Jamilyn's Journal
-- February 2005 Edition

Date:28 February, 2005
Time:6:25pm
Subject: Keeping the Faith

* * * * *

I watched Keeping the Faith this afternoon. Here's a helpful tip before watching this movie: don't. Here's the synopsis (could I make this up??): a priest (Edward Norton), a rabbi (Ben Stiller), and their 8th grade gal pal (Jenna Elfman) reunite as 30-somethings in NYC and a love triangle ensues. The movie couldn't decide whether to be a comedy or a drama. Everyone's crying, everyone's kissing, and there's lots of stereotypical Jewish women running around. And I learned that rabbis can have lots of sex without marriage and priests can't...but they can have wacky sex dreams! I give the movie JJj out of JJJJJ (that's j for the story and JJ for the casting).

JLM, 2.28.05, 6:31pm
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Date:28 February, 2005
Time:11:15am
Subject: Oscar Wrap-Up and a movie review
* * * * *

Well, I guess Scott and I really knew that our Oscar choices weren't going to win us any awards of our own, but of the 16 categories we picked, I got 5 winners and Scott got 4. That's pretty lame. Who knew a movie with Leonardo DiCaprio would win so many awards? (oh that's right...I forgot about Titanic!) Anyway, I was a little disappointed with the red carpet fashions this year, especially from my boyfriend J.D. who showed up in a navy blue tux and weird facial hair. But I thought Chris Rock did a pretty good job hosting (and Sean Penn is an angry little man). He did at one point introduce his "four favorite" presenters - Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek. That was questionable. Overall, I enjoyed the ceremony. I love Oscar night!

And now I shall review the movie Saved!. I loved this movie! Anyone who saw the trailer for the movie where Mandy Moore throws a bible at Jena Malone and yells "I am filled with Christian love" should understand why I ordered this movie in the first place. I didn't expect to enjoy the movie nearly as much as I did. Saved! centers around a self-professed "good Christian girl at a great Christian school with the perfect Christian boyfriend" who finds out two weeks before her senior year that her boyfriend thinks he's gay (he figure skates for Jesus, by the way). Upon hearing this news, she suffers a pretty nasty bump on the head and thinks she has a vision that Jesus comes to her and tells her to save the boyfriend any way she can. So she sleeps with him, and then his parents ship him off to some Christian Rehabilitation Center ("for alcoholics, drug addicts, single moms, and de-gay-ification"). Well wouldn't you know it, she's pregnant and starting to doubt that Jesus really is listening. So her born-again friends desert her. She is befriended by the one Jewish girl in the school, the Pastor/Principal's son, and the kid in the wheelchair, who all show her that you can be imperfect and still be one of God's Children.

I won't give away any more. There are a few interesting side-stories, and with a cast including Jena Malone (from Stepmom), Mandy Moore, Macaulay Culkin, Patrick Fugit (who is just adorable) and Mary-Louise Parker, the movie was well-acted. I give Saved! JJJJj out of JJJJJ. This is a movie that I will probably own some day.

JLM, 2.28.05, 11:45am
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Date:27 February, 2005
Time:11:32am
Subject: Oscar Night! (and some minor accomplishments)
* * * * *

Yep...that's right...it's Oscar night! I know that Johnny Depp isn't going to win...but he's still going to be there. :o) And I am not going to bow to public pressure and take him off of my selection for Best Actor. I am, however, making one last-minute change. The song Learn to be Lonely was my choice for best song...before I heard it. I am changing my selection to Accidentally in Love from Shrek 2.

Away from the glamour of the red carptet, I wanted to mention that I've been somewhat productive here at home, in the 10 square feet around the computer at least! I hooked up the printer/scanner a few nights ago, and was able to scan this picture: which you will see in the top left corner of the blog for March. That's the other thing - I went ahead and designed the March page. I'm excited about it - after all, there's no pink hearts. And it's very "Florida in Spring."

This afternoon I'm babysitting, and then maybe I'll take a nap so I can stay awake through the entire Oscar ceremony. yippee!

JLM, 2.27.05, 11:45am
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Date:26 February, 2005
Time:4:39pm
Subject: Serendipity
* * * * *

When I paid our power bill online this week I took the money from the first account listed...mostly because I forgot that there were two. The first was Scott's account. So today we had to drive out to nowhere to deposit money at the bank. It turned out to be a fun adventure - and a trip to see some amazing artwork:

The Gates of Polk County! Central Park ain't got nothin' on Rt. 27! Actually, the banners are there advertising a new time share property that's going to be HUGE...we think...based on the full mile of banners lining the roadway.

We also went grocery shopping. And then went to babysit, but we had some crossed wires and Reyna thought I wasn't going to be there today instead of next Saturday. But we stuck around for a while and played with the munchkins. And Conner cried when we left because he didn't want us to leave. Oh...break my heart!

And now...I balance the check book.

JLM, 2.26.05, 4:45pm
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Date:26 February, 2005
Time:8:32am
Subject: Following Through
* * * * *

Today I present the origin of the word February:
February was named for the Roman god Februus, the god of purification. January and February were the last two months to be added to the Roman calendar, since the Romans originally considered winter a monthless period. This change was made by Numa Pompilius about 700 BCE in order to bring the calendar in line with a standard lunar year. Numa's Februarius contained 29 days (30 in a leap year). Augustus is alleged to have removed one day from February and added it to August, (renamed from Sextilis to honor himself), so that Julius Caesar's July would not contain more days. However there is little historical evidence to support this claim.
From Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia

I'm glad I don't have to wonder about that any more, aren't you? Anyway, I got to sleep in until 7:30 this morning. I tried to stay asleep longer, but it just wasn't happening. I guess I should've stayed awake later than 9 last night.

