Poke’-tarded

My coworkers are my least favorite part of my job–the administration a very close 2nd.  They bring the new social acceptability of being an anti-social nerd  to life.  It’s like “The Big Bang” but in person antisocial behavior is not funny/amusing at all.  If someone sneezes, it’s met by silence.  If you say something to your neighbor, they won’t even give a grunt of acknowledgement-they’ll just straight up ignore you if they don’t care what you said or don’t feel like talking.  I’ll ask questions regarding Utah places or events and nobody will answer.  They all grew up in Utah, but they don’t know because they are up all night playing video games and talking trash online.  Then, they sleep in their Mommy’s basement all day til work.  None of them have many social skills, or if they have them, choose not to use them.  Our boss is one of the worst-you’ll come into the lab and he’ll ignore you.  No hello or anything–just like you don’t exist.  Our supervisor has mostly good intentions, but is socially oblivious, and is always making (faulty) assumptions.

I’m not a fan, and whenever I’m out in public, at a restaurant or appointment, I find it delightful that it’s not me.  When you’re just locked in a room day after day, it starts to feel like you.  But it’s not me, because people in the outside world are hospitable and sometimes even friendly.  They have manners and manage to hold a conversation.  It’s only in the lab their is this blanket weirdness.  There’s a reason people work in a lab, away from people.

So my coworkers were my first introduction to the “Pokemon Go” phenomenon/trend.  Suddenly, these people who laid on the couch during breaks were outside.  They would venture out to chase Pokemon.  And I think it’s good that video game designers try to make their games useful and productive.  We don’t need a bunch of fat-ass kids sitting and looking at screens 24/7.  Anything that gets them moving is good.  Getting them outside in the world is even better.  And benefiting businesses is good.  Well, done Pokemon Go designers.

Except, I feel that people should do these things anyway.  And on their own accord.  I think you’re super-lame if you never get off your ass.  I think it sucks if you don’t go outside just because there are things to do out there.  And I am incredibly annoyed that people aren’t going to zoos and avairys simply because they are there.  They are awesome!  They should be appreciated because they are fun and serve a purpose and they’re still available in the world!  Not because your video game told you to go there.

And how stupid that these people aren’t paying attention to the world when they are on the chase?  Seriously–people have fallen off cliffs and are getting run over??!  Like we’re lemmings?  I’ve seen my co-workers come in all fat, McDonald’s in hand, and talk of never sleeping in until work at 5PM.  Then discussing their screens they stare at all nightlong.  Like, get a life!

Here’s my Facebook trash-talk:

Can I just say I hate this already?! I can’t go 2 seconds without hearing about it. And seriously–it takes a game to get your fat/pale ass outside? And you’re going to the zoo to stare at your phone??? Super-annoying–Ugh.

Which I got a lot of $hit for saying “pale.”  Like it’s a race thing.  I’m not bringing race into it–all kinds of people can be guilty of screening 24/7.  I’m stigmatizing pale, like you’ve never ventured out of Mommy’s basement, never seen the sun.

And here’s my zoo rant, because animal organizations had to resort to pandering to the hype to get money:

I disliked the event, because it upsets me that people don’t want to [without virtual enticement] support a non-profit, see beautiful, exotic animals, learn, and give to conservation just because it’s available. I am glad the zoos are capitalizing on this trend, but really–should they have to? I think people should want to go to a zoo simply because it is there–and I think they should pay attention solely to what’s important (the real animals that are endangered) when they do go. You are so lucky to have such a nice zoo close to you, and you’re wasting it, or trivializing it by going because of a game. I’d like people to do things for the right reasons, that’s all. Now let the thousands addicted to the app blast me for my opinion, as I’m sure they will.

Like · Reply · 6 · July 21 at 4:15pm

And I think my point is 100% correct.  But I’m at a disadvantage saying it behind my screen where all the people I’m talking about are living their lives.  I’m totally out-numbered.  And people can’t admit they’re bing $hit-heads and guilty of my accusations, they are addicted to the game, and addicted to screens in general so they trash-talk me.

Aquariumplantsuk
Aquariumplantsuk totally correct 🙂
Like · Reply · July 21 at 7:00pm

Cecilia Alexander
Cecilia Alexander I understand where you’re coming from sweetie but also recognize the good that this app has done for those will mental illness and terminal illnesses. Some people don’t want to leave their house because of these illnesses and now that they are they’re being bashed. I’m sure the zoo is making a ton of money off of this so there is no losing.
Like · Reply · 2 · July 21 at 8:59pm

P.S.  I think it’s totally condescending to call a stranger “sweetie” and I hate that.  Also, her point is ridiculous, because people with mental and terminal illnesses should be motivated to get out of the house without an app telling them to.  Why should some app be the key factor getting them outside?  They should be motivated by the imminent extinction of these beautiful animals.  And by the fact these things are available even without the app!  So I’m calling B.S. on the illness card, though she is totally right about these non-profits benefiting from the game.  But it’s unfortunate they have to depend on some app to lure people in–shouldn’t people just want to go anyway?!

