I'm going to be...

The newest cowgirl in the west!

I got the job in Fort McMurray.



Now, bring on the paperwork!

In the meantime...

So right now I'm on Facebook looking at pictures of tattoos, piercings, suspensions, and other body modifications. That's what inspires this post.

1. First of all, if you're going to show off your tattoo, get a decent sized picture of it. I can't see/compliment/critique it if I can't even tell what the hell it is.

2. If you're going to take a show off your piercings, please make sure you are posting a decent picture. I want to see your piercings, not how shitty your camera is.

3. By all means, feel free to post pictures of your brand-spanking-new ink on your foot, but ladies and gentlemen, please do this before taking the picture: trim your toenails, dig out any toejam, and if you're wearing nail polish on your probably ugly feet, make sure your photo is taken post-paint job.

4. If you have ugly feet, but have a tattoo on your foot, please crop out all of the ugly, misshapenness of your feet. Hell, Microsoft Paint will let you crop your photos.

5. Nape piercings, corset piercings, and other surface work can and will reject. Take the picture when it's all fresh, because anything after that point they're all scarred up, rejecting, and just nasty to look at.

6. If you are an observer of other people's work (namely ink), don't bother to leave a compliment if it's just really shitty work. Shaky lines do NOT deserve a "Wow, awesome!" It amazes me how people can lie to each other!

7. When you mix two types of tribal work, like Borneo meets Maori, it's "neo-tribal", whether you want to admit it to yourself or not.

8. Don't you people check the design before it gets put onto your body? Can't you see the lines are shaky, or maybe, I don't know, the artist CAN'T DRAW? What the hell is wrong with you?

9. Please, don't post a picture of you tattoo if it looks like it could have turned out better if it was drawn on with a Sharpie. As a matter of fact, don't show it off at all. Just pull a Nelly and wear a bandaid over it. Or scrub it off. With a cheese grater.

10. Only one picture of your last suspension experience will suffice, thank you.

11. I don't need half a dozen close ups of your tattoo. Again, just one will suffice.

12. If you're tattoo is finally healed, SCRUB THE TAPE RESIDUE from around it! You've been walking around with sticky shit around your tattoo for a week? You filthy bastard...

13. It's been done before. I know. You know. We all know, but I'd be a bit pissed if I showed off a picture of my ink and have someone say "I wanted something exactly like that! Lololol!" Fuck you, it's my ink. I don't want myself associated with your dumb ass.

14. Ashy tattoos are not sexy. If it's supposed to be in red ink, and it looks pink because your skin is as dry as the desert just outside of Las Vegas, do something. Please, moisturize before snapping that photo. Also, if you have chapped lips and you want to take a pic of you new lipring, at the very least lick your lips before taking the picture. You don't have to take the picture right away, so I actually suggest waiting after you've gone through a rigorous moisturizing regimen before posting.

15. If you're not Japanese, and don't write Japanese, DON'T FUCKING GET a Japanese tattoo! You don't know what it means, and sometimes shit like that can end up drawn sideways, backwards, and even upside-down. Don't believe me? They have websites dedicated to making fun of assholes like you!

16. Get a better camera. If you are going to take a close-up, please be sure that your camera can actually manage such a task.

17. I never use flash when taking photos of anything. Why? Simple, my friend. Glare. Most people take pictures of their tattoo after applying vitamin E oil or something like Tattoo Goo to their tattoo. Well, it's shiny. The light from the flash will reflect, and I can't see your tattoo with a line of reflected light down the middle of it.

18. As mentioned by Lish* in her rant about piercings, don't stick your tongue all the way out just to make sure the stud in the tip of your tongue is actually photographed.

19. As always, learn to spell the name of your piercing, or what tattoo you have. Idiot.

20. Don't take photos yourself. Seriously. Have a friend or family member take it.



*Lish's Rules For Photographing Piercings are not only informative, they are at the very least good for a laugh. They can be fully viewed here:

http://www.bmezine.com/lish.html

I have no idea...

Small stuff first:

I quit smoking.

I'm almost done my driving lessons.

I need a full-time job.



Big stuff:

I just got off the phone with the guy in northern Alberta. They're offering me 30 grand plus $1000 for moving expenses.

I'm still not sure if I want to stay in radio anymore. It's a guaranteed full-time job. Guaranteed salary. Problem: it's in northern Alberta. Fort McMurray to be exact. Sixty thousand strangers. And I'll be going alone. Rent's expensive, a grand a month for a matchbox.

