Super-happy news: Tom has a job! A job he's really excited about! He had an interview today at B. Dalton Booksellers in the South Shore Plaza, and he got it! He'll be starting on Tuesday. And now we'll both be working in the mall, so we can see each other on our lunch breaks (maybe).
We managed it today; I took my lunch break at 2, and he got out of his interview around 2:30, so we took a walk around the mall together, looked at the puppies at the pet store, and shared my burrito (which was way too big for a little Fallon to eat alone).
I'm not sure which of us is more excited about his job. It's a close call.

I'm tired. I don't know why I feel so tired; I've been hardly working all day! Been at work for 8 hours, but I've been answering phones most of the day, which is generally not very strenuous, especially since there's been two of us and an average of 5 calls per hour. Maybe it's just a result of sitting at a desk all day in fluorescent lighting, eating junk food and staring at a computer while I wait for phone calls. I don't know how people with regular office jobs handle it.
I guess the junk food isn't usually part of the deal, but still.

I need to learn to take customers' reactions and overall satisfaction less personally. Not taking things personally is something I'm really not good at. I love when customers are really happy or really grateful; it makes me feel really proud. But the flipside of being that emotionally involved is that when I can't fix their problem or I can't make them happy, even if it's out of my control - I feel like crap. (Sometimes, they're so unreasonable that it manages to override my guilt complex, but that's not common.) I need some sort of mantra, I think. Something like "Water off a duck," or some such.

I'm very happy that I tried doing mantras. I feel like they are very effective for me. I'm not sure if writing my own would work as well as using the sanskrit ones that I learned from Stephanie, but I don't see why they wouldn't. It might not feel quite right without an "ohm" in front. Haha, I can see me now, making hybrid mantras - "Ohm gum ghana pata-water off a duck!"

Rambly. :D

Stolen from chainkill.

Post 3 things you've done that you believe nobody else on your f-list has done. Indulge in remorse if someone calls you out on a listed item.

No fair dropping people off your f-list in order to achieve success on this meme. Especially if they are a spouse/partner. It's not worth it!

1. Knitted while walking. I do it with surprising frequency.
2. Had my picture in the paper when I was doing nude modeling for an art class.
3. Finished a game of Minesweeper on Beginner in 3 seconds.

T and G, I want you to know that this list would've been a lot easier to write if you weren't on my f-list! lmao, I love you.
---

I know I haven't updated in a long time, so I'll try to touch on the major points.

Tom and I are still together, still delighted to be together, and still planning to stay together for a long-ass time.

I am no longer working at Geoclassics, which is a little disappointing, but I gave it up for something better - Apple! Better pay, better hours, and frankly, I feel a lot more appreciated there. I love my co-workers and they love me, and I even have a handful of customers that I've gotten to know and like. I like my job, and hopefully I'll get to switch from part- to full-time soon. And hopefully also, I can persuade them to hire Tom, too. Anyone wanna send me good mojo?

And Tom and I are starting a band, and working on becoming rockstars. (Or at least, getting other people to realize that we're rockstars.) I've been working on writing 80's hair metal-style lyrics; they've been good so far, but not quite plentiful enough.

So - how have you been?

I had a dream last night which reinforced my decision to never do LSD.
Because, if my mind can come up with scary-ass shit like that on it's own? I sure as hell don't want to encourage it!

I'm really glad I'm not afraid of spiders anymore. But then, after that dream, I might be afraid of spiders again/.

I'm posting this recipe (also known as Starchy, Carb-Filled Heaven) mainly for Steph, but also for anyone else who would like it. It's vegan without the garnish, which I didn't bother making anyway, and it's tasty as all get out. It also reheats really well. It's from "How To Cook

Lentils and Potatoes with Curry
MAKES: 4 servings
TIME: About 1 hour

Other beans you can use: yellow or green split peas or split mung beans without skin (moong dal), the cooking time reduced by 15 minutes or so.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup dried brown lentils, washed and picked over
  
• 3 1/2 cups water, coconut milk, either made from scratch or canned (use 1 can, slightly less than 2 cups, with a little water,) or vegetable stock, plus more as needed
  
• 1 tbsp curry powder
  
• 2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
  
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  
• Yogurt for garnish
  
• Minced fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

Combine the lentils, liquid, and curry powder in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Turn the heat down to medium-low so that the mixture bubbles gently, cover partially, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the lentils start to absorb the water a bit, about 15 minutes.

Add the potatoes and cover the pan completely. Cook, undisturbed, for 10 minutes or so, than stir gently and check to make sure the lentils aren't too dry. If so, add a little more liquid. Add salt as the lentils become tender.

Cover and continue cooking until the lentils are soft and beginning to turn to mush and the potatoes are tender at the center, another 5 to 10 minutes; add liquid if necessary. The mixture should be moist but not soupy. Add lots of black pepper, stir, taste, and adjust the seasoning and serve, garnished with yogurt and cilantro. (Or in it's own glory! - Fal)

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Oh my god, I am in heaven right now. Starchy, carb-filled heaven.

