Post-Test Drunk Fest.

So we had an exam yesterday in class and I completely aced it (imagine that!) so me and a few guys from class decided to celebrate by going to the bar across the street from the school. I hadn't actually gone drinking on class nights since September so it was refreshing. Granted, I can't really get crazy: since I'm on the Coumadin, I have to be careful with the alcohol. One Guinness is usually the limit.

However, it started out with me and Ryan, with a Guinness each: we were looking for Sanj, who'd just recently gone blonde with red highlights. Then sometime later Luke, Allan, Drew, Mark and John showed up. So I had a Guinness with them too. And after alot of bullshitting, I was introduced to Captain & Coke which tasted like delicious sin (just what pirates love) and I had one of those...and then kinda split one as well...and I don't think "smashed" quite adequately described me then. (I won't go into how completely fucked up the others were.)

Anyway, I'm not sure exactly what we all talked about, but there was lots of laughing and I know I was really loud, and words that would make my mom blush were thrown around copiously...but we're construction workers, it happens more often than I let on, I think. Someone had the lovely idea that body piercings were in order, and I hadn't had any piercings since my nipples over the summer in 2007 so I figured it was time. It wasn't a drunken decision; I'd been kinda thinking it over for a few months with little motivation, so when it was brought up I jumped at it.

We wound up going to a place off of Charleston...the sign said they were open 24-hours but they made a big deal about how they were about to close up when we made it there at about 21h00. They went ahead and let us in, asked for IDs, signatures and cash--for which we had to stumble to the liquor store and use the ATM next to the porn collection, it was weird. I got an industrial piercing, I'd wanted one since I got my tongue done the second time a year ago. I didn't want to cry like a girl, even though I'd heard it hurt immensely since it punctured the cartilage, but I was assured that if I did cry, no one would tell.

So, even though the piercer said I had "tiny little elf-ears" he was able to position the needle so that my piercing would be at an appropriate angle. It hurt far less than I had imagined, less than the tongue, navel or nipples. (However, today it felt horrendous and Jay kept laughing at me for it.) We got aftercare instructions and lollipops for being good, then we debated if we wanted to go to Crown and Anchor or home, and as it was well after 22h00 we opted for home, since we all had to be at work the next day.

Needless to say, this morning was unbelievably torturous: it felt like someone had put a blowtorch to my ear, I was nursing a hangover, and my husband was...well...less than thrilled that I went out and got pierced without discussion. Thank God tomorrow's Friday.

In other completely unrelated news, my dear friend Linda (who I've known for over a decade) got married today. Congratulations! Muchos besitos. :)

Haha...too funny.

Posted at The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf over the weekend:

"Starbucks will be closed on Tuesday, February 26, 2008 from 5pm to 8pm retraining their staff on how to make a latte. The Coffee Bean will be open because we already now how to make a latte! During this time, we will be giving away free coffee... ANY SIZE, ANY FLAVOR. Available at all non-casino Coffee Beans in the Las Vegas Valley and Henderson."

That's about the funniest shit ever. Well, almost.

My brother sent me a YouTube video on sexual harassment, and I showed it to my foreman. He laughed so hard he almost choked on his lunch. I told Drew I wanted to show him and he looked quasi-interested but there's really very little time I could have to pull him aside. I'd MySpace it to him but he's a very private person and the last thing I want is for him to think I'm a creepy stalker.

Otherwise, today was way better than yesterday. I got alot done and I started seeing the whole picture as far as what we're doing. At first I didn't think Jay would let me finish trying to get the MC underneath the windows or shelving or whatever that massive void in the walls will eventually be, but he did, and it's done. It took a little longer but we saved prolly close to 500' of it in the long run. Besides, I think it looks better, and since Flynn is going to be taking it over in a few weeks, it would be pretty shitty to leave his crew with substandard work that would just have to be redone anyway. So, by the end of today we had the entire north-ish wall completely roughed in, except lighting, I think, and it was pretty kickass. In other words, I didn't feel like playing "chicken" with a forklift today. :)

Saddish day.

The real stuff first, then my whiney stuff.

