I am not sure how the internet connection will work without the desktop computer here. (The desktop is my parents computer) later today, they are taking it to Staples to get the memory transferred to a new computer, which will be ready by Wednesday the 17th.

So, other than with this computer here, I have never used the DSL internet. I know that the computer has the password in memory, and the path of the cables goes from the modem to the wireless router and then to the computer. We have never had issues using the internet on the laptop or xbox through the wireless router with this computer turned off. So, I am assuming that there will be no problems. I will just put the laptop on the computer desk for a few days so my mom can use it too for a few days and hope the internet still cooperates. (I am not an expert in computers like my brother)

So, if you don't see me or Jon  StarRazor online here or on the xbox for a few days, that's why.

Next, since I have adapted to it at work, I get to teach the whole family how to get used to Windows 7 instead of XP. After using it at my new job, I do like Windows 7 so I hope everyone here gets used to it with no problem.

After they get their new computer, I really need to get some $$ together to get a ne one of my own. I have use of 2 laptops right now, neither is very new and both have battery issues. One needs plugged in to work - if it is unplugged from the cable for even a minute it goes into the low-battery sleep mode thing. The other has a battery that lasts about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. I just wish I had more $$ to purchase a new computer. I don't even care if its a laptop or desktop, I just really need a new one of my own.

Edit - The desktop computer is gone and the laptop still works find online. Still, I cant wait to have a newer, faster computer to play with.

Many local people know that the next Bat Man movie is doing filming in Pittsburgh currently. A co-worker of mine signed up to be an extra in the movie (He got called but called them back too late in the day so he's on stand-by again)

He was talking about the movie stuff at work and gave me the website to sign up to be part of some scenes at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. I didn't get signed up in time to get tickets right away, but I was on the waiting list.

This evening I got a phone call that more space opened up and i went to the website to print out set pass. So, tomorrow Jon and I get to go to 12 hours of filming for the movie. All I know for sure is that the scene is at a football game, there will be special effects used we you have to sign non-disclosure paperwork so whatever we see, we probably can't talk about.

check out https://www.beinamovie.com for more info.

This sounds like fun, I'm pretty excited about it

Currently, I feel like I'm doing nothing but work and I am exhausted enough to sleep in until 1pm on my only day off each week.

Well, consider the time you drive to work as part of work cause it is part of your requirements of work each day. Until Jon and I can move closer to my work (which I am not willing to do until I am past my 90 days AND he has a job in the area) I am away from the house at least 12 hours each weekday.

I get up around 5:30am, leave the house by 6:30 to drive to the other side of Pittsburgh (to the Campbell's run exit off of 376 from Apollo) I generally get there around 8am, I start at 8:30 but I leave the extra 1/2 hour in case there's bad traffic. (one day I was still late due to traffic backed up from the parkway center mall almost to Oakland due to an accident, but that was only once.) After I get off of work at 4:30, then I have to sit in traffic again. On rare lucky days, I get home before 6:30, it's generally 6:30 or later though. Then, I work on Saturdays at my part-time job at the mall that's about 45 minutes south of the house, my shift there is generally 2:30-9:30pm, but I leave home at 1:30 to ensure I am there on time. After that, I generally stop for groceries on the way home and get back home around 11:30.

So, if you just include my work hours, I work 47 hours per week, if you include the driving time, and subtract my hour for shopping then the total is up to 68 hours.

I get a whole 1 day off per week and I tend to sleep in that day cause I just need to. I can't wait until I don't have to put in so many hours per week toward work and getting to work.

So, Jon and I ordered something from Amazon on the 18th. It arrived today, earlier than expected. The item was shrink-wrapped. However, it was not the original packaging. It was supposed to be a "new" item but some of the parts were missing. Quite frustrating. i contacted the seller about returning. They yave over 1000 comments of positive feedback, 98% positive. The most of the few negative ones had comments in response by the seller that the customer refused to return the item and wanted to keep it and be refunded or something similar. So, I am hoping for a favorable response. Essentially, we want to return the item for a refund of our purchase price.

On an un-related note, I have been having stress at work this week due to a situation with one of my co-workers. Last Friday the 15th, she was at a work-sponsored event and scheduled to work in registration, but had some serious back pain. (I work with nurses, they kind of got the HINT of this) and our CEO ordered her to go to the ER. She didn't listen and it took a couple people to convince her to go. They advised she had a heart attack on Wednesday the 13th when she had some other feelings of discomfort. She had 2 stints put in and is now home from the hospital recovering. She is expected back to work Wednesday the 27th according to her doctor's instructions. She's bored at home and wants to come back early but our CEO refused to let her back until the doctor's release date so that she has more time to recover.

