I'm sitting here listening to a lady talk on the phone. Mid dinner she recieved a call that her nephew was in a car accident and is in ICU with two blood clots in his brain. He's completely unconscious, and they're trying to keep him that way. Something to do with the bloodclots.

I gave her a hug. Somehow I couldn't help myself, though it is completely unlike me. Then I apologised...

She's been in the lobby making calls for over an hour trying to get information to her family. Thank God the boy is a Christian...and a very recent one. (eavesdropping picks up wonderful little tidbits) So anyone who wants to can pray for his body without needing to add one for his soul.

Rain Rain everywhere. It's wet and cold. How can the air be so dry and so wet at the same time?

Today I turn in a resumee/headshot packet. Monday I mail in my PCPA application with all my collected info, recommendation letters, and transcripts. I forgot about ordering a transcript....dang it! I hope I get a job out of this. I spent $60 yesterday on headshot printing and resumee supplies. And stuff. Don't forget the stuff...

I'm so tired. I was out with a friend late last night. Her daughter had run out of gas. I hadn't seen her in a week or so, so I tagged along for the ride. The girl had passed three gas stations, then run out halfway up a hill. So we picked her up. Took her back to one of the gas stations she'd passed. The daughter spent the whole ride claiming that she KNOWS how far she can push her car, and the stupid thing just wouldn't do it. Once we got there, She couldn't figure out how to take the nozzle off. Then pumping the gas wasn't working. We got back, and the can leaked. She put a little into the car, put away the gas can and discovered an age old fact. Cars don't start well with very low gas on an incline. So she repeated the process. The car wouldn't start for the longest time. Finally, we think, she just cussed at it enough to scare it into going.

Then what do you suppose she did?

Did she drive immediatly to the nearest station to fill up?

Of course not.

She drove 4 miles to the middle of nowhere where we all live...Five miles and major hills away from the nearest gas station.....teenage logic. I don't get it.

And now for something completely different... Not from Shakespeare, but pretty darn old.

The Lying Valet, by David Garrick.

Oh woman, woman, foolish woman! she'll certainly have this Gayless: nay, were she as well convinced of his poverty as I am she'have him. A strong dose of love is worse than one of ratafia; when it once gets into our heads, it trips up our heels and then, good night to discretion. Here is she going to throw away fifteen thousand pounds; upon what? faith, little better than nothing-he's man and that's all-and heaven knows mere man is but small consolation.

Be this advice pursued by each fond maid.
Ne'er slight the substance for an empty shade:
Rich, weighty sparks alone should please and charm ye:
For should spouse cool, his gold will always warm ye.

Camilla, by Madeleine L'Engle

Frank was not going to come.

I went down to Ninth Street. I did not want to go, looking for Frank after he had left me waiting without a word, but I could not help myself.

The door to the apartment was open and Louisa stood there.

"Where's Frank?" "He's gone," Louisa said. "Gone?" "With Bill. To Cincinatti. They left this morning." "Oh." I said. I stood there unable to move, until Louisa said, "Here. Frank told me to give this to you."

I took the letter without saying anything. "Camilla, " it said, " I'm going with Bill to Cincinatti. So, that's that. I can't say goodbye to you. Do you know why? You'll just have to know. I can't write what I feel either. You'll just have to know that too. Love, Frank"

I wend over to the window. A single bright wtar was throbbing against the blackness. I did not wish on it, because at that particular moment there wans't anything left to wish. I held Frank's letter in my hand and knew that I would always have it to look at and to keep, and now I did not have to try and forget him. And I would not have to cry.

There Jeff, what do you think of that one?

I'm thinking about doing this monologue.

Valentines Day has been and gone. I have to repeat my Christmas observations. Why is it that people are more stressed out, irritable, and generally impossible to please on the days that are supposed to be the most fun and relaxing. I know why I'M stressed out and irritable, but who wants to spend that much money to be miserable.

Example

We had a lady and her husband staying two nights. On the night of Valentines she came downstairs and chewed out everyone she could get her hands on about the fact that there was no tv or cd player in the rooms. At the Alisal, we barely have electricity and everyone loves how rustic it is. Here, however, she was "very unhappy." She and her husband like to watch the news in the morning. We sent up a tv. She was also "very unhappy" with the breakfast, the room, the environment, and I don't know, the view most likely. She wanted a lower room rate. She wanted special amenities. She wanted the chef to come in the next morning and personally cook them an in-room breakfast. We finally got rid of her, and she called down from her room to say that she was "very unhappy" that there was no chart by the phone telling her how to retrieve her messages (there was one on the bedside table....). In otherwords, she was just "very unhappy."

My thought is...we had people begging for rooms that night, or just a rollaway in a conference room. If she was that unhappy she could just try her luck getting a room. There wasn't a single room in the county to be had for love nor money that night. Secondly. Its freaking VALENTINES DAY. TALK TO YOUR SPOUSE! Do something romantic! Enjoy that fact that you are out of the house, away from the noise and the distractions.

And besides. Nothing is more sexy than shreaking like a shrew at the top of your lungs for a half hour, then retiring with your spouse for a good woe-is-me session. Really put her husband in the mood for romance, I'm sure.

Another idea for humanitarian aid...the country of Haiti is in more political upheaval. Their president has lost the confidence of some of the militant groups of the country. They are uniting to try to make him step down from office. The president has declared his intention of staying in office until the end of his term in 2006. The politics are neither here nor there really. The problem is that because of the turmoil, food and medical supplies are scarce. For more information on the medical conditions in Haiti on a good day, visit the Compassion International Site and look up the country. Now, the conditions are much worse. The average person in Haiti lives in a year on as much money as I make working one job in two weeks. If you would like to donate to disaster relief, click here. The child I support lives just south of the fourth largest city. I have had no word on if she is safe, how near she is to the conflict, if she's still able to go about her life. Anyway...if you'd like to help out some people in a country in trouble, there you are. Compassion International's financial information and mission statement are online. At least 80% of the money that comes to them goes directly to the intended recipient.

Alright guys....If you've ever parused the "My favorite blogs" link, you'll notice Wil Wheaton's is on there. Right now he's trying to raise $25,000 for the Leukemia walk-a-thon in San Diego. Here's the link to his donation page if you have a dollar or two to spare. Here's the link, and I'll put one in the "Beyond ourselves" area too.....

There is the knee-melting-est guy in with his girlfriend?wife?fiance this evening. He's not absolutely beautiful, but he's british and has an Ewan McGreggor thing going on. Wow. he walked up to the desk and we all just stood with our mouths open. And I'm not a drooler by nature. Holy cow is it hot in here.