--Archive--
March 20 - March 23
March 24 - March 29

Well, this morning we got our furniture in the place and I must say it's nice to see some sort of order in the chaos of me and Ericka's new place. I called the courthouse yesterday and we are set to get married at 10am next friday. Then, at 2pm, we'll get to see our child (hopefully) using that cool-ass 3d stuff.

Just got a nice, bitchy email from Ron. It's been awhile since I've gotten one from him. He's in Super Bitch mode again, ranting and raving. I knew the calm wouldn't last very long. Yet again he goes on about how I don't care, yadda yadda. Worse? He uses this very blog against me, citing the fact that I read books and go to movies yet don't have time to do this or that. Question: why would I query agents and managers for a writing partnership that no longer exists? Jesus, it's always the simple things that go unnoticed.

Anyway, I gotta run and go to Sneedville and our Gas station branch and update the programs we use to look up accounts. This should take a few hours, then I have to go to K-town and find wedding rings (one pure gold, one white gold for Ericka) for the big day this Friday. Should be interesting.

Well, now I get to do this stuff, go home, and set up everything else. Mom called about how she got the U-Haul to move her shit. Tommy's being evasive, so I don't know when I'll get to move the washer/dryer/kitchen table and chairs. Sheesh.

G'bye

Evan Erwin from URL @ 12:26 PM

Last night we successfully moved both the desk and the chest of drawers.

However.

The desk was a disaster. We had to take it apart into huge, movable chunks to get it out of the room. By the time it made its way across Morristown, and especially by the time my tired, sweating, aching, bitchy-ass body was done with putting the bastard back together, we had three screws left over and the top cabinets sit slightly askew. More than one piece had fractured or splintered, and there is little else in the way of Good Things that have come of this move.

This morning we went to Ramsey Furniture, who also have Bargain House Furniture in the same town. Ericka found a blue couch she likes, I found my plushy, red recliner I've always dreamed about (my whole life I've wanted a recliner, and only now do I get one) and we also got two matching bookshelves and a blue/white tiled endtable. Let's just say that, if you add it up correctly, we could be subversely patriotic but I certainly wasn't aware of it until I just listed those things. Hmm. Interesting stuff.

I'm also not getting my cable modem until Monday. That sucks. At least tonight I'll get the rest of the video equipment hooked up and, if necessary, take a quick trip to Home Depot or Lowe's or somewhere and get some shelves to put my speakers on. I'm afraid that I might need speaker stands, which should work better. I don't know. Everything is just bill this, or go schedule that. Yeesh.

Anyway, we got some great news. Ericka had a doctor's appointment and learned she's getting a super high tech ultrasound up at UT Medical Center. This is wonderful stuff!They have that cool 3d imaging stuff and can basically tell us exactly what we're having, especially since it's this late in the game. I'll keep you updated :)

As for this weekend, I just want to cool off and get everything in order. It's been almost a week since I've written anything and part of me is reluctant to pick up the pen. But it must be done. I will not let this go by the wayside. I can't. I've worked too long and hard on it. There is much to do, but if I choose not to, I will certainly regret it.

Lastly, I've been reading The Shipping News, the uber-popular (there's that weird "u" thing again) novel made into the atrociously boring film. It's an interesting little book. I dig the way it's written. Gotta run. Cya.

Evan Erwin from URL @ 3:40 PM

The end of another work day, the beginning of another moving night.

Let me tell all those who are foolish enough, and just like myself, who think that moving won't be "That Bad." Well, lemme tell ya, it IS that bad and it only gets worse. All those stupid little pieces of paper, the flung receipts, the missing coins that you thought would never show their ugly head again, well, they're all here and they're pissed. Determined to get into every crevice and drive you out of your fucking mind. It's a fact. It happens. God help us all.

On the upside I have figured out some Javascript on the intranet here at work. With this prelim work finished, I think I can get some javascript going that will help us out immensely. I'll see what I can do. I'm trying to sell this to my boss and he isn't the least bit interested. I feel like a kid sometimes, trying to get his attention to look at my new creation. All I'm doing is trying to streamline our processing, to get people in the habit of using email, to get people used to doing things "online" even in this small sense. Ugh.

Last night we moved, and we moved, and we moved some more. Me and my bud Tommy worked our asses off and we still have quite a bit of stuff left to go. Tonight the two main items are my desk (this is the biggie) and my chest of drawers. The latter isn't anything to worry about. The former is. I'm not sure how many pieces it breaks into, but I hope its a bunch. It's a corner desk and I'm not sure we can fit it through doorways successfully if we don't break it down substantially. Plus the fact we have to get it into the apartment, but thankfully no stair-climbing is necessary. We can go through the back, into the sliding glass door.