Some rather surprising things have happened in the last 7 days, mostly in reference to my mom but it seems that my family now has its very own soap opera going on...

I will start with a brief background. Mom recently turned 65 and was planning to retire in a few minths. My mom has, for the past 10 years, worked for a doctor - We generaly refer to him as Dr. Cranky (cause he is, or I call him Dr. Asshat). For the purpose of what follows, I will call him Dr. Asshat, cause he is an Asshat. He is routinely a jerk and rude not only to his employees but also acts so in front of patients. There was another person, Julie, at the office who works with the medical billing, but she got offered a new job for twice as much $$ so she put in her 2 weeks more than2 weeks ago and has been continuing to work 1 day per week to help train the person to replace her.

Friday, July 1, after her day at work was almost done, Dr. Asshat hands my mom a check for work done since the normal pay period ended and told her he does not need her anymore, that he's going "another direction" and hired someone who knows how to do a particular type of therapy. (he never asked, and my mom knows about that particular type of therapy) So, Dr Asshat mistake #1, if someone's old enough to retire, talk to them about retirement rather than simply telling them you have no more work for them. Mom got off of work and called and told Julie.

Sunday July 3, because of what happened, my mom filed for unemployment.

Tuesday July 5, Julie called to tell mom that since she had already done her 2 weeks since getting her new job, she stopped into the office over the weekend, left a letter of resignation telling the Doctor that she refuses to work for someone who would treat an employee of 10 years so poorly. She also took all of her information off of the office computer so that someone else could not log in as her for billing because she no longer works there. It just happens that the doctor never let anyone else get a log-in for the billing so they are kind of screwed based as a result.

Wednesday July 6, Julie called mom after the doctor called her. The Dr. Asshat asked Julie if she knew my mom file for unemployment. (dhe said she knew nothing of course) and he proceeds to complain "How can she do that to me after 10 years!" Julie asked him to think about it becaue he gave her no notice and no reason and let her go after the same 10 years.

(I will note, that he had NO reason to terminate the employment, even though there is no right-to-work law in the state of PA, you do have to have a valid reason to terminate someone or they get unemployment... she's never been written up or anything similar.)

Thursday July 7, Julie tried to pick up her last paycheck but doctor Asshat said he was too busy and didn't have it ready.

Friday July 8 (today) julie went back for her paycheck and was told that they NEED some billing done before they would pay her. she got the computer going again, processed the payments on the desk, and removed her info from the computer when she was done. She then asked for her check. The Dr. Asshat's wife was there, and informed Julie that they want Julie to keep doing the billing for the next week and leave her billing computer information for them or they will not pay her. (she's due abouy 40 hours of pay.) Julie told them that they won't be getting paid either in that case (cause the billing would not be submitted to the insurance companies.)

Just minutes ago (also Friday July 8) Julie called to say that Dr. Asshat called her to try and find out more about my mom filing for unemployment. He seems to be planning to disputing her claim to unemployment. I will be interesting to see if he tries because he really doesn't have any valid reason for ending her employment.

Well, the people I work with know that I went to AC and that it's a furry convention since I kind of live in Pittsburgh and they asked what I was doing last weekend and before i thought more about it, I said "a convention" and well they also knew I was not leaving the city for the weekend so they pretty much figured it out anyway. My direct supervisor already knew but everone else didn't.

Anyway, they want to see pictures now. I'm looking through my pictures, from this year and previous years, as well as looking for pics on FA to find a few nice, tasteful, and work appropriate images to show them.

So, the weekend was good and some bad... but mostly good.

I will start with Thursday, I got to go to work, of course, but I dropped Jon  StarRazor off at the Westin around 7:15am (on the way to work) because one of his friends  Quicktron from where he lived before Pittsburgh was at AC this year, and they wanted to hang out Thursday. They walked a LOT. I was planning to run in and register after work but he wanted to go home so badly I decided to register Friday.

Friday, I had to work again. I took Jon  StarRazor to the Westin in the early morning. (I'm within my first 90 days at a new job, no paid time off yet) but I did get off 1 1/2 hours early. I parked the car and went in to register. Unfortunately, Jon's legs were hurting too much from walking again. He just wanted to go home. I saw a few furs briefly, then I went to the car with Jon. There were a couple things I wanted to attend Friday but I will be fine.

