Crossing The Line . . . Sort Of
Yes, I know, today is the infamous "LJ Content Strike", whereby we aren't supposed to post anything for 24 hours. So, here I am, being a strike-breaker, crossing the picket line by daring to post, right? Heh . . . Read on to the end, THEN judge.
So, where were we last? Oh, yeah! Further Confusion. It rocked this year. Some kinks, some quirks, some people on con staff who desperately need to take a class or two on management using something other than if-you-like-your-paycheck-you'll-do-what-I-say-right-now mentalities -- something that doesn't work so well when dealing with your fellow VOLUNTEER staff -- and a mental note to myself to please, please, please bring gaffer's tape instead of trusting Con Ops to do it and have them show up with painter's tape and masking tape while they send six gophers an hour while you're looking for the right tape (and then one gopher every six hours, if we're lucky, for the rest of the con when we actually have everything in place to make use of them). Oh, yes, and next year I reserve the right to call animal control on anyone wearing a puppy fursuit who feels that this fact gives them carte blanche to act like retards who aren't responsible for the sometimes destructive nature of their actions because they are playing being puppies and just having fuuuuuuun. Yes, multiple unpleasant fursuit encounters this year, and every last one of them was wearing a puppy fursuit.
Other than that -- and before I make it sound too much like my time there totally sucked, because, aside from these few little items, it was awesome -- I had a great time running around in my goofy mandarin suits, seeing everyone again, goofing around with the vendors of the Furry Marketplace ("I have a complaint!"), hanging out with Karl, Jo and RAY! . . . MAN, was it ever awesome to see Ray again! And Reba and Nighty, and Brenda -- sorry I didn't get to stop to chat very much there -- and Rainy, and Lady Foxglove, and, OH! Getting to meet Bill Holbrook! And got a nifty caricature from him, too! And . . . Just lots of people. I'm a shy person by nature, but something about cons brings out the socialite in me, I think. *chuckle* And, I have to admit, it was kinda nifty that, when the con started, even folks who'd been with the dealer room and marketplace last year didn't seem to remember me, but, by the end of it, they definitely seemed to, and in a positive way. Guess I was doing something right! :)
Oh, yes, and then there was the encounter with Bridget I mentioned in my last entry. Definitely a highlight worth mentioning again. :)
Besides, it makes a nice segue into what I've been up to of late! From that encounter, and researching her costume work post-con, I seem to have gotten more involved in costuming and such. I say "more involved" because I've actually been quietly participating on an online forum or two for three years or so now. I've now been getting more active in socializing with a costuming group that meets on Rabbit In The Moon's website, and am getting motivated to start working on a few creations. Time will tell what comes of it, but my first task is to get my weight back under 200, and keep it there. It's been hovering around 220-225 for a while now. Need to get that down if I'm going to be able to do any of the costume concepts I have in mind.
Other than that, as far as socializing, eh, not a whole lot. I DID find a pretty cool person I have gotten gabbing with at a Target near here by the bumper sticker on his Mustang, a fur who moved up from Texas last year. (If you happen to stumble across this, Skivy, heya!) Might wind up rooming with him and some friends of his at All Fur Fun next month. Also, I've been nosing around the local Nazarene church, recommended by my step-grandmother, though I've been feeling quite shy about things there, so I'm not exactly being Mr. Chatty yet. Just not feeling comfortable there yet. Other than that, though, admittedly, I'd gone into hiding there for a while. Valentine's Day got to me bad this year, for some reason, and that hung around pretty much through to my birthday last week, which also got to me pretty bad this year, for some reason. Still feeling a bit of a funk right now, but it does seem to be lifting slowly now that the evil birthday has passed. For folks who wondered where I disappeared to, and why I stopped chatting so much, commenting, writing, what have you . . . *hangs his head* I'm sorry. I am still around, still here if you need me, and will come out of my hiding if needed. So, unless you're expecting me to only be on a game or a muck, or something like that -- aside from a game a week or so of City of Heroes/Villains or solo-ing on EVE, I've done very little gaming, and almost no mucking, as those involve dealing with people, and, again, I've been rather hidey-holey of late -- I am remarkably accessible, if needed. Not terribly sociable, but there if needed.
