DSFGE Day 22. Have an interview tomorrow. No particularly good jobs on CareerBuilder right now.

Let's see. Did I do anything interesting today? Actually, I feel something like a failure; I planned to put out three items of correspondence today, and I accomplished only two.

Jeff and I are watching Serenity. I was happy to watch that, since he started watching The Core, at first, and I couldn't stand it. Character-driven Sci Fi is an art. They should produce Firefly directly for the Sci Fi Channel now. Most of their fan base is watching that station anyway.

I Heart The Doctor

Jeff and I finished Voyager Season 2 this evening, having received the disk from Netflix in the mail. Much of the time, Voyager is cheesy and repetitive, but I am starting to have a lot of affection for some of the characters. The Doctor and Tuvok always make me smile!
We are total Sci Fi addicts! It's sad, really. However, I'm starting to understand how there has come to be a certain amount of fanaticism among the fan bases of various shows. It's also fun to see how various shows "cross-pollinate". For example, one starts to recognize various actors bringing their special talents and personalities to multiple genre series:
Mitch Pileggi made his mark as the enigmatic Skinner on The X-Files, and is now rough-and-ready as the top-ranking military officer Col. Caldwell on Stargate: Atlantis. Armin Shimerman was recognizeably repugnant as Quark on various Star Trek shows (TNG, DS9, and Voyager), and Principle Snyder on Buffy; he appeared in an episode of Stargate SG-1, as well. Ben Browder and Claudia Black both moved from Farscape to Stargate SG-1. Pretty Jewel Staite was a little girl in an X-Files episode, a wraith nymphet in a Stargate: Atlantis episode, and spunky mechanic Kaylee in Firefly. Even Lucy Lawless of Xena fame did a guest bit on Battlestar Galactica last Friday, as an aggressive cylon. Hee, so fun!

I have an interview scheduled for Wednesday. It is for an operations-type job. I'll let everyone know how it goes.

Now, I'm watching SG-1 save the world, on the Sci Fi channel.

Sorry

Oh, my poor readers. I have neglected you! Really, I have not much to tell.

The aforementioned funny stories are not really all that funny. I will relate them, nevertheless.

Earlier this week (I honestly don't remember which day, anymore), I received a large and important-looking FedEx envelope from the Humongous Anonymous Technical Company (hereafter referred to as HATC), which happens to have been the place of my former employment. Since it looked important, I opened it forthwith and straightway, and as luck would have it, it WAS important. Along with a stack of HR material, I had a letter informing me that there is a decreased need for my particular job description, and so the letter served as my sixty day notice. Hilarious! Some people might ask, "Why is it funny to get a layoff notice? Isn't that kind of serious and frightening?" The reason that it's funny is that I DON'T WORK THERE ANYMORE. I haven't worked there for more than a month. So if they wish to lay me off, I don't much care either way. I would like to state: I think that if budgets (by the way, I've known about the 2006 budget issues for a year now, and other people have already been laid off or reassigned) and/or programmatic issues require a manager to reduce headcount, it is completely reasonable to begin by cutting the personnel WHO DON'T WORK THERE. I am not on payroll; I am simply a name in a computer now. If I'd still been working there, I don't think I'd have been laid off, since I would have been doing actual work, and therefore been of use to the HATC. Well, whatever.

The second funny thing is that someone from JoAnn's called me about working in the store--AS A SCRAPBOOKING TEACHER. I like to scrapbook, and I like to teach, but everything I know about the scrapbooking subculture tells me that I would not be an ideal teacher for scrapbooking. I'm too much of an iconoclast. I would yell at my students for being cutesy. I would remind them that nobody actually cares about their baby's first tooth, and they should wait until they had something more interesting to scrap about, like maybe a trip to Europe. Stuff like that. Also, I'm a beginner. So, no dice.

As a final indignity, someone from one of the temp agencies called and offered me some work. However, it was doing CHILDREN'S ACTIVITIES (sounded like a daycare) for barely more than minimum wage. Sorry, you'll have to pay me a lot more than that to get me to spend several hours doing finger painting and cutting out little shapes from construction papers! I told the caller, "I'm not really good with children."

