Sunday, June 7, 2009

Don't Make Me Come In There...

I was going to do a new post all about the Gigs Rocking most excellently and Phyllis the Amazing 89 year old women who rocked my world last night, but it is getting late, and I'm tired. Also I really embroiled in this battle with Delta Airlines, who not only cannot find a bag what was not LOST but left on the plane, (In the closet of the 1st class cabin, where the flight attendant put it.) but they don't seem to care.

I mean really, they don't care.

In contrast, I offer this: In desperation today I rang Northwest Airlines, and within 10 minutes had a Supervisor on the phone, not that I demanded one, the agent was at a loss as to how to help, and went to find someone who might have an idea. They couldn't help, but had a couple of ideas.

I fear this merger.

So tomorrow morning instead of riding, I go off to the airport for my own personal version of "Don't make me come in there"

(When a Personal Assistant such as myself says "Don't make me come in there" be Afraid. Be Very Afraid. I'm pissed. For our UK friends, that's "Angry" to you. Not drunk.)

Did get a LOT done today. Sunday's are really good for that work wise as no one writes and no one calls. (My job is not day and time specific, days off happen on the best days to take them, which is very handy, as a lot of things I need to do happen during the week, so no sorrow about "working weekends")

I get my Super Computer back this week too. Remember its hard drive died a sudden nasty death some time ago, taking all of my life with it? Well, turns out it still had THRE WEEKS on it's full warranty, and I have a lovely new fresh one now. AND The Amazing Dr Wicked was able to pull my address book and photos off the last one. Photos I could have sighed a little and taken the hit, but the address book????

Wednesday is New Hair today, replacing the Bad New Hair that replaced the Old Hair. Purple again. All this blonde and brown isn't natural. I feel weird, and un-like myself.

Tomorrow, tho.... I find that bag.

Love and Fear,
Lorraine

146 Comments:

At 20:36 Blogger Lyndyn said...

Go Lo! :)

At 20:38 Blogger Lyndyn said...

Oh...and good news on the comp still being under warranty. My last one died the day AFTER the warranty was up. Grrrrr. And...also...ARGHHHH....

At 20:39 Anonymous Anonymous said...

I suppose that means you're not in the mood for our game: #WhatWasInNeil'sBag?

Best,
Billy

At 20:44 Blogger Ticia said...

I'm glad things have worked out with the computer, the gig, and the hair. I hope you are as lucky with the bag.

At 20:44 Blogger DataGoddess said...

I hope those Delta people soon learn to behave as well as the Northwest people do. I fear that merger, too. Hopefully they will learn to fear you, soon.

Nice to have your computer back, and recovering your address book rocks. Do you have a good backup system in place to use once you get it set back up?

At 20:44 Anonymous AussieGal said...

Here in Australia we say 'pissed off' for angry, as opposed to 'pissed' which is just used for 'drunk'...
:-)

At 20:49 Blogger One Sock Short said...

That's a rare blessing. Such disasters usually happen three weeks after the warranty runs out. Guess the universe is smarter than Delta when it comes to pissing off PAs.

Maybe by Wednesday, I'll have my cool, new, not-me glasses. Maybe I'll even take a picture. Hang on, that was maybe.

Delta, fear this woman.

At 20:54 Anonymous Jen T said...

I pity the fool that does not yield to your will with swift and alacritous yielding!

At 20:57 Blogger Phiala said...

Delta WILL fear you! They just require a bit of training. There has been a rousing game on Twitter of "What was in Neil's bag?" Unfortunately the computer doesn't seem to want to let you all see the lovely answers!

At 20:57 Blogger Bridget said...

You go, FabLo.

At 21:08 Blogger AletaMay said...

Delta will know the Wrath of Q and all will be made right again.

At 21:09 Anonymous Kate said...

Fear the Mistress Assistant! Delta Agent should be quaking in fashionable shoes. Ridiculous!

Happy computer returning.

Happy hair returning.

Many good laughs to be found on twitter at #WhatWasInNeil'sBag? The search will find #WhatWasInNeil which I also find amusing.

Better days await!

At 21:23 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

I don't know how to play this Twitter game? Can someone help? I'd love to see it. Not sure it's fair tho, as I KNOW what was in the bag. I packed it.

At 21:29 Anonymous Kate said...

Go to twitter - search #WhatWasInNeil'sBag? or if it doesn't let you search the full tag then use WhatWasInNeil. A panoply of suggestions... Have fun and smile. Game on

At 21:31 Anonymous Wendy Withers said...

I hope you enjoy your new-old purple hair. My favorite hair is when it's purple. I'm up for a new job, and if I get it, I'll probably go back to purple or pink. I've had boring hair I don't like for two or three years now. It depresses me.

There should be a secret society of responsible, professional people with purple hair.

At 21:32 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just post a silly answer with hash tag #WhatWasInNeil'sBag?
But don't cheat. You must keep the mystique alive.

