I went to some health center on Sheridan and peed in a cup. It was definitely one of the weirder experiences of my life. A dude called my name from the waiting room and took me into a little closet of a room with a sink, desk, and separate (thank god) bathroom. He told me to take off my coat and wash my hands...I don't know for sure why I had to wash my hands before I went...but I did. I wasn't sure at first if he was going to make me pee in front of him or not, but I closed the door and he didn't object. It took me awhile to even get going...I had to pee cause I drank water before hand to be sure, but knowing that there was some dude just a few feet away from me creeped me out and gave me performance anxiety. But I finally did it...and had to remind myself not to flush the toilet because that, for whatever reason, would invalidate my test.
I set my little pee filled cup on the desk next to him and went to wash my hands, again. I came back and he was sitting there, looking around, rolling his eyes and not really doing anything except not looking at me. I was confused. Then he looked down and said "sign here for a negative result". I didn't realize they did it right there, so quick, tada you passed. Sweet. That guy must hate his job.
I talked to a woman from Human Resources yesterday and she was like, you need your social security and a copy of your degree. Uhhhh, I have no idea where my social security card is so I have to go get a new one on Monday and bring her the proof that says I'm a real live person. After three or four phone calls to my family back home, I found my degree and am having it shipped here in hopes that it will arrive by Tuesday when I have 45 minutes worth of paperwork to do. Good thing I already have a passport.
What is this? The Inquisition?! Is that what its like when you get a real job? I mean, I guess I can see cause I am working with kids and I will be representing the company so they want to be sure that I'm not a child molester or something, but holy hell.
Oh YEAH AND TONIGHT YOU'RE GONNA SEE SOME BREAKIN!
Battle @ Buffalo
7ish oclock
910 Main Street
5 bucks
Come one, come all
support the local hip hop community
word
Lauren's Journal
My Podcast Link
01/31/2009 12:17 #47582
The Price of a Ticket01/28/2009 10:22 #47541
Jobby JobSo I just got a call from Heritage Centers saying that I am hired! As long as I pass the drug test...which shouldn't be I problem...i hope. This is good cause last night I discovered that I won't be getting any money from taxes this year and then felly broke her glasses and Ralphie just had to go to the vet for some three hundred dollar blood work and medicine. sigh.
can i just tell you how much of a worry warted first time mom I am? I was doing and all but then Ralphie started popping blood, sleeping all day and got this rash thing on his nose. I might have cried a little, telling him that we would take him to the doctor and he would be all better. yeah, thats me. haha. course, being the poor mom that I am, I opted for only the blood tests instead of the x rays and, of course, the blood tests came back fine. 200 plus down the drain. at least he is feeling better though...he is eating a "bland diet" of boiled chicken and white rice, which I made for him. Spoiled little shit. he loves it and probably won't be happy when he starts getting his regular food mixed back in.
Anyways, everyone cross their fingers for me and my clean system. I'll keep you posted.
can i just tell you how much of a worry warted first time mom I am? I was doing and all but then Ralphie started popping blood, sleeping all day and got this rash thing on his nose. I might have cried a little, telling him that we would take him to the doctor and he would be all better. yeah, thats me. haha. course, being the poor mom that I am, I opted for only the blood tests instead of the x rays and, of course, the blood tests came back fine. 200 plus down the drain. at least he is feeling better though...he is eating a "bland diet" of boiled chicken and white rice, which I made for him. Spoiled little shit. he loves it and probably won't be happy when he starts getting his regular food mixed back in.
Anyways, everyone cross their fingers for me and my clean system. I'll keep you posted.
imk2 - 02/03/09 16:41
what kind of job is it? what will you be doing? or did you already post this in another journal and i missed it?
what kind of job is it? what will you be doing? or did you already post this in another journal and i missed it?
libertad - 01/28/09 13:34
Congrats. The vet bills are so not fun.
Congrats. The vet bills are so not fun.
leetee - 01/28/09 12:32
congrats on the job. :o)
congrats on the job. :o)
james - 01/28/09 12:29
congrats!
congrats!
mrmike - 01/28/09 11:37
Here's hoping u pee freely
Here's hoping u pee freely
01/21/2009 16:21 #47473
The Day After...In response to (e:joshua)
ug. i have to disagree with you. I will confess that she certainly was not the most inspiring reader on the planet, but the poem is beautiful and appropriate. also, elizabeth alexander is an extremely well known and highly regarded poet, theorist, academic, etc. perhaps it is a surprise to the (white) american public that there was a black poet reading at the inauguration that they had never heard of.
