Operation: Rodentus Eradicatus and My New Tattoo Plans

So, it seems that little mousy bastard did, in fact, have some friends. As I finally have a day off, it is time to do something about that. I have more glue traps, but apparently I only caught the helmet wearer of this bunch. The other or others are too smart, it seems, to fall for it. So after I dress my spawn, it's off to Meijer for some D-Con.

I have been planning a large sclae back tattoo for several months now. I even had a design drawn up. It never actually felt right, though, so I haven't done much with it. Until now. I've decided on a new design, and this one feels perfect. Here is my gorgeous cousin-in-law and her tattoo.



Mine will be something like this. The trunk will start lower on my back, and more on the back. It'll also go all the way up my side and out across my shoulders. under the tree branches will be a dragon. I'm still deciding on the dragon image, but that's phase 2 so I'm not overly worried about it yet. Then, near the dragon will be a butterfly. I may have several smaller butterflies around one larger one yet. Again, this is phase 2, so I'm still working on it. The butterflies represent change, both large and small and multitudinous. The tree is for life, both beautiful and short. The dragon, of course, is me.

Another Day, Another Dollar

I actually worked a full day today. Sweet baby jesus in a blender, this is gonna suck! LOL Not the work. That's pretty easy. And the time seems to go by fairly quickly. But I didn't get home til 9:30 this morning with a class at 6, and tomorrow is the same but a class at 1, with a dance class I'd like to attend at 12. I may need to forgo the dance class. So, on the menu for today is Oral Interpretations. We're supposed to find something short to read as an ungraded first performance, and I'm hoping I can use something I've written because I can't find anything published that really reflects me at all. I'd like to read from my play. I'd really like to do Anger, as I could really get into that. But, as it happens, I was seriously pissed off when I wrote that section and it's liberally peppered with profanity, which may not go over well. I'm going to read Depression instead. I get to cry. I think I can actually do it, too. Didn't sleep long or well, which is why I'm up way earlier than I need to. But HUZZAH! I caught that bastard mouse that has been taunting me! As we speak he's caught in a glue trap. Still wiggling, though. I need him to be a bit less lively before I chuck his furry mouse pooping ass in the garbage. Now, as long as he didn't bring any little bastard mouse friends with him, I should be rodent free now. I seriously hate mice.

Managing Stress and the Sound of I Love You

Had my first anthropology class today. I have a feeling this will be the longest 3.25 hours of my life, twice a week. I should be sleeping in the hopes that there will be something for me to do at work tonight. That there may not be has me concerned. Like most everyone breathing nowadays, I have bills that must be paid. No work means no bill paying. I'm not the type of person that needs a lot, or wants much beyond those things that I need. It would be nice, for just a little while, to be able to provide those things without half killing myself to do it. And then falling short, at that. Of course, my life is all about stress management, and the ability to juggle multiple crises at a time. I'm not sure I could ever trust anything I didn't have to fight tooth and nail for. I'd always be waiting in the back of my head for the other shoe to drop, always looking for the strings that are invariably attached. But I do somehow find a way. Maybe not be be ahead, but to not fall so far behind that I'm homeless. I'm an expert at getting by, and I'm so tired of just getting by. This is why I'm back in school. I don't want a job. I want a career doing something I love, that I'm good at, and that will make a difference. I'm going to be a teacher. I'll never get rich teaching. It's a good thing I don't want much. But I value far more than material things those things that are intangible. The sudden look of comprehension on someone's face when they finally understand something. The smiles of achievement when hard work is met with recognition. And maybe, just maybe, someone will learn to appreciate those people that are around them, helping them along their way. So it is the intangible that I am so desperately craving to help keep the stress away. I'd give my left kidney for a tender embrace, a kiss on the forehead, and a softly whispered, "You'll be ok. I love you." But I will manage without. You'd be surprised what I can do without and still manage to keep on going. I'm small, but mighty.

