Batman? Batwoman!

After my day of inactivity and intermittent napping, it was no surprise that falling asleep at a "normal" hour was impossible. I laid in bed watching "Law and Order" reruns... and was just about asleep at quarter to one.

Suddenly, I heard odd high-pitched, almost scratching like noises, and my big-boned beastie cat jumped up from the bed. Not again!! I didn't have to look. The light of the t.v. helped cast the shadow of bat wings on my bedroom wall.

Luckily, it flew out of my room fairly quickly. Maybe it just wanted to let me know it had come to visit. Unfortunately, I have no door on my bedroom as I did not put it back up when I took it down to paint, so simply closing the door and going to sleep was not an option. So, I called my brother... again.

Still up, he came over within minutes, as if he was taking this bat removal thing as serious as an emergency responder. Because I just went through this some three days ago, and this bat appeared to be significantly smaller, I was less bothered by it. But, sleeping while a cat's hunting instincts have been triggered by a mammal circling overhead isn't plausible.

Initially, we found the bat dangling from a plant hanging in the living room. An easy find since the cat was perched on the coffee table staring at it. My brother, with the now official bat hunting bed sheet, attempted a quick and easy capture. Thinking he had everything "under control" I opened the door to go upstairs and make sure there weren't any open windows.

And here comes the bat.

Ducking from the swoop, I pulled my almost healed neck muscles. Damn't! Damn bats! Where the blazes are these things coming from? And why? One of my email buddies rambled on about the devil, spiders, bats, and portals... okay, pal. I know the vampire thing is pretty trendy right now with the movie "Twilight" and some coming soon t.v. show "Vampire Diaries," but I care not to participate in any blood-sucking fantasies. I just want some peace of mind and a good night's sleep!

After my brother successfully removed the bat, we explored my house for any signs of entry. Nothing has changed here. And I've lived here, bat free, for two years. We couldn't find any obvious places they would be coming in from.

"Maybe they like the smell of fresh paint," my brother theorized.

Looks like I'll be arriving at work with dark circles this morning...

What You Wish For...

Be careful of that! Whilst finding many of my own very wishes coming true... I find myself buried in them! Buried in cliches as well! "When it rains it pours" is certainly ringing loud and true for me; negatively and positively.

My laptop croaked. Then the loaner croaked.

I had no job. Three jobs. Two jobs. 15 hours a week. 20 hours a week. 32 hours a week. Then 30 hours a week. Now I've been offered 40 hours a week, I still care for Chester and my remodelling job is dragging on because of a sub-contractor. The first grant I wrote was awarded, which is great for the resume, but bad in the sense that delays in the awarding process mean my deadlines will be extremely difficult to reach. I am getting sent to many conferences which award continuing education credits; again good for the resume, but bad for the deadlines!

I feel like I'm running after everything! Including after my own shoes! I have no milk, no eggs, no butter, and no time to go to the store. I have a tote bag full of mail and not a single over-priced stamp. I have my primer and paint for my own remodel job: the garage. Yet, I have not a single moment (that doesn't involve rain) to get back to it!

And the boys. Oh those silly boys. A couple boys have been attempting to court me, but again, I have no time! And when I find time, I'm going to have to decide if I want to allow this said courting first! I must confess that regardless of any potential futures with any said boys, knowing that there may still be options after you have neared even closer to 40 is something I'm very grateful for!

Unfortunately, either a cup of Earl Grey tea, or some overnight anxiety kept me up until almost 4 a.m. which made getting up at 5:30 a.m. not so pleasant. Couple my lack of sleep with congestion, sneezing, itchy ears and an irritated throat (allergies?) and I'm ready to tie a white T-shirt to a stick and wave it wildly to and fro!

Oh it has rained. And has it poured! And I am: drowning!

Good? Morning

Good Morning "kids."

I'm still up. And I don't know how "good" that is. You see, when I find myself up at pre-normal people hours, I'm left to paid programming, pathetic pondering, and my own devices.

