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my illusions of gravity
Nov. 4th, 2008
01:44 pm - The sweet isn't as sweet without the sour
I was startled awake this morning as a tiger sank his teeth into my hip after noticing my presence as I watched his interactions with his handlers. After some heavy breathing and the relief of realizing that I had been dreaming, I remembered it was election day. The preschool that I work for was closed today to encourage voting, which is awesome because it allows me to enjoy the significance of today's election and its place in history. Even though I had all day to make it to the polls, I got up at 6:12am (thanks to the tiger, not my alarm which was set for 6:15am) to walk across the street to the polls and cast my vote. I really didn't want to spend the better part of my day standing in line, so I figured I'd go early and beat the working crowd. Things worked out pretty good. I stood in line for only about 40 minutes waiting for the polls to open at 7am and was on my way to Starbucks for my free coffee by 7:20am. A truly American morning. After I got back home and watched the news for a bit, the importance of today really started to sink in for me. What it would mean for everyone to see an African-American win the White House...what it means about the progress of our nation's culture, what it says about our past, what it will mean for our children. It's a great day to be alive and to take part in such a big day for human progress. And then my excitement and enthusiasm began to fade because I had no one to share it with. All I could think about is how much I wanted to be near close friends, to share this occasion with people I love and care about. This day would mean so much more to me if I could share it with like minded people. Since moving to the Charleston area I haven't really made any new friends. I work with some cool people, but they are all older and have families. Besides, the older I get, the more difficult it seems to really make deep, meaningful connections with new people. I like the friendships I built in high school and college, and it's becoming more difficult for me to be removed from those people. I really miss having a close guy friend to kick it with. Anyways, bleh, this is turning whiny. I'm getting a massage @ 5pm today, maybe that will make me feel better. Nothing like the hands of a well trained stranger to put you at ease. Go Obama. Let's make history. BTW, you should vote if you haven't.
Aug. 9th, 2008
12:32 pm - careers are a 21st century invention and I don't want one
so this week I reached my breaking point with the company that I work for. I have been working 60+ hours for about 3 months now, and the machine shows no mercy. As with most things in life, my expectations for this job were overly optimistic and way off the map. Although in my defense, I'm pretty certain that I wouldn't have gotten such mistreatment anywhere else. Lindsay and I picked up and relocated for this opportunity. I hired, trained, and managed more than 40 people over the last couple months, working about 10 hours a day with one day off a week (usually spent in a coma). Once we opened, the business was constant, but so were the problems. It was obvious even before we opened that we needed to hire an extra floor manager for this location. But why pay out 4 salaries when you can get by with enslaving the three salaried positions already in place? Right? The closing shifts have kept me at work until 3 a.m. on most nights, so I couldn't really tell you what married life is like. My bosses have shown virtually no appreciation for the sacrifice that I (and the other managers) have endured, aside from a recent bonus that was just enough to cover the expenses which I had to put on MY credit card over the last several months during opening. So this past Wednesday, I chose life. I put in my two weeks notice, and let me tell you...I'm fucking stoked. Major life decisions always make me a bit nervous, but this one is a no-brainer. I want to look forward to the weekends again. I want to enjoy this lovely city with my amazing wife (I guess I can thank them for bringing me here). I wanna dance!
No clue as of yet what I'm going to do next, but Mon.-Fri., 9-5, 40 hours a week has never sounded so good in my life.
So yeah, if anyone wants to come stay in Charleston for a weekend and go relax at the beach, I can now accommodate.
And another reason that I have to smile, I'm going to see The Hold Steady Sunday night.
Jul. 31st, 2008
03:46 pm - dear aunt Kevin,
I do everything WAY behind everyone else. I just got text messaging added to my cellular plan a month ago. I texted my friend and co-worker Cliff, "I've got text messaging now, bitch!" He sent me a message back saying "Welcome to 2002." A lot of my good friends have been writing down the details to their lives in livejournal for quite some time. Even though I haven't had an account up until today, I visit livejournal quite frequently to stay up on what's going down in the lives of my favorite people. Lauren, Catherine, and Risa still post on here quite frequently, and it makes me feel less removed from my college family when I read about what things are going on, exciting or mundane, across the state of north carolina, especially since I no longer reside there. But initially, it was the journal of one Kevin Delury that I read the most frequently and with the most fervor. Kevin, being a journalist by trade, and a rock n roll, hell-raising, booze operated social scallywag by birth, had me checking livejournal on the daily to keep up with his new fast-paced, 'what the fuck did I do last night' lifestyle in Chicago after leaving college. Kevin was the first dude I really connected with in college, a relationship that blossomed from an awkward geek moment dialoged by the exchange, "Nice Dillinger Escape Plan shirt." "Thanks, that's a rad Undying shirt you've got there." His weekly tales of Bobcats, girls, the Bay, and back-to-back shows that conveniently steered clear of the south-east made me smile and miss my friend a little less. And then one day, bam! He shut the door on me. Kevin made his life private, only to be viewed by the lucky gabbing members of the livejournal community. This abrupt end to my virtual peeping habits hurt not only me, but my now wife, who's internet snooping abilities far exceed my own. Months have gone by now since the two of us have been able to commentate on the excitement and embarrassment of 'Growing up DeLury' as if were on The Soup. But today I made a step to fill that void. I may not have a lot to say as a member of this online journal community, but if it allows me to know the gross details of Kevin DeLury's run-in with a half-decent looking tranny at 4 a.m. on a Tuesday in Boys Town, then I can write a couple of boring lines about something that happened at work every now and again. So now I'm off to work for the evening only to return home late to a cold beer and numerous kevin delury journal entries telling of love, music, deceit, and debauchery. Long overdue.
