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In response to her comment about the South demanding Air Conditioning...

I have a co-worker who lives in Atlanta and I was just talking to her yesterday about the heat. She also was amazed that I don't have AC. I don't know. Many people do here, many don't. Until the last few summers the Bay Area in general doesn't really need AC except a few days a year. Then the last three or so have been scorching. I rent, so I don't want to pay for it - plus, couldn't afford it before. This summer has actually been really nice, back to normal FINALLY. But this week it's caught up with us. It's supposed to stay hot until at least Monday now I hear.

I feel like the hole in the ozone must be directly over San Jose. It's not just the heat, it's the force of the sun just seems so much HOTter.

At the moment I'm sitting in my nice, air conditioned cubicle... but in a minute I must drive to my not-air-conditioned Spanish class. And then I drive to Aptos.

Adios!

You can take off somewhere else ANY time now.

Banks

Waddaya know, they did not charge me the extra five fees either. They only left one on, which is fine, I'll accept that fee.

In answer to some of your comments:

1. Yes, Edward Jones keeps most of my money. I just keep a year's worth of funds in the Wells Fargo savings.
2. I have a Starbucks Visa and a mileage Visa. I use them for most everything and pay them off every month and get points or miles for each. Occassionally I use the debit card instead though... usually always for the small things like lunch in the cafeteria, but I happened to use it for school shopping this time.
3. I do have online banking, I just had not checked it over the weekend and honestly I wasn't worried about it. Wells Fargo has the equivalent of one year salary in my savings and I ASSumed that I had overdraft protection. So I didn't think it mattered if I accidentally went under on the weekend.

So no, I'm not going to change banks over what is now only one $34 fee. Even if they had kept all the fees I wouldn't have changed - when they switched me to this new account it was a NIGHTMARE for one month as I individually switched over every single thing that automatically comes out of my bank. It's not worth it. But thanks for all your advice!

And I still hate them.

Hot Starbucks on a Hot Day

Wouldn't you know it, Starbucks turned their air conditioner off! Because it got too hot! It's so warm here they even took out all their salads and cheeses because they would spoil.

I hate summer. Bring on the winter.

So this morning I checked the checking account balance, because what with all the school clothes shopping for the kids I had a feeling I was close to 0 in that account.

Yes, I was below zero, and had SEVEN $34 overdraft fees.

So I call Wells Fargo to find out how I can have SEVEN $34 overdraft fees when my savings account has five digits of cash in it.

Well that's because when they switched me to that Super Special Account when I deposited all the money, that account they told me would have the same account number so I wouldn't have to worry about all my bills that automatically come out of my account which was a big fat LIE because they DID change the number and I got calls every day for a month about my card being declined...

Well, when they switched me to that Super Special Account, I didn't request to have overdraft protection.

What the FUCK kind of shit is that, I asked.

"Well. You have to ASK for overdraft protection if you want it."

"I had it PREVIOUSLY. I didn't know I had to ask for it when you switched me to the Super Special Account. Was I also supposed to request that I receive interest on my Savings? Is that also an option you give?"

"Well. We can't decide what you want us to do with your money. We don't know that you want us to transfer funds if you don't tell us to."

Me: So you are telling me that Wells Fargo thinks that I would rather pay you almost $250 in fees instead of transfering $125 from a savings account that has tens of thousands of dollars in it? Money that I gave to YOU to hold on to? Does that make sense to you?

Him: Um. Well, no. But ma'am...

It went on. I got put on hold. Then he came back and told me I WAS GOING TO RECEIVE FIVE MORE OVERDRAFT FEES THIS EVENING. All for little $5 and $7 debit card charges at Starbucks and McDonalds. I started to have a stinking fit on the phone so I got put on hold again. He came back and said they were going to take off 6 of the 7 fees (but I was still going to receive the five others) and he would sign me up for overdraft protection right now. Big fat lot of good that does me.

I haven't had to deal with stupid shit from WF in a long time, but they always come up with something. I think it's very funny that I had overdraft protection on my account when I had a continuing balance of zero dollars, but the minute I actually give them a good deal of my money all of a sudden I have no overdraft protection. As soon as I have a chance I'll be going inside the bank to get the rest of those charges taken off. But there's not much else I can do - I've had the Wells Fargo account for 20 years - it would be a huge pain in the ass to switch banks, and they know it.

*pant* *pant* *pant*

It is fricken HOT here again, so we are just big sweaty balls of sweat here in my house and it's making me CRANKY and IRRITABLE. I cannot ready 70 pages of Shakespeare in one night when it's 95 degrees in the house. Can't concentrate, can't SLEEP, can't think, can't cook, can't eat.

Weather says it's about to get hotter. Yay.

Today is Spanish and Mythology. I am very very very concerned about the workload in Mythology ever since I got my books - many story AND history books included, plus a honkin' huge 954-page Le Morte Darthur - in middle english. But I know the teacher is much loved, so we'll see how it goes. Today is the first day of that class.

Spanish didn't go really well last week - I like the teacher, and I am one of only five students who were able to get the required, out of print text book. I guess everyone else is getting a photo-copy - we'll see how THAT goes. But, most of the students appear to speak Spanish as a first language. Also, not enough seats in the class, and I come from Mythology on the other side of campus so I am currently standing against the wall with ten other students. Also, there is no air conditioning. What is up with the no air conditioning in the brand new business building??? So we will see how that class goes. This is another much loved teacher, so I hope it works out.