Along those lines, don't even ask about dating. You know your dating life is tanked when someone tries to set you up on a blind date, and the other person backs out after the person setting it up sends them a camera phone picture of you. (Maybe that has something to do with why Valentine's Day clobbered me so hard, since it was a week or two before that.) Yeah, my ego's still a bit bloody and bruised after that one. Other than that, no one has really caught my eye. Makes the loneliness a bit more frustrating, when it hits. Ah, well. My black-haired mouse of a girl in glasses is still out there somewhere, I'm told. :)
Work? It's been busy. It's been very difficult. It's been a lot of flying by the seat of my pants. A lot of people have been out sick, and there have been days where I have been THE help desk for the entire county, when I was only trained to back them up for breaks and closings and stuff. Anyhew, long story short, by the time I get home, I'm usually utterly beat and exhausted, physically and mentally (which has added to my wanting-to-crawl-into-a-hole-and-not-deal-with-people mindset of late). But, hey, I have been working, which, right now, is a Really Good Thing! And the work I have been putting in has been noticed: it looks like a permanent position is opening up for which I will be eligible, and no less than a dozen people have told me that they hope I apply, including both my manager and boss. So, guess I'm not screwing up TOO badly. Unfortunately, even with that support, there is a very real chance I won't get it . . . because the position requires a good driving record, and I have that lovely driver's license suspension, which may kill my chances. *sigh* Will keep my fingers crossed, though. It's a lot of hard work, and I would also likely take about a 10% pay cut initially, but the perks are worth it, and, in this volatile economy, a government job is about as secure as it gets.
Another segue to another update: Less than a month to go until I am eligible to get my driver's license back. I'll probably get an old beater eventually to toodle around in if I want to make a run up to Seattle, or be out later than the bus that runs by here runs. As far as necessities and commuting go, though, you know, bus and train still work fine for me! (And, if I get the permanent job with the county, one of the perks is a HUGE discount on TriMet passes.) Besides, with the price of gas . . .
So, overall, aside from the deep blue funks, I'm holding my own here all right. Oh, and the little rat girls are doing fine. After I got back from FC, Tia in particular seemed skittish around me for about a week, then suddenly she bonded to me like she never had before. (By the way, if anyone around these parts needs a good pet-sitter, do let me know! The lady who took care of my rats while I was at the con was absolutely wonderful.) Meanwhile, Luni has gradually become MUCH more the mischief-maker, and Maddie does her best to follow in her mother's shoes, though, interestingly, if I have just Maddie and Tia out, Maddie does behave much more like her Auntie, much better behaved. Oh! A cute, "Awwwwwww!" moment: I often will bring them on the bed at night to let them run around for a little while. (Yes, they nibble the sheets, but I need to replace them, anyway.) Well, one night recently, I zonked out. Maddie and Luni took advantage, jumped off the bed and down onto the floor, and just went crazy. (Caught Maddie when she was finishing up nibbling through one of the speaker wires of the stereo in my bedroom. *sigh*) Luni, meanwhile, stayed with me, and, after an hour or so, woke me up by licking my face. Just a litte sweetie!
Ah, yes, here we are at the end now, the explanation for why I am posting this now due, though it should be pretty obvious to anyone who reads this thing regularly, and realizes that I don't post too often, and -- when I do -- I post these hideously monstrous journal entries that, within the first sentences, become a coma-inducing blur of words. And today, I am making it even worse, because I am just too tired to screw with lj-cuts. So, you see, I guess you could more compare me to the "scabs" who cross the picket line, never good enough to play when the regulars are on the job, and who perform so hideously that it makes everyone scream for things to get resolved so the regulars can get back on the job.
Now, to translate that into something that the folks who now run LiveJournal can understand (and apologies to Kitarra and others knowledgeable of the language for my horrible Russian):
Дружественное предупреждение: Если Вы возобновите вашу политику цензурирования, то вашей только проблемой не будет люди прекратит написать здесь. Ваша более большая проблема будет. . . я НАЧНУ НАПИСАТЬ, ЧАСТО!