In general
"Say it plain, that many have died for this day. Sing the names of the dead who brought us here."
How many people were crying tears of joy? How many tears of pain for the many who died for that day, and I speak not of the men and women in the military, but the men and women who were brought to this country in the bowels of slave ships. who were not counted as entire human beings. who were beaten and murdered for protesting segregation. i am not being dramatic or sentimental but we have to ask ourselves what the tears are really about, and where have they been hiding? electing president obama, swearing him into office does almost nothing in the face of all that history. i kept asking myself yesterday, why... why is this such a "historical moment"? because the whites have opened the door and 'allowed' a black person in? i cried yesterday and i have to ask myself the same question. chances are there will be differing, but deeply connected answers.
i probably shouldn't have started this entry because i don't have the time to finish it properly. lets just say that i watched cnn for five hours and it made me tired. the complexities of this situation are too much for my brain and my heart to handle sometimes.
I forget who, but someone said that racism basically decides who gets to live and who gets to die.
"Say it plain, that many have died for this day."
ug. i have to disagree with you. I will confess that she certainly was not the most inspiring reader on the planet, but the poem is beautiful and appropriate. also, elizabeth alexander is an extremely well known and highly regarded poet, theorist, academic, etc. perhaps it is a surprise to the (white) american public that there was a black poet reading at the inauguration that they had never heard of.
In general
"Say it plain, that many have died for this day. Sing the names of the dead who brought us here."
How many people were crying tears of joy? How many tears of pain for the many who died for that day, and I speak not of the men and women in the military, but the men and women who were brought to this country in the bowels of slave ships. who were not counted as entire human beings. who were beaten and murdered for protesting segregation. i am not being dramatic or sentimental but we have to ask ourselves what the tears are really about, and where have they been hiding? electing president obama, swearing him into office does almost nothing in the face of all that history. i kept asking myself yesterday, why... why is this such a "historical moment"? because the whites have opened the door and 'allowed' a black person in? i cried yesterday and i have to ask myself the same question. chances are there will be differing, but deeply connected answers.
i probably shouldn't have started this entry because i don't have the time to finish it properly. lets just say that i watched cnn for five hours and it made me tired. the complexities of this situation are too much for my brain and my heart to handle sometimes.
I forget who, but someone said that racism basically decides who gets to live and who gets to die.
"Say it plain, that many have died for this day."
lauren - 01/22/09 19:59
sigh. no, (e:joshua), i am not saying you didn't like the poem because she was black. i am also not suggesting that most people didn't know her because she was black. im not sure i understand your reference to fear of flying either...that was written by erica jong...am i missing something? and i do understand that i live in the academic world where she is extremely well known and that often that world is disconnected from the so called real world.
oh yes, and...i hate to disagree with you :) but... i do think most things are about race. and gender and sexuality and class and all that shit. this is of course not to say that i was targeting your feelings about the poem as being about race at all...and i was also not intending to sound as though all the black folks in the audience knew who she was because they are black. nor am i saying that all white folks are evil...but thats a whole nother entry.
(e:metalpeter) i just wanted to say that i think there is something really powerful about reading poetry aloud just as it can powerful to read to yourself. it depends on the poem, the person, etc. she wasn't the best reader, but the poem speaks for itself.
sigh. no, (e:joshua), i am not saying you didn't like the poem because she was black. i am also not suggesting that most people didn't know her because she was black. im not sure i understand your reference to fear of flying either...that was written by erica jong...am i missing something? and i do understand that i live in the academic world where she is extremely well known and that often that world is disconnected from the so called real world.
oh yes, and...i hate to disagree with you :) but... i do think most things are about race. and gender and sexuality and class and all that shit. this is of course not to say that i was targeting your feelings about the poem as being about race at all...and i was also not intending to sound as though all the black folks in the audience knew who she was because they are black. nor am i saying that all white folks are evil...but thats a whole nother entry.
(e:metalpeter) i just wanted to say that i think there is something really powerful about reading poetry aloud just as it can powerful to read to yourself. it depends on the poem, the person, etc. she wasn't the best reader, but the poem speaks for itself.
joshua - 01/21/09 19:20
Rather than accusing you of it, and then responding in vicious form as a result of it, I'll just ask then respond - are you suggesting that I didn't like her poem because she's black?