Work is giving me tremendous headaches today. My server connection is sucking the life out of me, and the slowness is causing some minor mistakes which make me INSANE. I leave an hour early so I can get a parking space for the shuttle to school. I HATE the parking situation the first couple weeks of school. The only thing saving me from a stroke is knowing it only lasts about 2 weeks. Still, with Slow-Server/Mythology/Spanish/Parking all together today, I am a little bit stressed.

The good news: Buffy made Varsity for water polo the second year in a row. And she's a Sophomore.
:-D

Otherwise known as the most disgusting show on television.

I've been following the feed recaps, but the minute the whole Jen/Dick blowup started I got the actual feeds and have been watching them a lot this week even though they make me want to barf. Dick and Eric are the most disgusting, vile creatures I have ever seen on TV before - more vile than Boogie.

And CBS? Is not much better. That whole Jen/Dick fight they showed tonight - totally out of order and totally LEAVING OUT stuff, like the real reason Jen got mad and started eating. Like how she was totally bawling and broke down by Dick, finally. Like how Dick is a piece of shit and Eric is a follow-alonger, and Danielle is a manipulative spoiled brat and Amber is just too incredibly stupid to hate much. Zach is actually a much better person than they show on TV, Jameka is Jameka, and I wish Jess would speak up more about what's going on - because there's only so long you can let this abusive shit go on before you are implicated by not standing up against it.

I give Jen a lot of credit. I never could have stood up against Dick for so long without punching him. She did her best and then she just couldn't do any more - but CBS didn't tell the truth. And they're keeping their precious "America's Player" under wraps because they don't want America to know he just as dispicable as Dick. The entire house treated Jen like a dog this week and she never did anything. This house has to be a psychologist's dream - but that doesn't make it right.

I hope Jessica gets out one of these pieces of crap next week. Only I shudder at the thought of Dustin and Jen locked in the sequester house with Dick.

Shakespeare

First class of the semester today, Shakespeare. Not one I'm looking forward to, but the professor picked a lot of good plays. We're starting off with the Taming of the Shrew, one of my favorites. We still have to do Henry IV and Hamlet though, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. I liked the professor, she's semi-young... which I guess means about my age or maybe 5 years younger, haha. A little scatterbrained though, kind of jumped from one thing to another as her brain kept going. I realize now that I've had some very structured professors up until now, so this was a big change for me.

Today she asked some of us why we waited so long to get this class out of the way, since the class is 99% seniors. I answered, completely innocently and honestly, that it was the first time it fit into my schedule and I heard she was a really good professor.

"DING DING DING! She's the first to get an A in class!"

I swear I wasn't trying to kiss up. Scott won't believe me, but I really just said what I was thinking, and accidently became teacher's pet, AGAIN, on the first day.

Heh.

I don't care, I'll take that A.

***
Oh, also, there were SOOOOO many of my friends from last year in class, I was so happy to see them, and they were happy to see me too. We were all so excited together! Even the soccer boy that I had to stalk last semester in order to find my buddy the other soccer player. Of course, he doesn't know I was stalking him last year... heee... But this year I don't have to stalk him outside of class, so we'll just be friends. Anyway, it was a happy morning seeing all my friends, and some of them are going to be in my other classes too. It will be a good semester!

Tomorrow: Stupid Spanish class.

So yes, I am now the mother of a 17 year old boy and a girl who is 15 and a half. Where did all the time go? As much as I miss them being little kids, there are times that I cannot wait for them to be adults and out of the house. I look forward to having grandkids, that's for sure (in ten years or so).
:-D

Kahlua now comes in nifty French Vanilla flavor, and you see any typos in this post, you'll know why.

I know I need to tell you all about our cruise, but first I had to get over a little post-cruise depression (realizing I had to cook my own food, etc.). For now, just know that:
1. we had a fabulous time
2. I absolutely HATED the zip lines and will never ever ever ever EVER do them again
3. the kids LOVED them
4. I do not like riding horses through extremely poor Mexican towns where everyone sits on their porches watching the group of fat rich Americans ride through
5. I did love the beach in Mazatlan, and Buffy went parasailing and got her hair braided
6. swimming with dolphins was awesome, and snuba diving was INCREDIBLE.
7. I am glad I have another cruise booked in January with Scott.
8. Oh! also! we saw flying fish!

School starts Thursday and I was kind of dreading it because I've kind of enjoyed my summer of being a complete deadbeat. But I had to go to school to pick up my books today and I got Super Excited again. Now I cannot wait to go back. Learning! Smart people! Friends! Yayy!

French Vanilla Kahlua... YUM!

Spike turns...

17 years old today!

I'm back, I'm just taking time to adjust to reality again. I had heard there is a depression after a cruise, but I didn't really believe it. It's just SO nice and relaxing and fun and easy on a cruise, then you're kind of jolted back to life...
No more waves rocking you to sleep
No more meals waiting three times a day, right on schedule
I had to go grocery shopping yesterday
I have to MAKE MY OWN FOOD???

Blah.

We did have fun though. Except the zip lines, I did not like the zip lines at all, I will never do zip lines again, I HATED THE ZIP LINES.

Mexico I loved though.

I'll talk more about it later. Howdy!

In 12 hours I'll be on a plane to LA. The time is finally here. We're happy, excited, and packed.

I hope everyone stays safe and has a good week, and I mean that.

Adios!

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