Kasia November 29th, 2008
For Stephanie’s mother, who is in hospice care, that she have a peaceful transition from this earthly life to her eternal reward: St. Joseph, please pray for her.
And for Stella, Tara’s corgi, who somehow got a hold of a bottle of aspirin and is in the dog hospital with an uncertain prognosis: St. Francis of Assisi, St. Martin de Porres, please pray for her.
And for any other intentions, published or not: All you holy men and women, please pray for us.
Kasia November 29th, 2008
You Have Your Sarcastic Moments |
 While you’re not sarcastic at all times, you definitely have a cynical edge. In your opinion, not all people are annoying. Some are dead! And although you do have your genuine moments, you can’t help getting your zingers in. Some people might be a little hurt by your sarcasm, but it’s more likely they think you’re hilarious. |
Kasia November 29th, 2008
There Are 0 Gaps in Your Knowledge |
 Where you have gaps in your knowledge: No Gaps! Where you don’t have gaps in your knowledge: Philosophy Religion Economics Literature History Science Art |
Kasia November 26th, 2008
Last night after work I went to Kohl’s to return a couple of items I’d decided against. As I walked up to the entrance, I noticed a young man standing around like he was selling something or collecting petition signatures; but since I didn’t see any merchandise, didn’t have any cash, and wasn’t especially interested in a petition, I walked by. He didn’t say anything to me.
On the way out, he was standing in the vestibule, and this time he did address me. He was, he said, a sophomore at a local high school; and he was collecting money and signatures so he could go on a trip with other honor students to Washington, DC.
I stopped and considered this. It was the “signature” part that really flummoxed me. I mean, I’ve seen some pretty unconventional fundraising efforts; so standing outside of Kohl’s asking strangers for money, while unorthodox (and, I would argue, unsavory), was at least plausible. But why did he need my signature?
I asked to see any documentation he had. He showed me a flyer, pretty obviously created in Word or some similar program, with a picture of the Mall at the top and some information below. “Sophomore” was misspelled at one point. And the only explanatory information was sparse, very unclear, and crammed into a lengthy run-on sentence that was supposed to pass for a paragraph.
I asked him some questions. Like, why did he need my signature? He replied that it was to give “permission” (or some similar thing) for him to go. I stared at him, baffled. “Why does my signature mean anything to them?! I don’t even know you!” He admitted that he didn’t fully understand it either, but that “that’s what they told us” to do.
It was evening, and well past the point I could have called the school to confirm his story. I told him, after some back-and-forth, that I was sorry but that I would need more information before I could give him either money or my signature. He accepted that cheerfully and wished me well.
I called the school just now. I didn’t get a live person, just a voicemail (a lot of schools have in-service days today), but I left a message for the tenth-grade counselor, whose name, I am sorry to report, is not the same as the name listed on the flyer. But I guess there could be multiple tenth-grade counselors.
Anyway, I left her my name and cell phone number and a précis of what I was calling about. We’ll see if she calls me back. In the meantime, I’m taking notes of everything I remember – I’m almost certain not to hear back from her before Monday at the earliest, and there’s nothing worse than not having your facts straight. I sincerely hope the kid was on the up-and-up, and perhaps had just misunderstood the directions given him; but as of right now I’m not optimistic about that.
Very, very strange.
Kasia November 22nd, 2008
…for Ikariam.
I quit…oh, quite a while ago. Back in the summer, I think. And I had successfully resisted its siren song for lo these many months. BUT, with the stress of the wedding details increasing and my tolerance level for small frustrations decreasing, I finally bit the bullet and signed back up.
We’ll see whether it helps or hinders.
Kasia November 20th, 2008
Sunday night I had my downshift from “It’s so far away – it’ll never get here!” to “OH I WILL NEVER GET EVERYTHING DONE IN TIME!!!”
That was disturbing enough.
Then Monday night I had my first…well, I dubbed it my “forest-for-trees” moment, where I bit my beloved’s head off for something that was really so not worth snapping at him over. Yes, he’d goofed up; but the reason I called it the “forest-for-trees” moment is that our relationship is the point, not whether every single detail of the day is perfect.
Today I had to take deep breaths and refrain from snapping again. It doesn’t help that I’ve got other stressors going on at the same time, though that’s not an excuse either.
I am going to have ice cream for dinner.
Lots of it.
Seriously - I never thought I’d turn into Bridezilla, but I think I might be on my way.
So depressing. This definitely calls for ice cream.
** UPDATE **
So last night I was on the phone with Canuck, having nearly chewed through my tongue to avoid snapping at him again earlier in the day. I asked him if it would be in the budget to go out for a nice dinner on Saturday (not Friday, because that doesn’t really fit in the spirit of penitential Fridays).
