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Jun. 26th, 2004 06:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jaalaNot only am I holding down my first full-time job and inhabiting my first long-term digs away from home and university residences, but I am now quite suddenly also the only human being in the house. My housemate left for camp about a week ago. We didn't see each other very often so I found out about this a very short time before she left. Currently, I'm starting to get into the swing of eating three meals a day, doing laundry, feeding the animals, taking the garbage out, wiping the counters, and washing the dishes. Maybe... if I get really good... I'll start practicing regularly[1], shopping before running out of items, and cleaning the whole house as well!
When I'm not at work or chatting online, my only company are the two rabbits and the hamster. I suddenly find myself listening to a lot more radio than before. I also phone my parents a heck of a lot to ask stupid questions like, "How do I unclog the bathroom drain?"
After receiving an urgent pink card from Utilities Kingston, I went in search of the electric and water meters today. Much to my relief, I discovered the electric one in the (cramped) basement. I also discovered the corpses of a couple very small mice there. Nice.
[1] This is really bad. I leave work each day intending to practice but never get around to it. A typical day now goes like this:
6:00 am: wake up (between 4:30 and 5:30 if it's an Armstrong gun or full Drums training day), eat breakfast, feed animals, shower, dress, ablutions
8:00-8:20am: leave for work by bicycle (yes, I move extremely slowly when tired)
6:00-6:30pm: arrive home from work (if I didn't do errands on the way home)
6:30-7:00pm: sit down because my feet hurt too much to do anything else; probably phone my parents
7:00pm-8:00: prepare and eat dinner
8:00+: collapse from pain (shoulders and back, mostly) and exhaustion (frequently falling asleep at the table), read email and polish boots if I'm still awake, eventually drag myself out of a chair and into bed (possibly after getting ready and turning off the lights but probably not)
And sometimes I don't even make it through dinner before I collapse in bed. Laundry, garbage, shopping, physio appointments, studying Fort manuals, and extra-curricular-but-practically-mandatory Fort activities (rehearsals, dinners, etc.) are in addition to the above. I hate feeling so tired upon arriving home that I'm unable to do anything but eat and go to sleep.
* * *
I've been feeling very civic-minded recently: I have registered for both the upcoming Canadian federal election (June 28) and the U.S. general election in November. Though I really don't want the [no longer Progressive] Conservatives[2] to hold power, they wouldn't be able to do much with a minority government. Besides, the Liberal MP still appears to have a pretty firm grip on this riding. So with that and the new proportional party funding scheme in mind, I think I'm finally going to bite the bullet after years of strategic voting and vote NDP because I support their platform. As for the U.S.: www.johnkerryisadouchebagbutimvotingforhimanyway.com. (I have nothing to say. I just like this URL.)
[2] It's remarkable how easily the Conservative spinmeisters are able to dismiss the fact that their party's predecessor was the Official Opposition during the sponsorship scandal and they hold a fair bit of culpability for the weakening of democracy through their utter incompetence in that role.
* * *
The job is... going. Sometimes, I really enjoy it. Sometimes, I really hate it, mostly on those days when I feel like a complete idiot. I'm so-so at training (Drums marching, 24-pounder artillery, 6-pounder artillery)[2], constantly being in a hurry, taking draconian verbal abuse (ahem, "corrections"), making do with very little sleep, polishing brass and boots several times a day, avoiding injury, memorizing great masses of information by rote, and coping with rapidly changing situations. On the other hand, I received 86% on the guide test, haven't committed any major safety infractions on the (24-pounder) gun and have received remedial (punishment, er... "correction") only once so far. I quite enjoy interacting with visitors, wearing the uniform, giving tours, and playing the fife. When they go well, I sometimes even enjoy parades. The Drum Serjeant (also a Queen's music student) has told me I'm "by far the best fifer in the Drums." It's nice to excel at something.