Got in the cable today. WE HAVE 1000 CHANNELS. I'm not making this fucking shit up folks. 1000. The real irony? I don't have Bravo or The Sundance Channel. Two that I specifically request they don't give us immediately. Fuck, for all I know we'll have to pay more. You have to pay out the ass to hear Redford go on about his festival, yet you get 24 hour NBA games automatically. I don't get it.

Well, off to see the wizard. Ericka found some great furniture today and early tomorrow morning I'm going to go give my stamp of approval. This should be interesting.

Peace

Evan Erwin from URL @ 5:31 PM

Good news/Bad news today.

First of all, the good news. We got our phone turned on early AND I'm getting cable in tomorrow afternoon. This is both cable modem and digital cable. Very exciting stuff. Of course, $100 a month isn't too hot, but that's okay. I still get my phat connection and Ericka gets her glass teat. Life is good in this regard.

The bad news is that I still have to find someone to help me move the entertainment center, my Big Ass Desk (tm) and my 32" television (God I wish I could say Widescreen TV here). I can secure a truck, I just need someone to help move the stuff. We also haven't found a suitable couch, but that's okay. It'll all work out. Ericka is going to look at some tomorrow (she's off), so that should be fun.

Anyway, work has passed me by again and the day is almost over. I have to get some stuff done and life is so hectic now I have little time to do more than breathe.

On the book front, I'm reading Elmore Leonard's latest, Tishomingo Blues. Oh, how I'd forgotten the genius of this man. His dialogue is absolutely electric. His plotting beautiful. I love this stuff! Now of course I'll have to go read Be Cool and get Pagan Babies as well. Wowza.

On the music front, the I Am Sam soundtrack still pervades (yeah, that's a word...I think) my winamp, though not all of the tracks (some of them are just annoying, such as Strawberry Fields). Also putting in some time listening to Hedwig some more. Brilliant stuff, I swear.

Here at work I'm thinking of a complete, web-based troubleshooting system. Not chat and all that, but just forms and form management, helpful documentation, etc etc. I think it would work out great. The boss is skeptical (aren't they always?), but I will prevail. This is the way to go, no doubt.

Well, enough odds and ends. Gotta work so I can leave early. Cya!

Evan Erwin from URL @ 4:54 PM

Here I am, very very tired. My bed has been moved, a box of books behind him just taunting me to try and pick it up. Maybe I should've put those in a smaller box.

You know what is probably the #1 missed item when moving in somewhere? Toilet paper. Ever try to wipe your ass with a McDonalds napkin? Not a fun experience.

Anyway, one night's work is almost complete. I think I'll top off with some herbal refreshment. But of course, I still have 5 boxes of shit to get out of the car first. If I top off, there will be no moving of the boxes. Let's just be honest :)

Emailed Ron with my problems with the script and uncharacteristically he hasn't emailed me back. This means he either thinks my comments are bullshit or they're so worthy of his time he's been thinking about it. Who knows, maybe I stumbled on something.

I have to leave my clothes here, I'll take a pair for tomorrow, get the rest of my garments later.

Dunno what else to say. Spending the night in my new place, it'll be an interesting experience. I won't have internet there until at least the end of the week, and maybe not even then. I'm thinking about trying some DSL. Maybe I can get it at a decent rate.

Well, shit. After checking up on DSL Reports it seems I can't get DSL. Of course, since I just got my new phone number, this might be the problem. I'll call my bellsouth rep to see about it.

Anyway, I'm off, it's been fun and all but I've still got quite a bit of work to do before the refreshment or the woman gets home. Peace my friends, peace.

Evan Erwin from URL @ 10:19 PM

I have an unbelievable amount of shit today, so I'll get right to it:

I signed up for a new phone number online. How fuckin cool is that? The bad part is it won't go into effect until April 8th (next Monday), but I can deal with that.

Also, I signed up for digital cable and internet access. These things are required for me to function correctly. Hopefully Charter Communications will call soon.

Paid the first month's rent and got the keys to the place. Me and Ericka went to look at it last night and the place looks neat. The only problem is that the bedrooms are downstairs, as are the washer/dryer hook ups. There is no entrance to the downstairs apart from the those aforementioned stairs. Getting my big-ass (tm) desk, not to mention the washer/dryer down those steps, will be a task unto itself.