Ryan Alexander Milstead
Ryan Alexander Milstead It’s just an idea to get people to come to the zoo that usually wouldn’t. Maybe those people have a great time and become regular visitors or even members. People might be encouraged to come by this event, but if you don’t enjoy zoos, you’re not gonna go just to play Pokemon Go (cause you can do that literally anywhere).
Like · Reply · 1 · July 22 at 5:56pm

Tyler Baker
Tyler Baker Quit your bitchin’ lady. The world doesn’t revolve around what you like and dislike.
Like · Reply · 1 · July 23 at 3:05pm

Then I retort:

Tyler Baker way to keep it classy
Like · Reply · July 23 at 11:24pm

Tyler Baker
Tyler Baker I could care less about keeping it classy. You just need to learn that the world doesn’t revolve around your opinion, or what you like and/or dislike. Posting about why you dislike this event won’t change anything. Just being a realist. I really don’t care if I’m classy or not.
Like · Reply · 1 · 16 hrs · Edited

Tyler Baker
Tyler Baker You’re welcome for that life lesson.
Like · Reply · 16 hrs

I want to tell this Tyler asshole where to shove it so he doesn’t think he “won” but I know arguing with a fool–makes two. And it would just spur him on to shit-talk more. But ahhhh–totally annoying!  I saw a stand-up comedian talking about how Millennials are all ritious and enable their own opinions or call it bullying when other’s say an opposing view.  If anyone dares make a point or disagrees with them, instead of having a conversation they spew some hate and navigate away from the page or block the person.  And I see here how that’s true.  I wrote an earnest blurb, because someone on Facebook was like, “I don’t get why people are disliking this Pokemon Go event at the zoo???”  So I gave a sincere, well-thought reason why.   And this Tyler-20-something year old is an ASS!  WTF with all that “schooling me” and everything.  I wanted to scratch eyes.  And re-reading this makes me too riled up to even write a decent conclusion to this post.

I guess I will just hope he Pokemon’s himself right into the lion’s den at some zoo and gets eaten. . .  Maybe my coworkers will be lemmings and follow him.

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Moose as Spirit Animal

But first a note to myself:  Make sure and post more controversial drafts while I’m still fired up about them and when I have time to refute points and further explain my perspective.  I believe in what I’m saying on my blog, but sometimes just the thought of defending my views tires me out.  Which is why I’m switching tracks today.  I’ll get back to the more derisive posts later–I’m in a pretty mellow place right now and don’t want to get worked up.  Here’s a lovely wildlife/Native American post:

You have heard about my moose sightings before:  Moose way down below Mount Rainier, which was still closed for slow.  On the road, and looking at ME.  In my boss’ yard while I house-sat.  When she had lived there a long time and never seen one.

Over the weekend, Cool and I went to Tacoma to visit her mom and while we were there we visited NW Trek, a wildlife reserve near the base of Mount Rainier (I think).  You can take a train ride around the perimeter of meadows and forests while the guide tells you features.  The train has 1/4 windows so viewing and picture-taking is easily done.  Which I did a lot of–I like seeing animals even if they’re planted there.  We saw bison, reindeer, birds of many types, mmm I should look on their web page for a list, I’m having trouble remembering.  Anyway, our guide was saying to look closely for the moose, because they are usually more elusive.  Many people came to the reserve repeatedly and never saw them.  And there are only 3 total.  The guide said we had the rare treat of seeing EVERY animal that was out there to see!

Because I have a feeling moose is my spirit animal I was confident we would see one, and scanned the trees meticulously to find it.  Lucky me!  Two moose were right ON our road.  A female and a beautiful chocolate-colored male.  We were sitting on the 2nd of 3 train cars, and the male came up very close to only the 2nd car–his antler may have crossed the line of the window!  Then, we saw the 3rd moose on the other side of the path a little further away!  We saw 3 of 3 when the tram guy had said how difficult it was!

I think as part of my moose spirit animal run, I’m not supposed to pervert the experience by getting a good picture.  It’s maybe something just for me to enjoy in the moment.  Because, again, I did not get an adequate shot.  My pictures look like black indistinguishable blurs.  Cool got one halfway recognizable shot, but it doesn’t nearly convey the closeness we experienced in person.  These pics are from NW Trek’s Facebook page.  Though the male (pic on far left here) has grown a lot since this!  His rack has about 3(?) more branches on it now!  