Anyhoo. Jeff and I went to church at Gateway this morning. Jeff really wanted to check it out, and I resisted, but eventually gave in. We went to the earlier "traditional" service, so the music was adequate, but I disliked the sermon (I'm no fan of the topical approach; I prefer a rigorous exegetical approach, at which Pastor Lou at Grace LB excelled), and the "special music" solo at the end was laughable--someone sang "Because You Loved Me"! Yes, the mid-90s pop song. In church. And she suffered by obvious comparison to Celine Dion. Yes, I'm cruel, ill-mannered, and bad-tempered, for mocking the poor lady. But I can muster neither remorse for my behaviour nor sympathy for the singer. WHO thought this was a good idea? WHY?
On the plus side, we saw Olaf and Rosalee (Jeff's grandparents) there, so we sat with them, and then were able to go with them to brunch.

Jeff did homework in the afternoon, while I puttered about the kitchen, making cinnamon rolls. I haven't baked cinnamon rolls from scratch for a long time, and it was fun. The end product was tasty, if not as gooey as I would like. Now Jeff is in bed, and so I shall be, soon enough. I am finally starting to get sleepy...

Not much new

Still nothing interesting in DSFGE Day 18.

I'll get back to y'all tomorrow. I have a funny story or two to tell.

I watched the ladies' short program in figure skating last night, as watching the ice dancing over the weekend reminded me that figure skating is the one Winter Olympics sport that I enjoy. I hate snow and ice and cold conditions in general, so I don't care much about winter sports at all. So sue me. And in figure skating, I prefer ice dancing and pairs skating to singles' events, but those are already over, so I was stuck watching the ladies. Anyway, I know it's all about the medals and the glory, and the athletes far away in Italy don't care anything about my opinion, but I decided to dole out my own specials awards, based on what I've seen so far.

Sunnydale Special Breakout Star: Tugba Karademir, Turkey's first Olympic figure skater. Go, Tugba! I predict that this poised and lovely lady will become an an idol and superstar in her home country, and possibly inspire other Turkish girls to reach for their dreams. Ice skating aficianados Buffy Summers (aka Dorothy Hamill's #1 fan) and Casey Carlyle (aka Dawn Summers) give her two very enthusiastic Sunnydale cheers.

Class Act, Part I: Fumie Suguri, for her beautifully clean short program and her beautifully classy costume. I couldn't find any pictures of her from last night (Google image search and all), but she wore a red dress with a black lace shrug over her arms and shoulders--very elegant, very Spanish. She skated to flamenco-type music.

Class Act, Part II: Michelle Kwan, for withdrawing from competition when she realized she was not in the physical condition to perform for the US at the best of her abilities.

Sonja Henie Perfect Pixie Award: Irina Slutskaya. Adorable and energetic, she is dynamite on the ice. Her talent and athleticism, as well as her charming personality and rapport with an audience (even, via TV cameras, an audience thousands of miles away) make her a worthy successor to the world's all-time most successful figure skater.

Flo Ziegfeld Perfect Showgirl Award: Sasha Cohen. She skated last in Tuesday's short program, and proved that she had skill, beauty, and charisma to spare.

The Long Weekend

We opted to take advantage of [yet another of] Jeff's three-day weekend[s], and on a whim, drove down south to see friends and family this weekend. We arose on Saturday morning and drove away. There was some light snow, followed by rain, over the Grapevine, and then there was heavy rain and then an accident on the 210. We finally arrived to have lunch and then spend the afternoon with our fun friends Sam and Melissa. We had pizza, talked and laughed, went to Starbucks, read Bill Handle-isms, and watched Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story (as many laughs as in a standard Family Guy episode, but spread thinner over 4 times as many minutes). We ate supper at Wild Noodles (food was no good; don't ever go there), and then Jeff and I had to head up to LA to see the fam: Mom and Dad, of course, and Mia and Reverend Dan. Mike wasn't there, though. I spent more than an hour talking with my kakak, and it was very good. Jeff and I spent the night in the guest room, and I slept like a log, I was so tired.

