slacking

Every time I think about the fact that I'm supposed to do at least 3 blog posts a week it makes me realize how boring my life is. Anything thats actually interesting usually involves other people and details that other people most likely would not want others to know. And the rest of the time, I can only think of things to bitch about.
I don't like being one of those people that is only known for complaining. In high school, my friends would always tell me that I ranted about stuff a lot. I never really got that because I just liked to get everything off my mind at once. After I get rid of it all I can move past it. Apparently in getting rid of it, I ranted...
I never really liked being told that because I didn't want to be that person.
So I'm sorry that I don't have enough blog posts but its very hard for me finding things to write about.
And I just went back and read this and it barely makes sense... =/

Dentists & Hugs

I had surgery on my mouth the other day to have the base of an implant put in. It hurt like hell. But as I was walking out my dentist gave me a hug. Afterward, when I was talking to my mom about it, she mentioned that she thought that if every dentist did that, maybe people wouldn't be so afraid of them.
I have to say, I agree. If you take doctors, they save people. Eye doctors don't cause pain; in fact they hardly ever cause pain. Chiropractors relieve back pain. Podiatrists help people with foot pain. But dentists? Even when they're trying to help people relieve their pain, they cause more.
But maybe if they hugged their patients afterward, people wouldn't dislike them so much. Like, "Hey sorry I hurt you so much but I hope you feel better soon!" Or something to that effect. I think it would help.
But hey it's just an idea. =]

Can't Think of a Title

I don't understand why people complain about wrestling so much. I think it's because they're looking at it the wrong way. WWE and its' different shows are just forms of entertainment. They are just  television shows like so many others however. They have plot lines and dramas and relationships and even though sometimes (okay a lot of the time) they are really stupid and not very well written, they're still just shows. Everyone knows its fake and I guess some people don't understand why others still watch it but thats like some people not understanding why others like soap operas so much. Most of the drama in soap operas happens in hospitals. Most of the drama on wrestling shows happens in a square ring.
So the next time somebody tells me I'm stupid for liking what I consider just another show on TV, they can look at their own entertainment preferences. Why do some people like sports movies or shows about athletes? All that action is fake too but they're not considered stupid for watching it.
So to the people who think it's stupid: don't watch it. No one really cares if you don't like it because that's your opinon on it. But the people that do watch it have a favorable opinion toward it so get over it.

Train of Thought

It really bothers me that most of the time I'm thinking about random, stupid things and going on little rants about them in my head but then when I try to remember them later to write them down (because they can be kind of funny) I can never remember the subject. I wish there was like a recording device in my head (thats not my memory) that could remember all the stupid things I say and think.

One thing I just remembered! At work this month we're selling those shamrock things to raise money for the MDA (Muscular Dystrophy Association) which raises money to send kids with muscular dystrophy to summer camps and stuff like that. It started yesterday and I felt really bad and kind of hypocritical when I was working last night. I always got annoyed by the people that would ask me if I wanted to donate to things. I always thought, "If I wanted to donate my hard-earned money I would do it. I'm here to shop not to give away my money." Or something along those lines. But now that I actually have to do it, I'm realizing that those poor people were just trying to do their jobs.
This year they're having a contest for us. For every 25 shamrocks we sell, we get a $5 coupon that we can use on anything in the entire store. And, apparently, the reason their pushing it a lot this year is because one of the managers was working at a store last year that raised 10 grand. I guess he wants to top that or match it.But last night I got 18 so I didn't do too bad. I even got people that said no at first to change their minds. Namely the goatee guy. (He actually doesn't have his goattee anymore either!) But he said no at first and then, becuase I'm such a pleasant and cheerful person, he changed his mind and told me to put the my name on it. So even though I only raised a dollar for it, I count that as 2 on my personal tally. =]

Road Trip!

I've come to the conclusion recently that a person should not take long road trips with other people that do not converse very well.
On a four hour trip, with less than 20 minutes of shared conversation the entire time does NOT make for an enjoyable time. So if you know you're going to be going somewhere, my advice is too choose companions that you know you can be comfortable with on your journey.
Choose someone you know you have something in common with that can be the basis of a conversation. Pick companions that won't sleep the whole time and make things boring. Someone that you can point out interesting sights on the side of the road to. Someone that will help you navigate if you get lost and someone that can help you keep an eye on the road.
Unless you feel comfortable being on the road by yourself or in a car full of strangers, take careful consideration when deciding who you drive with.

