the wonders of selective grammar usage

If your name's on here, I really would like to see you at some point, especially if you'll be in for the holidays. Mind you, I don't know when you'll all be in town (heck, I'm putting people on here that I know don't even read this!), but yes. I would VERY MUCH like to spend time with you, so leave a comment as to how this is going to go down, yoooooooo.

Pat: I'm not a cashier anymore, so this time, I'll be extremely busy in a lab coat when you see me!  You have my number, mister, so just give me a call.
Jamie: You. Me. Long talk over... beverages and other means of consumption. Okay? Okay.
Sue: December's good for me, but my schedule sucks (split days? they hate me!) so we'll have to figure something out. You could always stop by my work for a double-dosage of Mo + Luana... but that'd be asking you to go into work, and I don't know if I'd ask that of anyone.
Paul: Aaugh! Lost your phone number! How are you on getting text messages? I'm "in", but I don't know if you are, so I'll wait until I get the okay to call you (that and the number! :0 )
Lilah: Okay, so you don't read this, but yeah. I hope that, when I get the defunct cell phone charged, that the number I have in there is still good. When that day comes, you will be getting a phone call.
Jen: I figure you won't be coming into town this holiday season, but next time you do, we can do the whole mommy thing (that's still weird for me to think of you like that sometimes!) and such. Deal?
Tsao: You coming in for Thanksgiving or what, mister? I'll try giving you a call tomorrow sometime.
Georgia, Jeb: Just because I see you guys more than the average bear doesn't mean I don't want to see you still. :D
Lisa, Brooke, Brandy: Much like Sue, I wouldn't dare dream of making you walk into my work, but if you're ever so inclined, I'll be in the back developing photos.  Lisa, maybe I'll catch a glimpse of you sometime at Shari's?

In other news, I love working in the photo lab. Sometimes I get nervous, because they're all such a cohesive unit and I worry that I'll stick out like some sort of spear amongst swords... or something.  One thing's for sure: everybody loves Michi. I mean, it's just the way it has to be.  One can't help but love that lady.  I don't have any issues with any of the girls (or the new guy) in the lab... and our PCM doesn't count, because she's never in the lab to begin with.

With that, I've got an outline to write real quick before crashing. It's taken quite the effort to stay up this late... I'd better quit that or else.

Rain falls rhythmically on the rooftops, the sound not unlike ten million kittens padding around playfully. Imagination is a wonderful thing, that's for sure. It's so soothing, and yet the temperate nature of Western Washington and its perma-rain are only but a tease. Christmas music may be pumping through the speakers and holly-jollies everywhere, but snow is but a fleeting memory my side of the Cascades. It doesn't get cold enough to snow too often, and when it finally does snow, it warms up to rain soon after, and all you have is a Slurpee(TM) Wonderland.

We've no shortage of evergreens, though. No shortage indeed.

The holidays always end up making me feel off-kilter. Too often, the "spirit" of Christmas ends up being mangled into some sort of holiday savings more than anything else. Don't get me wrong, I'm really rather curious/petrified to be working at the crack of dawn on Black Friday, but the fact that there's so much focus put on the monetary giving rather than the giving of love... it's just rather weird. Couple that with the fact that, yet again, I'll be kiss-less come New Year's and "enjoying" a new alone status on Christmas morning... it's a rather bittersweet feeling.

Time's starting to go by so quickly, though. I mean, it's already mid-November -- it's almost been a month since I was awed by the lights and sounds of Manhattan, but there's a part of me that still doesn't believe it happened, a part of me that's still reeling from the newness of it all. The other part of me tells me that it's been months since I was cuddled and such. Everything's so crazy-hectic right now, and I know that once Black Friday hits, the rest of the year will just go by like that. It's both exhilarating and exasperating.

I'm really hoping to be able to spend some time with people come Thanksgiving and Christmas. I know that samedi is coming into town for T-Day, and that patdayooper and jambarree will be in for winter vacation. Oh, how I wish that I could have a different job, one in which I could take the two weeks around Christmas off so Nick could come and meet them. I don't talk to them as often as I should, but as Nick can attest to, I've talked so much about my friends. There was a large part of me that really wanted to bring him to a pinochle night, but alas... :P There are no guarantees that there would be a pinochle night to begin with, but oh well.