On the agenda for today: groceries, babysit, and...umm...nothing else. Considering I don't work again until Wednesday, I'm wondering how I'm going to justify sitting on my @$$ for 4 days and not doing any house work. I guess really I may have to do some. Although it will be hard, considering Scott will be home (and asleep) during my waking hours.

Today's message has been brought to you by ALTOIDS sugar-free SMALLS: the ridiculously strong peppermint.

JLM, 2.26.05, 8:43am
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Date:25 February, 2005
Time:7:20am
Subject: Overtime
* * * * *

I've got an 8-hour OT shift today, and all I want to do is stay home and sleep. On the bright side, I'm off tomorrow and sunday (took the day off to watch the Oscars), monday and tuesday are my regular days off, I work Wednesday, and then I took a day off on Thursday for my birthday. This schedule I can handle!

Scott seems to think he's driving SuperCar and will be able to make it from MK to chick-fil-a to here in 45 minutes. I think he may just buy me food and then save it for his own lunch if he doesn't make it here by the time I leave. Oh well, I guess it is more important to pay for the girl scout cookies that have been in our apartment for over a week than to bring me tasty deep-fried goodness!

P.S. Mom, check the comments below!

JLM, 2.25.05, 7:25am
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Date:23 February, 2005
Time:6:54pm
Subject: TOPS
* * * * *

*FINALLY!* something in my own life to brag about! Well, sorta. I made the TOPS team at work. "What is TOPS?" Well, TOPS stands for test of products and services. It's essentially a nerd-off, with people from the various front desks, guest relations, reservations, and us competing against eachother answering questions like "what is the price of a child 7-day multi-park ticket with no expiration?" and "where can you see naked mole rats?" I'm so excited!

Anyway, the competition is on May 25, and I'm sure I'll talk more about it as the time draws nearer. I just wanted to brag that I made the team. There's only four people and two alternates. I did a happy dance at my desk this morning when I found out.

JLM, 2.23.05, 7:02pm
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Date:23 February, 2005
Time:6:45pm
Subject: Dave's Poker Party
* * * * *


Scott heard people thought he was cute in that outfit...so he wears it a lot...and tries very hard to keep it clean.

Here's the old-time souvenir photo of the poker party. From left: Scott, Dave Debolt, Karen, Dave Doll, Chuck, Andy (? Dave De's brother), Rex (Dave De's dad) and me. Of course, I'm behind the camera.

Maybe if I had Lisa take pictures, she would've stayed awake!

Yes, maybe it's a tell when you whip out the camera to take a picture of your hand. But I actually lost this one...with pocket aces!!!
Date:22 February, 2005
Time:10:37pm
Subject: Blame the PMS
* * * * *

I got to work on time, but other people were late. Apparently a dump truck turned over and combusted in the middle of the road. Oops! A girl I work with was 45 minutes late. She was stuck in that mess for nearly two hours. She doesn't know the back roads.

Anyway, yes, my back is feeling better. Thankyouverymuch for the concern. Gee...a whole entry about the woes in my life - back/neck spasms, lack of promotion, PMS - and all I get are comments about my husband's stupid picture. I took lots of pictures tonight at Dave's party but I'm not posting them.

Really, I'm not posting the pictures because I'm tired and I have to wake up at 5:45, and I really need to sleep more than I need to spend an hour editing/saving/uploading/html-ing. But you can just sit there and think about how my back muscles are feeling and think that I'm not posting pictures because I'm having a temper tantrum.

Blame it on the PMS.

JLM, 2.22.05, 10:44pm
Date:22 February, 2005
Time:6:19apm
Subject: PENIS!!!
* * * * *

The link in the subject line is not pornography. It's a newspaper article from Alaska. Anyway, in high school (mature group that I hung out with) we used to play the "penis game," which involved being in a public place (or classroom) and people taking turns saying the word penis louder and louder. I dunno...it was funny then. Read this article out loud, and every time you get to the word penis say it louder. Hint: start softly!

I should go. Scott just called and said I have to take the back way to work because of a wicked traffic accident. I'm concerned I won't even be able to get to the back way if it's so backed up. Wish me luck!

JLM, 2.22.05, 6:28am
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Date:21 February, 2005
Time:5:07pm
Subject: Excuses
* * * * *

Here are the excuses:
  • Nothing to talk about
  • Computer is a pain in the @$$
  • I'm too tired to hold my head up
    That being said, it really hasn't been that dull, I've just lacked the motivation to write. Writing, like any exercise, is easy to fall out of and hard to get back into. The computer really has been difficult. And it's not so much that I've been tired (although I **have** been tired!) as I have whiplash and don't have the will power to hold my head up. See, back on that day when Cat and I went to Lake Louisa, we drove around all day in her car. She drives a stick, and she really hasn't quite mastered the fine art of the clutch. My neck hurt pretty bad for two days after that, and then two days ago in the middle of the night I got an awful muscle cramp in my lower neck/upper back area that only this afternoon is no longer reducing me to tears.

    Of course, I'm still in tears. Figuratively. I found out today that I didn't get that help desk job. I am, however, happy to report that Jenn got it. She's amazing and I look forward to pestering her often with stupid questions. I just don't know what I would've done if another outside person had gotten the job.

