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Friday, December 21, 2001
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Countdown: 24 days in CT (or maybe 23 or 22 or 21....), 8 days at PB (or maybe 7....).
My countdown is a little screwy now, I know. I'm looking at leaving a day earlier than planned so that I can get into the new apartment and then do the whole DC roadtrip thing with Amy and others. This is certainly fine by me. As for days in CT....well, I had estimated that I would be gone by January 14th. I know I'm going up to Ithaca on Jan. 11, but not all of my stuff will be out of there by then. But it's looking like coming back will just be a quick trip to get the rest of the stuff and then my face will not be seen in Connecticut for several months.
On to better news, though....I just have to make it through today and then I'm not back at work until January 2nd!!!! Ahh, I'm looking forward to a much needed vacation - I just don't get many of them these days, and even though it's at home to visit the fam (and the home friends) well, it'll do, right? Yes, definitely. I am going to eat well while I'm home, too, which will be a welcome change. I never eat better than when I'm at home in Chicagoland - my parents cook food the way I'm used to and well, you just can't eat better in another city, from what my experiences have shown me. =) Yummmmmmm.
I went to pick up my officer binder from Dana yesterday, who was so kind as to transport it from Ithaca to Connecticut. Dana lives in a very, very nice neighborhood. Lots of trees, very large, nice-looking houses set back from the street on large plots of land....well-manicured lawns, etc....Perhaps I wouldn't hate Connecticut so much if I lived someplace like that....that's the kind of neighborhood that I dream of living in. Ahh, one day....that sort of thing is all part of my 10 (well, maybe 15) year plan, so one day....
Nothing to do at work, will spend the rest of the time today bored most likely....just have to make it to 5:30....at least there's lunch at the mall to look forward to today....it's the last lunch that Sarah and I will eat together (she leaves after next week and I won't be here next week) so we decided we have to make it at least a little better than eating in the cafeteria. Mmmmm, mall food.... =)
- Lizzardie, at 11:06 AM
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Thursday, December 20, 2001
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Countdown: 25 days in CT, 9 days at PB.
Right now, I would really really like to take a nap. Ugh, thankfully tomorrow is Friday - this week has been so long. I of course have not helped this - phone calls until midnight both Sunday and Tuesday nights certainly didn't help. I just keep thinking, if I make it through tomorrow, I don't have to come back to work for about 11 days!!! Yippee!!! Not quite looking forward to the trip home, but I am looking forward to not working. Home won't be so bad after Christmas passes, I think. Depends on if I have car privileges or not (why am I not driving home? Oh yeah, I don't think I could stand to spend that long in the car by myself). It's quite sad that I'm not looking forward to Christmas. At least I'm going to be getting some good food while I'm home.
I've been trying to figure out just how I'm going to get to LaGuardia on Monday. It's a fair distance away (and it's NYC) and I don't have anyone to take me to the airport. I had counted out long-term parking there, because, well, that kind of thing is expensive. I mean, it's $20/day at O'Hare, it's got to be at least that at LaGuardia, right? So I've looked into limousine services, considered taking the train, etc....finally I called LaGuardia just to find out how much parking really is, and it's $16/day. That is my least expensive option, believe it or not. So yeah, that's what I'm doing. Perhaps if I beg and plead I can get my dad to pay for it. Can't hurt, right? Ahh, the joys of being up at around 4:00am Eastern time on Christmas Eve, when I'll be up until around 1:00am Central time. And then I'll proceed to get maybe 6 hours of sleep. Oh joy. But that's what Christmas is all about, right?
My sister is in NYC and she had invited me to meet up with her and her friends there this weekend, but have I heard from her? Nope. Should have known - it's my sister, after all. That's okay - I'll just sleep this weekend.
- Lizzardie, at 2:35 PM
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Wednesday, December 19, 2001
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Countdown: 26 days in CT, 10 days at PB.
So much to say, yet I don't even want to write it down right now. Need to, though, before I forget everything. AHHH!!! Staying late at work kinda sucks (at least this late - 5:30 I can handle - 6 is pushing it). Moving on....
