Why?

Because I can take it, I guess. I just thought I'd write about my past week...

Last Monday-went to have Hal's AC checked...the compressor was leaking. They can't just replace the leaky seal, they have to replace the whole compressor. By the time everything was fixed, they had also replaced the thermal fan compressor, and I was out about $1200, but going without AC in Texas in the summer time is out of the question-I would be completely representable by the time I got anywhere. Because I spent so much time with the lovely folks at Midas, I missed my soccer game.

Tuesday I was working on a new assay at work. I've been trained, but it was several weeks ago. Our workload kept changing, and it was finally time for me to run the assay alone. Day one was a little hairy. I interrupted one of my work mates to help me a couple of times, but finally made it through the day.

Wednesday was day two of the new assay. I called tech support twice. My supervisor came in and asked me if I could finish all of the plates by next Friday. I asked if I could run the assay again before giving him an answer, as I wanted to be a little more comfortable with the protocol before saying yes or no. He agreed, and I finished my stressful first time on the assay successfully. Then I went to Institute. A welcome break from the stress of the beginning of the week.

Thursday was the shining star-no cavities at the dentist, we won our soccer game, and I went to a concert with a friend. Not really my usual type of music; I think I liked the opening band more than the main event, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. Watching the people at the concert was as enjoyable as the concert itself-I find group dynamics fascinating.

Friday was my second time with day two of the new assay. I think I spent at least 3 hours on the phone with tech support. Bottom line, one of our instruments is broken, and they're supposed to call me today to set up an appointment to come fix it. This means there's no way I can make my deadline, which was possible before the instrument trouble started. I left work around 6, and made it home just in time to meet Gerti to go see Thor (which made my day a little better!). Then I headed to the dance at church. There's a guy here for a few weeks who taught ballroom in Tennessee, and I was dying to know how good he was. We danced a lot...rumba, foxtrot, samba, hustle...my night was made (mostly...seeing the guy I've had my eye on show up with someone else was a little downer). The only thing that could have made it better was a waltz! Additionally, someone else asked me to teach him to dance-I'm looking forward to it immensely. I hope he's serious. Some of us then headed to the riverwalk to show around the guys from Austin. It was a really, really late night for me.

Saturday I went to work. I accomplished what I could and headed home to find mouse droppings in my kitchen. Never have I seen nor heard a mouse in my apartment, but obviously there is one. I put all of my silverware in the dishwasher and laid out by the pool for a while. I got a text message from the friend I was supposed to go to the rodeo with that night saying he wasn't able to go. I went to the designated meeting point just in case anyone else showed up-Vanessa was there. We decided to see a movie instead, and saw Water for Elephants, which I didn't like at all. Watching people and animals be abused is not my idea of quality entertainment. I came home to more mouse droppings and went to bed.

Sunday morning I discovered that my kitchen sink has been leaking. The paper towels I had stored there were soaked and moldy. I emptied the cupboard and surveyed the damage. The cupboard and wall underneath were moldy, and there were some insects down there. I got the raid, and sprayed them. I think only one died, and I set about trying to clean up (I was expecting people for breakfast in about a half hour). I did what I could, and covered the mold with bleach wipes, making a mental note to call about it Monday morning. Church was good, and I went home and talked to an old friend and my brother on the phone before going to bed.

I woke up (late) today to a giant roach in my living room. I went for the broom and dustpan, and swept him up to discover that he was alive, not dead! Opening the door to my porch, I tossed him out as quickly as possible. I changed, fed Gus and ran out the door to head to work. Just as I reached the car I realized that Sunday night was a baby shower I was meant to attend and completely forgot about.

I thought bad things came in groups of three, but by my count I'm up to nine. It's a multiple if three, so does that make it over? Meanwhile, I've remembered that counting my blessings is a great way to forget about all of the bad things that happen in life. I have good friends who are willing to help me out, a job, enough money to be able to afford and expensive car repair, stability, health, faith, talents, and a wonderful supportive family. Life is good, even if it gets frantic sometimes.

Simone

This week has had a rough start. I guess it started last week. I had the ac in the truck looked at, and subsequently recharged. They recommended I come back in a few days so they could check for leaks in the system. I returned yesterday to be told that my compressor was leaking, and needed to be replaced. I had the shuttle take me back to work and waited for a call to tell me they were on their way to pick me up. I got the call, but instead of coming to pick me up, the call was to inform me that my thermal fan clutch was also broken, and also needed to be replaced. So, several hundred dollars later, I have what (I hope) is a fully functioning ac, but I missed my Monday night soccer game.

In an attempt to cheer myself up after spending so much (if I lived in Cali I wouldn't have bothered to fix the ac at all), I called Freebirds to order myself a delicious burrito for dinner. When I arrived to pick it up, the guy at the register looked at the bag in the warmer and said "It's not ready yet." with a puzzled look on his face. The girl behind him asked me about my order-"Was it carnitas on cayenne?" I answered in the affirmative, and she pulled a bag out of the warmer. It looked like this:

So I guess I have a new nickname.