On Valentine's Day, the father of one of my friends passed away. I never met the man, but I have never heard a negative word said about him, and my general foreman had worked closely with him for quite some time so I've heard quite a few stories. Any time I mention, within the jobsite setting, that I know his son, more often than not the next comment to me is, "Oh wow, have you ever met his dad?" And it's sad, to me, that I missed out knowing someone who was apparently so likable and, so I'm told, was an excellent electrician. His service was held today, and you can read his obituary here.

Now my inconsequential bullshit.

I felt so worthless today. No joke, it took me a full day to lay out one box, map out my circuits, drill out one hole with the holesaw, and come up with about 30 problems for my foreman. It was ridiculous. It's not that I wasn't working, it's that alot of this stuff I'd never really done before, and certainly not alone, so I'd try one method and it would fail, then another and it would fail too...it's like no matter what I did, it was utterly useless. And Jay, he's about the most patient foreman I've ever had and he was trying hard to mask his frustration with me. I know there's a learning curve and it can go slowly but I think this was a bit too close to overkill. I was so disappointed in myself. But then I remembered that it could be worse, and it has been in the past, so I tried best I could to leave my ego in the gangbox, suck it up, and deal with it.

Been tagged.

I wound up getting sick--again!!--so what the hell, right? Ayla tagged me, and while doing so, reminded me that we've known each other for close to 17 years. It's an incredible feeling, despite the fact that I feel old. Thirty is coming on fast and I'll be honest, it scares me a little.

Anyway, here are the rules:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Here are my 7 things:

1. I'm most comfortable being nude, at all times. Tannah hates when I walk around the house nude, in front of windows and such, but really...the only way someone would see me is if they had climbed into the backyard anyway, so I'm not too concerned.

2. I wish there was a way to bring up Gabriel (my son who died in 2005) without being hit with the awkward silence or forced apologies that always come immediately after mentioning him.

3. I've become more in-tune with nature, over the past year. I'm starting to feel the natural cycles and, though I'm not at all fond of the cold, I'm learning to appreciate winter for what it is.

4. I actually enjoy some video game music: Kid Icarus, Blaster Master, Super Mario 2 & 3, Bomberman (y'know, old-school)...and I feel slightly guilty for it, so I reassure myself that it is real, composed music, and worthy of listening. I still feel a little stupid anyway.

5. I refuse to take psych meds anymore. Depression doesn't rule my life, and I always hated the zombie-feeling I got from the pills. I think despair, sometimes, is better than feeling absolutely nothing at all. As far as some of the other things that the psych docs have diagnosed me with over the years...well, I don't think meds work on that, anyway.

6. I don't at all understand either American football or NASCAR racing, and I make no apologies for it.

7. I feel I can't survive completely on American food. I need variety; American food has it's purpose but a week without taboulé or kalguk-su or coq au vin or sopa de albóndigas or weinsauerkraut or or or...hell, even some Haribo...I don't know, I guess I'm addicted.

I would like to tag my fellow bloggers:
M
Pat
Woozie
Crystal
Tenno
P.L.
Debbie

Stoked!

Yesterday I took the F-Card exam and passed...I was so certain I'd fail that the only reason I even showed up was because the state fire marshall had already cashed my $71.50 check, so I figured I could at least take a stab at it if nothing else. When Tom told me I passed I actually thought he was mind-fucking me. I mean the exam took me 15 minutes and I thought to myself either that was the easiest exam of my entire apprenticeship (lightyears easier than NABCEP) or I misread every question and failed spectacularly. Apparently it was just that simple.

Then the lunar eclipse...it would have been awesome if the clouds hadn't obscured it. I nearly killed myself trying to look for the moon through the moon-roof while driving. I never found the moon, and I didn't die, so I guess things worked out.

Today I got to attend Power-Gen, a renewable energy and fuels expo. I got a free pass from Snow (thankyouthankyouthankyou fellow solar-geek friend!) and I got to spend all day there. Tons of exciting info, not just about solar power but wind, geothermal, biomass, hydro...very very cool. I got lots of brochures and such, a few DVDs, I think a pen or two, a solar keychain, and I really looked all over for stickers for hard hats but I didn't find much....just a few wind power ones that are actually too big.

