this is payback, isn't it?

Last week I took a sick day when I probably shouldn't have. Yes, I felt sick (my stomach was giving me all sorts of problems), but probably not *too* sick to work if I had just bitten the bullet and gone in. But NOW, I have this tremendously sore throat, which has succeeded in waking me up in the middle of the night several times, and since it started, on Sunday morning, it has only gotten worse. I caved in and made a doctor's appointment - always a last resort for me - when I read that strep can cause other more serious problems if left untreated. I don't know if it is strep or not, but with my luck, it's some sort of crazy infection, and now I will have to take a sick day because I'm ACTUALLY sick, and I'll have everyone I work with thinking I'm some ninny who stays in bed at the slightest hint of pain or discomfort. Which is SO not true, by the way. I remember a day in high school where I went to school with a fever, and was repeatedly putting on and removing my hoodie all day, depending on whether I was having a hot flash or the chills - all because that was the day I was supposed to find out if I made call-backs for a play I'd auditioned for. Which I had. And I got the part. Though it only had one line. Still, I should have learned that it pays to be tough, and taking "mental health days," unless you really do have poor mental health, only makes you look like a ninny and miss your call-backs.

Ha!

One of the features of my hit counter on this thing is that I can see where my visitors were referred from. I think I've mentioned before how it's fun to see what Google queries land people on my page, but nothing beats the most recent one. The other day, some poor sap got to my page when s/he had to ask Google: "'I eat mop who?' meaning" I can just imagine this unfortunate soul having to go through life laughing at that dumb joke, but never really getting it. Having to resort to the Internet to save themselves the embarrassment of asking a friend what was so funny about eating a mop. Maybe I should write up a post explaining all of the dumb jokes that kids tell so that ANYONE who finds themselves in this predicament has a place to go to safely and anonymously get the answers to their most ridiculous, "ask the audience," I-should-get-this-but-I-don't, questions.

"New message from ??? on MySpace ..."

Ok, I really need to get my own computer for my home, because it is SO FRUSTRATING when you're at work and you get an e-mail saying that somebody has sent you a message on MySpace, and you're DYING to know what it says, except MySpace is blocked on your work computer and the only time you ever get to check it is when you're visiting your parents, but you just visited them yesterday so you won't be over there for at least another week! Grrr!!

save your pennies

I can't remember where I read this, but here are a few badly summarized tips for buying gas that will supposedly save you some money in these oh-so-pricey days:

~ Buy early in the morning while it's still cool outside. Supposedly there's less vapor, or something like that.

~ Fill up while you still have half or a quarter tank left. Again, something to do with vapor.

~ Use the pump at the medium or low speed. Honestly, I didn't know there were speeds, but hey, give it a shot. And again, this has something to do with less vapor.

~ Don't fill up while the truck is there filling the tanks. I think this has to do with kicking up sediment. But other than not wanting the sediment in your car in the first place, I'm not sure how this is specifically beneficial while prices are high.

This has been a public service announcement sponsored by Rebelmeyer, Inc.

a post about hair

If you live in my neck of the woods, you know that it has been mighty hot and humid over the past few days (in the down-time between thunder storms and tornadoes, that is). And silly me, I have not yet put in my window A/C, so my top floor apartment is about 500 degrees hotter than it is outside. Even with all the windows open and all the fans going, it just will not cool down. So anyway, I have been forced to modify my habits a little in order to maintain a bit of comfort in the excessive hotness of my house. I would usually take a hot shower in the morning, and get dressed and do my hair before going to work. I've never been much for evening showers because after sleeping, my (curly) hair just never recovers. However, in an attempt to cool off, the last few days I have been taking a cool shower in the evening, and then, without any product in it at all, pulling my wet hair into a high ponytail and going to bed. And it's totally great! First and foremost, it cools me off before bed, so I sleep better. Score. And also, even though my hairstyle options are more limited in the morning, washing it in cold water makes my hair so much shinier and softer! (And maybe the product I was using was making it dull and it's really liking being naked?) So yay! I found a way to cool off my body and make my hair happy at the same time!

... but I still intend to put in that A/C ASAP.