Waking Up to Waste Time

"If you enjoyed the time you wasted, then it wasn't wasted time." According to Google, the quote was made popular by John Lennon but attributed to a mathematician named Bertrand Russell. Regardless, I make the most of my wasted time. I make sure I'm up early enough in the day to waste as much of it as I can.

You see, between having two jobs, and sometimes a third when I really need the extra money, I only get one day off a week. Saturday. That's my one day off. It's the only day I have free to do my household gotta-dos, run errands, or just sit around doing absolutely nothing at all. And when I choose to use my day off doing nothing but watching movies and coloring on an app on my phone, I do what I can not to lose any of the day.

No, I don't wake up at the crack of dawn but I do make sure I'm up no later than 9:00am. I put ear plugs in when I go to bed on Friday night and also use a sleep mask. I don't want anything to disturb my sleep. I want to sleep the whole night through, undisturbed. Since I'm up at 4:00am during the week I want as many hours of sleep as I can get on Friday. That's why my kids laugh at me when I ask them to wake me on Saturday.

I have someone wake me at 9:00am and they always ask why when I have the opportunity to sleep in for once. My answer is standard. I don't want to sleep so long that I miss time during the day that I can be wasting doing nothing. If I were to just sleep without being woken I'd probably wake up at 10:00 or 11:00, or possibly later, although, I've yet to test the theory. But if I woke up later than 9:00 I'd be upset that I missed time I could have been awake to waste.

I get up when they wake me, take a shower, and get dressed in my Saturday relaxing garb. Then I make a breakfast drink and sit my happy ass on the sofa, where I remain for the duration. I scroll my phone for a bit to see what's interesting and then put on the TV. I also open my coloring app - paint-by-number stuff. And I spend my day watching movie after movie, because I can.

Sometimes it's movies that I've already seen simply because I really don't want to have to concentrate or pay attention. Other times it movies I haven't seen or even heard of; and I've ended up seeing some really great ones. I can watch six or seven movies in the entire day if I time them right. While the movies play, I color and let my mind relax and wander and avoid my reality. I get up for food and bathroom breaks but otherwise I don't move. And it's AWESOME!

I will quite literally spend the day doing absolutely nothing but what I want to do and I can't do that if I'm sleeping the day away. So there is a reason I wake up to waste time, and since I enjoy wasting it, it's not really wasted now, is it? 😉

Until next time...peace to all.

Just a Silly Story

Once upon a time, about seven years ago, I overslept my alarm for work. I woke up about 20 minutes late but did make it to work on time. Since then I set two backup alarms, just in case. I now have an alarm for 4:10am, 4:15am and 4:30am, all on my phone. The last is just to be on the safe side and neither the 4:15 nor the 4:30 alarms have ever gone off because I wake to the 4:10 alarm. Well, two nights ago I went to bed as usual with all three alarms set and this happened.

I woke in the morning from a dream or whatever and rolled over to look at the time on my phone. It was 4:25! Holy shit! I slept through the first two alarms! I tossed a cat off of me, threw back the blankets and jumped out of bed. Grabbed work clothing and got dressed then quickly went through my bathroom routine because my son, who works with me, would be getting up somewhere between 4:30 and 4:45 and would need the bathroom himself.

I finished up and went to the kitchen to feed the cats, who were all standing and waiting patiently for their breakfast. I was feeling all sorts of rushed and I hate that feeling. Like I'm forgetting something but knowing I'm not at the same time. So the entire time I'm dishing up fur baby vittles I'm wondering why I didn't wake to the first two alarms. I know our power was out for a little while late in the night because the power company was trying to repair a line on the next block. I figured it might have something to do with the wi-fi. Didn't really make sense but it was 4:40 in the morning.

I fed the cats and retreated to the living room to sit and wait for my son to come upstairs. In the meantime I was looking at my phone and realized I hadn't gotten the notification that my car started at 4:40 like it was supposed to, and it was 4:42 at the time. My Ford app is set to start my car at 4:40 every weekday, just in case you were wondering. But what the heck was going on that my phone wasn't doing what it was programmed to do? I was getting very frustrated.

Because the car didn't start I used the app to remote start it. Then I hit the Extend button so it would continue running for an additional 10 minutes above the pre-set 10 minutes. I felt a little better because all I had to do was wait for time to leave. But I noticed something different. When I hit Extend on the car app it adjusted and said "Vehicle will remain running until 4:02." WHAT?! It needed to stay running until 5:02. It was an hour off. What the fuck was going on? My brain was scrambling to figure out this early-morning mystery. I was so confused. Until...

