Crap.  I realized halfway across the parking lot this afternoon that I’d already forgotten where I parked.

That’s ok.  By the time this is posted, I’ll have worked it all out.  It’s a matter of following the same routine.  I always park in the vicinity of the motorcycles (or at least in that general direction) so that no matter how I got to work, I’m in the same area.  Routines are my friends these days: I’ve got so much going on and so much to think about that I need all the routines I can get.  It makes for one less thing to think about - which is probably why I forgot where I parked, after walking less than a quarter mile from the truck, in the first place.

Speaking of the truck, I am once again concerned about the price of gasoline these days.  At the station nearest to the house, the price today is $2.849 per gallon.  Seeing as how the truck’s tank holds 42 gallons, this means that a full fill-up costs almost $120.  I don’t usually let it get bone dry before filling it up, but it’ll easily cost $100 when I do.  I’ve got about 15 miles left in my safety margin right now (I use the trip odometer to keep track).  I’m sure I can find a cheaper station than the one near the house, and I can’t complain with the frequency of the fill-ups.  The last time I filled up was on the way home from the last tournament I fought in, and that was almost two months ago.  I only use the truck for my very short commute and random hauling trips.  Otherwise, it stays parked and we take the Prius everywhere.  Thank God for the Prius.

Everything seems to be conspiring to cost me money these days.  The compressor on the heat pump blew out a rotor last week.  Thankfully, that’s covered under warranty (and we have a service contract anyway).  Speaking of which, I wonder when that’s up for renewal.  I really want to get a shed to clear out the garage some.  The Indian still needs some work done on it.  The local shop’s website feedback form apparently gets me nowhere.  I might have to actually call.  No real rush on it; that’ll cost money, too.  We could use a new stove since our current one is hit-and-miss with temperatures.  I’d really like to replace it with a convection oven model.  Of course, I want to finish the basement at some point.  Lord only knows when that will start in earnest, since there are other major expenditures we’re looking at possibly over the summer.  The garbage disposal (original to the house, of course) has sprung a small leak and that needs to get replaced soon.  I’ve already bought the replacement; I just need to find the time to install it.

And let’s talk about time for a moment, shall we?  Working 10-hour days has its benefits, certainly.  However, it seems like the workdays are a blur of rolling out of bed, staring at my cube, rushing home to cook dinner, having an hour or so to play with the boy and then trying to get chores and schoolwork done before I get back to bed.

Schoolwork might be more of a challenge this quarter than expected.  I can’t remember when the last math class I had was, but now I’m taking statistics.  I don’t have a choice; it’s required.  So far, I’ve taken a couple of practice tests and gotten no better than an 87.5%.  Not encouraging.  I don’t want to wreck my GPA on this class, so I’ve got to find time to really study and practice.  So far, I’ve already found one textbook example in probability that’s counterintuitive.  Terrific.  I’m also taking a basic business class as part of a minor I’ve decided to pursue, and it looks like I’ll probably be able to finesse an “A” in this class too, just like I’ve done for all my humanities classes.  Of course, I had a much less polite word than “finesse” in mind when I wrote that.

“’Will Smith don’t gotta cuss to sell records.’  Yeah, well I do, so f— him, and f— you, too.” - Eminem, The Real Slim Shady

Work is busy.  I’m still trying to finish up the last of the crap projects and put that whole mind-numbing area behind me.  I’ve been doing the same thing for three years.  I got it, already.  I have to finish work on a fun project that got started in the middle of my current workload based on politics.  It’s hard to get motivated to finish it now that the fun is done, but it’s a whole lot better than what I’m wrapping up.  I’ve also got new projects (of the good kind) starting to roll in, and that’s exciting in an overworked, I’m-the-only-person-in-my-department-qualified-to-do-this sort of way.  Oh, there are others in my overall group who could do the same work, but none of them work for my particular boss.  So the work is new and different, but the spotlight shining down on me to take on so much isn’t necessarily fun.

You’d wonder therefore why I’ve volunteered to provide technology support to a local charity in my “free time”.  (I had to stop laughing there for a moment.)  I’d wonder too, but I learned about this charity through my company’s executive team who are major players in it.  When I heard more about the issues and the atrocities they’re trying to combat, I couldn’t help but volunteer, too.  I’m sure I’ll write more about it later.

(Just like I’ve got other, meatier topics on my brain to write about besides this current drivel I’m writing.)

One thing I am proud of is that I’m making time to exercise regularly, and I really think that’ll help me to sleep better, stay healthier and reduce my level of stress.  Of course, finding more time to ride my motorcycle and possibly a few rounds of skeet would go a long way towards that, too.

My day planner says I’ve got less than 10 minutes before my next meeting.  It’s just enough time to collect my thoughts on the topic during the walk over there.