Curiouser and Curiouser

I have finished five chapters.

Started the sixth.

Main plot has morphed into side plot in favor of other side plot, which makes a better main plot. Because I'm crap at writing romance and copping out. It's now a bid-for-the-throne-with-romance-thrown-in story.

Also, my relatives have given me a website for Scots Gaelic phrases, because when I offered to Skype, they pointed out that I still wouldn't be able to spell it.

That is very true.

26778 / 50000 words. 54% done!

I totally just cut a bitch on the reptile LJ community that I'm a part of.

Long story short, 14-year-old girl with a troll journal and membership in pro-ana communities declares to the group that she's getting an iguana.

At 14.

Because she's totally ready to take on an aggressive 6ft+ reptile that needs regular vet checkups and special meals prepared every day and a cage the size of a bedroom.

Naturally, she expects her parents to pay for everything and thinks it's unfair that they won't buy her one.

She asks for advice, and is told that it's a bad idea. She stamps her foot and whines that she wants one, and she will have one.

So a few of us stop being nice.

I hate it when people (especially whiny teenagers) claim their love and devotion for an animal while completely disregarding its well-being and safety.

It felt so good to slap her. It'd feel even better in person.

(I took screencaps in case she removes her post, like miss "Where can I buy a baby anaconda?" a few months ago.)

Just.. argh.

I have this weird feeling like drama is going to pop up this weekend. I'm not sure how, why, who, when, any of that, but I just have this feeling in my gut like something bad is going to happen.

J is in town this weekend and we're trying to keep it pleasant for him, AND I have to teach for eight hours today then go straight to making dinner. And then more social plans tomorrow night. Drama makes me not want to be social, and I still have a lot of socializing to do, so I hope against hope that this bad feeling is wrong.

Please, O Cosmic Gods of Drama to whom I Sacrifice a Waffle, don't ruin my weekend. Short of a meteor strike, let it go. Just... get over whatever it is without letting the three of us hear a peep. None of us want to have to deal with that shit, especially this weekend.

Please?

There needs to be a foam party this year at Intercon.

I have no idea how to make this happen.

So, as you may have gathered from my last post, elenuial's EEE met with an... unfortunate soup broth accident.

If we go to turn it on tomorrow and it no longer works, I have a backup plan. I call it "Plan Haz Goes on a Rampage to Get elenuial a New Laptop so he Won't Die of Being Overwhelmed."

Basically, my master plan is to sell eight (and only eight!) pieces of custom jewelry for $25 apiece. My normal $35-$75 range is ignored. You buy a $25 spot, give me a few bits of inspiration, and I make you a custom necklace/earring set/hair accessory. You need a piece for a renaissance larp? I'll make you a half-tiara with gold and pearl drops. You like dragons? I'll make you something with dragons. You like lotus flowers? I'll make you earrings that look like the Hanging Gardens.

So basically, whatever your piece ends up as, it's only $25, and all of it goes toward buying my baby a new laptop so that he doesn't explode from feeling like the cosmic forces are conspiring against him.

So we'll try tomorrow. And, if something goes wrong, I'll open up reservations on the list ASAP. For now, if you're interested, comment and I'll save you a spot. If you're not one of the first eight, don't worry - something might fall through and you'd get in.

Again, I can only do this for eight people, and it's first-come, first-served.

I'll be making two separate posts about my weekend, in which I talk about the good things in general, and then the time with my aunt.

There were a lot of good things about this weekend. Friday I worked a 9-5 training shift and wednesday I worked 7-12, which went by like nothing. My coworkers, both direct and indirect, are a good bunch. I was actually complimented on my efficiency; normal trainees take two full shifts to go through the videos and worksheet, whereas I finished them all and took the first test, all the while helping customers. There were a bunch of occurrences like:
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Customer: Excuse me, where can I find bitter apple?
R: (my manager) Is that a treat?
Me: No, it's a deterrent, right? Is he a biter?
Customer: No, he chews. All the furniture.
Me: That should be in training aids. If you'll follow me, I'll take you there. Did you know that we also have a training class, if the bitter apple doesn't work?...
(returning later)
R: How'd you know that?
Me: It's a dog training thing. Just random knowledge, I guess.
R: Huh.
---
R: ...And the vegan dog food is this one.
Customer: Excuse me, do you have cat pan liners?
Me: Sure do! They're this way, right near litter. Would you like me to show you?
Customer: That'd be awesome.
(returning later)
R: What was that?!
Me: What was what?
R: How'd you know that?
Me: (holds up activity sheet) It was on the sheet.
R: Huh.
.
So I managed to impress both my manager and main trainer, who was confident enough in me to handle the animals directly. She was even a little more impressed when I managed to not get bitten while handling Satan Hamster. The animals were really great about being held, for the most part... especially the chinchilla and rats, and especially not the new arrivals.
All in all, work is going really well. I'm enjoying it.
I did get to visit my family on Sunday and go out to breakfast, then learn that all of my relatives some distance away were coming in to see Suzanne, including my eldest uncle from Florida. I get the feeling that he's my mother's favorite brother, if it's possible, and papa picked him up from the airport while mum and I were in providence.
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That's one thing about my mother - she loves piercings. She told me that it was her first day off in a long time, and she'd be damned if she didn't get another piercing. For those of you who've never met her, she has a total of over ten piercings on her ears alone (several are inner cartilage and conch piercings) as well as navel. She only uses Rockstar Piercings on Thayer street, near Brown. The guy who does the piercings is a real master at it - he not only has a relaxing demeanor and oodles of work done on himself, bu he treats it in the same way you would a surgery: two changes of latex gloves, sterilizers, a paper-lined exam table, sharps bin, biohazard bin, surgical steel everything, the works. He's a little pricey, but it's still cheap considering what he should charge with his level of skill. I've never had piercings heal faster or better than his. So mum got a third lobe piercing on one side and a few beads changed, and I bit the bullet and pierced my navel. It looks so cute! I honestly thought I'd look like a skank (and I've seen many people whose navel piercings make them look like a ho-ma), but it's a little silver adorable curve. Hurts like a bitch, though.
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After that, we saw a "SALE!" sign in the window of the spectrum india store across the street, so we ducked in and did a little shopping. I managed to get a beautiful $65 skirt for $5 (I just had to repair it myself, which was easy) and mum picked up meditation balls and incense at a decent price. I love the skirt - it fits so perfectly and is that level of pretty-feminine-but-not-outright-girly that I like. People have told me that I need to take them shopping at the places I go, which I should plan on doing at some point.
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I've made up my mind to do two things: audition for New Voices, and write that game to bid for Intercon. I will do these things, and I will like it. And I will also post my chicken quesadilla recipe sometime, which is ten kinds of awesome.
Yes.

Other half of this post to come later, possibly after auditions.

-Haz