Post #2 of the Day- Brighter Side of Me

POST #2 - In the previous post I mentioned that someone told me that I looked brighter. I do.

It’s because I went back blonde. For those of you who don’t know, I went dark brown for about two months. I loved it at first. But, people I knew for years didn’t recognize me. I’d wave and feel stupid because people did not wave back. In one instance, I was coming out of Turkey Hill and held the door open for Mark Thomas, who used to be program director at WVIA, where I worked as a freelancer for years. So, I said, “Hey Mark! How are you?” He was like, “Good, thanks.” And then went in. He is a recognizable person and now works at the Kirby Center, so he maybe thought I was just some random person. He didn’t recognize me because he is the type of guy who would strike up a quick conversation, or at least ask what I was up to. But no. He had NO idea who I was. I could tell.

That was sign one that people didn’t think I was the same person. Then, I felt like I was starting to look older because no one ever carded me—not once—since my hair was dark. I looked like my mom, I think. Sign #2.

Sign #3 was that Dave said I was looking older. He wanted my blonde hair back. He said it not only made me look old, but also a little dull. Not that brunettes are dull, but I think it just wasn’t my color.

So…. How does one go from dark brown to blonde without spending a hundred bucks at the salon? Well, you do it yourself. Um, that may have been a mistake. Brighter I am, indeed.

I first used a Clairol ultra-light blonde box dye which had bleach or peroxide in it. The box showed that even the darkest browns could go light blonde. It suggested a strand test, which I ignored. I am impatient. So, it also said that I may want to use another shade to tone that lightened hair.

So, I did this Saturday night before the big flea market. I was so tired from all the work, I skipped the part of the directions that said to shampoo the hair when done. I didn’t. Most dyes you don’t—you just use the conditioner. So, when I woke up in the morning, my pretty blue pillowcase had a huge pink spot in the middle. The dye had bleached my pillow case! Argh!

At any rate, my hair was yellow-orange. Bright. We woke up late for the flea market and I didn’t have time to do anything but put it in a pony tail. Around 7 a.m., after we had our stuff set up, I looked at myself in the mirror. Mistake. It looked so weird. So, I took a musty smelling hat from my flea market items and put it on. I hate myself in hats.

So, this morning before work I toned it with a light, ash blonde. I left it on for an hour. It didn’t do much different. My hair is still bright, but people today said it looked fine. It’s not as orange. I guess it’s not terrible, but I still would like it a little darker. I am not sure if I can do it, being that within two days I’ve had soo many chemicals on it.

To be a girl. Angelo here at CareerLink said I’d look nice with a Sinead O’Connor do. I may just try that.

But, this post kind of ties into Post #1 because I do FEEL brighter. And lighter after getting rid of all that stuff. Maybe it's kind of poetic that I dyed my hair back blonde (albeit a new shade!)-- I'm like my old self again!

I found $300 stashed in my basement! And my digital camera cord!

POST #1 of the day- It was a GREAT weekend.

I had more energy than I have in a very long time. I think I have that S.A.D thing, because when it's miserable, I lack energy. Today, someone even told me I looked brighter. After a great weekend and having a lot accomplished, for once I actually can't wait to get home to do more work! At any rate, here are some updates:

Flea Market = $300+ & Letting Go
I literally found $300 in my basement and attic. Not literally, but that's how much the junk I sold was worth at the flea market. From apartment to rental house to house, I have carried the same damn boxes and never unpacked them. I accumulate stuff and I can't let go. I wanted to have a yard sale, but someone suggested going to the flea market instead.

For example, I haven't worked at the radio station in almost six years. Do I really need every single t-shirt, giveaway and coffee mug that I ever got from the station or clients to remind me that I worked there? They sold like hotcakes. I didn't bring the t-shirts, but the coffee mugs were a hit. I also have a filing cabinet filled with papers I wrote since high school. I am a dork. I save everything!

At any rate, we got up early on Saturday and Dave did some yard work and got some of his things together. I spent five hours in our attic room, which is slanted to go with the roof. I have the lower back pain to prove it. I filled five large garbage bags with items I finally decided to part with. I actually have room. It felt so great to get rid of so much stuff!

We were up just before 5 a.m. and when we got home from the flea market Dave mowed the yard and I went through the kitchen and weeded out more things we don’t use, cleaned out the fried and just got rid of clutter. It’s time for this chick to let go!

I pretty much focused my efforts on getting rid of household items for the flea market, so I still have a lot of personal papers to go through. I save every article I ever write, but sometimes I don’t get around to clipping them out of the paper. So, I have four bins filled with Weekenders and Times Leaders and Wilkes U. Beacons. I also about four or five bins and two filing cabinets filled with paperwork and all my binders from every college class I took. Oh yeah—I have a big box filled with every note I got from friends in junior high—from when I lived in Oklahoma! I can probably weed all that stuff that down to ONE bin and ONE filing cabinet.

