I feel like my head is spinning right now. Soooo much going on. Trying to get over being sick, and I start a new job tomorrow, start real estate classes tomorrow (required by my lender), and possibly put an offer on a condo this week. I'm not sure I can handle all of this, but I'm going to try!

In other news, no, I'm not engaged because of the White Sox. :) It was a fun thought in May, but neither of us wanted to be married because of an arbitrary event like a baseball championship!

Well, I still hate Ticketmaster, but I love the White Sox. They have come through big for us several times in the past few weeks. Yesterday, I got a package in the mail for Matthew with some really cool items. The team heard (from me) about Matthew's fire and losing his White Sox memorabilia. I thought they'd send a pennant or a mug or something, but they really outdid themselves. And today I found out that WE'RE GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES. Games 1 and 6. :) My parents might now regret offering to pay for tix!!

The mouse was just now behind my desk, in my recycling bin. Ick, ick, ick. I'm TOTALLY freaked out right now. Now, besides the wall of windows and the door I can close, I have one more reason to want to be in my new office.

In other news...

I'm Picard-- yay!

"An accomplished diplomat who can virtually do no wrong, you sometimes know it is best to rely on the council of others while holding the reins.

There are some words which I have known since I was a schoolboy. "With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably." These words were uttered by Judge Aaron Satie -- as a wisdom, and warning. The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged.

Jean-Luc is a character in the Star Trek universe. This The Next Generation fan site has an outline of his career."

Ticketmaster (still) sucks.

I just saw a mouse scampering down the hallway near my office. I'm not sure what the proper procedure is for me to report this or what in the world they might want to do about it. But now I'm a little skittish!

Off to my first meeting with my realtor. :) (Ok, so my realtor is Scott, and it's not like I haven't met him yet, but it's our first realtor-client meeting.)

I know this blog is not usually the bearer of so much good news, but...

I GOT THE JOB! (And I'll be making substantially more money than I did before.)

The White Sox did lose last night, so I feel a little better about the universe. I was afraid there was too much good in my life and things were going to all crash down. But it's hard to feel down about a game where you were sitting in a swanky suite with Ron Kittle and watching the Angels' execs react to the game in the next suite over. They could have had more vegetarian options in their catering, but I guess that's ok. :)

I'm going to the White Sox game tonight!!! (I love my boyfriend :) )

I spoke too soon. Official word: Interview #2 tomorrow.

Grandma is doing well-- better than we expected, actually. She's able to talk some already, and she'll be working with a speech therapist also. So that's good news.

And my interview went really well. I haven't heard anything official yet, but I think that even if I don't get it, the division will consider me for future openings. So that's good news, too.

Too much good news scares me. I'm obviously my mother's daughter. :)

I called my dad and filled him in on the ups and downs of my day, including my failed attempt to buy playoff tickets (damn ticketmaster). He listened to me and then said, "Well, unfortunately, I have to end your day on a down note. Your grandmother had a stroke today."

She's in the hospital, but no one seems to be sure how she is yet. Apparently she's not very communicative. Dad told me not to fly home yet, since I wouldn't get to talk to her anyway. The stroke was in the brainstem, which I guess can be pretty bad.

I feel like my life is a roller coaster right now. Everytime something really good happens, something really bad happens to balance it out. I just want a smooth ride. No big ups, and no big downs!

Given how everyone (including me) complains about their jobs, I never expected to be in this kind of position. I applied for a job in another department. I did not actually want a different job. I love what I do most of the time, and I really love the people I work with. But when a job like this one opens up, you have to jump at it. I didn't jump without the pushing of my dad, Matthew, and a senior-level administrator here.

I didn't tell my boss because it's been a stressful couple of weeks here, and I didn't want to be the bearer of bad news if nothing was going to come of it. But now I have an interview. I really have no idea what my chances are of getting this job, but I wanted to tell my boss at this point so he wouldn't be caught unaware. This place is small enough that word can travel quickly. He looked like he might cry when I gave him the news.

So now I want to be excited that I'm being interviewed for this really tremendous opportunity for me, but I also feel guilty for leaving. Am I crazy for feeling that way? With a few minor exceptions, the people who would be most affected by my leaving have treated me tremendously well.

It's certainly nice to know that I'm appreciated and well-liked, but it doesn't make this kind of thing any easier!

I passed the morning sports guy from WGN on my way to the train this morning. He was set up for a live shoot from Comiskey. I was going to say hi, but I couldn't remember his name. I guess you can't be that big of a celebrity if someone can recognize you but not recall your name. Of course, I'm not certain that I would have recognized him without the WGN van and cameraman, but still. Anyway, my brush with minor celebrity of the day. :)