The next morning, we ate breakfast at the Starbucks on San Antonio, went to church at Grace, and then hung out at the Starbucks at Long Beach Town Center, because we couldn't think of another place that would let us just sit around and talk for a while. Jeff and I had to head over to La Habra after that, as we were having lunch with Elizabeth, Sara, and Jeremy. Yay! I had a great time with them. After eating at Rubio's, we went over to (believe it or not) Starbucks, so that Jeff could sit and do homework. However, he just ended up chatting the whole time. Ah, well.

We zoomed to have dinner with the Winters in Buena Park, then went to their house to spend the night. Amanda made cake, and we watched Legally Blonde (because I was in a silly brain-dead moode) and some of the Olympics (How about all those painful-looking falls in the ice dancing, huh?). Then we crashed, and I slept like a log again. We got up and zoomed back up north.

Deb's Search for Gainful Employment begins again tomorrow, in earnest. More on that to come.

I'm engaged in watching Sci Fi Friday, of course, and reflecting on my day. By the way, we liked this week's episodes of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis better than last week's.

I slept in, and when I awoke, I dreaded getting out of bed. Eventually, however, I did get up, so good on me, because one can't stay in bed forever. I'd written someone about an accounting analyst job Thursday evening, and he replied to me, stating that he thought that the position would not hold my interest for very long, and I should look into finding engineering jobs. I replied that I was actually looking to transition away from the engineering world. He called me some time later, and asked me to have an informal interview sort of thing, so I went to lunch with him and a supervisor person. We chatted about my history and what I am looking for in a job, and they are going to think about if I'd be a good fit with the company. I might hear back from them next week. I would probably enjoy doing accounting analysis, since I enjoy numbers and calculations, but I don't know if they were completely convinced that I would be able to scale back my brilliance to work in a financial institution. Heh. Anyway, yet another example of how much it sucks to be overqualified.

As I was leaving the restaurant to go home, something happened to my car (our new Acura Legend). I unlocked the door, and the alarm started honking. I'd like to mention that I was never made aware that the car even has an alarm system. I had no idea how to turn the alarm off, and I was standing in a strip mall parking lot. I was so embarrassed, and as I called Jeff, I carefully avoided looking around to see who was staring, pointing and laughing at me. I kept trying to lock and unlock the door, put the key in the ignition, and on occasion the alarm would go off, and then as I tried to turn on the car or shut the door or something, it would start the alarm again. SO frustrating, and I'm sure Jeff was frustrated, too, as he kept saying things like, "Unlock the door, get out of the car, shut the door, use the key to lock and unlock it...." and I would be almost in tears, saying, "But the door is already unlocked, and should I lock it again and then unlock it, or just open it?" Finally, the alarm stopped (still not quite sure exactly what actions caused it to start in the first place, nor exactly what processes caused it to cease), and I was able to just get in the car (without locking the door), start the ignition, and drive home. I didn't lock the door at all. Gyah.

Anyway, the rest of the afternoon was spent browsing through more job sites. Pretty much nothing good out there. I'm always either overqualified or underqualified. *sigh*

Blah

Another day of discouragement. I did some chores, applied to some more jobs, and otherwise just sat around.

On the happy side, it seems that Jeff and I will be heading south to see friends and family this weekend, because Jeff has [another] three-day weekend. These school district folks probably don't work any more than 100 days/year!

Oh, yes, and we finished Angel season 1. Interesting cliffhanger. I always think Darla (Julie Benz) is so pretty!

Life goes on

Today was not fantastic, but it didn't suck, either.

I awoke as Jeff was getting up and leaving, so I was able to get up early and get a few chores done. Josh spent the night in our guest room last night, as he was up in this area for business. So I got to chat with Josh this morning. We didn't fight, so that is always a plus. We went to Foster's Freeze for lunch.

