Happy Labour Day long weekend!

I left work at 15:00 on Friday. I worked a ton of hours this week that it made sense to leave early and start enjoying the long Labour Day weekend.

I'm all packed for my little staycation. I hope to get around to getting my hair cut and indulge in some good eats this weekend.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Sadness at night

I have moments of sadness. They typically happen in bed at night.

Last night was rough. I was sad about how my ex-guy had let me go. We shared so much and everything just ended.

Poof. Just like that.

It's unfortunate that I am a sensitive, feely person. It takes me a while to sort my emotions and get over this hump. I'm not on a strict healing schedule when I need to be happy now and in a relationship. I have been good on the most part. Being busy helps. Doing what I enjoy has been therapeutic.

At night, I'm simply lying in bed. Thinking. Memories rush in. I feel sad when they are about my ex-guy.

I still haven't been able to fully cry. My eyes get teary, but they don't fall down my face. I'm not as sad as I have been in the past when he has previously broken up with me.

I know that I deserve better. I deserve to be with a good guy who loves me and wants me.

I am hopeful. I just wish that these sad moments would fade, but that will take some more time.

A break from incompetence is nearly here

My incompetent colleague is going on vacation. Today is her last day at work before I get relief from her for over a week.

She proved to me this week that she does not know how to do her job efficiently. She spent more time than necessary getting a software release out the door, making rookie mistakes, and not planning her tasks properly. She has been doing this work for over half a year.

My manager stays at work late. She was with him the whole time. He shot me an e-mail, indicating that she was taking more time than she should. I agreed and pointed out that she can't prioritize her work on top of not being efficient.

She's good at blaming other things or people. She does not take responsibility for her own actions. It's painful dealing with her.

Although her attendance has improved slightly within the last few days, she sent an e-mail yesterday that she will be at work at 7:30 am today and leaving at 3:30 pm. She cannot get to work by 10:00 am on a good day. She lives a lot closer to the office than I do. I dream of getting to work in twenty minutes.

We'll see what happens later on today. I am looking forward to a break from her.

It's time for a haircut during the long weekend

I get my hair cut twice a year. I should have got my hair cut in early July. I didn't.

Why? I got a shorter-than-normal haircut back in late December. Right now, it's at the stage where I need to get it cut, which is the length that it typically is in early July. I happen to be nearly two months late.

It's nice to be able to tie it back. When I get it cut, I won't be able to get it all in a ponytail.

I'm likely going to get it cut on the weekend. It's a long weekend, which I am looking so forward to.

My car turns heads and starts conversations, even with the windows up

My car is a conversation starter. Even when I'm stopped at a traffic light, the flame blue colour turns heads.

I was driving home from work on Monday night. I was stopped at a light. A Jeep was next to me. The guy had three car lengths ahead of him.

I looked over. He was looking at my car. Our eyes met. I had my windows up, but we could clearly read each other's lips.

"Do you love my car?" I asked him.
"Yes, the colour is beautiful," he said.
"I love it, too," I said.

He had a huge smile on his face. I gave him a thumbs up. The light turned green and we drove straight ahead before he turned right at the next light.

It's interesting how humans interact. It's also fascinating how much guys admire a nice car.

Good weekend and making friends in the dating scene

This weekend flew by. I had a great time catching up with a couple of friends who are here on vacation. I feel well-rested.

The Labour Day long weekend is coming up. I am spending most of it in my ex-guy's hometown. I was there a few weekends ago and I felt good.

Although I still have moments of sadness when I think of him and our relationship being over, I am good. I decided to put out an ad on Plenty of Fish. I have responses. I simply need to sit down and sift through them. So far, folks are nice, wanting to have coffee and chat. I'm good with that.

Baby steps into building a friendship and seeing where it'll take me. It feels like a major step, but it's a positive one for me.

Striking up a conversation over blue cars

Saturday was a great day chatting with two friends whom I haven't seen for a bit. I have known each of them since grades 8 and 9. I also enjoyed chatting with a fellow shopper.

I had parked in front of Best Buy and went in to browse. There was a grocery store across the parking lot. Instead of driving over there after I was done at Best Buy, I left my car where it was and walked over.

When I came back, both the person who had parked next to me and I were thinking of getting into our cars. We were both parked such that the driver side required one of us waiting for the other to get in. I broke the silence.

