Well, last night I decided that I was going to apologize for my long absense from xanga to my wonderful and long-suffering readers by posting something exceptionally good. So, I wrote up half of a very intellegent and writerly dissertation on the effects of feminism in our society and the dangers and pitfalls of the popular agenda, however, when I sat down to my computer tonight, I had far, far, far too short an attention span to finish said dissertation. So, instead, I bring you Mindless Drivel:

 6:30 AM
My alarm goes off, announcing to my sleep-deprived brain that it is time to, once again, be in work. It will be for the ninth day in a row after a forty-hour long week. This time, it will be to drive the hour it takes to get there for a an hour-long employee meeting in which they will cover the following topics: Do not steal. Do not let customers steal. Do not fall off the ladder.

6:31 AM
I mumble various curses into my pillow regarding the mental capacities and general appearance of the Bed Bath and Beyond President and then stumble out of bed.

7:15 AM
I am on the road, sipping my breakfast (a kid size box of juicy-juice) and wearing my dobak (black belt uniform). Last employee meeting I was a pirate. It is my passive-aggressive way of protesting the existance of 8AM employee meetings.

8:00 AM
I try not to fall asleep during the meeting. After all, I would hate to miss the whole "do not steal from the company" speech. Goodness knows I had no idea that was a company policy, or that I should not partake in stealing.

9:00AM
The meeting is over and I have an hour to kill before heading to the mall for some Christmas shopping. I head to Barnes and Noble where I get a mocha latte and a stack of books and sink into one of the wonderful oversized chairs.

9:15 AM
I read W.S. Merwin's (my favorite poet, besides Robert Frost) Migration. I cried quietly after reading "Burning the Cat" (a thoughful and emotionally powerful poem contrasting the berevity and frailty of life with the clinging presence of death and the inability to let go easily). Then I burst into tears after reading "Shipwreak" (a poem about a shipwreak). Then I read Bleach (manga) and started giggling at Kon's attempts to find an owner. By this time I was recieving nervous looks from other customers and the baristas were whispering something about one-too-many lattes.

11:00 AM
I arrive at the mall. It is crowded and stuffy and smells like old overcoats recently taken out of winter storage. The air is stale and the flourescent lights bathe the tile floor in a sci-fi-like glow of artificiality.

12:00 PM
I arrive at Hot Topic looking for a dress. I find a wonderful "Helena" dress (from the MCR music video) but it was just a smidge too small and I leave pouty. Maybe they'll get more in soon. I need a nice dress. I don't have anything fancy right now, just house dresses and bohemian street dresses.

3:00 PM
I stop at the random free phone in the middle of the random parking lot to make a random call home, since I seem to have forgotten my cell phone, which is often left in random places.

3:15 PM
Yarn. Christmas chocolates for Nannie. Boxes for the Naughty Box. Coffee. Ah, the wonders of WalMart. So many different things in so small an area.

4:00 PM
Time to head home. On the way, however, I see a brand new store advertising manga and anime. Much swerving and honking of horns and near-miss accidents and squealing (of tires and of driver) I am inside. Thankfully, my car is not inside with me. I had the presence of mind to park it before going in.

4:30 PM
I leave with a Fullmetal Alchemist patch and genuine bamboo hairsticks made in Japan! (Unlike the ones I get at Claire's, which are made in China. Wooo).

5:30 PM
Home!

Hey, I know I haven't written anything good in a while. I am sorry. I promise to get back into it, it's just that life is really hectic right now. I went to the doctors and found out that I don't have any bad arthritic diseases like lupus or RA, but I do have a genetic mark that could explain the pain in my hands and hips. *sigh* Anyway, so yeah, once again, a dissapointing post with nothing good on it. But I will leave you with some interesting quizzes brought to you by quizfarm.com!

You scored as Redemption.
You scored as “Redemption” You have been selected to be redeemed! Meaning that you are deemed worthy enough to enter the new world as yourself! You shall be one of the few who will know the past history of this Earth and also the future of it. You are one of the rarer breeds of humans with actual intelligence and morals. Your individuality shall be rewarded as you're allowed to witness all the changes as they appear! (Please take into consideration that this result is much more valid if you scored LOW on “Relentless Death” and “Assimilation”.)
Redemption 73% Ascension 70% Rehabilitation 40% Assimilation 23% Relentless Death 17% What's your fate? http://www.quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=228430&first=yes What element are you? Emotion: caring, compassionate.