Saturday, Jon woke up with still horrible pain from walking. He was also having some unhappiness with the con itself. He stayed home and I went to AC alone for a day. It was rather strange to be there all by myself, I got to decide where I wanted to go and when and didn't have to get any other opinions. I first met my brother  CadpigJR and  Autumnfox in the Westin lobby. (Yes, for those who don't know, my biological brother, not a RP sibling.) I gave them some marshmallow peeps that were supposed to be mailed for Easter and we went to the Dealer's room. I ended up purchasing some art with my little $ I brought with me. I got a print from  TristanAlexander which was printed as a card but I will frame it anyway, I really wanted to buy something from Tristan and even though I would have liked to buy a bigger print, I didn't have the $ for that after spending a year on unemployment. I also got some postcards from one artist (I will edit this with her name later, the info is upstairs) and some buttons, one with a cute panda. I plan to get small frames for the postcards, they are all pretty. Since I missed Jon so much, I bought him a print from  Kalika_futago that had some nice boobies, which he really enjoyed. After that, I went to pick up lunch with jon's friend  quicktron and some of his hotel roommates and then back to the zoo to eat. Then I got a frustrating telephone call in reference to work but I don't want to go into detail here. After that, I went to the fursuit parade and got to hang out with  brendanroo and his boyfriend (I am sorry, I forgot his name) and grrr.. I am bad at names... The other Furry with us at that time was someone who was introduced to me years ago as Yuki and for some reason I can't remember what he said his correct furry name is. if  Flanowa reads this, he may be able to tell me as he's the one who introduced us at WPAFW one year. Anyway, distracted from AC2011... After the fursuit parade, I went back to the dealer's room and finally got to see  agentelrond who I was really happy to see again and I actually got to buy one of her smaller prints this year.

After dealer's was closing, I went with  Quicktron again over to the area by the ballroom on a big bench to wait for the line for the Masquaerade to start. His hotel roommates showed up again while we were waiting for the masquerade and we all went in together. However, the guy leading the line didn't go far enough over in the seats and I (who is barely over 5 feet tall) would have been sitting behind one of the big stands holding a video camera, so I sat a couple rows back by myself. But, another friend  Drako showed up and I had someone to sit with. The Masquerade was good and it lasted longer than expected so instead of making everyone leave and get in line for Uncle Kage's Story Hour, they told us to stay in our seats to save time since it was past time for Story Hour to start. It was also fun. After that, I went back to the zoo to find Thead  Akirashima who had vanished in pursuit of fireworks. I waited a while and talked to  TristanAlexander and others at the table.

Sunday Jon  StarRazor came with me again, I found the first seminar I wanted to attend but I could not figure out the location of the "presentation room" so I missed the second thing I wanted to do. We also took a walk to Lotus Foods for some fun oriental snacks. Jon wanted to leave and we were on the way to the car when we ran into  SimbaX who we talked to some and he was surprised we were leaving. Jon said he needed more alcohol to have fun, so Simba took us to the bar accross the street from the Westin (Tonic) and got Jon some drinks.  Wolger2579 and a friend joinded us. Jon drank a bit more than he should have for not eating that day yet and we took him for a walk where he hugged EVERYONE he saw that he knew (at least once, often more) and then he took a nap on a bench by the ballroom for a while. While Jon was napping, Drako appeared and we ran into Wolger again and we all went to the Fish Market for some foods. Jon and Drako had fries, Simba, Wolger and I had very tasty sushi. I would like to go there for sushi again sometime.

Then, I had to go home finally cause I had to work EARLY monday morning. I really enjoyed my time with friends, and to those who I only saw briefly or missed completely, I hope we see eachother again soon. There were even a few people I hoped to see that I didn't see at all. But, it's one con and I will see all my friends again, even if I didn't get to see them much at this con.

Edited to fix a few icons I messed up and will likely edit again for a few more little things.

Age, it's only a number, but people seem to place so much value on that little number. And for most of your life it's 2 digits, that's not such a huge thing.

When visiting friends and you are older than all or most, people often feel like the senior citizen of the group even if you are only 27 compared to your 25 year old friend. Being the youngest often makes a person feel like they are the kid of the group and have less of value to contribute than the others even if the 'youngster' is 60 and his friends 65.

Age often plays a big role in how we see ourselves, but it shouldn't. If you are comfortable with your friends and feel that you all fit in well together, don't worry about that little 2-digit number, it's meaningless. As long as you feel happy and comfortable with those you are spending time with, that's all that matters. Don't let your age interfere.

I see so many times when people post on their journals about their birthday being sad and depressing because they are getting 'older' but you are just getting more experienced in life and learning more. Thats not such a bad thing. Plus, it's not like you are closer to death... that's completely out of your control ... your life could end tomorrow but that doesnt matter. Enjoy life as it goes by and don't think negatively as your age rises. You're learning more each day and having more experiences. That's what really matters.

If you can't guess based on the topic, today happens to be my birthday.

