4:54 pm - Saturday, May. 17, 2003
Strep throat and jobs and trucks
Last night I was driving home, and at my exit was The longest line of police cars and tow trucks that you have ever seen. Very shiny, with lots of pretty lights. The hullabaloo was over a semi that had gone and tipped over in the intersection. My first thought was Wow. My second thought was that the poor trucker must have had the worst feeling in his stomach when the whole thing started to go... you know how your belly feels like it's sliding around when you fall?...and on top of that, the icky feeling you get when you know things have suddenly gone very very very very bad? And he would have had both at the same time.

ASIDE:

So examples of that very bad feeling: Realizing you really have lost your child. Realizing you left the water running in your friend's house and it's raining on the basement she's remodeling. Realizing a vehicle is about to hit you. It's amazing the effect these realizations have.

EEEK:

And then I thought about the cost of having all those wreckers there, and the lost cargo (perhaps), and the lost transportation time. It didn't look like anyone got hurt, but I bet the driver wishes he's dead afore it's over.

Last weekend was Mother's day. This is the first Mom day ever that there was somebody to notice it for me. Simon got me some pretty mums that we're going to plant here soon. Monday and Tuesday I don't remember much going on, but Weds I woke up with the yuckiest looking throat... I knew it was probly strep 'cause there were these white patches back there. I haven't had strep since I was a kid, if ever, so I was under the mistaken impression that it just made your throat hurt. Nope. Every joint, I swear even the ones in your ear, hurts. You feel very sick, strangely soon after a day when you felt mostly fine. I thought I'd go see the nurse-doctor after work, but I said to hell with it and left early. It was strep, it's a simple fix, so I was feeling much better the very next day. Stayed home anyway. Thought about milking a third day out of it, but decided we needed the money and went in to work.

Hey! I didn't tell you about the whole job search thing, did I. Well, at first I applied for all these really cool sounding jobs at not-for-profits and educational type places. Bad idea in a recessiony type time. In the middle of all the processes there'd be a grant cut, or a hiring freeze, or whatever. So then I applied at store type places, but no one is leaving their old crappy-type job 'cause they know they can't get another. I was getting pretty low when this temp agency called and said they had a part time gig. Part time is better than no time, so now I work at a small business that makes pregnancy, strep and mono tests. I say work in a loose sense of the word. They really don't need me at all, so I do answer the phone when it rings (it doesn't ring so much) and I pull invoices and file things, but mostly I sit. Calling people is frowned upon. Playing free cell is Right Out. I don't know that they like me reading, but god dammit I've got to do something or I'll fall asleep, and I know that wouldn't go over well either.

The good news is it's not strenuous. It's not long. And I'm good at it. And it pays. That's all good.

I'm still doing laundry.