In which Thursday is just like Friday, only earlier and less cool.

Last night, when I got home from work at nine, I made myself a couple of vegetarian refried bean tacos. Gramma wanted one too (because the smell of frying corn tortilla intrigued her, and she’s liked the other things I’ve fed her so far), but the beans were spicier than usual and nearly blew the top of her head off. “I apologize in advance,” I said, “if you wake up in the middle of the night with a fussy tummy and curse my name!” She laughed and shared a Sprite with me.

Woke up this morning when my phone dinged! at me. The text I’d received informed me that my paycheck had been direct-deposited into my Netspend account. I have money again! Yay!

Got up and had an egg, toast, and tea for breakfast. Threw on my coat and let the dog out and had a smoke on the porch. (People keep telling me to quit, since I’m barely smoking half a pack a day lately, but I figure I’ve given up enough shit so far this year. I’ll keep one truly bad habit for a bit longer, but it’s probably going soon.)

I went back upstairs and pulled out my To Be Paid folder and started making payment calls. Gave the anesthesiologist $200, and I still owe him $500. Paid off that $75 in taxes I’ve owed Iowa since last tax day. Paid off one of several lab fees. Noticed that I haven’t paid anything yet on that one lab bill, because they don’t take plastic and I keep forgetting to buy them a fucking money order. After I give money to them, and my mom, my brother, and Gramma (for the DSL fees on her phone bill), I’ll be poor again.

But I’m paying myself: I have $200 in savings already. Not bad for someone who had literally not a cent only two months ago.

And while I was paying bills in front of my laptop, I had a lovely IM conversation with him. He told me a network crash story that made me laugh out loud for several minutes. Made bill paying nicer, at least.

Work is going well and I still really like the people I work with. Sometimes the office politics get a little thick, but nothing too terrible. It’s not really ‘politics’ as much as normal human personality glitches; the actual working environment is quite comfortable. They even rescinded the turn-computers-off-at-night policy because so many employees bitched about it, myself included. Management that actually responds to staff needs is refreshing. (They’re still making me take that idiot sales training course, but nothing’s perfect.)

Observation: one of my co-workers pronounces “emoticons” eh-MOSH-eh-cons. I’ve always said ee-MOH-TIH-cons, but considering how it’s spelled, either could be correct. Opinions?

In other VERY EXCITING news, I got a call about music today! When Jayrob Jethro and I went out and jammed at the local open mic a few weeks ago, I met and played with the guitarist and bass player of local blues band Coyote Kings. The guitarist called me at work and proposed we get together and jam, with an eye toward maybe starting a side project with me as front woman. (“A blues band with a woman singer is a hot commodity around here,” he said. “We could gig.”) If schedules permit, we’ll meet on Saturday and play together and see how it feels. I could be gigging soon! Whoo-hoo!

Update: This image – from one of those emails one’s female relatives circulate among themselves – amuses the hell out of me.