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Wishing you a healthy, prosperous, and happy 2010.

I didn't do "year in review" things. (My short synopsis was that my health got better, Obama is president, and I finally got on Facebook -GOOD, but I got laid off and too many people I love died, which bites.) I also was not keen on the idea of "decade in review" because I started off 2000 (after the go-go-go of Y2k prep) basically having a nervous breakdown, although it does lend perspective to my current "meh" state. ("HEY! I'm not being screamed at, at home and at work!")

I need some advice from the camera-savvy on my list! My digicam seems to be dying - it worked fine in June, but when I found it again in the fall, its screen is streaky even after I put the newly charged batteries in. I have some Amazon.com gift cards (which I bought by pouring my change into a Coinstar machine - thank you Margaret for that tip) so I'm thinking it's time to get a new one.

I take "group shots", pix of my cats, landscape shots, and like taking photos of my food, so something with a good short-range capacity would be ideal.

If I can reuse anything from my Canon S410 Powershot, so much the better.

Ideal Price range: under 300 (I had a LOT of change and I've found more!)

Thanks folks.

I've been able to read LJ but haven't been posting. The sort version is that after "close but no banana" on a couple of excellent jobs in November, I got visited by the Good Temp Job Fairy in early December. Job is in San Jose, so the commute combined with the run up to Big December Events has been taking it out of me. (Family Christmas has been mellow in comparision with Church Pre-Christmas Blowouts.)

It is short term but the boss likes me enough that I feel I have Prospects. And the market seems to be ticking up, Deo gratias.

I know a lot of you are going through rough times, doubly rough because you are in bad straits right now and/or have Utterly Fucked Up Family of Origin issues. Know that, even if I am not very communicado, that you are all in my heart. I feel blessed to know all of you and wish all of you a healthy, peaceful, prosperous, and joyous New Year.

xxxooo

Did not get the NOC job I did a lot of interviewing for.

Still in process some other places. Today seemed to be "Recruiters call Charlotte" day. Also, replacement EDD form is en route - lost one, and they don't answer their phones, but a "mail us" form on their website worked just fine.

I have an in-person at 9:15 in SF tomorrow. Prayers for timely rising and commuting and good talking appreciated.

Interview last night did not happen. Just got a call from agent saying that a reprise tonight at 8 pm might not happen either because of interviewer availability. Obviously they need someone ;).

I am reshuffling all the deck chairs around here. I am running a temperature (this is more like a hot flush than a fever). I took a hot epsom salt bath and wrapped up in a blanket, but I am still a bit sweaty. I think this is a herx reaction from an antifungal supplement I took, but it could be the aporkalypse, so I am behaving myself. No hospital visits (especially not the cancer ward, Lord have mercy). No making cookies or similar with sweet old ladies. Gave church people heads-up that I might bag on all my activities this weekend. Also found out a memorial for an RFC pal is on Saturday, during the time I would be normally supervising sandwich making. If I am sufficiently fever free I will go to that, then home to sleep it off.

(Of your mercy, please pray for the repose of Leila's soul, and the comfort of her husband and two young sons. And always remember that tabbouli is a parsley salad, not a grain one. Or she will haunt you.)

for a Desireable Job at 8 pm Pacific. I am a bit technically short for this particular job (it's a new version of what I've been working with all along, but the specifics are different) so special prayers (or whatever you do to offer to the tech gods) requested.

At a couple of interviews, I seem to have been unprepared for certain types of questions. Am trying to think ahead on this.

Also learned that I was still a leading candidate for another job.

It is raining in California, a straight rain
Cleaning the heavy oranges on the bough,
Filling the gardens till the gardens flow,
Shining the olives, tiling the gleaming tile,
Waxing the dark camellia leaves more green,
Flooding the daylong valleys like the Nile.

Karl Shapiro, "California Winter"

One small compensation of being unemployed is that I don't have to go out in it.

Best wishes of the day to cat_herder and elissaann.