BUT~!!!

Bombard Electric's solar division was showcasing, and I got to see sexy photos of Nellis AFB's new array, plus I got to check out Sunpower's new highly-efficient panel. The look is completely different, something I think will appeal to consumers even though I myself prefer the look of the poly-crystalline style. Anyway it was awesome, and I got to geek out and wear my "I love solar power" hoodie amongst other like-minded individuals. :)

Dehydration sucks.

So dehydrated I'm hallucinating. What the fuck. I'm drinking a bottle of Pedialyte as a last resort, otherwise I'll have to go to the ER. I don't know how I got so sick like this, it's horrific, I keep drinking and drinking so much I'm all stretched out in my belly, and I can't get hydrated. This is really not at all fun. I can't believe this is one of the few President's Day holidays I've had off and I'm a dried out husk on the verge of death. I'm so pissed I could bite someone in the face.

Sick...and other sadnesses.

Sick and dehydrated. Yuck.

Wednesday we were sent to the warehouse to help build shelves; there's just not enough work yet at the tower so they're trying to keep us busy. The problem isn't us, we're literally being held up by other trades. But anyway, our whole crew showed up...it was interesting...again we had to use humour in order to survive the day. We cranked up really awful 80's music and Daniel played air guitar in between bolting shelves down and securing them to the walls. I was horrendously ill (as I am still) so I don't remember much other than that...except that the fuckin' Hawaiian that irritated me so much last year is there, and has been for a year. Ick.

Thursday I showed back up to the warehouse and went right back home. I slept all day until Friday, pausing briefly to wake somewhat when Jay called me to tell me to show back up to the jobsite, as we had been "banished" from the warehouse. Today I wound up being an hour late, as one of my front tires was entirely flat. And when I got to work I was told we were all leaving at noon...I'm not sure why. Don't care why, I was just happy to sleep some more of the illness away. But in those six hours we moved out of our warm little substation and out to the deck. Fun.

I also found out that Snow had been in a freak car accident or sorts: he was driving in his golf cart and a taxi ran the stop sign and slammed into him. It destroyed the cart and bruised him up pretty good. I hate those taxis, I've almost been run over twice. The stop sign is like three feet in diameter (that's not an exaggeration), I can't accept that they don't see it, and even if they don't speak English very well, I'm sure they had to be able to read street signs, at least. One day a tourist will get hurt--or worse, killed--and then things will change. But sadly, only then.

A new rumour.

The most ridiculous yet! I was talking to Troy in the basement about...I don't remember, it was geeky, whatever it was. Anyway, two higher-ups were sitting close by, discussing general foremen stuff I guess, and suddenly they both called my name. Both were laughing, but had a moment to tell me that my jeans were riding a bit low. I felt where my jeans were riding, and they seemed fine to me and I told them so, to which they both responded with the colour of my underwear...oops. Hmm. So I hiked up my jeans and apologised, and somehow within the hour there was a rumour:

According to this rumour, I have a magical ass-crack, and if one were to gaze upon it he would become pregnant. It likes inducing pregnancy, proven by the fact that it's always peeking out.

As ridiculous as this one was, it somehow spread to four different crews before the end of the day. People I didn't even know told me I had gotten them pregnant. It was...a little bizarre, but a little refreshing that the rumour was so innocent.

In other thoughts entirely, I'm dying to know what Flynn has saved on his Favourites in his computer. Traffic-Cone Man was interesting, and of course he knew the video that made Drew gag repeatedly just as he discussed the ordeal of trying to watch it...how amazing it would be to see some of the sites he hasn't recommended to me!

I think fire alarm isn't for me.

Since mid-January, we've been doing a review for our F-Card exam. There's so much material, it's unreal. I already paid my $71.50 to the state fire marshall...I'm sitting here, trying to study, it's all blending together. Ten seconds, ninety seconds, three rounds with three pulses, all the fees...I so don't care right now. I really just don't give a fuck. And I think I'm getting sick. After a good month of taking all the homeopathic goodies I could get my hands on, I think I'm finally succumbing. I can't get sick, I've got no time for it.

