krazy kat's korner

I survived work yesterday. Still worked about half an hour over my shift, and didn't get everything up to date, and there's probably something major I've forgotten, but it was a reasonable day and I didn't break. And choccies from my manager and another co-worker, and a gorgeous budgie coffee mug from a friend in another department which made my day. And a household called into helpline and asked them to thank me for making sure she got the gift she ordered before Christmas (that was one of the dramas driving me nuts earlier in the week).

So a month off...

And I need to try and not have great expectations, because that way failure lies. Just relax and destress and sleep, and watch plenty of dvds, and start a jigsaw puzzle. Best friend/hubby/kidlets (from Switzerland) for lunch on Tuesday, followed by a massage.

This week can go back to where it came from and stay there. Too long and annoying in so many ways.

Was really tired Monday due to losing Saturday for rest due to Lara's party. Tuesday I slept in, but then had a couple of hours down shopping which ended in a migraine and me nearly in tears in the middle of JB Hifi (after not being able to find Once dvd for the second time in a sale). Wednesday was my short shift at work...and I got nowhere fast. I'm not even sure what my work plans were, I just know I didn't get any of it done, and had to make too many phone calls. And when I was in the bath that night, my big toe nail came off, the whole thing. Was a bit of a surprise, though my toe nails are pretty terrible these days due to the poor circulation and chilblains. Yesterday was reasonable.

And today... First I was an hour late to work (and Friday is my busy day) due to the usual wonderful timing of my digestive system. Even had to get mum to ring the manager to let her know I'd be late, because I was indisposed. My anxiety was through the roof (has been bad for weeks now going to work). A gifting issue came back to haunt me, and I was in no state to make the phone call, so I asked one of the Helpliners to do it, and S most graciously did. Then heard from my sister that mum and dad had broken down and were waiting for a tow truck.

They were going up the Central Coast to see mum's aunt, and on the F3 around Mt White, the front of the car started making shuddering noises and motions like there was a flat tyre. Dad decided to turn around, coming back via the Old Pacific Highway, at 40 kmh. Just got past the turn to Brooklyn when he had to stop and call for a tow truck. They had to wait about an hour, and then were towed back to our local mechanic. The mechanic doesn't think he can look at it till Tuesday (so my sister will have to take me to work on Monday (she picked me up this evening), and going to have to organise something to get me to counselling on Tuesday). Possibly the cv joint, or a wheel bearing. And then mum lost half her back tooth tonight.

Last Saturday was the coldest September day in 30-odd years - 13C (55F).

This Saturday was the equal hottest day of the year - 32C (90F).

Bloody ridiculous. Going to be a warm night

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Council election voting across NSW today. Such fun. *eye roll* At least it looks like we've kept our Green.

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I've started making phone calls to our households at work. Not many, but more than enough. I hate phones with a passion, it's a definite anxiety trigger.

I told vanwasigma last week, she was thrilled and thought it was great that I'd taken the (forced) step. D, one of the recruiters, said she'd heard me on the phone and I was great, and she was proud of me :) And on Friday one of the helpline girls said I had a great phone manner.

I've never been sure how I am on the phone, so that makes me feel better that maybe I'm doing the right thing.

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Phantom in 14 hours. Final performance in Sydney. We might even see Ana Marina, who actually does exist - sister's friend had a confirmed sighting the other week. We'd been wondering.

Emergency drill at work today. On a horrible wet and windy day.

Luckily it wasn't raining much when we were outside, but it was cold and awful. And I didn't take my cardigan, because I thought they surely wouldn't be keeping us out in that, so I was in short sleeves. But even the cardigan wouldn't have helped my poor toes and fingers (and there's a healing chilblain on my finger, essentially a pit - healing really really hurts, especially since it's almost on a joint so keeps getting stretched). The lovely vanwasigma was my friend and windbreak.

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What a day in NSW politics.

Glad to see the back end of Costa (pity he didn't blow himself up) and Iemma. Barry O'Farrell was looking attractive.

Hope Rees can do some good, though I'm not holding my breath. Interesting for the Labor Left, having control for the first time.

I survived...just.

I actually did better than I expected. I lasted the whole shift, and didn't feel overly dead, though my body has been hurting. I find that you sometimes get a second wind when you get past tired. Got home and my brother, sister-in-law, and Lara Kate were here for dinner. Had lots of cuddles. She's grown and she's now awake! Was so good to see her eyes, she's a little wriggler. She alternated between wriggling and dozing. I'm still not quite comfortable holding her vertically up against me (I'm fine with nursing her), but it'll get easier. She has good head control. But her farts are lethal.

When I had a bath and relaxed, the exhaustion started to hit. I think I'll be dead for the next few days.

See my best friend, her hubby and my nephew next week, they survived the plane trip from Zurich. Should also see my cousin and her Logan for the first time. He's 1 in 13 days and doing fantastically. He had such a tough start, but he's a fighter.

And no work till 15th of Jan.

I don't know how I'm going to survive tomorrow (3rd day work in a row). Already exhausted, my body is really complaining, and I've been having vertigo episodes since last night (after being vertigoless for a few months).

But on the plus side, I didn't have an anxiety attack on the way to work today. Friday was obviously worrying me.

And after tomorrow, I'm free for a month! Yay!

Weather is ridiculous. Today was half yesterday's temperature. And too many bushfires, poor Tassie and Vic.