Emotion 95% Water 85% Earth 60% Air 20% Fire 0% which element are you? http://www.quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=106893&first=yes

And, just because I've been getting into the series Lost:

You scored as Charlie.
You're Charlie! Sweet, adorable and caring but with a bit of a bad habit.

Well, it's been a while since I've posted anything. Since I'm really too tired tonight to post anything of great quality, I'll just display the illustration I made for my bosses in honor of National Bosses Day (psst: it's tomorrow, in case anyone wants to do a little something for their boss).

Maybe I'll get a raise!

*rolls eyes*

Yeah right.

~Wilderness

Yes! I've finally gotten some time to post something! So many cool things have been going on, I don't know where to begin.

How about the beginning.

First, me and Megan-san went to the Altantic coast for an incredible weekend of sand and surf and sunsets on the beach. I shall now give you The-Itinerary-Which-Is-Not-Boring-Like-Most-Itineraries-Are-Itinerary.

4:30 PM-Friday.
I leave work in a flurry of excited squees. Customers remark upon seeing my smoke trail out the door that they've never seen anyone at Customer Service move so fast.

6:00 PM- Friday
I arrive at Megan-san's house. We throw our suitcases into her car with the rushed frenzy of teenage boys at a Star Wars convention.

6:00:15 PM- Friday
All packed, we're on the road and headed south, drawn by the crash of waves and the tease of salt on the wind.

6:30 PM- Friday
We get on the highway. It is about this time that I decide to check the directions I had hastily scrawled on a crmpled sticky note the night before.

6:31 PM Friday
We're lost.

7:00 PM Friday
After a left, a right, a left, a left, a U-turn, another left, two cows and a duck, we're back on the highway and headed south.

9:00 PM Friday
Megan-san discovers to her horror that none of the 400 jacks of her Wal*Mart CD converter fit her car's plug in. We decide to provide our own music, and begin on an old Johnny Cash favorite "Ring Of Fire". However, we soon realize that the only part we know is the chorus. We have rewritten the old favorite:

Hum hum hummmmmm
Ring of fire
Hummmmm hum hum
Ring of fire
Hummmm hummmmmm hum
BURN BURN BURN

and like our version much better, thank you very much.

10:00 PM- Friday.
Lost again. Drat.We pull into a little town (which, contrary to popular belief, is actually the Bermuda Triangle. No, the Bermuda Triangle is not in Bermuda. It is somewhere along I-80 between the NJ turnpike and Allentown.

10:30 PM- Friday
We find a gas station and pull in, hoping for directions. Unfortunately, the owner of said gas station is Japanese and somewhere over 100 years old. We do manage to get directions from him, however, which go something like this:
A lef, a lef, no'er lef, sign say "Jermatow", an BIG SIGN!!!

10:45 PM-Friday
We stop at Starbucks for a coffee and a chance to try and translate the instructions.

11:00 PM- Friday
WE MADE IT TO NEW JERSEY!! Exctied by the smell of the ocean (or was it deisel fuel?) we somehow miss our exit. I decide that it is time to call my cousin (to whose house we are headed) and ask for directions. Cousin is very patient and kind with us, and gives us directions (Jamie: HOW the hell did you get lost?? There was ONE exit!! Kay, take the next left, then the next left, then a U-turn, then pass two cows and a duck.)

11:30 PM- Friday
We arrive! Jamie's friends are there and welcome us with warm New Jersey hospitality. (Jamie's friends: WHAT the hell took you so long??) We sleep well that night.

10:00 AM- Saturday
We wake up. Dissapointed to have slept in so late (Staying up until 3:30 will do that to ya) we decide to head to WaWa for a quick breakfast before hitting the beach.

10:15 AM- Saturday
This is Megan-san's first time at a WaWa!! Cousin and I show her the fine points of sub ordering, latte mixing, and how to wrestle the reciept away from the cashier.

10:30 AM Saturday
Ah! The beach! The roar of the ocean! The crush of sand beneath our feet! The glorious wind ripping through our clothes and hair like an impatient lover! Me and Megan whoop for joy. Cousin complains that it's too freakin' cold.