So, first things first. Yesterday was a pretty bad day. I got quite a bit of bad news that is not worth going into right now. Let's just say that there are two groups of people that I'm unhappy with: Cornell University and my extended family. The university currently has a hypocritical image in my mind, and I don't think that will change anytime soon. As for my family, for those of you who don't know, we're a pretty messed up group of people and I'm tired of the bullshit that I see from some of them. They spread rumors (untrue ones at that) like high school students and it's extremely disturbing. I'm tired of having to be some sort of go-between or for getting slack for not choosing sides. And yet....I know one day I'll have to choose sides and I know what side I will be choosing. That's what's disturbing the most, I think. Christmas Eve is going to be a nightmare, I can feel it. At least I have the Candlelight Service to look forward to at my church and Christmas Day. None of this makes any sense, I know, but I don't feel like going into all the sordid details of how cruel, bitter and generally messed up my family members are - it's way too long of a story.
On to other bad things....I still don't have Christmas presents for Christina and Kim, and Christmas is, um, 6 days away. Not good. My sisters are impossible to shop for, it seems. I can't be this hard to shop for. I don't think I am. Besides, I'm a terrible present-buyer. I never know what to get anyone. ARGH. I have to get them something...what to do, what to do.... =/
On to good things....so, I went to this panel discussion on Operations Research/Management Science today. It was AWESOME. =) First of all, time out of work to go to this thing....LOTS of time, because it was in Manhattan (at The Penn Club) and I had to get down there. Second, phenomenally good lunch, paid for by Pitney Bowes - salmon and caesar salad and grilled vegetables and these really wonderful ravioli things....YUM. And then there was the discussion itself....when I go to these things I usually try and sit in the background and kind of observe - I learn best that way, because I'm horrible when it comes to thinking of questions to ask. But of course I wasn't able to here. They were ecstatic to have students there (it was presented by Informs) and wanted to hear all about me. But they said some really great things about OR/MS, things that make me really excited to be in this field. It's funny - the one thing that bothers me about my major the most, I think, is that it's a lot of lecturing and handing in problem sets, which leads to a lack of good communication skills. This was discussed a lot. Yay for that - it's not just a Cornell thing. I also got to make a few contacts, and to hear about different industries (but mostly CONSULTING - my true interest) and what they're doing and how the recession and September 11th has affected them all. It was really, really great. OR gets such a bad rap at Cornell, but it's just a really, really fascinating field - it's just that not a lot of people understand what it is that we do (this was also talked about - one of the first things that was asked was if someone could give a definition of OR/MS). I should really consider joining the Informs group at Cornell next semester.....it's amazing how much more excited I am about OR after talking with people who actually DO OR stuff for a living and who are excited about it themselves - none of the OR majors I've met at Cornell are excited about it, which hasn't led to my enthusiasm. BUT NOW....
After the discussion, I decided to walk around a little bit. It was a perfect day to be in the city (ANY CITY)....clear skies, about 45 degrees...nice and crisp, just the way I like it. =) I walked to Rockefeller Plaza to look at the tree -that was pretty cool. I also got to see the window displays at Saks Fifth Ave - they were really cool. Jaclyn told me I should go and look at the window displays at Macy's, but that was in the opposite direction (The Penn Club is on 44th Street). Another time, I suppose. AND, I avoided going into any stores!!! It was so, so tempting, too - 5th Ave is like the Magnificent Mile in Chicago - EVERYTHING is there!!! Ahhh, but what a good day. =) Sure beats yesterday!
- Lizzardie, at 5:48 PM
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Tuesday, December 18, 2001
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Countdown: 27 days in CT, 11 days at PB.
I cannot believe how much work I have to do, it's ridiculous. FOUR (4) months I sit here and do nothing. Absolutely nothing. Now, in my last few weeks, I have no idea how I'm going to get all of this work done before I leave. Plus, the last week will be spent bringing Ying (she's the co-op student for the Spring) up to speed on all of our projects. Yeesh. Where did the time go??? Not that I want more time here, I can't wait to get away. Oh, and did I mention that I can't even do the work I need to, most of the time, because Excel decides to freeze every time I go to open one of my files? Not cool. You may wonder why I'm spending my time on this thing (and AIM, for that matter)....well, force of habit - a cycle I will never be able to break (or at least I won't be able to for a long time). As I told Crystal yesterday, I have a ton of work to do, but I always have time for IM. Just proof, I believe, that I'm still a college student. =) Good thing, too!
