Sakina: No problem, babe!

Trisha: I'm sure that the pins in her eyes are nothing compared to the staples in her head. Those are what she complains about most, but I think that they might be the last things to come out.  

Magz: Nope, no mushroom clouds. But hey, the week ain't over yet.    And I still have another week to go!
   As for mum's Sally look, it is slowly going away with the stitches. Soon, she'll be back to her pretty self again.  

Speaking Of Mum: I realized something a few days ago while we were talking about her skin. I told her that I could already see the difference in before vs. after even though she isn't fully healed yet. She asked what was different.
   I told her that before, her skin had looked worn and tired. It sagged and drooped as if exhausted with the stresses of 53 years - most of which hadn't been kind to her. It had had a dry, haggard appearance, as if it had just completely "had it" and given up.
   My mother's response was, "I looked like I'd lived."
   Bingo.

That day, I realized that a life of hardship is inherent in my family. That all of the tragedies, defeats, losses, daily stresses and seemingly eternal stretch of bad luck that I had battled constantly throughout my life were not atypical. Both my mother and sister had had more than their fair share as well. Adversity was every bit as hereditary as our blue eyes.
   But for as much life has thrown at each of us individually, we have endured and overcome all of it. For as many times as I've heard my mother refer to her side of the family as "hearty stock," I see it now in a new way. Not just physically healthy and strong, but physiologically.
   I've learned that I am not the only person in the family fighting the proverbial uphill battle - we all have and still do. I'm part of a long line of women who have faught their way through so much trouble and are strong enough to keep fighting. And because of this, I know now that I was not born to suffer - I was born to persevere.

Hair: Despite the "late" hour, I did manage to load my hair up with EVOO last night before I went to bed. This morning, a simple WCC washed it out.
   No time for leave-in's as several last-minute wardrobe changes delayed my usual morning routine.    So, I just allowed my hair to air dry, then combed and braided it during my break as usual.

Health: Yeah, so much for the junk food strike.    After I got home from work yesterday, my sister gave me a spontaneous invite to go to Claim Jumper with her & a friend. We had appetizers...and desserts. hehe    But it was fun. My sister's co-workers all came to our table to say hello and chat/joke with us a bit. And one of the bartenders did hilarious impressions of K for me. I think I kind of needed that - to see K as other people see him instead of an "illustrious elder goth."
   Anyway, the scale read 117.8 this morning. Bleh. Whatever.

Dating? Speaking of K, something about being in his workplace in the company of my sister and so many others with whom he's acquainted gave me a wild hair up my butt and I broke down and texted him. I was almost hoping to see him last night, but as fate would have it, he was at a concert. So we texted a bit back & forth. Nothing serious. I suppose I can deal with us being casual acquaintances. Whatever.
   
As for drummer boy, eh. Haven't heard from him in a week. I suppose that he's once again been too "busy" to so much as text me to say hello.  Whatever.

This casual stuff is for the birds, man.

Other: Nails are still not done. *sigh* Guess it will just have to wait for the weekend.

Another thing that happens this weekend: Geek Squad returns to set up my wireless network! If they actually bother to show up this time, that is...

In other news, GOD, I hate smokers! HATE them! Well maybe not them, but certainly their habit. Bleh! Tell you what, if all of them boarded a rocket ship and left the planet, it would certainly make finding dates a little easier for yours truly. Not to mention cleaner air for the rest of us. *cough cough*

Quote:

lol Curlgirl. I totally hear ya.
And I can't stand guys who smoke...but somehow, I seem to wind up dating all of them! 

Hair: Yesterday required a W-CWC with a vinegar rinse after the first wash. After a night out with drummer boy and then having to wait until noon for a shower, my hair was in nasty shape.    But afterwards, ahhhhhhh...all better. 
    This morning, all it needed was the usual CWC. Today, I've used my leave-in crème and shine spray and am just going to leave my hair down. I want to do a S&D this evening after work. Haven't done one in a long time. Actually, I'd like to do one every day this week if I have time.

Health: Is being virutally ignored until May. With my work schedule as it presently is, I cannot commit to diet or exercise. In fact, I cannot commit to anything except my work schedule. 

Dating: Went out with drummer boy on Saturday, as I mentioned. We saw The Forbidden Kingdom, which was awesome. I'll have to get the DVD when it comes out!
    And afterwards, we had dinner at California Pizza Kitchen, where I discovered that drummer boy follows sports. Who knew?

Other: Finally, I have a brand new manicure. And it matches my pedicure: 1 coat black, 1 coat shimmery navy blue and a sparsely glittered topcoat. Like a midnight sky.