    And apparently I have raging PMS. Scott was talking about his first day of work, and mentioned someone I don't particularly care for and I went ballistic about how worthless she is. It was overkill. And he knows I wasn't yelling at him...just ranting.

    Two things to throw in the happy-meter:
    1) I'm really enjoying the new aspects of my job. I sold someone $1300 in park tickets yesterday. Wow! It's nice to have some responsibility and accountability - two things I was missing.
    2) Here's a picture to end the day with. Scott preparing for his first day at a new pay grade. Doesn't he look cute?


    JLM, 2.21.05, 8:17pm
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    Date:18 February, 2005
    Time:8:09pm
    Subject: Ugh
    * * * * *

    I woke up this morning with a sore throat. At first I thought I was just really thirsty...until I realized that water didn't help...and I wasn't breathing through my nose. And then I thought maybe I just sang a little too loudly in the car on my way home. But alas, I have a fever - 99.1 - and I never quite made it out of pajamas today.

    Bummer, huh?

    Honestly, I tried to take a nap, but after 3 hours of laying in bed watching 2 episodes of the Surreal Life and an hour of Project Runway (Lord help me!), I gave up and kept the kitties company in the living room.

    Scott took my camera to work with him, since his last days are today and tomorrow. Our Carrabbas night last night was a quasi-success. I sat there waiting for 5 spaghetti dinners for almost 45 minutes because they screwed up the order. On the bright side, I had half of someone else's order sitting in the bags that we had already loaded into my car ($300 of food from that place will take up half of my back seat and all of the passenger side of the front, including the floor...and really covers the foot smell!), so I ended up with 5 free entrees - 2 lobster ravioli, a lasagna, a spaghetti with meat sauce, and a kids spaghetti. We sold off the extra food to other poor hungry souls, and what we couldn't sell we gave away. And everyone except Robert Clark said thank you like a million times. It's nice to be appreciated!

    After all that Italian food yesterday and this morning and at lunch I'm totally farting garlic. I wish my nose was a little more congested so I didn't know that fact!

    JLM, 2.18.05, 8:17pm
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    Date:17 February, 2005
    Time:7:09am
    Subject: The Entry that Wasn't Meant to Be
    * * * * *

    I tried to write last night, but AOL got tired and restarted itself. I tried to write in a MS Word window this morning, but Word closed itself. I'm not ignoring the blog...the blog doesn't want to be written. So I'm not going to talk about The Day After Tomorrow (JJJ out of JJJJJ), I'm not going to talk about trying nail polish on in the store, and I won't ask whether or not this is a ghetto white trash action that I should abandon, and I'm not going to talk about my interview or the product knowledge test that I took yesterday. This entry just wasn't meant to be!

    JLM, 2.17.05, 7:11am
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    Date:15 February, 2005
    Time:9:10pm
    Subject: Quickie
    * * * * *

    I'm exhausted. Two days of running around the resorts has taken its toll on me. Besides, I have a really big day tomorrow that's going to start with me waking up early and blow-drying my hair and will probably end with the rest of the bottle of white wine in the fridge.


    In the meantime, let's take a look at the master bathroom found in the $1,800/night Presidential Suite at my new favorite resort. In the very back you see the huge jacuzzi tub, surrounded by mirrors. On the right wall, you see the 'party shower' and in the very right foreground of the picture, you see a closed door. Behind the door is the water closet, complete with toilet and bidet. That's right - I said bidet! Also, you can't see from the pictures, but the sinks are hand-painted and the artwork is lovely. And while I don't think that this suite is worth blowing 3 months rent, it sure was nice to get to look around in it. What a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that was! And here's a bonus picture for you: the fresco on the ceiling right inside the front door to the suite...


    JLM, 2.15.05, 9:19pm
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    Date:14 February, 2005
    Time:8:07pm
    Subject: V.D. Photo Essay
    * * * * *

    Happy V.D...or as it's known in our home, M&M. Apparently Scott and both decided that the lure of the green m&m won out over the lure of good chocolates this "holiday." Tis a pity...I could really go for something with caramel or nougat. Oh well...I'm less likely to binge on m&m's than other chocolate things. That's definitely good.

    Anyway, I have some pictures I took on tour today. We went to Pop Century, Caribbean Beach, the Contemporary, Wilderness Lodge, and had lunch at the Fort. I'll explain the pictures as we go...

    Sheila takes a ride on the "massaging" barrel while Robert tries to end it all with a banana.

    Our class (from left):Carol, Karen, Dawn, Yolanda, Cheri, Sheila, Carlos, and me. I refrain from publicly identifying MPH. If you want to know, e-mail me.

    Sheila, the most professional among us, takes a nap inside the WL Villas lobby.

    Can you spot the Hidden Mickey? Click on the picture to see where he's hiding this time!

