Category: Uncategorized

Well, I did some calculations. Based on my understanding of tax laws and my current fixed expenses I need to find a job that pays not less then $12.65/hr. The last job I got started me at $13/hr, and I tried in the nearly three years I was there not to let my expenses rise above that level. I guess I succeeded.

So, if you work for a company in the Tempe/Phoenix, AZ area that’s hiring at or above that pay level in an entry-level position in any field, or a more advanced on in any technical-support capacity, please let me know. I learn quickly, and I have over five years experience working in call centers. I have worked in customer service, technical support, and lower management for a variety of vendors, including a major computer manufacturer, a line of WindowsCE handhelds, a nationwide copycenter, and multiple proprietary softwares. I am comfortable in any Windows or Macintosh environment, and have some experience with Unix and Linux.

Oh, and if I can’t find a technical job I’ll do sales, since my friends have been telling me for years I should be in sales.

Again, if you are hiring or know someone who is, email me at teel@modernevil.com. I live in Tempe, AZ and would prefer to work as near to Tempe as possible, but could conceivably work anywhere in Greater Metropolitan Phoenix. Thank you.

I just got downsized. Fuck.

I’ve been back for about a week now. I think I got my sleep schedule screwed up enough that now that I’m back into the exhausting daily schedule of getting up at 5 to work until I get home at 3:30, then getting ready and leaving for class by about 4:15 and working on whatever the exhausting project of the day is until I get home around 7:45 when I begin work on homework (usually for the opposite class, since it’s due the next day) until around midnight or whenever I get too tired to drag a pencil (or other drawing implement) across a page and I go to bed to lie awake for about an hour before I can finally get some rest before I repeat the whole thing the next day. So when I woke up this morning around the time I was supposed to be out the door for work feeling like somone who’s been woken in the middle of the night for some unexpected emergency, I wasn’t too concerned. By rushing through breakfast and not packaging lunch and riding in faster than normal I managed to only be 9 minutes late. My brain assures me that now that the “late for work” emergency is over, I ought to go back to sleep until a more reasonable number of hours have passed. Last night for some reason I took an extra 20 minutes past my exhaustion point at midnight to do a Photoshop Ping Pong volley before laying down to not fall asleep for a while longer. Yesterday at lunch I took about a 40 minute nap. I’ll try to do the same today, though with having to go buy my lunch taking twice as long as just eating a lunch I already have, I may only get an 1/2 hour. Considering I’m considering napping while I take phone calls this morning, even a few minutes of rest would be appreciated.

It’s cold outside. Weather.com says it’s 58 degrees now, but that it was around 54 degrees when I rode in. Since I’m still wearing short-sleeved shirts, this was not particularly pleasant. Wasn’t it like, 105 degrees when I got home just a week ago? They indicated the high is expected to be 77 degrees today. The lows for the next two weeks stay around 59-60 degrees. This just isn’t right. I realize that in other parts of the country, and in many other countries, 60 degrees is very comfortable compared to the harsh winters experienced, but I tell you what: I just about need to wearing a coat for the bikeride into work at these temperatures. Of course, with highs next week in the high 80’s to low 90’s, I couldn’t wear said coat home. Stupid weather. I’ll see what I can do with Long-Sleeved shirts made of heavier materials. I should probably find my hat, too.

Two weeks. 20 posts in two weeks. I was sortof waiting until my last post dropped off the Most Recently Updated list on the front page before I started posting again. Two weeks though… With the highest site traffic ever. During the month of September, more people visited Modern Evil and its blogs than in any month in the history of Modern Evil, including the summer of 2000 when Iain’s comic featured oversized breasts for a while. Even in the last two weeks when I haven’t posted word one on this site, around 40% of the traffic is still on this blog alone. I guess I’m finally being listed on Google, my rockin’ domain attracting unsuspecting visitors. Still, I wish there were more independant content being added. It turns out that very few people actually look at the Photoshop Ping Pong volleys. Maybe I should advertise them more prominently on the site.

A little more on school: Due to my vacation, I am a couple of assignments behind in my Drawing class. This weekend I have to do three assignments for that class, each of which was designed to take not less than 3 hours, plus a 2D Design project that will likely take around 3-5 hours. Plus a ridiculous amount of laundry, and if there’s time I’ve got to mow my lawns soon. In the front, some of the grass comes up to the middle of my chest. Oh yeah, and sleep. I was hoping to get some extra sleep this weekend.

