I made a trip to the grocery store today.  Low and behold that Thursdays are specifically designed for old slow folks or incompetent trash.  I'll have to make a note to myself not to venture out to the grocery store during the early day very often at all that's for damn sure.  Regardless, I made it through, mostly untouched and unharmed.  Thankfully.

However, I did find something pretty comical.  At this particular store, there's a main line before the check outs and once one comes available then that's when you head to that particular cashier.  Well I've been through this plenty of times at this store, and never have I seen a problem with congestion or confused people not being able to figure out the system.  Today, was obviously the day that the customers needed help because there was a designated employee which would notify  you which cash register to go to once it was available. 

How can I get that job!? I want to say, "sir, number 14 will be available next". 

Kudos to the cash register king. 

When you first get a job, it's like this rush of "horray I'm awesome".  Then when you have to go through the whole orientation bit and the ridiculous loops and twirls they put you through just so you can start, the rush of getting the job completely disappears. 

I was told to go to employee health today, and then it somehow turned into a 4 hour ordeal of paperwork, physicals, drug tests, human resources,security, and "sign here".  It's not the time it took that urks me, it's the fact that in every previous job all this "stuff" was done during orientation, which you get paid for.  However, if they ripped me off of the 4 hours of pay, along with every other million employee, that's a lot of money they're saving.  That's what urks me.  Not the cash I lost but the annoyance of the scam.

On another note, I look like a hardcore druggie from the trackmarks on my arms (yes both of them) they made when doing blood stuff. Thanks.

Currently, I'm staying at a guest lodge on base.  We're attempting to find housing of course, but that's easier said than done.  This building has now become home for the past two weeks and I can't help but become reminded of my past living situation a couple years ago in the dorm.  Now having been two weeks here, I really don't know how I managed to live in a room much like the size of this one, for an entire 9 fucking months.  Personally, I probably lost all sanity about a week ago. 

The people staying here are all military so either they're a minivan driving happy fam equipped with 3 kids, a smiling mommy, and retarded daddy, or new couple that makes me want to vomit, or just some drunk ass young military punks.  All options lead to annoying.  Last night we got the privilege of hearing a domestic situation between the folks next to us.  Thankfully it didn't escalate to more than a few yells and something slamming against the wall once.  A body or not, we're not sure.  But, luckily it only happened once so we didn't have to feel obligated to "check things out".  Good lord that would have made for a bad night.

On another fun note, the lovely building doesn't get any sort of cell phone reception from any company.  Why, I don't fucking know.  So, all calls lead to trekking outside in order to sit on a beat up picnic table with ants crawling all over you.  There is no other option except to walk around in the hot sun, and still somehow end up with ants or other like bugs crawling all over you.  There's a sort of system established between all residents staying here.  Northing has ever been said, but it's just known.  There's a back-door that everyone goes out of in order to make their calls, but it cannot be accessed from outside.  UNLESS of course a rock or stick of sorts is placed in doorway to keep it cracked open.  This is helpful considering you have to leave a lot to use your phone and the only other entrance is what seems like miles away.  In reality I know, duh it's not, but it's most definitely out of the way to just use the phone. 

I was walking back toward the door after returning a call back on a job, when what did I see?  A fucking young punk military guy who probably thinks his poo smells like lilies, opened the door, bent down, and *gasps* kicks the rock out.  He looked at me and slowly turned around and went back to his room. 

Lily Poo Man: Please take a stick and ram it up your bum. 

I picked up the pictures from the infamous road trip.  Some of the ones that came out consisted of: a wiener mobile we saw driving on the road, my dad's gravestone, my pug sneezing, the St. Louis arch in "drive by form", me drooling on myself asleep, and my friend driving with her head out the window.  Yup, that pretty much sums up the whole trip in a nutshell.  I don't think I could ever drive that sort of distance on that kind of time crunch, ever ever ever ever again.  Four days to drive 2700 miles is ridiculous.

My question of the day: What kind of job application do you fill out to drive the wiener mobile?

