Another Shitty Weekend
A subtle title this time around, eh?
Saturday was not too bad, really. It's been pretty hot, and my apartment doesn't ventilate all that well - I think because the windows all face northeast. But I'm reluctant to turn on my A/C because it's not really that hot - low 80s, and only moderate humidity. I need to get used to it or the summer will just be sweltering.
In the morning and early afternoon I was at a party a friend of mine was throwing to celebrate getting her Ph.D. She's the wife of my friend Brian, whom I met through grad school, and sometimes I game with them at their house. It was a good, if family-intensive, party.
Afterwards I did some shopping, picking up some Octavia Butler books, the fifth (and reportedly final) collection of Jim's Journal, and a book on bidding in Bridge (I'm hoping to play with my friend John and his Bridge buddies when I go to SF next month). The book I bought, Commonsense Bidding by John (?) Root, is really quite good, very clear and leaving nothing out.
I did a bunch of reading at the coffee shop last night, both the Bridge book, and Native Tongue. NT is best described as "relentless"; it presents a society where, essentially, all the men are doing everything possible to keep all the women enslaved as effectively as they can, and there's very little hope held out that things will improve. Quite depressing, which may have affected my mood.
I felt pretty lonely last night, and feeling like there wasn't really anyone I could call to feel less lonely. The coffee shop was pretty empty, since finals are over and graduation was this past weekend.
When I got home, I learned that my idiot downstairs (second floor) neighbors had a dog in their apartment. Specifically, they had a dog which they had penned on their balcony, and then left there as they went out on the town (or something), and the dog spent the night howling and whining and scratching. All of which was doubly bad since dogs aren't allowed in this building, so they were violating their lease. I called my landlord company, and I think they eventually had someone come over and let the dog into the apartment, where I hope it destroyed everything I could get its paws on. I feel sorry for the dog; what kind of heartless owner would do such a thing to a dog? I leaned over my railing and whistled and talked to it a bit, but it couldn't figure out that I was above it, poor thing.
So I was up 'til well after 1 am dealing with that. Yay.
Later in the afternoon I went down to go for a bike ride. I planned to make my inaugural trip for the year into the UW Arboretum, and stop and read in there for a while. However, my bike had developed a flat tire on the front wheel. "No problem," says I, "I bought two extra tubes for my bike, so this is a perfect chance to try fixing the tire!"
Two punctured replacement tires later, I learn that replacing tires is in fact very hard - or else there's something obvious I'm missing. Getting the actual tire back on the wheel without puncturing the tube seems impossible. And I've wasted two hours I'd planned to spend outside, and the bike shop is about to close so I can't even just go down and get the tire fixed. Terrific.
I also notice that since my rear wheel doesn't have a quick release switch, if I ever want to replace that tire it looks like I'll need to take apart the entire rear wheel assembly. What a pain in the ass! So, unless I want to buy a new bike, maybe this fixing-my-bike-myself thing is not such a good idea.
I spent the evening finishing up an APAzine which is due today, and my computer once again refused to print. I was, fortunately, able to move the file to my laptop and print it from there, though I had to do it twice since I screwed up the margins the first time. Yay.
As I drove to get it copied, I noticed that I was reflexively expecting everything I touched to fail: I expected my car not to start (maybe I'd left the lights on), or that I'd run out of gas, or that the photocopier wouldn't work or would eat my originals. All unfounded, fortunately, as the copying came off without a hitch. But still, not a good frame of mind.
I was upset enough after this day that not only did I try to contact my friend Karen (and I ended up sitting around with her, her landlord, and her SO once I'd dropped off my zine), but I called my Mom to bitch about my day, too.
I'm getting really tired of 1998. It seems like it's taking a lot of time, money and energy just to stay afloat, and I'm running out of motivation to even keep trying. I'd thought that things were turning around over the last month or so, but boy, it sure doesn't feel that way right now.
I am not looking forward to work this week. I feel like I've hardly been able to unwind from last week! Sigh.
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