Vintage is better

I have a DVD set of old scary movies. They range from like 1952 to 1987 or sometime around there. I've been watching a couple of the disks in the past couple of weeks and its been makig me realize how much better scary movies were before the 21st century came around.
I honestly can only think of 2 movies that have truly scared me in the past 10 and a quarter years: The Strangers which it took me 3 tries to watch all the way through, although the 3rd time I saw it I fell asleep about half way through. And the remake When A Stranger Calls. And I have a feeling that if I ever saw that one, I'd think the new one was crap.
Then you have movies like the remakes of Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street. Even though he Jason series was extended wayyyyyy to long, no remake of any of the originals will EVER measure up. The new one compltely blew and I'm a huge fan of Jared Padalecki who was the male lead in it. I was pretty disappointed in it. And the new Nightmare on Elm Street I haven't seen but I've seen the original about 50 time and I don't really want to see the remake. I've heard its absolutely horrible and the only notable name in it was the only really hot guy in any of the Twilight movies and he apparently gets killed off in the first 10 minutes even though hes on all the posters.
I don't know if its the whole "The age of irony is over" thing or what but it seems like movie makers feel like the truly scary things are off limits or something. Um, why??? As long as you're not showing thousands of people unexpectedly dying by having planes crashing into buildings, what could possibly offend people that much nowadays?
Give me something I'm afraid to watch by myself please!!! I LOVE watching scary movies except that their not cary anymore! One of the movies on my dvd is the original Georg Romero Night of the Living Dead. I had to skip to the next movie because the opening zombie scene freaked me out. That might have been because I was by myself in my bedroom withmy back to the door and my house was making strange noises but I still got freaked out... Thats what I want from Hollywood. I want them to turn it into (and please forgive the cheesiness) 'Horror'wood and give me a movie that I will truly be afraid to watch by myself.

Simplicity

On Sunday, I went to my sisters house to get my hair done and to see my niece and nephews. At one point when my younger nephew and my neice were out in the trampoline with me standing there watching I said something about gravity. My nephew, who is 6, started asking me about gravity and what it looks like and what it does. So I'm sitting there trying to explain it and I'm thinking, "Oh, my friggin' God... What the hell did I get myself into?!?!" So he keeps asking questions and I'm trying to answer them as best as I can so that a 6 year old can understand it while my 3 year old niece bounced and screamed away behind us.
Then today in Pysch we were talking about how in adolescence, thinking becomes more complex, where things can have more than one meaning to them.

And that, after Sunday, got me thinking about how much easier life was when we were kids. I mean, just think about it! There was no manipulation or deviousness to our acts because there was none in our thoughts. When we didn't understand something we just asked an adult. Like Mom, why do people poop? And Mom would tell us. Food goes through our bodies after we eat it and a day later comes out as poop. But Mom, what about pee? Well honey, when we drink something, that goes through our bodies and becomes pee. But why do we eat or drink? Because our bodies need it.

 Bam, that simple. There were no intestines that absorb the nutrients in the food and pass it along to the rest of the body. There was no "Some foods are bad and some are good". We ate what we were given and we didn't think about it. When we asked what the sun was: Well, honey, its made up of all the love that people have that floats up in the sky and keeps us warm =). Okay well I totally made that one up, I don't think I was ever told that or that I ever even asked that but maybe if I ever have a kid thats what I'll tell them...

But anyway, thinking was just simpler back then and it thinking now just proves it because back then, it was all about what was happening now. We didn't care about getting back in our barely-there pasts, most kids weren't seriously thinking about the future and now all we think about is the past or the future and we hardly ever live in the here-and-now.

 Thats what I really wish. That I could be able to live in the moment more and take advantage of them as they come because that moment is never going to be here again.

Is there any way to legally change your godparents?

