I really just flippin' hate being sick.
In the past few years, I've never really gotten anything major during cold / flu / bad juju seasons. But I swear, in this one alone, I've gotten sick more often than in the last five combined. I just want to be able to breathe and sleep of a night and not have a throat that feels like someone took really rough sandpaper to it and oh god the migraines why. I'm sure my co-workers would really like to, you know.. actually see my face at work, too. Without the fear of 'Oh god what horrific death bug is she bringing in to the office now?'
If anyone needs me, I'll be in the corner. Waving my white flag of surrender. But if you bring any more germs over here, I swear I'll knife you. ;A;
Last week I called my social worker to check if she needed any papers sent in, because I've recently been approved for a program where I can work on reduced hours, as I am disabled - something that took me about 4 years to get on. Anyways, she replies that she's not entirely sure but she doesn't think so, but is like "I'll ask my coworkers and call you back"Â And then 8 days pass, wherein I notice that the part of my income (I'm on something comparable to jobseekers allowance but it is split between two parts of the system, again because of my disability.) haven't ticked in and the more that becomes a problem the more i try to call her to no avail.Â
So today I finally got through to her and she said that I didn't need to send anything in until the day I got work. So then I ask why my money hadn't gone in this month and she's like:
"Oh I
assumed you got a job"
![[Image: headdesk.jpg?w=449]](http://smalldog.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/headdesk.jpg?w=449)
Â
Mind you, in the system I know she has access to, she can look up my social number and see that I am listed as "Currently unemployed". Heck she could even check my CV and hire me as the assistant that she cleeeeeeeeeearly needs.Â
But no, It's easier just assume that I have a job despite there being no indication for such. I just asked a question. Seriously. Why.Â
._.
In retrospect, I'm removing this rant I wrote about my experiences commuting by bicycle and motorcycle.
Back to your currently scheduled ranting and raving.
Driving: One of the best and worst things humanity ever came up with.
(02-05-2015, 12:34 PM)Inessa Hara Wrote: [ -> ]Driving: One of the best and worst things humanity ever came up with.
I think my biggest issue is that you're a captive audience in a vehicle. Stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic or just behind two idiots who decide to take up both lanes going below the speed limit? There's... not a lot you can DO. You basically HAVE to deal with it.
Or you try to circumvent and risk either physical harm or fines for breaking the law. Squeezing through as soon as a space opens between cars could lead to a crash, deciding your above the law and going up on the curb will (hopefully) get you pulled over.
And if you're traveling long enough distances (which is a common enough case these days), there's not a lot of options. Taking the Metro, maybe, but that also precludes the proximity of a station both at where you're starting and where you're getting off. And then you're at other peoples' mercy there too: bus schedules, trains running late, and so on.
Not to mention how goddamn COSTLY a car is. Just buying one is a major money sink unless you get a used clunker, and repairs can get ridiculously costly. Some guy in front of you kicks up a rock and damages your windshield? Couple hundred dollars if the crack's large enough. Someone scrapes the side of your car because they can't park properly? More cash spent at a body repair shop.
I had a WINDOW MOTOR die on me on my last car and it cost $500 FOR JUST THE MOTOR.
Window motor? That's a fun one. My other favorites are the ignition switch ($1k easy, possibly upwards of $2.5k depending on the make) and the head gasket (a popular failure item on Subarus especially, and about $2k to have replaced). What's really fun is replacing an automatic transmission. $2,000 at a minimum, and that's if it's a commonly available, old transmission. When I had a transmission replaced in a 1996 Subaru, it was $3,800 using a used Japanese import transmission.
The
particularly fun stuff is in the newer cars. Your dual-clutch transmission went out and it's more than just a clutchplate replacement? $12k
minimum (so if you're not in a BMW or Mercedes, time to buy a new car).
