Elfquest: The Confrontation

Yet another from A Wolfrider's Reflections. This is the classic confrontation between Strongbow and Winnowill. This is also the first of many posts that I am copying over from my old blog (Fear the AoD) before I delete it (yes, that blog has outlived its usefulness, since I no longer play WoW as frequently as I used to, and the rantings of a night elf turned blood elf turned night elf death knight are no longer of interest.) so... Enjoy.

Just A Short Post

It's been a rather busy, hectic, strange week here. I forgot to mention in my last post that I'm working in a convenience store called Turkey Hill, in fact, it's the same store that I worked at 16 years ago before moving back up to the Erie area in '96. Anyway, things at the store had been in somewhat of a disarray since before I started working there in late May. In the absence of a full manager, the store was being run by an assistant manager who seemed to have somewhat of a "lackadaisical" attitude about things. I noticed from the start a lot of outdated products on the shelves, and started pulling them when I got the chance. I also got hired into a store full of its own brand of drama. One employee seemed content to put all the other employees down, and calling them lazy, fat, etc. and not only saying this to their faces, but to and in front of customers. This caused quite a bit of dissention in the ranks, and being as I am, I tried to remain neutral until said employee tried putting the other employees down in front of me or trying to do the same to me. I wouldn't put up with it, and so I told her, which quickly turned her attitude on to me. About two weeks ago, they brought a new store manager in, and she started trying to get things back in order. Shortly afterward, the assistant manager got fired for neglecting her duties, and we were back to square one with being understaffed. Also, complaints about the one employee started coming in from customers, and a store meeting was held on Monday to "correct" the situation. Since then, the area manager, and other higher ups have been in the store trying to figure out how to get things in order and get the store running as it should. Needless to say, it's been a bit busy, and at times frustrating. Hopefully things get to some semblance of "normalcy" soon.

Back Again and a Contest

So, I've been a bit lax with the blogging. Well, more than a bit lax, but I'm still here. What's new in my life? Well, I am no longer in Erie, PA. We transplanted ourselves to Enola, PA in Early May, and left Erie behind. I can't say I really miss the area there, but there are a few people that I do miss, and hope to get back to visit before too long. I was planning on going back to visit this month for my class reunion (this year is 25 years since I graduated from High School) but lack of fundage and vehicle issues prevented that. Anyway, Things are pretty decent here. I'm closer to family, and it's a nicer area. We live about 3 blocks up from the rail yard, but don't really hear the trains that much, just an occasional whistle or bells, but nothing more. Kat got a job at the local nursing home, making about 1.4 times what she was making in Erie. I got a job working for the same Turkey Hill store I worked at before I moved from LeMoyne 16 years ago. I'm still looking for accounting work, but since we moved at a time when all the recent college graduates were looking for work, I haven't found one yet. Not giving up hope though. I haven't really been doing much gaming lately, as I got bored even with the beta testing of Mists of Pandaria, and Diablo 3 got boring really quick (one can only do the same quests over and over again for too long before it gets old.) Been playing a game online called "Lords of Ultima" (which is supposedly a continuation of sorts of the old Ultima games from the late 80s/early 90s.) It's not really time consuming, and I have time to do other things as well. The weather here has been really HOT of late. Today, I think, is the hottest so far. It's only 97degrees in Harrisburg, but outside my own window, my thermometer was reading 104.3 just an hour ago, and the sun wasn't even shining on it. Storms are supposed to move through later this evening through tomorrow, and cool things off, but until then, we bake. That's all for my update for now. I shall endeavor this time to update on a mor eregular basis. even if it's random thoughts. Now, as promised, my friend Angela Korra'ti is holding a contest to win a free copy of her recently published book, Faerie Blood. There are 2 eBook copies and 2 print copies up for grabs. For your chance/chances of winning, follow the link below:

New Year

So it's another new year, and it's the same old grind. Saw the new year in alone again last night, which rather sucked. Couldn't even enjoy NYRE on TV because of all the crap they sell as "music" that was on there. Didn't even feel like waiting up for anyone to call at midnight, so turned off the ringer on my phone and went to bed early. Couldn't sleep, so just lay there listening to the music on the computer. This spending new years eve alone thing is getting rather old. Makes one feel like nobody really cares. Yeah, I know that's probably not the case, but with the way things have been going lately, it just adds to the crappiness of my life. OK, enough for now. I have to get ready for work.