I am frigging pissed!
 My uncle is one of the greatest guys I've ever met. He's always been my favorite uncle but that might just be because he's also my godfather. He's kind, hes funny and he does everything he possibly can for his family. So I don't understand why my stupid aunt would cheat on him.
We found out awhile ago. Actually I think its been about a year and ever since I just cannot understand it. My uncle is my moms brother so I guess I'm predisposed to like him more but even if it was the other way around, I think I'd still like him more. He's just a better person.
My aunt used to be kind of heavy (after 3 kids can you blame her?) until about 2 or 3 years ago when she lost a lot of weight. I don't know if that had anything to do with the cheating or not but somehow I'm guessing yes. I don't know how many men she's been with or how often its happened but I think she is the worst kind of mother and wife since she has a great husband and 3 kids - aged 18, 16 or 15, and I think 13.
The worst part of this, I think, is how her kids feel about it. I know what its like to have one side of your family hate a parent. Even before my parents got divorced, no one liked my dad. So since my moms whole family hates my aunt now I know how my cousins might be feeling and it sucks. You always feel like they secretly hate you too because your that persons kid. Who ever it is, they're blood runs in you too so doesn't that mean you're just as bad?
But anyway, I'm really mad because tonight my mom was talking to my uncle on the phone and I happened to be close and I heard him telling her about how things got worse. After he found out for awhile they were planning on getting a divorce but then they decided to try and work it out if she stopped and paid more attention to the family.. etc. I'm chalking this second chance up to my uncles generosity because my aunts to damn selfish to really care, I think. I believe she only sees what she'd be losing if it went to court because my uncle is such a great guy and she was the one that caused it. Today, however, my uncle started saying how my cousins phone has been acting up so he called Verizon to get him a new one and after going over all the general stuff, he was told that he wasn't allowed to make changes to the account and the only thing he was able to use or change was his own number and he couldn't be told certain information and all this other bull crap. And apparently, this has happened to him before, so he thought it was just Verizon screwing up (which if you face it, is a plausible explanation; just not the one I thought of). So he came home from work the next day and my aunt was already home and she was on the phone with Verizon trying to work it out. So at one point she said, "Hold on, let me put my husband on. He knows how to deal with this better." So my uncle gets on the phone and says, "Am I allowed to make these changes" and so on. So they tell him, "No." So he responds with, "Hold on, I'm putting my wife back on." So anyway, she was getting it all worked out and something happened and my uncle put 2 and 2 together and realized that my aunt had control of the account so he started asking her, "What are you hiding? What don't you want me to know?" She eventually broke down and told him that she had been texting and talking to the other guy on the phone. Then my uncle started telling my mom about how he promised himself when he found out the first time that if he ever caught her lying again, then he was done and it was over. So he did and now supposedly they are going to be getting a divorce and I am very proud of my uncle because it was my opinion that he should have gotten rid of her useless ass the first time around.
That just shows the kind of guy my uncle is. Hes willing to put up with someone like that just so his kids will have their mother around. And he said he sat them down and talked to them about it and I really hope they understand that he was the one that was wronged and that they don't resent him for this. I know how it would feel because, again, after my parents got divorced I was mad at my mom. I wanted both my parents there like they always had been. It took my years to realize that my dad wasn't an easy guy to live with and he still isn't because he hasn't changed a damn bit. But anyway I hope my cousins are okay with this and I think my uncles finally doing the right thing.

Oh, and another thing I have against my aunt...
When I was at work one day, I was in register and a group of firemen that always come in stopped in and they came through my line. Now, my grandfather on my moms side used to be the Fire Commissioner of Philadelphia which is like the top fireman in the city. (My great-uncle was mayor and thats how that all came about but he was). So every once in awhile when I'm talking to a fireman, I'll mention my grandfather. Most of them are old enough to know who both he and his brother were so they all know the name. But, back to the story, I mentioned it to this group of firemen and the one said, "Oh, so that must mean you're D*****'s daughter from St. C****!" (I'm blanking out names.) And this was after we had found out about the cheating so I gave him this horrified look and said, "God, no! Thats my aunt." And he chuckled and started telling me about how she was always the lunch mom for the elementary and how she was great with the kids and blah blah. But the thing that bothered my most about that whole encounter, and I really don't know if I was imagining it or not, was that he had this little knowing smirk on his face the whole time like he was thinking, Yeah I know who your aunt is. I slept with her even though she's married. I slept with J** R****'s daughter-in-law!" (J.R. is my grandfather, btw.) So everytime I see that particular fireman now, I always wonder if that was a guy she slept with behind my favorite uncle's back and then I don't ever want to see him in my store again and I hate her for making me think like that.

Grocery Store Tales: Part 3

Update on the Annoying Poland Spring people: The mom came through my line last night and acutally paid cash. She did do the thing where she had picked up more than she decided she wanted so i had some stuff to put back but it was only 2 things this time so no big. Also, when i realized who it was I looked at the cart and oh my God! No Poland Spring!! But wait, as I was finishing up her order and counting out her change what else happens but she remembers she needs some Poland Spring. (And its on sale this week so of course she needs 2...) And of course we have no baggers so I have to call my boss for the night and have him go get them. The poor guy had to carry up 2 cases of water all by himself even though I offered to help. And this is why I do not like this woman. She always has to inconvienence everyone. And she STILL won't get the customer card!!!

Oh and the Emilio Estevez woman came in the other day too. Her hair is growing out but she still looks like him.