I made a dish from "How To Cook Everything Vegetarian" by Mark Bittman, called Lentils and Potatoes with Curry. Pretty self-explanatory. It's AMAZING. I'm going to have to make this regularly, and just always have some in the fridge or freezer, so I can eat it WHENEVER. (And not have to spend an hour cooking it.)

And I'm SO proud of myself! I did the whole thing myself, from peeling the potatoes and washing the lentils to adding just the right amount of cracked black pepper at the end, with NO HELP. (Well, I asked Dad how to tell if the lentils were getting mushy, but that doesn't count.)

*does a dance*

Crafty projects to work on:

• Winnie-the-Pooh summer dress
  
• Cheshire cat costume
  
• "Fire" ribbon skirt/belt
  
• Lauren's poof kitty blanket, omg I need to finish this!
  

I'm sure there's more. I'll add as I think of things.

It's amazing how, even though you know a dream isn't real, it can really effect your mood for the morning. I'm feeling very sad right now because of my dream. I was at the convention that I'm going to this weekend, a day early, so I could check out where the rooms were, and figure out how I was getting to everything I wanted to go to. At first, I was the only person there, and the ladies at the registration were looking at me with SUCH disdain! And then there were more people there, and a big white dog, all by itself. I patted it a little, and it seemed to like me. There was also a cop with a German Shepherd. Somehow - I don't know how - I ended up between the two dogs, and I ended up getting my finger caught between the Shepherd's muzzle and his teeth. Eek! So that dog started barking at me and at the other dog, and the cop was like, what the fuck is wrong with you? Like he was about to arrest me for annoying his dog. I explained that it had been an accident, and he looked skeptical, but he let it drop. I went to try and comfort the white dog, and he barked and growled, and I knew he was mad at me because he'd gotten barked at by a dog he was scared of. So I turned back in the direction I'd been heading, and now the cop was Pat, my therapist, instead, and the dog was her German Shepherd, Dudley. (And dream logic told me, they had always been these people.) And Pat wanted me to explain again why I had put my hand on Dudley's mouth - while Dudley growled every time I glanced at him. And as I explained it, I could tell that she was disappointed in me, and didn't believe my half-assed explanation.

And then I woke up, with that feeling of Nobody Likes You still weighing heavily on me. Which is fun. Not.
I feel a little better for typing it out. And now Mom's home, and a hug from her should fix it.

I don't wear perfume, or any sort of scent, normally. But the Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab is really tempting me. With scents inspired by the Seven Deadly Sins, Neil Gaiman's American Gods, Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens, the comic/movie Stardust, and, best of all, Alice In Wonderland, who could say no? Not to mention that proceeds from every Gaiman-inspired bottle go to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.
I'm thinking of ordering myself a sample pack or two.

Oh damn, now I've found their Shakespeare scents. I want a bottle of Robin Goodfellow! XD

So, some people are already aware of the fact that I REALLY want to be Jack from World/Inferno Friendship Society. Today, I found that on the band's MySpace, they have a blog titled "What Would Jack Do?", a Q&A with Jack - sort of a Dear Abby thing, but way cooler. And one Q&A made me love/want to be Jack EVEN MORE.

"question: Dear Jack,
Why waltz?

1-because jogging is bad for the knees
2-because it's a dance which allows you to talk to your partner
3-it encourages posture
4-it freaks out the squares
5-it confuses police when they arrive to break up the punk rock show
6-it is a gateway dance to syncopation!
7-holding hands battles anxiety
8-it is how lovers dance in dreams
9-because you have a heart
10- and I would like to dance with you!"

and then I read the next one.

"question: Dear Jack,
Some time ago I became convinced I'd never see the state come crumblin'
down, and gave up days of marching and congressman-calling for nights of
Bacchanalian debauch. Still, I can't fight the lingering feeling that I'm
running away. Is real freedom found within, or is all this drinking and
smoking and window-smashing just turning a blind eye to oppression?

no, no, no- kissing is the most effective tool we have in fighting fascism, don't doubt it and don't stop it."

He's just.. amazing. I want to be him.

"question: What would it take to seduce you dear Jack?

proximity, money and drugs."

So I need a new job. My current one is good, but I'm not getting enough hours, and it looks like I won't be getting more. My manager won't give me more hours 'til I start making more commissionable sales per hour - except, with the hours I work, I'm doing damn good. So, I can't make more per hour until I get more (and better) hours.
So I'm looking for a new job.
Eventually, I want to find work singing and playing soft jazz in upscale restaurants or hotel lobbies, but, I'm a bit of a ways off from that goal so far, so in the meantime, I'm looking at the Apple stores, the Blue Bunny, and the new skating rink across the street from my house. I picked up an application to another jewelry store, too, but I don't think it's terribly likely that I'll take the job if they offer it to me.
Oh, and I picked up an application for Starbucks.
I needed some scrap paper.

I want to move on with my life - move out, have a Career, get married... It's like, "Okay, I've been working hard here, when do I gain a level?"
*sigh*

But I'm happy, if impatient.