Today I took Jon  StarRazor to Cleveland for the first part of the trip to visit his parents. His mom and sister met us there and he went on with them and I came home. My trip was rather calm as far as traffic goes. There were the usual few annoyingly aggressive drivers out today. There were TONS of speed traps cause it's a holiday weekend. (However, I fail to see the point of driving over the speed limit since the limit on the Ohio turnpike is 70, that's certainly fast enough.)

Jon and I talked a lot on the way out about some writing projects we are working on and other things regarding art. Since I started my new job and I am gone all day 5 days per week, it was really nice to have some time when we could just sit and talk.

Then, we made a minor error... when we got off of the turnpike on our exit in Ohio, we needed to pay attention to the directions and make sure we made the right turns to get onto 77 north... unfortunately, I realized just as we passed the "cleveland - 77" ramp that we were heading south to Akron... I was rather stressed... wrong direction. But, we were earlier than his mom would be there so we had time, I just needed to get going back the right direction. I thought... next exit, get off and get back on the other way... The next exit ended up being another divided highway and we couldn't go the other way... I was afraid I would make too many turns to remember. Thankfully, the next exit we came to on whatever road we were on ended up being a regular road, so we could just turn left and turn back the opposite direction on the divided highway, and then drive the 6 miles back to 77 and get on NORTH to Cleveland.

So, we had a minor driving adventure, the rest of the trip was fine. After I gave him to his mom, I moved the little cooler with iced tea and water up to the front seat and seatbelted it in place so I could reach the contents and it would not fall down and make a mess.

I am now home safe with no problems.

I texted Jon and he seems to still be on the road. His mom mentioned lots of construction. I already miss having him here with me. But, I know he will enjoy the time with his family.

Day 01 - Introduce Yourself
Day 02 - First love
Day 03 – Your parents
Day 04 – Your music
Day 05 – Your definition of love
Day 06 – Your hobbies
Day 07 – Your best friend
Day 08 – A precious item
Day 09 – Your beliefs
Day 10 – An inspiration
Day 11 – Your siblings
Day 12 – What’s in your bag
Day 13 – Your mode of transportation
Day 14 – Where you live
Day 15 – Something you love about yourself
Day 16 – Your first kiss
Day 17 – Your favorite memory
Day 18 – Your favorite birthday
Day 19 – Something you regret
Day 20 – Your morning routine
Day 21 – Your job and/or schooling
Day 22 – Something that upsets you
Day 23 – Something that makes you feel better
Day 24 – Something that makes you cry
Day 25 – Your sleeping habits
Day 26 – Your fears
Day 27 – Your favorite place
Day 28 – Something that you miss
Day 29 – Your favorite foods/drinks
Day 30 – Your aspirations

Animals. I think I have always loved animals of all kinds, but more so the furry and pettable varieties. There are photos of me huggnig kitties, miniature goats, and every other furry thing I could get my arms around. There are also photos of me whe I was a kid with my whole arm in the aquarium trying to socialize with the fish... which I never ended up 'petting' as they were always too fast. Plus, I wanted to pet EVERYTHING. Honestly, I think in some ways I still care more about animals in general than I do about humans in general. If I had the choice to go socialize and meet new humans or go to a petting zoo and meet new animals, I would pick the petting zoo.

Ok, I decided to do this after seeing some other people.

Day 01 - Introduce Yourself
Day 02 - First love
Day 03 – Your parents
Day 04 – Your music
Day 05 – Your definition of love
Day 06 – Your hobbies
Day 07 – Your best friend
Day 08 – A precious item
Day 09 – Your beliefs
Day 10 – An inspiration
Day 11 – Your siblings
Day 12 – What’s in your bag
Day 13 – Your mode of transportation
Day 14 – Where you live
Day 15 – Something you love about yourself
Day 16 – Your first kiss
Day 17 – Your favorite memory
Day 18 – Your favorite birthday
Day 19 – Something you regret
Day 20 – Your morning routine
Day 21 – Your job and/or schooling
Day 22 – Something that upsets you
Day 23 – Something that makes you feel better
Day 24 – Something that makes you cry
Day 25 – Your sleeping habits
Day 26 – Your fears
Day 27 – Your favorite place
Day 28 – Something that you miss
Day 29 – Your favorite foods/drinks
Day 30 – Your aspirations


Myself... I am Mae-Lin... Fursona is a Panda, but out of furry context I am a girl. I collect My Little Ponies and I very much love my boyfriend  StarRazor and our pet bunnies.