… I keep trying to think of what I wanted to write about, but I just keep getting back this or that about needing sleep. I think I’m going to go lay my head down for a while. I’ve been doing this long enough; I know I should be able to take these calls in my sleep. Anything is better than nothing, just like in love.

So Friday morning around 3:30 or so Angela and I are leaving for the airport. A couple of hours later our flight leaves, but I’d like to have plenty of time to be harrassed by security before we’re allowed to get on the plane. Then we fly 2.5 hours East to Dallas, wait an hour, and fly nearly 9 hours West to Hawaii. Because … somehow that’s cheaper for American Airlines… I guess. We will be getting back into town Wednesday morning via a more direct flight that stops in LA (for 2.5hrs) instead of Dallas. In the meantime, I am not sure what the status of my internet access will be, and am likely not to post at all. In the event that there is internet access in our hotel (it is a six star hotel (I didn’t even know there WERE six star hotels!)), I will be sure to post some sort of updates when I get a chance (such as right before I pass out at night).

Between Angela and I we don’t have a whole lot of money to spend on the trip, so we may not end up doing very many of the exciting things to do in Maui, but we shall certainly do our best. I may end up spending every last spare dollar I have, even though it will mean being tight-budgeted for a couple extra months, if it means the difference between sitting around in our pre-paid hotel room and going out and having a good time. Luckily I’ve got an extra-large bonus coming on the paycheck that will be direct-deposited into my checking account Friday morning at 00:00:01, which will be paying for things like the exciting extra $25/day we have to pay for the rental car (on top of the $21/day for the rental itself & the $45 in fees and taxes) because I’m not 25 yet. Legally, Angela isn’t allowed to drive the car at all, though I doubt I will ever get behind the wheel.

We’ll see how it goes. Everything seems to be coming together okay. We’ll even have confirmed room reservations sometime today. (Hooray Orbitz, for being so on the ball with that, and only taking until the very last minute to reserve the room!) I think we’ll have appropriate bags to handle enough clothes &ct for the both of us. I think I’m going to have to bring all 3 pair of my shoes (Tennis, Dress, and Hiking Boot) for various activities we may be involved in, and that’s not small. My hope is to check everything but my backpack, which should just contain my computer, some DVDs, my towel, and a small paper journal. That way if security needs to look at everything I’m carrying it’ll be no problem. Unfortunately, I may also end up needing to carry my camera case, if it doesn’t fit in something I’m checking, which would more than double the number of items to be pored over by security goons. We’ll see how much clothes I need to pack, and how big my bag(s) for checking are.

Well, you won’t see. I will. Angela may. You won’t. But I may write about it later. Oh, and I think Edison will be journeying with us, so he may have something to say about everything himself. I’ve just noticed that he appears to be playing Photoshop Ping Pong from home. I’ll talk to him about that when I get home.

I just want to say this: I don’t live in the desert because I want 71 degree air blowing over me 9 hours a day in the summer and 45 degee air blowing over me 9 hours a day in the winter.

I guess someone’s too warm in the next building over, so I’m freezing here. I remember once, long ago, when tech support was alone in the third building, furthest from everyone else and able to control the light levels and thermostats. We kept most of the migraine-inducing lights off, and the temperature around 82 degrees, and we liked it that way. It would be that way where we are now, except that instead of majority ruling, a single voice of dissidence is enough to overrule any decision or suggestion. I think that’s a big part of the problem with the way most things are run these days; find the person who would be most offended or upset by the smallest possible change and use their reactions to create guidelines for everyone else.

If I were alone in thinking it was too cold and too bright, I would obviously be that one person I’m saying shouldn’t be able to shift guidleines by whining a little. I’m not the only one. Several times a day, every day, everyone in tech support, and often people simply walking near tech support, agree that it is too cold and too bright here. When I go outside to warm up, I am not alone, and I hear people mutterring complaints about the cold and rubbing their flesh as you normally only see in the deep of winter here. But someone thinks it’s too warm, so we all have to suffer.