Listening and hoping for the sound of Teppy laughter. (also wanna see pics!)

It's one of those days that wherever the sun shines is warm and shade is cool and even a hint of breeze is damn chilly. I've been adjusting layers about every five minutes when outside and every hour inside.

I went through about half my wardrobe and culled with mostly extreme prejudice. There is one drawer I admit is purely sentimental and that's okay. But if it's anywhere else that I've sorted, tried on and didn't approve, it's in one of four huge bags in my trunk to be donated to the local battered women's shelter and what is not of use to them, can be sold at their thrift store. I'm extremely unmotivated to finish this task today but maybe tomorrow.

I hope your manipulation works, Tep.

I was supposed to drive back to NJ today, but I wasn't feeling great, so I decided to drive tomorrow instead. Probably a good decision -- I just took a five-hour nap.

Today has been really long. I had a meeting for Thursday/Friday. we have a plan. Hopefully it will go off without a hitch, although I'm worried about one guy's tendancy to wander (and be an asshole, but mostly just wander). We also have our scheduled lunch breaks. Today someone got off the schedule & caught up with a customer and didn't convey that another person should go first and by the time it was figured out everyone realized that the last person getting a dinner break will be taking it an hour before we close.

And someone is leaving, he's the "Apple Specialist" which means he primaroily sells Apple stuff and gets a loaner iPad we're supposed to use for work. It's a full time position and our Apple vendor (who doesn't sell but tells everyone how great Apple is and explains how things work) pulled me aside and said "I really want you to be the new Apple Specialist." I hadn't thought about it, so I went around and told the manager and sales manager, R - whose reaction was "Well of course! that was the plan."

So that's cool. I'm not currently doing a ton of online apple training.

We had the HP rep there who I don't like and the OLD HP rep who got fired for being unethical or something and now working for Intel (I think) and is super creepy. They both kept trying to sell stuff directly to customers and the HP guy keeps leading people to think he works for the store (he doesn't not) and the Intel guy was just being creepy. I don't know why he's allowed in the store.

I have tomorrow off. I may try to go Christmas shopping.

I hope your manipulation works, Tep.

Alas, it has not. The universe must have caught wind of my plan.

Being an Apple Specialist would also allow you to work at an Apple Store too, I expect, askye.

OMG, I have been spending time with my niecephews (ages 5, 10, and 12) and I am back to wondering how parents emerge with any semblance of sanity at the end of it all. So much noise, so many constant demands for the stupidest things, so much whining and wailing, so much lack of personal space. There are spots of cuteness and coolness but those moments are really few and far between.

My niecephews are assholes!

I just, wow, I really don't get it. I am in awe of parents and caretakers. This is not to disparage parents, I just feel more like an awful person and Mr. Burns style inhuman, unfeeling type of thing.

I may come back and delete this momentarily. I'm being a total asshole, the kids probably learned it from watching me.

I have a friend with three boy - under 6. It was the constant demand for attention that would kill me

I think children are fascinating and wonderful creatures, and I enjoy them in small doses. Having to spend a lot of time with them would drive me mad. I'm with you, Nora, I am in awe of people who love and want to be parents and caretakers and teachers. We're not awful, it's just the way we're wired up.

My niecephews are assholes!

Any parent that is honest will tell you their kids are assholes sometimes. Mine are. I am glad Louis CK gave me permission to admit this in public and not feel guilty.

My job as a parent is to get them to *mostly* not be an asshole when they are adults.