Search WhatWasInNeil see other guesses.

Best,
Billy

At 21:33 Blogger Beez said...

Break their will Q, and if you can't then break their knees.

Okay, maybe that was overkill, but just a leetle.

At 21:34 Blogger Jess said...

Go Q! Bring them Wrath on swift and terrible wings! Descend upon the Customer Service desk in dread glory, eyes aflame! Smite them! Make them pay. RAAR! \o/

My mother would just say Demand Satisfaction, but I think my version's more exciting.

At 21:34 Blogger Phiala said...

Or, for the lazy.

At 21:38 Blogger Jess said...

O ticky.

At 21:51 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

I just want the darn BAG back. They knew it was there. They knew where the plane was going. ALl they had to do was get Baggage Dude to go on and GET THE THING when they unloaded the plane.

I wlil try this search....

At 22:09 Blogger vampi said...

i'm sure there will be $10 baggage search fee...lol

poor airline people have no idea about the princess of no and the terror that waits them. i assume boss was able to procure some replacement clothes for the rest of his tour?

At 22:11 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Vampi, I am too savvy to fall for that one. Who says it was clothes in the bag?

At 22:14 Blogger dabbler said...

Good luck with Delta, Fablo!

Just came home from the third graduation party. Most magnificent fireworks I've seen in years, in the backyard of a beautifully restored house, fully catered, pool with flagstone surround and a five foot cast iron chicken.

Mini dachshund and black lab, as well, who hated the fireworks.

Not your average party....

We are having a potluck picnic at the beginning of August, to celebrate DDs graduation,and DHs seventh annual 50th birthday.
Any fiends around Philly at that point are welcome...(but don't expect catering and fireworks...just food, pool and fun.)

At 22:37 Blogger Lexocat said...

Your Delta story is, alas, in keeping with every single experience I have had with them until I finally made the decision never to fly them again (maybe 10 years ago or so).

We started calling them the airline that offers service with a sneer. Because they did.

Good luck.

At 23:15 Blogger Chantrelle said...

I feel sorry for the airline folks who have to deal w/ you!!

I thought true blood started tonight but it's next week...bugger.

At 23:28 Blogger ariandalen said...

W00T! Awesome that Dr. Wicked was able to recover the Address Book! Nice that he was able to recover the photos, too, but I remember how much you dreaded having to rebuild the Address Book from scratch.

Delta Airlines knows not what it has wrought. The Wrath of Q will make Khan's wrath look like a minor temper tantrum.

At 23:33 Blogger vampi said...

hahaha. i wasn't even thinking of that ms fabulous. you are a riot.

shall i say, i hope boss wasn't stranded with irreplaceable < insert mysterious items here> flying first class without him. i know how disconcerting that is.

At 23:41 Blogger ariandalen said...

Hi, DG, AussiGal, and Jen T! Welcome to Fiendom! Look around and I'm sure you'll find the same lovely white jacket with buckles that the rest of us wear for each of you. You will also find supplies for personalizing your jacket. :)


::sniff::
::sniff sniff::
::sniff sniff sniff::
::SSSNNNIIIFFFFFF:
Hmmmm...
Spicy.
Yeeesss. SpIcY.



MWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

At 00:18 Blogger spacedlaw said...

How amazing that your computer should break BEFORE the end of the warranty. Unheard of!

Silly airlines. Sigh. But I am SURE they'll soon made to know the errors in their ways.

In other news, today is starting off as a bad day for me. Let's hope it is only today and not the full week.

At 00:29 Blogger Na said...

Nat, may your week improve, dramatically and immediately.

Going to the airport? Sounds like a serious level up from calling people. Do the friendlier tones get left at home? Or is it honeyed tones laced with arsenic at this point?

To bed, perchance to sleep well. Cheers, all.

At 00:54 Blogger Dragonsally said...

Nat, I hope your day gets better.
So, when I get to the States I won't fly with Delta...and Hello AG - weee, another Aussie to play with. Together we can confuse the gang with our own slang.

My niece and her dogs have just left after a hilarious visit. Dogs everywhere. Danielle and I sat down and had a Bones marathon, while dogs circled and claimed laps.

At 02:04 Blogger vampi said...

so sorry nat. i hope your day turns around.

honey laced with arsenic sounds like a great song title.

At 03:12 Anonymous kali_licious said...

Those Delta folks are in for a world of hurt if you gotta go in there. (They just don't know it yet;)

The address book has been saved, that must be a great relief. And the pictures are like an extra bonus.:)

At 03:40 Blogger Marjorie said...

What Aussie Girl says goes for us brits, too - Pissed Off = angry, Pissed = Drunk.

I could almost find it in me to pity the airline, to have brought down upon themselves the Wrath of Quiche, in person.. (But only almost)

meanwhile, I hope the game amused you.. I don't think that knowledge of what was in it should stop you playing (after all, who knows what might have been added by Boss after you let him out of your sight?)

glad to hear the computer is coming hoe - Yay fro things being under warrenty, and for Dr Wicked's address-book-recovery services.

