Sunday, February 19, 2006

   Whatever....

It's yet another night at work. Yet another boring Sunday night.... *pounds head on desk*

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I wish I had some way of making things go a lot faster and be more entertaining around here. I'm nosing around looking for stuff, and not finding exactly what I want. *sigh*

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I have about a week left with this laptop. It will be going to Maryland for a few months. Hopefully I will have my own laptop before too long!!!

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Hopefully I won't lose the wireless connection again. It went out on me once already and I had to restart the computer. Maybe my new laptop won't make me restart all the time.

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Have a week!

Laters!

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Saturday, February 18, 2006

   My brain is fried!

*singing*
Saturday night in Toledo, Ohio,
I spent a week there one day....

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Umm... sorry about that. I'm at work. I'm mildly bored. I'm considering going offline soon.

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Well, the problem with my brother's car is the Camshaft Position Sensor went bad. Bad thing is, it's part of the distributor and can't just be fixed alone. The whole distributor has to be replaced. He managed to get the part ordered quick enough for it to come in on Friday. However.... the place where the part was ordered sent it back to Omaha!!! Their excuse: "We weren't expecting any parts." So they sent it back and now he's got to wait until Monday for the part to come in. I hope he doesn't have to rely on me for ride to work on Sunday night. Because that would mean having to stay here again.

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Okay... I just had my mind made up by the wireless connection dropping on me. I'm gonna go offline here. Maybe I can get the song I downloaded onto my MP3 player.

Laters!

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Thursday, February 16, 2006

   Rare morning post.

Well, here I sit in the lobby on the computers connected to the super highspeed lines. Woohoo!!! It's 11:40 a.m. and I'm getting hungry. I may have to go eat soon.

I thought I'd get this post out of the way already since I've got around 4 more hours to kill before I have to work.

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I hear you ask: "Kitsune, why are you at the motel four hours before your shift starts?" Well, maybe that's not you asking that, but I heard someone ask that. Hmm...the voices in my head are back?

*ahem*

I actually got here around 6:30 last night. I had to bring my brother in so he could get his car towed to where it needed to be. Then because of potential weather issues, I stayed the night. It's snowing and blowing now. We're supposed to get from 2 to 4 inches. Blah. I'll be here tonight, too, because my brother has to work from 11 pm to 7 am. We haven't heard anything from the car place yet.

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Well, at least there was something on Adult Swim for me to watch last night. I got to see Samurai Champloo for the first time! I like it! I've read the first volume at B&N and enjoyed that. Can't wait to read more!

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Well, my stomach is telling me that it's time to go find something to eat. I'll be back to see if anyone else updated later tonight.

Laters!

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Wednesday, February 15, 2006

   Walmart at half past midnight is a scary place.

I went to Walmart after work last night. Very scary. I had to get something to wear to sleep in, because I had to stay over at the motel last night. My brother's car died on the way to work. I ended up staying because he needed to have someone drive him home in the morning.

Tonight's my night off... but I'm in the motel again. Between my brother needing a ride to work and the weather (snowing!), I had no real choice. So here I am, sitting in the conference room, playing online, hoping for the signal to come back, and contemplating restarting this little beast while watching Cartoon Network!!!

*insert minor intermission here as computer is restarted after saving all the above typing in a Notepad file*

Anyhoo...It's snowing. I'm at the motel. My brother is upstairs in a room sleeping, as he's got to work at 11:00... We're probably gonna be stuck here tomorrow, too. I gotta work. It's gonna still be snowing. *sigh*

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Well, aside from running around trying to figure out where my brother's car needed to be towed to and then going to two different places with it, not a lot happened. We ate at Culver's. Yum. We went to the mall. Whee. We went to Radio Shack!!! Woohoo. Then back to the motel.... and here I sit.

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I think I have officially run out of things to say here... so I'll leave you with pictures of my cat.





Laters!

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Tuesday, February 14, 2006

   Happy Valentine's Day!!

Hope you all are having a nice Valentine's Day. I'm at work again. The restaurant/bar have been pretty busy. Good for them! The only thing that has me concerned is the live entertainment in the bar. The guy just sang a John Cougar Mellenkamp song. YEEK! I just heard someone making noise into the microphone... couldn't understand a thing he said. It was rather garbled.