[2] Meaning I screw up a lot but not quite as much as one or two other people. I lose my balance way too much. The worst thing of all about marching (and "doubling", running) is that one is not allowed to breath through the mouth, even if one feels faint. I get distracted by loud bursts of criticism, which leads to further mistakes and further yelling. There was one day when I dropped my fife twice. I've been known to "bail" (i.e. completely lose footing, spectacular fall backwards) or barely avoid "bailing" several times a day.
When I'm not at work or chatting online, my only company are the two rabbits and the hamster. I suddenly find myself listening to a lot more radio than before. I also phone my parents a heck of a lot to ask stupid questions like, "How do I unclog the bathroom drain?"
After receiving an urgent pink card from Utilities Kingston, I went in search of the electric and water meters today. Much to my relief, I discovered the electric one in the (cramped) basement. I also discovered the corpses of a couple very small mice there. Nice.
[1] This is really bad. I leave work each day intending to practice but never get around to it. A typical day now goes like this:
6:00 am: wake up (between 4:30 and 5:30 if it's an Armstrong gun or full Drums training day), eat breakfast, feed animals, shower, dress, ablutions
8:00-8:20am: leave for work by bicycle (yes, I move extremely slowly when tired)
6:00-6:30pm: arrive home from work (if I didn't do errands on the way home)
6:30-7:00pm: sit down because my feet hurt too much to do anything else; probably phone my parents
7:00pm-8:00: prepare and eat dinner
8:00+: collapse from pain (shoulders and back, mostly) and exhaustion (frequently falling asleep at the table), read email and polish boots if I'm still awake, eventually drag myself out of a chair and into bed (possibly after getting ready and turning off the lights but probably not)
And sometimes I don't even make it through dinner before I collapse in bed. Laundry, garbage, shopping, physio appointments, studying Fort manuals, and extra-curricular-but-practically-mandatory Fort activities (rehearsals, dinners, etc.) are in addition to the above. I hate feeling so tired upon arriving home that I'm unable to do anything but eat and go to sleep.
I've been feeling very civic-minded recently: I have registered for both the upcoming Canadian federal election (June 28) and the U.S. general election in November. Though I really don't want the [no longer Progressive] Conservatives[2] to hold power, they wouldn't be able to do much with a minority government. Besides, the Liberal MP still appears to have a pretty firm grip on this riding. So with that and the new proportional party funding scheme in mind, I think I'm finally going to bite the bullet after years of strategic voting and vote NDP because I support their platform. As for the U.S.: www.johnkerryisadouchebagbutimvotingforhimanyway.com. (I have nothing to say. I just like this URL.)
[2] It's remarkable how easily the Conservative spinmeisters are able to dismiss the fact that their party's predecessor was the Official Opposition during the sponsorship scandal and they hold a fair bit of culpability for the weakening of democracy through their utter incompetence in that role.
The job is... going. Sometimes, I really enjoy it. Sometimes, I really hate it, mostly on those days when I feel like a complete idiot. I'm so-so at training (Drums marching, 24-pounder artillery, 6-pounder artillery)[2], constantly being in a hurry, taking draconian verbal abuse (ahem, "corrections"), making do with very little sleep, polishing brass and boots several times a day, avoiding injury, memorizing great masses of information by rote, and coping with rapidly changing situations. On the other hand, I received 86% on the guide test, haven't committed any major safety infractions on the (24-pounder) gun and have received remedial (punishment, er... "correction") only once so far. I quite enjoy interacting with visitors, wearing the uniform, giving tours, and playing the fife. When they go well, I sometimes even enjoy parades. The Drum Serjeant (also a Queen's music student) has told me I'm "by far the best fifer in the Drums." It's nice to excel at something.
[2] Meaning I screw up a lot but not quite as much as one or two other people. I lose my balance way too much. The worst thing of all about marching (and "doubling", running) is that one is not allowed to breath through the mouth, even if one feels faint. I get distracted by loud bursts of criticism, which leads to further mistakes and further yelling. There was one day when I dropped my fife twice. I've been known to "bail" (i.e. completely lose footing, spectacular fall backwards) or barely avoid "bailing" several times a day.