Ironman 2 and the Unexpected Night Off

I went to see Ironman 2 this afternoon with some friends. I have to say, I enjoyed it. Not so much for it's stellar acting and superb screenwriting. Because really, I want you to believe me. No, it was just fun to watch. After, we decided to head to Outback for some dinner. We might have ended up elsewhere, but apparently our movie stubs are good for free appetizers. I had what I usually had: steak, slighly mooing. Of course, I encountered my soon-to-be ex. For those of you just tuning in to the freakshow that is my life, I am in the process of divorcing because my husband decided that hey, wouldn't it be grand to not be a man anymore? Yes, you read that correctly. My husband wants to be a chick. As that does not work for me... Anywhoo, I am reasonably indifferent to my ex. I neither love nor hate him/her/it. I am mostly indifferent. I care not so long as it interferes not with me and mine. I will henceforth refer to the ex as "he" however. Disrespectful? Perhaps. However, that was information more helpful BEFORE HE MARRIED ME.

I am actually able to write this because work was slow and I got an extra night off. Normally I would be at work at this time of morning. I'm feeling much better today, but I did hit the NyQuil again, just in case. I have my first day of sumer classes this afternoon. That would be great if my school refund would post so I could actually get my books. To say I'm peeved is being polite. I'm taking Anthropology and Oral Interpretations this summer. I may take more classes for the second session of summer. I haven't decided yet. I'm enjoying the college experience. In a way I'm sorry I didn't go right after high school, but in another way I'm glad I didn't. I appreciate it a lot more now that I'm older than I would have as a kid. I'll make a pretty good teacher. You'll see.

Sleep and my lack thereof...

I just started a 3rd shift job working with the Census. That pretty much means I can't talk about my job, or some of the things I see. However, I like the people I work with and we had a good time last night. In fact, at one point the tears were streaming down my cheeks from laughing. But I can't talk about that. LOL So, I'm sitting here at 6 pm seriously needing a nap. It could be my apnea keeps me from sleeping well. Could be my new hours are screwing with me. OR, it could be the double hit of Nyquil I took this morning when I got home hasn't fully worn off yet. Because yes, I have to be sick and starting a new job. It's the cold from hell. I'll live, but I'm not at a point where I'm happy about that yet.

Welcome to my lair

I've had blogs off and on over the years, but nothing I've ever really kept up or held onto. However, on this early Tuesday morn, I cannot sleep, so I thought I would try my hand at it once more.

One of my interests is Tarot, and for a number of reasons. 1) I like the cards. I have a Gilded Tarot deck that is absolutely gorgeous, but of course, I am in search of the perfect dragon tarot deck. Why use cards you don't enjoy looking at? 2) It's instructional. I don't believe it's necessarily magic, or fortune telling. What I do believe is that it's a tool that helps you think about things in perhaps a different way than you have been. It's a focus, and a guide. But I'm no expert so feel free to think I'm full of it. 3) I enjoy it. As with the appearance of the cards, if you don't enjoy them you probably shouldn't be using them.

So, why do I bring this up? I've been working on my tarot skills this evening after a goodly amount of time away from the cards. I decided to try out a single card reading. It turned into 3 single card readings, so I guess it would technically be a 3 card reading at this point. I had a subject, the next step, and the obstacle. It's stuck in my mind. I'll not share it here, but I keep a journal of my readings and I wrote it all there. The journal is just for me, a way to keep track of what I read and what actually transpires. Again, it's not so much prediction as it is keeping track of my thought processes at the time, the choices as I see them before me, and the outcomes of those choices. The actual exercise I was working on is intuitive readings, which is fantastic for me because I'm not an expert in the "actual" meanings of the cards. With intuitive readings, it's what the reader gets out of the individual card. My other attempts at readings have been complicated spreads using the traditional meanings, and to be perfectly frank, I don't think I was very good at it. This intuitive reading, though, feels real. I shall practice this more and see if I continue to feel this way about the readings, or if this is a fluke.