This is why I vastly prefer manual transmissions, besides the visceral fun factor of shifting gears (and not having to worry about the car being stolen, given how few people can drive them these days
). A clutchplate replacement in an MT is about $700. The clutchplate replacement on a DCT -- which will happen, as it's a wear item -- is about $5k. Unfortunately, the poor MT is on its way out; AMG hasn't used them for years, Porsche just dropped them, BMW is talking about dropping them, and even at the low end, it's a special order option if it's available at all. A co-worker had to special order a Civic with an MT for his kid, since no dealer carried it in anything but an automatic. Sure, you've still got the Golf R and the WRX STi (which only come in the MT), but the MT in the States is a dying breed.
All that said, I wouldn't want to give up being able to do 0 to 60 mph in the mid-4s with the roof down while playing some Final Fantasy battle music...
I've become super gungho about checking my battery terminals. I once had a 2001 Toyota Camry. One of the major repairs was the battery corrosion on the terminals. Everything had to be replaced and it took over 2 weeks. Not to mention that at the same time while I was being dropped off by my family to a mentor's house for FIRST robotics, the last fucking day I messed up on stripping gauge 8 electrical wire and just gouged a large portion of my thumb. BLOOD YAY
2001 Toyota Camry's also had something wrong with the ignition (not quite it) but it would flutter and not actually have ignition. Something like an air valve that generally died in that car after like 10 years -_-
Whilst I won't post my rant about commuting by bike, I will be smug about the amount of maintenance my chosen steed takes. I'd say I spend under $50 a year, most of which is in tires and inner tubes. There's also the extra benefit that my ass is fantastic!
(02-05-2015, 02:46 PM)C'kayah Polaali Wrote: [ -> ]Whilst I won't post my rant about commuting by bike, I will be smug about the amount of maintenance my chosen steed takes. I'd say I spend under $50 a year, most of which is in tires and inner tubes. There's also the extra benefit that my ass is fantastic!
And I will be smug about having my air conditioning and heating for when the weather's less than fantastic.
Seriously, though, I wish I could walk/bike to work, but it's a 15/16 mile trip... mostly taking major freeways. I'd have to get up even earlier and I'd arrive to work/home completely worn out, I'm sure.
(02-05-2015, 02:51 PM)Gegenji Wrote: [ -> ] (02-05-2015, 02:46 PM)C'kayah Polaali Wrote: [ -> ]Whilst I won't post my rant about commuting by bike, I will be smug about the amount of maintenance my chosen steed takes. I'd say I spend under $50 a year, most of which is in tires and inner tubes. There's also the extra benefit that my ass is fantastic!
And I will be smug about having my air conditioning and heating for when the weather's less than fantastic.
Seriously, though, I wish I could walk/bike to work, but it's a 15/16 mile trip... mostly taking major freeways. I'd have to get up even earlier and I'd arrive to work/home completely worn out, I'm sure.
The funny thing about commuting by bike? After a few days, you realize that it's really not that bad if you're hot, cold, or wet.
My current commute is pretty short, but when I was at Microsoft, it was a 20+ mile trip. It took longer than if I would have sat on my ass in traffic, but when you factor in not going to the gym as often (along with that fabulous ass!), it was a win.
(02-05-2015, 12:44 PM)Gegenji Wrote: [ -> ]Some guy in front of you kicks up a rock and damages your windshield?
Where I live, it's winter eight months of the year, and gravel is mostly used for traction. Finding a car with a windshield that doesn't have a crack or chip in it is pretty much a miracle (but doesn't stop me from think ill thoughts about the person in front of me when a rock or two or three hits my windshield or the front of my car).
I think I have around ten-fifteen chips in my windshield, and one little crack on the bottom. AS LONG AS YOU CAN STILL SEE, BABY.
Writer's block.
I had an idea for a crime caper, started it, and am now petering out in the midpoint. I know where I want my story to go but keep running over plot holes, nonsensical decisions and keep getting the urge to just leap forward in time and get to the "Good" parts.
Ohgodno. It's the infamous writer's block. The bane of creativity.