So stressed.

Yesterday: my foreman and I were laying out boxes. 60" high, 24" wide, 18" deep. We were trying to prepare them for mounting; in order to do that we had to cut out holes for the conduit going in to the boxes and we had to cut out a portion of the back so that the wire--when we got around to pulling it--can be terminated inside the substation. We were doing as much advance preparation as possible, since the substation needs to be powered down while we do the mounting and such.

Anyway, Jay and I did a few together and he had me do one completely by myself. I measured and marked it all, and he came to check. I was of by a half-inch. So I redid it. Again, I was wrong. Still a half-inch off. I couldn't believe it. I was so embarassed and stressed out and angry at myself I actually started crying. Not like, bawling or anything but you know...tears and all, trying not to look at him or talk or anything. Oh, it was awkward. I felt lame, silly, girly...then Jay reminded me that I am a girl, but still. He was nice enough to not make a big deal about it and kind of talk me though my mistakes. After I calmed down, he predicted that it'll take me about two years of being a journeyman for it all to "click": suddenly it'll all come to me. I sincerely hope so.

"O" for Awesome!

Another few great Jay-isms...

I don't remember why he said it, but I was kicking ass in something, I mean really getting the job done. We were both having a pretty good day and Jay called out, "You know what you are? You're 'O' for Awesome!" Then he paused and said, "Wait...not 'O'..." and he couldn't even finish, we both had to laugh. I have no choice but to throw that back at him from time to time. Or here, another one: this was when we were both exceedingly bored. Again, I don't remember how it started, but we were goofing off: me on a ladder, and him handing me tools to mount pipe above a substation. I asked for my tape measure, and he reached into my tool bucket and yelled in a falsetto, "I choose you, Tape Measure!" and gave it to me. He did that with every other tool I needed, even adding moves: "I choose you, Pliers! Use your Grip Attack now!" It was hilarious...I know anyone reading this thinks it's silly but when you're able to laugh uncontrollably at work, no matter how shitty the work is, it's a good day.

Well, this one's actually a Tannah-ism, but Jay modified it. It comes with a background story though: Years ago, Tannah had a migraine. His eyes were sunken in and it was obvious he was miserable. After I asked him if I could get him some Advil or something, he turned to me and said, "It hurts so bad I'm about to drool." Why this struck me as funny, I don't know. I couldn't stop laughing. I know it was rude. I know that makes me a callous bitch. But to this day, when I think of a pain so intense that drooling must occur, I laugh uncontrollably.

So I told Jay the story, and he thought it was funny too, but only because he knows that type of pain. (He also said I was an evil bitch for telling stories like that, it breaks "man-law".) Now, when we accidentally hurt ourselves at work, we'll ask each other if we have to drool, and wind up laughing about it.

One of the greater things that happened had nothing to do with catch-phrases of the day. Snow somehow got me a free pass to the Power-Gen exhibit. I'd been wanting to go, but it was during work hours, and it was $100 so I wrote it off. But with a free pass, I had no choice but to tell my foreman and general foreman that I needed an early out...and they agreed! I can't wait!

Some things I can't live without.

Solatubes are something that Tannah and I have wanted for quite some time. More than skylights, they are far more efficient and the options are incredible. We went to the showroom on an overcast day and the light inside was surprising. There are diffusers that can be added on to help with the distribution of light, and dimmers for when the room needs darkness during the day (such as to watch a film or something); there are even light kits, so that it can let in natural light during the day and then switch on to a CFL lamp at night. It's excellent!

To celebrate the joys of Solatubes, Tannah and I went to the Original Pancake House. I'm not a fan of pancakes because the syrup makes the pancake all squishy and gross, but Jay said he found the way to eat pancakes, and it took him years to perfect his technique. Basically, you cut a circle out of the middle of your stack of pancakes, take the middle and cut it into bite-size pieces. Into the hole, pour the syrup, and then dip the pieces into that. After those pieces are eaten, work from the outside of the stack toward the syrup-filled hole, cutting pieces away and dipping them as you go.

It's incredible. The process works, and pancakes are delicious. It was a good day.