Here’s some info from a website about my animal and what it means:

 

The moose is often associated with the feminine energies, the maternal forces of the world; those with Moose totem will find these forces awakened. Part of this is due to the association of moose with water [my astrological sign is Cancer–a water sign] as it is the primal symbol of the feminine forces of the universe. Water is the symbol of creativity and dynamic forms of intuition and illumination. The sea is the point from which all life comes and to which all life returns. It is the great womb of the universe. The moose is often seen in marshy areas and standing in lakes – moose is comfortable in these areas. Additionally, the female moose is extremely protective of its young.

 If Moose has come passing through your life:

Know and understand that you – and only you – have the authority to make your own choices in life. You do not need to feel ashamed or pressured in any way by your friends and peers in that what you choose is different from them. Stand strong and proud and own who you are! Your individuality is your strength.

If Moose is your Animal Totem:

Your strength is in knowing exactly who you are. You have integrity and always stay true to yourself in decisions and life choices. Friends and peers look up to your knowledge and innate wisdom. You see life for what it is – a long journey with short stops to enjoy the spoils along the way. You move through life with pride and authority.

If Moose has stumbled into your dreams:

It may mean to pay close attention to the elders around you for they hold they wisdom of days gone by. To dream of a moose in its natural habit means you can expect a beneficial change of circumstances coming your way now. To dream that you shoot a moose signifies that you can expect that some simmering family conflict is about to boil over. A baby moose means that a lucky break is about to happen, most likely in connection with a journey.

If moose is your power animal then you will probably be full of contradictions – clumsy yet graceful, huge but with the ability to move swiftly and soundlessly. Usually people with this power animal have excellent depth perception and are very wise. They also have an innate ability of being balanced – when to be gentle, when to be strong, what to say when and to whom. 

So maybe this post isn’t as far from yesterday’s as I initially thought. . .

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Snore-Saurus

For the last two days I’ve been very tired.  Whenever Cool gains a certain amount of weight, there’s nothing that will prevent her from snoring.  She hit that number 2-3 days ago, and I haven’t slept well since.  My tiredness is awful, because it’s enough to be unproductive, but apparently not enough to nap.  I hate that I’m not a good napper!  As such, I tried to find a draft to easily post today, but they were redundant to the ones I’ve over-posted, or need a lot of work.  And I want to do them justice.  So in the interest of posting AND being lazy, here’s a list:

-Somewhere between my 7th and 8th drafts of my personal statement, I’m finally feeling hopeful about it.  The thing isn’t polished enough, but it looks like a paper, instead of a brainstorm.

-My “scholarly paper” is not so lucky.  I think it sucks, feel discouraged and overwhelmed, and despite a lot of time, am still in the nascent stages.  My SLP-focused program has had me write one group paper on a pathology affecting anatomy, but with a partner, so I can’t use it at all.  Four papers 100 words or less on aural rehab (this needs to be a technical, research paper, 8-12 pages in length).  And one hearing disorder–but I chose a complicated one–Varicella Virus.  It’s Chickenpox-turned measles, turned certain clinical signs including possible deafness, and similar to Bell’s palsy = very complex.  And I’m not confident about the info in the paper, nor on my ability to answer questions about it should it arise in an interview.  That left me to try to modify an aural rehab paper, by adding research–but now it’s just all over that place.  Hate.

-On a brighter note, I also met with a pharmacy doctoral student today to work on my CV.  It’s also coming right along!

-Cool is almost entirely off her slurr-med and it’s wonderful!  I forgot how funny she is and how much fun we were NOT having anymore.  I’m so glad the Cool I knew is back!!!!!!!!!  Now, to find an anti-psychotic that is affordable, doesn’t cause sleepiness/irritability/weight gain = good luck/fat chance.  This partially why bipolars go off their meds.

-It’s been in the 90s outside, but due to my strategic fan placement/door opening it has stayed under 71 inside–without the expense of AC.  Our utilities made it down to $35 again-yay!

-I forgot to say I have a job interview tomorrow.  It’s for a fast food restaurant–one of the very few I will eat at.  But they’re kinda big for their britches throwing around terms like “natural” and “organic” which I find logical arguments against–Arsenic is technically natural.  It’s about marketing.  Also, you have to have a group interview, a 2nd interview, then finally a 3rd 1:1 interview–which is really excessive if you ask me.  For fast.  food. . .  I’m never pushy is new group situations, and they just ask questions in general, not round-robin, so I’m not confident I’ll look great.  And I’m not even certain if I could take the job if I get it because I don’t know if they would be willing to work with my (quickly approaching) school schedule.   But I’m memorizing factoids off their website, and I’ll give it my best shot tomorrow.

-Heat does not take away my veracious appetite as it does many people.  Though I had a literal 1260 calorie breakfast, I’m hungry–for ice cream.

