dixiblog.com

As you may recall, I’ve been patiently (okay…maybe not-so-patiently), but anyway, I’ve been waiting on my Roomba. I ordered it a full month ago.

After waiting the ridiculous(!) required NINE business days to check up on it, I contacted buy.com, known to me for the good prices and horrific customer service. I answered an intermidable questionarie that basically boilded down to, “Are you too stupid to look through your boxes to make sure you found everything or what?” Except the other box I got was about the size of a loaf of bread. Yeah…well, I don’t know about their magic packing techniques, but I think I would have noticed a Roomba crammed into the remaining 2 square inches filled with packing peanuts, man.  But anway, I jumped through each ridiculous hoop.

And then they said, “Well, would you like to cancel your order and request a refund?”

And I said, “No. I ordered the Roomba because I wanted a Roomba. I would like to request my Roomba.”

And they said, “Well, since you still want the Rooma, why don’t you cancel your order, request a refund and reorder the Roomba?”

I said No. Specifically:

> I don’t really want to pay a second time for an item I haven’t received, and
> then initiate a refund request for the one I didn’t get. That doesn’t make
> sense to me. I’m not having a “Roomba Emergency,” so please just ship me
> the missing item as soon as you can. It’s been ordered and paid for once, which
> seems sufficent.  Thank you.

Seems pretty clear, right? Not all that hard. I glanced over their response  to that, always a few days later, and got that it meant “wait more.” So I was trying to think about other stuff, but decided to check on it today, since it’s been a full goddamned month. Time to get back to it. I pulled out their response…Uh…

“We apologize for the delay in processing your claim. Following your request we have updated your lost/short shipment claim to reflect a refund instead of a replacement. We assure you that we are working diligently to resolve this issue.

We appreciate your patience and thank you for your loyalty.”

Ow. Ow. My brain hurts. First of all, what in there sounded like “cancel my order?” Huh? Huh? I don’t think so. And on top of that, I’m NOT patient, and I’m not loyal to ‘em! I cuss ‘em everytime I hear the words “buy.com” or see one of their new damnedable commercials. “Spend your money on customer service instead of adverstising, you no-good motherfuckers!” I call out to the tv. But anyway…good I doublechecked, finally. Oh, and the refund did process…a couple of days ago. Jesus.

But you know what? I’ll tell you–I’m still an optimistic fool. I reordered it from them.  

Well, since Thursday, I’ve been having problems with my server. As in it was down about 16 hours straight plus up and down through the weekend. Eek!

As is periodically, it gets HAMMERED with a high load for reasons not readily apparent. the tech support identifyed the account it was coming from: mine. after much hopping and jumping and cussing and fussing, i think i have the problem mostly fixed now, and have a rather vague idea of what happened. i had to supsend myself on the server. at one point, i had out requests for help figuring it out in three forums and with two support departments.

anywho, it was stressful. but i did okay. didn’t freak out or lose my head. my husband was kind enough to listen to me rant about a lot of technical shit he has very little interest in. in all fairness, i’ve done the same for him.

also, i got another collection call that wasn’t mine. (not the ex this time, so it’s less annoying.) hope everyone else is faring better!

peace out from the goddess.

I don’t think I’m going to get a lot of work done today. My head is NOT in the work zone. I’ll probably hit my LC site this afternoon or evening, and no doubt will be working on it this weekend. I’ve got some stuff to do with the theme and display to get that squared away. But mostly, I’m not in the headspace for it at the present.

So shortly, I’m going to run some errands and try to enjoy myself. And always, feel happy. I am very lucky to have the life I do, filled with comfort and safety and people who care about me. I have many freedoms and choices that not everyone has, and I do appreciate the fact.

Crazy cat lady is happy today.

We go outside, on the way to the store. Bailey, who claims to be allergic to the sun, naturally decides to complain–more for my benefit than the drive to voice any actual complaint, mind you. Giving each other shit is one of our favorite mother-daughter activities, after all. (There’s a reason why my friends laugh if I complain about her giving me shit, and respond with something like, “Geeeeeeee, I wonder where she got that, Dixie….”)

But I digress. We’ve just stepped outside.

“It’s so hot and bright out here!” she complains, basically to be a shit. “I have sensitve skin.” Her sensitive skin is also a running joke. She says no one can hit her, or look at her too hard, or expose her to direct sunlight, you know, since it harms her sensitive skin. I think her skin has even reacted to verbal stimulation, on occassion. It turns red. Just ask her. It’s very sensitive, you know.

“What? You say that like it’s a bad thing. Hot and bright is great–that’s just like me! Hot and bright! Hot and bright! Just like me: hot and bright.” I’m incredibly pleased with myself to have thought this up. Bailey winces, and I know by that I have a winner here.

“What? That is so not cool, Mom. You shouldn’t say that to me. That’s disgusting. Not cool at all.”

“Not cool. Hot and bright! Hot and bright! I like that. How can the day be bad, if it’s hot and bright, just like me?”

She groans. I laugh manically. “Hoooot and briiiiight. Hoooot and briiiight! Oh what a happy, happy day it is, so nice and hoooot and briiiight!” I enjoy making up nonsense songs just to make her groan and flinch. I’m not disappointed. “Your dad would agree with me. He’d say I’m hot and bright.”