Tomorrow, though, I'm taking advantage of one of the benefits of working here, not that there are many of them. I'm going to The Penn Club in Manhattan for a panel discussion on Operations Research/Management Science. I'm hoping it'll be interesting - my supervisor is on the panel, but there is hope for the other panelists, I suppose. Two of them are from Fordham and two are from other businesses. Hey, free lunch on Pitney Bowes (and getting my regular hourly salary, no less) sounds good to me. Plus they'll be paying me while I actually go down into Manhattan - that's 2 hours on the train and I'll be getting paid. Can't beat that. I may even detour to Rockefeller Center after the lunch to see the tree. =)
I got my cell phone bill yesterday - it has all the roaming charges from going to St. Louis on it - yikes. Add $16 to the grand total for Convention: 16 + 48 (actual cost of the trip) + 115 (speeding ticket) + 20 (gas to get from Connecticut to Ithaca) = $199. It's a good thing I had a lot of fun and wouldn't have missed it for the world, because that is an expensive trip! Ahh, well, I'll just pay my cell phone bill and be done with it anyways. Actually I guess what's more important is that the change of address FINALLY went through on my cell phone, after 3 months. Just when I need to change it again. Everything is so slow in changing addresses - I think I'm actually going to have to apply for a change of address at the post office, otherwise I'll never get any of my bills and my credit will be shot. Not a good thing.
- Lizzardie, at 10:43 AM
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Monday, December 17, 2001
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Countdown: 28 days in CT, 12 days at PB.
So, after a coffee-free weekend, I'm feeling nice and caffeinated. I swear, if ever I was to consider taking up a drug habit, the whole caffeine thing would make me think otherwise. Withdrawal is a bitch, and this is a legal drug -sheesh!
So, the weekend was pretty dull. I put a whole 6 miles on my car this weekend - I think that's a record. The only place I went was to have my oil changed. So, not only did I not go to Ithaca this weekend, I also didn't go shopping. DOUBLE accomplishment. What I did do was start packing up my stuff. I put a lot of things that don't get used - books and such, summer clothing - in boxes and did general cleaning - it's amazing how much garbage I accumulate. My room looks nice and clean now (hopefully it will last through the week). There really is very little time left for the whole co-op thing - this week, then at home for a week (hopefully I'll get to relax, though it's home, so you never know....) then 2 more weeks. Coming down the home stretch, I wonder where the time went. Not that I'm not glad to get back to school - I'm downright ecstatic. September seems like yesterday, though, and yet, so much has happened. Unbelievable.
So....Amy was supposed to come up in January after she gets back from California so that we could bum around NYC for a few days, but now, she wants to go to DC. That's cool with me. Free housing and food at her aunt's and touring DC for a few days - I haven't been there since I was 13. Besides, another roadtrip before I settle back into the class routine would be nice - it seems like the appropriate end to my co-op experience - add to the states that I've visited/driven through (though I think that just adds Maryland and DC, possibly Virginia and/or Delaware).
Today will be spent fixing up my SAS file and working on the crazy Economic Growth Report (yeah, that's its official title). Yippee!!! (Note the heavy saturation in sarcasm.)
- Lizzardie, at 9:48 AM
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Sunday, December 16, 2001
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“Experience is not what happens to a man, it is what a man does with what happens to him.” --Aldous Leonard Huxley
And I've found this to be be oh so true.
- Lizzardie, at 12:53 PM
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Friday, December 14, 2001
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Countdown: 31 days in CT, 13 days at PB.
