This is a special Saturday. It's my last off for a while. My last weekend day with my guy, for however long it takes me to get a schedule that doesn't suck. The weather is oppressively hot today (damn you, Portland, how dare you get all uncomfortable on my days off??) and I think we were tempted to just sit around like lumps. Like hot, sweaty lumps. Feel our sexy.

Anyway, the urge was strong, but we resisted. Very glad we did. We had a nice day of just enjoying time together on someone else's air conditioning dime. An afternoon of running around culminated in a spontaneous decision to go bowling. The local lanes had their Cosmic on – which means that everything's laser lit, coated in blacklight, and about twice as expensive. But what the hell, it's our last weekend. It was lot of fun, although my scores were embarrassingly poor. I do not bowl well.

We're home now, and still looking at a nice long evening together – particularly if Mike digs in and stays up with me as I try to retrain myself back to late nights. Plus all of tomorrow until 3pm, which is not insignificant. I feel fortified for my week ahead.

Yesterday, as it turns out, I didn't watch a movie at lunch at all. We did around midnight though, and for the "I don't have to concentrate too hard" factor, settled on Across the Universe. Good, good movie. The musical theater nerd in me was in heaven. And, as ever, it's worth anything for even a glimpse of Eddie Izzard. Plus two alternate takes of his Mr. Kite sequence! Golden.

I now settle back with some cold water while my guy basks in the joy of his new wireless gamepad for emulation. I shall order my new monitor, and then in a bit we'll Rock Band.

Life is good.

Oh, so exciting. If not surprising.

Next week, Rock Band will finally release in Europe. Or, well, in a few European countries, anyway. Whatever, yay Europe.

But they'll be getting some tracks we won't. Sad. :(

Except, now we can! Joy! :D

The next DLC offering is all the European stuff we'd otherwise be missing. And some of it? Suh-WEEET.

• "Beetlebum" as made famous by Blur (cover)


• "Hier Kommt Alex" by Die Toten Hosen (master)


• "Countdown to Insanity" by H-BlockX (master)


• "Perfekte Welle" by Juli (master)


• "Manu Chao" by Les Wampas (master)


• "Rock N Roll Star" by Oasis (master)


• "New Wave" by Pleymo (master)


• "Monsoon" by Tokio Hotel (master)

And what will surely become the jewel of my DLC crown ...

• "Hysteria" by Muse (master)

Like I said to Mike, Muse alone makes this week one of my personal favourites (LOVE "Hysteria", was one of my top choices for Muse in Rock Band). But I also really love "Hier Kommt Alex". A lot of these I haven't heard yet, but I'm open. Just in finding these videos, "Perfekte Welle" by Juli really caught my ear. Also hoping for some Revolverheld soon. I have both their albums, and I certify them awesome.

....hm. I think I like German rock. Anyway.

To my Oasis-loving playmates, I assume you guys would like us to pick up this one as well?

No pack this week (which does surprise me a little, but perhaps it would look too expensive to bundle them). Each track is $1.99/MS160.


......eeeee, Muse!!

Imagine it in a sing-song voice and it works, trust me.

Today is pay day! And we're not talking salted peanut logs. (Because ew.)

It's nice to get a check again.

It's even nicer that I thought I'd have to go up there to get it on my day off but lo, direct deposit kicked in already! Smell that? Smells gooood.

So now I am flush with cash. I've already squirreled away a good bit into savings to kick off the renewed house-saving extravaganza. Docked another bit for bills. Now it's our turn.

Mike and I are taking a portion of my check plus some of the stimulus and get to spend it for fun. I'll leave him to talk about what he's planning to get. Me? I'm still a bit up in the air. But I think what I might do is finally get that widescreen LCD monitor I've been wanting for a few years now.

I am, in fact, looking at this one. Thoughts?


In other news, last weekend we saw Iron Man. I won't go into much, as it's pretty much been talked to death online. I'll simply say that I really did like it, even as much as I hate Tony Stark. And that Robert Downey Jr. was pretty much perfect. I'd definitely rank it up there among the best comic movies.

During the previews though, we saw a trailer for a one-night-only showing of Rambo: First Blood the following Thursday. Have I mentioned how much Mike loves his classic action movies? Because Mike loves his classic action movies. I think I was sitting next to a small lake of drool when we heard about it. Long story just slightly less long, we also caught Rambo yesterday. I'll also leave it to him to talk about if he wants. I will only say that 1) it was better than I remember; 2) I neither needed nor wanted the 20 minute Sylvester Stallone interview before it started; and 3) the original ending? Kinda blows.