Fair enough on your opinion of the poem.
(e:lauren) I'm a very widely read person - I know who Elizabeth Alexander is. I'm also probably one of the few humans with "outies" that has read Fear of Flying... lol. I wouldn't call her "extremely well known" as a poet but that is just me. I think her selection had more to do with the fact that her brother was a Senior Advisor to the Obama campaign, and his sister happened to be a college professor that had a collection selected as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2005 (well deserved honor).
I see her as well regarded *enough* but certainly not on the level of a Maya Angelou or Robert Frost when they were selected. It is no stretch to say that she's more obscure than her inaugural forebears. I'm not denigrating her by saying this - I think she was a worthy selection although I didn't like the poem. But let's not pretend that she is a mainstream name because that isn't true!
For me Maya Angelou is an example of an inaugural (black!) poet that almost everybody knows and knew at the time, including most of the evil white people.
I'd venture to guess that a vast, enormous swath of the 2m at the inauguration had no clue who she was (including many of those in Congress), and it was the most diverse crowd ever at an inauguration. It is hardly a crime that most people had and generally still have no clue who she is - most people don't know any poets whatsoever outside of whatever it is they read in high school.
Rather than accusing you of it, and then responding in vicious form as a result of it, I'll just ask then respond - are you suggesting that I didn't like her poem because she's black?
Fair enough on your opinion of the poem.
(e:lauren) I'm a very widely read person - I know who Elizabeth Alexander is. I'm also probably one of the few humans with "outies" that has read Fear of Flying... lol. I wouldn't call her "extremely well known" as a poet but that is just me. I think her selection had more to do with the fact that her brother was a Senior Advisor to the Obama campaign, and his sister happened to be a college professor that had a collection selected as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2005 (well deserved honor).
I see her as well regarded *enough* but certainly not on the level of a Maya Angelou or Robert Frost when they were selected. It is no stretch to say that she's more obscure than her inaugural forebears. I'm not denigrating her by saying this - I think she was a worthy selection although I didn't like the poem. But let's not pretend that she is a mainstream name because that isn't true!
For me Maya Angelou is an example of an inaugural (black!) poet that almost everybody knows and knew at the time, including most of the evil white people.
I'd venture to guess that a vast, enormous swath of the 2m at the inauguration had no clue who she was (including many of those in Congress), and it was the most diverse crowd ever at an inauguration. It is hardly a crime that most people had and generally still have no clue who she is - most people don't know any poets whatsoever outside of whatever it is they read in high school.
metalpeter - 01/21/09 18:38
I didn't hear the poem since I didn't see the signing in of the new president. I did read the poem here. I don't think a poem should be read at an event like that. I know there are many kinds of poems and some use rimes and sounds. But see poems are made to be read, not spoken like a song. I know some of the hipsters might attack me. But a poetry slam is bullshit. I'm not saying it isn't talent but if you speak it, it is a song or a rap. Now some might say but there is no music. But freestyle (both real and made up on the spot, and fake where the person wrote it or thought before hand and presents it as if they are thinking it) rap doesn't use music. Reading a poem in class or with other people aloud is different then at a big event or a coffee house performance place. I'm not saying I wouldn't go to one of those. Yes I think that maybe those are a good thing and a good way to get kids to get into it and learn. But poetry is to be read to ones self and not alound at a big event like that.
I didn't hear the poem since I didn't see the signing in of the new president. I did read the poem here. I don't think a poem should be read at an event like that. I know there are many kinds of poems and some use rimes and sounds. But see poems are made to be read, not spoken like a song. I know some of the hipsters might attack me. But a poetry slam is bullshit. I'm not saying it isn't talent but if you speak it, it is a song or a rap. Now some might say but there is no music. But freestyle (both real and made up on the spot, and fake where the person wrote it or thought before hand and presents it as if they are thinking it) rap doesn't use music. Reading a poem in class or with other people aloud is different then at a big event or a coffee house performance place. I'm not saying I wouldn't go to one of those. Yes I think that maybe those are a good thing and a good way to get kids to get into it and learn. But poetry is to be read to ones self and not alound at a big event like that.
jason - 01/21/09 18:35
Not to the extent that if someone doesn't dig her poem questions of racial bias arise. No, I do not agree with that.
