Update
Phew... Where to begin?
Well, sometime back in February I was told my sister was pregnant. I have two younger sisters, and the one who was pregnant is the older of the two. She was afraid I'd be mad at her when she told me over the phone. I was surprised, but did not want to judge until after I had heard her out. She plans to keep the child -- she's always been the most emotional of us siblings, and letting go of or aborting her own child would be something that'd torment her for the rest of her days. While she our mother's full support, she intends to receive schooling to start her own daycare. So she's put thought into this, and at least has a plan. She's not being irresponsible about this, so there's no way I could be mad at her. Unfortunately, she's not even dating the father. As much as it would suck for a child to not have a father, it would suck worse to have only a part-time father. She agreed, and knew she was going to have to talk to him about this and decide what is going to be best for everyone, both mutually and legally. They want me to go down and visit some time during the fall, preferably after the child is born. Oh, yes, they found out it's a boy. So soon I'll not only be an Uncle-in-law and a step-Uncle, but an actual Uncle as well.
Our friend Adron also left back in February, I believe. He decided he had to do some good for other people, and went to Chile for two years. It's hard keeping in touch with him, considering how long it takes letters to get sent going either way. Honestly, we both miss him a lot, and it's pretty hard on us not having our closest friend around anymore. His letters talk about "when I come home," and stuff like that, and it kind of hurts, because he's not going to be coming home for a long time. I don't even think he realizes how much home is going to change while he is away. Time doesn't stop while you're gone, y'know.
Mei graduated from her Pharmacy Technician program not long ago. She was also the only student in the program to have finished her practicum before the graduation ceremony, which amuses me greatly. Not only that, but the place that took her for her practicum gave her a job once she graduated. She's making big bucks now, even if she's not getting a full 40-hour work load every week. Honestly, we had a connection, which I'm thankful for and believe helped a lot in her getting the job. However, this was a great victory for her, and I am very proud. I hope that in the years to come when she's ready, that she'll continue with her studies and become even more successful. But for now, she has certainly earned a break.
With her making the money now, it was time for me to think about going back to school myself, and to relieve some of the stress from my own job. So, I officially took graveyard shifts out of my availability. I knew this meant I wouldn't get the premium for working full-time nights, and I knew this meant I wouldn't be guaranteed 40 hours a week. To be honest, NOT working 40 hours a week sounded great by this point. And coming off graveyards was a definite must. The drunks I had to deal with in the past several weeks had driven me to the breaking point. One pair of idiots tried recording me with a camera phone because I IDed them for smokes and their license was expired. I certainly don't appreciate my face being posted as the idiot on the front of our company's policies, just because two douchebags had a problem with it. There was even an event where a man ended up hitting a woman in our store. They were total strangers, he started badmouthing her, she started talking back, and he went and punched her in the head! I had to physically get myself between the two, and shove the man out the front doors to our store, prying the doors shut with my arms while he tried jerking the doors back open.
So, my manager told me the change in my availability would take two weeks. Fine, I can handle two more weeks of crap shifts, if it means life's finally going to get better. Too bad she didn't stay true to her word. When the next schedule was posted, she had me working three and a half more weeks of that crappy shift. I was pretty pissed. So, I wrote up some two weeks of my own. The "two weeks notice of my resignation" kind. I didn't have any real plans or hook-ups for another job, but I didn't let that stop me. I was fed up with getting dicked around at this store.
I ended up getting a job at the first place I applied at, anyways. Mei had been bragging about me and my work ethic around the store where her Pharmacy was located. So when I ended up putting in an application there, they seemed pretty determined to hire me. The good impression I left with them probably helped a lot, as well. They didn't have any openings right away though, but after a week of waiting, they gave me a call back. So, now I work in a bakery. I'm not a baker, but I'm a member of the production staff. It's not bad, but there's a lot I don't know, and I'm trying to learn what I can. Sadly, not every customer is patient with someone who isn't afraid to admit they're new to the job... but, I'll deal with it, and eventually I'll know the what's, where's, and when's.