I have to call into the automated unemployment system this morning between 8 and 9 a.m. If I fall asleep now, I'll simply be taking another "nap." If I stay up, I'll surely be doing some napping mid afternoon, which could lead me to staying up until the wee hours... and repeating this insane cycle of sporadic sleep.

I also have an unconfirmed cleaning gig today. I can't confirm it at THIS hour, but if I could, I would certainly entertain the idea of a nap now, to encourage a more normal, productive day. If you would have asked me ten years ago, when I was a misguided, yet employed, late-twenties student/waitress/bartender/manager/administrative assistant, if I planned on being unemployed and cleaning houses once a month in my late 30's... I would have thought YOU to be crazy. Yet, here I am, doing just that. An amateur maid with a college degree, cleaning a friend's grandmother's house in an attempt to make ends meet... this is my life. What happened?

Oh yeah. The entire economy imploded...

I'm watching some show called the "Daily Buzz," and apparently a scientist in Australia is studying the effects of cocaine on honey bees in the hopes of better understanding human cocaine addiction. Huh? Aren't most of us under the impression that the population of honey bees has drastically declined, and therefore a sign of our impending doom? Is a stinger-weilding insect jiffed out on coke really a necessary addition to the madness of our world? I'm probably misinformed, but, I thought we were supposed to be finding ways to save the honeybee population, not turn them into coke-heads. What happened to the simplistic days of "This is your brain on drugs" commercials?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nl5gBJGnaXs

Oh yeah. They didn't work.

I think I'll have fried eggs this morning...

Where is the Crazy Gunman?

Where's a crazy gunman when you need one?

Seems our world is full of crazy people that wander around shooting innocent people in movie theatres, toy stores and at family Christmas parties. Yet, millions of people lay in wait for someone to put them out of their own misery. Why don't they volunteer their services to those who could truly use them?

Like me.

I went to sleep at a decent hour, for the first time in weeks, yet here I am, wide awake a mere four hours later... at 3 a.m. Please shoot me! I truly can't take this sleeplessness much longer! I remember learning about the debilitating affects of sleep deprivation in psychology, and I'm also aware that not getting enough sleep depletes the immune system.

This means I am one semi-crazy, half-dead duck!

And I'm up poisoning your minds while you innocently rest in your beds!

Are You Experienced?

So, I'm not asleep yet. But, all is not lost!

I "went to church" tonight: watched Joel Olsteen at midnight. His message is always oddly relevant to my current state of things. Tonight he was talking about being a "bounce back" person... someone who does not break under the pressures of misfortune. My weekend away from the world was intended to do just that: bounce back.

I made a serious attempt to fall asleep after the show. However, it failed.

So I job searched. Sundays aren't the best days to look for new postings. Most employers do not place postings over the weekend. Fortunately, I did locate a position that was posted late afternoon Friday, and I applied. It's only part-time... but I'd love any reliable income right about now! The position is, ironically, a Case Manager Assistant for an unemployment office. I definately have experience! And wouldn't I love to be working again!

Give Ya One Guess!

One guess. Who is STILL up?!

As Sarah Palin would say, "You betchya!"

Yep. You got it! Mona is still up. I finally gave up on sleep at 6:13 a.m. and got out of bed. I put on shoes and a jacket, and fed the birds in the dark. There is a thin blanket of frost on the feeders and the grass, so yes, it's pretty frickin' cold this morning before sunrise. After I came in, I did the dishes, made some coffee, practiced guitar... and successfully played my C chord!!! Put away some things my mother had brought over, and here I am. Driving you crazy with my craziness!

My big plan (yes I do have those sometimes) is to hopefully stay awake the majority of the day. Pull the proverbial "all-nighter." I'm hoping that I'll then fall asleep sometime around 11 p.m. tonight, and not wake until 7 a.m. Thus, beginning my journey back to Normalville...