The Blog With No Name

We did nothing over vacation. My boss, and members of the congregation, have risen to new and heretofore-unimagined heights of annoyingness. I am overcommitted with volunteer activities. My children are also incredibly annoying (and one of them is about to get her learner’s permit, so look out!).

Blah.

I am really tired of my job. No one cares what I do, and I have no supervision whatsoever. Seven years ago, or even five years ago, I would have said that it didn’t matter, that I could keep myself motivated, thank-you-very-much.  I am shocked to find how slack I can be, given the opportunity. There is always something more pressing at home – one more load of laundry to start, an account to balance, some volunteer task that needs to be done. As long as there are bulletins on Sunday and the newsletter goes out, no one cares. How pathetic is that?

…place mats. Two sets. Haven’t been used in probably five years.

…with my sad little blog? It’s been so neglected. And here I am, writing the clichéd “oh my poor neglected blog” post too.

I could track my goals for this year – lose some more weight, feed the troops better, reduce clutter. How to measure is the question – the more quantifiable the goal, the better chance of success.

So:

• I want to lose 18 pounds. This will, I hope, be accomplished by doing a new exercise routine, and continuing to improve my diet.
• I want to make one “new” meal per week. It’s an extra win if it’s in the crock pot.
• I want to clear 25% of my file cabinets out and scan/shred the contents (that is one half of a lateral drawer).

We Shall See…

I am a prisoner of my favorite toys, like a fly stuck in amber in a bad SF movie. I lovelovelove my Palm Centro, but Palm doesn’t make it any more, no one writes software for it any more, and none of the new groovy calendar- and contact-syncing web sites work with PalmOS any more. I love MS Money on my computer and Ultrasoft Money on my Palm (they talk to each other! perfectly!) but Microsoft has discontinued Money and won’t be supporting it after the end of the year. Eventually my Centro will die (noooooo……….) or my computer will totally crash, and then how will I track my finances as perfectly and easily as I do now? I am whining. I still don’t trust Mint or Wesabe or those totally-online “solutions.” Maybe I’m wrong. But I’m going to take really good care of my phone!

School is back in session. The daughter is is eighth grade, and will, I hope, soon be in the jazz band. The jazz band rehearses at 7:00 a.m. Getting her there on time is going to be, um, interesting.  The boy has a new teacher, who looks like she’s 14 (everybody looks like he or she is 14 to me now), but who seems to be on the ball and has placed him so that she can keep an evil eye on his desk. She does not allow messy desks! Yay!

The booster group at his school seems to have attracted a few new and potentially-really-active people, so we are trying to think of ways to give them some meaningful work but not so much that they run away in terror. Ideas?

The paper budget at her junior high school has been cut by 2/3. PAPER. As in, NO PAPER. So in addition to lunch money, it seems I might be buying cases of paper to donate to the school as well. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS COUNTRY.

Hey, other than that, it’s been a great day. Weather finally turned warm, we went to the pool, had lunch with some friends, every day should be this way.

I have a baaaaad attitude these days at work. No one tells me anything, I haven’t had any sort of a review in over a year, I have no direction, and I’m just bored. More interesting things to do at home. Like, right now, I’m about to go make some bread (yes, it’s July 1st, and it’s 65F outside. WTF?). Then back to the library. Honestly, staring at a wall is more interesting than work these days.

The financial world is in turmoil.  Newspapers are going out of business all over the country. And now, get-out-the-vote phone banks are not working any more, as people switch to cell phones (or use caller ID to screen their calls!).

I’ve started using Google Reader to follow my gadget/tech/personal finance blogs. Wow, has it cut down on the time it takes me to see what’s interesting! More time for Facebook (arg). This is just a crazy month so far, thankfully it’s almost over! I still have these things to do:

• Junior High School PTA Bylaw Revision
• Breadbaking Demonstration
• Jenny Lind Chapel Budget for 2009
• Arrange a certain social event for March
• (too too embarrassing) put away the blankety-blank Christmas decorations!

Today is the day I get the by-laws done, if I have to stay up to midnight!!! Wish me luck!

I admit it – I am bad with money. Bad with budgets, bad with controlling impulse spending, and so on.  I will focus on fixing this in 2009. In light of that, I was greatly amused at the small print in the middle of the packaging for a small stocking-stuffer gift I got for Christmas. I bet you can figure out what I’m talking about…