I have completely lost my holiday cards. This is very disappointing to me. I payed a fair amount of money to get nice cards that weren't religious (that way I couldn't offend anyone) and now they're gone. I have looked everywhere. At least I got to send some out, but there are people I didn't get a chance to send a card to that deserve one and dammit, I can't if I don't find those crazy cards!!! Argh!!! Drawers, under my bed, on my bed, in all of my boxes, in corners, in my closet, at work, in my car, etc....I have looked everywhere, except where the cards actually are. I hate when I do this. I know myself well enough to know what happened: I was cleaning and was trying to think of a good place to put the cards; I probably put them in a very secure, very obvious place....only now, when I want them, that place isn't so obvious. I suppose I have all weekend to find them, but I'm getting very, very frustrated.... =(
- Lizzardie, at 9:44 AM
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Thursday, December 13, 2001
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Countdown: 32 days in CT, 14 days at PB.
"You have always made an impression, you just never knew you did." My aunt said this to me yesterday, which is not surprising (she's my biggest fan). =) What is surprising, I think, is that just about everyone I've talked to the past couple days has said the same thing, they just didn't word it eloquently enough for me to quote. I am truly amazed at how lucky I am to have such great people in my life. I have a wonderful group of friends (and Brothers) who are constantly showing me why it is I keep them around. =) Not many people are fortunate enough to go away for a semester and come back with closer relationships than when they left. How I managed to strengthen those bonds of friendship from afar is beyond me. I'm so glad it happened, though.
Right before I started working at Pitney Bowes, someone told me that I had nothing to worry about because only the logistics of where I would be were changing - people would remember me, everyone will still be there when I come back, et cetera, et cetera (he of course phrased this much better, but I cannot remember the exact words). It made me feel better to hear that, but in those first few weeks, I was certain I had mage a gi-normous mistake. The job sucked and I was so lonely - and everyone at school was too busy to talk to me. The time before me seemed endless and I was so sad because I was certain I was wasting 5 months of my life, and the idea of letting that happen was unbearable.
Things got better, though. I went to visit my friends and I made peace with the issues that were troubling me. I became known for my weekend visits and for just showing up, unannounced. More IM windows started popping up on my computer and I started using more of my cell phone minutes. And no matter how many times I've visited, I still get told that I'm missed when I'm not there. Going back to Ithaca will in January will not be awkward, as I once feared it would be, because I have truly been embraced there by so many extraordinary people.
And now, just weeks before I head back, as the time in CT is winding down, I think I can say that my time here has not been wasted. Okay, okay - it wasn't fun most of the time. But life isn't always fun. But any time I can look back and say to myself, I'm a better person because this happened, I know whatever it was I did, it was worth it. So that piece of advice I got back in September? Well, I'm certainly glad to have been on the receiving end of it and it seems to hold a good deal of truth in it. I must say that logistics (location, etc...) don't seem to matter much - the change that matters is the change we bring about in ourselves.
I feel like crying now, but happy tears. Isn't this a refreshing change from the depressing posts of September? =)
- Lizzardie, at 9:39 AM
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Wednesday, December 12, 2001
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Countdown: 33 days in CT, 15 days at PB.
I'm currently waiting for about 200 graphs to print, so I have some spare time in an otherwise very busy week. This is the worst week for me to be busy at work, too, I swear!!! I've been here for about, ohh, 14 weeks I'd say and I've never been this busy with a freaking deadline. And OF COURSE, this week I would be feeling completely awful. Ugh. I really have being sick. I'm feeling better today, but tomorrow is a new day!!! (And doesn't that sound cheerful.)
Unfortunately, I really don't have much to say. Nothing's been going on really. Yesterday was our holiday party here in the Planning & Analysis department at PB. Good desserts (which I still have plenty of) and I won a candy dish. Ohh, and my Kringlas were pretty successful, thank you all very much. Vinny has heavily hinted that she'd like to try them, so maybe I'll make them next semester for my friends in Ithaca. What else? Oh yeah, nothing. This weekend I will probably spend starting to organize and pack my stuff. You may be asking why this is, since I still have almost a full month here. Well, the answer to that question is that no, I don't have a full month here. I'm going home for approximately 8 days, for one. For another, we all know that I'm too tired after work to get anything done, so I'm left to do all my packing on the weekends. BUT, I'm only going to be in Connecticut for 2 more weekends!!! Yikes!!! I'll be here this weekend (hence the need to pack), the next weekend I'll be hanging out in NYC, in 2 weeks I'll be in Chicago, the weekend after that is my 2nd weekend in CT, and then I'm outta here!!! It really seems so short when I put it like that, huh? Ironically, all of my friends are now looking forward to their breaks, not even thinking about starting school again in January, when that's all that I can think about.