I've actually been thinking a lot about one particular member of that pinochle grouping lately. I hope she's doing alright. Maybe I'd better start digging around in search of a phone number (which, hopefully, would still be hers)...

Anyway. I'm here. This much is true. As you've noticed, I may not be here quite as much for the time being (thank goodness for phone posts!), but... yes. I'm going to bed now.

... but not before saying these two things, both of which are intended for people who don't read this but will hear of it anyway somehow:
1) I am a Pokemon Master, damn you, despite my lack of Elite Four pwnage; and
2) Hahahaha, I so knew you were bluffing. Even spite has its limitations.

The day before last, I saw Mo in the break room, and after a few hushed moments under the rafters and the deconstruction of my life, she opened her arms.

Last night, I sat in the parking lot with Matt for about an hour and a half, showing him the pieces that make up the girl sitting across from him. My fingers were cold as I detailed the little things, like how I dread my days off because of the unnerving silence, and how the innate cameraderie of a service-related workplace only amplifies that loneliness inside me. It started as a mist, a dust, but eventually the carpet of clouds gave way to a steady rain, and as we stood there, trying to say goodbye without saying it, rain fell inbetween his open arms.

Each time, I've felt a slight hesitation, like I'm infringing on some basic etiquette of not hugging professional deities or whatnot.  However, I end up with my cheek against their chest, my palms across their back, and my heart, like a succubus, leeching all the comfort and security I can from them.

The first lesson is this:
As the one performing the study, you are always right. I don't care what formal researchers say about not being absolute in these sorts of things... I mean, dude. I'm neither formal or researching. I'm just right, and I was taught by the best about being right.

Case in point: I categorized Sir Matt from Petatoria as a "hater" in my most recent 1UP post. Which, well, he is. He hates the DS, he hates racing games, he just hates hates hates (but in a very nice way... but that doesn't take away from the hating). A couple of days ago, when a couple of us went to Denny's to wait for food to come (because my goodness, did it take forever), I tooled around on Matt's Palm and put in my e-mail and swoontastic information. After I went home, I pretty much forgot about it until I came into work today.

When I went over to Pets to drop off a crapload of stuff I found in Housewares, he mentioned that there was a place in Downtown Oly that does the actual sealy-thingies on their boba tea. We talked about it for a moment, and then I went back to my department. Halfway there, I stopped dead in my tracks --

he read my LiveJournal!

It wasn't a bad thing or whatnot, just a really weird realization.
Anyway, we ended up taking our breaks at about the same time, and after I bummed a nickel offa him, I asked him when he'd read my journal. We were talking about blogging and all (me: "all good geeks have a blog, you know"), when the best thing ever happened. I was starting to listen to my CD again and focus on my knitting, when all of a sudden, a fist slams down on the table right in front of me.

"I'm not a hater!"

Oh my lord, I couldn't have held back on laughing even if I tried. I busted out in fits of giggles and eked out, "so... you read my 1UP blog, huh?"

Apparently, he claims he's not a hater and he just knows what he likes. Yeah, whatever. We all know I'm right, so I kept on slipping in "... hater" at the end of every other sentence or so. IT WAS FANTASTIC.

So, yes. I'm right. What can I say? When you learn from the best, you just know. ;)

I'm updating too much.  Now, my LiveJournal priveleges will be revoked.  Eek.

However, I did update my 1UP blog, finished my review for Harvest Moon: Another Wonderful Life, and wrote a short commentary for Got Game (the latter two were for Got Next -- tomorrow, it's copy-editing day for you Deeko lovers out there!).

It's weird... when I get the urge, I have to go with it right then and there lest I lose the passion.  I really like my review this time around -- rather than the paint-by-numbers deals that both my Sprung and Wario Ware: Touched reviews felt like, this one was way more Luana.  I hate writing reviews with a passion mainly because of slipping into those formulaic tendencies and ruts, but this review is different.  Basically, it's written in the format of a letter to Natsume.  Chris liked the idea, so I just clickity-clacked away.

It's weird, because I had an extremely good day today, and usually happiness != creativity. I'll take what I can get, though! XD

I kinda went into a variant on what my nixed-for-the-time-being gender thing would have been in my commentary.  I hope it goes over well.