    The Fire Rock Geyser erupts promptly at 4pm. Can you see the rainbow?
    And since I got one of those goofy e-mail surveys today, I figure I'd just post the answers here...
  • 1. What time is it? 8:54pm
  • 2. Name as it appears on birth certificate: Jamie Lynn H*****
  • 3. Nicknames: Jamilyn
  • 4. Piercing: 3 in each ear, but I rarely even use the 2nd holes
  • 5. Eye color: Blue
  • 6. Place of birth: PA
  • 7. Favorite foods: creme brulee
  • 8. Ever been to Africa? No
  • 9. Ever been toilet papered? Yes, by those damn Jenks boys
  • 11. Been in a car accident? Yes...and a bus accident...and a bicycle crash...
  • 12. Croutons or bacon bits ? Croutons
  • 13. Favorite day of the week: Sunday - it's my Friday and DH is on
  • 14. Favorite restaurant: Carrabbas...and half the restaurants at WDW
  • 15. Favorite flower: Cala lillies
  • 16. Favorite sport to watch: Penn State Football
  • 17. Favorite drink: Iced tea - un-sweet or long island
  • 18. Favorite ice cream: cherry cheesecake
  • 19. Disney or Warner Bros.? Disney
  • 20. Favorite fast food restaurant? Wendy's
  • 21. Color is your bedroom carpet? Berber. does it come in a color other than oatmeal?
  • 22. How many times did you fail your driver test? 1
  • 23. Before this one, from whom did you get your last email? Jaime - if an AOL Alert counts
  • 24 Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Bed Bath & Beyond - think of all the shower curtains!
  • 25 What you do most often when you are bored? Sleep...or work...since that's where I'm most often bored
  • 26 Bedtime? normally 2-3am; recently 9-10pm
  • 27 Who will respond to this e-mail the quickest? n/a
  • 28 Who is the person you sent this to that is least likely to respond? n/a
  • 29. Favorite TV shows: Desperate Housewives, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, Project Runway (this month), Apprentice, American Idol, Regis & Kelly, GMA, World News Tonight, Anderson Cooper 360
  • 30. Last person you went out to dinner with: Scott...but I had lunch with the motley crew above yesterday and today
  • 31. Chevy or Ford? Jaguar
  • 32 What are you listening to right now? The West Wing - ooh...add that to my list above!
  • 33 What is your favorite color? Green or blue
  • 34 Lake, river or ocean? Lake
  • 35.How many tattoos do you have? 0
  • 36.Time you finished this e-mail: 9:05
  • 37.Have you ever run out of gas? Not literally

    g'night

    JLM, 2.14.05, 9:06pm
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    Date:13 February, 2005
    Time:7:13pm
    Subject: What a Day!
    * * * * *

    Phew...I'm glad today is just about over! This morning started out just about perfect - had time to make myself a pair of waffles with cream cheese (my preferred commuter breakfast) and walked out the door exactly on time at 7:45. I got in the car, started her up, and realized I had left my waffles on the kitchen counter. I sat there for a minute pondering how badly I wanted the waffles.

    I must've wanted them pretty bad.

    I turned off the car, dragged my happy butt back up the three flights of stairs, unlocked the door, grabbed my waffles, locked the door, went back down the three flights of stairs, got back in the car, put the key in the engine, and

    nothing.

    Not a vroom, not a sputter, not a sound. I know my car and her little excentricities. She's touchy about her battery. I had trouble about a year ago with something very similar. The terminals would jiggle loose, and there would be no connection. But by this point I was running late, my 15 minute cushion was wearing out, and I wasn't about to play mechanic. So I climbed back up the three flights of stairs to wake Scott up. The poor guy got dragged out of a nice warm bed to drive 13 miles into the rising sun without his sunglasses (not that I blame myself for him forgetting his sunglasses at work!), and never did manage to go back to sleep. But he got me to work on time.

    fast forward 8 hours

    Scott had Frank come and pick me up from work in the Security van and take me to where Blueberry was parked, since he was otherwise indisposed (working or something) and it was at that point that I realized that my house key was with my car key - sitting on the kitchen counter. So I had to go to MK to pick up Scott's house keys.

    If cooler heads had prevailed this morning, I could have taken Scott's car, and he could have fixed mine (which he did anyway) and driven Frances to work. But we weren't that wise. So Blueberry and Frances are home with me, and Scott is hitching a ride home with Chuck tonight.

    Maybe tomorrow will go a little more smoothly!

    JLM, 2.13.05, 7:27pm
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    Date:12 February, 2005
    Time:11:27pm
    Subject: Progress Report
    * * * * *

    Well, it's the end of the day. Let's see how the to-do list turned out:
  • Babysit: Mike called while I was on my way over (and while I was on the phone with my husband) to tell me that Conner has pink eye and Reyna was still stuck at the doctor. I got to the apartment about three minutes before Reyna and the kids. I hung out for a while, went to Walgreens with Reyna to pick up Conner's prescription, and then headed off. Check!
  • "Lots of" laundry: How's one load? Oh well...it'll have to do! half-check!
  • Wal-Mart: AND Walgreens! Took care of my V-D shopping, bought a "silk" scarf AND a sensible mature pink nail polish, since apparently I owned none at all. Double check!
  • Movies: I watched Raising Helen. It was cute. John Corbett is cute. Kate Hudson is cute. And with cameos by Felicity Huffman and Paris Hilton, as well as a cute gag reel and deleted scenes starring director Gary Marshall, this movie is worthy of rental for any alone woman...or a pre-teen slumber party...but not quite worthy of "date night" or "girls night out" status. I give it JJJj out of JJJJJ. half-check for one movie out of two

    I count four checks out of four to-do's. That makes today a successful day off. Woo Hoo! The alarm is set for 06:45, so I need to get to bed.

    JLM, 2.12.05, 11:36pm
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    Date:12 February, 2005
    Time:12:56pm
    Subject: Day Off
    * * * * *

    Today is my one day off this week, and my first day off since the 1st. Of course, I have so much to do I'd hardly call it a weekend. Scott and I both woke up early craving hash browns, so we went to IHOP. But the line was too long and we went to Denny's. We waited 15 minutes for a table, in a lobby full of fat people, british people, and old ladies wearing Eau de Mothball Parfum. But the food was greasy and plentiful. And I had coffee. Mmm...coffee.

