WOOOOOHOOOOO!!!!!

I have survived Horrible Job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They have beaten on me emotionally, physcially, financially... there is no aspect of my life they have not tainted. Two years and two months of my life they've had, but no more!! Today was my last day here!

Granted this means that the whirlwind of moving will seriously kick up now - finishing packing up the apartment, loading up the cars, scrubbing out the apartment, driving days on end to arrive in the desert .... (Thinking of which... Seeing that we're about to head cross country, I probably won't be posting much over the next few weeks. I might be able to give an occasional update along the way, but most likely, the next you hear from me, I'll be in the SoCal desert!)

But no worries about tomorrow yet - I made it through my time here! Freedom!

Ooh! A new knitting quiz!

I'm ANGORA - Soft and Warm.

"Angora has a warmth that rivals cashmere and softness that rivals qiviut. Best of all, it comes from cute little bunnies that look for all the world like furry footstools with ears."

- The Knitter's Book of Yarn

Angoras are eager to please and are highly sensitive. Flexibility and adaptability are your strengths and sometimes your weakness, as well. You are essentially a warm and feeling person, and little escapes your impressionable mind. You are generous with others and strive for harmony in your relationships.

Check it out at Potter Craft.

Best of all, you can send them your results, and they'll send you a button with your fiber on it. Looks like my picture up above. :)

Am I a horrible person?

My office is giving me a good-bye party tonight, and I'm not going to go. Does that make me a horrible person? Before you get on my case about 'office solidarity' and 'team-building' and such things, I have a series of very good reasons for skipping out. Please read through

1. My friends at work are not going to be there. Two are out of town on jobs, one now works for another company, and one has an eye appointment this afternoon where his pupils will be dilated (translation: he'll be veeeery out of it). My last friend here at the office isn't going to go if no one else is, so we jointly decided not to go :) We had our going away party on Saturday for that reason - big ol' cookout at Tom's, where I had a chance to hang out with and say good-bye to people I'll actually want to keep in touch with.
2. The people who will be there are ones I either (A) don't like, (B) detest, or (C) am so indifferent to, it doesn't matter (we've got a handful of non-entities here in the office) To give you an idea of how well these people know me, my office manager was even laughing that I'd have an excuse if I wanted to "get plastered" tonight and not come in tomorrow. Being very friendly and all, but has the man ever seen me drink a beer? How the heck am I going to get wasted on a beverage I can't stand the taste of?
3. I was never asked where I wanted to go. The decision was made for me. Don't think I'm sulking about it - it just means that as a result, we're heading to a bar I don't like. It's not a bad place to go, good assortment of pool tables and games and such, but it's inconvenient for me and it's a microbrew-specialty place. They actually don't have a liquor license, so no 'hard stuff' - nothing but beer and wine. Oh, wait - I don't like beer OR wine. I don't drink much, but the drinks I do like are mostly mixed drinks, shots, and liqueurs.
4. I've a bunch of stuff to finish up in the packing line of things. I need to do laundry (I don't want to move more dirty clothes than I have to - would rather pack them clean) and pack up a lot of the stuff I've been using this past week. Mom and Zach visited last weekend and we got most of my stuff packed up, but I still had to leave out a bunch of stuff that I was going to use this week - pots and clothes and bathroom stuff and the like.
5. It's not just a going-away party for me. It's also celebrating an office-record-sales month. So, if I don't go, it's not like the 'excuse' for the party is not going to be there. All they need is a reason to get together and drink beer on the company dime - I've given them the excuse, now no need for me to be there.

So, in summary, I think these are good enough reasons to skip out. I have things I'd rather be doing (or simply need to do) than hang out watching people I don't like get drunk.

I think I get so frustrated about this because I don't like feeling guilty for not 'playing the game.' I don't like hanging out with these people, but somehow you can feel like you're not 'part of the team' if you don't go along and do these things. If I had my choice, I'd never see most of these people outside the office EVER. But over the two years here, I've gamely gone to the Christmas parties, the office celebrations, the good-bye parties, and occasional happy hours, like any good little corporate peon. And I've suffered through every minute of it. It's not so much a happy hour for me, as an hour-of-impatiently-watching-my-watch-waiting-til-enough-time-has-been-spent-at-the-bar-for-me-to-leave-gracefully. I just can't stand those things. So, since I don't have to kiss anyone's rear around here any more, I'm not gonna go (not that I ever did much ass-kissing 'round here - more trying to be so low profile, no one notices me). Time to show that I DO have a backbone!

On the other hand, going and getting completely trashed and chewing out every moron working here would be kinda refreshing... Too bad I'm a sleepy drunk and not an angry one. There's probably something nice and cathartic about tearing into idiots you don't have to be polite to anymore....

Yup, more personality quizzes

What - you thought you'd seen the last of 'em from me? Silly you. :)
Slow day at work = plenty of time to play online!