I still want to move to Vancouver. I feel like I'm selling out, if to nobody but myself.


What am I going to do?

No, I didn't forget.

Here's my past week or so summed up:

- My father's mother needs open heart surgery. They found a clot right above her heart. If they don't remove it, she might be fine, or it could pop and she'd drop dead. She's choosing to have it removed. My sister thinks she's insane for going through with it, but come on... this is grandma. The woman who almost died about six years ago because she had an infection. Months after that, she broke her hip and needed it replaced. Grandma's a survivor. I say go through with it.

- I had my first driving lesson today (finally). Apparently I'm really good for a beginner. I need help with turning.

- I stopped working Saturdays. I'm sick of getting up so damn early in the morning. I switched to Sunday nights. I'm playing around with the idea of learning Portuguese because I op for a two-hour show from this one couple.

- I started studying Buddhism. I've got a lot to learn.




Aside from all that, it's Halloween. This is my favourite day of the year. Actually, I'm sure I like it more than my birthday.

The Blogger's Guide to Better Communication - Part One

In this day in age, technology, along with general stupidity, has caused a devolution of the English language. I'm not sure about other languages, I only speak, read, and understand English, so that's what I'm talking about.

Inspired by chatboards, other people's blogs, and websites like urbandictionary.com, I've decided to compile a list of words that are commonly spelt incorrectly; in no particular order. It's disappointing because they're not even difficult words. I recommend looking up their definition on a website like dictionary.com, if you're in the middle of typing something and you come across a word that you don't know how to spell. Please be advised that this list will likely never be complete, just expanded upon until I think I've covered everything.

1. to
2. two
3. too
4. there
5. their
6. they're
7. basically
8. supposedly
9. necessarily
10. necessary
11. social
12. controversy
13. you're
14. your
15. we're
16. were
17. where
18. stupid
19. ridiculous
20. ludicrous (not Ludacris, like the rapper.)
21. congratulations
22. regardless
23. hypocrite

These are not just words, but phrases. I put them here because people often say could/would/should "of." That's incorrect. They are all seen as the contractions "could've, would've, should've" and in slang terms, butchered as "would'a, could'a, should'a."
24. could have
25. would have
26. should have

This is the first installment of what will likely be a collection of spelling corrections. More to come, I just don't know when.

So hare-brained, it just might work.

I have a plan.

Ever since I went on vacation to BC with my dad two years ago, I fell in love with the city of Vancouver.

I really want to go back to school, and as tempting as northern Alberta sounds (at least when it comes to money), I don't really want it anymore. I'd rather go back to school. Where? The University of British Columbia, of course!

I want to work my ass off for the next year, and move to Vancouver. End of story.

I don't care if I have to work three jobs to pay for it, I want to go. There really isn't anything for me here in Ontario, aside from my current part-time job, and that's not saying much.

So, if you're reading this, and you know me, it'd be great if you could help me out.

I'm thinking...

... of going back to school in a couple of years.

I might even be doing this a bit backwards.

I have a job offer in northern Alberta. I'm just waiting on a number... specifically the amount of money they're going to pay me.

I'm not really sure I want to be in radio for the rest of my life. I don't know what I want to do now.

I know I want to study at UBC. Basically, I know I want to move to Vancouver. I'm just on the UBC website to try and decide what I'm going to study. I have to wait because I don't have the money to move now, and I have an Ontario student loan to pay off.

No Direction?

Okay.

I went to college for Radio.

I came to a revelation, about the other careers I wouldn't mind trying:

- Nurse
- Interior Designer
- Clothing Designer
- Tattoo Artist
- Body Piercer
- Entertainment Lawyer
- Screenwriter
- Movie Director
- Pastry Chef
- Rock Star (I can dream, can't I?)


These are the ones I can think of. Basically my list of life's ambitions is starting to look like a course calendar for a community college. I wonder why that is?

What am I doing wrong?

Okay, I realize I'm young, but this is ridiculous.

I know three people (even if only in the online realm) that are around my age and have all recently gotten married.

I can't even get a date for Saturday night.

What gives?

Jill's Guide to a Happy Life.

I've generally been thinking a lot about my outlook on life.

Not necessarily mine, but for other people too. (These people will remain nameless, for their privacy and my safety.)

I think I've actually come up with a good way to assess your life. A guideline, if you will. Here's what I've come up with so far:

1. Make your own dinner. Experiment when you do so. Plus, you'll have a lot more fun than you ever would calling the local pizza place, and having them mess up your order.