At 03:49 Blogger vampi said...

for those needing a laff, would these qualify as $#!^ kickers?

At 05:37 Blogger Dan Guy said...

I'm pretty sure that Delta is run by the bees.

At 05:43 Blogger vampi said...

oh no! the beepocolypse has started!

At 06:07 Blogger louisa said...

Morning all, I hope we do get to hear the details of Gigs Rocking most excellently and The Amazing Phyllis, and of course the draping of the Delta entrails around the airport. Take out your Bad Hair Angst on them.

Siri, blog is posted, though in need of things like font adjustment which will happen at a time when there aren't stacks of books calling out to me. I don't claim credit, it was written by a book-mad friend, but still please do feel free to leave comments.

At 08:05 Blogger louisa said...

Can I ask for thoughts for my cousin's little girl who is at this moment being wheeled into surgery to have her spine fixed? She's the one I mentioned a little while ago who does horse riding therapy, eight years old, so very little for such very huge surgery. Thanks fiends.

At 08:13 Blogger spacedlaw said...

Of course! Healing thoughts and support to the little one. And to Dan's own broken crowd.
Fingers and toes crossed.

At 08:17 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Healing thoughts for the little one from here too.

At 08:34 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Nat - Hope your day is already improving. And that today has already used up all the bad for the week.

At 08:36 Blogger spacedlaw said...

So far (touch wood, iron or whatever) it seems to be behaving.
Maybe I managed to shame it into submission?

At 09:01 Blogger Emma said...

Sounds like you and Eugene Mirman (From Flight of the Conchords) have a lot in common.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/delta-skymiles/948182-flight-conchords-eugene-mirman-delta.html

At 09:01 Blogger Marjorie said...

Louisa, hope your cousin's op. goes well - a big thing at any age..

At 09:01 Blogger louisa said...

Thanks Nat & OSS. Glad your day's been behaving, mine's been running wild, how is it 3pm already????

::hands coffee/tea to those in waking-up time zones::

At 09:01 Anonymous Tom said...

You know that UK people also use the term to mean angry, right?

At 09:03 Blogger louisa said...

Thanks Marj. You're in this time zone, are you responsible for it being mid-afternoon?

At 09:07 Blogger Christopher said...

I will have to ask for advice if it actually produces a bag. My airline experiences have been less than satisfying.

At 09:09 Blogger Marjorie said...

Um (looks guiltily from side to side) That depends - is it a *good* thing that it is mid-afternoon?

At 09:13 Blogger Deezle said...

I'll be sitting in the front row tonight at Luminato in Toronto, listening to Boss man in his rumpled, recycled outfit. Shall I pick up a fresh black shirt to dangle in front of him? ;)

At 09:20 Blogger louisa said...

No, it's not a good thing, I've not a child in the house washed! Or something. Wait, I've not a book in the shop shelved. Yes that works better. And I so need tea. If it's not you, then I'm blaming the bees and their evil manipulations of time.

At 09:22 Blogger Marjorie said...

In that case, no, I'm not responsible. it was the bees. The bees, I say.

At 09:31 Blogger louisa said...

They're tricksy those little buzzers, temp you with their oh so sweet 'n' delicious honey and then knock you sideways with their clock-altering majiks

At 09:46 Blogger RuTemple said...

Consider and forget billing them for your time; suggest a Folksong of Dire Satire, like unto Tom Paxton's "Thank you, Republic Airlines" which did finally cough up the insurance money on the guitar they smashed, and whose chorus I can still sing... alas, they rolled up into NW Airlines nearly 3 decades ago.

What, pray tell, do they imagine you or anyone going down to the MSP airport will accomplish in getting them to look for a bag they've already flown onward to Elsewhere? Will they proffer the local Lost and Found box?

We look forward to installments of you giving them the Wrath of Quiche, O Fabulous Lorraine!

And may the bag come home, intact.

At 10:10 Blogger Precision Grace said...

I figured "missing garment bag" sort of implied it contained clothes - or was that a clever ruse all along?

What you should have said to them was this: Do you REALLY want me to come over there? - in calm, yet very menacing tone

PS this is surely the case for not sending writers on travel by themselves as they are liable to forget their bags from the overhead compartments



Good vibes to the little girl Louisa - hope all goes well.

At 10:37 Blogger Craig Steffen said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

At 10:48 Blogger Craig Steffen said...

Disguised as a mild-mannered personal assistant and horse enthusiast, no one suspects her other identity. She will quietly enter the Delta Airlines luggage center, politely ask for the bag in question.

If the answer is not "yes ma'am, right away", a swirl of purple hair, a blast of John Williams in a major key and the Tiara of the Mistress Of NO will be revealed in all her splendor. And those who are wise will cower before her, and those who won't will have remarkably short lifespans.

