KINDA CREEPY
There’s this guy I see on my bus route relatively frequently who sets me on edge. He’s not really my cup of tea and is on the short side, but I frequently catch him smiling at me. I cannot describe why this makes me uneasy, since on the face of it, there’s nothing at all wrong with being friendly with strangers on the bus. There’s just a vibe about him. Some kind of sociopathic, lives in his mother’s basement and catalogues an extensive collection of dryer lint in his spare time air around him. I have no basis for this entirely unfair assessment, but that’s how I read him, despite exchanging only brief greetings on a couple of occasions.
Now there he is, in my corner coffee shop, smiling at me while I’m trying to look busy and deeply engrossed in my iPhoto collection. Sure he was here when I got here, and beyond the ubiquitous furtive grinning, he hasn’t made any move to invade my Sunday afternoon peace. Of all the people to cross over from the world of my work week commute to my weekend leisure world, it would have to be the short, kinda creepy dude.
Yep, the antisocial tendencies run deep.
Sunday, July 30, 2006
CATCHING UP
I went on vacation. Then I was really busy. Then I was excessively lazy, and a month went by. Considering no one really reads this disorganized mess, it’s not that much of a hardship. It was a pretty full month, though some of it I’m just as happy to not chronicle.
Weather wise, we went from inclimate weather over the fourth, and consequently my lakeside vacation, to a record-breaking heat wave nationwide that sapped me of the energy to do anything more than sit very still and sip iced beverages for hours on end. Strangely enough, the heat had me craving office time with the sweet embrace of climate controlled air conditioning. It’s nice to be back to the near Seattle perfection of low 70s with intermittent showers for a change, though I did get more damp than I bargained for on my way to brunch this morning.
I lost a couple more fish, but I’m not giving up yet. Olivia didn’t make it through vacation, but the symptoms had been starting show before I took off. I attempted to bounce back w/ Victoria and Angelica, a couple of smaller calico fantails. Angelica only made it two weeks. My latest theory relates to the tank water getting toxically alkaline. This means I’ll need more frequent water changes and fervent monitoring of water levels, but I’m willing to do anything to shake my goldfish death chamber status.
To this end I’ve taken the somewhat questionable step of increasing the tank family size. Victoria is holding strong, as is Franc III, who is awesome. He’s my biggest snail to date, and for a while I worried he might fight back when the girls picked on him. So far peace reigns. The latest additions are Serafina, the fair scaled sister, and Gissel, our golden fish. I’ve been obsessively monitoring the water levels, and I’m beginning to think they’re messing with me. They’ll get all lethargic and hang around dark corners of the tank, only to break into frenetic outbursts of happy fish activity. Either they’re doomed, as all my fish seem to be, or they think it’s hilarious to send me rushing for the water testing tabs and planning mid week water changes. This is why I should only have pets that are contained within a small habitat. If I had a cat or dog running loose in the apartment, I’d probably start to suspect them plotting my demise. My pets all seem to be devious. I’m sure that’s not projection at all.
Made it to three concerts. Fiona Apple was a little disappointing, but it could have been because of where we sat. It was my first concert at the winery though, and gave me a good idea of how to do it right. Checked out a club performance of Grupo Fantasma. They’re a lot of fun, and I got to chat w/ a band member. Pink Martini were back at the winery, and this time we packed a fab picnic dinner and packed in ample vino. They were an amazing performance despite the fantastic heat.
July also involved a couple if ill advised boy choices, for which I should probably be embarrassed, but ultimately no real harm done. If I can forget them, there’s no reason to dwell.
While it was a good month for catching up with old friends, getting in some quality family time, and becoming even chummier w/ the staff at my favorite local, I haven’t managed to meet any new pals for hanging out with. Starting to worry about the family history of antisocial behavior being carried on through me in this generation.
Here’s hoping August brings some more excitement, fewer embarrassing moments, and some worthwhile experiences.
I went on vacation. Then I was really busy. Then I was excessively lazy, and a month went by. Considering no one really reads this disorganized mess, it’s not that much of a hardship. It was a pretty full month, though some of it I’m just as happy to not chronicle.
Weather wise, we went from inclimate weather over the fourth, and consequently my lakeside vacation, to a record-breaking heat wave nationwide that sapped me of the energy to do anything more than sit very still and sip iced beverages for hours on end. Strangely enough, the heat had me craving office time with the sweet embrace of climate controlled air conditioning. It’s nice to be back to the near Seattle perfection of low 70s with intermittent showers for a change, though I did get more damp than I bargained for on my way to brunch this morning.
I lost a couple more fish, but I’m not giving up yet. Olivia didn’t make it through vacation, but the symptoms had been starting show before I took off. I attempted to bounce back w/ Victoria and Angelica, a couple of smaller calico fantails. Angelica only made it two weeks. My latest theory relates to the tank water getting toxically alkaline. This means I’ll need more frequent water changes and fervent monitoring of water levels, but I’m willing to do anything to shake my goldfish death chamber status.
To this end I’ve taken the somewhat questionable step of increasing the tank family size. Victoria is holding strong, as is Franc III, who is awesome. He’s my biggest snail to date, and for a while I worried he might fight back when the girls picked on him. So far peace reigns. The latest additions are Serafina, the fair scaled sister, and Gissel, our golden fish. I’ve been obsessively monitoring the water levels, and I’m beginning to think they’re messing with me. They’ll get all lethargic and hang around dark corners of the tank, only to break into frenetic outbursts of happy fish activity. Either they’re doomed, as all my fish seem to be, or they think it’s hilarious to send me rushing for the water testing tabs and planning mid week water changes. This is why I should only have pets that are contained within a small habitat. If I had a cat or dog running loose in the apartment, I’d probably start to suspect them plotting my demise. My pets all seem to be devious. I’m sure that’s not projection at all.
Made it to three concerts. Fiona Apple was a little disappointing, but it could have been because of where we sat. It was my first concert at the winery though, and gave me a good idea of how to do it right. Checked out a club performance of Grupo Fantasma. They’re a lot of fun, and I got to chat w/ a band member. Pink Martini were back at the winery, and this time we packed a fab picnic dinner and packed in ample vino. They were an amazing performance despite the fantastic heat.
July also involved a couple if ill advised boy choices, for which I should probably be embarrassed, but ultimately no real harm done. If I can forget them, there’s no reason to dwell.
While it was a good month for catching up with old friends, getting in some quality family time, and becoming even chummier w/ the staff at my favorite local, I haven’t managed to meet any new pals for hanging out with. Starting to worry about the family history of antisocial behavior being carried on through me in this generation.
Here’s hoping August brings some more excitement, fewer embarrassing moments, and some worthwhile experiences.
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