2. Eat right. Most people don't, and openly admit it. This is a combination of the amount you eat, as well as what you're specifically putting in your mouth, plus when and how often you eat throughout the day. Word of advice, DON'T eat a steak dinner right before bed. You'll regret it in the morning. Small, healthy snacks throughout the day is a lot better for you than a fast food hamburger three hours after you should have gone to bed...

3. Get enough sleep. Even if you can't get a full night's sleep, take a nap. Seriously, it'll make you feel better. Remember when you were little? Exactly. Plus, people won't be telling you that you look tired. "You look tired" = "You look like Hell in human form."

4. Don't drink too much. This one's pretty self-explanatory.

5. Don't take drugs that you can't pronounce the chemical name of. Legal, illegal, prescription, or recreational, if you can't say its name, DON'T DO IT!

6. Use a condom. It's amazing how few people do. Keep that in mind.

7. Cut the drama from your life, and don't sweat the small stuff. Putting up with small, trivial things isn't worth your time. If it's unnecessary, you don't need it. If someone's making your life miserable, get rid of them! Cut the dead weight. You'll be surprised how much metaphorical weight is lifted off your shoulders.

8. Don't procrastinate. Trying to rush and do everything at the last minute will just make it worse. Plus, when you're done everything ahead of schedule, you can take a few minutes and have a nap.

9. Prepare. If it's for cooking dinner, or a job interview, you'll find it's a lot easier when you've already thought things through. If you do decide to procrastinate, this is what you should be doing while putting everything else off! Be ready.

10. Be a good person. You'll be surprised how far you can get by NOT lying, cheating, and stealing. Karma is king. Negative people attract negative energy.

11. Make some time for you, and just you. I think it was actually Ozzy Osbourne who once said "If you don't have an hour out of your day for just you, you're doing too much."

12. Variety is the spice of life. Okay, we've all heard it, we all think "Yea, I'll remember that," and never do. Don't let yourself fall into a rut. Try a new recipe, listen to different music, watch a movie that you've never seen before. Even if it involves watching an action movie when you normally watch comedies, you'll be surprised what you'll learn. Try something new. Even if it doesn't work, it gives you an opportunity to try again.

13. Have an opinion. People who don't have them look stupid. I'm not kidding.

14. Be aware of your surroundings. Pay attention to what's going on. Watch the evening news, ask people you care about what's going on in their lives, find out what that weird smell is coming from inside your fridge.

15. Work hard, but don't work too hard. It's one thing to focus your attention on the big project, but if it's starting to interfere with other aspects of your life, back off.

16. Smile. Go ahead, do it now. Fell better already, don't you?

17. Live with passion. Do something you love, and do it well!

18. Be nice. Whether it's to your siblings, or your asshole coworker, at least you tried.

19. Never stop learning. It could be to find your niche in life, it could be the eight easiest ways to cook a turkey, it could be Cosmo's 20 Hottest Bedroom Tricks.

20. Deal with it. Once you deal with it, you don't have to waste your energy trying to avoid it. Swallow your pride, and get over it. Don't hold it in, bottle in up, or sweep it under the rug. Get it out there.

21. Spend time with people you love. Romantically, or platonically, it doesn't matter.

22. Have fun. What good is it if you can't?

23. Read a book. Expand your vocabulary and learn something new.

24. Listen to music that makes you feel good. Is there any other kind?

25. Dance, even if you can't. Even if you look funny trying, it'll definitely make you feel better.

26. Stand up for yourself. Life is better when you're independent.

27. Take care of something. Even if it's a gold fish, a hamster, or a potted plant, you'll feel better when you actually help it fulfill its lifespan. It may not be around forever, but while it's here, help it do its thing!

28. Be responsible. Do your share. Don't try and blame something you did on somebody else. Do it right the first time.

29. Mind your money. Don't assume just because you have extra cash now, you'll always have it. I'm not saying never spend money and indulge a little, but if you get paid on Thursday and you're broke by the time you go to be on Monday, you need to rethink your habits. Just set a little aside, so when you suddenly have to, say, buy a new set of tires for your car, you aren't freaking out because to do so, you'll have to go without groceries.

30. Listen to YOU, and only you. Don't hinder your creativity or sense of adventure. Listen to your body. Don't bother worrying about what other people think.

A quick post from work.

I love this whole post by e-mail thing.

Granted, when I originally thought to post something, I figured I'd have had more to talk about.

