.