BethanyRambling

Atlanta

Okay, I need a little help from anyone around the Atlanta area, or anyone with creative parking ideas. My family is being super, and flying me home for the holidays. Now I have to figure out what to do with my car! The parking lots around the airport aren't bad, but it still won't be much less than $100. Compared to towing and storage costs if I misjudge a street, that's not bad, but if anyone has any suggestions/ideas/spare driveways, I could use the input.

Either way, I'm gonna be home for Christmas!! I still haven't had a year pass without me in my pj's on christmas morning, digging into the stocking. I am the youngest by 6 years, so I was the last to find out the sad truth about Santa. (I think; Rachael, you are in on the secret, right?) I was about 13 when my mom turned a sad face to me, and said, "Well, I guess that means no more stockings". I magnanimously informed her that if she really wanted to, she could continue that tradition. Ahh, the loot. I am such a packrat American consumer. I have always loved the multiple little silly gifts, almost more than the one big one.

Did I mention Rufus? I love my family. Airplanes, Christmas stollen, and concerts.

I'm definitely getting ready to move on. I broke out the maps again tonight, and I am starting to input sights along my route south. Wheee! I still love it here, and I will definitely return at some point, but it's time to get rolling again. Tach is getting lazy and fat, just like me. And dirty. Not like me, I'm actually cleaner than I've ever been. I've been afraid to wash him off. I keep thinking the water is going to freeze to his body, and he'll crack just like Humpty Dumpty if I even touch him.

I called in sick to work today, in order to recuperate fully. I'm starting to feel a little better, after sitting around watching "Sandlot" and reading "Driving Mr. Albert" all day. Not to mention the cherry cordials, because after all, Christmas is here. And I think they have vitamin C in them or something.

Now I have to get cracking and start seeing all the things I haven't been spending my time on. I haven't even been to St. Paul's cathedral yet, and I definitely haven't seen enough of the river. I had 3 separate contacts here, and outside of brief phone contact, I haven't talked to any of them! I've been lazy. I'm sorry. Mea culpa.

Bah

Grrr. Having a blog feels like an unwelcome responsibility when you are sick, or grouchy. My sister keeps yelling, "You have to keep your readers happy, post!" Grrr. Find your happiness somewhere else for a couple days.

Okay, okay. The second day Nate was here, we both got our cars fixed (yay), mine for significantly less than his (yay again ). While we were waiting for his to be done, we bought a sled; actually it was a disc that looked very much like a garbage can lid. Actually we bought it twice. The first one we left at my mechanic's. When we went back, they had taken it out with them. No one can say no to a fast ride down a steep hill. We found a few good hills, had some fast wild rides, nothing was broken, but we got good and cold.

Which probaby was what opened the door for the flu that has been shadowing me for the past couple weeks. Really, it's amazing I didn't get sick earlier. There is always at least one sickie here at the hostel, and since they are international travelers, it's weird and wacky bugs that my poor body has never seen. And the Cafe is full of sniffly, wheezy, drippy little kids. How did I hold out so long, I hear you asking. Lots of rest and vitamins.

The bed rest went completely out the window this past week as well. Every night I work now, I get a call from some crazy guy at three AM, and he usually call back at least once. One time it was someone wanting to know about monthly rates. Why the hell would you think about calling at three AM??? Another one already knew all my answers to his questions, as he had been on our comprehensive website, which even shows room availability. He just wanted to make sure it was right. At three AM. People are crazy.

And speaking of crazy people... We had a guest here this weekend who must have an OCD. He seems perfectly normal, sitting on the couch watching TV and talking, but get him in the kitchen and it is a whole new story. He spent ninety-four minutes, that's over an hour and a half, folks, scraping out a frying pan. For ninety-four minutes all we could hear was "scratch, scratch, scratch-scratch-scratch". I admit our pans aren't new or anything, but they really aren't bad. I have owned much worse. Maybe he has a thing about
teflon, and felt he had to get it all off.