Looks like this is either a regular thing (these one-off movies) or something they're just doing for the summer. Next up appears to be Death Note followed by the (a?) Bleach movie. Not interested in either, but we'll have to keep an eye out. There are plenty of old movies I wouldn't mind seeing on the big screen.


Oh, and speaking of movies, one more thing I can solicit an opinion on.

Netflix gives us all the free eight-at-a-time subscription, right? We split that up, so Mike has some and I have some. Problem is that my some are sitting there and I haven't watched them yet. Which I'd like to do. So pick me one of my movies for today, and I think that I'll watch it around lunch. I've not yet seen any of these, so they're all good choices for me. I've got: Raising Arizona, Little Miss Sunshine, Across the Universe and Sweeney Todd. Thoughts, take two?

Until then, I think I'm gonna go chill with Rock Band for a bit. I love days off. (And getting paid!)

So now all my entries have gone from "Random Crap I'm Doing" to "workworkwork". I'm sure that's every bit as exciting.

I think a key thing for me to remember, especially for the first month or so, is that I Do Not Nor Shall I Know Everything.

I'm used to being the Go-To Girl. I'm used to knowing all there is to know.

I am neither of these things.

That shouldn't be vexing. I've been working here for exactly two weeks today, and there's OMG SO MUCH CRAP TO LEARN.

But I'm still irked that I don't have all the info on the tip of my brain, ready to be vomited up at a moment's notice.

Must keep plugging. Plug that brain full of da goodz.

(BTW, hate Vista, die Vista.)

My today:

"Have a good weekend? Cool, come watch some calls."

"Doing good? Great! Come feel secure talking while you have a veteran sitting with you to help you out."

"Oh, crap, we're really busy all of a sudden. You're on your own, kid!"

I use hyperbole for the funny. It did get busy and there is a definite shortage of vets here, so we were asked if we felt comfortable enough to go it alone. What the heck, says I. And I'm actually MORE comfortable without someone sitting there over my shoulder, and I think I'm learning and retaining a lot more being thrown in the deep end without my puffy water wings too.

I just finished spending about 20 minutes chatting with a lady who loves stand up comedians (while waiting for a big ol' SDK to download and install then reboot) and had her oohing and ahhing about my upcoming Eddie Izzard tickets.

I think I love this job.

Back to usual updates - thank you, Friday off!

So next week's DLC has some great stuff, which is w00t as last week was meh for me.

• "Kool Thing" by Sonic Youth (master). The only one I'm not excited for. Never a big fan of the song, wasn't over the moon about playing it in GH3 and Mike outright hated it, so I suspect it's unlikely going to find its way to our 360, unless the charts really blow us away.


• "Train in Vain" by The Clash (master). More on The Clash's poppy side, but still a great song and gives me big hope for more London Calling.


• "Hangin' on the Telephone" by Blondie (master). I just love me some Blondie, I will take absolutely anything they give us, but this is a fantastic choice. Easily my favourite of the week, so excited for it. :)

No packing this time. Each one is $1.99/MS160.

What I've done so far today:

- slept in until I couldn't sleep no more (turned out this was 7am, but I'll take what I can get)
- helped Mum help someone else with some computer stuff
- had some Cheerios (ACTUAL Cheerios!)
- resorted my TV icons on LJ and added Deadliest Catch
- recreated my budget spreadsheet (may work on some scripting in a bit)
- caught up on three weeks of Dirty Jobs
- NOT WORKED

The last is my favourite. Yay, day off. :)

We're technically out of training now, with a poop-load of shadowing to do. Our schedules have now shifted to 10a-7p, and will remain so for the rest of this week (through Thursday) and all of next week (Sun-Thurs).

I went to bed at around the same time last night, and managed to sleep in a whole extra hour this morning.

So can someone please tell my stupid body that it should not be this damned tired?

Another way in which work will be impactful -- at least until my regular shift starts.

Next week, Harmonix gives us the "Scene Pack". What is included in this wonderous offering? Well in truth, apart from a copy/paste, I can't actually tell you. YouTube is down right now. Which sucks, because I wanted to see the Mythbusters cameo on CSI last night. But you don't care about that. I'll add vids later when YouTube goes back up.

The "Scene Pack" is:

• "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" by Fallout Boy (master)


• "Date with the Night" by Yeah Yeah Yeahs (master)


• "It Hurts" by Angels & Airwaves (master)

I've not heard any of these songs, and I've never heard of Angels & Airwaves at all. Not sure if these will get getters for us or not; it'll almost certainly be down to the vids released with the charts. At least they're not-classic, so the people clamoring for more modern tracks can stop whining for about ten seconds. Theoretically.

