Rough night

Didn't have the best start to this day, and it seems to have thrown off for everything that's followed. I woke up very early in the morning after an utterly inoffensive dream (I think it was something about working on a project with a dinosaur and another coworker who was slightly prejudiced against dinosaurs-- my psyche is strange) to a rush of half-conscious worry about all the stressful things in my life right now, leaving me depressed and unable to get back to sleep until what seemed like just a few minutes before my alarm went off. By then it was already raining outside and the inside of my bedroom was freezing, making the process of hauling myself out of bed all the more difficult and uncomfortable. Getting ready was a chore, and the new acne medication I'm adding to my routine-- my stupid blemishes are getting absolutely ridiculous --made my face look sickly and pallid. To top it all off, there's a muscle high in the back of my thigh that started twitching yesterday evening and hasn't stopped since.

All of this amounts to me feeling very much off my game and not quite up to handling anything more complicated than zoning out in front of Frasier on YouTube. Unfortunately I've been so busy with my packed schedule lately that I can't really afford to not be on top of things. At least not many people come into my office when it rains (I'm being totally serious, you should see the parking lot on rainy days) so I don't think I should have any trouble getting the work done for the handful of coworkers around today. Other than that, I think I'm going to make myself a to do list to get my muzzy head a little straighter about all the stuff I need to get done.

*Sigh* You'd think that, for me, having a dream with a dinosaur in it would make for a good way to begin the day. Dinosaurs are awesome; they should not be harbingers of forboding.

Balancing out

Okay, so there's some positive stuff going on with me too, to compensate for how off I'm feeling today. My new rain boots came in a couple of days ago, and I absolutely adore them. They're Sudini Minnas, gorgeous walking boots made of waterproof leather that you can behold in all their glory here, though I got them in black rather than the admittedly equally lovely chocolate. And since I bought them on eBay, I paid a fraction of their retail value. Oh, eBay, how I love you. The hours I spent scouring the Internet really paid off. These boots are beautiful as well as comfortable, and they've held up admirably to the wet of this rainy morning. I am incredibly pleased, so expect to see them often.

Last night there was a GM meeting for The Labors Wars, which went very well and confirmed my enthusiasm for working on this project with this team. I really admire the way Alleged Entertainment builds a framework for the writing process that schedules regular meetings and due dates for when various components need to be written. If I'm ever in charge of organizing a larp writing team, I definitely plan to take a leaf out of their book. The sense of accountability alone it creates is so useful. Particularly since I'm the New Kid writing an AE game, and the least experienced larper/larp writer, I know I certainly don't want to let anyone down. We assigned bluesheet writing last night which is due in two weeks, and I intend to get an early start.

Also, this awesome exchange occurred, about a particularly ornery character:
Me: "I take it that's your pet character?"
Susan: "Yeah, she's my baby."
Pause.
Nat: "Your baby's ugly, Susan."

I heart natbudin. 

Finally, youareverysmall's lovely boyfriend Dan is in the area on a bike tour, and he is staying at Elsinore for a few days. The timing is unfortunately pretty terrible, as all the days he's in town I'm booked for ten million prior committments and don't have much in the way of time to hang out with him when he's available. I feel like a lousy host and it's kind of stressing me out. I just hope he's comfortable and has a good time seeing the sights.

New butcher shop

Bernie and I finally checked out that brand new little butcher shop that opened where Danger Planet used to be. It's actually a little more of a deli than a true butcher shop, which disappointed me a little; I was really hoping they'd produce their own cuts there so I could learn to ask for what I wanted, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Still, they have some very nice meat there and some really gorgeous fish; I saw an enormous whole red snapper that they could fillet up right in front of you nice as you please. We bought three really nice-looking and fairly reasonably priced rib-eye steaks, rubbed them with olive oil, oregano, basil, rosemary, salt, and pepper, and threw them on the broiler for six minutes a side. Came out quite tasty. I'm pleased to support a small business that is priced about the same as Hannaford meat and looks to be better quality as well, so I encourage you to check that place out next time you want something to throw on the grill.