“That doesn’t count,” she claims. “He has to say that. He’s married to you.”

“So what? That doesn’t make any difference. He doesn’t have to say that! Some married people would not say their spouse is hot and bright. It counts! And you say he’s so smart. You kids think your Dad is damn near a genuis. So if he thinks I’m hot and bright, it must be right then, huh? Hot and bright! Hot and bright.”

“That’s not the same thing. He has to say that. He wants to have sex with you.” I think she realized her mistake as soon as she’d said that.

“Well yeah! Of course he does. I’m hot and bright. Why wouldn’t he? But that has nothing to do with it. We do that because we like to.”

“I don’t want to hear about that! Aghhh!”

I laugh. Life’s pretty good, for those of us who are both hot and bright.

Well, hell. It’s rude. That’s what it is. But you know, sometimes, people are rude. But damn.

I was outside, minding my own business. I am pretty good at that–minding my own business, that is. Actually, I was watering my flowers. One of my neighbors was outside, visiting with a friend of his. I was mostly not paying attention. But something perked up my ears…

“…what about the crazy cat lady?” says the neighbor. Huh?  Crazy cat lady?

“I’m not afraid of any crazy cat lady!” says the neighbor’s crimson-necked companion. His neck seems to be getting redder by the second.

“That’s rude,” Neanderthal Neighbor replies jokingly. “You should take that back.” I glance around. There’s nobody else outside.

“I told you I’m not afraid of any crazy cat lady! I have a BB-gun and I’m not afraid to use it,” says Captian Redneck.

 

Ohhhh–they’re talking about me! The fuckers!

(more…)

My mind is spinning today.

I’m having a good day. I’m having pleasant interactions with others. I’ve gotten a lot done. I’m happy. So it’s not an “upset” thing.

It’s just funny is all. It’s like I’m feeling like my brain is charged up with more thoughts than i can think all at one time. The universe of my thoughts almost seem to fall in on each other some times.

And it sort of feels like if I just stop trying to interpret them, and just experience the raw data feed, without allowing myself to translate it into something meaningful, it will all fall into place and suddenly make sense.

 do you know what i mean? like i could learn how to do it or something. getting lost in translation. if there was a way to just experience the meaning, without having to label or translate it, it would all make sense. (gee, that sounds so zen…    )

i took a couple of semesters of a sign language interpreter program. it was a phase. but throughout the course of that program, i learned something…specifically, what it felt like to think in another language. to understand without translating it into english first.

and i’ll tell ya: that was a weird feeling. becuase it’s not your native language, maybe it gets processed by a different part of the brain or something. i dunno. it felt like the meaning was mainlined into my brain. it was trippy.

 but you know what i’m talking about? or is it just me?

obviously homespun advice, and felt like it was told the perspective of someone who’s been there.

As your relationship with a romantic interest has developed, you find your old friends falling away, while family members remark on how you don’t seem like yourself. Are you losing yourself to this odd, and ultimately destructive, relationship? Before you can regain your individuality and strength, you’ll need to determine if the relationship is what’s taking it away, and put an end to the destructive cycle.

sometimes, i think about stuff. even when i’m insanely busy, as my taking over LCE has had things for me lately. but i still have thoughts running through my head, man.

• life’s a lot less stressful when you avoid manipulative people. of course, not acting in a manipulative way yourself is implied. it’s just SO much easier when you say what you mean and mean what ya say, Sparky. Anything less is a big, fat waste of time.

(more…)

The subject of “judementalness” has come up several times lately for me. (Is that a word? Oh yeah–it is now! I forgot about my goddess powers.)

But I digress. I mean, often, we think of being judgemental as a bad thing. And it can be, I think. I guess it depends on what you mean.

I dunno. I mean, I’ve been told by friends that I am not judgemental–it makes people more comfortable to talk to me. And I value that assessment, for sure. That’s something I feel good about. And I like to believe everyone has to find the right path for themselves, and most people are doing the best they can. Just because something’s wrong _for me_ doesn’t mean it won’t lead someone else where they need to go.

But you know, there are some things I believe are wrong. And some people I don’t like. So I kind of wondered: does that make me a hypocrite? (more…)

Sometimes, on my coffee that’s already been doctored up with sugar-free vanilla syrup and splenda, I like to put whipped cream, and SF chocolate syrup drizzeled about. I like adding whipped cream and chocolate syrup on my coffee…a lot….uh….maybe even unnaturally so, for that fucking matter.

Mmmmm.  Your point?

But anywho, back to MY point: I enjoy this. A lot. Sometimes, after I’ve eaten the part with whipped cream, I put it on again. I have my “second whipped cream.” Not because I think it’s lacking something without it. It’s not. More like…well, I enjoyed the experience, and I want to enjoy it again. The indulgence feels nice. I like the texture, the presentation, the coolness. Just all of it. I enjoy the “experience.” Fucking coffee commericals have a point–geez. I never thought I’d say something like that.

Uhhh….I dunno. But, whatever, that’s what I say at this point in our little romp through the Goddess’s stream of concsiousness.

And I thought to myself–silly though it may be–that life’s too short not to have the second whipped cream, and too long to spend any of wound up about other people’s shit.

Anyway. I think everybody should have a second whipped cream sometimes. And I’m happy. Hell, I like being happy, and I consider myself pretty damn good at it! So there.