6.04.2005 ||> And they never gave me a credit for the no-show
During my lunch breaks, I usually sit at my desk and surf the internet and make any phone calls I need to make that aren't business related. Yesterday, I called my cable company because they were running a promotion whereby if you signed up with them you would get a digital camera and the software to go with it. Not that I need a digital camera, since I do have one, but it was the fact that no one hooking up my cable ever mentioned it that made me curious.
As it turns out, I was always on the promotion track. In a couple of weeks, I should get a card in the mail that will let me go online and order it from what they have left in stock. As opposed to, say, the cable guy giving the new customer one when he sets up her cable and internet?
I've already had a slew of problems with this cable company, from no-shows to the guy not being able to set up my internet. So it's not really surprising that they can't even get their shit together enough to do a proper promotion.
Unlike many people I know, I watch commercials. When I mean watch, I mean that I participate fully. I laugh, cry and usually, criticize. Many a time I have started in on a crappy advertising ploy just to have the people around me look at me strangely and ask "What are you talking about?" Because you see, I was the only one registering what the commercial was saying. How very un-postmodern of me.
Anyway, the commercial of late that has really caught my attention has been for Lunesta, a prescription sleep aid. In it, a very soothing female voice asks questions like, "Are you plagued at night by thoughts that won't let you sleep?" with the obvious suggestion that you should take the sleep aid so that all your troubles will melt away and you can get a full night's sleep. Yes people, if you are feeling sad, pop a pill; if you can't concentrate, pop a pill. And most importantly, if you have troubling thoughts, pop a pill.
The other really creepy thing about this commercial is that there's this green butterfly flitting around the commercial helping people to get to sleep. Maybe it's my time in Prague, but it is strongly reminiscent of the green fairy on the absinthe bottle. Every time I see it, I think yes, just a bit of absinthe and all your troubles will go away.
Now, I have been an insomniac for years. I spend those lonely hours in bed before sleep thinking a lot, and generally solving the world's problems (solution: make me queen). But it's not the thoughts that keep me up, it's the fact that I can't get to sleep. That this commercial is targeted toward people who don't have insomnia and probably just need a long weekend to get their shit together really freaks me out. The green
God job, advertisers.
This morning got my coffee and opened up the internet, planning to blog about something entirely different when I saw that my friend Tal had written me. I was a bit surprised, as I assumed that he had disappeared into marital bliss or something over a year ago. So I opened the email to see that he had sent me a mp3. Over a year of not writing and he sends me an mp3? I ask myself.
But, oh my readers, what a song it is! Apparently, the monks who do the Gregorian chants did a cover of Nothing Else Matters by Metallica. Anyone who knows me (and he does), knows that I believe that it's not only the best song on the face of the earth, it's some pretty good advice for living your life. I will forgive Metallica for the decreasing quality of their concerts, the whole Napster fiasco, and even their getting "soft" for the simple reason that they recorded this song and will do different versions of it every once in awhile.
I've already listened these monks chant out Nothing Else Matters three times this morning, and I think it's going to be a great day.
Last night, I had the distinct pleasure of talking with my friend Jill for about two hours. When I left Arizona for the wilderness of the east coast, she was leaving for a new chance in a new town as well. When I finally got to speak with her after some months, she told me that she had quit her job and was moving back to Phoenix. She was starting over, going back to school and getting her life back on track. She suggested that I do the same. If I am really that unhappy, then I should come back to the people that love me. Unfortunately for me, I'm not as smart as she is. I'm friendless, have a job that doesn't pay me much, and a very cool apartment that's a bit empty when I get home at night.
I'm not particularly sad about any of this, but I do feel a bit trapped. The reality is that I have a 12 month lease that I don't want to break and eleven months to go. Not to mention the fact that I don't want to give up. I don't want to have to go home with my tail between my legs because I couldn't get my shit together. Also, I realize that the day of/after a break-up is not the day to make decisions of any kind.
Jill reminded me of a friend of hers who was in a similar situation. Six months into moving to Phoenix, she didn't have any friends and a job she liked, but was a dead end. Now she's got a ton of friends (my friends included), in October will be married to a guy that is crazy about her, and just started a job she loves. It's nice to know that things can get better. So, on the bright side, at least things can only go up from here.
Only two and a half weeks ago I thought that I couldn't be more happy. I felt that my life was on track to being what I wanted it to be. Maybe next week will bring me lots of luck.
When I was in college, I had a few relationships, and all the ones that were serious ended in a bang. Lots of drama, yelling and ultimatums flew about. I broke up with my first boyfriend over the phone by telling him that everyone I knew hated him, even the cat. Then I hung up on him and never spoke to him again.
I'm much less dramatic now.
A couple of months ago, I began what can only be described as the most civilized relationship I've had. We had almost montage-esqe moments, walking through Valley Forge Park, getting lost in Philadelphia, making out in my driveway. We never even fought. So of course, we had to break up in much the same way. Like some sort of very calm movie, he told me that it wasn't working out, and I said okay. We talked a bit, and then he left.
The thing that bugs me the most though, is not losing my boyfriend, but losing the only real friend I had here in Pennsylvania. It was one thing to go to Uzbekistan. I went with fifty other people, so naturally I could make friends. Here, I have my family (and they're really awesome), but my friends are spread across two continents. I took a job that wouldn't interfere with my personal life so I could have one, but I don't. All I have is time to be bored or lonely, and I don't even have money to show for it.
My (newly) ex-boyfriend has this five-year plan. I remember having one too, but I chucked it. Maybe that was stupid. Maybe I need a whole new plan, but I don't know where to start.