I seriously feel incredible now that that stuff is gone. There is a new book out that I want to get called "It's All Too Much: An Easy Plan for Living a Richer Life with Les Stuff" and it says that a cluttered person can become depressed, anxious, etc. all things that I’ve experienced the past few years. My cluttered mind really ruled my life, I think.



Oh yeah! My camera cable!
I have a digital camera, but for over a year now I have not used it. I lost my cable. I did not have a memory card. I kept putting off getting a new one. While I was cleaning the basement,I found it! There were pics on there of Dave's nephew the day he was born. He's one now. Haha. I uploaded them to my computer and now I am ready to take more. PREPARE FOR PICTURE BLOGS!! Yeah! I almost bought a new camera, too.

Drink with me Elmo

If I didn't lose the USB cable to my digital camera, I'd have a picture of the beat-up pick up truck with an Elmo doll attached to the front grill that I see every day.

Nope. I don't see it en route to work, or in a parking lot of a business. I see it from my living room window. That's right. I live across the street from what I dubbed the 'Redneck Bar.' It's actually a very nice place for a country bar. Good food, cheap beer and a pretty decent juke box.

But the regulars. This Elmo truck is there at 11:00 sharp every morning-- the bar's opening time. It's as if it is his job and if he clocks in late, his pay gets docked. Now, I can't vouch for him every day I suppose, but on the days I go into work late, he's there like clockwork. On the weekends, too.

Saturday, Dave and I were outside cleaning his van. Okay, I was outside watching Dave clean his van. The Drink with me Elmo pulled up. I ran inside to see what time it was. 10:59am.

And you know what? It looked like he was staggering on his way in. I know this man is probably retired, but I can think of better ways to retire. And it's not basing my life around a little hole in the wall bar in Fairmount Township, Pa.

"Happy Earth Day, Jerk!"

I am trying to be greener.

But, I know there is more that I can do. However, there is one thing that I don't do-- LITTER. On Saturday, Dave and I were at the gas station filling up. I noticed a man in a pick-up truck exit his vehicle and trying to look all cool, he tossed a cigarette butt on the ground. That hit a nerve with me.





I had my finger on the power window button and could feels the words, "Happy Earth Day, ASSHOLE" form in my throat. I didn't roll down the window and didn't say it. But, I was so angry.





One cigarette may not make a difference you say. Maybe not, but my biggest pet peeve is cigarette butts on the side of the road or in parking lots. It is just so inconsiderate! I wrote a piece about this as well, and you can read it by clicking here. I don't want to repeat it all here- but man, was I peeved at this loser. If you mus smoke, please, please, please be respectful not just of people around you, but Mother Earth, too.

Geographically-Challenged

Geographically-Challenged

Dave and I were planning a three-day trip to Maine. Dave ran into and old buddy and revealed our plans. The old buddy asked: "When are you going?" Dave replied: "July." This is the response:

"It's cold there! That's near Alaska."

Now, if you were to ask me to fill in an empty map with the names of every country in the former Soviet Union, I may not score perfectly. Too many k's and z's. However, I do know my 50 states and could probably name all the capital cities. If you are lucky, maybe even the state flower. Yes. I learned that at Tobyhanna Elementary Center when I was in 4th grade.

And, I am generally familiar with world geography. If I can't pinpoint it on the globe exactly, I can at least place the country in the proper hemisphere, which is more than I can say for some people. How the hell does one graduate high school and not know where Alaska is?

First of all, we always hear about the 48 continental states. This means that two other states aren't connected to any others. Second of all, if people were to learn about Alaskan history they'd know that the first settlers came across the Bering Strait, which of course is now a sea. Also, Alaska was once a Russian colony. If Alaska was near Maine, it would be closer to Europe than Alaska and would be bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, not the Bering Sea.

I am utterly embarrased for this man. I mean, he could have had an off day. He could have smoked a lot of weed in high school and forgot. I don't want to call him an idiot, but perhaps the school system just failed him.

Oh yeah. Maine.
We decided that an 9-10 hour drive for a three-day trip isn't worth it. So, I am going to cancel the reservations at the cute little cottage in Bah Hahbor. I mean Bar Harbor.

Hospital Hoochies & Vertigo

I have a blog at MySpace, but decided to go a little further and began a personal BlogSpot blog.

The Most Disgusting Thing You'll Ever See in the ER
You know, shows like ER and Grey's Anatomy don't show the sick stuff like this. Let me back this story up with what I was doing in the ER in the first place.

For the past few weeks I've been feeling dizzy, lightheaded and nausea. For no reason! This past week it wasn't so bad. I have a Dr. appt. on 4/27, so I decided to ignore this strange sensation until then. However, Saturday morning I could not even stand up. I can't really put into words how I felt, but it was so wierd. At any rate, the whole day I tossed around going to the ER. Finally around 7:00, we decided to go. We were hungry too, so we went to eat and then since we knew we'd probably be at the ER for a long time, we went to Barnes & Noble to buy books.