He said sure, he thought we could work that out. Then he said:
“It’ll help, right? I mean, if you’re still going to be Queen B*t*h afterwards, why bother, right?”
Yes, he was joking. Yes, I laughed. A lot.
It’s gonna be a long two months.
Kasia November 15th, 2008
We had my bridal shower today. Well, my Detroit bridal shower – there’s going to be one in Chatham for the Canadian family and some of Mere de Canuque’s friends
I have to say, I never thought I would be one of those brides who would squeal over Sil-Pat baking mats and steel colanders, but apparently I misjudged myself. There was much squealing, and almost all of it originated with yours truly.
It was a lovely shower. I appreciated the effort and planning (and of course the gifts too!), and now need to pick out some purty thank-you notes to begin expressing my appreciation.
On an only-tangentially-related note, I’m still sorely tempted to buy this for the wedding. But I’m not sure I can bring myself to spend more than I spent on the dress for a cape that I’m unlikely to wear again…any thoughts? It is perfect for a winter wedding…but…
** UPDATE ** Or I could buy this (more pics here)…much less expensive, but DEFINITELY a single-occasion garment…
Kasia November 14th, 2008
There’s a title for the ages…
It hit me this morning as I was driving to work. The last few days – well, really, almost a week – I’d been having little pity parties. Poor me this, I’m so ill-used that. You know. We all have them – at least, every person I know does – and hopefully we do our best to keep them to a minimum and in reasonable check.
When I was finishing my undergrad, I was researching a paper that dealt with the Serbian Orthodox Church’s responses to the fragmentation of Yugoslavia. I never ended up writing the paper – long story. However, the research I was doing included delving into a lot of European news services of the time, and reading all the stories related to the conflict and the region more generally. (I was looking for evidence of whether the church had spoken out, and if so, what had been said.)
Anyway. So I’m burying myself in news reports of the time, which (not surprisingly) are dripping with quotes from Serb leaders from Milosevic on down, plus the commentary from the church (which was, also unsurprisingly, pretty Serb-friendly), all of which goes on and on about how the Serbs are the real victims here, yadda yadda.
When you’re that immersed in propaganda, it’s hard to keep perspective. At one point I found myself getting very indignant on behalf of the poor beleaguered Serbs. I mean, what did they really do, anyway?
And then I shook myself and said, “Hello, self – Srebrenica?!?!” (Among other things, of course, but that was the one that jarred me back to reality.)
Now, my point isn’t that we should all hate on the Serbs. My point is that, given sufficient exposure to deceit, one can sometimes succumb to it and deceive oneself. Sometimes one needs a reality check.
And that’s what I’d been doing with my little pity parties.
So if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to sit down and make myself remember at least a dozen big blessings in my life. I have a job, for one, and it’s even one that I like. I have a roof over my head, and a car to drive between home and work (and hey, gas prices are down!). Food in my cupboards and the ability to buy more. A much-beloved fiancé, who has already received his visa to come here and marry me. The freedom to marry him in our church, without having to post guards at the door to tell us if government agents are coming to shut down the service and arrest the attendees. Family and friends whom I love and who love me. Two very sweet, very affectionate (if sometimes obnoxious) cats, and several more critters in my extended family. The prospect of children. Both parents (and step-parents) still living and reasonably healthy.
And that’s just a start. Anything I might have to complain about seems pretty meager compared to all that.
Kasia November 12th, 2008
OK. So at least one or two of the Big Three have expressed interest in getting some of the money from that big government bailout/stimulus package that passed back in what, September? Now, I’m not going to debate whether the package should have passed – even at the time I recognized that it was beyond my meager economic competence to evaluate, and now it’s moot anyway because it’s long since passed. My question is a little more basic.
According to the news report I heard this morning, the Big Three and our governor, Jennifer Granholm, are earnestly pressing for this. However, (the news reported), some people object because the funds shouldn’t be used to prop up companies that have grossly mismanaged their resources. I paraphrase, but that’s the gist.
So here’s my question: As I recall, the package was precipitated by the apparently impending failure of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, plus a few other financial institutions that had apparently either been instrumental in originating most of the mortgages that have since been deemed overly risky (you know, when they went into default – hindsight being 20/20 and all that) or had purchased them as investments (because we know risky investments NEVER fail and ALWAYS bring high returns)…doesn’t it seem like…well, you know…the package was designed for companies that have grossly mismanaged their resources? Or is it just me?
And now I hear the City of Detroit is trying to get in on the action. Well, they definitely qualify as having grossly mismanaged their resources…