Speaking of my friends, where the hell are you all? Studying, I suppose. Damn you all. You're supposed to be spending time talking to me!!!! Okay, okay, yes, I do want you all to pass your classes. Really I do. It's just that I'm missing out on all the fun.... hmm, maybe not.
Yesterday I missed out on all the important PSP stuff of the semester, though - induction, officer transition and the banquet. Let's see - I know one of the 13 new brothers (Jaclyn, duh). They're all going to come back in January and be like, "who's she? She's the treasurer???" Ahh well - they'll know me soon enough, I suppose. Yeah, and I missed the officer transition ceremony, too. I'm still actually in shock over being elected treasurer. It's kind of funny - 10 months ago, I didn't know anyone in PSP, I literally forced myself to go to my first rush event (which I arrived late to) and sat there the whole time thinking, "I'm sitting in a stranger's house, with a ton of people I don't know, watching a movie - have I lost my mind???" If only I had known what I was getting myself into.... =) Ahh, they all know I love them!
Sarah just found out that the cafeteria charges for honey. They don't charge for jelly, or butter, but they do charge for cream cheese and honey. Is it really worth it, I have to ask? The food here is still cheaper than at Cornell, but they're still ripping us off. I usually go and pay $1.10 for a 1/2 liter bottle of water. The other day, I went to the grocery store and payed $5.99 for 28 of those same bottles. Now I know that most of you hate math, but I think the calculation is unnecessary here to see how inflated the prices are. That case of water now sits in the trunk of my car, so everywhere I go, I have nice, cold bottles of water. Can't beat that.
- Lizzardie, at 3:48 PM
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Tuesday, December 11, 2001
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Countdown: 34 days in CT, 16 days at PB. Today is December 11, btw, and January 11 is my last day of work!
I'm feeling too ill to write anything else coherent. Perhaps later on today, but most likely tomorrow, I'll give a better update. Not that life is too exciting here. It's more exciting in Ithaca, as always... =(
- Lizzardie, at 2:54 PM
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Monday, December 10, 2001
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Countdown: 35 days in CT, 17 days at PB (I have this written on my calendar through the end of December, mind you)
Is it really too much to ask for that I get a decent night's sleep? I'm so tired, but considering that I went to bed at 10:15pm, I should have gotten a good 7 1/4 hours of sleep. This of course didn't happen because I spend so much of the night TRYING to sleep, and sleep only seems to come at around, oh, say 5:30am, when my alarm goes off. I'm going to need a nap sometime today. =(
Anyway, I had a pretty good weekend, surprisingly, considering I spent it in CT. Friday I, um, slept. Needed to catch up from the rest of the week, ya know? After truly getting up around noon on Saturday, I drove a ridiculous distance to the store I needed to go to in order to purchase my mother's Christmas/birthday present (my mom's birthday is in January and in order to actually buy her something nice, I'm forced to combine the gifts - I feel slightly bad about doing this, but it can't be helped). It's good to have that out of the way. How I'm going to get said gift back to IL is another question entirely, and I'm not about to deal with it. I also prepared the dough for a lovely batch of Kringlas, and then proceeded to call over to Vinny's to harass the PSP Brothers, who had gathered for the initiate social event. It was good times. Sunday involved a ton of baking of the Kringlas - they came out well, so that's good. They aren't the most perfect pretzel shapes, but hey, I tried! I'm no chef or cookie baking genius, for that matter. I also spent a good hour and a half on the phone for the PSP elections. That, I think, was the most exhausting phone call I've ever been on! They had me on speakerphone at the meeting for the exec board elections, and I was straining to hear what was going on. When it was all said and done, though, I was elected treasurer! Yay! That's the position I really wanted (which made not winning the president, vice-president and secretary positions fine with me - hey, I was surprised to be nominated for all that!), and the rest of the exec board if filled with some awesome people. We're going to have a great year, and it makes me even more excited about returning to Ithaca next month!