Note: don't ask questions during US holidays...

Reasking: recommendation for what Vienna Teng cd to buy first (I have Warm Strangers mp3ified)?

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I only just survived work. When I got up this morning I was so tired I felt like crying. And had to get up and walk around a few times at work to keep myself awake.

But another fortnight/pay period I've done my full hours. That's a month, four weeks in a row, of doing my full hours. I am superwoman :)

Thursday was funny. I don't normally work it, and I walked in around my old side and K looked at me strangely and said, "What are you doing here?" :)

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I am just a tad excited about finding Barry Jones' autobiography. And annoyed I didn't know till I just saw it in the ABC cattledog. Costs a pretty penny though. A few years back I considered writing to Barry Jones and asking him to write his autobiography...or if he didn't want to do it, let me! Yes, I was younger and stupider...but I so wanted to hear his story.

And everybody reading this either has no idea who I'm talking about or can't stand him.

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And I think my dvd player just exploded. There were these popping sounds coming from the direction of the tv/dvd/vcrs, I looked and couldn't find anything. More popping sounds. The tv turned on okay, the vcrs played okay, the dvd player turned on okay...but it smells. I've unplugged everything until dad can look at them in the morning. Damn dvd player, it's only just over a year old and has barely been used. I had to buy it to replace the previous one in which the power supply carked it. I only paid $60 for it, but still.

I find working two days in a row difficult. The second day is a struggle tired- and body-wise. But today was productive - finished the day's work around 3pm (I started at 12.30pm), so I could get back onto work that had been waiting since last week. Finished that, and in the last hour I got back to cleaning up files that I haven't had time to do since the start of October.

Yesterday I asked M what was happening over Christmas. She said she didn't know ;) The office closes down between Christmas and New Year, but I said that I'd like to take the week before Christmas off as my best friend will be out from Zurich with her bub. M said that was fine and that we should lock it in now. So my last day is 15th December. She then asked when I wanted to come back and suggested 2nd week of January, and then said 15th January. I said I could come back the 8th if she wanted, but she said the 15th was fine (the area I work in will probably be pretty slow). It will be a pain losing 3 weeks wages, but I can use the longer break. Will also give some time for me to go out places and work on the anxiety.

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What's going on with the web? I haven't been able to access our Bigpond usage for a couple of days, Amazon is being a pain in the arse...

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Overnight was the coldest Sydney November morning since 1905 - just 8.3C (46F). And the wind today was frigid. Over the past few days there's been snow in Tasmania, Victoria, NSW and Queensland (that was a 50 year event apparently). Remember, it's almost summer here. And there were bushfires burning (still are) in the Blue Mountains while this was going on. Not sure whether they got it, but they were predicting snow in the bushfire area.

I worked my full 36 hours (plus 45 minutes extra) this past 2 weeks. May not seem like much, may seem like very little, but this year it has been an accomplishment for me to work my full hours within a pay period. Especially since I seemed to be having quite a bad little anxiety attack (for no reason) going to work today and felt like running away.

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The U2 concert at the Olympic Stadium tonight got a little drenched. My sister's going to tomorrow's concert with her best friend. Traffic was bad tonight heading towards the stadium. My work is on the main road route, and going home tonight was quite amazing to see the amount of cars going the opposite direction. And all the buses picking up along the main road, dad said he heard that public transport was apparently included in the ticket price.

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I would give anything to get the tv series, Sirens, on tape. I've got 2 of the 13 episodes (the original series), but I'm about to wear one ep out. Has such fabulous Molly/Detective Lugo interaction, and there were 2 other eps with Lugo (who I find strangely appealing and I have a thing about men wearing coats over their suits (don't really get the coat in Oz)) and I need to see if I'm just imagining the flirting (and misremembering the first ep he was in) and I have all these scenarios in my head and no one has any idea what I'm talking about... I'm a little obsessed at the moment.

Had to go a slightly different route to work today due to roadworks. We came out on the Pacific Highway at Pymble, and up on Pymble Hill you can see across to the city of Sydney. Most of the time it's nice, but more just a conglomerate of tall buildings. But today the air was crystal clear (after all the rain) and the clouds behind the city were dark and the sun was shining on the tall buildings (and even the top of the Anzac Bridge) like a spot light. It was just take your breath away amazingly beautiful.

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I'm taking next week off work. I think I need the break: recharge, try to get a counselling appointment, get things back on track (plus I'll be fresh for the Mandy Patinkin concert on the 18th). Apart from sick days, and the Christmas (which was extremely stressful) and Easter breaks, I haven't had a break since I started working there in February last year. And you may say, "but you only work 18 hours per week", but physically that feels like a full week to me.

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And I have a doppleganger (in name at least). From Playbill:

The best of Chicago's non-Equity theatre community will be celebrated June 5 at the Jeff Citations ceremony in the Windy City.

On May 1, the Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee announced nominees for the Jeff Citations, honoring non-union theatrical productions which opened during the April 2005-March 2006 season. ...

PRINCIPAL ACTRESS– PLAY
Kat McDonnell, Three Sisters, Strawdog Theatre Company

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And finally bought Homicide: LOTS seasons 1 and 2! Amazon had it at a good price the other day but I missed it, had it down again tonight (though slightly higher than the other day), had to take the plunge.