"Did you want to go in first?" I said, as I needed to put my groceries in the trunk.
"Sure. Is that your car?" he asked me.
"Yes," I replied, putting my groceries into my trunk.
"I love the colour," he said, admiring the flame blue.
"I love your car's colour, too," I said, as his was a darker blue.
"I really love the colour. It's nice," he said.
"Thanks! I love blue and it looks like you do, too," I replied, noticing his baby blue t-shirt he had on.
"It's my favourite colour, too," he said, with a huge smile on his face.

I wished him a good day. He said goodbye. It's nice that perfect strangers have something in common and great taste in car colours.

Gourmet cookies make people happy

Friday was my student's last day at work. On Thursday, I got her a box of gourmet cookies as a thank-you gift.

She told me the most endearing story on Friday. She brought the cookies home on Thursday and asked her dad to have one after dinner. They both indulged in a cookie each. He has a sweet tooth and loved it.

They both went out after dinner, separately, to different commitments. Her mom arrived home later.

When my student came home, she let her mom know that I had bought cookies for her. Her mom said that she ate four cookies -- one of each flavour. Her mom doesn't have a sweet tooth, but found the cookies scrumptious. It speaks volumes.

I would probably get along with her mom. She loved the lemon delight ones the best. It's my favourite flavour.

I buy these cookies for special occasions and people. I'm glad that I made her day and her family's.

Nut joke

My manager's wife roasted a variety of cashews, walnuts, almonds, and more. On Thursday, he brought a jar in to share with the team.

When we got to our desks after our team meeting, he put a bunch of mixed nuts on a napkin. My colleague and I were talking about something work-related. When we were done, I saw him pointing at the nuts on his napkin.

"Are you counting your nuts?" I asked him.

My colleague and I laughed. When I think about what I had said, it makes me smile. It's nice to have a good laugh at the expense of my manager.

Follow-up post to frosted acrylic paddles

I was asked to post some photos of the frosted acrylic paddles that I had described in my last post. They are on Etsy and look cool to me.

Courtesy: ClearImpactToys

I like that they are lightweight and likely pack a decent sting. There are also acrylic frat paddles, which interest me, too.

Courtesy: ClearImpactToys

There is a sale going on. I may cave and get one.

Spanking arousal caused by looking at frosted acrylic paddles

I do miss being spanked.

I haven't had a chance to explore spanking myself as of late. I have been both tired and not in the mood. However, just thinking about it today made me aroused.

What sparked my interest again was seeing a set of frosted spanking paddles. They were on sale and are acrylic. They seem to be fun and effective on a bad girl's backside, like mine.

It's fun fantasizing.

Interviewing skills and conversation

Last Thursday, my manager and I had an interview with a prospective intern. He is from my alma mater, which is a first.

He was polite and knowledgeable. My manager conducted the first half of the interview, as he had to leave to attend a meeting. I took over after that.

I like honing my interviewing skills. I don't like firing question after question, or going into a huge soliloquy. I'd rather have a conversation, which made it more comfortable for both of us.

When I asked if he had any questions towards the end of our time together, he truly opened up. I like when folks are comfortable with me, and vice-versa.

His writing and editing skills are superb. He'll do just fine.

He accepted the offer. I look forward to working with him soon.

Declutting and choosing what goes in my new car

Cleaning out my old car and figuring out what goes into my new car has been eye-opening. It has resurrected my decluttering project.

I currently have a lone umbrella in my car. That's pretty good, considering that I had seven.

I went through my USB cable situation. I have reduced the number from double digits (I lost count after ten) down to three. One is for my phone, which uses USB C. One is for guests, and the cable has both micro USB and lightning. The last one is for my iPod. Yes, I'm reintroducing music on my iPod in my car through an auxiliary cable, as this device has every song that I own and is still cool in my books.

My glove compartment has been significantly cleaned out. My car manuals, insurance, and ownership are staples. My sunglasses and glasses will be there soon. I also have bolts for my snow tires. Finally, I have a small battery jumper and a first aid kit for emergencies.

What did I get rid of? A winter hat and mittens. A ton of plastic straws and napkins. Way too many pens.

The storage area between the two front seats will have a small flashlight, hand sanitizer, plastic utensils (fork, knife, and spoon), and the aforementioned USB cables.

I got rid of a huge flashlight that does not work, oral sex gel (I had two tubes and don't have anyone to practice on these days), and a ton of car chargers with USB ports. I don't know why I had five!

I'm making good progress. I have the trunk to get through. I will probably have reusable bags, a snow brush, and my floor mats that came with the car. I'll introduce winter floor mats when it gets cooler.