Mother is still doing well. I think she has another appointment at the clinic this morning. She mentioned something about her eyes. Not sure. 

Went to the ice rink at UTC yesterday evening to watch my youngest cousin's skating competition. It was a small event, but she came in first. 
    After that, I went to dinner with her and her family - my aunt, uncle and other 2 cousins. I had to explain to them what sort of work my mother had had done since she still hasn't told many people. My uncle made an offhand, sarcastic comment to his son about how facelifts are "for vain people."    I could have smacked him. My mother is the least vain person on the planet and this surgery was not her choice. Bloody imbecile. I don't care if he was just being snarky.
    My aunt even looked at him and said something like, "How dare you talk about my sister that way!" Oy. She could have done so much better.

Ahem. Anyway, so the workweek has begun and I have a whopping $25 to live on until Friday. Ohhh boy...

By the way, has anyone else noticed how Danzig's music is perfect for driving? 

Hair: The usual CWC routine. All is braided & well. As much as the rest of me, my hair can't wait to return to its normal schedule.

One Musician Wrecks My Day: Cramps had me laid up for most of the night yesterday...which was unfortunately the night that I agreed to practice in a rock opera project with my father. I'd been looking forward to it all week only to have to cancel. 
    But rather than be understanding, sympathetic or otherwise paternal, my father assumed that I was flaking out on him for no reason, then stomped about the house talking all kinds of smack about me to my mother as he got ready to leave. Nothing he said was true, but I had the pleasure of hearing all of it...how undependable I was, how he couldn't push any more buttons for me, etc. etc. etc!! 
    That's how he is though. He'll make a huge deal out of an assumption he's made, no matter how untrue it is in the first place. 

Ever wonder where my hatred of men stems from? Every issue starts at home.

Anyway, after briefly getting up for dinner (after dad left), I went right back to my chamber to lay down until bedtime. The insane amount of painkillers that I had taken earlier had finally kicked in, but my father's words and the disdain in his voice echoed in my blood.

Another Musician Saves My Night: In all of this time, I'd been texting a bit with drummer boy who was practicing with his band at the studio (not far from my house) that night. When they'd finished, he asked me to visit him there if I was not yet asleep. So I changed out of my red, sexy, Mickey Mouse pj's    and drove over.
    Just talking to drummer boy had made me feel a little bit better. He was concerned, understanding and sure as heck didn't assume anything. Being around him was enough to make my father's words lose all significance and melt away.
    He showed me a few videos from the El Centro show that I missed on the 19th and also introduced me to the latest cymbal on his kit. hehe

I was feeling much better by the time I left and when I made it home, I was able to sleep. Thanks be to my musical Superman. 

Other Stuff: So my ears have been ringing pretty loudly for about 18 hours now...as if I've been to a rock concert, but more persistent and much less cool. Even Silver Side didn't torture me this much and they are one of the loudest live bands I've ever seen. *sigh* I wonder if it could be stress. Last year, I learned that enough stress will cause your ears to ring. But I can't pinpoint a direct cause of stress. At least nothing new. 

Anyway, less than an hour until lunch. Now the question is how do I live for 3 days on $16?

LD: Ohh yeah, my "big reds." Well worn and complete with a hole in one hip. Hot stuff.  

Hair: Well, I failed yet again to do an overnight EVOO last night.    Bad Angel! The problem is that I've been going to bed later (guess you can't keep a night person down) and it leaves me with no time for my night routine. Next week, I'll be back on my regular schedule.
   Today's method was a WCC anyway, with both leave-in crème and shine spray. Hair has been left down all day so it could dry perfectly straight for today's measurement...which I suppose I'll have to record here tomorrow. More about that later...  
   Also, I have begun saving individual hairs as they fall out to make a lock for my future true love...whomever that may (or may not) be. I've finally reached a point in my life where I can be neutral and objective about it. Not thinking about making it for anyone specifically. If I don't have anyone by the time it's ready to give away, I'll probably send it to my Pantene sistah, Maggie.

Health: Any sort of diet would be a bust at the moment. At least I recognize when I can't commit. But I will start power walking every other night tonight. New month, new start and all that jazz.
   In all honesty, life may cause some deviation from the "every other night" schedule. But I'll make up for it as best I can. The scale has been embarassing me of late, so I won't even mention the numbers.    

Other: More praises to OPI. My manicure is 5 days old and still going strong.  

So the Geek Squad agent fixed my sister's laptop yesterday...and ruined mine in the process. So I'm calling him when I get home from work, and ohhh, there will be words...

In other news, this emoticon looks a scary lot like my former husband: Er, that's how I remember him at least.

Trisha: She should be. The clinic removed the tape from below her eyes this morning so far as I know and she'll have this weekend to continue healing. All other traces of the surgery are well hidden.