It seems that when errands consist of buying only one thing from the store that particular trip ends up being a more expensive trip than if it were 12 things to buy.  Today, this was indeed true.  As there aren't any Walgreen's around here, we found a new drugstore to call our fab fav, CVS pharmacy.  A drugstore that would surely provide us with the ever so important make-up remover that we so desired.  A quick in & out stop right?  Okay so maybe not so much.  Thirty minutes later and $117.26 lighter, we left with all our shampoos, lotions, make-up bag, hair pomade, and of course the ever so necessary make-up remover. 

Last night, being a Friday night, was the first Friday nights that I actually went out in quite a while.  I don't know if it was the company I was in or just the fact that I've been overdue for going out, but I had a fabulous time.  Good kudos to Maryland so far for providing some good times.  However, on the drive home last night, I encounter a brand new experience.  A sobriety check area.  Sure I've seen them on TV but in the northwest area they just don't do them.  So, at first, I of course had no idea what the hell was going on.  I even had to get out of my car.  With all this confusion I decided it would be a great time to ask directions on how the hell to get home.  Needless to say, I gave the officers a chuckle for the night. 

I think this move was good for me.  Okay so the circumstances are less than perfect right now sure but overall I think it's a good thing.  For the first time in a long time I feel like I'm becoming the "me" that I used to be while picking up some other odds & ends to add on.  I finally feel, just right.  Maybe that sounds like some pure gibberish but it's the truth.  It really is amazing how one person can change you so much.  I don't want that again.  I just want to be myself regardless what that brings me. 

 

My road trip across country was evenly uneventful if you're only counting break downs, speeding tickets, and accidents.  Luckily for the two of us, none of those happened.  How that turned out in our favor I'll never know.  We drove over 2600 miles in a little Kia Rio for pete's sakes!  I mostly EXPECTED something to happen.  I mean we topped 90 mph most of the way when we could, which just seems to be asking for a speeding ticket.  She was more gutsy than I was, but regardless we evidently made it here.  In one piece too.

Although we were lucky in those respects, the road trip was by no means "uneventful".  The biggest event as it turned out was our stop in Illinois.  We stayed with my sister for three nights & two days right outside of St. Louis.  Having never met her this was in itself, overwhelming.  We've talked for a few years so finally being able to meet was so great, but still awkward.  I think I was more alarmed than uncomfortable than anything just because we were so much alike.  She's 7 years older than me and although we grew up under totally different circumstances and different parts of the country, we still ended up much like each other.  This being both physically as well as mentally.  We look, sound, talk, and think alike.  My road trip buddy, a friend of mine for 12 years, was also alarmed at how my sister and I were so similar.  So there's my proof on that one. 

We went to visit our crazy grandma, a racist pig, while I was there too.  That however is a whole different post and a whole different ball game. 

 

I'm a mess.  In all honesty, had I known that my dog was going to end up in a kennel for 30 days, I would have scrapped the interview all together and just opted to stay on the westcoast for another month or two. 

FUCK.

Today was my third full day in Maryland.  For the first time in two entire months I was left alone while the fam went out to have a meet n' greet with some friends.  For the first 4 hours I was entirely entertained by the likes of cable and myspace browsing.  After that, the munchies attacked me and I was without any power to deny the urge to open all crunchy food insight.  I ate a few items seemingly disatisfied, and then went back to the likes of painting my nails and frolicking the idea of writing about my road trip or not.  I decided not to as it somehow seems like it will need special attention to write about the certain fiascos that engulfed my life the past week.  I suppose they'll eventually make it out of my mind....most likely tomorrow when boredom sets in.

The idea of being unemployed and without a home is entirely stressful.  Sure I have a roof over my head but none of which is permanent.  I have an interview on Tuesday, and maybe that will solve one of the two looming problems.  A home may be easier said than done however.  This problem is especially unsettling as I'm not actually the one trying to fix that problem in my life and I'm certainly not in charge of that by any means.  That is probably the most unsettling considering how independent I have become and have maintained for quite some time. In the meantime, I'm stuck in a compact room with four other people, two beds, one bathroom, and low water pressure.