10:30:01 AM Saturday
We're in the water and nothing has ever felt so good. Cousin calls us insane and watches us with the same curious gaze as a nature show host doing a special on the bizzare habits of the African Nork Blatt Lizzard.

2:00 PM Saturday
Megan and I emerge from the water soaked to the bone and grinning like children. Cousin shakes her head and mutters something about Pennsylvanians.

2:30 PM Saturday
We stop at Burger King for a bite to eat, then go back to cousin's house to change. Then, it's off to hit the shopping malls!

7:00 PM Saturday
I arrive back with a pair of lacy black panties and a teapot. You never know what you'll find when you shop the sales in New Jersey.

8:00 PM Saturday
We go to the "Cheg" a resturaunt popular with the young folks. But, upon finding it full of young folks, we head over to Applebees, after checking out a store in which the entire stock is three pairs of paints, a skirt, a tube of hair gel, and a sock. The pants cost $250.00, and I decide that that must be how they can afford to keep shop with just three pairs of pants, a skirt, a tube of hair gel, and a sock. I also comment that the pants could feed a starving child in India for a year. I recieve disdainful glances from cashier.

10:00 PM Saturday
Time for bed! We're going to be up for sunrise on the ocean!

5:30 AM Sunday
Megan manages to finally wake me up using a combination of a rock, a blowtorch, a baseball bat, and a fog horn. We stumble blearily around the house, throwing on various articles of clothing and packing our camera equipment.

6:00 AM Sunday
We step out the door. It begins raining. Cousin goes back to bed, mumbling about insane Pennsylvanians and their unhealthy fixations on the sun. Me and Megan sit on the couch and pout at the clouds.

7:00 AM Sunday
After several failed attempts to rouse cousin, we finally decide to brave the rain and go out for rainy-day photography by ourselves.

8:00 AM Sunday
We find a little pier overlooking the bay and take several stunning pictures of the rain and the fog and discover how beautiful several shades of blue and gray can be.

8:15 Sunday
I discover I am out of film. The ever-patient Megan-san drives me up and down the island on a hunt for film under $200.00.

9:00 AM Sunday
Film found! In a quaint little gift shop beneath the lighthouse. Kind man gives me discount because of the rain. Crotchety old seaman tells us it won't clear up all day.

9:15 AM Sunday
We climb up the lighthouse, taking artistic pictures all the way. When we reach the top, the sun comes out! Beautiful, azure sky stretches out on all sides of us, meeting the sea in a passionate kiss in the distance! Lovely pictures! Glorious views!

10:00 AM Sunday
More artistic pictures, a nature walk, and several cute surfers later, we're back in the water. I call cousin to invite her to swim with us. Cousin politely declines. (Cousin: "You're freaking insane, you know that?? It's freaking OCTOBER!") Sea is very rough. Masochist that I am, I take pummeling wipe-out after pummeling wipe out until the ever patient Megan-san teaches me how to wave dive.

3:00 PM Sunday
We meet up with cousin for chinese food. I pretend it is only because I am especially hungering for Wonton soup. Cousin and Megan-san know it is because I want to watch the cute Asian waiter boys.

4:00 PM Sunday
We decide that there is just enough light left in the day to go swimming one more time. The ocean has been very rough due to the hurricane further out, and we get pummeled into the sand until we learn to just respect the waves and sit just outside the breakers.

5:00 PM Sunday
I cannot tell you how beautiful the Atlantic ocean is in a perfect pink sunset, with the sun glittering on the crests of the waves and the sky blushing at its own reflection in the sea. We didn't want to go home. Oh, we didn't want to go home.

12:30 AM Monday
We arrive home 5 Mocha Lattes, two lefts, four rights, two cows and a duck later. I drive home from Megan's house, full of memories and with a teasing whisp of salt hair still clinging to my hair.

Well, that's it. If you made it through this itinerary, please leave some luff! It wasn't easy to write! After all, I had to type most of it one-handed, as I have a kiten in my lap.Yes! We got a new kitten.

My beloved friend of 12 years died (My cat, Lila). We went to the Humane Society and, after looking into her cage, I fell in love.

Leave some luff!

~Wilderness