Weekly Log - 23 through 29

Monday Nov 23

Welcome to tension city, population me. Remember how I gotta be out of my place by the end of the month? Yeah, me too. And it's killing me since the walls aren't even painted yet! We bagged a shitload of things and started carrying them across the street, but there's still a lot to be moved, I don't have a closet, the house still needs a lot of work and I have no idea by which miracle I will pull this.

I'm usually the queen of leaving at the last minute and still getting there on time. It's happened in the past to leave home at 07:38 for the 07:45 bus and make it, showered, dressed, with my face on and cursing like a sailor to whatever Gods will hear me, but still get to work on time. Crow knows I've pulled insane miracles in the past. Where I'll pull this one from and how much it'll hurt coming out, that's what I'm worried about. And they won't let me take days off from work, you know... in any circumstance. So even if I wanted to clear up a Friday to get shit done faster, no cigar. Shit creek. Paddle fell off about 3 miles of rapids ago.

I wrote down an agenda for the next few days, trying to get organized, but you know what's been said about the best laid plans of mice and men. And quoting René Artois in 'Allo 'Allo, "I think this plan was laid by a mouse".

On the work department... they gave me the briefing for a new survey campaign I'm supposed to begin in, as soon as they can find the error that's keeping me out of the program. This particular campaign scares me more than that scene in the made-for-TV version of Ju-On where there's a building littered with disturbing-sounding, white-clad, in serious need of a hairbrush ghost ladies. This is a survey meant for clients that have abandoned the bank and we wanna know why.

It's basically the telemarketing way of asking "Why don't you love me anymore?" and "Will you come back if I pleasure you with my mouth?"

I used to do something similar in another telemarketing gig. We called it SOS, likely because that's what operators wrote on the center windows once they knew they had to login to that campaign. It was shortly before I left the place, and contributed for a faster skedaddle on my part. That was, in short, the most miserable, heart and ear-wrecking, gut-turning, up-chucking, mind-blasting, mood-fucking, butt-raping experience I had in my professional life. And that's in short. Don't ask how it was in long.

For the moment, though, I'll be auditing. So maybe I can feel up the terrain before plunging in head first. Let's see how this one turns out.

Tuesday Nov 24

Tomorrow, I have a date with Pops to buy paint. Some furniture will have to wait and so will lamps. I think I might make it. It's a bad race and most of the other horses are ahead, but I think I can make it.

Wednesday Nov 25

It never rains, but boy does it pour! Flooded streets, plus the usual motherfucker driver who runs right through the water puddles to get the people waiting at the bus stop soaked (how I wish I saw one of these slam into a post right after doing it...), wet from my knees down for the best part of my way back home. It's still my kind of weather.

In the morning, I bought paint. Pops gave me and the cans a lift back, but didn't even enter the building to check the place. Not for lack of invitation form my part. Screw him.

Work = dull. No access yet, due to the same error, so I can't work. I spent my day doing e-Learning on money laundering and terrorism financing. Great. Yeah because Portugal may be hit with a terrorist attack, or house terrorists attacking other places! We're this big, important, worldwide potency and all! Get outta here... we're not even in allied relations with a big, important, worldwide potency. We're a few square miles of bullshit planted by the sea, with decent beaches, awesome food and old glories to our name, flag and hymn. And we're taking measures against terrorism because crow only knows what would happen if the Al-Qaeda got a hold of our codfish recipes!

That's like a mouse getting measures in case he ever gets attacked by a tiger.

Anyway, Al Capone coined the term "money laundering", and I'm a big fan of ol' Scarface, so I didn't mind much spending four hours of my existence on this Earth taking a course about how it's done. At least I'm not looking at center walls.

Since I got the paint, I also bought a new pair of boots. My old ones are great to wear while painting: they're old, worn out, in need of retirement. They've plenty of miles on their soles. And I found a decent pair at less than €20 a pair. Pretty nifty. Back in the day, I paid more for my old ones.

I also took care of my electricity bill. It's in my name now. Or at least, from now on.

Thursday Nov 26

Mum asked Pops the car, loaded it with a lot of stuff, her dog and a cat, and drove off to leave stuff on the South, and bring back a counter, a couch and two chairs we'll be using for the time being.

...I'm gonna miss my cat. I don't have the time or funds to keep them both... I had to choose one or the other. After a lot of hesitation, I picked Kafka. My elder car is more used to Mum... and he won't run away, since he's fixed, while Kafka would disappear in seconds.

My cat was with me nearly ten years, though. I'll miss him, I know. I was sad to see him go.

I recorded a video of him on my cellphone yesterday. Eating pizza (fuck cheezburger, amirite?) And this morning, Mum placed him in the box, and drove off just like that... long goodbyes isn't my style, you know? Even for a cat... especially for a cat. He's getting old as well and... that might've influenced my choice. If he dies of old age, he better do it far away from me.

Anyway... at work, I'm auditing still. Same login error, and I'm stranded listening to others communicate.

Friday Nov 27

I moved the washer to my kitchen, assembled my new (old) couch and placed in the counter-slash-bar. Both things kindly donated by my grandfather. With the headaches he gave me, he might as well contribute... plus, the furniture wasn't serving.

I went to a furniture shop to check for possibilities of getting me the bed I wanted. Only in January, though. For the moment, we keep as we are. Ceiling lamps may have to wait a while as well. We carried a lot of clothing and cutlery to the place, putting it in place will have to wait until we get the kitchen clean.

Weekend Nov 28 - 29

I had two friends over to help with the painting, and we managed to do some work and have some fun. Disassembling the old closet on my brother's new bedroom was particularly satisfying. On Sunday, I was back again: Mum found a way to skip work, we painted another room, we cleaned the kitchen, we got the dishes and glasses in place. Tired, cold and sleepy.

I hope we have enough money to get through it...