Each song is $1.99/MS160, or $5.49/MS440 for the pack.

Oh, and if you didn't get anything last week, you might really want to reconsider those Mother Hips tracks. They're actually very awesome. (No time for videos right now sadly, but I can see about doing them next weekend.)

Last night was the first where I really felt I got some good sleep. Getting up at 6am is still kicking me in my non-existent jujubes, but bright side: won't be doing that much longer.

Yes, my schedule came in yesterday. And HOT DAMN, does it suck. Just as well I never really liked Mike all that much, since I'll NEVER SEE HIM AGAIN.

Actually, in an interesting twist, it's very close to my personal favourite kind of shift (save shitty days off), but Mike all had to go and get this normal 8-5 job, that bastard.

So yes, I shall be working 3.30p to 12a, Thursday through Monday. I know, trumpets blaring, right?

Plus sides:
- No need for a bedtime; it will happen naturally.
- No need for a getuptime; it will happen naturally.
- No fighting over the shower in the morning.
- Jett will only be a mere 6 hours out of the week without at least one of her peoples.
- Pay differential alone will cover all my insurance costs, with a nice chunk left over, on top of my base pay.
- Traffic will be sweet.
- I really do love night shifts.

Minus sides:
- A life? What's that?
- A husband? What's that?
- If everything is going to be jacked up by a schedule, I'd rather just go all the way and start at like 6pm or something. Embrace it whole heartedly, rather than this piddling late afternoon crap.

Really, it's the days off that are the killer for me. As it sits right now, we'll have only a few hours every week to see each other, especially if Mike follows through on his threat to not wake me up so I can drive him to work every morning. He'll leave when I'm asleep, I'll leave before he gets home, he'll be in bed when I'm off, he'll leave when I'm asleep, blah blah infinity. We'll have Tuesday and Wednesday nights, and Saturday and Sunday mornings/afternoon. Going from seeing each other like all the time to being very limited will be hard.

And interesting hard though. Just got to make every bit count, right?

What's really cool is that despite all this? I'm still positive. It still looks like a fantastic place to work, and I'm actually looking forward to it.

Looking forward. To WORK.

I am in a Twilight Zone.

I'm tired. Very tired. Didn't sleep well last night, and had a day where I was forced to be all alert and charming and stuff.

It was a really good day though. I've had more than my fair share of call center and customer service work, and I have to say that I have never, ever been in a place like this. People are ... happy. Seriously. It's WEIRD. There was none of the general malaise and silent resignation that hovers over such places. And to make it even weirder, I listened in on calls for a few hours, right? The customers were all really happy too.

What Twilight Zone be this?

I'm about all delighted babbled out for now, as I feel that's about all I've been doing for several hours between Mike and my mother. Oh, except to say that I just looked it up, and both my current dentist and optometrist are covered under my new plans. Hooray for not having to switch!

It looks good though. Really really good. And I have no disillusion that once the shiny veneer wears away (and it always does) it'll be just slogging through. But maybe it'll be slogging through bunnies rather than through shit for a change. That would be so nice.

My first enemy.

The alarm.

One more day. Then the shackles of employment slap shut once again.

Don't get me wrong, I'm excited, both at the prospect of a job that doesn't suck and a big steady paycheck. But apart from school, I've had time to do whatever the hell I wanted for a sort of ridiculously long time now. It's weird to think that I won't be able to check whatever sites I want when I want. That my cell phone will have to go ignored until appropriate intervals. That my time won't be 100% my own whenever I want it to be.

I know, the woes and tribulations, right? Blah blah, bitch some more.

It's kinda cool though. I'm watching my "free" days tick away, and I chose to spend all of today writing. It felt good. Not just from a "I wrote" perspective (though that was awesome), but the affirmation of what I said previously, that when I don't have all the time in the world to do it, I actually do. I sort of suck like that.

So tomorrow is my last day, and I'm wondering what to do with it. Well, I have some errands I have to run, so I'll get that out of the way first. Need lunchy things that are easily preparable, and a new Def Leppard CD that must be made mine. Other than that though, it's a big question mark. Do I work on some organizing I've been meaning to do for like 2 years? Clean up real good and go back to work with a spotless apartment? Veg on the couch all day watching movies and/or playing games? Dive into some fanfic archives and embrace my inner nerd?

So many choices. Only one shot to make the "right" one.

First up, thanks to everyone for the congratulations. It was awesome to be bouncy and happy and have you guys be bouncy and happy with me.

