Some people have asked what I do for exercise these days, so I present you with the Gazelle Freestyle. It’s a low-impact workout which emphasizes both the upper and lower body. The motion is a lot like cross-country skiing mixed with jogging. It’s kind of hard to explain, but I suppose it’s sort of a hybrid between a Nordic Track (skiing machine) and an elliptical trainer. Thus far I’ve been using it about 4 times a week for a half hour at a time, and that seems to be working well for the time being. The main thing I was concerned about when I purchased it was attempting to regulate my sleep schedule by tiring my body out at a reasonable hour. Without exercise I was staying up until 3 or 4 AM then sleeping in until 11, which is ridiculous. It’s true that I don’t need to be up for anything at the moment, but that’s soon to change and I’d rather get myself into a routine now before I have to force it upon myself when my job begins. So far, it’s worked *very* well and I’ve been able to keep a decent schedule despite my lack of commitments. It also makes me feel really good, which is a fantastic bonus. Plus hopefully I’ll be a bit more toned for the wedding in a couple months!

Emily has a habit of chewing chunks out of the foam balls that she and Roscoe play with. These things are roughly 40 cents apiece and resemble a foam golf ball when they are new. Most of the ones I’ve bought now look like a piece of exotic coral. The chewed-off bits litter the carpet like confetti, which brings me to vacuum the apartment every other day.

I spent 8 hours today playing Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. My butt is totally numb and my eyes are wide open. I’m all hyped up. Gaah! @_@

People keep asking me what I’m doing to keep myself busy while I’m unemployed. I guess it’s sort of surprising to some that I’m not bored or depressed. It helps a lot to know that I have a job waiting for me in a set amount of time, one that I really want to do.

So, for your edification, here’s a list of what I’ve been doing since Jules left in February.

• Got another kitty (Emily)
• Saw some concerts (Viva Voce/The Shins, Ester Drang/Midlake)
• Played video games (Bullet Witch, Lego Star Wars II, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Phoenix Wright: Justice For All, Ninety-Nine Nights)
• Cleaned the apartment (many, many times…the kitties are messy)
• Worked on some websites and logos
• Caught up on all the email and RSS feeds I’d been neglecting while Jules was here
• Got a Gazelle exercise machine and exercised
• Spent time with friends
• Crocheted (panels for the D20)
• Watched DVDs (mainly Sports Night and Only Fools and Horses)
• Watched TV shows (Battlestar Galactica, Heroes, Lost)
• Organized my music collection on my PC
• Played with the kitties, got to know them better
• Read a bit (Zombie Survival Guide)

There’s a lot of other minor things, but those are the things I did most days. I’m actually having a great time despite being lonely for Jules.

I finally got a chance to talk to Jules this morning and it turns out it’s not as bad as it seems. He’ll be able to get his fingerprints taken tomorrow morning and hopefully send out the certificate within the week. It seems like it won’t throw off any of our plans at all and he may even arrive around the time we were hoping for previously.

Guess I overreacted a bit to that little bit of bad news nestled amongst all the good. The fact is Jules *did* get approved for the visa and within a month he will be here with me and we will be able to get married. There was a lot riding on this interview and clearly I had a lot of pent up emotion waiting to get out somehow, and tears of frustration was just the path it chose.

It sounds like Jules had a really nice time in Sydney and even got to meet up with some internet friends. I can’t wait to see the pics he took of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.

Jules didn’t get the visa as he had the incorrect type of police certificate. Apparently everything else was fine and they’ll be able to issue the visa once they receive the correct one, but the waiting period for that could take up to 3 weeks and cost something like $150.

I had a feeling something was off this afternoon, even before I heard the news…I suddenly felt sick and got chills so bad I had to go take a nap just to warm up.

I hope this doesn’t screw up any of the plans we’ve begun making for the wedding. Something always goes wrong during the 11th hour, doesn’t it?

I think I’ll go curl up in a ball and stay there until I hear some good news.

Numbers complete: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 20

Number of panels complete: 15

Emily has now figured out how to open the kitchen cabinets, climb through the window blinds, and now she likes jumping in the garbage cans.

Jules is now in Sydney awaiting his visa interview. Everyone send us some positive energy in the hopes that all goes well.

Do you have a motivational song, one that encites you to spring into action, to engage in a task which under ordinary circumstances you just couldn’t be bothered to attempt? I sure do.

It’s funny how these things work. It doesn’t work with just any song, there has to be something undeniably special about it, for reasons either obvious or unknown. For the last few years, I’ve noticed that The Dresden Dolls‘ self-titled debut album contains several of these types of songs that when played suddenly make doing the dishes and taking out the trash tolerable. The first track of the album, “Good Day” works best of all, and it leads into many others that keep my motivation high once I’ve begun whatever dreaded task I’ve been avoiding. The song is actually rather bitter and sad and involves the narrator tricking herself into thinking she’s doing fine without the man she has unresolved feelings for. In a way, this is what I’m doing when I put this song on to encourage me to do dishes: this is a task I can do, it’s no big deal, and it’s not as bad as it seems, even though I absolutely *hate* doing it.

I’ve probably listened to this album scores of times by now, but the effect remains the same no matter if it’s the third listen or the eightieth.

The Dresden Dolls
“Good Day”

So you don’t want to hear about my good song?
And you don’t want to hear about how I am getting on
With all the things that I can get done
The sun is in the sky & I am by my lonesome
So you don’t want to hear about my good day?
You have better things to do than to hear me say

God it’s been a lovely day! Everything is going my way
I took out the trash today and I’m on fire…

So you don’t want to hear about my good friends?
You don’t have the guts to take the truth or consequence
Success is in the eye of the beholder
And it’s looking even better over your cold shoulder

I’m not suggesting you get to line me up for questioning
But Jesus think about the bridges you are burning
And I’m betting
That even though you knew it from the start
You’d rather be a bitch than be an ordinary broken heart

So go ahead and talk about your bad day…
I want all the details of the pain and misery
That you are inflicting on the others
I consider them my sisters and I’d like their numbers

God it’s been a lovely day! Everything’s been going my way
I took up croquet today and I’m on fire

I picked up the pieces of my broken ego
I have finally made my peace as far as you and me go
But I’d love to have you up to see the place
& I’d like to do more than survive I’d like to rub it in your face…

Hey! It’s been a lovely day! Everything’s been going my way
I had so much fun today and I’m on fire
God it’s been a lovely day! Everything’s been going my way
Ever since you went away hey I’m on fire…
I’m on fire…
I’m on fire…
I’m on fire…
I’m on…
So you don’t want to hear about my good day?