So, we had some weather in Apollo. I happened to be driving home from work when I found out... I missed all of the interesting stuff. My mom and StarRazor were home. Mom was downstairs and just came home from work. She had been outside and the weather seemed fine. Mom had turned on the TV and saw a report that there was bad weather in some areas... then on a final note the reporter added that there could be some bad weather on the southern edge of Armstrong and Indiana counties. From my house, we can see the river that borders the south of Armstrong. She looked out the window and the sky was black. It was just about 5pm. It should not be dark.

Immediately, she thought to turn off the computer. She got as far as touching the mouse and the power flicked off and back on. a few minutes later, the power went out again and didn't come back. Mom and StarRazor checked outside and saw a tree down in the neighbor's yard, actually 2 trees. And, the bigger tree was leaning on the electrical and phone lines.

As they watched, the electrical transformer started to shower sparks and make loud popping noises. (I missed the fireworks!) The house of the neighbor whose lawn the tree was in does not really look damaged. I took photos of the tree from the top of the street and also from our driveway which is only 2 houses away. I guess it's good the tree fell the direction it did onto the street instead of the other way because it would have likely hit houses.

I took a few pictures and I will post some.

the electric came on about 8pm. Just after we came home from getting dinner at Arby's. On the way to dinner, we saw tree parts from clusters of leaves to rather large branches all over the place, and power being obviously out in many areas around here.

one final note, I called to talk to a manager at my part time job in Westmoreland mall (in Greensburg PA) and the manager on duty tonight told me that the power was out in our wing of the mall too from a brief but powerful storm event. The doors into the mall near the store I work at have been literally broken by the storm. He said the glass is broken! Some of the mall stores still had power though.

The good news is that with my new job, I will be able to afford to attend AC. Until I got the job, the money situation made me attending this year quite questionable. However, I may not be there all of the days. Because it is in my first 90 days of my new job, I am not eligible for paid time off yet. Currently, I plan to attend AC on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but not Thursday as very little happens that day making it not worth loosing pay for a day. I will be checking the AC website to see what the schedule for events is and, depending on what is scheduled, I may or may not attend on Friday. If there are not enough activities to make the day off of work worth it, I may end up working Friday also.

I also won't be available all day as normal to make trips to the airport or anything for friends due to my work schedule.

however, if anyone I know attending AC needs something on one of the days I am working, send me a text or call and leave a message. (I keep my cell phone off at work because the big hillside near the building causes bad reception which drains the battery.)

I hope to see all my friends at AC, and if anyone in particular wants to make sure to meet up with me there, leave a reply on this journal and I will contact you to make arrangements for when/where to meet at AC.

So, today is the end of my second week at my new job. Everything seems to be going good. My boss was not there yesterday or today due to having lots of things to do for her son's wedding which is 5/14. But, even thought it is only the end of my second week, I had enough things to do that I was busy the whole time she was gone.

i don't yet know everything I will need to for my job, the training process will take a while, but I also ended up with all of the computer and e-mail files the previous person left. Some have important information that will be useful, but I have to go through (literally) thousands of e-mails probably over 10,000 once I put all of the folders together, to determine what's useful and what I can delete. She didn't ever seem to delete ANYTHING in the 3 years she was there.

Anyway, everything is going good, once my 90 days are up and I have my review and get the final ok then we will move closer to work cause I am driving lots to work now and the gas prices aren't helping me any.

This Monday I had a job interview at a company near Pittsburgh. The interview ended up being with 3 different people and at the end, I was advised that they expect to make a decision in the next couple weeks and they will let me know.

Today, only 4 days later, I got a call from the CEO who I didn't get to see when I was there because she was out of the office. She said everyone told her that they were really happy with me and that she really wanted to meet me too. But, not for a second interview, she offered me the job over the phone.

So, after a little over a year of being laid off, I have a new job that actually seems interesting and its in a company that does something that I feel is a really valuable service. Without having to explain too much, the company provides educaion for hospice medical staff. For those who don't know, hospice nurses and such work with people who are in bad condition, who would not live more than a few months without medical care. This includes many conditions including cancer patients.

But, if you've ever heard the phrase "when it rains, it pours" then the statement really applies to today. Not long after that phone call, I went to a cloting store in the mall I happened to be in when I received the call. I was really in need of some appropriate 'business casual' clothes as mine were quite worn out and had not been replaced due to my lack of work. The nice cashier told me that I could save even more $ by applying for a credit card. I don't want another credit card but I didn't plan to spend thousands or anything so I let her do an application. For my purchase, my 2 pairs of pants were originally $42 each, on sale for $22 each, and with the discounts the total that would have been originally $84, or $44 on sale, now only cost $26. Based on that, I got a few shirts and more pants too. This all came at significant savings and because its on a card I can wait a month or so till I get my first paycheck to pay it off. That way, I should have enough $ for food and gas for the car till I get my first check.