Another customer that I've seen again recently is one that I also don't really have kind feelings towards. Hes about 35, he's pretty tall and has a pretty big gut. Hes bald but has a yellow-ish-orange goatee. He wears glasses and usually has some kind of Hawaiian shirt. Hes married to an Asian woman whose pretty short and small, especially compared to him. They have 2 kids, a boy and a girl, that come into the store with them all the time. The girl, I think is 7 or 8 and the boy is younger. When I was working in the bakery in the store a couple months ago, they came in to order a cake for the girls birthday. She apparently had a cold at the time because she was sneezing all over. Even on me... And she wanted a chocolate cake but she pronounced it like "Chaco-LOT". She was running around in front of the bakery sneezing, without covering her mouth, and screaming, "Chaco-lot! Chaco-lot! Chaco-lot!" I don't normally want to hit little kids but in this case, I was willing to make an exception. I cannot stand obnoxious children. They make me never want to have kids.

What You Learn Working In a Grocery Store: Part 2

To review, I’ve decided to write about the things grocery store employees see and the people we come into contact with every day. Grocery store employees, like employees of many retail stores, are for the most part disregarded as just being there. But to us, there are things we see that stick out.  What I’m doing is recording some of those things.

            Everyone who watches TV or reads magazines today has heard about the trash-TV reality show Jersey Shore. Most people my age, especially the girls, watch it every week. (And yes, I am admitting a secret shame in watching it too.) We all know who Pauly D. is. The trademark blowout, the fake tan and his shirts that match his tattoos all make him stand out (and the fact that he’s the best looking one in the house doesn’t hurt either). Now since the show started and became popular, you cannot go to a beach in Jersey without seeing at least 55 Pauly D. blowouts in a 3 block span. But when you actually have to do a double take to see if the reality show star himself is in your store, you know a kid went way too far with the new fad. There is a kid that comes in my store every once in awhile that makes me do a double take every time. He’s pretty tall, he’s tan, he’s pretty built (I think he’s an EMT so that explains that one) and, except for the fact that I’m pretty sure he’s of Middle Eastern descent, he looks JUST like Pauly D. It’s pretty scary actually. Pauly 2 (that’s what I call him) usually just goes to the bank branch in the store so I don’t think I’ve ever actually heard him talk so I don’t know if he sounds like Pauly D or not but one day I will find out.

            Another customer we see fairly regularly is a woman. She has come through my line a few times and she’s another one that has made me do a double-take more than once. This woman looks just like Emilio Estevez. I am not trying to be mean or rude here but she does. The first time I saw her and realized it wasn’t him, but a woman, I almost started cracking up in the middle of ringing someone up.  I’m pretty sure she’s a firefighter or does something that deals with firefighters because she has kind of a husky build and she’s always wearing fire department shirts and sweatshirts and still, I always think of Emilio Estevez.

            Another regular, or actually I should say regulars, is a pair of twins that come in. They are brothers, about 65-ish, and they’re always together and they look alike so I’m actually assuming they’re twins. Also, I think I heard someone I work with say they were once. But either way, they come in every weekend, usually Saturday afternoons and they always have hats on. One wears a red baseball cap and I think the other one wears a blue or green one; they both wear bifocals. They’re about 5’4 and they dress similarly. They wear the old man pants (see last post) and the old man shirt that’s a button-up, either short or long sleeved with either the left or both-sided breast pocket. They even have those jackets that you always see old men in. I don’t really know how to describe them except that I always see only old men wearing them.  They’re nice little guys, usually very pleasant, and they get really excited when they win a lottery game. They usually play those for about 20-30 minutes when they come.

            Since I’ve sounded so cheerful about all the ones I’ve done so far, let’s go with customers that no one in the store likes. Every week this Russian family comes in. Usually it’s the mom and her daughter, sometimes the father is with them and occasionally the daughter isn’t.  Even though they have been shopping at this store for so long, they still, somehow, don’t have a Customer Card (that’s not really what we call them but for the sake of anonymity we’re going with that). Every week the mom asks us to put our house card in. So we do. We start ringing up their stuff and when we’re about halfway through they stop us and say, “I only have $___.” Usually that blank can be filled in with 50 but every so often it’s different. So we keep an eye on the total and when it gets close to their amount we stop. By the time we stop, there are only a few things left on the belt. So then the mom will look at them and say, “Well… Yeah, ring this one up. I want to see how much it is.” So we ring it up. It’s on sale (the sale that they’re getting with the house card because for some unknown reason they will not get their own) and then she continues like that we’ve rung just about everything up and we have to put one or two things back. Then, and this is the best part, they pay with Access. Which means: they aren’t even really paying for it. And she gives us all that trouble over nothing. Now, in their favor, it isn’t always with Access and sometimes they will have cash but still, they always have enough to get everything except one or two small things. Oh, and they ALWAYS, without fail, get a case of Poland Spring water. A lot of the time, they’ll make it up to the register then say they ‘forgot’ to get one so we have to send a bagger back for it even though there are two of them but they always get one. And they are part of the reason I stereotype Russians and why I don’t really like them. =]