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Comment on comment: No, Travis, it didn't take a half hour to type that. I guess I wasn't very clear about the half hour. I had a half hour van run in the middle of that post. By the time I returned, I had forgotten what I was going to say.

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Well, other than a box of Belgian chocolates from one of the girls here at work and a little box of candy hearts from my Mom, I didn't get anything spectacular for Valentine's Day. The chocolates are very good. And they're mine!!!

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I think I'm gonna wander off now.

Laters!

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Monday, February 13, 2006

   You can keep my things, they've come to take me home!

Hmm... not much going on here at the motel. I have Peter Gabriel songs running through my head. I listened to most of one of his CDs on the way to work today. That subject line is from Solsbury Hill.... a truly good song.

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Well, it's been about a half hour since I started this post and I've forgotten what I was going to say. So.... I'm gonna shut the beast down.

Laters!

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Sunday, February 12, 2006

Literature night.

Road maps to my soul
Show only the confusion
And not the true path.

Turn left at the sign
That reads "Disappointment lies
Along this long road."

Pay no attention
To the shattered dreams that lie
Abandoned, alone.

Turn back before you
Get lost within the confines
Of my broken soul.

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It's a rare Sunday off from work. I didn't ask for it off, so I was rather surprised to see I wasn't scheduled for today.

It's been one of those lazy sort of days. My excitement was watching the third period of the women's hockey game between the US and Germany. The US won 5 to 0. That's the second shutout for the US. Wow! Team Canada has outscored their opponents 12-0 and 16-0! Guess we know which teams are the strong ones in women's hockey. I also watched some other Olympic coverage this afternoon. Cross country skiing, luge and speed skating. I like the Winter Games!

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As for the poem up top there, it's just something I whipped up at work the other night when given the topic "Road Maps". It turned into a truly odd set of haiku. My soul isn't broken, at least I don't think it is!

Down below is another chapter from my story. I hadn't posted anything for a while, so I thought I would see what was available and there it is. Enjoy.

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Well, I have a little more email to read, so I'll be off now.

Laters!

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Sam Shops & Hikaru Talks

“What should we get for food?” Samantha asked as she and Midori wandered through the market.

Midori said, “Perhaps we should have something made up at the inn for dinner. That would be easier.”

“True. I have no idea what most of this is. But we still need some kind of cake.”

“Why a cake?”

“It’s his birthday. Birthdays have to have birthday cakes. It’s just the way it is.”

“Ah,” Midori said. “Why don’t you cook something from America? That would be special.”

Sam had to stop herself from laughing out loud. “That would not be a good idea. I don’t cook. I burn things.”

“You’re right. That would be bad.” Midori was smiling. “Let’s see what we can find here.”

They continued around the market looking at different food venders until they found a pastry stall. There wasn’t anything quite like the cake that Sam had in mind, but she did find some small cakes that would do.

“Anything else, or shall we place our order with the innkeeper?” Midori asked.

Sam looked around at the various stalls in the market. “Well, I would like to get Hikaru a birthday present,” she said, “but I don’t know what he likes.”

“From what Takeda-san has said, they used to live in a sword arts dojo, but swords have been banned and would be too expensive. He probably has some as it is.”

“What else could I get?” Sam wandered from stall to stall. She stopped and looked at some prints of scenery. “These are pretty, but I don’t think he’d like them.”

“Sam-chan, I don’t think it will matter to him what you get. He probably isn’t expecting anything.”

“I know. I just want to get him something. Something to make him smile. He always seems so sad to me,” Sam said as she passed a pottery vender. Something caught her eye and she looked up at a brightly colored banner waving in the breeze. “I think I found it, Midori.”

Midori looked ahead at the stall where many brightly colored kites were hanging. “Yes, Sam-chan, I agree that would be a perfect gift.”

They looked at the various kites and finally decided on one with a bright red crane on a field of light blue. It looked as if the crane was soaring in a cloudless sky.

Back at the inn, Sam and Midori talked with the innkeeper’s wife about what to have for the meal. When asked about the occasion, Midori answered that the next day was Hikaru’s birthday. The innkeeper’s wife smiled and said, “Ah, yes, I had forgotten that his birthday was coming. Why don’t you have Hikaru-kun and Takeda-sensei come here to eat? The meal could be my treat to Hikaru-kun. He’s always liked my cooking, and it would be good to see him again. I have not seen him since his father’s funeral.”