As for preparations, I'm pretty much packed.  Found my black hoodie, and ran off to JCPenney's to pick up the tank for my date outfit.  Oh. My. Lord.  I fit a medium shirt.  A MEDIUM.  That's crazy talk right there.  Tomorrow I'm going to spend the rest of my money on a green shirt and purple pants for my Otakon outfit, and my mom's going to work on my headpiece on the next couple of days.  She says it'll be easy enough to do, and I trust her.  She's one hell of a seamstress, I tell you -- my whole family is.  Chris, you really should fly over here sometime and just watch them all go.  It's fantastic.  I could start a sweatshop and make them all work for free.  I still remember Tsao telling me years ago that my name was meant to be on a label: "What are you wearing?" "Oh, it's a Luana Rawlins."

I can't believe I wasn't able to talk to Jeb on his birthday.  What a loser of a best friend I must be. -_- I hope your plans were spifftastic, dear.

After I left Kinko's with a heavy heart (yet considerably lighter with help), I decided that since I had both a digital camera and a desire not to be alone at home, I was going to put into motion part one of my plan: take pictures of Olympia.

You see, Tsao misses Olympia.  After driving around on that scorching summer day, I can see why.  What I plan on doing, with the rest of the plan coming to fruition on Thursday or Friday, is taking my favorite shots and framing them so he can have a bit of home in his new home.  Call it a late housewarming gift, I don't know -- I just know that it's the least I can do, especially with all he's done for me (and is doing for me) over the years.

( In the meantime, here are some of the photos from my time at Marathon Park. )

This may very well be the scariest thing you ever see.
... and this may be the funniest.

Oh, Pete.

I roared at work, which caught Chris off-guard.

"Roar?" he asked.

"Roar," I replied.

I thought work was bad yesterday.  Yesterday was effing paradise compared to the hellishness of today.  However, I did find out that Chris and I (who have been bonding quite a bit during this horror week) have a mutual friend -- Ben Paris.  I knew this because he pointed out how he knew this guy, and when I looked up, there was Adam Paris smiling at me.  I was like :0 and he was laughing at my :0.

"You have facial hair," I told him.

More laughing.

And then more crappy when we actually had to step back onto the sales floor.  If I get yelled at, then oh well.  Even my mother is pretty miffy about it, because when I mentioned that they look for ways to fire people they don't like, she said to me "let them fire you, then."  That is something that my mother neversays.

Aargh.

Oh, and some lech who works overnights was walking by me, and as I was passing him, he licked his lips and gave me the once-over.  OH. MY. LORD.
I've never felt so skeezed up in my entire life.  At least I can pretend that ass-grabbing thing was an accident.  This, though? Ew.

However! There was/is one good shining brilliance to the day, and that's the fact that I now have a flight buddy in puccapeach for my NYC trip in October!  There is just so much awesome in that statement that I can't describe.  So much.

First I'll get to hang out with Pasha soon (hopehopehope), then I'll get to fly over and see Tsao (late-night restaurant runs and Taiko tag-teams, here I come), then I get to finally see my yabanjin, then I get to Enforce at PAX and meet some awesome people like Kevin, then I'll get to spend some more time with friends down here (and hopefully get to the point where I can hang out with my work friends too -- I really like them, really really), and then get to travel to New York with lovely Peaches and go to Digital Life (hopefully finding and chatting it up with the illustrious Matt).

Oh, my.  Even with the veritable windfall of crap that I've had to deal with, I can easily say that this year is the best year of my life.  If we start from May and include next year's birthday in on that (E3! GotNext awesomeness! Honorary Deeko roomie!), then there's no question about it.  Best. Year. Ever.