It is Monday, though, and surprise, surprise, I actually have a fairly large project that I'm supposed to have done by Friday morning. Yikes! I'd better get working on that....
- Lizzardie, at 8:47 AM
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Friday, December 07, 2001
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Countdown: 38 days in CT, 18 days at PB
Ahhh, Friday. Normally I would be psyching myself up for a nice trip to Ithaca, but alas, I'm not going this weekend. Not for lack of things going on there, of course - there's always enough going on there to keep me busy for a weekend. BUT, I do have to make cookies this weekend (if I ever get the recipe from my grandmother) and of course, I know a handful of PSP Brothers who might actually go through with their threats to kill me if I surprise them again. Isn't everyone supposed to be happy to see me??? =) Only 5 weeks more of this nightmare known as Connecticut. Connecticut might actually surpass Wisconsin as #1 on my list of "States I Never Want To Set Foot In Again." I say this because I don't think that I will ever have a reason to go to Wisconsin again, so it's not a state that I need to worry about. Anyway, other plans for the weekend include cleaning (I should really start thinking about packing again, actually), laundry and buying my mom a Christmas present. Will it all get done? Depends really on how much sleep I get and how motivated I can be. We'll see....
- Lizzardie, at 8:22 AM
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Thursday, December 06, 2001
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I'm feeling better today. That's most evident in the fact that I couldn't sleep last night. Ahh, when will the insomnia end? Today I am, predictably, tired, and still wearing my glasses, because my eye is still swolen. =( I hate wearing my glasses - I swear I can't see as well as with my contacts. Yuck. What else? I ordered Becky's Christmas present last night - 2 down, 4 to go. I think I'm going to try and buy my mom's this weekend, so that will (hopefully) leave Kim, Christina and my dad. No one else gets Christmas presents - with a big family, I really can't afford it. Sorry. =(
Ohh, and the countdown is 39 days in CT, 19 days of work. I keep almost forgetting to put that!
- Lizzardie, at 10:08 AM
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Wednesday, December 05, 2001
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Mmmmm, Vitamin C. I love the stuff. Mostly because I love citrus anything, but that's okay. For some reason, though, it's not helping me right now. I'm feeling kinda ill, which I don't like. BUT, I've been eating mulitple oranges and/or grapefruit daily since, like, Saturday. Yesterday I didn't have any but I drank a ton of orange juice. Yet here I am, sick, blah. I know I must be sick because I was feeling quite woozy yesterday, managed to sleep ALL NIGHT without waking (major accomplishment) and I'm not feeling any better today. AND, I was forced to wear my glasses today because my eye is swolen. I just want to crawl back in bed, but I can't, since I'm at work. Another day to tough out, I suppose.
I almost forgot the daily countdown: 40 days till I leave CT, 20 days of work left. That 20 doesn't look so bad, but that 40 does. *sigh* Sarah got a new computer here - I'm jealous, and hoping mine will come soon. Then I will have sound and better picture quality (I only have 16 bit color right now) which would make being here a bit more bearable - I could bring in CD's and do more quality web-surfing. I like the sound of that. Maybe tomorrow? I would think we would get new computers at the same time...please, Liz would like a new computer, pretty please? Too bad the PB computer people don't read this.
