ill-fitting

the air quality here is pretty bad.

the past couple of mornings, as soon as i stepped out of the house at about 7 AM, i would be struck by the faint smell of smoke. the fires closest to the capitol city of the golden state are probably a good fifty or sixty miles away in fairfield. nonetheless, it might as well be only a few miles away. it's astounding to think about, really -- the fact that so many fires, albeit a distance away, can have an affect over here where i live. the prediction is that the fires will never be completely put out throughout the summer. there will remain lingering fires, and the best the firefighters can do is just try to contain them as best as possible until the weather changes.

the effect that the smoky haze has had on the weather has been really crazy, though. i'm sure that without this smoky crap in the air, the weather would be blazingly hot. but the temperatures have gotten a bit more subdued. in the evenings, the sky is grey and overcast, but the air feels quite humid -- warm and wet. the suppressive atmosphere caused by all the smog makes me feel like i'm in l.a. it's crazy.

i went running outdoors last night, my first attempt at running since the race this past saturday. the first mile ended up making my chest feel raw because of the air. but thereafter, i was fine once i got into the swing of things.

next week here at work, i officially move downstairs to the first floor to a cube. i'll be near my new b.f.f., the vietgirl. which is cool -- i like her.

i'm amused -- and also bemused -- by her. my breaks go by so fast because we just keep chit-chatting and having laughs. but seriously, it's rare for me to come to be friends with someone so fast! for some reason, we just hit it off. and somehow we keep making lots of plans to do stuff together.

the bemusement stems from some of the odd presumptuous statements she makes. like, she has now determined that i am to cut off all coffee and soda from my diet.

uhhhh . . . .WHAT?!

who are you, and when did you become abbagirl's dietary overlord?

o_O

she drinks only water.

well, good for you. but you can leave me to my own devices, t.y.v.m.

:-T

i am just so shitty in the morning without my coffee. like, i've had to talk on the phone twice in the past twenty minutes -- and each time, i was slurring my words and stuttering incoherently. it's because my caffeine hasn't kicked in! i think i happened to make a weak-assed pot this morning.

:-P

and then when afternoon hits, i need to do the dew. otherwise, i can't get through the remainder of the day intact. like, i prolly could if i had more things to keep my mind occupied. but this week has been really rough and rather slow. like, seriously, i've had to suppress the urge to start pounding my own face with my fists! but if i had to do without my caffeine/sugar in the afternoon, i think i'd be much more worse off.

so when vietgirl said that it was her goal to wean me of caffeine and sugar, i just gave her a "psh! over my dead body!" look. for a young 'un, she was surprisingly unfazed by the look that came over my face.

"no way in hell," i told her firmly, giving her an evil eye.

"whatever," she said giving me a stern look in return, "it's gonna happen."

O_o

we'll see about that!!

anyhow, i'll be spending prolly tomorrow and monday making my transition downstairs to my new spot. i'm pretty downhearted about my new cube. no privacy whatsoever. no door to close when i need time alone. not as many chances to study from outlines. no ability to blog freely and surf the 'net when i'm bored.

*sigh*

but i don't have very many things to move. lemme see . . . . *looking around at rather bare office* maybe a small cubby of writing utensils and post-it notes, my hand sanitizer, my junk-food drawer with all of its unhealthy yumminess, a couple of plants (a money tree and a pot of violets -- why o why have my violets not yet bloomed??), hand sanitizer and lotion, and a couple of figurine thingies that add color and character to my otherwise bland work-space.

and i just realized, after having gone to the bathroom, that these pants that i'm wearing look really terrible on me! OMG! i'm embarrassed enough to want to go home and change -- but i can't!!

they just fit terribly. and make me look terrible.

don't ask, and i won't tell. i'm not giving any specifics. but they just look really terrible on me.

O_O

suffice to say . . . although i generally do feel bulgy . . . suffice to say these pants really exacerbate the feeling.

:(