I am currently waiting for several people to get back to me about various job-type things.

Discouragement

I've definitely reached the point at which I am disenchanted with the whole nonsense of searching for a job. The office of education and school district have been giving me the run around, since I think nobody really knows what is going on. No wonder they're short-staffed. Especially with regard to math teachers, who obviously are not going to put up with such shenanigans. I can speak only for the state of California, but I must say that my experience with school districts indicates that most of them are so patently stupid that they deserve the problems they have.

In the arena of the survival of the fittest, public schools would die. Despite the lack of a level playing field and incentive for the survival of the fittest, yea, even with extreme subsidation, I think public schools are going to die anyway. You heard it from me first. And I diagnosed the error of the Social Security program and predicted the baby boomer-related Social Security funding disaster 13 years ago. Being a pessimist guarantees that one is correct in one's predictions nearly all of the time.

Now, we're watching some Voyager episodes that we just got in the mail today.

This was a holiday for Jeff, so he was home for three days this weekend! It was nice and relaxing.

Yesterday, we did some cleaning, and invited our neighbors (Greg and Heather) for dinner. They are very... interesting... people. Nice, though. They really like cats, too, so they enjoyed playing with Hobbes and Touchy.

Today, we slept in, then ran errands and stuff. Did some housework and yard work. Very low-key.

I looked at some jobs. I'll call the school districts tomorrow, when they'll be back from holiday.

The CBEST was predictably easy to take. I was surprised at how many people were there. Many of them were wearing Fresno State sweatshirts.

It's Friday night, and it doesn't take a genius to know what we're doing. Yes, we're watching Sci Fi Friday, although we're flipping back and forth between that and the opening events for the Olympics in Torino.

John Doe: Have we found a hint of Doe's true identity? What will happen next week?!
Stargate SG-1: The previews made this episode look stupid, but it was actually a good old-school Stargate romp. It brought Baal back in the game. =)
Stargate Atlantis: *smirk* They just totally slammed on people who watch TV. However, this was a super-lame episode. No plot, no reason for it to have been made at all. *sigh*
Battlestar Galactica: More arch political drama. Much better than last week. Poor Billy, though. I've always been fond of Billy. He's so cute. The sweetest and least annoying character bit it, which is the way things always work out in dramas. When they showed him in the 'Previously on Battlestar Galactica' bit, I said to Jeff, "Oh, no, Billy's going to die in this episode! Just wait and see. Oh, I don't want Billy to die!" Sometimes, I'm too smart for my own good.

Today, in DSFGE Day 10, I filled out online application forms for Fresno USD, and talked to some human resources people there. Tomorrow, I shall take the CBEST. I hope I do well enough.

MCI

Stands for Mercilessly Completely Irritating.

The phone rang today. I answered. There was a relentlessly cheerful telemarketer on the other end. Conversation was as follows, with parenthetical commentary by yours truly.

RCT: Hello, ma'am, I'm calling from MCI.
Me: Oh?
RCT: I'm calling about your phone number. (Now, I know that MCI is a phone service, so I already know what he's calling about, right? Hello, I am not STUPID. Whatever.) Is it XXX-XXXX?
Me: You called this number yourself. You obviously must know what it is. (Duh.)
RCT: (probably had never gotten that response before; gamely rallies and carries on) Your phone carrier is Pacific Bell, is that correct? (What, he knows everything about me? Does he have my baby pictures and high school grade reports, too? Scary.)
Me: (Like I know what phone service we have. Jeff pays the bill whenever it comes. I only ever use my cel phone to call people. We only have a land line because of DSL.) Could be.
RCT: (doggedly determined to carry on) MCI would like to offer you a better long-distance plan.
Me: Oh, we don't have long distance. (It's true. We don't. We can call anywhere we want with our cel phones.)
RCT: (relentless cheer gradually being replaced by doubt) You don't have long distance?
Me: Nope. We don't. You have nothing to sell me. Goodbye! (*click*)

It should be duly noted that I usually try to at least be pleasant to telemarketers. After all, they're just trying to make their living in the world, and it can't be a happy job. Maybe I was just super-crabby Deb or something.

