Plumbing problem? Are you sure?

As many of my friends know, I am a night owl. I do a majority of my creative work at night. Something about the quiet allows me to be the most productive. This means I sleep in most days.... that is until my landlord decided to dig up the yard to "fix" a plumbing problem. First, he tore down the beautiful tree that shaded our bedroom. He stated that the tree's roots had wrapped themselves around the plumbing pipes and were causing problems with water pressure in the front house. Uh... ok. We were sad to see the tree go, but what can we do? We don't own the joint.

Apparently, that didn't fix the problem. So, Monday morning I was rudely awakened to the sound of workers outside. At first, they were just digging in the dirt by our bedroom. No biggie. I'll survive. Dottie was not happy about it and wanted to bark at every little noise. I went about my day the best that I could. Tuesday, I was jarred out of sleep by the sounds and vibrations of jackhammers!!! Yes, jackhammers. Our place is a poorly made shack. My bedroom reverberated as though Dottie and I were trapped inside of a blender. It was the worse possible way to wake up. The best part? They started this at 7:45AM. We took shelter in the living room which is on the other side of the house. This gave us a teeny bit of a sound buffer. We caught some more ZZzzzzs and went about our day. Yesterday, there was minimal digging, but we were informed they were turning the water off for a few hours. Okay no biggie.

We are on Day 4 of our Landlord's plumbing disaster. They gave us 5 minutes warning that the water was being shutoff. Rob was able to get a quick shower. Me, I wasn't so lucky. So, I'm off to the gym and will have to shower there. Blech:P

I am so annoyed. Rob talked to the laborers who stated they aren't certified plumbers?! WTF?! Apparently, they're just digging around where our landlord tells them to dig and supposedly they're going to help him "redo" the pipes. Good lawd! We are really in for some bad times.

Here's some photos of the disaster.

To get out of the construction zone, I've taken the dogs out for longer run/walks.

Don't they look like happy campers?

Here's the view that I've been treated to.

Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope that we won't have to look at this for too much longer.

Liberated from my job

That's right. I got my walking papers today. I wasn't let go for writing on my blog. I wish I had written how much I hated my job on this blog. I actually didn't bother to listen to their reasons for dismissing me. It seemed pointless. They had a stack of papers to sign and a check for me. It was self-explanatory.

To be honest, I'm relieved. I hated my job. I know it's called "Work" and not "Fun", but I truly believe you should enjoy what you do on some level. I did not. I am creative individual and I can only take so much of putting together other people's designs or calling magazines to get deadline extensions. I wasn't challenged or mentally stimulated. I was just a cog in the machine.

I liked some of the people I worked with, but the rest sucked. The plant manager was a poor manager who had no balls and never gave anyone a straight answer. I can count on my one hand the people I still liked. There was so many big egos, backstabbing, and double-talk. The company had become Survivor Island - Marina Del Rey. Towards the end, I had no idea who was my ally and who was trying to throw me off of the island. Now I know I had no allies.

Make no mistake. This is NOT a woe-is- me post. I believe that things happen for a reason and maybe it's time for me to take my own design work seriously. We shall see.

22.2 miles

If I took a direct route from my house to my office, it would be exactly 22.2 miles. On a good day, it would take me 20 minutes to cover that distance. I previously worked 5AM to 2PM, which allowed me to cover that distance in about 20-45 minutes. It wasn't horrific. It was livable.

Last month, I was offered a new position with my company. With it came a schedule change.
I was set to work from 9-5. I was ecstatic. I get to sleep in! Ha! I was oh so very wrong. My dear sweet husband reminded me that I would be commuting at the same time as a majority of L.A. No biggie, right? I'll just take surface streets.

A month later, it takes me 1 hr. 45 min. to get to work. I've tried different routes, leaving early, and avoiding major freeways. All I am left with is the urge to sit and scream in my car. I now know for a fact that my car has great soundproofing. When I have my daily primal scream, no one in any of the cars adjacent to mine look over. I suspect it's because they are all screaming internally. To add insult to injury, I got reprimanded at work for my tardiness. I would cry, but that would just make me even later for work. There has got to be a solution!