And that's it from Beaverton! I'm Why-ay'-looh, and we'll have your regular posters back tomorrow, God willing. Good night.
So, where were we last? Oh, yeah! Further Confusion. It rocked this year. Some kinks, some quirks, some people on con staff who desperately need to take a class or two on management using something other than if-you-like-your-paycheck-you'll-do-what-I-say-right-now mentalities -- something that doesn't work so well when dealing with your fellow VOLUNTEER staff -- and a mental note to myself to please, please, please bring gaffer's tape instead of trusting Con Ops to do it and have them show up with painter's tape and masking tape while they send six gophers an hour while you're looking for the right tape (and then one gopher every six hours, if we're lucky, for the rest of the con when we actually have everything in place to make use of them). Oh, yes, and next year I reserve the right to call animal control on anyone wearing a puppy fursuit who feels that this fact gives them carte blanche to act like retards who aren't responsible for the sometimes destructive nature of their actions because they are playing being puppies and just having fuuuuuuun. Yes, multiple unpleasant fursuit encounters this year, and every last one of them was wearing a puppy fursuit.
Other than that -- and before I make it sound too much like my time there totally sucked, because, aside from these few little items, it was awesome -- I had a great time running around in my goofy mandarin suits, seeing everyone again, goofing around with the vendors of the Furry Marketplace ("I have a complaint!"), hanging out with Karl, Jo and RAY! . . . MAN, was it ever awesome to see Ray again! And Reba and Nighty, and Brenda -- sorry I didn't get to stop to chat very much there -- and Rainy, and Lady Foxglove, and, OH! Getting to meet Bill Holbrook! And got a nifty caricature from him, too! And . . . Just lots of people. I'm a shy person by nature, but something about cons brings out the socialite in me, I think. *chuckle* And, I have to admit, it was kinda nifty that, when the con started, even folks who'd been with the dealer room and marketplace last year didn't seem to remember me, but, by the end of it, they definitely seemed to, and in a positive way. Guess I was doing something right! :)
Oh, yes, and then there was the encounter with Bridget I mentioned in my last entry. Definitely a highlight worth mentioning again. :)
Besides, it makes a nice segue into what I've been up to of late! From that encounter, and researching her costume work post-con, I seem to have gotten more involved in costuming and such. I say "more involved" because I've actually been quietly participating on an online forum or two for three years or so now. I've now been getting more active in socializing with a costuming group that meets on Rabbit In The Moon's website, and am getting motivated to start working on a few creations. Time will tell what comes of it, but my first task is to get my weight back under 200, and keep it there. It's been hovering around 220-225 for a while now. Need to get that down if I'm going to be able to do any of the costume concepts I have in mind.
Other than that, as far as socializing, eh, not a whole lot. I DID find a pretty cool person I have gotten gabbing with at a Target near here by the bumper sticker on his Mustang, a fur who moved up from Texas last year. (If you happen to stumble across this, Skivy, heya!) Might wind up rooming with him and some friends of his at All Fur Fun next month. Also, I've been nosing around the local Nazarene church, recommended by my step-grandmother, though I've been feeling quite shy about things there, so I'm not exactly being Mr. Chatty yet. Just not feeling comfortable there yet. Other than that, though, admittedly, I'd gone into hiding there for a while. Valentine's Day got to me bad this year, for some reason, and that hung around pretty much through to my birthday last week, which also got to me pretty bad this year, for some reason. Still feeling a bit of a funk right now, but it does seem to be lifting slowly now that the evil birthday has passed. For folks who wondered where I disappeared to, and why I stopped chatting so much, commenting, writing, what have you . . . *hangs his head* I'm sorry. I am still around, still here if you need me, and will come out of my hiding if needed. So, unless you're expecting me to only be on a game or a muck, or something like that -- aside from a game a week or so of City of Heroes/Villains or solo-ing on EVE, I've done very little gaming, and almost no mucking, as those involve dealing with people, and, again, I've been rather hidey-holey of late -- I am remarkably accessible, if needed. Not terribly sociable, but there if needed.