At 11:11 Anonymous Anonymous said...

good luck taking a chunk out of delta. i've heard nothing but bad things about them (i'm in canada, so i usually take air canada or westjet). they took my in-laws on a 2 day trip to get from l.a. to calgary. one of the flights took them half an hour away from where they began. lame!

At 11:19 Blogger hope said...

Hurray for getting your computer back without an huge repair bill, Lorraine. Boo on the missing luggage, though.

Louisa--Delta entrails, ewww (and hee)! And very very many a lot of healing thoughts, prayers, good vibes and green light to your little horse rider!!!

I would just like to say that moving is awful and I hate it with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns going nova. Thank you.

At 11:31 Blogger Fluffy said...

Oh, Hope, I'm with you on the subject of moving. And Christopher - Death of Rats!! Cool!

Louisa - good thoughts winging their way outward. And I think bubblewrap is a very good idea for Dan's offspring - at least until the stitches are out!

My offspring has been on le school trip to D.C. since Saturday at stupid o'clock. The spouse and I went to see UP (loved it,) and had an extended date weekend with some yard work thrown in. It was nice to just do stuff together.

It's sad to see the airlines decline. I remember when Delta was the NICE airline. That dates me, for sure.

I'm thinking about getting dressed and watering some plants. We partied a little too hard last night - can't even remember the last time that happened (well, I wouldn't, would I?)

At 11:52 Blogger Chantrelle said...

love the delta ranting! Sad and true but funny!

Searching house for lost ABC game cards. Well, searching and taking a break to read and post here...shhhh.

At 11:56 Blogger louisa said...

A tweet from Helen's mom says they're halfway through the surgery (yes, they did start five hours ago) and that all is well so far. Thanks all for your thoughts.

No child has ever survived before with her combination of complications, no-one was sure she'd make it past a year, then four, now eight. Her papa is a piano tuner and looks after a whole lot of church pianos/organs in the general central PA region and as a result little Helen is on a whole lot of prayer lists. I'm not religious but there's not a shadow of doubt in my mind that all those prayers have done their part in keeping her with us.

At 11:58 Blogger artsyleah said...

Delta can be quite ridiculous. I've had to put the fear of a God into them more than once. They shouldn't be giving you ANY grief. Lost bags are common and they are supposed to deliver it ANYWHERE you ask them to. It's easier for me, living in Atlanta and all lost bags magically gathering here, but I'm really sorry you're having trouble with them. I'd offer to yell at them for you but I'm not sure they'd listen as I'm not directly involved. I truly hope this gets better for you and soon.

At 12:08 Blogger hope said...

Could a fiend show me how to get my photo to show up on my post? I am kittiesrnice@gmail.com if you don't want to take up comment space with it. Thanks!

At 12:11 Blogger Ani said...

Boss bag missing = not good.

Quiche treated shoddily by airline = tragedy.

So *now* can Boss misuse his power and tell all his minions to smite Delta? There's over half a million of us on twitter...

Of course, Mistress, if YOU just give us the word...

At 12:18 Blogger Fluffy said...

Hope, if you have your photos on an image hosting service you just copy the URL listed with the photo and paste it on your profile where it asks for the photo address.

I keep the ones I post online on Photobucket, which is free and has been reliable for me. They also have some very cool editing tools.

At 12:19 Blogger Beez said...

Prayers and best wishes for your cousin Louisa. I hope all goes well.

I'm waiting to hear that the NW-Delta merger is off because Delta suddenly vanished in a rumble of thunder and a flash of fire.

At 12:59 Blogger Marjorie said...

Beez, I love that idea (although I guess Q should not call down fire & brimstone on them until *after* she retireves Boss's bag...

At 13:09 Blogger AletaMay said...

Strong good thoughts for Louisa's Helen.

At 13:10 Blogger hope said...

Hurray for Helen! and if there's going to be airline smiting, I really hope to see at least some of it on youtube.

Thanks for the advice, fluffy!

At 13:21 Blogger EmilyLady said...

Library computer showing half the post (not even, really) again, but I get that it has to do with rock and hair and something about NW. Speaking of the latter, I booked my flight, I am all set ...

At 13:28 Blogger Marjorie said...

That's a big cat, Hope!

At 13:46 Blogger hope said...

Marjorie, isn't he? He lives next door to my soon-to-be-ex-apartment. His name is Lucky, and he has the sweetest slightly-crossed blue eyes and a tiny "meep" of a voice. He's pretty much the only thing I'll miss about living there.

At 13:53 Blogger Fluffy said...

Beez, I like that image, but I think Marjorie has a point about the bag.

And I was going to comment on Hope's neighbor, too. He's almost as big as you are! Good upper-body workout, picking that big boy up...

At 13:54 Blogger Fluffy said...

Oh, and Emily, email me yer flight info! Woot! on getting tickets!!!

At 13:59 Blogger dabbler said...