As I was working out the last few days of my old job though, Mei ended up having to go to emergency at the hospital again. Yeah, the events from two years ago had returned to haunt once more. This time, they found out her entire gall bladder had become swollen. The doctors she saw knew it would have to come out, and thankfully things got better once they did. She was in the hospital for a week, but once she was released she seemed almost too healthy. When she first got put in though, I called in to work the next day saying I wouldn't be able to come in because my shift took place during visiting hours, and I hoped they would understand my situation. Yes, I can see that it would look like I'm trying to get out of working my last two shifts, except that this is the very first time I've ever called in due to a family emergency. I hadn't even called in during the time my dad had cracked his skull open after falling off a forklift. Four and a half years of honesty and loyalty, and you would think this place would have more faith in me than that. Not to mention, the assistant manager who was working that day was someone I had come to call a friend. However, she got upset and huffy, said "fine!" and hung up the phone on me. With the stress and concern I was having over the hospital ordeal, combining it with this feeling of betrayal led to an emotion I could not explain. I didn't fly into a rage or anything, but I felt like I easily could have. I ended up throwing all my uniforms into the wash immediately afterwards, hauling them down to the store, dropping them on the desk in the back office, and walking out without saying a word to the A.M. I didn't bother calling the next day either, to tell them I wasn't coming in for that shift. I was done. Tired of being screwed around by people who didn't appreciate me.
And, that's pretty much life in the past several months. Other than that, I also got accepted into the Final Fantasy 14 Beta Test. Honestly, I haven't been able to play it very much, with everything else that's been going on in our lives. I've also been doing a full re-record of Disgaea 3 on my YouTube. This time though, I'm recording the game in the form of a walkthrough, rather than a casual to-view playthrough. I've also been recording Record of Agarest War. Other than that though, I haven't been doing very much gaming. I play League of Legends every now and then, but I find it's not as fun when you don't have friends around to play it with you.
Also in the past few months, I've been having strong urges to get some of my creative works written out. I feel like I never have enough time to even get started, but I think what's really stopping me is feeling like I don't have a plan. I do, but I don't have anything drawn out on paper yet. Once I do though, I'm sure I could get something done. If I ever got published, I might not even have to worry about working another day in my life.
TL;DR - Lots of stuff going on in my life, and I'm feeling rather exhausted right now, so I'm gonna stop writing.
Well, sometime back in February I was told my sister was pregnant. I have two younger sisters, and the one who was pregnant is the older of the two. She was afraid I'd be mad at her when she told me over the phone. I was surprised, but did not want to judge until after I had heard her out. She plans to keep the child -- she's always been the most emotional of us siblings, and letting go of or aborting her own child would be something that'd torment her for the rest of her days. While she our mother's full support, she intends to receive schooling to start her own daycare. So she's put thought into this, and at least has a plan. She's not being irresponsible about this, so there's no way I could be mad at her. Unfortunately, she's not even dating the father. As much as it would suck for a child to not have a father, it would suck worse to have only a part-time father. She agreed, and knew she was going to have to talk to him about this and decide what is going to be best for everyone, both mutually and legally. They want me to go down and visit some time during the fall, preferably after the child is born. Oh, yes, they found out it's a boy. So soon I'll not only be an Uncle-in-law and a step-Uncle, but an actual Uncle as well.
Our friend Adron also left back in February, I believe. He decided he had to do some good for other people, and went to Chile for two years. It's hard keeping in touch with him, considering how long it takes letters to get sent going either way. Honestly, we both miss him a lot, and it's pretty hard on us not having our closest friend around anymore. His letters talk about "when I come home," and stuff like that, and it kind of hurts, because he's not going to be coming home for a long time. I don't even think he realizes how much home is going to change while he is away. Time doesn't stop while you're gone, y'know.
Mei graduated from her Pharmacy Technician program not long ago. She was also the only student in the program to have finished her practicum before the graduation ceremony, which amuses me greatly. Not only that, but the place that took her for her practicum gave her a job once she graduated. She's making big bucks now, even if she's not getting a full 40-hour work load every week. Honestly, we had a connection, which I'm thankful for and believe helped a lot in her getting the job. However, this was a great victory for her, and I am very proud. I hope that in the years to come when she's ready, that she'll continue with her studies and become even more successful. But for now, she has certainly earned a break.