After the shopping, I went to my car and my phone rang again, it was a staffing agency where I had signed up about 6 months ago offering me ANOTHER position. Due to it being a staffing agency and my other offier I already accepted was directly with an employer, I let them know that I just accepted another position.

Later, I stopped in to my part time job to talk to them about just scheduling me for weekends since I have a new weekday job and my manager mentioned that since I helped out at another store the week before Easter, the manager from that store was so impressed with how fast I worked and how polite I was to customers that he wanted to know if I would want to transfer to his store. So, that makes 3 offers in one day for employment. The last one being a store transfer would generally be more days of work.

I can't believe all of the good things that happened today, its was really unexpected. But, I am really excited about starting my new job on Monday.

My bunnies Lister and Lulu are very happy with the recent weather. It has caused a huge explosion of dandelions in the lawn, and they love to eat dandelion leaves. I have been out to pick fresh leaves for them pretty much every day. The yard here is kept herbicide and pesticide free so i always feel safe bringing by little furries in some snacks. I think dandelion leaves are their favorite spring treat.

It seems around this time of year all of the timothy hay in the stores around here is about 1/2 really thick and coarse pieces that they don't eat, so the dandelion leaves definitely help in their diet. Every time I give them hay from the few most recent bags i got here they left lots of big pieces in their cages. I looked through all of the bags today to find one that had mostly smaller pieces which shuld make them happier.

Ive noticed something. I don't often reply to people's journals here on FA but when I do it seems that the people rarely reply to what I say. Do people just not reply to what people comment on their journals much, or does it mean that my comments were unwanted? Most of the people I watch here on FA are people who I actually know so this makes me wonder more...

if anyone who reads this wishes that I would not comment on their journals, reply and let me know, I won't bother you again.

I often wonder if people really are my friends or if I am just someone they wish would go away. I don't want to be somewhere when my presence is not wanted so if you don't want me around, let me know. its not like I get to see my local friends much anyway cause I rarely get invited to anything and often only hear about furry gatherings when they are over and people are talking about how much fun they had.

Ok, if anyone interested would look at the image here: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/5566003/

I am working on designing a tattoo in memory of my cousin. I am a little stuck on adding the next element to the design. I want to add some lightning to the design. more like an image of natural lightning than the way the people tend to draw it. I kind of want it to go through the middle of the KM symbol... Any suggestions would be appreciated.


Also, in relation to color, I want the KM to remain black, but I am also not sure of what color(s) the lightning should be. Generally in life, lightning is white with tones of purple/blue on a black or dark sky. But, i don't want a huge black background when the symbol is already black to start with. White won't show up good on my light skin without some other colors around it. Suggestions on the coloration of the lightning bolt would also be appreciated.

1 - My computer is being slow and stupid... (it's old) ... so pages are loading slow. I have not done it yet but it's likely i will favorite something and un-favorite it by clicking the button again before the page refreshes. If I watch you and you see a fave then and un-fave... it's likely the next thing you will see is me marking the picture as fave again. I usually catch it when I do that. (I want to beat the computer but that will probably make things worse...)

2 - I am really behind on viewing submissions. Over 2 months behind. So, people may wonder why I favorite something 2 months old now... Sorry for being so slow.

I have looked through the pages and pages of thumbnails but I don't want to click and remove them from the submissions page until I look at them cause lots look like I want to fave them. I will eventually catch up. I just have too much stuff to do and worry about right now.

The biggest thing is that i am still actively looking for full time work. It's been over a year and my unemployment was reduced some once re-calculated after 1 year due to my previous highest quarter was no longer in the period of time that unemployment looks at. I am getting some hours at my part time job to compensate.

The funny thing is, now that I don't have very much income, I actually qualify for some free medical care, I could not afford to go to my regular doctor for my typical annual exam, so I was complaining about them wanting $160 plus extra for lab fees... can't afford that. No chance. I was talking ot other women about it when my manager at my part time job gave me the number for a free women's clinic... it turns out that I qualify. Actually, based on the dollar amounts to qualify, a single woman making less income than $10 per hour (1600/month) will qualify for free care and free medication. In being unemployed, I never thought about it and kept filling my perscription for $20 per month for the last year... now I get it for free until I get a new full time job. I was honestly surprised.

A short note to any of my friends who play Pokemon video games...

I got a copy of Pokemon Black last Sunday, I have not started playing it yet since I found out that there's a special area in the game that has more or less residents depending on how quickly you get to the end of the game, so I want to make sure I have a few days with lots of time available before I start my playthrough of game. I think I am going to get the game to the point where I can transfer a pokemon to another game (if possible) and send the other 2 starter pokemon to one of my other games and then transfer them back later. I don't have the $ available to get both copies of the game so I want to get as many of the pokemon as possible cause once I get to the end of the game, I don't really want to re-set and start over just to get the other starter pokemon.