Louisa,
No doubt at all that prayer works...whether ya call it prayer, or energy, or just good thoughts...

And many of them for Helen and her folks, from me....

At 14:06 Blogger dabbler said...

Fablo, how are you at smiting insurance companies? I just spent two hours calling a list of psychiatrists provided by the insurance company of one of my patients....of 25 calls, TWO of the names provided actually took her insurance, would see her if she was in therapy with me (rather than an in-house therapist) and might have appointments available. No wonder she asked for my help finding someone!

Note : Actually there were three...the third was the fellow she's been seeing, who among other things, medicated her with a med to which she developed a potentially life threatening allergic reaction, and DIDN'T TAKE HER OFF IT. She weaned herself off.


This is not healthcare, it's Russian roulette. And this is with insurance. Need to go break something now.

At 14:38 Blogger Fluffy said...

No, it's worse than Russian roulette if the Dr. kept her on meds that were dangerous! Maybe we can blow up some weeds. Boom! (That was on the 'Pickles' comic strip this week.)

At 14:49 Blogger EmilyLady said...

I will, Bobbee!! Thank you so much for guardianing me.

At 14:51 Blogger EmilyLady said...

(I know it's not really a word; it's a good word nevertheless.)

At 15:02 Blogger Unknown said...

One day everyone will learn that annoying someones PA is extremely hazardous to their health. Especially a PA that becomes the Mistress of No, complete with tiara.

At 15:30 Blogger Uisge said...

Good thoughts for the little one.

Good job with the threatening, too. (maybe try singing the rat song at them).

At 15:54 Blogger Gerard Tiberius said...

Well I would be scared.

At 16:00 Blogger Precision Grace said...

hope, is that a Lion you're cradling on that pic?!?!?

At 16:18 Blogger Marjorie said...

Bedtime now. I shall hope to wake in the morning to a new post "How I triumphantly recovered Boss's bag from airline and caused them to deliver it to him with gold plated apologies "...

G'Night.

At 16:19 Blogger Ani said...

Sending strong healing thoughts for Louisa's Helen!

At 17:27 Blogger ariandalen said...

Greetings and Well Come, Emma, Tom, Christopher, Deezle, RuTemple, underworldthing, Bellatrix, and Gerard Tiberius! I salute you for coming into the light as a Fiend! Each Fiend owns a lovely white jacket with plenty of buckles. You should have an easy time finding one for yourself as we keep plenty on hand. You will also find supplies for personalizing your jacket. :)

::sniff::
::SSSSSNNNNNIIIIIFFFFFFFFFF::
Yes, YES, YES!

SPICY!!!


MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

At 17:32 Blogger ariandalen said...

Here's to Louisa's little Helen coming through the surgery with flying colors, and a swift recovery!

Dan, I hope you and your wife are doing okay with two of four little ones hurt. I'm sure it was almost as bad for the two of you, if not worse emotionally, than it was for Xander and Molly. Hope this week is much, much better!

At 18:03 Blogger Dragonsally said...

Wow, Hope, he is ginormous!

Louisa sending lots of healing thoughts and love to Helen.

Welcome new Fiends.

I'm off to deliver Tysie's sample of, ah, poop to the vet!

At 18:15 Blogger One Sock Short said...

This link has it all. Fantasy, cats, and Australia.

At 19:31 Blogger One Sock Short said...

So very tired, and down, and unable to think. This state has gone on for so long. It's a huge part of being behind on everything, which makes it hard to catch up, which just adds to all of the above. Classic vicious circle.

Don't expect anyone to solve it. Just thought I'd say it outright, rather than talking around it. Maybe that will help deal with it. Never found that to work before. But you never know. Now before I delete it all...

At 19:33 Blogger Phiala said...

OSS, that sucks. And I know whereof I speak.

At 19:59 Blogger vampi said...

*snugs* OSS

sometimes i have to remind myself i can only do so much in 1 day. focus on some bit of hte mountain and once i get thatr done, the rest seems somewhat more manageable/

it is a scary depressing cycle though. good luck.

At 20:03 Blogger Na said...

{{{OSS}}} (I've been in the same place, most of the past two months.)

At 20:07 Blogger Dragonsally said...

More hugs for OSS. Totally know that place.

At 20:14 Blogger Siri said...

OSS - after finding and sharing that link, you can't feel down - Fiends won't let you - those are some of the most beautiful, caring, restful, blah blah blah (all you good writers fill in those adjectives) illustrations I've ever seen. Wherever did you come across that?

And, know that the Fiends understand how you feel, and will send you good vibes and squnches and hugs till you feel a bit more human. This is the right place to be.

At 20:18 Blogger Siri said...

Louisa - like your blog, and am sending further healing for your little cousin. She should be well out of recovery by now, and I hope all goes well with her, the family, and her caregivers.

At 20:21 Blogger Siri said...

And one last thing. Today is the 30th anniversary of the day I started working for my employer. I've worked there more than half my life.

