Things are changing at work (again) and now I have a big decision to make in a few short days. I wish I could talk it over with Drew since he’s always been such a good sounding board and the decision will ultimately impact him. Of course since he’s currently in KAF that’s not likely.

The last time I made a big decision when he was away I ended up quitting my job without a safety net and floating around unemployed for a month. ‘Twas the first time I’d been unemployed since I graduated college and I’d no idea how hard it would be to be jobless – even if it was by choice. It was the longest month I my life and a hard road to walk down for a workaholic.

This decision won’t be as massive but I I make the wrong one there’s a chance I’ll end up in a similar boat. I’m most worried about what it means for me down the road. What if I say yes and never account for anything more in my life? What if I say no and end up an unemployed bum during a recession?

It’s going to be a long few days.

Weekly call from Drew concluded last night with his reminder that he’s close to 1/2 way through his tour. Good thing too. Apparently when I’m not the one traveling I miss him more than expected. Granted he was gone for a long time before he left for KAF what with the course in Montreal and his quick stint in Calgary. So by those standards we’re closer to 80% of the way through his time away rather than 50%.

Mostly I miss the conversations we have. We talk about some of the silliest and fun things. Serious stuff too. Sure we get to talk for 30-40 minutes a week but it’s not the same. Mostly, it’s just too short and there’s too much yawning going on during than calls.

Military families get notices of the types of things to talk about (or avoid) during calls to keep up morale. Avoiding fighting or whining is supposed to be rule #1. avoiding fighting is easy. We rarely argue. Too rational I think. Mostly we just rant, listen to each other and move on. Avoiding whining is harder. Our previous daily routine was to come home and rant or whine about work for 10-15 mind. Once out of our systems we moved on. A shared burden is an easier burden to carry.

For the moment we’re carting around extra shares of our concerns lately.

Perhaps that’s why I blog my whinging (not a spelling mistake, Scottish for whining). It let’s me share my day with Drew while he’s half way across the world. That way I can move on to whatever the next day brings. Tomorrow, I’ve got to head into work early to attend a meeting. Will need to try and get to bed early tonight. Not a good idea to sleep in…

…but I just submitted it on Friday night…

*gasp* *sputter* *swoon*

I got paper #1 in my Experimental Psych class back this morning. As you can imagine this speedy return was completely unexpected since I’m used to a 2 week turnaround (at minimum) on grades/feedback at RMC. Then again, I’m taking this class elsewhere since RMC isn’t offering it, so they may have different norms surrounding marking that I’m not aware of. Whatever the case may be I certainly wasn’t expecting to log into my course site this morning and find a graded paper. The sun didn’t shine on my parade very long.  Not only wasn’t I expecting the paper back this soon, I also wasn’t expecting a B. Yep. Loxley can return to her days of heckling me and peppering my desk with B shaped objects. I have finally managed to slide lower than an A- on a course.

Actually, I think I’d received a B on my first paper history paper a few semesters ago.  It ended relatively well since I did manage to squeak through with an A- as a final grade in that course.  I’ll have to go digging in my records to check.  Someday.

There is hope.  The first paper is only worth 10% so if I pay attention to the feedback I’m sure I can improve the grade over the next few papers.  Or so I’m going to keep telling myself.

Friday night at Karaoke was interesting.  We had both dare rounds and pick a song from a hat rounds.  People put songs they would normally sing into a hat and others had to sing them. I didn’t fare too badly – Alanis Morrisette’s Head Over Feet was my hat song. Loxley ended up with Alabama’s I’m in a Hurry (And Don’t Know Why) while L sang Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit.  Highlight of the singing was L’s interpretation of the ending. In Denial. In Denial. Etc. Etc. I guess you had to be there. The dare round was, as always, evil.  Loxley submitted Iron Maiden’s Butterfly’s In A Gadda Da Vida for me to sing. After that I had no guilt about having thrown her name into the hat to sing Nena’s 99 Red Balloons.  I did go easy on her though and chose the English version. ‘Twas an interesting night.

Last night we went out to celebrate Boo’s “Big Night Out/Not Birthday Party”. Her friend C made her two amazing cheese cakes that tasted like mini slices of heaven. We learned that her friend A lives just up the street from me and seems to know everyone who works on Whyte Ave.

Now Sunday is here it’s time to finish off yet another assignment for MilPsych and modify a course site for work. So much for hibernating for the day and recovering.  Drew should be calling tonight which will make my day complete.

UPPERDATE: School work is taking longer than expected so I’ve decided NOT to work OT to finish up the work related work this afternoon. 8am Monday morning is soon enough!

I’ve been a big fan of Twitter for a while now. It provides me with an easy way to keep in touch with new and old friends; near and far. I can follow some of the most interesting people in the fields of training and education, web cartoonists, authors, musicians, actors, and browncoats all in one location.

Want to know what Wil Wheaton (@wilw), PJ Haarsma (@TheSoftwire), Scott Sigler (@scottsigler) or Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) have been writing about?  Curious as to where in the world Stephen Fry (@StephenFry) is now? Follow them on Twitter.  Want to find out when Marian Call‘s (@mariancall) next performance is? She’s on Twitter too.  Fan of The Guild (@theguild), Dr. Horrible (@drhorrible) or Legend of Neil (@legendofneil)?  Felicia Day (@feliciaday), Sandeep (@sandeepparikh) and many other stars, writers and staff of The Guild and Legend of Neil are posting away to their hearts content.  Joel (@hijinksensue), one of my favourite comic artists in recent months, drew my Twitter avatar. What to know what’s going on in Edmonton?  You have to follow Mack D. Male (@mastermaq).

Yeah, I’m a Twitter junkie.

Twitter’s not just for following the cool kids – it’s also for gathering together and offering a helping hand to those in need.  One of my favourite Twitter events this past year was tweetsgiving organized by StaceyMonk (@StaceyMonk) [my take: here, here and here].

If you’re in Edmonton (or anywhere else in the world) and spend time connecting with people near and far on Twitter, consider attending Twestival 2009. Anyone who knows me knows I don’t like throwing myself to the wolves and meeting people face-to-face. Something about the whole I’m a freak introversion thing makes me really nervous in social situations. So I’m dragging my friend Loxley, who I also dragged kicking and screaming into the world of Twitter, with me into the fray.

Support the cause.  Buy your ticket and join the fun. Make an appearance and get to know some of the most interesting locals in the area.

More than 100 cities around the world are hosting Twestivals on February 12th to raise money and awareness for charity: water. When I heard about the idea, I knew that Edmonton had to participate. After all, we’re known for our support of community and charitable causes, and the Twitter community here is second-to-none! It’s going to be an evening of great fun for a great cause!

Here are the details:

WHO: You and your friends!

WHAT: Edmonton Twestival 2009

WHEN: Thursday, February 12th at 6:30pm

WHERE: Vintage Lounge, 10124 124th Street – map

WHY: To have some fun while supporting a great cause!

COST: We’re asking for a $20 donation which will go entirely to charity: water.

Take a few hours out of your busy day – and $20 out of your wallet – and support this great cause.

Have to get this out of the way before I get so swamped with homework this weekend and forget.  Dr. D is wonderful.  Sick as a dog with a nasty migraine and he still made it into work to provide feedback on my research proposal. Great feedback all – even if he did make me try to define variables aloud despite knowing it would just result in my rambling on like a maniac and beginning to question everything I thought I knew.

So, while I try to dig myself out of the homework hole I find myself in, I hope Dr. D is beginning to feel better and has a wonderful weekend.

Now, back to typing like a mad woman and muttering gibberish and threats under my breath…