Not to the extent that if someone doesn't dig her poem questions of racial bias arise. No, I do not agree with that.
james - 01/21/09 17:36
was yesterday not a time to see things through the prism of race?
was yesterday not a time to see things through the prism of race?
jason - 01/21/09 17:14
Not everything is about race, or is appropriate to see through a race colored prism, especially when reading people you don't know that well. I think a poem can be great, or it can be utter shit, regardless of who wrote it or read it.
Not everything is about race, or is appropriate to see through a race colored prism, especially when reading people you don't know that well. I think a poem can be great, or it can be utter shit, regardless of who wrote it or read it.
01/11/2009 15:11 #47368
i suckso i might have done a search yesterday for "free tetris" leaving our computer with the same or similar virusy thingy that effs up google that we had...oh, a while ago. grumble. we have been running our own anti virus whatever and free online ones, but no luck so far. i am asking for suggestions aka pleading for help.
tinypliny - 01/12/09 10:10
Use firefox (it doesn't guarantee you no viruses but its a start).
Use firefox (it doesn't guarantee you no viruses but its a start).
tinypliny - 01/12/09 10:09
I haven't had an antivirus software on my comp for years. And yes, I run Win XP Pro.
So, really it all comes to safe browsing habits. I think you can make a fair guess about which sites might be unsafe by looking at the address and the snippet of content that appears on google searches.
I haven't had an antivirus software on my comp for years. And yes, I run Win XP Pro.
So, really it all comes to safe browsing habits. I think you can make a fair guess about which sites might be unsafe by looking at the address and the snippet of content that appears on google searches.
paul - 01/11/09 21:18
get rid of windows
get rid of windows
lauren - 01/11/09 16:54
ok nevermind. i fixed it...for now ;) no more free tetris for me.
ok nevermind. i fixed it...for now ;) no more free tetris for me.
01/16/2009 11:53 #47423
WiiiiiiiiiiiiiSo (e:fellyconnelly) and I got a Wii. Ralphie hates it. He barks and growls and hides under the couch. I don't get it. He usually doesn't pay too much attention to the TV but even when he does he just tends to cock his head, stare, and lose interest in seconds. But not with the Wii. And it's mostly when the Miis are on the screen. Weird.
I went to the gynecologist today. Don't worry, I won't talk about it. But I did want to mention the little packet I got about Guardisil. This is the HPV vaccine that there are commercials for. But this little packet comes with headphones and an audio player so you can listen to "a girl like you" talk about her experiences. Really? What happened to reading? There is an on/off button, and play/pause button and sound adjustment, and it is all just a little larger than a credit card. A little thicker obviously, but compact nonetheless. Strange indeed.
I also have to take an antibiotic. No Alcohol for like 9 days. Seriously?
Grumble.
I have taken back my not so nice things i said about the job i am now working. I have a lot of respect for people who do this kind of work. I know and love many people who work in this field. I also have a lot of respect for babysitters, although i do not wish to conflate the two.
I went to the gynecologist today. Don't worry, I won't talk about it. But I did want to mention the little packet I got about Guardisil. This is the HPV vaccine that there are commercials for. But this little packet comes with headphones and an audio player so you can listen to "a girl like you" talk about her experiences. Really? What happened to reading? There is an on/off button, and play/pause button and sound adjustment, and it is all just a little larger than a credit card. A little thicker obviously, but compact nonetheless. Strange indeed.
I also have to take an antibiotic. No Alcohol for like 9 days. Seriously?
Grumble.
I have taken back my not so nice things i said about the job i am now working. I have a lot of respect for people who do this kind of work. I know and love many people who work in this field. I also have a lot of respect for babysitters, although i do not wish to conflate the two.
leetee - 01/17/09 01:25
(e:Janelle) is so right. State work is hard to come by. Often, you have to know someone. Least, that is how it seems to me. I do find it funny, in a sad sorta way, how many overtime calls i get, but yet there is a hiring freeze. Make sense? No.
(e:Janelle) is so right. State work is hard to come by. Often, you have to know someone. Least, that is how it seems to me. I do find it funny, in a sad sorta way, how many overtime calls i get, but yet there is a hiring freeze. Make sense? No.
james - 01/16/09 21:24
The Gynecologist is also a horrible, terrible, totally worth watching so you can tell your friends what a train wreck you just witnessed exploitation movie.