There's something to be said for responsibility and stability.

There's also something to be said for the road not taken.

At 20:29 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Don't have the bag YET but tomorrow I have some both a Secret Plan got from the Delta Agent and minions going to both Chicago and New York Airports.

My cleaning person did not come tonight and my floor room, which now has a futon couch frame thing was so gross I decided to clean it myself which took two hours, (I'm REALLY not very good at cleaning) but now I can sit here and answer the mail that came in today while I was at the airport.

OSS, there is no caught up, or done. Doesn't happen, if that is the way your life is, you have to accept it and figure out how to work with it.

Trust me on this one.

(that didn't come out half as supportive as I meant it)

At 20:49 Blogger Siri said...

True that, Lorraine - 'if that is the way your life is, you have to accept it and figure out how to work with it.'

That is how I got to where I am, because I worked with what I had. There are lots of things I wish I had, but they didn't happen, and I've not done too badly - I have family, and friends and health and fiends and a place to lay my heady down (which is going to happen soon). So, work it, fiends; work it.

At 20:56 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Thanks, fiends. And yes, Lorraine, that counts as supportive. If I could just rub two thoughts together on more than a few occasions...

And yes, learn to let go of *some things*.

For tonight, I'll try for an early night instead, and hope for sleep.

Siri - glad you liked the biblioporn, er...BibliOdyssey, site. That blog is always good for beautiful and fascinating images, on nearly every subject imaginable. Lots of natural history illustrations, early science texts (think alchemy), even textile arts. Been meaning to send it to the fiends for some time now, and this post just begged for it.

Louisa - continued healing thoughts for your cousin's little girl.

At 22:24 Blogger Fluffy said...

Oooh, maybe we should check ebay to see if "Neil Gaiman's Actual Clothes" are for sale...

At 22:29 Blogger AletaMay said...

Oh Fluffy. That is only funny because it is so true.

OSS. Yeah. Me too. Lorraine is right (of course) but sometimes that is easier said than done. The whole idea of "done" and of "caught up" is really interesting to me. I think believing that those states f being exist has tripped me up from time to time. Remembering that it is only imaginary or at the most very, very temporary is good.

:ponders life:

At 22:42 Blogger ariandalen said...

What everybody else has said, OSS. Don't focus on getting over the mountain, focus on the trail through the foothills, the trail through the trees, how you'll get past that climb on the right, and before you realize it, you'll be at the summit and ready to face the next challenge.

Get out in the sunshine every day. Get out in natural light, even if it's cloudy. Use full spectrum light bulbs wherever you can. It really does make a difference. I, too, know what I'm talking about.

A friend of mine once gave me a small plaque as a Christmas present when I was in college. On it was a quote by Helen Keller, "Turn your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow."

At 03:47 Blogger Marjorie said...

{{{OSS}}} I, too, know that feeling well - and that things are never 'done' or completed - sometimes all you can do is take a little bit of the whole and finish that - persoanlly, i find it helpful to have a short, realistic list (i.e. not a list of All-the-stuff-I-am-behind-on, but a list of the-1-3-things-I-can-do-today) for me, it makes it seem more manageable and then when I cross something off the list it feels as though I have really acheived something. May not work for eveyone, of course...

Either way, I hope the early night was good, and restful.

Louisa, hope that news for Helen continues to be good.

Fluffy - after the #whatWasInNeil'sBag twitter game I no longer belive that the bag had anything as dull as mere clothes in it. .

At 04:00 Blogger louisa said...

Morning all, so lovely to wake to all those good wishes for Helen - she's out of surgery and into the ICU, her mom says "She looks better than we expected." Thank you all for your part in that.

The loveliness was balanced by getting porridge in my hair, no easy achievement let me tell you! Oats are good for soft skin, maybe I'll have soft hair now, once the lumpiness has been washed out. Wishing you all a satisfying, lumpy-free day.

At 04:19 Blogger spacedlaw said...

You fell asleep in your bowl of porridge? How did you manage that?

Glad to know that the little one is out. When will they know for sure about the results of the operation?

At 04:38 Blogger louisa said...

Oh I was awake at the time, it took a certain level of consciousness to manoeuvre the porridge-laden spoon with such skill and panache.

It'll probably take a while 'til she's out of the ICU and longer again 'til they're able to determine if the surgery was successful. She's unable to communicate through normal channels to let them know "it hurts here" or whatever, making it that bit more tricky. Her smile however speaks volumes, it'd turn the coldest heart to mush.

At 05:01 Blogger Marjorie said...

Did y'all see that the bathTub interview (Including special Thanks to our very own FabLo, in the credits) is up over on YouTube?

Most entertaining...

At 05:12 Blogger Dragonsally said...

That was hilarious. Worth watching many times

At 08:17 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Louisa - Good to hear that Helen is doing well so far. Continued good wishes for a speedy recovery and a successful outcome.