    On the agenda for the rest of the day:
  • Babysit for the rugrats
  • Lots of laundry
  • Wal-Mart. I hear v-day is coming up and I should be prepared...although I already have my Incredibles valentines ready for friends and co-workers. I also want to buy myself a colorful "silk" scarf to wear with my suit.
  • movies - I have Raising Helen and The Day After Tomorrow ready to watch.
    Sounds like a fun day, doesn't it? Woohoo!!!
    By the way, when Cat and I went to Epcot on weds and did laps around the world showcase, we stopped in the Mexico pavilion and I took this picture for Shirley. I kept forgetting to put it in...


    JLM, 2.12.05, 1:01pm
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    Date:11 February, 2005
    Time:8:09pm
    Subject: Update on Mrs. Potato Head
    * * * * *

    I'm not going to go around work complaining about being verbally assaulted by an angry spud. Honestly, you never know who is friends with whomever else and what would get repeated to someone that shouldn't hear things. It is with that preface that I share the following story (with names changed to protect the innocent and because I'm just bad with names):

    I'm in the breakroom nuking my lunch this afternoon (steak and asparagus. thanks, Scott!) and Leslie comes out and makes a bee-line for me. She puts her hand on my arm and looks at me with this "I know where you've been" face and tells me that Jessie from my training class is a friend of hers, and that she had heard what Mrs. Potato Head had done yesterday. She goes on to tell me that MPH is a bona-fide psycho who has a habit of ranting at people for no apparent reason and also for crying at the drop of a hat.

    phew...I guess this means I can keep my job!


    I had seriously considered talking to a manager today - not so much to make any sort of complaint about MPH, but just to have a little chat about whether or not you could be fired for being sarcastic. I was waiting for one of my regular night shift managers to come in, but after my lunch time "deep throat" conversation I figured I'd just leave things where they stand.

    I had a mini-melt-down when I got to work today. Having been in training in another building for a week, I hadn't been around to check my mail file. There was a letter from Sally (the help desk manager - to whom I'd recently submitted an application) saying thanks for my interest in the position and that my interview was scheduled for Wednesday the 9th at 5pm. ACK!!!!! So I ran to the first manager I could find and asked if Sally was in. Of course not...that would be too easy! I showed her the letter and my eyes just filled up with tears. And before I could get 10 words out before she told me not to worry that of course they would reschedule me. Thirty minutes later I had my letter back with a new interview - next Weds.

    I've really gone back and forth with this help desk thing. On one hand, I think I could do a kick-ass job. On the other hand, there's a girl who has applied for positions in that room three times in a row and been turned down, and I don't think she's going to be a Susan Lucci. She's smart and ambitious she's been in that room longer than I have, she's been doing front desk calls since before I was there, and she's a help desk back-up person. On the other hand, the last two people Sally hired were from outside our department completely. And I have all sorts of security background, experience being "the one in charge," a rapport with the duty staffs of guest claims and public affairs and the resort duty managers, I know the parks inside and out, and so on. I figure my odds are less than 50%, but I'm not going to let that stop me from going in and having a kick-@$$ interview. You never know until you try, right? I really want this job, and I know that if I don't get it this time, I know I'll end up there eventually...if I don't get a better job somewhere else!

    By the way, they asked me to stay on days for an extra week. I said they could keep me on days as long as they want. I figure with Scott on grave shift for a while, this way neither of us would be getting ready for work while the other was sleeping, and we'd still have afternoons off together. So it sounds like I'll be working 7:30-4 the weeks of the 20th and the 28th. Maybe I should have Scott teach me how to work the coffee maker!

    JLM, 2.11.05, 8:26pm
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    Date:10 February, 2005
    Time:9:29pm
    Subject: Good things and bad things
    * * * * *

    I had a really negative experience at work today. I think anyone who knows me or even tries a little bit to figure out who I am knows that there is a certain...edge shall we say...to my personality, and a rather dark, sarcastic side. Despite that, I really do try to keep my mental "STOP" sign clean and shiny so that I can see it coming before I blow right through it. And this week during training, I've nearly bitten my tongue off and had to stare at a single spot on the wall for hours on end to keep my eyes from rolling while marveling at the sheer incompetance of some of the other people in our class.

    But you know what? I did it. No one in that class - not even the few that I thought had at least half as much of a clue as I did - knew just how bad I thought these people were at the job they were trying to learn. The one woman quit the class. She just wasn't comfortable with the computer, and you can't do front desk without using a computer! The other woman is from my location. She literally had to have help signing on every time. NAME, press TAB, PASSWORD, press ENTER. OK, I understand - maybe as you get older it's harder to learn new things. It's frustrating. And she cried while she was working in the simulated front desk right before lunch (which I know because I was her simulated guest at the time). Four days of feeling like you're never going to catch on is really hard to deal with. I've been there - I took calculus. But she bit my head off while we were all in the classroom talking waiting to go on break. Seriously. It was one of those moments where someone (and now might be a good time to mention that she sounds like Mrs. Potato Head from Toy Story 2) freaks out in a room full of people and everyone just kinda stops and stares and then starts talking about the color paint on the walls just to change the subject.