Along those lines, don't even ask about dating. You know your dating life is tanked when someone tries to set you up on a blind date, and the other person backs out after the person setting it up sends them a camera phone picture of you. (Maybe that has something to do with why Valentine's Day clobbered me so hard, since it was a week or two before that.) Yeah, my ego's still a bit bloody and bruised after that one. Other than that, no one has really caught my eye. Makes the loneliness a bit more frustrating, when it hits. Ah, well. My black-haired mouse of a girl in glasses is still out there somewhere, I'm told. :)
Work? It's been busy. It's been very difficult. It's been a lot of flying by the seat of my pants. A lot of people have been out sick, and there have been days where I have been THE help desk for the entire county, when I was only trained to back them up for breaks and closings and stuff. Anyhew, long story short, by the time I get home, I'm usually utterly beat and exhausted, physically and mentally (which has added to my wanting-to-crawl-into-a-hole-and-not-deal-with-people mindset of late). But, hey, I have been working, which, right now, is a Really Good Thing! And the work I have been putting in has been noticed: it looks like a permanent position is opening up for which I will be eligible, and no less than a dozen people have told me that they hope I apply, including both my manager and boss. So, guess I'm not screwing up TOO badly. Unfortunately, even with that support, there is a very real chance I won't get it . . . because the position requires a good driving record, and I have that lovely driver's license suspension, which may kill my chances. *sigh* Will keep my fingers crossed, though. It's a lot of hard work, and I would also likely take about a 10% pay cut initially, but the perks are worth it, and, in this volatile economy, a government job is about as secure as it gets.
Another segue to another update: Less than a month to go until I am eligible to get my driver's license back. I'll probably get an old beater eventually to toodle around in if I want to make a run up to Seattle, or be out later than the bus that runs by here runs. As far as necessities and commuting go, though, you know, bus and train still work fine for me! (And, if I get the permanent job with the county, one of the perks is a HUGE discount on TriMet passes.) Besides, with the price of gas . . .
So, overall, aside from the deep blue funks, I'm holding my own here all right. Oh, and the little rat girls are doing fine. After I got back from FC, Tia in particular seemed skittish around me for about a week, then suddenly she bonded to me like she never had before. (By the way, if anyone around these parts needs a good pet-sitter, do let me know! The lady who took care of my rats while I was at the con was absolutely wonderful.) Meanwhile, Luni has gradually become MUCH more the mischief-maker, and Maddie does her best to follow in her mother's shoes, though, interestingly, if I have just Maddie and Tia out, Maddie does behave much more like her Auntie, much better behaved. Oh! A cute, "Awwwwwww!" moment: I often will bring them on the bed at night to let them run around for a little while. (Yes, they nibble the sheets, but I need to replace them, anyway.) Well, one night recently, I zonked out. Maddie and Luni took advantage, jumped off the bed and down onto the floor, and just went crazy. (Caught Maddie when she was finishing up nibbling through one of the speaker wires of the stereo in my bedroom. *sigh*) Luni, meanwhile, stayed with me, and, after an hour or so, woke me up by licking my face. Just a litte sweetie!
Ah, yes, here we are at the end now, the explanation for why I am posting this now due, though it should be pretty obvious to anyone who reads this thing regularly, and realizes that I don't post too often, and -- when I do -- I post these hideously monstrous journal entries that, within the first sentences, become a coma-inducing blur of words. And today, I am making it even worse, because I am just too tired to screw with lj-cuts. So, you see, I guess you could more compare me to the "scabs" who cross the picket line, never good enough to play when the regulars are on the job, and who perform so hideously that it makes everyone scream for things to get resolved so the regulars can get back on the job.
Now, to translate that into something that the folks who now run LiveJournal can understand (and apologies to Kitarra and others knowledgeable of the language for my horrible Russian):
Дружественное предупреждение: Если Вы возобновите вашу политику цензурирования, то вашей только проблемой не будет люди прекратит написать здесь. Ваша более большая проблема будет. . . я НАЧНУ НАПИСАТЬ, ЧАСТО!
And that's it from Beaverton! I'm Why-ay'-looh, and we'll have your regular posters back tomorrow, God willing. Good night.