The Gynecologist is also a horrible, terrible, totally worth watching so you can tell your friends what a train wreck you just witnessed exploitation movie.
imk2 - 01/16/09 21:08
speaking of the gynecologist...in one of my women's studies classes we had to attend a live gynecological exam. apparently women don't know what their cervix looks like and this was an opportunity to find out. of course you did have the option to opt out if you were really grossed out. but i don't know how they got that approved through UB's planning dept? even it is the women's studies dept, it still seems a little out there. no?
speaking of the gynecologist...in one of my women's studies classes we had to attend a live gynecological exam. apparently women don't know what their cervix looks like and this was an opportunity to find out. of course you did have the option to opt out if you were really grossed out. but i don't know how they got that approved through UB's planning dept? even it is the women's studies dept, it still seems a little out there. no?
janelle - 01/16/09 12:18
Heritage Centers just this week put a hiring freeze in place because of state budget problems. There's a 2 million dollar budget gap in the state OMRDD budget and of course that impacts us. So the agency probably froze the position that was paying 13.30 and replaced it with the other position that pays 9.30. I'm really sorry you had your time wasted, but I can assure you that they weren't trying to screw you over or play a trick. It's hard times here right now. I would recommend not applying at any DD or MH social service agency at this time. Every agency is in the same boat due to the state budget problems.
Because of state requirements, certain social service positions in the DD field may require a bachelors degree. But the state doesn't provide the agencies with the funds to pay a decent wage to someone with a bachelors degree. Ridiculous, isn't? I get enough pay that I'm comfortable, but I am far from sufficiently compensated given my experience, years as a supervisor and masters degree.
Meanwhile, the state pays their own state OMRDD workers much better than the workers in comparable positions in non-profit agencies and provides the state workers with cost of living adjustments while not passing on any additional funds to non profit agencies so they can give their workers COLAs. It's harder to get the job with the state though. Civil service test, waiting, paperwork.
Heritage Centers just this week put a hiring freeze in place because of state budget problems. There's a 2 million dollar budget gap in the state OMRDD budget and of course that impacts us. So the agency probably froze the position that was paying 13.30 and replaced it with the other position that pays 9.30. I'm really sorry you had your time wasted, but I can assure you that they weren't trying to screw you over or play a trick. It's hard times here right now. I would recommend not applying at any DD or MH social service agency at this time. Every agency is in the same boat due to the state budget problems.
Because of state requirements, certain social service positions in the DD field may require a bachelors degree. But the state doesn't provide the agencies with the funds to pay a decent wage to someone with a bachelors degree. Ridiculous, isn't? I get enough pay that I'm comfortable, but I am far from sufficiently compensated given my experience, years as a supervisor and masters degree.
Meanwhile, the state pays their own state OMRDD workers much better than the workers in comparable positions in non-profit agencies and provides the state workers with cost of living adjustments while not passing on any additional funds to non profit agencies so they can give their workers COLAs. It's harder to get the job with the state though. Civil service test, waiting, paperwork.
Let me know if you need directions to the WNY DDSO, it's where i work. :)
DAMN!!! I was soooo looking forward to Battle tonight and I missed it!!! Did all the guest guys come?
That peeing thing sounds weird. That guys job must suck. In terms of the not flushing I can think of one reason why they might do that, I'm not saying they do. There are people who will pay others to give them piss and sneak it in. If you used this kind then you could just flush after. But if they went in a got another sample they could test to see that it is the same stuff. But I don't think you could pay someone to do that. I do think that though the flushing could be a way to cover up and say oh you didn't hear me because I was flushing again goes back to the paying for clean pee. I know if it was me I would be freaked out having someone listen in, if I was a girl and it was a dude, it would really really freak me out.
Every "real" job post college I've had has required a copy of my degree. Also, the agency you're working at now just got in some trouble from the state for not having copies of degrees on in personnel records and it cost the agency a lot of money. So I suggest you make copies of it and keep it in your records. I also keep copies of my transcripts around because I had a workplace request it. I also keep all my work evaluations.
Welcome to the world of social service bureaucracy!
And almost every job is going to require a SS card to do the I9 form.
They're going to be sending you to the WNY DDSO to get finger prints done too before you can be alone with clients. I actually found the fingerprinting kind of cool.