Hair: Needs some serious TLC.    I might do an overnight EVOO treatment tonight if I'm not too tired and then a WCC tomorrow morning. Or I might just do CWC's until Monday. Can't freaking wait to clarify and do conditioning treatments again.
   Today's routine was the usual CWC + leave-in crème + air dry. I left my hair down until my morning break at work when I went into the ladies room and measured my hair. I brought my mirror and measuring tape to the office with me because I didn't have time to measure last night. And the official reading for May is 25¾." A whopping quarter inch of growth in the month of April, which I suppose is typical. Plus, I haven't been taking my hair vitamins.    One can only swallow so many pills in a day.
   Anyway, hair has been braided ever since and will stay that way until bedtime...unless I go out tonight, which I probably won't.

The Perks Of Front Office Work: A pair of reps from a local health clinic came into the lobby to get some information and left me a parting gift of Belgian chocolate coins. heh heh  
   And upon returning from lunch, I found a rather (ok, considerably) attractive gentleman filling out an application in the lobby for a Fire Tech position. He is caucasian and Middle Eastern and just over a month older than me. Ooh la la, I hope he gets hired!      

Speaking Of Gorgeous Fire Techs: Drummer boy came to check the extinguishers in my building today. His timing was typically awful, considering that I looked like something the cat dragged in and was in the middle of a conversation with another co-worker.    He talked to both of us briefly about his music and then went on his way.
   After he left, the other co-worker remarked to me about how I light up whenever drummer boy is around.    hehe I was aware of this, but I didn't know that it was obvious to others.

And The Rest: All of last night's plans were dashed when my father invited me to practice a rock opera project with him at another musician's house. Now, I have been officially recruited. That's how it works. When musicians run out of people for their project du jour, they recruit their children...especially if said children have musical abilities as well.  
   So I spent the evening practicing harmonies with my dad and the guys - all of whom happen to be some of the most accomplished musicians in San Diego. And these are older guys who know their stuff and have been around every block in the musical district a few times. Hence, it was quite a nerve-racking experience for a gawky small town kid with very limited stage experience.  
   But the guys were really cool. Half of the time, I just made up harmonies on the fly because I didn't know how they were supposed to sound and the guys would say things like, "Sounds great, kid! Use that!"    Fun stuff.

K is once again trying to squirm his way back into my life.    Too many boys, man.

Well, today was payday and my check was indeed enough to save my overdrafted keister. Thank God! I might do a little splurging this evening. K says that I've worked hard these past 2 weeks and deserve to be spoiled. He may have a point.  
   Anyway, so ends my 2 week full time tenure. I'm grateful as heck to have it over with, but at the same time, I'll kind of miss it. Ah well.

Adios, amigos.

Hair: Did an overnight EVOO treatment last night, then woke up and clarified this morning. The usual routine - Pantene Purity wash, ACV rinse, another Purity wash, condition. Sing Halelujah!

No leave-in's as usual, so my hair was difficult to detangle. Especially at the ends. And naturally, I forgot to bring a hairtie to work, so I just twisted my hair into a bun and used a pencil as a hairstick. This 'do only lasted until I crossed paths with drummer boy on my way back from the Warehouse. He issued a typical male cat call and I smirked, putting my nose in the air as I kept on walking.
   "Oh, you're ignoring me now?" he smiled.
   I glanced back at him over my shoulder, giggling a bit, and when I turned back around, I felt a small ~pop!~ on the back of my head as my pencil bun came loose and started falling down. But I don't blame my hair for coming all undone around drummer boy. My insides do the same thing. He's bloody hot!  

Other: The attractive applicant came into the lobby again today, and I realized his resemblance to my father when he was young. This fellow is apparently of Hebrew descent and my father is half German-Jewish, so their coloring and features are very similar. Anyway, he called a few hours later to speak with the manager of the Fire division. He seems very interested in the job...all the best to him.
   So yeah...boys, boys, boys.  

Nails are now a dark OPI indigo shade called Siberian Nights. And today, I actually had some time to put myself together before work, so I'm a bit gothed out. Maggie told me that I looked "stunning" and "very sexy."    And a co-worker whom I passed in the hallway of my building earlier called me up a few minutes ago to ask what perfume I was wearing. lol Guess I'll call this a pretty good day.  

Rock opera rehersals are tomorrow and I've been trying to study the harmonies. But singing in my car is one thing...singing in front of my father and the guys who wrote the music is another! Even if I know the tunes, there's no guarantee that my nerves will cooperate.

Anyway, it's almost time to close down the office and head out. Catch y'all tomorrowz!