Anyway, it's Thanksgiving weekend, I'm working, my sister now gets weekends off. She woke up with a migraine this morning; she hasn't had on it three years, since we made the link between her migraines and her food allergies. Not only was she in pain, she was screaming and crying about it. She ended up going to the hospital because when you go to the ER with a migraine, they run you and I.V. and give you a warm blanket and leave you alone.

Side note, we don't bother with Thanksgiving festivities anyway. We enjoy the food, and that's about it. I justify having made that roast chicken last week to substitute the dinner that so many people are sitting down to tonight and tomorrow night. Ha.

Ontario election and referendum coming up! I don't know why I'm making such a big deal out of this. Probably because I like voting. Beyond that, it's not that big a deal when actually voting because all you do is mark and X in a circle. All this build-up just makes it funny.

Not much else. I need to push some buttons in a few minutes, so that's it.

Something not food-related!

So it'll be a couple weeks before I hear how much money I'm going to make and the radio job I've pretty much gotten.

However, I'm getting restless. So I applied for a job with a cell phone company. They want me in Calgary on Tuesday. Problem: I don't have any money to get there. So, I asked them to postpone it, I haven't heard back.

Another dinner success!

Pulled pork sandwiches with a homemade barbecue sauce.


Plum crisp for dessert.

I own.

Mmhmm.

I can cook. I made a roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy and asparagus.

I'm all proud of myself now, especially since I've never made a whole chicken before. Go me.

I'm still waiting to hear back from that job offer. I'm literally going crazy here.

Nothing else to do right now.

I'm at work, and it's still a half an hour until I have to do something constructive, or even involving some thought...

I'm driving myself nuts waiting to hear back from the station that wants to hire me. I've been looking up apartment listings, and basically anything else that would affect your quality of life in a new city, province, etc.

The one thing I'm most worried about is that since I'm a rookie, they're going to come back with some lowball offer. I can't do it. If I can't make enough money to support myself, I'm not going. I'm pretty sure they understand that, especially since they know it's really expensive to live there. I'm talking a grand a month to live in a bachelor apartment.

So, I guess I'll have to wait until Monday to find anything out. That's two days away!

So close...

I'm finally done the in-class lessons for driving school. Now I just have to finish the in-car stuff, and I can upgrade m license.

Not much else happened. I'm waiting to hear back from a job prospect.

Oh, and I made killer Sloppy Joes for dinner. I own.

Just one question.

Is it possible to subscribe or watch someone's blog without having to do the whole RSS feed?

Canada, Get Ready!

In Ontario, there will be a provincial election on October 10th.

Also on October 10th, there is a Referendum vote.

Today, Ottawa is a-buzz with rumours that Prime Minister Stephen Harper will call a federal election following October 10th.

I'm already deciding which way I'll vote. How about you?

So here's how my Monday went:

I woke up this morning after sleeping in, which is something I haven't done lately.

I get up, talk to my mom on the phone. Tell her about my possible job in Alberta, and then after we hang up, I check my email.

Get a message from a station in Yellowknife. Sounds cool, have an opportunity to move what feels like a million miles away from nowhere. Send off my resume and demo. I've spent all day waiting to hear back.

Check my email again, and the guy from Alberta sent me a message, asking me when is the best time to call me to talk about moving me out to Alberta. (!) We'll see how it all goes.

Today Was a Good Day.

It seems as though I've changed my entire outlook on life. Sure, I might have a student loan to pay off and have trouble making my share of rent, but all in all, I can't help but feel positive in most aspects of my life.

I have a pretty cool part-time job. Today was the best day I've had at work since I started there a month ago. One small hitch, everything else went smoothly. Perfectly, if you will.

I guess since last night I got a decent night's sleep, and woke up in a good mood this morning, especially since it's now my favourite time of year. Maybe it's because I have some prospects for a job, one in radio, the other not. I'm not sure; but right now, I'm sure as hell not complaining.

Falling into Fall.

So today is the first full day of Fall, or Autumn, as you prefer.

This is my favourite time of year. I love pretty much everything about this season. The leaves are changing, it's not too hot or too cold outside, and hey, the primetime TV shows are starting new seasons.

When I woke up this morning and went out for a cigarette, I couldn't help but be happy about today. It was cool, and quite frankly, it made my day.

I thought I'd try this out.

I'm seeing if this whole post by e-mail thing works. It likely will, but I'm a dork, so I'm going to try it anyway.

So... work.