Lorraine - Good luck with the Secret Plan. Since it was formed with the help of an insider, it should be extra powerful.

And thanks again for all the support. Didn't actually sleep well. Can't seem to turn the brain on completely during the day, but can't turn it off completely at night. And the hamster wheel of night thoughts is never conducive to rest.

But I have a plan too. I will put all efforts today into the one project I've been avoiding the most, and has the nearest deadline. To that end, I have taken the unprecedented step of asking my catalogers to hold questions till tomorrow if they can. Also, to ignore any sounds of a head banging on a keyboard, unless they are followed by the sound of a body falling to the floor.

Best of days to all.

At 09:05 Blogger Phiala said...

OSS, be brave!

My strategy for tacking intractable problems, for what it's worth:

1. Get out a pen and paper.
2. Title at top: To-Do List
3. Add first item: make to-do list. (DON'T skip this step!)
4. Break the horrid worrisome task into its smallest possible component pieces. I'm serious - if the very first step is "Move books from floor to desk" then write that down. Don't think big, think small. Don't ever put something down like, "Do the research for this paper". The list should all be easily-achievable tasks, like "Look for relevant quotes in chapter 2 of this book".
5. Continue until you've made a decent list.
6. Cross off the first item, since you've now done it. See? You've already accomplished your first task of the day, which is getting organized.

If it's a really awful task, the kind that keeps you up at night and you can't bear to even think about, you might need to break it into even tinier tasks, with time limits. This is a good trick too. Something like "Spend 10 minutes listing all the files for the project" or whatever. Put a small time limit on it - not what it will take to finish the project, but enough to make a start. You can do anything for 10 minutes, right? Set a timer, and when it goes off stand up, stretch, get a drink of water, then tackle the next 10-minute chunk. (I would say coffee, but overuse of this trick can lead to excessive caffeination!)

If it's a really, REALLY overwhelming project, make sure also to put things on your to-do list that are easy. "Take tea break", "Go to lunch", "Water plants" - whatever. In extra-bad cases, I even add a few things I've already done, just so there can be some crossed-off items on the page (besides the crucial #1): "Come to work", perhaps.

Whew, what a long comment. Must be all that lack-of-hair...

At 09:33 Blogger Jane said...

OSS - what Phiala said - what a great way to organize your thinking and calm yourself. Anything can be done if you break it down into enough manageable pieces.

And as far as never getting everything done and never being caught up, it seems like the more fun and meaningful jobs have that. I remember asking, how do I know when to go home (I was new at the job) - the office hours were 8-5, but the actual hours were all over the place. I finally learned to juggle it all, but also came to know that never catching up was part of the territory.

Good luck with the minutes.

At 10:07 Blogger vampi said...

louisa, glad to hear she is out of surgery. sending more good and healing thoughts her way.


that interview was hilarious. i love the hand check towards the end. really, they were both cute before, now it's like a cuteness tidal wave. lol.

can't wait to her about garment bag capture success. fingers still crossed.

At 10:56 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Found 'em. BOTH bag and hat!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just have to say, I am good. REALLY good.

Full story up later today!

At 10:57 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Yes. Yes you are.

At 11:23 Blogger Fluffy said...

Sarah is Amazing. She is teh genius. I copied her instructions and saved them in a document I'm going to print for my daughter and post for myself by my computer. OSS, I **think** some of us over-think things and get overwhelmed by the magnitude of what needs to be done.

And we all knew Lorraine is Amazing. A WIN on The Hat and Bag Rescue Mission.

Daughter is coming home tonight so today is my last chance for BLTs for dinner. She doesn't eat pork so I keep it out of the house because she likes bacon as much as I do.

Sending warmer weather wishes to Sally - is it cold today? My other friends down under are freezing. I know that Oz is big, though, so maybe it's not so bad in SallyVille.

I obviously have not so much to say so I'll sign off.

At 11:43 Blogger Chantrelle said...

Day 2 of no school.

Library and swim class which is our normal tuesday routine but w/out school on MWF, it seems more daunting.

And ROCK OUT ms. Q. I knew you'd recover the grail...i mean garment bag.

At 11:44 Blogger hope said...

Lorraine, HURRAY!! You are the bestest; a hat too?!

P. Grace, Lucky is a regular domestic cat, albeit the most giant cat in the world.

OSS, so sorry for your ongoing energy-suck!

Louisa, continued good wishes to Helen.

Marjorie, the bathtub interview was hilarious, thanks for the link.

I am trying not to be overwhelmed by moving, and my amazingly fabulous boss has given me Wednesday through Monday off, that should help a lot. I love him so (my boss), and yet I cannot show my love with baked goods, as he is diabetic. It's a problem. :)

At 11:47 Blogger Chantrelle said...

Got a great email for foodporn, had to share. It had an photo attached of a white chocolate truffle (i'm guessing)...

I found your page through a german magazine, called P.M.. Nice idea. The photos are very tasty. Maybe you need a photo of a Bailey's Truffle. This one is made of me.