We have a gremlin here at the hostel now. He comes down at three or four in the morning, turns on the TV, makes twenty dishes and leaves them in the sink, sabotages whatever cable we have hooking up the VCR or DVD (we are on our fourth one now), and then busts the back door open. He's really pesky. I didn't get to watch the copy of "Bring it on" that Tara rented. What a pity.

Knitting... has stalled. I have lost interest in my hat, since I will be driving out of the cold weather in just a couple of weeks. And I haven't had the motivation to turn back to my tank. My fabulous sisters sent me a
thanksgiving care package with some Noro and the directions for a Gap skinny scarf, so I may get motivated soon. Not today, unfortunately. Today it's back to the hell that is the largest mall in America the weekend after Thanksgiving. SO not looking forward to any of it, but most especially parking. Yesterday I left an hour early, and I was still in one of the last spots on the 5th floor. Sigh. Come on people, make your own damn gifts.

Snow

I don't think I can sing the praises of the snow often enough. It is so gorgeous here right now! It's sparkly and glittery and crisp. Okay, a little more than just crisp, but it's still fabulous. You can actually see the snow crystals. I always thought they were so small you needed a microscope. Nope, every flake looks like a Christmas ornament. I made a snow angel today.

Okay, enough about the snow already. Nate's in town for a little while, so he is crashing here tonight. We went out to a German restaurant and chatted. Due to his crazy schedule and the whole buying a house thing, he has even less contact with the folks back home than I do, even though he's within a few miles of them. It was a little weird seeing him in this setting, but it was fun. Tomorrow we are both taking our cars into the shop. What is it with everyone having car problems all at the same time? Very strange.

Okay, I am not feeling witty, or even literate tonight, so I will say adieu. My eyelids keep drooping. And yet again, I am waiting for two more parties. Sigh. Well, I'll sleep when I am moving again. That's a little strange. I have to be moving to be at rest.

Hooligans

Okay, good stuff first. Goonies was excellent. The theater was just about packed! Full of kids, about my age, all in very good spirits. I can't tell you how many times I heard Chunk's "Hey you guys!" We sat in the balcony, not wanting to have vomit poured on our heads, inciting a mass-spew reaction. (Actually, no one did that. I was disapointed.)

Okay, what else is good. I watched Evil Dead last night. It's snowing and pretty here. I still like the hostel a lot.

Now for what's really on my mind. My car, Tach, got broken into last night. It's what I have been fearing throughout this whole trip. My life is in that car! So when I walked out this morning to see glass surrounding my car and wind whistling through a hole the size of Kentucky (I think; I haven't been there yet), I nearly had a heart attack.

In reality, it wasn't that bad. The alarm must have scared the hooligans off, as nothing was missing. My CD cases, holding nearly a thousand CDs were untouched, though covered with glass. The stereo was still there. And when I was calling around to see who could fix it for me, one of the guys at work overheard, and told me his shop would replace it while I wait on Monday, for under $100. So life is still good.

Of course I am even more paranoid now. Yes, this time they got nothing. But now there is a mass of duct tape (thank you dad, I will never mock you again) where my window once was, and every time I leave the car, I picture masses of hoodlums surrounding it, clearing it out, hotwiring... heart palpitations, sorry.

Ah well, life will go on either way. I've gotten pretty far. If I have to go home due to lack of car at this point, it wouldn't be the end of the world. (that's just to fool the ironic fate demons. it really would suck royally.)

*** Later, same night ****

Grrr, another night that I actually have to work. The second I turned off my light, I got a phone call from 5 guys looking for a place for the night. They swore they were only 10 minutes away. Now here it is, going on an hour later, and no midnight wanderers yet. I couldn't expect to sleep my job away every night, I suppose.

Let's see, knitting news... finished my hat, which, of course, was acres too large. Luckily Tara has a large head, so she got a nice little present. I started a second one, but I am feeling lazy now, and haven't touched it for a couple days.

Tomorrow I have decided to leave Tach in the nice little backyard he's hidden in now, rather than force him onto icy/snowy roads and parking garages. He's the walking wounded, what with his silvery bandages, so it's public transportation for me.