- Lizzardie, at 8:21 AM
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Tuesday, December 04, 2001
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Uhhhhh....I do not feel very good right now. Slight headache, but my head is spinning like crazy. I feel dizzy just sitting in my chair. I want to go home, but considering there isn't any part of Connecticut that feels like home, I really don't think that's possible. Chicago's too far away, and I don't really have a home in Ithaca right now (though I will soon - yay). I wish there was someone around to make me chicken soup. =(
So...let's try and be a bit upbeat, shall we? Staff meeting wasn't actually bad today (other than my light-headedness). We did this visioning exercise. First, we got to picture ourselves on vacation. I pictured myself sunning by a pool, cloudless sky, palm trees, light breeze in the air. You would think I would have my friends around me, right, since I've been so lonely? I was by myself, though. It was a nice vision. Then, we had to come up with visions for our department, Planning & Analysis. I thought this was hard at first, but the other people I was grouped with, permanent employees who've been here longer than I have, had some of the same ideas: teamwork, reaching out, integration, etc... I realized (as I have been over the past few days - it goes along with my whole this co-op thing not being as bad as I thought in retrospect) that I have learned some things and that I will come away with some things, too. It was not all for nothing, though I hold firm that I would have had a much more enjoyable semester in Ithaca. AND, I probably won't mind being here so much once everyone is at their respective homes, although I'll be at my respective home for part of that time as well. I don't know. We'll see. Refer to the countdown.
- Lizzardie, at 4:50 PM
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So there was this woman on the radio this morning from the Happy Homemaker's Association (or something like that) advocating, basically, that women go back to the kitchen. They should get up in the morning, make themselves beautiful for their husbands, make their husbands and children breakfast, pack lunches, do all the household chores, make dinner, etc....THEN, when the husband gets home, the wonderful, doting housewife should get her husband a drink, bring him his slippers and keep the house quiet for half an hour so he can "unwind." This seems like slave labor to me. I mean, why can't I go to work and then come home to someone waiting hand and foot on me???? Geez - women get so taken advantage of as it is - it's just great to know that there are people out there trying to set us back 50 years.
Moving on....it's Tuesday, which means not much exciting to report. I have a staff meeting in about 15 minutes, which at least means free breakfast and that I get the pretense of doing actual work. Yippee. Ohh, and here's the daily countdown (a new feature): 41 more days in CT, 21 more days of work. Now THAT deserves a real YIPPEE!!! Thankfully it's only that many, too, or else I might go insane. The rules are changing once again at my place of residence. I'm in trouble for leaving my space heater on. Now, granted, I should have the courtesy to turn it off. But when it's not running, there's no indication that it's on, so I forget. AND, just because I'm not there doesn't mean I don't have the right to be there, and if I was there 24/7, I would be able to have it running 24/7. ARGH. Maybe if the room I'm in was insulated and heated? When I first called, I was told utilities were all included, laundry could be done there, there was parking, yada yada yada. Now, I can't do laundry, I have to park on the other side of the circle and I'm in danger of having my rent raised because I like heat. JUST A LITTLE LONGER.....
- Lizzardie, at 8:48 AM
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Monday, December 03, 2001
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Ohh! I forgot to mention my parking ticket. I have to mention my parking ticket, because it's funny. =) So, we all know that if you have a car on the Cornell campus, you're bound to get a parking ticket (multiple parking tickets) eventually, because the desire to park in places you shouldn't so that you don't have to walk is overwhelming. So....yesterday, I parked near Bailey for the PSP meeting. I've parked there before and not gotten a ticket, so I wasn't too worried. Well, this time I did get a ticket. Kinda sucks, but what can you do? I saw the sign. I resigned myself to putting another $20 towards car violations. But later, I looked at the ticket. I knew they didn't have my name or anything (because my car isn't registered with the university) but figured they would have my license plate number and everything. And yes, they did get the license plate number. But, for my state, they put KS. Kansas. Kansas? Now, I have done a lot of complaining about my license plates. Illinois (yes, that's where I'm from, believe it or not) just redesigned its plates and I hate them. They say "Illinois" in curvy letters at the top and say "Land of Lincoln" at the bottom. And, right in the middle, they have a giant head of Lincoln. Now, yes, they are new and they are ugly. But Kansas? Kansas doesn't even border Illinois. KS aren't near enough IL to make that plausible, either. Cornell police are clearly underpaid to make a mistake like this. It's good news for me, though. Since they can't track me down by my license plate or anything at all, the ticket isn't getting paid. Sucks for the money-hungry administration at Cornell, now doesn't it?