I looked at the phone screen again. The time was 4:43. No, it was 3:43. It was 3:43am. Why was it saying 3:43? And suddenly my damn brain clicked and buzzed and registered what was happening. When I originally woke up and looked at my phone to check the time it said 3:25 but I only registered the :25. The 3: part literally bypassed my thought process. I was up 45 minutes before I was supposed to be up and then I got pissed. At me. Because who else would be to blame? Nobody. Just my overly sleep-addled brain stressing me into thinking I was late when I could have slept for another 45 minutes. UGH!!

I tried lying on the sofa and going back to sleep for a little bit but it didn't work. I was already awake and moving and ready for the day to begin. Good grief! It kind of sucks that I was up so early but I can actually laugh about it at this point. I'm sure others have done this sort of thing and if I can help it, I'll never do it again. Even if I have to recite the time to myself half a dozen times before it completely registers. But it is what it is and I made it through the day. Life goes on, right? 😊

Until next time...peace to all.

 

PSA: Help Us Help You

One of the jobs I work requires me to look up people by name, birthday, phone number, etc. It's not a difficult thing to do unless the customer makes it difficult. Which happens more often than one would imagine.

A customer comes to me for service and I immediately look to retrieve their information by asking for a name. First and last and I only use the first three letters of each. So when you arrive and I ask who you're picking up for, "Me" is not going to help me help you. I know you've been to see me before, probably numerous times, so you know the routine. Give me your first and last name, or the name of the person whose product you're getting. "Mary" won't cut it. You're not the only Mary in the world.

But here is where more difficulty appears. I'll ask for a name and get "Caleb Smith" as an answer. Great. I type in the first three letters of each. CAL, SMI. Nobody appears. I ask for a birthday. I get 06,09,2003. Excellent. Oops. Something's wrong. No account appears. I try asking again to confirm the information. Caleb Smith? "Yes." June 9, 2003? "Yes." Nothing comes up. When I explain this to the customer they insist that the information is correct and that they have an order waiting.

Okay, let's try again. Confirm the birthday again. June 6, 2003. "Yes." Spell Smith. I get an eyeroll and a sigh. S-M-I-T-H. Okay, just checking. Spell Caleb. Even bigger eyeroll and sigh. K-H-A-L... WAIT! WHAT? You spell Caleb KHALEB and you're getting annoyed with me for not knowing that? Are you serious? Most everyone else spells Caleb the conventional way. You decided to spell it some unconventional way and expect everyone to know that in advance?

I can't tell you how many people come to me and then get annoyed that I can't spell Annita, or Maygahn, or Kiyleigh or Mikel without assistance. Do us a favor. If the name you're giving me isn't spelled the conventional way, SPELL IT FOR ME so we don't waste each other's time. There is a line building up behind you and the faster I get your information, the faster I can get you through the line and move on to the next customer.

And while we're here, let me just mention to all of you younger people that we older people do, in fact, now that months correlate with numbers. January is one (1), February is (2) and so on down the line. You are allowed to say that your birthday is June 6, 2003 without having to say zero six, zero nine, two zero zero three. I actually had a mid-20s kid begin his birthday with November, then stopped and said 11... So I did point out, politely but firmly, that I do know that months have numbers. His response, "Oh, I wasn't sure." And he was dead serious.

So in the best interest of all of us involved, please spell your name if it has an odd spelling, and say your birthday as if you believe I have a decent level of intelligence. It'll move the process along faster so you can get your order and get back to the phone call that you just couldn't ignore while trying to interact with me.

Until next time...peace to all.

Please Knock First

I have to talk about this because it makes me insane. Public restrooms. The ones that are single use, just one room with a toilet and sink. One person only. Why do people not knock before trying the door? It's basic common courtesy to knock before trying to enter a closed room.

I can't tell you how many times I've been in the restroom at either of my jobs, or just out at a store, and someone has come along and tried to enter, just assuming that nobody was in there. Why are you making that assumption? It's actually quite startling to the person using the facilities to suddenly hear someone trying to enter the bathroom. Thoughts popping up in rapid succession. "Did I lock the door?" "I hope that lock works." "Please don't let that door open." "ACK!!" What the heck, people?

When you are at home and the bathroom door is closed do you just assume nobody is in there and try to open the door? If you do try, is the door locked by the person in there or do you cause an embarrassing situation for both of you? "Oops! Heh heh. Sorry." as you back out while closing the door. Nobody wants to be caught in that position so the proper thing to do is to knock before attempting to open the door. I always knock first, at home and in public. I don't understand why everybody doesn't follow that process. What's so difficult about it?