    A few of us (not including Mrs. Potato Head) were talking about our job, and how we look up stuff for callers even when we're just supposed to transfer them. I said that I had found a really useful portion of the intranet to answer a certain type of question, and Mrs. Potato Head starts telling me that I'm not supposed to use that particular application. So I looked at her incredulously (after all, who is she to tell me how to do my job?) and said "I said inTRAnet, not inTERnet - if they didn't want me to use it, they wouldn't have given me access," and turned back to continue the conversation with the girl I was talking to. And all of a sudden, BOOM, she goes off on how I better never talk to her like that again or she's going to report me.

    dead silence for a solid 30 seconds.
    I certainly wasn't going to say something. This was a fight I wasn't going to win.

    So the conversation changes to the movie Aladdin, which we had on in the classroom during breaks today. We were talking about Aladdin 2 and how bad it was without Robin Williams, and she asked if there was no Genie in the story or if it was someone else playing the part. No one answered her. Ever the diplomat, I figured I'd help: "Well, I would answer, but I don't want to get yelled at again." OK, really, I should know better. But I said it. And it felt good.

    So then she starts going on again about how she's old enough to be my mother (ask Scott - she's got to be in her 60's - my mother is much younger and much prettier) and I should stop carrying on like I'm "a three year old." Really - I'm not playing down what I said to her. Those are direct quotes. Put as much sarcasm in the tone as you'd like. But I didn't yell, and I don't even feel that I was being disrespectful. After all, I didn't resort to name calling, did I? But I decided, against my better judgement, to respond one more time. "First you called me patronizing, and then you called me a three year old. You can go ahead and 'report me' if you'd like, but I've done nothing wrong and I'm not going to listen to you anymore." She responds with her nails-on-a-chalkboard voice something along the lines of "oh boo hoo...just run away."

    Shortly thereafter, we went on break and I walked way out into the parking lot and called Scott. We had 20 minutes, so I had plenty of time to yell and cry and get it out of my system before I had to go back. I don't feel good about any of what happened. Like I said, the woman is flustered. But that's not my fault. And she had no business taking it out on me.

    So 5pm rolled around, I clocked out, and my security escort came and got me (which is when he saw Mrs. Potato Head) and took me to the MK Security office for salad and cake. It was a going-away party for Mike and Scott and Meg. Of course, Scott and Meg still have a week and change left before they go to the comm center, but Mike was leaving tonight so they combined the parties. Of course, I'm getting take-out from Carrabbas next week so that people in that office will remember me long I after I have no reason at all to be there. And while there, I took pictures...

    Scott and Mike cut the cake. WAY too much "pixie dust" in that park!

    Umm...Chuck? I can still see you! Here's proof that Scott does occasionally eat lettuce...if covered with enough cheese and ranch dressing!

    Ed "would you like fries with that?" Matatall showing off his non-blues attire, Cathy, "foreman 1," proves why the foreman deserves the extra $.50/hour!


    He's so cute with ribbons in his hair, isn't he?
    While at MK tonight, Scott took me out to watch the fireworks. This isn't really what they look like - just a collage of all the fireworks pictures that I took cut & pasted together...

    After the negative writing I did tonight, I thought I should end with a giant happy fireworks picture.
    (by the way, the picture below is the Magic Kingdom shooting off its own Surface-to-Air Missiles!)


    JLM, 2.10.05, 10:18pm
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    Date:8 February, 2005
    Time:9:29pm
    Subject: Happy Birthday Hunter!
    * * * * *

    This is really just a photo entry, but I'll throw in some text to make it look convincing. After work tonight, Scott picked me up and we drove to Chuck E Cheese for Hunter's birthday party. We got there 45 minutes late (travel time), just in time for cold pizza and gift opening. And then we got to play games and win tickets. Scott and I won about 100 total...and handed them over to Mike & Reyna who I believe were prepared to buy out the souvenier stand. Mostly I took pictures. After all, that's what I do!


    Top row: Scott and the "Big Cheese"
    Bottom row: Autumn driving! Conner learning the fine art of air hockey, and Hunter in the kid-size hamster tubes suspended from the ceiling.
    Honestly, I have to say I was really dreading the kiddie-party experience. But it was fun. And I'd totally go again...mostly for the games. I love skeeball!

    I clocked in to work just 2 minutes early today, and three other people were late. The cause: a tractor-trailer wrecked on I-4 east at 7am. The last girl didn't get to work until noon (we start at 8:30)! My guests always laugh when I say what a mess that road is, but every time someone gets a speeding ticket there's a 15-minute delay so that everyone can go 25 past the cop. But enough about today...I still have two more pictures (because I cleaned out the camera)...

    A model of the Contemporary made entirely out of Key to the World Cards; Scott playing video games at Once Upon a Toy - 30 minutes after leaving DisneyQuest!!


    JLM, 2.8.05, 9:47pm
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    Date:7 February, 2005
    Time:7:12pm
    Subject: day shift SUCKS!
    * * * * *

    There is nothing natural about my normal sleep habits...except for the fact that they are, in fact, my sleep habits. But boy oh boy did I cringe when my alarm went off at 6:45 this morning. And I never really did recover. But I learned some interesting things today - like the room tax at the All Stars is 13%, while everywhere else on property it's 11.5%. That's a lot of tax...and the reason I don't have to pay state sales tax. And I also learned that my company is way too cheap. I can't believe we still operate all of our millions of dollars in hotel reservations completely in a DOS environment. What's that all about?

    Big day after work tomorrow - going to Chuck E Cheese for Hunter's birthday. We bought him a pirate kit - comes with a sword that makes noise and lights up, an eye patch, a pirate flag, a telescope, and a strap-on parrot. Polly want a WHAT?!? Sorry...that was vulgar...and yet still amusing to me.

