WOW...

So I just finally realized just how long it has been since I have updated my blog... about two and a half months now... embarrassingly enough. So... how about a quick sum-up?

Beginning of May Casey and I did a trip to Idaho for his cousin's wedding and that turned out to be a really awesome fun trip. It was short, but fun to get away for a while.

The one down-side to the whole Idaho trip was that on the way up to Idaho, I found out that seven of my friends from work had just been laid off. Talk about sad and demoralizing... and a total downer for the start of a vacation. It was pretty rough to take it all in just because they were all my friends and those people are the ones who made it FUN and exciting to get up every day and go in to work. Work didn't feel like work because I was surrounded by all my friends.

Then about a week later, May 11th-ish... even MORE of my friends got laid off from work! :( Serious cut-backs were in order I guess just because of the economy and struggling housing market and oh wait... I work for a software company that is almost entirely dedicated to new housing construction. At least I still have a job because I've heard what a rough time it is right now trying to find a job. Good luck to my 11 friends who lost their jobs. I hope good fortune and wonderful opportunities come your way.

So... since the beginning of May, I have been extremely swamped at work, missing many of my lunch breaks and working longer hours just to try and stay on top of it. Before all these layoffs, I had at least two, even three people who I could go to on a regular basis and ask for help on various projects and orders, etc. I even had a graphic designer that did a TON of work for me with doing logos, artwork, binder covers, etc. (Go Cort!) And he is freakin' AMAZING at what he does... and so freakin' fast. Now... there's just as much if not more work than there was before, and 1/3rd the amount of people to do that work.

The book writing process is coming along slowly. I have had great ambitions of re-finishing it off for the second time... but haven't felt like I've had the time to really sit down and do it. When I start writing, I get hooked and I can't really STOP myself once I get going. So unless I have a few hours to spend all in a row... sometimes it's not worth it to sit for 20 minutes and try to write something. All my best writing comes out about an hour after I've sat my butt down.

Cute as they are, my parakeets annoy the H-E-Double-Toothpicks out of me sometimes. There are days they just will not shut their pie-holes. *chirp squawk peep EEK chirp chirp chirp nails-on-chalkboard-sound* etc. etc. My friend Billy's parakeet just died so he was looking to replace his pet. I was thinking to myself perhaps the two male parakeets are always so loud because they are trying to impress the female. Fingers crossed anyways. I'm going to give Bear (AKA the mean, raunchy witch of a female bird) to Billy and see how the two males act after that. The boys get along fine together, but the female pecks at one of the boys... poor little Ace. I dunno. Hopefully Billy is cool with that idea. I only jokingly offered to give him the whole dang cage, parakeets and all, because the birds were squawking so loud that morning they woke me up EARLY on a SATURDAY. So not cool. Hahaha. I'd rather have my dogs get me out of bed at 2AM because they are barking at some raccoons than to have my parakeets wake me up at 8AM on a Saturday morning.

I've been reading this book called "Strip Tease" by Carl Hiaasen and it's been a pretty fun read so far. Yes... one of the main characters is a stripper but it's not like it's a dirty porno Harlequin book. It's more of a mystery/action/suspense book. Lawyers, dirty congressmen, sugar plantations, judges, thieves, bouncers, detectives, etc. etc. It's really interesting.

We traded in the old Chev for a Ford truck. I am in LOVE with it. I don't know what it is... but I guess I've kind of got a thing for big, beefy trucks. We've got ourselves a '96 F250 (for those of you who don't know, that means it's a 3/4 ton) and it's a Diesel! Oh yeah it's a 4-door as well. Sooooooooo nice. It's got so much room inside... the center seat in the front is a bucket seat and it fits my butt soooo perfectly. So we can actually drive down to the dunes with 6 adults in the truck and all be comfortable. When we would drive the Chev down to the dunes we could maybe squeeze 4 adults in the truck and of course I'd have to sit in the middle. So by the time we'd get down there my back would be hurting so bad I wouldn't WANT to go riding. This Ford is going to be AWESOME to drive on long trips because it is so comfy and because it's diesel, it will get double the gas mileage as a gas truck. Plus it can tow all our toys wherever we want it to. :D That is my fun, exciting news for the month. P.S. Who thinks it's totally crazy that I got CHEWED OUT by a friend that I got an AUTO LOAN??? Yeah, you read that right. Lectured by a friend who thinks it is down right stupid to get a loan on a vehicle. So I suppose we're all supposed to save up money and take the bus for a couple years until we can afford to out-right buy a decade or older vehicle? Yeah... right. I can't imagine how many years it would take me to save up for a NEW vehicle. Sorry bro... but not all of us make $45 per hour and not all of us WANT to purchase vehicles for under $1000 and rotate through them every couple months and plow money back into this junker just for the sake of not having an auto loan.

I thought about going back to college there for a brief stint... I still think it's a good idea but I don't think it will happen for another year or so. Let me just tell you guys right here and now... do not call ITT Tech and do NOT give them your phone number. I couldn't get that guy to stop harassing me. I was about ready to cuss him out one day when he called for the THIRD TIME THAT MORNING and I said "Look! Stop calling me! I'm not interested in going to that school!!!" and then he acted all cool and suave all the sudden like I was the one who was being irrational... like calling me three times every day for two weeks straight is being all cool and nice and polite?!? Jerks.

Well, I hope anyone who might be reading this is having a great day. Take care.

Jen