With Midori’s help, Sam asked, “Are you sure? It won’t be any trouble?”

The innkeeper’s wife smiled and said, “It’s no trouble at all.”

“Arigatô,” Sam exclaimed. “Midori, what about an invitation? We need to send an invitation.”

“Of course, Sam-chan,” Midori said. “I’ll go get some paper and we’ll write one up.” She left and returned with pen and paper, and they soon had an invitation written in both English and Japanese. Midori found a young boy to deliver it to Hikaru. “Well, that’s done. Now it’s time for your lessons,” she said.

Sam sighed, “All right.”
***
“Who was at the door?” Hikaru asked, looking up from his dinner.

Takeda had a puzzled look on his face. “I don’t know,” he said, “but he had a letter for you.”

“A letter?” Hikaru took the note and read. “It’s an invitation. Sam-san and Midori-san are inviting us to dinner at the inn tomorrow evening in honor of my birthday.”

“Really? That’s nice of them,” Takeda said as he sat down to continue his dinner.

Hikaru read the invitation again. He was puzzled by it. “Why would they do that? I didn’t ask them to do anything.” He handed the paper across to his teacher.

Takeda read the invitation. “It’s all you could expect, Hikaru-kun,” he said. “But you should have thought of that before you told Sam-chan that your birthday is tomorrow.” He was smiling as he reached for his tea.

Hikaru was pushing rice around his bowl. “I realize that now,” he said with a sigh, “but I was just answering her question. I didn’t expect her to get so excited about it. It’s just a birthday.”

“Yes, but it’s your fifteenth birthday. Sam-chan thinks it’s something special and wants to do something for you.”

Hikaru’s ears turned pink. “But why? She doesn’t even know me.”

“True, but who can tell? Maybe she’s doing it to be nice, or maybe she wants to get to know you.” Takeda looked over at Hikaru and smiled. “Why are your ears turning pink?”

“They’re not!” Hikaru said as he covered his ears.

Takeda laughed at Hikaru’s reaction. “In any case, I suggest you enjoy yourself tomorrow. Sam-chan is going to a lot of trouble, and it would be rude if you don’t enjoy yourself. And are you going to eat that or just play with it?” He indicated the bowl of half-eaten rice and oden.

“Sorry, I guess I’m just not hungry,” Hikaru said and pushed his bowl away.

Takeda looked at Hikaru. He couldn’t help but worry about the boy. So much had changed in the past few weeks. There was the loss of his father and the discovery that his mother may still be alive. Then the revelation that his mother was a demon, and the changes that were happening because of that.

“What?” Hikaru asked. “Is there something on my face?” He rubbed his nose as if it were dirty.

“No, there’s nothing on your face, Hikaru-kun,” Takeda said with a sigh. “It’s just that I need to know if everything is all right with you. I’m worried about you.”

“Worried? Why?”

Takeda set his own bowl aside and said, “I’m worried because of how you’ve been since the accident at the dojo. You’ve become quick to anger. You don’t sleep anymore, and you eat very little. I don’t want anything to happen to you. Your father would not forgive me if something happened to you.”

Part of Hikaru wanted to lash out and deny all that Takeda said, but another part realized the man was right. “I understand what you mean, sensei,” he said. “It worries me, too. I don’t like the temper, but it’s almost as there is a flame burning within me that lashes out at anything. It actually did that the other day, and it scared me.”

“I don’t know who was more frightened,” Takeda said, “you or I. It was a very unsettling thing to see you burst into flames. But what about the sleeping and eating? What do you have to say about that?”

“I’m just not tired at night. I don’t feel the need to sleep, and in the morning I still don’t feel tired. It’s been that way since the night we moved into this house.”

“And the eating?”

Hikaru avoided Takeda’s gaze.

“Please, Hikaru-kun, this is what worries me most about you. I don’t wish to see you starve. It is not a pleasant way for a person to die.”