    I'm delirious.

    JLM, 2.7.05, 7:17pm
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    Date:6 February, 2005
    Time:1:41am
    Subject: Darwin Awards...and Flaming-Poo Cookies
    * * * * *

    I still want to send flaming dog poop to that cranky $900-richer woman in Colorado, but I guess I'll settle for this happy little post-script (courtesy of Janette):

    The families say the girls' court costs are covered, but people who still want to donate can designate that the money be used for the girls' college funds or for the "Never Forgotten" scholarship fund for Columbine students. The families set up this address for mail and donations:
    Taylor Ostergaard and Lindsey Zellitti
    P.O. Box 2528
    Durango, CO 81301

    So there is justice in the world after all. And one more side bar before I go to bed. Herb sent an e-mail with this year's Darwin Award winners. Here's my favorite story:

    We have a new Darwin winner, with the recent demise of a man at the hands of his lava lamp. "Why on Earth he heated a lava lamp on the stove, we don't know," said baffled police.

    No drug or alcohol evidence was found; Philip Quinn, 24, in his right mind, placed a lava lamp on his kitchen burner and turned up the flame. In due course, he rediscovered this favorite explosive generator of deadly shrapnel. He was found dead in his Kent trailer home, a shard of glass through his heart.

    And by the way, this week starts my 3 weeks of day shift for front desk training. If anyone notices a sharp drop in tone or lack of stupid-caller stories, that's why. Just please don't ask me what my shifts are. They are posted on the calendar on the kitchen wall, so that everyone who needs to know will know without asking me.

    JLM, 2.6.05, 1:46am
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    Date:5 February, 2005
    Time:11:57am
    Subject: Grrr
    * * * * *

    If I had money, I would send it to the two girls in this     story (sorry...only viewable on AOL). Two teenagers stayed home on a Friday night rather than go to a school dance "where there might be cursing and drinking" and baked cookies for their neighbors. They made packages of cookies and went around delivering them - knocking on the door and leaving the cookies behind. Allllll the neighbors were touched by the gesture except one - and angry 49 year old woman who decided to sue them for giving her an anxiety attack when they knocked on her door. I'm not terribly surprised that the woman sued. She apparently lives on her own and she's probably old and bitter. But the fact that a judge heard this case and said he "did not think the girls had acted maliciously but that 10:30 was fairly late at night for them to be out," and awarded the woman $900 in medical costs is just ridiculous. That's a lot of money for two teenage girls. Like I said, I'd send them some myself. Maybe I'll send them $10...and send that cranky woman a bag of flaming dog poo!

    Apparently Scott is going out and spending quality time with his mom this afternoon before work. By "quality time," I mean signing her into AK. There's a thing over there this month where we can sign someone in and it doesn't count against the pass. And there's a contest where the winner gets a free weekend at DAK Lodge and some other fun stuff. I need to get over there and do it, but working dayshift really is going to cut my month short. I'll have to go...BY MYSELF...on one of my days off.

    There's also a list of movies I want to see that are too girly for Scott that I'll end up going to to pass some evening hours in the coming weeks. Being married has really changed my outlook on doing stuff alone. See, when you're dating, it's fine to drag a man to a movie he doesn't want to see. But now that we're married, I don't want to waste our money on him being unhappy. Interesting how that works, I think!

    JLM, 2.5.05, 12:18pm
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    Date:4 February, 2005
    Time:2:43pm
    Subject: Reality...and Reality TV
    * * * * *

    I got up at the butt-crack of dawn (ok, 8:30) this morning for a 10:30 doctor appointment, where I got to pee in a cup, sit with my bare @$$ on a table, and then have my *favorite* medical procedure, the     colposcopy. I'd rather have another LEEP. At least during the LEEP, I was ASLEEP (ha ha) and I had much less disgustingness to deal with afterward. Of course, I definitely prefer the $30 co-pay to the stack of bills I had after the surgery. Anyway, he says my cervix looks like nothing was ever done to it. I guess that's a good thing. And he didn't have to do any biopsies, which thrilled me because I forgot to take my Tylenol before we left for the office. So I'm a fast healer. We already knew that.

    Enough of my own reality, I wanted to address the subject of the new Apprentice spin-off with Martha Stewart. Is she looking for the next domestic diva, or for a business person to run one of her companies? Frankly, I'd prefer to watch a cake-decorating, bow-tying, holiday-decorating competition a la Project Runway over another business-oriented show. What's that? Is Jamie becoming disillusioned? The Apprentice doesn't thrill me this season. I'm still watching it, but I'm not as obsessed as I used to be. And we'll see what this season of Idol holds in store. If I don't like the top 12, I might not bother taping it.

    It's freezing in our apartment. Scott sure likes his open windows, and as soon as he left for work I shut them and am still sitting here wrapped in an afghan. It's nice to have low power bills, but I find myself wishing it were a little warmer outside.

    JLM, 2.4.05, 2:53pm
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    Date:4 February, 2005
    Time:1:39am
    Subject: Quiz
    * * * * *

    What Age Do You Act?

    According to this quiz, Scott is 28 and I'm 32. I think it was the creme brulee and West Wing that elevated my age. Or I really am an old soul. So go take the quiz (for heaven's sake though, right-click it and open in a new window) and then comment below to let me know how old you are!

    By the way, a big ol' Congratulations to my hubby for getting a promotion into the Comm Center. Just think bubba...11 months from now you'll be ready to take a job in the Call Center! And the most beautiful part is that Scott will be making more money per hour than I do...for now. That fun starts on the 20th. woo hoo!