If anyone has Pokemon White and wants to trade pokemon at all, let me know. Maybe I will get White later for my R4 but I don't have it yet.

http://www.klisoura.com/furrypoll.php

Edited...

The correct link is now above.

Sorry to anyone who looked at this journal before I edited and corrected.



Edit again...

note and suggestion: Read the whole survey first before starting to fill it out. If you want explanation or more information for any questions, check that first. I wanted to confirm something near the end and then I realized all my answers were gone and I had to fil lit out again.

So, to all of our local Pittsburgh furry friends, this friday the 18th is Jon's birthday.

I don't have any specific plans made yet but I know that (unfortunately) I work on the day of his birthday. I would like to have some sort of get together with friends maybe this weekend or next weekend (depending on what days I get scheduled to work) so if anyone wants to get together with us reply here or on Live Journal, or call me if you've got my number.

If you have any ideas of good things we can get together to do let me know since we have not yet made a decision on specific plans.

I have a strong feeling that people should live their beliefs. Regardless if you are Christian, Pagan or anything else, it's important to represent yourself as a member of your religion if you make your religion publicly known.

I have seen a few really bad examples of people recently who are basically waving their religious flag high and then behaving not so good. It brings to mind the people who go to church on Sunday and then do whatever they want the rest of the week cause on the next Sunday, they will ask for forgiveness for their sins at the next church service.

Mostly, this is in relation to the situation when Jon quit his job before Christmas.

He saw that the district manager was treating him very differently than the others at his store and told him that the employees were all bad because they were following his example.

Once he quit, the person below him got promoted to his position. Funny thing is, that the district manager has tried to back that guy up when problems happen.

Another employee contacted Jon and explained that he got fired and the strange situation about it... When he got called into a meeting with the same district manager, he was asked to basically tell on anyone else in the store who was doing something wrong that he just found out was wrong. When the guy wouldn't tell on everyone else, the district manger, in the back room at work (which happens to be one store in a very large chain) asked him if he was religious and then asked him to think about "what would Jesus do?" in reference to telling on everyone else.

jon thought back to when the district manager first started treating him differently was after a meeting that he had to attend when he was not scheduled to work, those not scheudled to work could wear whatever they wanted, those who had to work that day were in their work clothes. Jon happend to be wearing black pants with metal studs and a metal band t-shirt with a rather unpleasant graphic image. The other guy that the district manager replaced him with that he has tried to rescue from problems, happens to be one of those guys who advertises openly that he goes to church, but certainly doesn't act like it.

So, if you are going to pick on one employee, and back another it may be smart to not bring up religion at work. If Jon and the guy who got fired put their stories together, and talk to other people, they could probably get a nice law suit going for the religious aspect.

but, the point I am really trying to make is... are those guys really living what they believe in? It does not seem so. If you are going to be open about your religion with everyone, it's best to be a good example of those in your religion. I don't think that a 'good christian' would be discriminating against one employee in favor of one of the same religion. i also don't feel a 'good christian' would go out of their way to 'tell on' people and whine about peple every chance they got like the one guy did.

I have tried in my life to, as much as possible, live to reflect my beliefs, but I don't advertise my religion openly in person or at work because I fear the same discrimination that Jon seemed to get. He's non-religious and open about that when asked. I know it's illegal to discriminate for religious reasons, but that doesn't prevent someone from making up another excuse to get rid of someone when their real reason is something illegal like religion.


I just wish that if people wanted to tell the world what they believe, that they would be a good example for their religion. So many people out there get the wrong idea about what religions are when they see someone saying "I'm a (any religion)" and that person acts completely inappropriately.

So, as many people know, I am looking for a job cause I got laid off. I have seen lots of warnings about some advertisements not being legitimate but I am glad I look carefully before just doing things when applying for jobs. I actually found that I have applied to fake job advertisements that seem to be out there to either collect information or steal people's identity info.

One really obvious one was after I sent a resume in response to a job advertisement, I got an e-mail reply explaining what I would need to do 'next week' and essentially offering me a job but at the end of their message, they asked for a list of things. my name, contact number, e-mail address, mailing address, and age. Now, I know that all but the age are on my resume, so they obviously didn't read what I sent them and they aren't allowed to ask for my age. I didn't reply.

Anyone reading this, please don't worry, I created my resume very carefully for applying for work online. I have not included any phone numbers other than my own, and my references are noted to be provided on request. I am not stupid enough to fill out the full job application w/ SSN online or other private pieces of information. That's a bad idea. Most places will interview you based on an online brief application and/or a resume and will ask you to fill in the full formal job application at their office so that they can have all of your info to check and process.

