I&#039m so annoyed. Today has just gotten suckier and suckier. All I want is a ton of chocolate and a long nap. I hate this rotten mood stuff.

So today started with a bang, literally. I woke up with the alarm clock which went off at the same time as a huge thunderclap. I nearly jumped out of my skin. It was bad enough that I had woken up three times already due to stupid dreams, but then to wake up to a cacaphonous thunderstorm and a blaring alarm made my nerves fray that much more. After listening to the storm rage on a bit longer, I finally dragged myself out of bed and ran through the morning routine of brushing my teeth, combing my hair, and getting dressed. I grabbed my usual array of books for German and French class and then picked up my humongous Culinaria France book because Brad wanted to see the long list of specialized positions for chefs that fancy restaurants have. The book weighs a ton, and just picking it up, I knew that it was going to cause me additional pain.

Out on the street, I had to walk half a block just to cross the street so I could walk the half a block back to my van on the other side. The puddles just got bigger from there. The parking lot north of the library was so flooded, I drove through a foot of water for about fifty feet only to drive through more of it before finding a non-flooded place to park. I had decided to wear my Sketcher boots because of the rain, but I was regretting that decision already because the right one rubs on the back of my ankle, slowly wearing the skin away all day long until now there&#039s a distinct lack of skin there in a red circle. At least it didn&#039t bleed…much.

Work at the library went as usual which was fine by me even if my stomach was kind of upset for the last half hour I was there. I left around ten to go to my German class where I had to take a test. I&#039m sure that I did fine on it, but I worry just the same. I sometimes think that I&#039d be a bad student if I dind&#039t worry just a little about tests. From there, it was off to the tutoring center where Brad gushed over the French foods book. My first student didn&#039t show up, my second student showed up a half hour late, and I then left to go to the bank to get cash so I could eat something for lunch, not having eaten thus far.

Nope. No cash for Erin. I had forgotten that I wrote the last rent check on my TH account, not my LGT account, so when I bought my new chair with my TH account, I had overdrawn, sort of. The teller said that technically it hadn&#039t gone through yet but that it would tomorrow, so I had better get about fifty bucks in there or I was going to be fined that dreaded $30 for an overdraft. Well, fuck. I would have written her a check from my LGT account right then, but that checkbook was at home, not in my backpack. <Grumble grumble> So that meant I was stuck with the $2 in my pocket for lunch. And since I had taken so long at the bank, I was running out of time to get lunch and then drive to SMWC to teach. I decided to do something healthy and say, &#034Screw lunch; I&#039ll just get a soda to drink on the way over and eat when I get home.&#034 Only the soda machine gave me Cherry Coke instead of the Mello Yello whose button I was ramming my finger into. I know I was pushing Mello Yello &#039cause I was still holding it down when the machine spit the foul dark cola out. Not wanting to waste another dollar on that machine, I took the soda and drove to SMWC in the piss-pouring rain.

After making a few photocopies for the class on the psychotic copy machine over there, I started the lesson with: &#034I&#039m about as personable as a rabid warthog with a mongoose shoved up its ass, so class is going to be pretty short today.&#034 I briefly explained to them that whatever the weather is like outside, that&#039s exactly how my mood is. One of my students then asked me if I cause the weather, and I admitted that I hoped not, then rambled on about the Absolute Monarchy in France under Louis XIV before wrapping class up about twenty-five minutes early. I was drinking that cherry abomination just for the sugar as I drove back to the apartment so I could both change my shoes and pick up my other checkbook. I checked my e-mail to make sure Macheak hadn&#039t sent anything about canceling tonight&#039s presentation session, then I tossed a folder and some pens into my blue satchel from France and stalked out with my umbrella to walk to campus.

I encountered the psychotically large puddles again, this time on Sixth Street where cars were mercilessly splashing everything in sight, including me as I tried to cross from one corner to the next. I don&#039t think that my pant cuffs have dried since I first set foot outside at half past seven this morning. They&#039re still wet. I walked to the tutoring center to find out that both of my 3:30 appointments had canceled. So I asked Brad if I could run to the bank to resolve this overdrawn issue, and he told me to walk, not run. It wasn&#039t raining then, but who cared? I was still bleak and miserable, chilled through to the bone from irritation after inconvenience after issues. I deposited some money, turned right around and went back to the tutoring center, hung around for about a half hour, then called Macheak to see if he was around so we could get started on the presentation stuff early.

At least Macheak seemed to be in a good mood despite his obvious cold (empty Kleenex packages, cough drop wrappers, and a bottle of generic DayQuil). That was warming. Things were looking up as we went over the materials we needed until I saw lightning through the window over his shoulder, and the thunder came too soon after. Raining again, and this time me without my van. <Grumble grumble> Macheak told me he&#039d drive me home, and he did about fifteen minutes ago whereupon I got here and plopped down to bemoan my irritating day to the four or five of you who come here every once in a while. It&#039s really too bad that I can&#039t just fritter the night away mindlessly playing video games or napping to get rid of this day-long headache. I have homework, papers to write and research to do. And now I have the hiccups. !@#$%^&* I&#039m going to go make some hot chocolate. Too bad I don&#039t have any vodka to spike it with.

Posted: October 18, 2004 at (hic) 6:35 pm.