Great fun

Today, I went to work with Jeff. Sadly, no one mistook us for participants in Take Your Child to Work Day, but still...

I drove up to Fresno with Jeff, and then went over to the Fresno City Public Library for a few hours. As far as city libraries go, it was LAME. Quite small for a city as large as Fresno. Metered parking in Fresno is nice, though: 1 cent per minute. Yes, one can park for one hour and forty minutes, for a measly dollar.

Jeff and I went to lunch with one of Jeff's bosses, because they are interested in me for a possible job at the district that fits my abilities quite nicely, and so we had a sort of informal "check me out" interview at lunch. It seemed to go well, and I wore my pink suit again (although I had to forego the lucky Hello Kitty undies). We'll see how it goes, since things like this can take rather a long time, and I don't have a lot of time. I need a job ASAP!

After lunch, I sat around in Jeff's office, reading Plato and listening to my iPod.

It was nice to spend a lot of time with Jeff. If I do get a job with the school district up in Fresno, it will be nice to commute with him. We'll have an extra hour and a half to hang out together, each weekday! We were both exhausted when we got home, though, and there was no one there with dinner waiting (hmmm, can we train the cats to cook, maybe?). When we're both employed, we'll have to figure out how the whole fixing meals thing works again. Tonight, Jeff had hot dogs, and I had a frozen pizza; when I was cooking my pizza in the toaster oven, Jeff decided he wanted one of those, too... Anyway, we watched some Law and Order (the first time I have seen any of those shows) and part of MXC (terribly funny).

Blogger's being weird

Again.

Congratulations to Dan, who is now an ordained minister! My beloved brother has worked long and hard to reach this end, and we are so proud of him. Jeff and I are his "caring couple", so we'll try to figure out a way to celebrate with him, despite being 200 miles apart from him.

I had a fairly low-key DSFGE Day 8. Jeff let me know that the Fresno USD wants to interview me, and I have an appointment for tomorrow. I did laundry, and cleaned the kitchen a bit. Then I spent a few hours with Debbie; we visited some thrift stores (both vastly inferior to Savers) and Target, then chatted over coffee at Starbucks. I made spaghetti with marinara for dinner, and how we're watching Star Trek: Voyager (we got two disks from Netflix yesterday, and between last night and tonight, have almost finished them). I also watched The Young In Heart (see review below) earlier today, while tending to laundry. I love my old movies!

The Young In Heart: Humorous look at the adventures of a family of con artists. The Carletons (although we never do find out whether this is their real name) have been flitting around Europe trying to fleece wealthy folks, but are often exposed as dishonest and must move on to the next place. They are crooked as a corkscrew, but completely enchanting in their selfishness and strong drive to avoid anything even remotely resembling real work. There is the father (played by Roland Young, and known as the Sahib due to a fictional stint in the Bengal lancers) who is a card sharp, the mother (played by Billie Burke, and known as Marmy) who flutters and charms, and the son Rick (Douglas Fairbanks Jr) and daughter George-Anne (Janet Gaynor), who are fortune-hunting for spouses among the wealthy and naïve. Naturally, they fall in with various individuals who touch their hearts and rehabilitate them. Minnie Dupree is wonderful as a little old lady who is sharper than she looks; Paulette Goddard is pert and makes a good impression as an upright American girl working in London. This is not really a romantic comedy, nor a screwball comedy, nor a comedy of manners. It is just an excellent film featuring a fabulous cast in an amusing and touching story of humanity and redemption.
****/*****

Werk werk werk! It's awl I'm gud four.

DSFGE Day 7. It's been just over a week, and I'm ready to be done with it.

Today, I went to the Social Security office to get a new card to replace the one I can't find. Interesting experience. While I was there, a man got locked in the bathroom. I have no idea how. He was just pounding on the door and shouting, stuck inside the men's restroom... He eventually figured out how to get out, though.

