renegadeRICEcracker

i used to be the decisive one.

back in the day, i made decisions. if landed in a pool of indecisive people, i could be counted on to make decisions and steer. some may have called it bossiness. or stubborness. or rudeness. i called it _leadership_.

ah, to be there again. the other day i went to linens n' things to get bedding. i walked up and down their huge wall of colorful comforters, pillows, and sheets, and pondered the possibilities. i leaned one way... then another... then back again... and then decided it was too big a decision to make on the fly and left without buying anything.

i did the same thing with paper towel holders. and the other day at target, i did the same thing with telephones. come to think of it, i've also made two trips to ikea without buying anything.

i think sean is going to stop going shopping with me.

at the very least, i'm saving money.

i'm off to linens n' things again. i'm actually moving into my place now... so if i don't get bedding now i'm not going to have anything to sleep on tonight...

if i had a gun, someone would be dead.

the world is full of incompetents.

i didn't have that much to do today - i was supposed to help my sister pay her cell bill because she's on her honeymoon, then i was going to swing by costco, deposit a check at the atm, and go to weho and unpack.

cingular told me that my discover card was declined. having received a letter last week upping my credit limit to $6,000, and having spent nowhere near that, i was confused. so i call discover.

the discover people are very friendly until they give me their manager. apparently what happened is that the two people i talked to last week put in two completely separate applications. why they did this, i don't know. but one of them put the amount i'm probably going to have earned this year (granted, i should have just given them my salary amount and left it at that) and the other one put my salary.

so the woman starts grilling me in a rude tone about where i got the lower number and just what made me think i'd be earning the higher number. i explained what was going on and she was rude as all hell. i tell her that i gave the same information to both people, and she asks in a bitchy tone, "then why are there two applications?" i was like, "i'm sorry, are you implying that i LIED to your representatives?" she basically said yes and that if i had told them everything there should not have been two applications. i tell her i have no idea why her employees made two applications. she tells me i need a letter, on company letterhead, from my firm verifying my income.

i was not in a very good mood after this.

but fine. i call work and am told that will be faxed over today. so i go to costco to deposit a check and buy some stuff. i also need gas because my car is running on empty. their atm isn't working. so i'm sitting there with a check to deposit but no money in my account and they only take amex and debit.

ugh. so i apply for an amex card - the guy told me that they could give me the card right away. but it doesn't go through right away, so i have to call. apparently: 1) the guy entered my SSN incorrectly, and 2) i need to send them a gas bill or something to verify my address. fine. they were very friendly.

nonetheless, i'm still annoyed because i'm at costco with no money in my account, no amex card, they won't take any other cards, and i need gas. i decide to find a wfcu branch (my credit union) so i can deposit my check. i call information and am told that they are in the federal building.

on the way i stop off for gas. oh. arco only takes debit. okay... my credit card has a pin, so i figure i'll try that. it works... all the way to $4.65's worth of gas. great.

so i get to the federal credit union. it turns out that this is a JUSTICE federal credit union, not the WESTERN federal credit union. i see.

so now i'm back at my mom's. it's 1:30pm. i have not started unpacking. i have almost no gas. i have no money. and i had a discover woman yell at me today and imply that i put in a fake salary to get a higher limit after it was denied the first time. i looked online and there is no wfcu branch near me.

i feel strongly that if i were allowed to slam my fist into someone's jaw as hard is i could, i would feel much better. i hate everyone.

a wedding story.

so, the wedding was beautiful, the toasts have been given, and dinner has been had. the dj announces the first dance, and my sister and paul are dancing alone in the middle of the dance floor.

my dad comes up with a big grin and says, "i want to cut in!"

my sister, looking slightly mortified, whispers, "dad! the father-daughter dance is next! you get a whole song!"

my dad, still with a huge grin on his face, answers, "i don't care! i can't wait!" then he balls his fists and pulls one arm back in a fight stance and says jollily to paul, "i'm gonna punch ya!"

wendy says, "dad! you've had too much to drink!"

and my dad answers, "i'm DRUNK! but i'm HAPPY!!!"

the end of preparations.

so, my sister gets married tomorrow. we are pretty much done. the party favors are made. the place cards are decorated, labeled, and double-checked. the candles and table settings and all that have been accounted for and distributed to peoples now in charge of them. i learned how to emboss and then embossed hundreds of menus. i've been waxed, pedicured, and manicured. (that was not really my idea). my maid of honor speech is pretty much written.

the rehearsal dinner was great, as was the bridesmaids lunch, as were the family dinners.

i am exhausted. tomorrow my sister and her fiance marry, sunday they leave for hawaii, and ten days later they return to pack up and clear our home of the wedding gifts that have overtaken a good portion of our home.

after that i assume i will have a little more free time, and the fact that my big sister is/will have just gotten married and is leaving the state will sink in and i will be traumatized.

aish.

more pictures.

photos from isaac's birthday.

vis-co e-LAS-tic

how cool is it? how long will it last? will i like it? these are the questions that run through my head as i wrestle with impending buyer's guilt. i have set my heart on a Tempur-Pedic bed, but am shocked and appalled at the price. to deal with this, i spent last night reading all about viscoelastic foam and latex foam, and what people think of it. i don't really know why, since my general pattern is that i see something i like (mitch's friend andrew's bed), set my heart on it, and then rationalize heartily until it becomes the best decision.

to be fair, my last bed was either causing or disatisfactorily failing to improve back problems.

to be honest, my rationalization is probably causing me to psychosomatically feel more back pain so that my need for a tempurpedic seems more dire.

and to retract, i DO have back pain and NEED the tempurpedic.

i do.

who are YOU to judge me, anyway? go to hell!

goodbye chicago.

i'm back in l.a., kicking around, contemplating new purchases for my apartment, and waiting for my stuff to arrive.

last thursday, my packers and movers came.

thursday night we went to the cove, where i made my goodbyes to those of my friends who were still in chicago (i am bitter that so many people got back to chicago the day or day after i left. bastards.). afterward, we headed to the big house, where the boys fired up the deep fryer and we had tater tots, french fries, pizza rolls, and mozzarella sticks. photos are posted here. since snapfish obliterated my online albums, i will probably just be posting them on my mac.com page, which is good for you people because you can access them without an account, and they seem to download faster. i will mayhaps upload past pics on the page, too.

friday we did last minute move stuff and i cut myself in all kinds of places, including on my thumbpads from pointy thingys on alaskan king crab legs, and on my leg from pointy bathtub faucets.

not much exciting has happened since i've gotten home. i finished 'survivor' (another palahniuk), and started 'choke' yesterday. today i went with mitch to ikea, target, and costco, where i bought nothing. i would feel proud of myself and say that clearly i've learned to curb my impulsive money-wasting habits, but in fact i know that it's simply that i'm too lazy to want to buy a bunch of stuff right now.

i did, however, decide on a bed and couch for myself. not through any research of my own - we went to one of mitch's friends' places and i fell in love with several items there and have decided simply to clone what of his place i can. he probably still thinks i'm kidding, but i already have the specs and brands of his couch, bed, and tv. i need to gather whatever other information i need from him before he gets scared of me and stops talking to me. i think i'm headed back there for a poker night tomorrow, so i can do some more research then.

alright. i'm going to sleep now. i have a big day of crate and barrel tomorrow. sweet dreams, kiddies.