And if you're in the bathroom and someone does knock, how do you respond? I've just said whatever I could think of on such short notice. "Someone's in here." "Occupied." "Hold on, I wasn't expecting company." Is there a proper way to let someone know the facilities are in use? It's hard to come up with something in that situation, right? I mean, you're not exactly at your best and the person outside knows it. It's actually kind of creepy when you think about it. Especially when you indicate your presence and you know that stranger is now standing outside the door listening to you do your business. Now you have to keep everything quiet because you've lost your privacy. Yikes!

I'm also not sure if most people realize it but single-use bathrooms can be used by anyone, regardless of the fact that they are labeled "Men" and "Women". Nobody else is in there so who cares who's using it? I do it all the time. If someone is in the women's room, I'll use the men's room as long as it's empty. It's not a big deal. It's the same exact room, most of the time. There are some men's rooms that have a urinal also installed but I have no interest there. Some friends and coworkers I have spoken to refuse to use the other bathroom, but I do know others who will use whichever restroom is available since they know they'll be in there alone. Provided the next person who comes along actually knocks first. Hint, hint!

Until next time...peace to all.

Making a Comeback

It's been well over a year since I've been here. I've been busy. Working, working, and more working. Two jobs is a tough gig but someone's gotta do it. Sometimes I feel like all I do is eat, sleep and work. Lots of people do it and it sucks that we have to work so much just to survive. But it is what it is.

On my only day off, Saturday, I sit and relax my happy ass on the sofa and watch movies and color on an app on my phone. It's the best way I know to just reset, rejuvenate, and realign. I try not to think about what's coming in the next week - not work, not bills, not appointments, nothing. Sometimes it's necessary just to keep going. It's actually pretty nice but I often think there are other things I could be doing. More productive things, like cleaning the garage or the basement, or steam cleaning the sofas, or any number of things that need to be done around the house. I just don't have the ambition and don't want to waste my only day off with chores.

But starting next month I'll be granted one Sunday off per month, at my request, because I've missed having two days off in a row. With the extra day off I can spend one doing chores and the other relaxing so I'll get things done that need done, and still have time to do nothing if I so choose. But I know I've also missed being here so I'm going to find a way to get back to my blogging on a regular basis. There are always things I want to talk about but never seem to find the time. I don't even know what inspired me to start today. It must be the universe telling me it's time.

So I just thought I'd come back and do a short "welcome back to me" post to get things going. I know it's not much but it'll do for now. For the rest of today I'm going to watch a few more movies, color a few more pictures, and think about what I'd like to talk about in the future. And I'm going to sit here and breathe, knowing that everything always works out the way it's supposed to.

Until next time...peace to all.

Is It Worth It?

Weed is legal now in a lot of states!! YAY!! You can buy it for recreational use and, in some states, you can even grow it. Everybody is thrilled about it and overly excited for it to become legal so that their fun was no longer forbidden. But you know what? I couldn't care less about it because I don't see the point of it.

I've tried it a few times in the way distant past. Haven't touched it in years because I don't get it. I don't understand why people feel the need to be high all the time. I don't understand what it does for them to cause them to need to feel disconnected. Medical reasons I understand; if it helps, have at it. Recreational use is beyond my comprehension at this point.

I worked in a movie theater recently and saw people who must have hot-boxed their vehicle before they came to see the film. They'd stand at the concession stand swaying in their shoes, unable to even focus on the menu because they couldn't keep their eyes open. Then they'd ask questions with, quite literally, obvious answers because they couldn't comprehend what they were seeing right in front of them. And the stink would linger for what felt like forever after they left, giving me an almost instant headache.

People come to the drive-thru at the pharmacy where I now work for my second job and I pass them off to another employee because I don't want the headache that I know I'll get from the weed stink coming from their vehicle. So not only are people getting high, they're driving under the influence, too. Doesn't make me feel real safe on the roads, especially when I'm driving my garbage truck and smell it coming from passing vehicles.

Yes, I'm a professional driver who put a lot of hard work into getting my CDL and, even if I cared about getting high, I won't risk my license for a little recreational enjoyment. But I see a lot of people who don't seem to care one way or the other. "Weed is legal so it must be okay for me to drive while I'm high." Guess what! It's not! It's still driving while impaired and carries fines and even jail time, depending on the offense. But you don't care about that because you get to use it legally now.