When the punishment is NOT harsh enough

Shirt Designed by Sole Brothers Skate shop - Norfolk, VA. Proceeds donated to caregivers of confiscated Vick dogs.

Thus far, I refrained from commenting on the whole Michael Vick debacle. There are many other individuals and organizations that are far more eloquent than me - namely BadRap.org. I am the proud caretaker of a Bully breed dog. Dottie is an American Staffordshire Terrier. In many circles, this classifies her as a pit bull. Because of this, I have an interest in this case. This is the first case where it is clear the dogs are the victims and not the criminals.

I am a Virginia native who watched Michael Vick rise to athletic stardom. I watched his collegiate and NFL games. Many Virginians, including myself, were emotionally invested in him. When the allegations first came out, I was shocked and disappointed. How could someone use their fame in such a manner? Then, the details were brought to light. I was sickened and incensed. This was not a simple case of animal cruelty. This man is a monster. He financed a dogfighting syndicate. His cruelty extended to dozens of dogs over a period of years. As recently as a April 2007, Vick admitted to killing 6-8 dogs for "not performing well". He didn't simply put them out of their misery. They were beat, hung, or drowned. Some of the photos of his property that were leaked onto the Internet are horrifying.
The recommended sentence was 10-12 months; while the maximum sentence was 5 years. U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson recently sentenced Vick to 23 months in prison. The judge commented that he gave Vick a longer sentence in lieu of the fact that Vick showed little remorse for his crimes.

I just read this article on CNN.com about letters for leniency to the judge. Hank Aaron, George Foreman, and other have written on his behalf. Even Vick himself wrote a five page letter to the judge. Are these people kidding?! 23 months is NOT long enough. He didn't just neglect or improperly car for a pet. This man arranged and paid for dogs (notice the plural) to be trained to fight to the death.

In his letter, Vick claims he is sorry for his crimes. If you read very carefully, you will find that he is not sorry for his crimes. He's just sorry he got caught. He is sorry that his actions will negatively affect his family. I hate to say it, but he should have thought of that BEFORE he started his dogfighting ring. In one portion of the letter, he blames his environment for his actions and states he saw people arrested for drugs and guns, but never for dogfighting. So, he never learned the severity of his crime. Who is he kidding? He didn't know that killing animals for sport was wrong? Really?! This goes back to my point that he is only sorry that he got caught. He also ennumerates his philanthropy. This shouldn't help his cause. While his philanthropic works are laudable, they do not make up for his crimes. He should have gotten the maximum 5 years for his crime.

Vick goes to trial for State dogfighting charges in April. Let's hope the State of Virginia throws the book at him.

Uncensored Thought

There are moments upon moments where I really could just hand little cards like this out.

I love my husband, but sometimes the ideas he comes up with deserve a card like this. I won't enumerated some of his fanciful ideas. I'll just say it takes all that I have to be diplomatic and tactful sometimes. I don't think it would be in my best interests to be mean to my husband all the time.

I would also love to use this card for some of the design requests I receive.

• 100 custom invites for $100 in a week? Hand the card. Here's your answer.
• Tags for baby shower favors tomorrow? Hand the card. Here's your answer.
• Brochure design with photo retouching for $150? Hand the card. Here's your answer.

It would be so sweet! Alas, it would probably be a poor business practice.

I would love to use this one for some people at work. There are some people that I work with that are incredible. They are talented and diligent. I admire them because some have long commutes and families that they care for. Then, there are the others. There is a small contingent that just the littlest amount of overtime or extra work causes them to whine louder than spoiled 4-year-olds at a toy store. Or, they expect to be patted on the back and given medals. It's aggravating. For them, I offer this card.

I think these would make life THAT much easier. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to continue to hone my diplomacy and sensitivity. I might just buy these cards and keep them in my desk drawer... just in case.