The bad news: I forgot to pick up my CSA box for the first time in well over a year last night. Saw the empty box from last week by the door this morning and did a facepalm.

The good news: it wasn't because I was sitting around the house feeling sorry for myself. I was actually cleaning out my fridge, shining my sink, and then making oven ratatouille during the time I usually get it. This is the first time I have made ANYTHING remotely that elaborate myself for a while.

(I have thawed hamburger, so I can make shepherd's pie with a lot of the remaining veg.)

I had also had lunch with a former co-worker, paid a short hospital visit, and started cleaning up after Maggie the Entropist.

Must plan tomorrow's baking extravaganza, and get back to sending out resumes.

diaphoni rescued a wee kitten from a bad situation and the little guy apparently has a crushed paw. They are on a very fixed income so are trying to raise the $800+ to have the leg amputated so he will be out of pain and danger and get on with the rest of his new life as a beloved house kitty (to which he is taking quite well despite his injury).

Local rescue groups have provided some of the money, but they are trying to raise more to at least get onto a payment plan with the vet so he can have his op soon.

Flyer here with pix of the cute little fella. Good thoughts and signal boosts are welcome if you don't have any spare cash.

I can't tell you how incredibly pissed off I am that we have to run the equivalent of a garage sale to enable someone to get emergency heart surgery to save his life ... but that is what a group of us are doing over at care_faith_hope.

T has no income since he got laid off, no health insurance, and totally lost the genetic lottery on the cardiac disease thing: he had his first heart attack as a slim thirty-something. Now he needs either a bypass or multiple stents and cardiac rehab.

So look the stuff over (lotsa fandom stuff, lotsa food), contribute if you feel moved (knitters I am looking at you), boost the signal, whatever.

Thanks!

May you all have a sweet and joyous year.

If you're reading this, and you're local to the SFBA or fascinated by engineering feats, and you aren't already reading hepkitten, I'd urge you to check in with her over the weekend.

She's an ace photographer, and she has access to the Bay Bridge construction site (her dad was a foreman until his very recent retirement), so there are going to be some awesome pix.

I haven't seen Miss Ruthie all morning. She likes sleeping late, but this is not like her.

I am thinking of running some errands and then padding up my knees and looking under furniture for her.

ETA: She finally emerged at about 4 pm.

Just heard on the news that Ted Kennedy has died. I knew that he was in bad shape after he couldn't attend his sister's funeral, but wow.

Can't stop crying.

Will be pouring myself a wee dram in his honor. More tomorrow, maybe.

Well, I don't know if she can actually catch anything*, but there was something small and dark she was chasing in the driveway tonight when I went out to get her.

* especially now that she has a new collar, complete with bell

No, I didn't explore further. And I won't be going out later to see if she's not busy. But at least the mystery of why she was not responding to "come here" gestures is solved.

Tripped on the sidewalk yesterday and made a five-point landing. Right knee and chin (!) still very sore. Right wrist less so. Left side of body appears to be fine after rest.

Maggie got a lot of pillows thrown at her last night because she regards my knees as a summit to be conquered.

I'm going to attempt a shower and ice the knee again afterwards.

Doing coffee hour at the church tomorrow. Currently at the halfway point for baking:

Apple-walnut bars with apples from my tree: done
Barb's Brownies - in oven

Taking a break because I mixed up the flours I was measuring for the brownies and the struesel for the blueberry buckle. Let's just say that I'm going to have a lot of struesel in the fridge. Also, the dishwasher is full enough to run.

Need to go to market because all my raisins were gross-looking and I want them to make Elise's (Simply Recipes) zucchini-pineapple bread. I also realized I was out of bacon. Will do a commando run to Berkeley Bowl West.

This house is a lot untidier at the moment than its recent status quo. High on the list for tomorrow will be picking up one or more of the rooms.

OK folks, I need a new interview trouser suit. My last one is just a titch too small these days.

My usual source of Tall Women's Clothing is Land's End, but I have struck out with them for this season.

( this is long, so the rest is under the cut )