I had to pay $8.25 to park in the building where my interview was. Apparently they were "out" of validations, which TOTALLY pissed me off. It was hardly worth taking the time off work to do it.

The dentist appointment went okay. My teeth themselves are good, but I'm having some gum problems. Luckily it's nothing too hard to fix. Between the X-Rays, the cleaning, the consultation and the possible surgery, I've pretty much spend my economic stimulus check Bush Bribe on dentistry and "Guitar Hero". But the latter is lots of fun, and I kinda need the former.

And apparently I have this weird tooth in the back of my upper left jaw. I've felt it there before, but I thought it was just my wisdom tooth not fully out of my gum yet. Three dentists came by to look at my x-rays. It's like a half-formed tooth that's hanging on to the tooth in front of it. You know, kinda like that episode of "The X-Files" where the guy has that fetus-en-fetu twin that leaves his body at night and kills people? It's like that, except with dentistry. And my tooth doesn't kill people.

I am silly. I go bed now.

It's ten to 7 in the morning, and I'm already fucking around on LJ at my desk. That's gotta be a new record. I've got a bunch of shit to do today, so I had to get here early. I technically do almost nothing during the day anyway, so I guess doing it four hours earlier than I normally do isn't a big deal. It just shows that I've been here for hours, not that I've necessarily done anything.

DO NOT EVER drink that Hansen's energy drink. I bought it because it was the cheapest one at Trader Joe's. It is 1000% of your daily allowance of nastiness, but I drank it because I'd already bought it, and I need to be up until at least 10pm tonight.

My job interview (with Velvet Hammer management) is at 2pm today. Wish me luck!

Sweet Meriful Crap, I'm finally alone in this house. And will be so for at least another two hours.

My nephew is off house arrest and is over at a friend's house, which also means I can use the internet over here for an extended period of time. There's some stuff I've wanted to download off iTunes, but haven't been able to because of it.

My mom is working today and tomorrow, which means I can go get her mother's day present on Mother's Day. My nephew and I are going to clean up the house tomorrow and make her dinner.

I need to clean up my room and wash some clothes. I'm wondering if I will put this off until tomorrow too. I have no idea. All I know is that it's great to finally get some peace and quiet.

...you correct people twice your age on the lyrics to Allan Sherman's "Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (A Letter from Camp)".

I am bored out of my finger-lickin' skull.

I'm trying not to do too many photocopy requests, because they take forever to process and I might not be here that long. This means I have to stick to festival requests, and there really aren't that many of them.

I feel kinda bad just sitting here and doing nothing for eight hours, but I can't very well quit when there are fifteen working days left of this job. (Maybe less if you count Monday's interview/dental appointment and the New Hire Luncheon that's coming ten days before I leave.)

Hopefully I can squeak by with looking busy until this shit is over.

Is there one company that makes those giant ceremonial checks, or is it something you can get at any print shop if you ask? (Kinda like how you have to order a hot fudge waffle sundae at Canter's, even though it's not on the menu.)

Is it possible to arrange a musical work for a theremin?



In other news, I have both an interview and a dentist's appointment on Monday. That should be entertaining.

June 29th at the Hollywood Bowl: Gilberto Gil with Devandra Barnhardt.

How fucktacularly awesome is THAT!?

I know I can prolly get the Price boys on board if for no other reason than Gilberto Gil. Anyone else game?

I came up with a badass marketing plan while on the treadmill.

Now if somone would only pay me for the badass marketing plan I came up with on the treadmill.

Damn my fickle music industry brain.

Guitar Hero is teh crack.

Blah blah blah, I hate my job.

Blah blah blah, it's hard to get a new one.

Blah blah blah, I will die poor and alone.

Blah blah blah, Return of Saturn.

EDIT: BTW, I heard yesterday that the upstairs department refers to us as "The Morgue". Telling, No?

Five weeks.

Just five more weeks and I can flee into the night.

And suddenly, I think I'd like to hear "Layla" done on banjo.

And in other news, tonight I went bowling with The Three 6 Mafia.

Like ya do.

It's very hard to be grumpy while listening to They Might Be Giants.

I wonder if over the weekend anyone took the chance to pry the gun from Charlton Heston's cold dead hands...

People ask why I want to get British citizenship.

It's because I want to be able to live -even if for a couple months- in a place where someone says "Let's give Elvis Costello his own chat show." And it happens. Fortunately for us yanks, it will also be on The Sundance Channel.

*looks over atkitschin_witch* You so gotta TiVo that for me.

So I'm working my usual five-day week at Alfred.

I have class tonight from 7-10pm.

I'm working at The Regent from 6-close on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.

I'm hanging out with rizwank on Thursday

On Saturday I'm showing up to Carchick bright and early to get the car serviced, then head to the UCLA gym to pay for my membership for the final quarter, then I work at The Regent again from 1:30 to 6.


If I asplode this week, that is why.

I think I've figured out the secret to not killing self/co-workers/idiots on the other end of the computer for another two months.

1. Get in usually around 9:30-ish
   
2. Get caffeine in form of Oregon Chai latte
   
3. Grouse at the obscene number of requests in my inbox*
   
4. Grouse at the obscene number of requests that are missing pertinent info*
   
5. Accept fate*
   
6. Put on Josh Groban#, Paul Simon^, Antonio Carlos Jobim or any other sort of "soft-but-not-Kenny-G-soft" music that can will soothe me until the urge to quit and run has passed**
   
7. Try not to look at clock too much
   
8. Maintain sanity at lunch by checking LJ and e-mail
   
9. Listen to harder music after lunch to keep self motivated and avoid slump
   
10. Take fifteen minute "hide-under-desk" break while everyone else goes for their walk
    
11. Knock out at least twenty festivals in a day (so I can maintain all my previous productivity rates, so they won't figure out just how much time per day I spend reading ohnotheydidnt)
    
12. Flee promptly at 6pm
    

Listening to Josh Groban's "Awake" and Paul Simon's "Graceland" makes me regret that I didn't listen to more Ladysmith Black Mambazo while I was stuck in the product room at Rhino. (Instead, I spent it listening to every acid-freakout 60s band I could find.) I might actually have to break down and buy some. Yes, my taste in African music is defined by how they work with Jews. I'm a terrible person.



* This is not a secret. I do this anyway.
# Which makes me feel like a tremendous wuss, no matter how badly I'd love to bang him
^ In solo or 'and Garfunkel' form
** This list also may grow to include Django Reinhardt, Serge Gainsbourg and possibly Bing Crosby at some point

With my cube-neighbors listening to "Sweeney Todd" (Broadway Cast Version, not the film soundtrack, thank goodness), I have to ponder:

Between "Sweeney Todd", "Eating Raoul", "Scotland, PA", and even "Soylent Green" I have to wonder why in all these films where people eat other people (whether they know it or not) we're always really tasty?

Like no one ever says "Ya know, I tried that new burger place, and I just wasn't into it. The meat's a little gamey. A bit too fatty, too. Honestly, I'm glad I tried it but I'll just stick to Fatburger. They have better fries."

Is it to just trump up the idea that cannibalism is forbidden? Is it more acceptable if it happens en masse and by accident? Or is it an overly-abused plot device that brings the offenders to justice?

(Any film scholars in the audience can feel free to write this up as a paper if they wish. I'm just thinking out loud.)