I went to work today, and apparently, instead of showing up for six in the morning, I come in an hour later, for seven. Plus, my boss wants me to try out my new Sunday evening shift and decide which one I like better. Why? Because he wants as many people as possible on schedule, so I'm thinking I'm going to keep my Sunday evening and ditch the Saturday morning. Getting up at four in the morning on a standard Saturday is starting to wear thin. The only problem with that is that I'll be making less money, only working one day a week. Fear not, my sister apparently found me a job at a fast food place, with a fairly lax dress code. Cool.

In other news...

I realized what a huge nerd I am. I got bored the other day and started playing around on mapquest. It's fun. Type in the city you want, then switch to aerial view (keep street labels unless you're way good at this) and zoom in. I saw Vancouver from overhead. Awesome.


That's all for now. I need to scavenge for something to eat.

History in the Money Making!

The Canadian and American dollar are the same now!

Watching the morning news program (BT), recent stock market trading has led to the Loonie equaling the Greenback. Awesome.

From 680news.com :

Dollar reaches parity with U.S. currency

Thursday, September 20, 2007 - 11:17 AM
By: 680News staff and The Canadian Press

Toronto - After a steady upward climb, the Canadian dollar has reached parity with the U.S. dollar.

The last time the dollar was at par with the U.S. dollar was November 1976.

The loonie has been gaining on its American counterpart since bottoming out below 62 cents in early 2002.

It has risen about five U.S. cents since the beginning of the month.

Helping the Canadian dollar reach the same level as its U.S. counterpart has been continuing weakness with the American currency.

The U.S. dollar has dropped rapidly since the U.S. Federal Reserve cut short-term interest rates by half a percentage point on worries that a global credit crisis has hurt the U.S. economy.

The American dollar has also dropped against other major world currencies, including the euro, the British pound, the yen and the Swiss franc.

So far, so good...

I can easily say that my mood has changed drastically in the past couple days.

First of all, I posted a talent for hire ad on the radio job website. Apparently, I wrote such a kickass ad that this morning I woke up, checked my e-mail, and got a message from a guy who wants to hire me. This is especially great because a couple days, ago, I was willing to cash in my chips and move on. A few snags about this job offer:

1. It's in northern Alberta. Quite literally, an oil town the middle of nowhere.

2. I'm not crazy about the company it's for. Scratch that, I have a problem with everything else owned by this guy, I don't really have a problem with their radio division.

Beyond that, I have one more session for driving school. All I have to do is the in-car training. One snag with that: the guy who will be teaching me is not my classroom instructor. This might fuck me up a little. We'll see how it goes.

Yea, yea...

It seems weird to think that although I said I'd probably forget about this thing and not update, that this is my third entry of the day.

No real reason, it just seemed like something to do.

After rediscovering my old blog, I went to my Xanga, and started scanning through my old entries. Man, a couple years changed everything.

Moving on.

I went to driving school. I have another class tomorrow night, and hopefully I'll remember to book an actual driving lesson when I'm there tomorrow. I should seriously start the actual driving part of it, especially since I finish the classes next week.

That's pretty much it. Continue with your day.

Woah.

Alright, as I've said, I used to have a blog here. I just found it and all I can say is holy shit, I was totally weird. Well, I'm still weird, but not the way I was when I had my old blog. I don't remember typing any of those entries. Plus, I sound like a kid who needs to take their Ritalin.

I don't even remember the person who made those posts. It was just over four years ago that I started my old blog. Did I really change that much? Four years isn't that long. Thinking back on it, the current me would have hated the past me. Why is that?

Oh, and I don't plan on attempting to remember my password for my old account, so I can log on and delete everything. No, I'm going to leave it on the internet, as a form of nostalgia, if for no one but myself.

Holy Hell!

Alright, let me count how many blogs I've ever created:

- Xanga
- A different Blogger
- Live Journal
- MySpace
- Vox
- Trig
- Facebook

Now this one.

Funnily enough, I don't update any of them regularly. Ha. Maybe this one will be... But I'm not promising anything.

The question is, why? Why am I starting a new blog? Why am I starting a second Blogger? Why am I asking questions?

Easy:

1. I'm starting a new blog specifically for updating. I'm basically abandoning all blogs from social networking sites. This is my blog, and it's strictly for blogging. I'm not even going to fill out my profile, because I've done it so many times, I may as well just cut and paste and I don't want to do that.

2. I started this second Blogger because I started the first one years ago, and a) I've forgotten the password and b) I fell like starting over.

3. I ask a lot of questions.

So, should you choose to read this (especially since I really, truly, plan on updating here regularly... but again, not promising anything) kudos to you. If not... carry on.