Mistake. The flourescent lights at this store were so harsh on me. My world was spinning. I managed to get a Vonnegut book. We got to the ER shortly after 9:00pm. We left at 2:30 am. This is what happened while we waited:

WE WERE THERE TIL THE (ALMOST) CRACK OF DAWN
I said that out loud to make our ER friends laugh. Mainly, I was making fun of this hoochie. I do not like to use that term, but I don't really know what else to call it. Let me set this up. I was sitting between Dave and 'Gram.' Gram was there with her granddaughter, Alicia and Alicia's boyfriend Dominic. The were sitting across from us in the L-shaped waiting room. We didn't see much of Dom, though. He was cuddled up to Alicia in an ER-distributed blanket. The poor kid was shaking and had a temp of over 100-degrees.

So, these two girls in pink pajama outfits enter the ER with a stroller. As they pass us, we notice the one girl, who is still chubby from pregnancy I think, has her ass crack showing. She had her pants rolled down her waist, and she must have went too far down. We could all clearly see her ass crack. Sweatpants are elastic. They are supposed to cling to your body. Ugh. It was so nastly.

CLOSE YOUR LEGS, LADIES
So, the baby Gram tells me, should not be in a stroller. He looks but a month or so old. Gram said that babies should not be in strollers until they are old enough to sit up. I guess a carriage is a different story. This was one of those cheap strollers-- the baby couldn't lay in it. Bad mother, she touts. This girl was also tossing the baby around like a rag doll.

So, the hoochie's friend supposedly was checking out Dominic. Alicia told her gram that the girl was smiling at her boyfriend. At this point I was thinking, "yeah right. She must just be jealous." Turns out, I was wrong. These hoochies were there for a sick baby, and were ACTUALLY TRYING TO PICK UP MEN!!!

The mommy-with-the-crack's friend moved to another part of the waiting room, now facing Dave and I. She had this shit-eating smirk on her face. She had her cell phone pointed at an oblivious Dave. Then, she quickly ran back to the other side of the room and flipped open her phone.

SHE TOOK A PICTURE OF DAVE!!!

Jealous, I am not. Obviously I am not worried about Dave running off with a teenage hoochie momma. I was more amused, actually. So, I tell Gram and Alicia, who just roll their eyes at these poor, pathetic souls. Alicia can't get over the fact that they were trying to flirt with a hunched over, deathly ill boy.

The Drug Addict
Two men walked into the ER and from what I overhear, they had a friend who was high on some kind of drugs and went nuts. They wanted to see if he could be detoxed or something like that. At any rate, they bring the druggie guy in. Now, the one guy who was helping was kind of nice looking. He was a black man with those nice green eyes. At any rate, the two teenagers in pink were going nuts. They kept brining the man in and out to smoke outside, and every time they did, the girls waved to them and smiled. PATHETIC.

TWO DOMINICS
So, the nurse calls for Dominic. Alicia, Gram and Dominic grab their stuff and go-- relieved that their four-hour wait is over. About 30-seconds later, they walk back to the waiting room and the nurse calls for another Dominic. Turns out that little baby has the same name. How ironic.

At this point, the baby was only being seen by the triage nurse, so they come back to the waiting room. The older Dom finally gets called back. Not 30-seconds after they leave, the two hoochies start talking about Dominic, how he is cute and how his girlfriend, "Is so ugly anyways...." WHAT THE F***!! Are they there to take care of this baby or to get themselves into teenage pregnancy again???

The drugged-up man comes out a few more times, and the horny little girls squirm in thier seats and giggle and wave to him. Are they too stupid to realized he his high? (I give him credit for listening to his friends and going to the hosptial at least)

I was sick of seeing this girl's ass crack hanging out. It wasn't the 'thong' look that some guys think is hot. I truly think this was an accident-- that she pulled down her pants too far.

C-SECTION MARKS
I finally got called back. While I was gone, Dave said the girls didn't say anything to him, but did keep giggling about something. He said that when they yawned, they leaned back and raised their arms, and he said both of their stomachs were all cut up. Like they both had c-sections. So, I guess they were both mommies.

THIS IS THE FUTURE OF AMERICA, I AM AFRAID TO SAY....

Oh, yeah. Aside from the Drama, I was in the ER for a reason
As with any ER, they make sure you aren't dying and send you home. So, I was told I had Vertigo from an ear infection. My right ear was very red, he said. He made me do this test where I laid down and sat up really fast and shook my head really fast. He also said that I may have acid reflux disease. But, he only gave me medicine for the dizziness. I have to follow up with the family doctor later for more in-depth explanations I guess.

Conclusions
The two girls in the pink. I know I will see them in the paper one day. I just cannot believe how sick and disgusting these girls looked and acted. What blows my mind even more is that they are PARENTS. And, at the rate they are going-- meaning being in the ER at 2:00 am flirting with SICK people-- they are bound to be parents again. To put it the way Dave put it-- "No wonder STDs are such a problem."