Actually I have nothing to say, I am just filling up time until those brats get their asses over here. Laa laa laa, tra laa laa...

I am listening to All-4-One, "I swear", with 5 guys speaking Polish in the background. I think they are talking about raccoons. The alcohol has run out, so a bar trip is iminent.

It's Sindija's birthday today, and as the 2 polish guys were singing happy birthday, two other guests ran down, terribly excited that their language was being spoken. Wackiness ensued.

Okay, too distracted to write now. More later, I swear. I still have to tell about Goonies!

Art

A little more about the museum:

They had an excellent display of art photography, on 3 floors. There were some works by Cindy Sherman, which were fascinating to see. A couple by these two guys who dress as dandies, then pose around town, or get rip roaring drunk. I can't remember their names, unfortunately. Then there were a couple floors on Jasper Johns, not really my thing. A floor of pop art, including a plushy, upside down city. I came into that room just as the sun was setting, and there was an entire wall of glass, so the upside down city had an orange right-side up city as a background. And a floor of what I want to call modern art, but that is an actual time period, isn't it? What I mean is art very recently created. A smashed car, spraypainted gray. Two screens of teens dancing selfconsciously, isolated in a partitioned room at a London club. A video of a naked woman hitting a punching bag. Bronzed lightbulbs.

My favorite was a fascinating laser disc called, I believe, Crematin 1, named after the muscle that causes the testicles to involuntarily retract in cold water. Women looking futuristic/retro, slowly dancing on a football field, forming geometric patterns mirrored by the actions of grapes in 2 Goodyear blimps above the action, manned by 50's style stewardesses. Fabulous.

Tomorrow is the GOONIES!!! Midnight showing in Uptown! I am so excited!

Blobglins

goblins, goblins everywhere...

I had two days off in a row, and what plans I had. I was going to get back in the road mindset, maybe head out of town a bit, visit people in the area, call up friends of friends just because. Instead I rented two Italian horror movies (yay for Mario Bava) and holed up with the Ben and Jerry's. I didn't even want to write a blog. I wanted to be a blob.

Defeating my go-ahead-and-sit-on-your-ass goblins proved to be comparable to jumping off a cliff. You have to just do it, and not let yourself think. In New Zealand, my sister Christy and I went bungee jumping into a river off a steep cliff. I think I went first, that part is kind of hazy. No, wait, Christy went first. I was all hooked up and at the spot, waiting for them to count me down. I wasn't wearing my glasses, but I could still see how damn far down it was, when I made the horrible mistake of looking. I looked back up at the treeline, distracted myself, and leaned forward, barely even waiting for the count. When I was looking down again, and thinking, and freaking out, it was already far too late to do anything, like clinging to a pole, or grabbing at the platform as it fell away from me, or vomiting.

And how does that relate to goblins, you may well ask. I had been meaning to go to the Walker art museum since I arrived in the city. It was the one thing that everyone told me I had to do. It just kept getting pushed back, by important things, like Joe Schmo, bad movies, and junk food in a warm hostel. So today, I distracted it for a second (one spoonful of Phish Food), and then ran out the back door, not allowing myself to think about it. Of course that means I didn't miss my jacket, hat, and gloves until it was too late to turn around, but no matter. I was moving forward, and there wasn't anything that could turn me around. It was a bit brisk for the walk home. Still, it felt wonderful, I had a great time, and I no longer feel like a
lump.

I don't think I have emphasized enough the fact that I have to wear flair. 2 pins, and 2 buttons, minimum. It makes me grin. Not in a "Hey, how are you guys doing today" kind of way, but in a "gee I am so fricking silly" kind of way.

Work

I've just had the first night where it felt like I was actually working. I got a call at 2:30 AM from a guy looking for a room. Unfortunately the only one left was in the part of the house where the furnace is not working presently, and where we have had many freezing complaints out of. I let him know this, and, even more unfortunately for me, he still was interested. He checked in just past three, and I was running around scrounging blankets and space heaters for a while. The space heater had to be strong enough to do something, and weak enough not to blow the fuses, which I had to trip about 5 times last night.

