"I Recommend Sticking Your Foot In Your Mouth"

So I woke up this morning in a worse mood than I went to bed in, never a good sign. Didn't even want to get out of bed, because it was so damn early and because I knew I'd have to deal with the stupid thing between my coworkers...which I did, eventually, though not in the way I feared I would have to. Apparently the only thing the two of them agreed upon before going for each other's throat was that they would not drag me into the middle of it. But apparently their friendship--which I'd always thought was fairly strong--is all but over. They'll be cordial to one another at work when they have to, but only because doing otherwise would have a negative effect on the students.

Really what annoys me most about this whole situation is that it seems like it was over stuff that's really, when you get right down to it, not all that important. I mean, no one's life was in danger. Neither of them had some sort of epic problem they needed the other's help for. It was over something abstract, and while I think that philosphy and the way one views the world are important things, it's stupid to end a long-standing friendship over an ideological disagreement of this minor magnitude. They'd probably both disagree with me, but I've always thought that it's better to try and get along with folks and maybe see their side of it before just deciding that they're wrong. But that's just me.

The day sorta went uphill from there, thankfully. I took the unnecessary power supply back to the store. They couldn't give me the refund right then, since I'd paid with a check, but they're going to mail me a refund check in a week or so. Then I called up Dell, and after sitting on hold for a bit, got connected to a real live human being. First guy I talked to sounded like he was from this area of the country. Problem was that he wasn't in the division I needed--he transferred me to the small business line (since my computer was purchased through my father's office, it's technically through the small business department). The woman I talked to there had a wee bit of an accent of the India/Near East variety, and we had a few communication problems. I was able to order a new power supply that would actually fit my computer, and it ended up being cheaper than the one I'd originally purchased from the store here in town. Only thing is that they have to ship it to my dad's office--trying to explain to her why she was mailing the package to a college kid's apartment when this computer was clearly owned by a small business would have taken more effort than it was worth, and the part should arrive right before I go home anyway (so I can just pick up my part and drop off my loaner all at the same time).

After taking care of that, I did my usual thing for handling depression--I went shopping. I always do this when I'm upset and unhappy. Finding a new movie or especially new music does wonders for cheering me up. So I hit my digital entertainment crack dealer, Best Buy, and picked up Alanis Morrissette's Jagged Little Pill. Stop laughing, it's a good album. Honest. Yeah, the vocal histrionics are a little overbearing sometimes, but this is a solid record. Hard to believe it's already almost a decade old (will be this summer, when she plans on releasing an acoustic version of the entire album that she's currently recording. Since her voice has evolved since then, it ought to be worth hearing). Hearing her angst all over the place really helped me mellow out. Funny how that works, eh? I'll probably have to listen to Sting and Van Morrison next, 'cause those are my usual "I'm angsty and depressed and want to shut out the world until I'm in a more social mood" musicians. They're just good for that, y'know?

Also talked to mom today (dear God, it was a busy day, wasn't it?). She was rather helpful in many ways--helped to cheer me up a bit about the whole situation with my friends at work, didn't yell at me about stuff, and is apparently going to deposit some money in my account for various things (which is good, since not getting a refund for the one power supply meant I was kinda more strapped for cash than I thought I would be...of course, I say this, and I went and bought a new CD anyway. 'Cause that was different, and $14 won't make or break me. Or hasn't yet, anyway).

Anyway, I'm glad the weekend (for me) is here. I need one, dammit. Gonna go hear my uncle play on Friday and Saturday over on Peably Road (out in the middle of freakin' nowhere, but hey, it's not really that far away and I get to hear good music). That's really the only solid plan thus far, aside from hanging out with Ev a bit for various stuff on Friday and Sunday.

~chuck

Song of the Moment: Alanis Morrissette, "You Learn"