I’ve been offline since Monday. Mr. Rilch “forgot” to pay the bill. It has been killing me not to be able to read and post, and it could not have happened at a worse time! I don’t think I’ve ever had four threads going at once! Actually, speaking of Peanuts, I was somewhat afraid that, like Charlie Brown returning from camp, I would say, “I’m back!..I said, I’m back!” and, like Lucy, the TMs would say, “Have you been away?” But whether you’ve noticed or not, I’ve been away, and now I’m back.
What I’ve been up to:
I got a temp job for a whole week. I was working for an insurance broker, putting direct mailing packages together, and a few other housecleaning tasks. They were continually amazed at how fast I worked; many times I would say, “I’m done; what can I do now?” and they would say, “Already? Uh…just sit tight for a minute.” One day when they really had nothing for me for an hour, I straightened up the copy room. I was anxious to make a good impression, which I did, and I will be sure to let the employment agency know. On the negative side, my hands are like drywall; I have paper cuts, rough cuticles, and my thumbs and forefingers are more rough than they ever were when I was hauling lighting equipment. I also spent the last two hours on Friday shredding papers, and wished I was wearing my boots so I could smuggle them out. Two points to anyone who gets that reference! And I got my check already. This agency has a system wherein you can call in your hours on Friday morning, then go to the office between 5 and 6 on Friday, or before 11 on Monday, and trade your signed time card for the check. So I did that, and not a moment too soon. I barely had enough gas to coast to the Shell station.
The winds have been acting up Thursday and Friday, especially in Chatsworth, where I was working. I had to remind myself that this is the kind of weather that most of the rest of the US has to put up with all the time. Jason Priestley was arrested for DUI, but claims he was sober and it was the wind that made him lose control. Although I’m usually reluctant to believe a celebrity’s claim of innocence, I was driving in the same wind and I admit that it could have happened like he said. Of course, his car is probably more sturdy than my POS…
Speaking of cars and celebrities, anyone hear about that body in the car in Brentwood? (I haven’t looked at any threads yet, so forgive me if at any point I’m being redundant.) It’s not OJ or Kato; that was everyone’s first guess. But the last I heard, they still didn’t know who it was.
Mr. Rilch has already spoiled two of his Xmas presents to me. Saturday, I was tidying up the kitchen table, and I found a receipt from KayBee toys that said, “Titanic doll”. He is so careless about leaving evidence of what he’s bought for me, and I am so scrupulous about my presents to him. He once left my Valentine’s present in an opaque bag on the floor of his truck, then asked me to move the cars. Meanwhile, I hide his stuff in my hatchback, which he is forbidden to open, I hide all relevant receipts, and I even wrap his stuff in boxes, so he can’t tell by the shape and feel: “Oh, this is a shirt/CD/book.” I handed him the receipt and said, “You have got to be more careful”. He got aggravated, but I thought he got the message. Ha. Last night, he came home from work and asked me to get his CD case out of his bag. I didn’t find the case, but I did find a book entitled, “Best of the Britcoms.” Right there in his bag, for crying out loud, and then he asks me to go in there, to look for something that isn’t there, but the present is. I think he’s trying to get out of giving gifts altogether.
Remember, I’m pulling for you; we’re all in this together.
—Red Green