Back, yet again.

Yes, I'm still very much alive, and all rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated. The past few months have been nothing short of frustrating. We were supposed to move from Erie to the greener pastures (jobwise) of the Harrisburg area in October, and that fell through at virtually the last minute, as the rental agency that owned the apartment/duplex that we were going to rent added all kinds of extra charges at the last minute (such as paying to use the basement (which wasn't shared), and paying extra for using our own trashcan, and our own appliances (washer, dryer, etc), so we tore up the rental agreement and walked out. Now we're setting our sights on a Late February- Early March move. Once we get what the IRS owes us for income tax overpayment, we'll take another trip down there and see what we can find. My job situation has been one heck of a roller-coaster ride. I transferred to a different store in the chain in late April because it offered me more hours, even though it was a longer commute to work. It was good at first, then my hours began to get cut drastically, and it caused extra stress when it came to paying the bills, since it put an extra crunch on the wallet. I've had a few calls and some interviews for other jobs in the accounting field, but none of them panned out. Yet, I remain hopeful that things will get better. Just today, I got a notification of some class actio settlement against Verizon, that I may be able to collect from, as it is for anyone who worked for them Between 2004 and 2011 that had their jobs terminated as a result of loss of work due to illness (either the worker or family). So I shall read that tomorrow or sometime next week to see what it's all about.
Now, the past year hasn't been without it's bright spots. In an older post, I commented on a reunion with an old childhood (High school) friend. She has been a real blessing and breaht of fresh air this past year. We've gotten together a few times to do things like going to the amusement park with her family, to sharing dinner or lunch on occasion, or just hanging out and enjoying each others' company. It's also a big plus that both her kids like me. I will not neglect to include her mom either, who is just as feisty and fun as I remembered.
There are the other friends that I've enjoyed spending time with as well, both old and new, and I'm going to miss them all when I leave this town. However, I know that we will always keep in touch.

My Career in Starfleet

Your LJ Starfleet Career (in LJ Universe)-NEW AND IMPROVED! by shikyrie
First Name:
Last Name:
First Assignment:	USS Guardian NCC-80777 (Prometheus)
Second Assignment:	USS Istanbul NX-32121 (Istanbul)
Third Assignment:	USS Belfast NCC-3268 (Xerxes)
Fourth Assignment:	USS Bristol NX-8400 (Bristol)
Fifth Assignment:	USS Kerry NCC-54163 (Springfield)
Sixth Assignment:	USS Adventurer NCC-1977 (Miranda)
Seventh Assignment:	USS Diligent NCC-73836 (Galaxy)
Final Assignment:	USS Arcos NCC-6237 (Deneva)
Final Rank:	Admiral (4 Star)
How Will Your Career End?	You will become the Ambassador to the Romulan Star Empire.

Good friends are hard to come by- and even harder to lose

Recently, after 25 years of no contact, and once re-found, another 2 years of nothing but emails, instant messages, and facebook posts and comments, I was blessed and privileged to finally get to spend some quality time with an old childhood friend. It was a bit awkward, at first- for the first couple of minutes, but then it was like time had never separated us. We were back to talking and carrying on like we did back in high school, and laughing at the same things that made us laugh back then. Then I got to meet her husband, a giant redwood of a man, but also a decent fellow, when he was home on leave from his job overseas. I think we shocked him with some of the stories of our youthful adventures, but it was all good. More recently, I got to meet the family (her two kids, her sister-in-law and her two kids) and had the chance to see my friend's mom again after 27 years (when I had my snot and living daylights squeezed out of me in the biggest hug I've ever received from one of my friends' parents. Catching up on old times, bridging the years, and creating new memories is priceless, and I am so happy and blessed to have found a part of my childhood again.