Just in case you were wondering what Sesame Street character I am (among other things), here you go. The pictures weren't working, so instead, I've added my own comments after my results (my comments are in red, just for the heck of it)




The Sesame Street Personality Quiz

You Are Bert

Extremely serious and a little eccentric, people find you lovable - even if you don't love them!
You are usually feeling: Logical - you rarely let your emotions rule you
You are famous for: Being smart, a total neat freak, and maybe just a little evil (hehehe)
How you life your life: With passion, even if your odd passions (like bottle caps and pigeons) are baffling to others.
(wow... I'm more like Bert than I realized...)



What Breed of Puppy Are You?

You Are a German Shepherd Puppy

Intelligent, quick witted, and a bit aggressive. You've got the jaw power to take a bite out of anyone you choose. (And I just think they're cute!)



What City Do You Belong In?

You Belong in London

A little old fashioned, and a little modern. A little traditional, and a little bit punk rock. A unique soul like you needs a city that offers everything. No wonder you and London will get along so well. (It's what I knew all along! Now if only I could afford to live there....)



What Kind of Coffee Girl Are You?

You Are a Plain Ole Cup of Joe

But don't think plain - instead think, uncomplicated (so uncomplicated I can be complicated, according to some!)
You're a low maintenance kind of girl... who can hang with the guys (low maintenance...noooo, not me....)
Down to earth, easy going, and fun! Yup, that's you: the friend everyone invites.
And your dependable too. Both for a laugh and a sympathetic ear.



What's Your Power Color?

Your Power Color Is Red-Orange

At Your Highest: You are warm, sensitive, and focused on your personal growth.
At Your Lowest: You become defensive and critical if you feel attacked.
In Love: You are loyal - but you demand the respect you deserve.
How You're Attractive: You are very affectionate and inspire trust.
Your Eternal Question: "Am I Respected?"



What Color Rose Are You?

You Are a Light Pink Rose

You represent sweetness and grace.
Your vibe: Kind and gentle
Falling in love with you: is like falling in love with a best friend



What's Your Element?

Your Element Is Water (of course!)

A bit of a contradiction, you can seem both lighthearted and serious.
That's because you're good at going with the flow - but you also are deep.
Highly intuitive, you tune in to people's emotions and moods easily.
You are able to tap into deep emotional connections and connect with others.
You prefer a smooth, harmonious life - but you can navigate your way around waves.
You have a knack for getting people to get along and making life a little more peaceful.



And finally, one with a picture - What House are You?

be sorted @ nimbo.net

Basically, you're brave, daring, chivalrous, and pretty much, an all around good person. Of course, some see you as a goodie-two-shoes. But hey, it's true! You're really good at winning, and normally always come out as the hero. Everybody likes you.. except, maybe, the Slytherins. You're too perfect. No, really. You're too perfect. It's annoying to watch you win, repeatedly. Oh well. Be proud anyway. (Surprised me - I'd've bet Ravenclaw!)

Cool!

But then I like maps :)

This is a neat way too, to see where I've been, and where I'd still like to visit. I wish I could color-code it though. Different colors for where I've lived vs. where I've visited vs. where I'd like to visit again (the wish-list map is on a different map, if I want to create one). But then, that's me and I'm anal about some things :)

E is for...

Eggbert!

Eggbert is my whisk. Just a tiny little thing, so he can't handle major whisking jobs, but I don't really use a whisk that much, of any size. Mostly I use him for small stirring jobs. I think he's designed to be an omelet whisk, but since I don't like eggs, he mostly sits on the shelf of my stove, monitoring my kitchen activities :)

He was a gift from Zach, the first Christmas we were dating. Being that we'd been dating for about 7 months by the time Christmas rolled around and it was our first one together, Zach wanted to get something really nice. After much conferencing with my mom and sister, he decided on an electric tea kettle. Romantic, right? I don't care - I love it!! :) As he was at Bed Bath & Beyond to shop for a tea kettle, he saw Eggbert there in the store. Couldn't pass the little guy up. So, for Christmas, I got a tea kettle and the whisk. I'm the one that has since dubbed him Eggbert, as I thought it was a very suitable name for him.

Quick Update

No, I'm not dead. No, my computer hasn't crashed. I have been kidnapped by two cruel and uncompromising slave-drivers and forced to pack my worldly belongings into cardboard boxes prior to a mandated trek thousands of miles cross-country.

So I've been busy.

On the upside, I have managed to keep myself, Joey, and my computer from being packed into said cardboard boxes, and can manage a quick post tonight.

All is well, aside from my apartment being packed into stacks of brown boxes. The apartment's a little empty-feeling, with all the pictures off the walls, and I haven't been able to pick up my needles for several days now. Very frustrating. I'm now a dishcloth behind in the monthly-along. I know that sounds silly, but I really want to keep up with that. Maybe in the hotels at night after we're driving for hours each night. :\

Oh well - the remaining slave-driver is demanding I return to work now.

Coffee break's over, back on my head.