It feels good to clean house and start fresh.

Changing how to secure my Sirius XM satellite radio receiver in my new car

I have a Sirius XM satellite radio receiver. In my old car, I had to get a car vent clamp to secure it. To make a long story short, I was introduced to Sirius XM radio with my first Prius. It was integrated in the car.

When I switched from my second Prius over to my Scion iM, there was no satellite integration in the latter. I have the same issue with my new car.

Perhaps it's a blessing in disguise. I can't use my vent clamp for the vents smack in the middle of the dashboard. My navigation screen has buttons that are compact. This radio isn't compact at all when you look at the cable connections. 

I can't put my radio on the far left and right vents of my car, either. I decided to use another Scosche Magic Mount holder for this radio, which works nicely. I already have one for my phone that I have been using for years. The two magnetic mounts are within the same area, with my phone mount a bit lower than the satellite radio's mount.

It's nice when I change things around. My satellite receiver doesn't look as bulky using the magnet and the magnetic mount. Yay!

I am loving my new car. It's nice to have a fun distraction.

New car!

I am a proud owner of a new Corolla hatchback! I love it.

Naturally, there were a few odd hiccups to get it on Friday. First, I had to call my insurance to get confirmation that I have this new car insured. The insurance company failed to send it to the dealership.

Second, the vehicle registration wasn't ready in time for my appointment. I went in to take care of my paperwork and settle the bill. I then came back four hours later to get the registration and my car.

Third, while my sales person installed my licence plates on the new car, the hole were larger than the bolts. Odd! He got a couple of mechanics to looking into the issue. Both hadn't seen it before!

Fourth, my last name was spelled incorrectly on a couple of forms. Thank goodness I caught them. We had to get them corrected, reprinted, and resigned.

After all of that, I drove my car around for an hour, stopping at a couple of places before heading home. I love how quiet it is. It's like driving my Prius, but a lot more fun. I am also loving the push-button technology. My previous car was the old key method.

I'll be testing it out all weekend. Yay!

Car accessories and too many umbrellas

My car is pretty close to being empty. I simply have car manuals in the glove compartment.

I am excited to get my new car several hours from now. My first stop after getting my car is likely Walmart. I need to get some blind spot mirrors and some adhesive for my phone mount. Yep, I need to accessorize!

Remember my previous post about finding four umbrellas in my car's trunk? The situation was actually worse. In the hidden trunk storage where the spare tire is, I had three smaller umbrellas there. I had a grand total of seven umbrellas in my car.

I could have used a different on every single day. Insane!

Evening outing, with good food, company, and a hand massage

Tonight was a clear, summer evening. I went out to a little function that had little desserts, pasta, meatballs, Indian curry and naan, and more. It was nice.

I brought a colleague with me, who is also a friend. She is the little sister that I never had. She had a good time. I did, too.

I got a hand massage at this function. Considering that I type a ton at work and right now, it felt so good afterwards.

Hand massages are good. I need to have more of them.

Update on cleaning out my car

I am nearly done removing my stuff from my car. I simply have a few items in my trunk. I will be ready when I return my car on Friday and get my new one.

I have been gradually removing my items each day, rather than doing it all in one shot. I have this magnetic mount (stand) for my phone. It has a 3M sticky backing. I have one replacement backing left. I am pleased that I don't need to buy some more.

I also figured out that you can stick a magnet inside your PopSocket and then stick it on the magnetic mount. Better late than not knowing!

For the longest time, I didn't think that I needed a PopSocket. I admit that it's easier to take photos with one.

Pillows of cinnamon sugar are heavenly

On Monday, I went out for dinner after work. I had a Groupon that was going to expire in a couple of days.

I have been to this restaurant a number of times. I wanted the open-faced roast beef dinner. However, I was told that they were running out of roast beef. I got a mix of turkey and roast beef. It was different! It was still yummy.

This place has these pillows of fried dough, filled with cinnamon sugar. They are delicious. I'm glad that I had them for dessert.

I will be dreaming of them all night.

Cleaning out my car and getting rid of clutter

I am in the process of moving stuff out of my car. I hand it over on Friday and pick up my new car.

It's incredible just how much stuff I have amassed in 3.5 years. I have a ton of cell phone USB cables. I only need a USB C cable. I have pretty much everything under the sun in my glove compartment.

I have also noticed that I have four umbrellas. Why do I need so many?

Anyway, I'm into minimalistic mode. With my new car, I will work on not using my car to store so much stuff.