What You Learn Working In A Grocery Store

(Just so I don't get in trouble I will change all people's names and omit company name)

I work at a grocery store in Northeast Philadelphia, the Bustleton area, and as I was at work tonight I was asking around for ideas about what to write about. One of my coworkers said, “Why don’t you write about the people that work here or the customers? There’s plenty of stories.”

                So I thought about it and decided, “Well, why not?” We have plenty of stories that we pass around about our dear, crazy customers. We like some of them and some we wish we would never see again but all in all, they are quite a group. So I’ve decided I’ll write about the customers that shop at my store and eventually, the other people that work there.

So to start with, I picked a store favorite. There are two women who come into the store once or twice a week, usually on weekdays, sometimes on weekends. I do not know they’re names but can recognize them instantly. They are mother and daughter and both hairdressers and very much alike. The daughter, I’d say, is in her early-mid 40s and the mother maybe her 70s. The daughter has actually recently started working for the store, I guess as a second job, but in a different department. They both have short, choppy hair that’s dyed multiple shades of brown. They wear it so that it’s shooting off in all directions but in a fashionable way. I believe they both have brown eyes, although I’m not too sure about that. The mother is about 5’4 and the daughter is about 5’6. They usually wear earthy –toned clothes and are very practical. Everyone that works at the store that has been there for more than a month knows them and they are pretty well liked because they don’t annoy us (which is very important to us), they say hi to the people they remember,&  they have even developed relationships with some of the employees.  Not romantic relationships but working ones. For example, I can think of at least one girl I work with that I’ve heard talking to them about going to get her hair done by them. Basically, they are some of our favorite customers and we hope we’ll be seeing them for a long time.

Another character is a guy who is really only memorable because of what he buys. I used to work on Saturday afternoons and I was usually in the express lane. And every Saturday, this one guy would come through my line (or someone else’s) and buy 8- 15 bottles of Lysol concentrated bleach. They’re small bottles and could usually all fit in one bag and he’d usually buy a couple other things, too, but it was the bleach that always stood out. He was older, I’d say maybe in his 60s, and usually wore those pants that you always see old men wear that are usually too short around the ankles and very straight. I think he used to wear glasses and a red baseball hat and sometimes a sweatshirt. I haven’t seen him for awhile, I guess because I haven’t really been there on Saturday afternoons for awhile but that guy is one of the ones I’ll always remember.

Have you ever seen the show Heroes that used to be on NBC? There were special people all over the world that had "abilities". Some of the abilities were genetic but some people had gotten their powers after a doctor had screwed around with them and mutated their DNA... blah blah. The point is that there was one kid on the show whose name was Micah. Micah had one of the coolest gifts ever: he could 'talk' to electronics. At one point in the show, a character who was a US senator hired him to go in and talk to the voting machines to fix the election so he'd be sure to win. That kind of thing.

Every time I get stuck at a red light, I wish, with all my heart, that I had that power. If I did, every time I would come to an intersection I would reach ahead and 'talk' to the lights and turn them green. I hate red lights. I hate waiting for them. I hate the people around me when I'm stuck at one, and I especially hate the opposing traffic that has the green light at the time. They are just so damn infuriating, especially if you have somewhere to be and you're running late. The worst ones are the ones that have either the super-fast or super-slow changing times that always seem to go against you.

I'm not trying to say, by any means, that I’m the only one that feels this way. I know tons of other people do, but this is my blog. If I had my way, I'd take Micah's ability. But since I know how little chance there is of that, I almost wish there were little mechanisms you could buy (and absolutely pay extra for) that were installed in your car and could turn certain lights green as you came up to them. The switch (whatever you want to call it) would not be able to work at every light you came to, so you would have to hit it only on the lights you really wanted. It would hold the light for a certain amount of time and then keep going with the normal traffic patterns. In computer boxes installed at every light would be a sensor that caught the signal from each switch and put them in order. For instance, say you're coming up to a light you really don't want to wait at. But someone in opposing traffic knows the light for him is about to change. He beats you to the punch on the switch and the computer gets his signal first. Yours will be logged in the computer and it will hurry the light up a bit, but you'd still have to wait.

Of course, for my switch, which I’d get for free, it would work on every light and it would rule out any other signal.