-I thought I got a running PR on the mile today, which I only count if I’m on the track (not treadmill).  But it turns out it was my 3rd best time because in 2012 I ran a 7:39.  But it was funny, because I write all my 400m splits–and get this:  My splits for laps 2, 3, and 4 were identical to 2012 record-mile’s laps 2, 3, and 4!  If I can shave seconds off that first lap–I’ll beat my best time.  I’m feeling good for Sunday!

-Yellow is my power color.  And it chose me, not the other way around.  I now need some yellow tanks, yellow sneaks, and ideally, a yellow running skirt.  I was going to write I’d settle for one, but tried to write an item and couldn’t decide which I wanted most.  So I guess I won’t settle.

-We fell in love with (summer) Missoula.  But we’d never move there A] because we’re going to Colorado–obviously.  B] 11 month, harsh winters are UNcool.  C]  There are no jobs.  The jobs that are there are service-oriented.  D] My parents claim there’s a lot of rape there (jurys still out).

-I found perfect Old Gringo cowgirl embellished boots, that fit, and looked amazing.  I did not buy said boots, because even though they were $100 UNDER the lowest website price I’d ever encountered–they were $300, and I’m unemployed.  I love my schedule and the ability to have TIME as an unemployed person.  Having no income is terrifying, and I can never buy anything (at all, ever) on a whim.  But I haven’t ever been bored (I’ve actually been quite productive) and I don’t feel like a loser (because I’m getting so much accomplished).

-I have to decide if I’m going to have that ice cream and get ready for bed.  I have to clean work tomorrow and prepare/stress about my interview.

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Easter Female-Fertility Festivities

I like Easter.  I think I say this about every holiday when that holiday is near, but it’s one of my favorites.  It’s an important religious event, but I also like the Pagan meanings of the day–fertility.  It’s a day of spring, and new life, baby animals, egg hunts–just joy.  So I feel I can embrace both the Christian and the Feminist and the Pagan and Native American aspects of the day all at once.  I don’t have to chose or limit myself, and I like that.  So you know the typical traditional events of Easter, but here are some suggestions to appreciate nature and fertility:

-Go out for a walk and look for signs of spring: robins, nests being built, flowers buds, bulbs shoots, plants starting to green
-Buy a new broom for magical or mundane cleaning
-Do meditations focused on new beginnings or growth
-Make paper flowers and use them to decorate your home
-Have an egg hunt
-Learn about the migration of butterflies or the plight of the honey bee. Vow to take steps to help them on their way
-Have a seed blessing ritual
-Start seeds indoors or out
-Eat eggs for breakfast on Ostara morning and bury the rinsed shells in your garden to promote prosperity and abundance of your crops
-Try to incorporate at least one traditional correspondence into you daily life through the spring season: cook with seasonal foods, use traditionally colored cloth napkins, display a vase of wildflowers on your table, burn traditionally scented incense, etc.

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Hair-Raising

Time for another major pet-peeve: One-tonal blonde hair. I am never certain why (women especially) think this looks good. I blame unreasonable expectations driven by patriarchy and capitalism.  Just because a lot of celebs sport the look–which is costly to maintain.  It looks unnatural! And bad. Often it is orangy-yellowy so the color turns out brassy. Not. Cute.  At.  All.  Sorostitutes with brassy orange/gold hair and Oompa-Loompa orange, fake & bake skin = weird looking, not gorgeous.

Also, that icky blondie-blonde color absolutely destroys your hair. Bleach, black, and box dye are 3 of the worst cardinal hair sins. Even IF the color looks good (it doesn’t) the dry, brittle “hair” left on your head looks like it’s about to fall out–it is. People, you do those colors too much on your hair, and that hair will break. Nothing is fashionable about that.  And maybe you will go bald early. Yick. Especially if you process the hair in other ways: Blow dry, curl, straighten, chemically alter.

Maybe worst of all = roots. Roots are so, so, SO, SO ugly! Any that are showing make you look trash-E-trash. Especially people that stray far from their natural color–black roots on a brassy head = appalling. Red roots on black hair–I’m not even going to address it it’s so terrible.  So if you must dye–keep up on the touch-ups.  Even one day of striped hair makes you look lazy and gross.

So do your hair (and spectators) a favor and keep your natural color. Plus, staying within a color-range semi-near your own matches your skin/eyebrows.  [un-matching eyebrows *shakes head*] Not a lot of people can carry off strong blondes/blacks/reds because it clashes with their complexion.  Really, you will look a LOT cuter if you keep a natural look.  Even if you feel like it’s boring.

Or at least get highlights and low lights. I’m not going to lie–if I could afford to do it consistently (and keep up on the roots) I would totally dye my hair.  And I certainly will when too much of it turns gray.  Probably a truer shade of blonde–with low lights obviously.  You have to have mutli-dimensional color–professionally done, and not over-treat your hair for it to look soft, naturally lovely, and beautiful.  Yeesh–get a clue.