With her making the money now, it was time for me to think about going back to school myself, and to relieve some of the stress from my own job. So, I officially took graveyard shifts out of my availability. I knew this meant I wouldn't get the premium for working full-time nights, and I knew this meant I wouldn't be guaranteed 40 hours a week. To be honest, NOT working 40 hours a week sounded great by this point. And coming off graveyards was a definite must. The drunks I had to deal with in the past several weeks had driven me to the breaking point. One pair of idiots tried recording me with a camera phone because I IDed them for smokes and their license was expired. I certainly don't appreciate my face being posted as the idiot on the front of our company's policies, just because two douchebags had a problem with it. There was even an event where a man ended up hitting a woman in our store. They were total strangers, he started badmouthing her, she started talking back, and he went and punched her in the head! I had to physically get myself between the two, and shove the man out the front doors to our store, prying the doors shut with my arms while he tried jerking the doors back open.
So, my manager told me the change in my availability would take two weeks. Fine, I can handle two more weeks of crap shifts, if it means life's finally going to get better. Too bad she didn't stay true to her word. When the next schedule was posted, she had me working three and a half more weeks of that crappy shift. I was pretty pissed. So, I wrote up some two weeks of my own. The "two weeks notice of my resignation" kind. I didn't have any real plans or hook-ups for another job, but I didn't let that stop me. I was fed up with getting dicked around at this store.
I ended up getting a job at the first place I applied at, anyways. Mei had been bragging about me and my work ethic around the store where her Pharmacy was located. So when I ended up putting in an application there, they seemed pretty determined to hire me. The good impression I left with them probably helped a lot, as well. They didn't have any openings right away though, but after a week of waiting, they gave me a call back. So, now I work in a bakery. I'm not a baker, but I'm a member of the production staff. It's not bad, but there's a lot I don't know, and I'm trying to learn what I can. Sadly, not every customer is patient with someone who isn't afraid to admit they're new to the job... but, I'll deal with it, and eventually I'll know the what's, where's, and when's.
As I was working out the last few days of my old job though, Mei ended up having to go to emergency at the hospital again. Yeah, the events from two years ago had returned to haunt once more. This time, they found out her entire gall bladder had become swollen. The doctors she saw knew it would have to come out, and thankfully things got better once they did. She was in the hospital for a week, but once she was released she seemed almost too healthy. When she first got put in though, I called in to work the next day saying I wouldn't be able to come in because my shift took place during visiting hours, and I hoped they would understand my situation. Yes, I can see that it would look like I'm trying to get out of working my last two shifts, except that this is the very first time I've ever called in due to a family emergency. I hadn't even called in during the time my dad had cracked his skull open after falling off a forklift. Four and a half years of honesty and loyalty, and you would think this place would have more faith in me than that. Not to mention, the assistant manager who was working that day was someone I had come to call a friend. However, she got upset and huffy, said "fine!" and hung up the phone on me. With the stress and concern I was having over the hospital ordeal, combining it with this feeling of betrayal led to an emotion I could not explain. I didn't fly into a rage or anything, but I felt like I easily could have. I ended up throwing all my uniforms into the wash immediately afterwards, hauling them down to the store, dropping them on the desk in the back office, and walking out without saying a word to the A.M. I didn't bother calling the next day either, to tell them I wasn't coming in for that shift. I was done. Tired of being screwed around by people who didn't appreciate me.
And, that's pretty much life in the past several months. Other than that, I also got accepted into the Final Fantasy 14 Beta Test. Honestly, I haven't been able to play it very much, with everything else that's been going on in our lives. I've also been doing a full re-record of Disgaea 3 on my YouTube. This time though, I'm recording the game in the form of a walkthrough, rather than a casual to-view playthrough. I've also been recording Record of Agarest War. Other than that though, I haven't been doing very much gaming. I play League of Legends every now and then, but I find it's not as fun when you don't have friends around to play it with you.
Also in the past few months, I've been having strong urges to get some of my creative works written out. I feel like I never have enough time to even get started, but I think what's really stopping me is feeling like I don't have a plan. I do, but I don't have anything drawn out on paper yet. Once I do though, I'm sure I could get something done. If I ever got published, I might not even have to worry about working another day in my life.
TL;DR - Lots of stuff going on in my life, and I'm feeling rather exhausted right now, so I'm gonna stop writing.