After filing the paperwork for my card, I took the receipt down to the employment agency, since they needed two forms of ID, and I couldn't find my SS card yesterday. I simply showed them my receipt, and that plus my driver's license was good enough. Strangely, the driver's license alone was good enough for the SS office. Oh, well.

Jeff had an appointment with his supervisor, or a superintendent, or something, and he happened to show her my resume. She was interested in me, and wants to talk to me about some positions that might be a good fit for me. We'll see if anything comes of that.

Other than the above-mentioned incidents, the day was quite dull.

On to Monday

What can I say about today, Day 6 (I'm not counting weekends) in DSFGE?

Well, I signed up with Valley Staffing, an employment agency that does both temporary and permanent placement. I'm thinking that I will be able to work some now and then, for income, while I figure out the job situation. I also got a call back from another employment agency, so that seems okay, too. I haven't heard from Jo-Ann Stores yet, but have not lost hope.

Jeff and I had chili verde tonight (well, I just had a bean and cheese burrito with the salsa verde, no chili), and watched some Simpsons and Stargate. Now, Jeff is playing Halo.

In other news, the remote jungles of Papua have been found to contain all kinds of previously unknown species. Welcome to Duhsville, folks; I could have told you that 15 years ago.

Another end of an era

Western Union delivered their very last telegram on Friday. I don't know if most of my generation has even heard of telegrams. They were obsolete long before I was born, of course. Still, this marks something of a significant moment, a coming of age, irrevocably moving from the Industrial to the Information Age, so to speak.

I was once in a play (Sorry, Wrong Number) in which my receipt of a telegram was a crucial plot device.

Jeff and I are watching Jason and the Argonauts. Jeff and I are both fond of classical myth and literature, so even if it is a bit cheesy, we're enjoying it.

Unfortunately, the makers of this mini-series didn't get the memo: Absolutely no James Callis in revealing clothing. *sigh* Nevertheless, it's a not-too-bad rendition of the story. Much of the casting is somewhat peculiar (Dennis Hopper as an ancient Greek king?), but this fact actually adds a quirky, earthy flavor to the production. Despite the vast array of acting talent, a lot of the actors seem to be either wooden or meandering around in their roles, but this indicates a lack of definitive direction, and nobody expected Emmy-winning performances, I think. The special effects are at least not embarrassing (it was made in 2000, after all), the location shooting is attractive, and the art direction is often impressive to a Hellenophile like myself. There are nice touches, such as the presence of a pool in the temple of Hera (locations for sacred spots were often selected for their proximity to natural pools or springs), and imaginatively semi-authentic architecture. The costuming is good, too. The mechanical bull was lame, though. Jeff and I both liked Hercules. And I thought Orpheus was hot.

I think this should be seen in a double feature with a production of Medea (if there is a good one recorded on film), as a sequel that tells the ultimate end of the story of Jason and Medea.

And so on...

I had another rather uneventful day on Friday.

I got up with Jeff and fixed his breakfast (so nice of me, don't you think?), then ate my own. I did a bit of cleaning, and reading and research. I did a follow-up call to Jo-Ann's, but had to leave a message and can only hope they'll call me back. I called a few other places, and have appointments to go in next week. I went to the store to buy some groceries. Such was the excitement of DSFGE Day 5.

On the plus side, I made pizza from scratch, and also chocolate chip cookies. Danny called to chat for a few minutes (and shared some humorous tidbits about the latest adventurous episode in the world of ICBM test flights), and Christina called a while after that.