However, even though it's state legal it's not federally legal and anyone with a CDL is still forbidden from using it. Again, you people don't care. I've seen co-workers lose their jobs because they got called in for a random drug test and dropped dirty because of a now-legal drug. Not only did they lose this job but they can't get another driving job because they also lost their license for a year, minimum, according to federal regulations.

Since many companies require a drug test before being hired, I wonder how well they'll do getting another job at all. Okay, okay, there are detox drinks and shit like that that someone can take on the day of a drug test and hope they pass it. Then they do and they get the job, and continue getting high on their off time. A few months later they get called in for a random test and - BAM - another job down the tubes. And that's for anyone, not just drivers.

"YAY! I CAN LEGALLY GET HIGH IN MY FREE TIME NOW!" But you're risking your job, possibly your career, and maybe even your driver's license, along with tickets and jail time if you get caught driving while you're high. So let me ask you? Is it worth it? The fun you have while you're high might be great in your opinion, but at what cost?

"It helps me forget my problems," you might say. But the problems are still there when you come back down. "I have anxiety/stress (or whatever other issue you might claim) so it helps with that." There are other ways to combat those problems, too, and I'm not talking about medications. With a little research, I'm sure you can find those measures on your own. Google it.

I'm not lecturing, not condemning, not judging. I'm questioning. I know a lot of people who use weed in some form on a daily basis, and that's their choice. It's also your choice. You do you, but keep it away from me. I simply don't get it and I don't understand why people would risk so much on so little.

Until next time...peace to all.

So Much Anger, All the Time

Well, it feels good to be back after a long hiatus, again. But here I am and I'm going to try, yet again, to be here on a more regular basis. We'll see what happens, I guess. There is just so much going on lately, and so much to say, that it's hard to find time to sit and toss my thoughts out there. I'm going to start making the time, though, because I deserve it. So we'll get right into it now, shall we?

One thing I've noticed over the past however long is the constant anger I see everywhere. From so many people. People who are always griping and complaining and walking around with sour faces and negative attitudes. And, for the life of me, I don't understand why. I probably will never understand either, and there's no use in even trying. I just think it must be so exhausting to walk around so miserable all the time. I don't think I could carry that much negativity and still get through each day.

Before we moved we had several neighbors who were always screaming and yelling over things that seemed trivial. I know why they were angry because I could hear everything they said, all the time. Our next-door neighbor was either screaming inside her home or, if we got lucky, screaming at someone on the phone from the parking lot. It was almost like she needed to show the entire neighborhood that she was angry. In the two years we lived next door to her I never once saw her smile.

I work with people, at two different jobs, who are always angry about their job, or that the local sports team lost a game, or the weather is not to their liking. Customers are always complaining that we didn't serve them properly, regardless of which job I'm at. They complain because their trash wasn't dumped properly or their prescription wasn't filled on time. And it's not just complaining, there is anger behind it. I don't get it.

There are thousands of videos online posted by people who are angry that things aren't the way they think everything ought to be. If it isn't their way, it's wrong and that makes them angry. People disagree with them and they get offended and angry. They don't like what their elected officials are doing and that makes them angry. Policies at work changed and they get angry. It doesn't matter what it is, they get angry over it.

Their neighbor drives an ugly car, anger. Their kid didn't get invited to a birthday party, anger. Their favorite restaurant closed, anger. Prices at the supermarket went up, anger. Someone's talking too loudly, anger. They hit every stoplight on the way to work, anger. A coworker got a raise and they didn't, anger. So. Much. Anger.

Why? What's the point of all the anger? What good does it do? Does it change anything? Maybe, but probably not. So why not express the feelings once and then let the issue go? Constant anger causes physical problems - heart conditions, raised blood pressure, digestive issues, muscle aches, and more. It also causes stress in the household because most often people take their anger out on those closest to them which only causes more anger from those around them. It's an unending cycle.

I'm not saying I don't get angry, because I do. I don't, however, hold onto it. There is no reason for me to because it doesn't do me any good physically, mentally or emotionally. I don't want to be angry all the time because I would prefer to focus on the positive things going on around me. I choose to not focus on what displeases me, and I choose to not make angry people around me the focus of my day. If something makes me angry, I voice it and move on because, most times, there isn't anything I can do to change or fix the issue anyway. If I can, I do; if I can't, I let it go.

It's just really sad to think that so many people feel the need to focus so much on their anger. If they really think about it, is the anger worth it? Will it make everything all better? Will it even matter a month, a year, or ten years from now? Is the issue really that big in the grand scheme of life? If it is to you, so be it. Just know that the only one you're hurting is yourself, but that's your choice, I guess. I'm just going to sit over here and stay out of your way.

Until next time...peace to all.