My goal tonight is to move my bed and some other stuff over to the apartment. Ericka put a deposit on the electric and water, so those should be turned on Very Soon Now. I'll have the landlord come over and check it out.

Last night we went and pretty much bought most of Wal Mart. Over $350, I shit you not. We're talkin pots and pans to dish towels. Fuckin A, we even bought tire pressure gauges before it was over (I can't make this stuff up folks).

I'm falling behind on creative endeavors. Life has pretty much evolved around "Getting The Apartment Furnished Sometime This Lifetime" which is a drag. I'd love to register my complaints with the script, Hour of Chaos, but fuck, work has been even busier. Pressure from Ericka about sleeping at the apartment has reached fever pitch proportions and here I am, at a quarter till 5 in the afternoon, telling everyone else about things I'm supposed to be doing. Ugh.

I plan on writing DVDAngle and Filmtheat and telling both that I'll be gone for the next few days and will return soon, that is, before I get married at the courthouse on April 12th, and have something for both of them. At the very least a review or two for Filmthreat, which is the easier site to write for (DVDAngle has more layers, but that's fine with me).

Okay, time to go bug my father and best friend about helping me move shit. I've also got a trunk and a backseat STUFFED (and I mean stuffed as in I can't-open-the-door-without-shit-falling-out-of-it-stuffed) full of K-Mart and Wal-Mart shit. And we still need a couch, loveseat, recliner, lamps, life, cast iron skillet, etc. (yeah, there was a joke in there, and yeah, I know it wasn't that good. sue me)

gotta run, see ya.

Evan Erwin from URL @ 4:45 PM

Happy post-easter-april-fools. It's been a nutty little weekend.

First up, the apartment. I can't believe my good fortune, but it's here and I'm going to enjoy it. Talking to the manager (also known as a landlord, that wonderful Old English term I prefer) Marc on Saturday, I learned that we can just jump into another guy's lease at $420 a month and move in no problem. This is what we have done, as of today. This also means that we don't have to spend $250 on the deposit, leaving that money for other stuff including, but not limited to, furniture, appliances, etc etc. This is some great news and as of today I have a residence somewhere else. I'm very excited. Now we need to get the power and water turned on as well as phone, gas, cable, etc.

Now, the loan we got today was for $8500, and I requested $9k but Brent didn't bother. He said we were pushing our luck (there's that word again) and the $2500 should suit us fine. I wasn't about to argue with him. Also, we arranged to pay only $200 a month (all we could afford) and have a balloon payment of $1700 in 2006. This is all good, good stuff.

Jumping back a day, Easter was interesting with the dinner at Grandma's house and then we went to Big Lots to check out furniture. They had a nice couch but it was $400 and I have yet to find my uber-recliner (if I could do the cool two-dots-over-the-e-in-uber I would, but I don't know the tag and don't really give a shit). Otherwise we made the phat-ass hogies for dinner by getting gormet meats at the deli in Food Lion and watching The Sopranos Second Season.

Speaking of, two things of note: 1) I have two copies of The Sopranos Second Season. I have explained this in another post. However, I don't think I mentioned that the guy just sent me Oz: The Complete First Season and let me keep the Sopranos. So now I have two copies of the Sopranos for the price of one. Gotta love those Amazon "market place sellers." 2) Ericka digs The Sopranos. She said she hasn't watched it before because she doesn't want to jump in without knowing the characters and since I can give her the synops from the first season (which I also own), she's really liking it. We're about halfway through the second season. Just makes me yearn for Season Three but we now have Oz to keep up occupied for the next little while.

Liveupdate: Well Ericka just called saying she has found a coffee table but not other furniture. Everyone else is closed for today and to get anything of substance (ie, couch, chairs, etc) moved or purchased, you need to do it early. Hell, she didn't get out of the bed until 11am and then she came up here, didn't get back down to Morristown till 2pm. You do the math.

Got a little discouraged when I read the that Stephen King wrote four novels before Carrie. Maybe I was just being nieve but hey, at least I can call this a "training" novel. I'm still enjoying it but I haven't gotten to write in it in a few days. That will change tonight however. Until then I just have to keep up on mushing and trying to get the damned thing finished.

I'm supposed to be editing Hour of Chaos but with this new apartment stuff I don't know if I'll have time for that, let along my other responsibilities. Sheesh.

Well, all is well and good and I got my coworkers good today by telling them I was quitting my job. Gotta love April Fools. My first joke of the sort in at least four years.

Evan Erwin from URL @ 5:31 PM