- Lizzardie, at 12:11 PM
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I hate Mondays. I have a whole 5 days of monotony to look forward to. Yippee. A whole 4 more nights of not sleeping well. Yippee. Maybe it wasn't the pillows, because I can still only manage to sleep for about an hour or two at a time before I wake up. Perhaps it's the noise from the space heater or from my computer that wakes me up when I'm completing a sleep cycle, I don't know. Can't be the computer, though, can it? I've slept with a computer on in my room for the past 2 1/2 years. I really don't get it.
Weekend was fun. Yes, I did end up driving. It was a little longer than usual, because I had to go to Sarah's house in NJ, but it was nice to have the company. Did you know that New Jersey is the only state I've ever been in that doesn't have big "Welcome to" signs? Both when coming into NJ from I-287 and I-80 I looked for signs, but there were none. I wasn't sure where the border was on I-287, but I did know where it was on I-80 (when crossing the Delaware River) and there was no sign. How are you supposed to know where you are? I counted - I've been in 9 states in the past 4 months, and the other 8 all have big signs. I'm very disburbed by this. Other thing about New Jersey: on I-80, there are signs at one of the exits that say, "Land of Make Believe, Next Exit." Well, at least I know where it is now. (This, btw, surprised even Sarah, who has taken that expressway many many times.)
The weekend itself was cool, though. Friday night, I helped Amy and Allison prepare desserts for Saturday's party. I helped make the crust on an "Orgasmic Grasshopper Cheescake" and helped eat some "Better Than Sex Sugar Cookies." I did not come up with these names. Saturday, I slept until about noon (ahhhh) and then headed up to campus for a bit with Amy - Iced Mocha from Olin Cafe and Hummus from the Ivy Room - can't beat that. Later that afternoon, I joined some of my brothers for bowling, where I received the typical not-so-warm welcome. "You're not supposed to be here." "I thought you weren't coming back before Christmas." "You're supposed to be in Connecticut." Thanks, I love you, too, guys. =) I then was given the nickname "Perpetually Lost Person" (courtesy somehow of Bolcar, Herb and Will) and proceeded to bowl 2 spectacularly horrible games (52 and 51). So I'm not a sports person. There was dinner at Coyote Loco later with Amy, Allison and Jajitz (excellent steak fajitas and strawberry margaritas) and then the party, which was awesome. I got to spend some time with Betsy, which was cool, since I don't get to that often. She was a little upset when I left - I felt bad, because I didn't even consider her to stay with Saturday night, but I'd already made plans with Vinny. Sunday was the usual - Vinny and I went to the mall before heading to the PSP meeting and then she, Crystal and I went for Bubble Tea (finally - Vinny and I have been trying to get Bubble Tea together for the past month!). The Bubble Tea experience was good - I can't believe I hadn't tried it before.
All in all it was a good weekend. Let's see, if I make January 14 the "Liz is back in Ithaca for good" Day (I think this is a good day because I want to finish work on the 11th of January, and then I'll probably be moving my stuff back to Ithaca combined with hanging out with Amy in NYC over the couple of days that follow that) then I have 42 days left. AND, 8 of those days will be spent in IL. AND, I'll probably spend at least 2 other days hanging out in NYC with my sister and possibly Vinny. AND, not counting today (though I probably should, since it's so early still) I have 22 days left of work. I still have a ton of stuff I need to do, including changing addresses, cancelling accounts and the vast majority of my Christmas shopping. Perhaps for once this semester (yes, I still think in those terms, even though I'm not in classes), other than my wonderful travelling weekends, the time will actually fly.
On to other things....I've decided that perhaps I should cut the daily egg, ham and cheese sandwiches out of my life. I'm definitely gaining weight, which isn't good. I've put on so much weight since starting college, it's ridiculous, yet I still can't find the motivation to start working out. My main problem here is that I'm planning on buying new jeans this week (I have fast cash from Express!), but I think I'm going to have to up a size. =( This isn't good, because (1) I only have one size to go up at Express, and (2) hopefully I'll lose this recently gained weight and then I'll have jeans that are too big for me. ARGH!!! Why can't I go back to the days when I could eat whatever I wanted??? Okay, I'm done complaining about that now.
- Lizzardie, at 10:02 AM
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