tales of an ordinary girl

I was given the opportunity to take off work early today, so I did. I went to the DMV. Let me give you a little clue about what the DMV is like in Kansas. (Yep, this is likely to be not all that interesting, but I'm a little drunk, so bear with me.)

I just recently moved back to Kansas and my tags are expiring. My house is in an adjoining state. Pick one and you're probably correct.

The first thing you do in the Kansas DMV is get a number from the machine. First you have to figure out what button to pick, but it's pretty easy. They're labeled something like, "Title", "Renewal", "Not currently in Service", etc.

Once you have your number you sit and wait for the first call. I waited about 35 minutes. The waiting room isn't bad. Today it was crowded. I should have realized tht being almost the end of the month. But since I didn't realize my tags were about to expire until I happend to look at my license tag this weekend, it was about the only choice I had.

So I clutched my papers, dear, dear papers, and I read. I read Beware of God: Stories while trying to keep the title hidden. This is Kansas. Short review: "The War of the Bernsteins" and "Somebody Up There Likes You" are funny, "Bobo the Self-Hating Chimp" is cute, and "Heimish Knows All" is disturbing. Probably all of them are disturbing, but I found "Heimish" the most disturbing. I just can't get past.. well.. that'd give it away.

I read, I listened a bit to some music, I waited. They finally called my number and I went up to the desk for my "pre-evaluation". Turns out I didn't have my current year's registration with me. So, I was rejected, but told if I could get back in an hour I could come right to the front of the line. But an hour from what? It was already 35 minutes since I'd pulled the ticket and I lived 15 minutes away even at a good pace. Oh, and it was then that I realized that I still had a meeting scheduled in 15 minutes that needed to be canceled.

I rushed home and canceled the meeting (5 minutes late, but who's counting other than the people that dialed in and listned to the waiting music?). I found my reciept, which I'd accidentally put aside for the year before's receipt earlier in the day. I rushed back and went back to the counter (which was empty) and managed to get processed despite the fact it was 67 minutes past when I pulled the ticket. Either she was generous or the hour started later.

Less than five minutes later I was called up to another desk. I guess I was the lowest number, so I was next in queue. And ten minutes later I was on my way home with a new tag in hand.

I stopped at the grocery store for dinner. I made a yummy chocolate, espresso, fudge cake tonight. I dutifully unloaded the groceries and did the dishes from last night. Then I proceeded to get smashed. It was a celebration of sorts for finishing the project. I thought I needed to relax. Except I didn't really relax and now, again, I can't sleep. I feel irresponsible.

Tomorrow is my planned half day and a massage appointment, then an interview. I should relax, at least for a little bit.

Ok, first of all I made a mistake on the name of a movie. It's Infernal Affairs, not Internal Affairs. Yeah, the "t" and the "f" are pretty similiar in type, but mostly I just don't take the time to read properly.

Anyway, we watched the movie last week and I liked it. There were a lot of scenes that were similar between it and The Departed. And some scenes I liked better, such as the scene in the stereo store and the reference to it later.

I was also caught on some of the cultural differences and similarities. The movie was subtitled, but phrases like "Bye", "Ok", and "Yes, Sir", were in English. They're not technilogical words, so I was a little surprised. Is it the influence of Hong Kong as an English colony, or are there not any good translations in Chinese? I'm not sure what dialog they spoke in the movie. Maybe like foreign words in the English language they became common use because there was nothing equivalent.

But, anyway, as far as the movie, I think I liked The Departed better. I think the story flows a little better in the English version. I think the characters are a little more likeable in the Chinese version though. (And what was up with the kid? Was that supposed to be his kid?)

I did nothing this weekend for Halloween. I kind of miss having a workplace where employees would dress up and we'd have basically a "social day" with food and lots of chatting (work too). It gave me an excuse to make a costume and to get to know people I never worked with before.

I finally caught up on BSG. I watched 2.0 and 2.5 over the weekend (Thursday included). A friend of mine said he did that because he has no life. I guess, I have none too. I've been working such odd hours that I wake up in the middle of the night and am unable to go back to sleep. It's a perfect time for watching an episode or two.

I liked the season. I have to say the first half of the season was better than the second half (IMO). Something about the last few episodes didn't work for me. Maybe I was just in a bad mood.

I still have some deleted scenes to watch and last Friday's Season 3 episode. We've been too busy lately for tv watching (which has pretty much ended for me with this project ending, but not for Matt).

Is anyone else finding that Lost is terribly boring so far this season? My list of tv shows I have the patience to watch is dwindling. (And I'm a little relieved. I feel a bit like I'm wasting my time, but I'd just be playing video games otherwise.)

I finished Galapagos last week too and the ending was ok. It's still probably my least favorite KV book, but it ended up being decent enough. I've started reading Beware of God:Stories this weekend. It's quirky, but not really what I was expecting.

So, I got my hair cut. And there's a lot gone. I really didn't get much length cut off (about 4 inches), but the layers removed a lot of the weight and thickness. I love it. It's so much easier to deal with. And if I curl it, it actually stays curled.

Ok, ok, I know you don't want to hear about my hair.

No luck on selling the house yet. No luck on finding a permanent job yet. No luck on catching up on Battlestar Galactica Season 2 before season 3 started. I did find a good price on 2.5 though and ordered the set yesterday. Now to track down 2.0 cheaply.

I've been pretty happy the past couple of days. Work hasn't been going all that smoothly, but everytime I get a new piece completed I feel like I've accomplished a victory. This morning I finished one little piece on a project that's been hanging on for months and I thought I was going to dance right there in my living room. Of course I didn't, but I could have.

I need a vacation. Any suggestions on where?

Oh, The Ticking came in last night and it's beautiful. Not as beautiful as L's books, but it's still beautiful. The pictures on Amazon really don't do it justice. It's cloth with gold leaf and it feels like velvet. My only issue is that some of the pages in the center of the book are folded, so I'm debating returning it and asking for a new copy.

I read it in about 20 minutes and the story was sad, but beautiful too.

I also finally got my copy of Internal Affairs, which I hope to watch this weekend.

Seriously, I need some ideas of where to take a vacation.

I've considered Ocracoke Island on the outer banks of North Carolina. I love the beach in the off season when it's deserted and the weather is cool and stormy. But, I wonder if I'd get lonely going alone (no way I could get Matt to go that far away, especially if we travel over Christmas).