Sci Fi Friday was a bit disappointing tonight. We've added a fourth show to our repertoire, so now we have:
John Doe: Hokey but engaging. Dominic Purcell is unconventionally handsome, and acts in such a way as to be interesting and sympathetic, despite the unbelievable character he's called to portray. I don't hate any of the supporting actors, so it's okay.
Stargate SG-1: They're trying to keep it interesting by adding new characters, as well as resurrecting old plotlines to keep a feeling of continuity, but I haven't really loved any of the recent episodes. Feeling a bit stilted, really. Last night's episode didn't grip me, but I did like how it illustrated (perhaps a bit too patly) the various personalities on SG-1. Daniel Jackson as an intellectual was convinced that a peaceful solution could be negotiated, whereas Cameron Mitchell was clearly the shoot-first-and-ask-questions-later kind of guy; Sam provided technical problem solving. Perhaps the series will regain its energy when Claudia Black rejoins the cast next season. It seems that Richard Dean Anderson is not coming back, so we've got to look to others to keep the spark going.
Stargate Atlantis: Okay, most of the time, I like a good political drama, but I don't want my Sci Fi Friday entertainment to be TOO political. I think too much as it is. When I watch television, I want my brain to be lulled into gentle beta-brainwave patterns. This episode ("The Tower") kind of riled me up, so it wasn't good for me. Watching this episode helped my realize and understand some things that I didn't initially agree with, in Dante's De Monarchia. I wouldn't say I totally agree with Dante anyway, but I can see where his views would work. Acknowledging this would work in a dramatic sense, fueling a setup for confrontation of contrasting yet valid idealogies. This is what Stargate Atlantis failed to see as a legitimate part of the plot--monarchy and feudalism as a possibly good system of government; they dismissed its possibilities out of hand, without stopping to consider. As a child, I objected to feudalism on general principle; as I grew older, I saw how it worked, but wasn't convinced that its benefits would outweigh its perils. Now that I'm very old (okay, 28), I have a low enough view of all systems of government (seeing as how they are made up of people, of whom I have a very low view) to consider the strengths of a feudalism. Okay, well, 99% of my blog readers have now checked out, so I'll just go on to the next thing.
Battlestar Galactica: All right, I respect the writing, acting, directing, and producing talent on this show. They almost always manage to put out a good product, that is dramatically consistent, engaging, and fast-paced. This episode ("Scar"), however, didn't grab me at all. I was pleased that they're finally resurrecting the subplot involving the human survivors back on Caprica, since there are a lot of possibilities there, but the whole flashback/flashforward structure is getting old, AND is an arty one that must be handled with care; they did it better a few weeks ago with "Resurrection Ship (2)". I felt like the overall narrative of the season took a hit, since we didn't see Roslin, Baltar, etc., at all, and we only saw key players like Adama in bit roles. The viper pilots took center stage, struggling to take down a dangerous Cylon raider, and I found that I didn't much care about the outcome. It's nice that the writers are finally letting Starbuck work through her inner demons, but some of us are getting tired of wondering if Starbuck and Apollo are ever going to actually get it on. It's not like their morality would prevent them, or anything. Oh, yes, and the ending was corny. So, anyway, here's to a more gripping BSG next week!

[I was writing this last night, but someone who shall remain nameless, but it wasn't me or the cats, turned off the server, so I couldn't post it.]

Another day

I had a hard time waking up this morning. Not sure why. I had a slow morning, check e-mail and browsing want ads and such. It's hard work, to be sure, but slow.

DSFGE Day 4 was devoted to trying to figure out how to most effectively angle for that math teaching job. I haven't heard back from Jo-Ann's yet, so the education field looks most promising for me. It's what I really want to do, anyway. It'll still be a couple of weeks until I can get everything worked out, taking the CBEST and all, and the school district HR won't really talk to me until I fulfill the qualifications for the job. I understand that they're sticking by the book, so to speak, but would it kill them to work with me a little here?

I called an employment/recruitment agency, and they had me send them my resume. I'm hoping that I'll get some work, so that we have some income while I'm trying to find a steady job. Then I took my application for a lab job down to the UC Davis Vet Med and Research Center in Tulare. It's a great job, as far as my desire for biology is concerned, because it's doing lab work for research in epidemiology; I'd basically be testing for parasitological, bacteriological, and virological infections in farm animals. Cool stuff! But it's entry-level, and I'm not sure that I'd be what they're looking for in a junior lab assistant. Oh, well.