Now, if only I can get that job at the school district, you'll just be catching me with a bruise on my arm from eternal pinchage.

bele_nus is love. <3 <3 <3 x 80,000,000,000

I'm too tired to expound fully about this right now, so you'll have to do with summaries and witticisms until tomorrow sometime. <3

• Drove to Seattle on Thursday afternoon to go see jebimstr.  Traffic won't be that bad, I told myself. I've got to stop listening to myself.  Let's just say that it took me about... oh, a bajillion hours to get there when it should've only taken one.  I got so bored and desperate that I not only left a voicemail on jennanemone's cell phone, but also called up good ol' Patrick himself on a whim.  Poor kid probably thinks I'm insane or something, but that's what he gets for being one of the few people programmed into my mother's cell phone (good ol' E3).
• Got there, went out to the Northgate Target and to the Starbucks and Barnes & Noble's in the UVillage.  When we went to Starbucks, nobody recognized Jeb, which was a first that I totally brought up.  What happens when we go to B&N, though?  :D  After that, we went to QFC to go get some ingredients so he could cook me food.  The boy's fasting for spiritual reasons, something I totally respect, yet it's still weird for him to cook this wonderful yumminess for me and not partake in any of it.
• While we were sitting in his room, Jeb's cell phone rings.  It's puccapeach, and she totally had something for me.  She zooms on over to Jeb's apartment, where we all just talk and reminisce and tell funny stories.  She got me a phone card, lovely girl... but the best part about it was that it was a card with a hundred domestic minutes, which balanced out to eleven minutes to the boy's cell phone.  Hey, I'll take eleven minutes when I can get them, and I know Georgia loved her Jigglypuff serenade.
• No, my giant pen does not look suggestive.  Will everyone please stop saying that?
• So, "roommate", formerly known to the world as Alex (obligatory LJ link right... about... here: alixd), called up Jeb around 1:30 needing a ride home.  We all pile into Georgia's little red number and wait outside the local PetCo for him to show up.  A crazy dude wanders around, making us nervous.  Finally, Alex and his friend Alex (!!) show up, and we make our way down to drop off Alex #2 (literally -- his name is Alex Tu).
• This deserves its own bullet: so, we're talking about how people were recognizing them, and Alex #2 says that all "the Asians" were saying that they'd seen him somewhere.  One of us made a crack about him lumping them all together (made all the more funny since #2 himself is Asian, as well as Jeb, Georgia, and I -- "roommate" is practically Asian, having spent a year in Japan on study), and he said that they all came together, so it was okay.  I said something about the Asians being a box set -- why hide my geekiness -- to which "roommate" replied that the Asians were a bento box.  Hearty laughs all around.
• Oh, and it needs to be said -- roommate Alex (like there's any other Alex as far as I'm concerned!) is totally awesome.  He plays Pop 'n Music.  DUDE.  He also gives Jeb a hard time about everything, which I wholeheartedly approve of.  I got along with him splendidly, and can't wait to see him again.
• Jeb and I spent quite a bit of time bonding over past experiences and whatnot.  I made him jealous with a couple of my stories.  Ahahahaha.  Nice to know I had it at some point.  ::struts::  Then Alex came out, we all talked about nothing and everything, and I found out that even though Jeb put up a pretty calm front while all the stuff of May was going on, in reality he was angry as hell.  Apparently he startled both Alex and his friend Veronica (on separate occassions) with his fury and rage at what was going on with me.  Oh, I love that boy so much.
• Jeb + cooking = mmmm.
• Jeb's apartment + Luana's stuff = black hole.  Okay, so I have about $8.50 of a phone card sitting somewhere in that apartment.  Then I lost my keys.  Actually, this one can't be blamed on his apartment, since they were actually in Georgia's car.  Because of this, we totally left late for Olympia (he rode down with me) an hour or so and got stuck in the worst traffic on the face of the planet.  I was two hours late for work.  I don't think they really cared -- as long as you show up and call if you'll be late, they'll love you.  Oh, and if you work.
  
• We almost got into an accident that would have surely landed us at Harborview.  That would have been bad, seeing that neither of us are insured at the moment.  Damn adulthood.
• I ate the rest of Jeb's ABC bread during my break.  Stuff's damn addictive.
• For the first time in forever, I only had to cover one department.  SOLID.  Too bad that one department was Domestics.  LAME.
• 'Tis funny how instances that should really break things only make them stronger.

I could go into more elaborate detail about everything here, but I'm going to try to get to bed early tonight (three am! go me!) and... yeah.  Going to audioblog tomorrow for 1UP, I believe, after I get on Skype and have me some Phil time.  I miss my Phil.