Hikaru looked down at his hands. “But I’m not starving, not anymore,” he said quietly. “Normal food doesn’t satisfy my hunger. I eat to be polite, but sometimes that doesn’t even appeal to me. There is something else I need.”

“And what is that?” Takeda feared the worst.

Hikaru said nothing, but stood and went to one of the lanterns. He took off the paper cover and brought the lamp to the table. He sat down, put the burning lamp in front of himself and put his hand into the flame.

“Hikaru-kun, what are you doing? You’ll be burned!” Takeda exclaimed. He reached over to pull the lamp away, but stopped as he saw the flames move around Hikaru’s hand.

Hikaru let the flames dance around his hand until they slowly turned green. He had turned silver at the same time. He held up his hand with the green fire flickering about, then closed it to a fist and drew the flames within. He stared at his clenched fist and said, “It seems that I need fire to keep living now. I discovered this the night I went out.” He looked over at Takeda and continued, “I’m sorry. I wasn’t very nice to you that night. I don’t really know why I was so rude. I shouldn’t have treated you so badly.”

Takeda sighed. “Thank you for finally talking to me. It’s not been easy for me to see you going through so much in such a short time. It’s been almost a month since the accident, hasn’t it?”

Hikaru half smiled. “I haven’t really thought about that. I’ve just been trying to get through each day. I actually had to think about it when Sam-san asked how old I was.”

Takeda smiled as well. “I noticed you had a little trouble with your age. However, it still stands that tomorrow you turn fifteen and Sam-chan wants to make it a special day for you.”

Hikaru groaned. “I’ll be nice. I promise,” he said.

Takeda laughed. “Of course you will, Hikaru-kun,” he said. “Of course you will.” He smiled at that which only he knew at this point. He knew that Hikaru had a crush on Sam-chan, even if Hikaru was unaware of it himself.

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Saturday, February 11, 2006

   I'm jealous.....

...this guy's hair is prettier than mine!

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Well, it's snowing again. My Friday was extremely uneventful. It's still got about a half hour left right now, and nothing is going on. My brother & I usually go to Sioux City on Fridays, but neither of us felt like it today. So... we stayed here at home and yakked at each other.

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I really need to get my arse in gear and do some stuff.... like get caught up on my guestbook, study for the E-commerce test I need to take, review Java programming, get over this slight sinus infection that I have, get a computer of my own so I can do stuff with programs that are beneficial for web design... the list could go on if I let it, but I won't go any farther with this whine.

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Umm... before I left for work yesterday, I finished off a sketch that I started Wednesday night. It's in fanart, or will be as soon as I'm finished posting. I was going to do his full body, but had to get ready for work and wanted to get the coloring done before I had to leave.

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And my final tally for tips last night was $14. It would've been more if I had picked up the second batch of concert goers! I sorta lost them 'cause the first batch wanted to go to the riverboat casino and with the bad traffic from after the concert it took a while to get anywhere. The second batch ended up walking over to Perkins and the late night driver got to pick them up. *sigh*

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Well, I'm off to submit that fanart now.

Laters!

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Thursday, February 9, 2006

   That room is ready & available for him!

Thursday. Working. Bored.

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I did make a quick $8 earlier shuttling a bunch of people to the Tyson Events Center for the Toby Keith concert. I'll have to go get them when it's over. Someone gave me a ticket for the concert. Too bad I'm at work. It's a $70 ticket!!! I'm not a big country music fan, but hell, a free ticket is a FREE ticket!!

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It snowed at us today. Not a lot of snow, but the roads were slick coming to work. Once I got to town, I couldn't take my usual straight shot along Gordon Drive because there was a big accident on the viaduct. My coworker Crystal was on the viaduct on her way to work when it happened. She was stuck there for 45 minutes. So... she was late for work and not in a good mood because of it.

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It was supposed to be a day off for me today, but the girl that quit & then quit her new job didn't want to work. Someone said she cried when her mom scheduled her for only 3 days work! Now when she's scheduled to work, she doesn't want to. She needs a good dose of reality and lessons in responsibility. But, I see it this way: I get the money!!!

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Hmm.... I need to do something here. It's gonna be a little while until the concert is over and I'll have to go pick up those people. I could draw...work on kanji...hmmm...... Don't know what to do here. I'm downloading manga, so I could read manga here....

Laters!

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