Friday, October 24th PST
October 24, 2003

I'm a Mechanic




On my way to work this morning, I noticed that my left signal light was burnt out. I don't know if every car is like this, but with my car, when a signal burns out, when I turn it on the dashboard light blinks really fast. The first time that this happened to me, about two years ago, I nearly freaked out. I was convinced that the car was severely broken and would cost me tons of money to get repaired by a mechanic. Then I talked to my friend, Dave, who was kind enough to change it for me, in the parking garage at MS. Several months later, one of the headlights went out and no one was around to help me fix it. No boyfriend. No boys in the lab. Just me. And I did it! So this morning, I felt confident in my ability. So I found the spare bulb, left over from when Dave helped me, and made the switch. Nothing happened. I pushed it in deeper. Nothing. I turned it around. Nothing. What the $%@^*#(? So this afternoon I went to the auto parts store and got some new bulbs, thinking that perhaps the one that had been in my trunk had been damaged somehow in the past two years. But even the new bulb didn't help. I jiggled wires. I pushed and pulled. It wasn't till I nearly crawled into my trunk and more deeply inspected the inside of my driver's side light that I realized that there is a second bulb. The one I kept futzing with was the break light, not the signal. So, I pulled it out, changed it and voila! It worked! I love it when I can fix my own car!!!!!



Nikki on 10.24.03 @ 03:12 PM PST [link]


Wednesday, October 22nd PST
October 22, 2003

Cribbage




Last night I played cribbage for the first time in something like over a year. I lost four games in a row, but at least they were fairly even games. I didn't get skunked or double skunked. That's an improvement.



I got my second (well, actually third but it was the second vocabulary) quiz back last night. I got a 93, which isn't bad, I know, but at least three people (including my nemesis) scored better! What the heck am I doing wrong on these quizzes? It's really infuriating me. Why can't I manage to do better in one little 5 credit class? Argh!!



This morning when I took a shower, I accidentally used bubble bath instead of soap. I'm still clean, right?





Nikki on 10.22.03 @ 11:52 AM PST [link]


Monday, October 20th PST
October 20, 2003

Reading




This Sunday night I am reading at the Colloque Wheel reading. Yikes! I haven't read in front of people since college! What have I agreed to? Anyway...This is the poster for it and it's pretty cool. If anyone wants a postcard, I've got some.




poetryreading2 (271k image)



Nikki on 10.20.03 @ 01:56 PM PST [link]

Tuesday, October 14th PST
October 14, 2003

A Clean House!




I finally got the entire house clean. Amazing. That will last about two days.



My ASL competitor got a freaking 98 on the quiz last week. Dang it!



Anyone know of a place to go on a Tuesday night, in the evening, on the Eastside? It appears that I have to plan something and am at a loss. I don't want it to be dinner or a movie.





Nikki on 10.14.03 @ 03:27 PM PST [link]


Friday, October 10th PST
October 10, 2003

First Grade




Last night my ASL teacher returned my first quiz...I got a 92%. Not bad, but I really thought that I did better than that. I so competitive. I don't know what that other woman in the class got, although I am pretty sure I saw a 9, meaning 9-something, on her page. Hopefully she'll come to study group tomorrow and I will get it out of her. I should practice an expressionless face, so that either way, I don't uncover my true feelings: either shock and horror that she beat me or glee that I prevailed. Poor girl doesn't even know what she's up against. Then this other woman came from nowhere and tied me on the quiz, which I guess it acceptable. I should've seen her as a threat since she is friends with that other woman! Well, I can only take down one at a time. We took another quiz last night, on the book that we're reading and the woman (that I am trying to beat) wrote and wrote and wrote...obviously she is trying to beat me on that quiz, too. Deplorable, I tell you. ARGH! lol



Last night Bob and Jillian gave me the coolest writing journal that they bought in Florence. It has a leather cover with the picture from the Sistene (is that how you spell it?) Chapel on it and closes with a leather tie. It's so nice that I am afraid to write in it. I feel like only really good stuff should go in there...no rough drafts. I will have to give serious thought to the future contents.



ER last night...pretty good. No Carter, but Luka looked cute at the end and that's what really matters. :)



Nikki on 10.10.03 @ 10:50 AM PST [link]


Tuesday, October 7th PST
October 7, 2003

Weird Mood




I'm in a weird mood right now. I think it's a carry over from finding old e-mail from someone yesterday...e-mail that I didn't realize I had. Being the sort that believes in "signs"...to a certain extent at least, I wonder why it is that I found them when I didn't even know that I had them. Why now? Why in October? Sigh... So part of my is cranky. Part of me is nostalgic. Part of me is thinking about how dirty my apartment is right now and how I wish I would've cleaned it yesterday instead of taking a nap, which kept me up until 3 am. And then I am also thinking about my ASL quiz tonight and how I feel the diabolical need to beat that woman in class whom I suspect may know more ASL than me. I assure myself that at least I am the fastest fingerspeller. Dang! I am way too competitive!



Maybe more later.



Nikki on 10.07.03 @ 02:55 PM PST [link]


Thursday, October 2nd PST
October 2, 2003

New Addition to the Family




The new loveseat arrived on Tuesday and it is lovely. It fits so much better in my space than the old couch. It wasn't even too much of a hassle to get in. The legs had to be taken off and it had to be finangled a little, but not like the other one-the fact that it's about one ton lighter because it's not a sleeper sofa is extremely helpful.



So, I forgot how fast the weeks go by when you're in school. I'm only taking one, five credit class that meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays and already as I went to work this morning I thought, "What? It's Thursday? What the heck!" Last night I spent I don't know how long practicing for my copy-sign exercise for class tonight. Man! I didn't think it would be that difficult; it is a 30 second "riddle." But, I think I've got it down now. I'm so competitive- I want to be the best one in the class. I'll settle for not being the worst.



The novel has been neglected again...maybe this weekend?



My house has been neglected, too, other than the carpet cleaning and furniture moving in. I need to make a list of stuff I need to do this weekend...and then, not turn the tv on so I will actually do it.



Nikki on 10.02.03 @ 03:09 PM PST [link]