don't touch my money!

Today my niece showed me her coin purse. It's about 2 inches deep and 2 1/2 inches long. It holds about 54 cents. She handed me this, her wallet, to look at. I started to open it up to count the change and she yelled out, "Put that back right now!"

Dude. Sorry. I didn't realize that our obsession with money starts at age 2. Then as she was leaving, I gave her a hug. After the hug, she checked her purse to see that her wallet was still there. Did she think I took it? Have I played "magic" tricks with her before?

Wow. That's all I can think. Wow. Money... an obsession... the thing most people end up fighting over... the bitch that has enslaved us all.

the death of customer service

The buck stops here. When Harry Truman first coined this phrase, I wonder if he knew how many people would use it. It's so matter of fact. It shows ownership, control, leadership, responsibility. I like it because it shows that Truman was a bit of a hard-ass.



At my current position on teller row, I often feel like a bit of a hard-ass. I'm not really sure how customers perceive me, but I do know that I react strongly to all of their misfortunes and annoying habits. Take, for example, a woman who doesn't have it all together. She often misplaces her keys, forgets that her pen is in her hair, and can't ever remember her account number. She laughingly comes up to the counter, shuffles through her bag, trying to find her check book. She apologizes for not being ready but doesn't step aside to let one of the other ten people in line come to the front. This woman ruins my day. Her light cackle annoys this aging mind of mine and echoes in my brain until I want to run away and scream.



Stupid people drive me crazy. There is a point when the brain feels as if it can explode. These people stretch me to that point.

red noses in spring

Allergies seems to attack the most innocent of people. I, for one, consider myself to be one with the earth. I started a compost pile outside my parents' house, I recycle all recycleable materials. I use less toilet paper than I used to. I do good things for this earth we live on. And yet, I am plagued with allergies. What is the deal?

I stayed home yesterday. My activities included sleeping, watching Sex and the City Season Three on my TV, blowing my nose, and drinking water. And this morning I woke up and just as much snot is squeezing out of my nose as before. Within the hour, I'll be at work. People who help people all day as I do shouldn't go to work when their noses are acting up like mine is yet again today. Let's just hope I'm not one of those crazy carrier monkeys.

scratchy throat

This morning, I woke up in a haze. My eyes were tired and blurry (as usual) and my throat was scratchy and uncomfortable. I was sick. I didn't know if it was the sickness of cold or the pain of allergies which was causing my discomfort.

I called my supervisor at work to call in sick. As I wasn't throwing up or anything, I was told that I could not stay home. And so I went. And I feel worse. The scratchy nose and throat are most definitely here for a while.

up a quarter

Gas is ridiculous. My mom thought the gas prices wouldn't go very far over $3 per gallon. But here we are just four months later and the gas prices are almost a dollar more than a mere four months ago.

The price of tea at the coffee shop next to work has increased by 25 cents. That happened within the past week.

What's next? Toilet paper? Water?

shopping carts and such

I like to travel. I like to go new places and discover new and interesting things to do. Staying in one place turns me into a bit of a nutcase so that I begin to run around in circles, binge on chocolate or drink wine by myself.

Since returning to the states over four months ago, I have begun to realize that I am a tad on the hyper-active side. I must do something. On more than one occasion, I have been caught in the world of shopping. It's a mall called consumerism. We Americans walk through the doors and get caught in the twist of wanting more and more of what we don't need to purchase.

I get caught up by the accessories, the different things to put in my purse, in my ears or on my fingers. Others find the new cars most desirable and trade in for new cars every two years or more.

I am a consumer. And I don't like that I consume so much. Every day I try to do a little bit better. I reuse my various possessions and regift what I must. Slowly, I will be what I need to be.

flabergasted by flirtations

Today a man of about seventy or so flirted with me. He got me to cash his checks and then said to me, "if you ever get tired of your husband, let me know." What was I supposed to say to that? How are we supposed to respond when we are flirted with? I don't know what to do. I've been told, in the past, that I tend to be a bit flirtacious. It comes naturally. It's a part of the laugh. But seriously, are these ridiculous pick-up lines supposed to aid in the ridiculousness of existing in this world?