Another reply I got suspiciously indicated that I was the only suitable candidate and I should reply with the phone number for them to call to schedule an interview, and that I need to bring photo ID, amd a credit repot from withing 7 days to the interview. I have never interviewed anywhere that needed a credit report that you brought with you... they recommended a particular website for obtaining a credit report with a hyperlink that only said 'click here' so I right-clicked and looked at the 'properties' and saw not a web address but a link to a document... collecting info maybe? So, I replied to the e-mail and confirmed my phone number and let them know I would obtain a credit report after the interview was scheduled to ensure that it meets the 7-day requirement. A couple days later, I got a response indicating that they filled the position but that they would love to see me get hired somewhere good so here's a 'click here' hyperlink to a web site to help find jobs.... when I looked at the properties for that hyperlink, the website was literally https://www.fakeurl.com followed by a series of numbers... I worry about people who may fall for these things.

Also, since applying for jobs, my cell phone has started getting telemarketing calls for further education. (yay! wasting my minutes on having to tell people they are wasting my minutes and to remove my number from their call list.) I have also been getting an increased number of 'junk mail' in my e-mail that I use only for professional job search, etc, things. I have also received text messages about 'fill out info on our website to find jobs' and I assume they got my info from an advertisement I applied to.

So, I knew that fake job advertisements existed, but I have now applied to a few. Thankfully, I have been cautious about what information I provide and I check the properties of any link. If the web site seems legitimate by the 'properties' info, I will open a new window and type in the web address rather than using the link.

In general, I find this practice disturbing because I know some people will fall for it. I also find it kind of funny because I catch it when they send e-mails and things don't match up. And, finally, I feel a little disappointed because I know that some of the jobs that I spent time writing letters in reference to were fake and I wasted my time.

The hardest part about looking for employment is that MANY of the advertisements are 'blind' ads that give you a job description but no company name or anything. So, you trust that it's safe to send them a letter and resume. But, then you need to watch out when they contact you back and really look for what's real and what's not.

I think I am going to start focusing my job search on going to web sites of companies I know and applying for jobs listed on their web sites rather than responding to advertisements in newspapers and websites that list such blind job advertisements. I think I would feel more safe and comfortable.

So, I called my 'regular' doctor's office today to try to schedule an appointment and get a refill on a medication. But, apparently customer service is not part of a doctor's office at all. i was transferred to a lady to whom I explained that I am currently unemployed and looking for a new job, and that I don't have insurance right now. I was hoping to go to their office for a particular exam rather than a specialist to save some money. The lady was nice at that point and said she will call me back.

A while later, she called back and informed me that I am not a patient at their office. I go there every time I am sick, I have not seen another doctor's office other than my one hospital (which was in the same network of doctors) visit and my regular annual visit with my specialist doctor for about 7 years. The lady told me that only an 'established' patient can have such exams there... So, how other than coming there every time you are sick for years and years and for refills on my asthma meds do you become a 'patient' there? She told me that you need to have a yearly 'wellness' exam to be considered a patient and have the benefits of being a patient there... otherwise you can come in when you are sick and maybe get a refill on a med that they previously gave you.

Then, as I was kind of frustrated and confused about not being considered a 'patient' where I had been going for so long. (They have changed doctors 4 times since I have been going there, I have been a patient longer than their doctors work there!) The lady offered to schedule me for a 'wellness' exam and I explained again that I have no insurance and I was hoping to get my annual exam my specialist usually does there because they advertise that they perform such an exam but apparently I don't qualify for it.

The final straw in my book was that instead of any other answer she informed me "We are not a free clinic!" and promptly hung up on me. I never asked for ANYTHING for free from them! I don't know where she got the idea but she offended me. I re-dialed the number to make a complaint about the way she handled the call and when I got transferred, they gave me back to the same lady. I asked for her supervisor and she let me know that she does not have one at the office. (convenient) so I asked for the front desk which she refused to transfer me to. (now I am getting really upset) and I told her I would like to speak with anyone but her. She sends me to another lady. I try to simply tell her that I want to know who I can talk to in order to make a complaint about the last lady and she, knowing that I am upset about how I was treated, told me that she had enough angry customers for the day and I would have to call later. (I was literally crying at this point) I didn't know what else to say and then she hung up on me too.

So, in my experience,a patient is a customer essentially. How do you keep customers when you treat them this way? Consider also that I told them I have no insurance now, when I get new insurance, if a PCP is required, I get to choose one... I know one office where I won't be going now.

Sorry for such a long post... I am upset and typing what happened helps me feel a bit better.