    This has been short, but maybe I'll have more to talk about after my visit to Dr. Ponytail in the morning.

    JLM, 2.4.05, 1:44am
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    Date:3 February, 2005
    Time:2:35am
    Subject: Call Center Randomness
    * * * * *

    I don't have any stories today about the weirdo's who called me, but the ones with whom I share air. I'm not judging. Really. I'm just reporting the facts.

    I work with a girl who has a teddy bear she brings to work. Apparently the bear also goes on vacation and has his own photo albums. I saw two tonight: Maryland and NYC. Well I work with another woman who is going on a cruise next week, and is taking the bear (whose name, by the way, is Walt) with her. She apparently also took him to the Florida Mall and bought him multiple outfits from the Build-a-Bear store. Below is a picture of Walt wearing the life jacket his mommy made for him:

    Work also has us decorating silly little red hearts for Valentine's Day. This picture is pretty lousy, so I'll explain what you're seeing. Red heart, picture of Scott and me, and stickers that look like candy conversation hearts ("SURE LOVE" "MY LOVE" "LOVE" "TRUE LOVE" "EZ 2 LOVE")

    And for mom and anyone else who may not know, you can still read January and December '04 by clicking on the 'Archives' button to the left.

    ...and it's 4 weeks 'til my birthday!

    JLM, 2.3.05, 2:44am
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    Date:2 February, 2005
    Time:3:27pm
    Subject: Groundhog Day
    * * * * *

    I am a product of the media input into my body. Case in point: I realized about 20 minutes ago that today is Groundhog Day (because I heard it on the radio) and have had "I've Got You Babe" stuck in my head ever since. Well, that and an image of Bill Murray with crazy eyes...but I'm choosing to concentrate on the song.

    I'm back to work today. Beth called and asked if I could take her home tonight, so I'm going to have to steal the Febreze from the kitchen and squirt down my car. The foot smell just isn't going away. And I don't even leave socks in there anymore!!

    Anyway, I'm sitting here half-dressed with wet hair and I have to leave in 20 minutes. Hopefully today will go better than Sunday did. It is a new month, after all.

    JLM, 2.2.05, 3:31pm
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    Date:1 February, 2005
    Time:9:24pm
    Subject: Lake Louisa
    * * * * *

    Cat and I ran away from our homes today and spent a good chunk of the day together doing all sorts of random things. We went to the company gym and cancelled our memberships ($5/week and I haven't been in over a year...not good!), had lunch at the Boardwalk, went to her house to visit Wolfie the Pooh...
    ...and Mike.

    And then we went to check out another gym on 50 (strictly for her...I'm already mentally spending that extra $5 a week!), wandered aimlessly through a pet store and talked to some non-talkative birds, swung by Cracker Barrel to get some dinner for Mike, went back to her house to drop off said dinner, and then went out to Lake Louisa State Park for a surprisingly painful hike.

    Can you spot the: cactus, berries, palmetto plants, Cat, armadillo, and trail marker in the picture? If not, click on it for a bigger image!

    It was beautiful out there...and so peaceful except for the two of us chattering and noise-polluting 3 miles of wilderness. We didn't have the sense to actually use the hiking trails, and were walking on sandy horse trails - deep sand is good for horses but bad for out-of-shape Jamie's! My leg muscles are sore now, and I'm absolutely dreading the aches I'm going to feel in the morning. But it was so fun to go out and be in such a peaceful, serene, beautiful place and actually get some exercise in the process.

    ...and then come home and order Pizza Hut for dinner!

    JLM, 2.1.05, 9:38pm
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    Date:1 February, 2005
    Time:12:01am
    Subject: The Pacifier
    * * * * *

    Happy February. You know what I just realized? I hate spelling that word. Some time this month I'll have to research the word f-e-b-r-u-a-r-y and find out why we gave the month such a silly name. I'm partial to March, April, May, June, and July -- months you can spell on one hand.

    So we went to the movies tonight. We didn't see Mr. Bighead CEO, but we did see his victor unit, the man I have the biggest schoolgirl crush on. And he talked to me - twice! I don't think Scott really understands. This guy is absolutely the embodiment of the 4th grade crush. I don't want to sleep with him...I just want him to smile and talk to me. **giggle** He used to pick up OT doing bag checks and he'd walk up and say "I hope I'm on your side today," and I would just totally melt. So we got to AMC at the same time as him, and he said hi to Scott and found out we were going to the movie, and then I ran into him again while Scott was in the bathroom. He tried to get into my popcorn, but I turned him down. After all, that was Scott's popcorn...and nobody messes with Scott's popcorn and lives!

    So about the movie. It was cute. Vin is a cutie, and the movie included two females I admire: Faith Ford (go, Corky Sherwood-Forrest!) and Lauren Graham (of Gilmore Girls and Bad Santa). And some cute kids. I think this is a movie I may have paid money to see, and I'm glad I got to see it without the $8 hanging over my head. I really enjoyed it. But I would recommend leaving 3 minutes before the credits because they ruined the community theater show. Big Time. I give The Pacifier: JJJj out of JJJJJ.

    We were low on groceries, so after the movie we went to Wal-Mart for a quickie shopping trip. We left $85 later with a nearly-full cart. And I think I've decided to make bread bowl/spinach dip for Dave's next party. More on that in the next three weeks as the party approaches.

    JLM, 2.1.05, 4:22pm
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