Good tip, ComputerJobs.com

Today in some spam from ComputerJobs.com, I was invited to “Report Illegal Software Use – Get a Million Dollars”. What a great ad it was, too, “Blow the Whistle!”, it said in a talk bubble over a picture of a coach in the process of doing just that. AWESOME. And I could certainly USE a million dollars. It is almost baffling, though, that the problem is so rampant that it’s worth paying a million “for a qualifying report”. This is all offered by www.bsa.org, if you’re interested.

So we had a fabulous non-productive night last night, where we trekked all the way up to Discover Mills and Fryes to run a couple of errands that ended up being total busts. On the verge of going home empty handed, we make a desperate attempt to actually walk into a store and find what we are looking for. This was made easier to accomplish by choosing an Applebees and looking for dessert. So, it’s 10pm, we’re far from home, enjoying the free wi-fi and what has turned into an appetizer and a dessert, when after running out of notions for stupid camera phone movies to be filmed at the Crapplebees, I ask JamesT who I ought to call this late on my free Applebees Wi-Fi phone service. He tells me to call the Fatass niece, since I’ve missed two calls from her lately. Duh. Why don’t I think of these things.

Fearing the high-schooler might already be in bed, I venture a text message first, with a simple, “Wot’s up?” A minute later I get the response, “Just wrecked my car.” It’s like we’re psychic. I text for her to call when she can, and she calls to say she was home on a dinner break from work at the theater, has been parking on her Dad’s side of the garage since he’s MIA with the new love of his life and he’s filled her side of the garage with furniture he’s going to move into storage soon. As such, she has his garage door opener and hers side by side on the visor of her — new as of December – car. After eating dinner, she gets back in the car to head out, is being the typical 18-year-old attached to an electronic device, presses the button for the garage door, hears it open as she is “distracted”, and then begins to back out…. only to realize she’s hit the wrong button, opened the door on the other side, and has just dented up the garage door and her car. And now, the door is too bent to open, and she’s stuck in the garage — she can’t get back to work, and wouldn’t you know it at after 9pm on a school night, her Dad is miles away staying over at his “new friend’s” house.

Somewhere therein lies a whole other plotline where my still legally married, disabled, fixed income, apparent obsessive personality, formerly estranged brother has somehow become the sugar daddy to some woman he met “online” who is apparently “truly blonde and proud of it” as has questionable motives — so say the crowd who have met her. I have not. I have not even talked to brother since Christmas, to be honest. I, however, did get somewhat of an earful last night to know that his daughter is rather worried, angry, lonely and unhappy — and apparently still in need of parental supervision. When she told me she was quitting her movie theater job so she could wait tables at the Red Lobster, since she needs more money coming in, since she’s having to stay by herself so much more lately, and how her dad seems to think that the security alarm he had installed in the house is a suitable surrogate parent until she graduates. But, as I said, I haven’t talked to him personally, so I’ll just recap her POV for now and reserve opinions for later. Have to say, if the scenario is actually as described, wow… worried.

So, as it turns out, this weekend is a good opportunity to make a long overdue Bristol trip (Edit: Trip is probably off due to them offering us the discount to start bootcamp Monday the 17th) to visit mom anyway, so perhaps I will get a chance to speak to brother face to face on the subject. Originally it was to be a whirlwind visit to Bristol and back through Chattanooga — now “the long way” home for us, but as our last night’s errands were a bust, we’ve nothing to deliver and can cut out that portion for now. Still, with a JamesT Dad and step-Dad birthday this month, a visit that way is in order at some point.

Along with figuring out how my sanity is out the window because my brain is mostly off on work issues as I allow some things that I had intended my “helper” to do to pile up, the helper which I have to be in Marietta again tomorrow to train, the helper who replies to the simple exercise I sent her via email Monday with a “I am completely lost! Lol” — this does not bode well — anyway, along with training a helper, planning a weekend of driving and awkward familial conversations, James and I are “cruising for a bruising” by signing up for a morning boot camp at Stone Mountain. We can has crazy heads.

As if it wasn’t obvious about our crazy heads — I mean, have you spent any time around us? — James informs me last night of his desire to turn various pictures of Kitty into lolcats images and see how they do on 4chan.

Okay, that’s all out. Time to “do things”.