Sigh. Now I have to go to my other job on 3 hours of sleep. I knew there was a down to this deal somewhere. Still, one night of working out of 6 ain't bad, and that will decrease as it gets colder and slower. For some wacky reason, we were full this weekend. Who wants to visit in 19 degree weather?? Crazy people, that's all.

People Watching

I have lots of time to people watch at my mall job. The behaviors of the average mall denizen seem to be multiplied in the Mall of America. I saw a woman today with several small children - 3 or 4, they were running around too fast for me to really get a fix on them - who had actually developed a tic in her right eye. One other woman collapsed next to the croc. Turned out she had been shopping for going on 12 hours. I don't do anything for 12 hours, not even sleep.

My favorite characters are the mass consumers with the glazed looks in their eyes. They are the ones that you can load all the crap in the store on, and they will just buy it. Without ever batting an eyelash.

Cold!

Okay, I told someone earlier that it was only 30 degrees. I lied. I checked the weather site today, and it was down to 19, and that was mid-morning. We changed it to Celsius for a foreign guest, and that's -7 degrees!!! Can you believe it?

Actually, it doesn't feel that much colder than when it was 30. The only difference is that it kind of burns when you breathe. But my nose doesn't get any more numb.

That's all. Nothing else interesting. Just the weather.

Routine

My days are settling into a routine now. Work, sleep, knit. I finished a scarf, and a nice warm hat. I had to put aside my tank top for a while, as I wouldn't be able to use it anyway. The hat is pretty cute, basic ribbed thingie with a tassle on top. I am getting much faster. I finished them both in just a few days. I remember the days (not that long ago) when it took me weeks and weeks to make just a scarf for Christmas. Of course, I have time now to focus just on the knitting. I love it.

I bought a big warm jacket at K-mart, shiny red with a black furry hood. My old leather jacket was actually doing me just fine, but it's kinda pug ugly, and definitely not feminine in any way. This one was as feminine as a douche. It went back the next day, and with the money I spent on it, I hit the thrift store, and got a jacket, 2 wool sweaters, and a western shirt. Yay for thrift. I don't love the jacket, and it's not as girly as the other one, but it'll do well, and it's prettier than my big old one.

One of my favorite (dripping sarcasm) guests checked out today. He was a very strange guy. Interesting to talk to, if you could manage to not be offended. We talked for hours about conspiracies, and government fat cats, and corporate gluttony. I also eavesdropped on a few conversations about Christianity, and how the problem with America (one of them, anyway) is that the women are not properly submissive. If only they would listen to St. Paul, there would be far fewer problems. Those darn feminists, they're ruining the world. Men and women are obviously not equal, men have an indefineable quality called honor.

Another Aussie checked in today. Mmmm.

Monday night I had another nice stitch 'n' bitch. There were more people there this time, and I remembered my yarn, so it was quite fun. Later on I went out for drinks with some girls from the hostel. I got a big frothy concoction in a pineapple, and one of the other girls had one in a coconut. Years ago I went to Baja for a week, and the whole time we were searching for something in a coconut, all to no avail. I guess I had to go to Minnesota to find one.

I keep thinking that since I have a job, and I'm in one place, I don't need to save money so stringently. I really need to stop thinking like that, or I'll never be able to leave. It's very nice up here, but...

More props to Patty, this time for the long underwear. The girls at the stitch all laughed at me since I'm wearing them already, and it's only about 32 degrees out there. What'll I do in a couple weeks when it really drops, they all said. Well it's not like I'm really terribly cold yet, but if you are slightly uncomfortable and can remedy that with a nice soft comfy pair of longjohns, why the heck should I wait until I am miserable? I'll deal with the real cold when I have to deal with it. For now, why not be toasty?

We did inventory at the cafe, starting at 4:30 AM. Whee. Thank god that is over. Back to reasonable hours of puppet waving and such.

Tomorrow... more of the same. Which isn't such a bad thing.