A Wonderfully Long Weekend and a Beautiful New Computer

I took Wednesday and Thursday of last week off, and then Friday was a holiday. So I had a wonderful five days off work. Tueday evening my Mom came down and we went to Barney's for dinner. Yummy, obviously. Wednesday we went to the California Academy of Sciences, which was awesome. They have the largest fully digital planetarium in the country, a really cool rainforest habitat, the Steinhart Aquarium, and the living roof. We saw some really amazing things like the albino alligator, the Chinese Giant Salamander (which was about three feet long - if not longer), penguins, and much more. We spent basically all day there and had a great time. We then came back to Berkeley and went to Cancun for dinner, which was excellent.

Thursday I went to Angel Island with Angie. We hiked to the top of Mount Livermore, which only has an elevation of about 782 feet, but an unparalleled view of the bay and the Golden Gate Bridge. We then walked around the island on the Sunset Trail. The weather was superb. We then came back to Berkeley and made pesto - well, Angie made it. It was delicious! It was much easier than I thought to be gourmet.

Friday I went home to Stockton and hung out with Mom, Dad, Peter, and Angela. Then I went with Peter to take Angela to the doctor. The doctor gave her a couple of shots, she was not a happy camper. I felt so bad for her. She started screaming and crying. Peter told her not to be such a chicken. Then she bit him, and he said "OW!" I told him not to be such a chicken. Hahaha.

While we were leaving the doctor's office my roommate called. Someone had broken into our apartment, stolen our laptops, phone chargers, etc... More on this later.

Saturday I went to Great America with Peter, Melanie, Johnnie and Coonie (Melanie's godbrothers). I had a great time. Went on the Vortex, Invertigo, Demon, White Water Rapids, etc. Exhilirating. I also won Angela a huge stuffed whale (black with little sparklies on it). I was so proud of myself. I won it playing the ring toss right before we left. It didn't even fit in the trunk. I mean, it was huge.

Sunday I went to Best Buy with my Mom and bought a new laptop. It's very cool. And pretty. And it wasn't very expensive. Sadly, I have lost all of my pictures and everything else that was on my other laptop. Which was worth much more to me than the laptop itself. When I returned to Berkeley later in the day, I found that they had also taken my iPod docking station and my broadband internet card. So I went and bought a new phone charger and got a new broadband card. Stupid bastards. Ended up spending about $800 yesterday. Oh well. I really like my computer. I wanted a new one anyone, just didn't feel like it was an acceptable expense. But it quickly became acceptable when I no longer had a reliable, fully functional computer.

Today was back to work. The day actually didn't seem to long. Still would be nice to be able to sleep in. I surprised myself by waking up before six today (which is on time to get to work) even though I had forgotten to set my alarm clock. Sigh... Pays off that I can no longer sleep in. Haha.

The Dentist...

I went to the dentist today for the first time in... several years. Of course I have all of the normal excuses - no insurance, no time, no desire... But I finally had to go. Check up and a cleaning. Turns out I need to get a couple of fillings repaired (awesome!), which will cost $150. Geez-a-loo. But, it could be worse. I also made an appointment with an oral surgeon to get my wisdom teeth removed. The dentist today, Dr. Boeck, said... Yep, those definitely need to come out. There's just no room for them in your mouth. So... next month will be fun. hahaha.

Other than that... Things at work are a bit strange. My supervisor was changed. I'm not sure why. It doesn't make a lot of sense. Seems like half of the department staff are my unofficial supervisors. I also am feeling more comfortable speaking up to Judey about work matters - pointing out where her ideas may need revisions, etc. Being off probation is doing a lot for me. Although, after the 21st I may get bumped back down to 80%. My full time status was only temporary. It sounds like it will be extended, but I'm not sure.

Found out today that my walk to work is actually closer to two miles. Meaning I walk about four miles a day. Pretty impressive, if I do say so myself. I actually walked about six miles today - because I walked to the dentist. My feet are a teensy bit sore, but the exercise was worth it. Plus, I passed Cheeseboard on the way home and got a slice of pizza for a late lunch. Yummy! I had forgotten how awesome Cheeseboard is. And inexpensive too. Also, the weather was pretty wonderful. So that was nice.

Anywho... I think I may go see Watchmen. Although, I may wait until next week. Maybe I can go see it after my dental appointment on Tuesday... mmm... A sort of reward for taking care of my dental needs - well other than the fact that my teeth won't rot and fall out. :)