Slight translation problem perhaps?

At 11:55 Blogger hope said...

Chantrelle, I think dark chocolate truffles with pecans in them are made of me, so there you go. Well, some days the truffle is wrapped in barbed wire and guarded by Komodo dragons, which is even more made of me.

At 11:56 Blogger Chantrelle said...

That can be my FoodPorn barbara-walters-tree question:

"If you were a truffle, what kind of truffle would you be?"

Telling as to whether people went chocolate or mushroom. Adding this to my list of interview questions :)

At 12:03 Blogger spacedlaw said...

White truffle! (you either love them or hate them)

At 12:21 Blogger Phiala said...

There.

Both things that Must Be Done are finished. Now back to regular work.

Oh, and... nobody commented on my subtle hint earlier, but now the camera batteries are charged and I can demonstrate.

At 12:42 Blogger One Sock Short said...

Oh, I noticed the hint, but thought I'd try not to hound you for pics just yet ;-) If another day or two had passed, well then...

Very good cut!

That's about the length I go for in my annual cut. Then let it grow out for another year. Yes, I am that lazy about my hair--only one salon visit per year.

Back to the grindstone...

At 12:45 Blogger Marjorie said...

Phiala, that is major hair-change! How do you like it so far?? It's nice, I think (although I feel you should add the blue streakback in!)

At 12:47 Blogger louisa said...

Lovely new locks! And good lord woman you have blue eyes!

mmmmmm Bailey's truffles....... off home now to have chocolate, I mean food, yes that's it, healthy balanced meal, lots of fresh greens

At 12:53 Blogger Phiala said...

It's hard to be certain until I wash it and (don't) style it myself, but I think I like it. It is certainly much lighter! It bumps the back of my neck and feels very odd.

I will put the streaks back in - they're just clip-ins - but I must shorten them first. They're cheap clip-ins, so no problem there.

Louisa, I never knew that getting a haircut would make my eyes look bluer. :)

At 12:53 Blogger Phiala said...

And I keep forgetting to include this: catflexing.

At 13:10 Blogger hope said...

Phiala, I noticed your hint but did not want to nag. i was at first gollywhompered by your eyes, and then I saw the cute hair! Does it feel summery?

At 13:20 Blogger vampi said...

i'm totally a chocolate truffle with a raspberry center.

hurrah for bag and hat retrieval!

awesome new hair Phiala. love the new daring fiendish dos that are popping up all over.

my uterous has missed hte memo and i am a week behind. ugh! and it's a grey miserable day here. this whole rain in june thing is so odd here.

bailey's truffles..it's People!!!!

oss, was that you wiht the new specs? will we get pics soon? i love new glasses and i'm pissed i waited to long to make myappointmment so i won't have new ones for the end of june. silly me.

At 13:50 Blogger Na said...

Louisa, glad to hear that your Helen is doing as well as she is. I was sending good thoughts (just not in 'Net form). Will continue. (Per discussion of the real benefit of such efforts, my rationale has become, it absolutely cannot hurt to pray or "send good thoughts" or energy etc, for all we know and what many believe is that it does help, and it builds community.)

Phiala, cute new 'do! Being late to the commenting, didn't have time to hint at the hint before hint was resolved thru revelation.

No idea if what I just typed was sense. I have been working gangbusters to wrap up an assignment, very technical and jargony, so I can get paid and move on to other things (and not have to look at the current one anymore). And my non-work writing is getting quirky and lyrical and experimental.

I feel one sock short of a fountain pen.

I am duly impressed, FabLo, at your powers! Am curious to hear the rest of the story.

I know there's more I wanted to comment, but it all comes down to, what a wicked cool gang of folk are fiends*.

* still mentally including Q when I use fiends here

At 14:33 Blogger Beez said...

Phiala, what a change. It's beautiful but it must feel weird at first.

Congratulations Q. the Princess of No is once again the Queen of YES!!!!!

Could you share some hints or apply your powers to the bank/seller of my new place so we can close already?!

At 15:50 Blogger One Sock Short said...

vampi - I am indeed getting new glasses, but they're not ready yet. I should get them sometime this week. I just hope I like them once I can actually see myself in them.

The minutes progress slower than molasses in January.

At 16:49 Blogger Dragonsally said...

Fluffy, yes, its been fracking freezing. Sounds like it snowed last night in all sorts of places. Max of 11C yesterday and 10C forecast today. I know it doesn't sound bad for those of you who live in cold places -but its unusual for us. The best bit though is we have had lots of drenching rain.

At 16:56 Blogger Dragonsally said...

Phiala, I love the shorter hair. And yes, it has made your eyes more blue.

Went to get my cup of tea -who knew you had to add water for it to brew?

FabLo - The Mistress of No and The Find. Go Girl.

Right. Tea. Drink.

At 17:38 Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

New Post "The Ballad of the Garment Bag" is UP!

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