When Jeff came home, I made turkey (defrosted Thanksgiving leftovers) with peanut sauce and spinach, over rice. Mmm. Turned out very well, considering I didn't even use a recipe. We watched a Stargate SG-1 episode. This evening, I also chatted on the phone with Laurel, played some freecell solitaire, clipped the kitties' claws, and cleaned dishes in the kitchen.

I'm heading to bed soon, since I'm hoping to nip this too-groggy-to-wake-up-in-the-morning thing in the bud. I took meds (legally prescribed by my physician, thank you very much), and am waiting for them to kick in.

Don't Forget

February marks Black History Month.

Also don't forget that black does not necessarily equal African-American or even African. There are many other black people groups in the world, such as the aboriginals of Pacific Islands, Australia and, oh yes, New Guinea.

During this month, I will remember the people of my island far away. And back in North America, I will celebrate the (very) few, the (occasionally) brave, the proud (and wierd), the Papuan-Americans!

Hilarious!

Day 3 of DSFGE gave rise to mirth and frustration. The facts that (1) I was an AEROSPACE ENGINEER and (2) I possess a MASTERS DEGREE in one of the HUMANITIES are completely insufficient to convince the state of California that I am able to read, write, and do mathematics at any level of competency. So I must take the CBEST. *laughing* I'm registering to take it on Feb. 11.

Things are looking at least positive on the education employment front. If I can convince the school district that they want to hire me at a preliminary (intern?) level as soon as I take the CBEST, things might be okay, job-wise. I also have to get finger-printed, of course. The Fresno County Office of Education called me back, and was very encouraging. I called the Fresno SD HR person, to tell her I was interested and would have the CBEST requirement fulfilled in a week and a half, but haven't heard back from her about that specific high school math job. You'd think they'd be excited to be able to fill a teaching position they've had open since August 2005. Come on, people, the algebra's not getting taught any sooner.

I talked to a guy in the Tulare County Office of Education, who was telling me all about their credentialing program that they offer, so one can complete it in 18 months, without having to enroll in an actual university. They do seem to have a decent program, to be honest, but I'm not sure if it's for me. Still, I got good info, and it's an option, if I decide to really go for being a high school teacher.

The problem is, with all these other tests I'm taking, when will I be able to prep for the GRE?

Next up

Well, Day 2 of DSFGE was not quite so eventful as Day 1. I was at home all day, and the only person I saw was the man who delivered a package to the door. It's okay, though. I e-mailed a place that has engineering/test positions open, and made several phone calls regarding a math teaching position in a Fresno high school. Yes, I'm still trying for the education thing. As it turns out, I might be able to get an emergency credential, but because of No Child Left Behind bureaucracy, it's not good after June 30. Whatever. Such is life. HOWEVER, it seems that if I pass a CSET, I could get a single subject teaching credential, per the recruiter I spoke with, who emphasized the need for math teachers. If I can pass a math CSET, I get a credential? That sounds waaaaay too easy. I know I can teach, and I know I can teach math. I've done it for years. However, I expected a lot more red tape from the state of California. I called the Fresno County Office of Education credentialing office, but the person there didn't answer, so I left a message. I hope to get more answers tomorrow.

Here is the question. Do I really think I can pass a comprehensive math test, at a level that will convince people that I can teach mathematics to snotty-nosed brats? Do I have that much confidence in myself? The thing is, I can never be sure how smart I really am. I consider myself about average, math-wise. I mean, most people think I'm a super-smart, but I compare myself to, say, my Uncle David (who has a Ph.D. in mathematics) or my younger brother (who is certified scary-smart). Despite the fact that I got mostly As, and a few very solid Bs, all the way through multi-variable calculus in college, I don't think I'm particularly intelligent when it comes to math. I guess my best course of action, if the CSET seems the way to go (there are apparently math teaching jobs available), is to see if the practice test seems easy enough, and then review whatever it is I don't know.