And now, before I go get ready for a day of fun and excitement, ( some job details. )

I start Wednesday with training. It'll be weird to be working again ... but a good weird.

Very excited. :)

The selection this week is ... interesting. Although a welcome distraction, as I feel like I've been running my head into a brick wall all morning. SOMEONE IS WRONG ON THE INTERNET. THIS CANNOT STAND.

Anyway. New tracks.

• "Red Tandy" by The Mother Hips (master)


• "Time Sick Son of a Grizzly Bear" by The Mother Hips (master)


• "Zero" by Smashing Pumpkins (master)

So. Yeah! That's an eclectic mix. I think nothing proves that more than the fact that Harmonix aren't even trying to shove this one into a theme pack this week.

The Mother Hips are, I suspect, a group you've never heard of. They're pretty cool though. "Time We Had" was one of the Rock Band bonus tracks, and easily one of my favourites out of the list. "Red Tandy" in particular has a psychedelic rock sound that I can really get into. Not sure it's worth the price to me yet though; I'll have to consider.

"Zero" is mostly likely a go, provided Mike has no huge objections. It's the Pumpkins sound I like, unlike their last DLC offering, "Siva". Wouldn't have been my first choice ("1979" please?) but what can I say. Times like these, I show my "graduating high school in the early '90s" roots.

As mentioned, no pack this week, so no pack discount. Each track is $1.99/MS160.

Got the job!

Gotthejobgotthejobgotthejob.

More details later. For now

gotthejobgotthejobgotthejob

I have a confession to make. I've been looking forward to something Guitar Hero. Not Aerosmith. I like Aerosmith, but not enough for a whole game of them. And while I curse the unfeeling gods that granted them "All the Young Dudes", I also don't like THAT song enough to shell out $60 for it.

No. What had me excited was the upcoming Def Leppard pack.

I've been hoping with my hopingest hope for some Lep since I picked up Guitar Hero 1. You know, back before it had to be numbered. When I heard that GH3 would be getting "Photograph" and "Rock of Ages", I about squeed myself.

I said "squeed", you perv.

This morning, checking for videos of the new songs was one of the first things I did. (The morning flowchart being e-mail -> LJ -> Leppard.)

I lack words to adequately describe the many shapes and distortions my face experienced as it fell.

I expected some degree of bad charting. It's unfortunate, but what I've come to expect from Guitar Hero these days. And to be fair, the charting wasn't TOO bad. What I didn't expect, however, were crappy live versions.

Yes, I said crappy.

I've seen Def Leppard in concert several times. In fact, way back in high school, I went to the Adrenalize tour, which I'm pretty sure are where these recordings are from. And it was a good show. But the group had gone through a lot here. This was their first tour without Steve and with Vivian, and the whole affair had an air of melancholy to it. It was still an awesome time, don't get me wrong. But it wasn't Hysteria and everybody knew it.

Part of what I love about seeing Def Lep in concert though is the connection that the band – Joe in particular – has with the audience. Let's face it, you don't really go to concerts for the music. If I want to hear "Rock of Ages" in pristine quality, I'll go pop in Pyromania and do just that. You go for the ENERGY. For that connection to the band. On this, Def Leppard deliver in spades.

But you can't get that by picking two tracks out of a bootleg. You can't get that by charting music that's sorta-familiar-but-not-quite. All you're left with are a few songs that sound like hollow imitations, carrying neither the charm of a live performance, nor the power of a studio recording.

I'm frankly embarrassed. I'm disappointed, yes, but thinking on it, the embarrassment is shining through brighter still. These are my boys, making their first foray into a game genre that I feel was MADE for them ... and this is what they get. For some people, this will be their first exposure to the group. Their first impressions will be formed by poor choices and lazy charting. Nobody's going to hear this version of "Rock of Ages" and say, "Damn! That was AWESOME! I gotta hear more of that!"

What a shame. What a freaking shame. What an opportunity missed.

Dammit, Guitar Hero.

The interview went great. At least from my end. I'm assuming things from his end. (LOVE ME DAMMIT.)

Now the waiting begins. I'm hoping to hear something tomorrow.

O Fate! Do not let my rare moment of optimism burst into fiery lashes of "and that's what you get, dumbass".

Yet Another Interview to come, this one with the department manager. I think we're closing in here. :)

So I'm not a sharp dressed man. Whatev.

Success! A whole outfit found in my closet. Practically brand new! With shoes!

That's today's primary irritation resolved before I even got started.

And there are indeed pants! oblique_ref wins one free afternoon of Rock Band! Yaaaay!