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April 14th, 2009
07:01 am - Unemployment is a pain in the ass
And I'm not talking about the state of being unemployed. I'm talking about unemployment insurance, you know, that thing that every person who has been working is entitled to upon being laid off. Apparently I'm not as entitled as other people. I filed my claim at the beginning of February. There is a rule stating that you can't receive unemployment pay for weeks you have severance or other pay (unless it is a small enough amount). I found out that my vacation pay also counts against that. But, there is also a rule that if you are a student, you can still receive severance pay and unemployment. So, when I filed my claim and checked the little box to indicate that I am a student, all hell broke loose. First, the state sought the five most incompetent people on the planet. Then, they assigned them to my claim. The website said that they would be getting a letter to me indicating what I am eligible for soon. But when I went to fill out my weekly certification, it said there was still a problem, but promised that they were looking into it and would send me a letter.
The claim just languished, with no apparent attention, for weeks. Finally, after 3 weeks or so, I got a phone call from a lady who asked me a few questions I had already answered on the initial application, and then asked me to send proof of my student status. Fortunately I had been proactive and already had this. She told me she couldn't say from what date they would start paying me, but I would get a lump sum for any back pay. And I would be getting a letter soon. So I went over to Office Depot and faxed it in. And then I waited.
A couple weeks later I got two single payments, then the next week I got one payment. So I mistakenly thought they had started paying me. I was a little confused because this didn't seem to be enough back pay, and I wasn't sure what each payment was for. Then the payments just stopped. More weeks went by.
A couple weeks ago I went in to the Durham unemployment office and asked what was going on. They told me that there had been a problem with my claim but that it had been cleared and "sent up to the next level". She said I should be expecting payment within about two weeks.
Yesterday it was two weeks later and there was still no money in my account (barring a single $75 payment that has no explanation), so I went back in. And the guy accusingly told me I had answered on one of the weekly certifications that I was self-employed. I said I am, but that it's just a part-time job I've had forever, and that I have claimed everything I've earned from them. He seemed a little flummoxed by this, since there was nothing obviously wrong with it. He talked to some other guy who said to put my folder on his desk and he'd fix it. So apparently if I hadn't gone in, it would have just sat there FOREVER, because nobody was going to take the initiative to fix the unproblem. I mean, what was the problem? It was a routine question and I gave a routine answer. Does that mean everyone who takes the initiative to have a second job has their application stalled indefinitely? Does it mean that the next time that question about self-employment comes up, my claim will stall again? Oh, and there is also the issue of the single, mysterious $75 payment that appeared in my account from unemployment two Fridays ago. What does it MEAN? I still don't have the apocryphal letter, either.
If it weren't for my mom, I'd be homeless. Oh, and it turns out my aunt is also having to send my cousin money because he was laid off and unemployment is screwing him around, too. So far my brother and his wife are still employed...
Current Location: The Apartment
Current Mood:  irritated
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February 3rd, 2009
09:40 am - Marvin
Many of you know that my cat Marvin has been really sick for the past month. We've gone through numerous exams, a round of antibiotics, bloodwork, enemas, exploratory surgery, and finally 4 nights on fluids and new antibiotics at the vet. And he seems to finally be doing better. Most of last week I really thought he was going to die, so I am very happy. He's only 3.
But Marvin is not being a good boy about his stitches. He keeps licking at them and sometimes it sounds like he's actually pulling on the stitches themselves. This is obviously not good, and I had to put an e-collar on him. It is the most pitiful thing I've ever seen--he stumbles around, running into things, looking back at me like "Why?".
( See Marvin's pitiful face )
Current Location: The Apartment
Current Mood:  cheerful
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January 8th, 2009
10:29 am - New Experience
Before Monday I did not know what it was list to be laid off. Now I do.
Current Location: The Apartment
Current Mood: stressed
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October 26th, 2008
07:23 pm - Funny
Seems like the expectations may be a little high in this course:
Current Location: The Apartment
Current Mood: amused
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October 17th, 2008
12:30 pm - I made kool-aid in my toilet
So, normally my bimonthly water bill is $25. But I just got my most recent bill and it was for $82.70.
I called the water people and she told me it had actually gone up last month, so it was probably not a mistake. She told me to do a dye test, which is where the kool-aid comes in. You pour it in the tank and then see if the color leaks into the bowl. One of mine seems to leak, but I am pretty sure it's done it since I moved in, so that can't be it. You'd think my downstairs neighbor would have noticed a leak, or that one would be visible to me. But no. All of which means that there is some mysterious, well-hidden leak somewhere in my apartment. And I can't have maintenance come over to look for it until I get rid of some of the cats, since I've got 5 more than I'm supposed to have.
It sucks.
Current Location: Work
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October 6th, 2008
05:35 pm - Quinn adopted!
So I finally got Quinn adopted this past Saturday. I'm still working on Mr. White and Mr. Grey. Everyone loves them and they are a huge hit at every event I've taken them to, but nobody seems to be interested in actually adopting them.
Good news on Mojo: it turns out that the thing that we thought he had that would kill him soon, he doesn't actually have. Now they just need to have a surgeon look at his chest cavity to determine how bad that defect is. He may be given a clean bill of health after all.
Then, I took this fantastic picture of Mr. White, Mr. Grey, and Mojo, and I just had to share.
( Click here )
Current Location: The Apartment
Current Mood: busy
Current Music: The grinding air conditioner
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September 10th, 2008
03:20 pm - Down to Eight
So the adopters decided to take Emma back after all, and they came and got her last night. So now I'm down to just eight. It's amazing the difference it made--I was all freaked out by having ten, but eight seems manageable. I now know my limit.
Current Location: Work
Current Mood: pleased
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September 9th, 2008
11:04 am - Down to Nine
I took Quinn to Petco last night, for her to stay for a couple weeks. She was sad, but it brings me down to nine cats. Last night when I got home from work, 5 cats came to the door to greet me. Then when I was sitting down, three cats got in my lap at the same time. Things are slightly out of control.
Current Location: Work
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September 7th, 2008
08:36 pm - Back at the Ranch
So, quite a bit has happened in foster land since I last posted. I got all three of the kitties (Emma, Quinn and Fuji) adopted. Then I took in two sweet 5-year-old long-hair, neutered, front- and back-declawed cats. They are Mr. White and Mr. Grey, two distinguished gentlemen. They are both beautiful, especially Mr. White--he's all white. Then I took in a little black medium-hair kitten who is totally adorable. His name is Mojo, though I tend to just call him Kitten.
The first thing that went wrong was that Mr. Grey had obvious conjunctivitis, but the lady who picked them up from the shelter gave me a tube of Terramycin to treat it. I wasn't that great at doing this, though, and two days later his eyes were so gunked up that they were glued shut. I had to pick them open--then after that, I was good about applying it regularly. I knew he was in a bad way with an upper respiratory infection, so I got him started on an antibiotic. I took him to the vet to get tested for FIV/FeLV, and a vet tech told me that that was one sick cat. That day I figured out that I hadn't been refrigerating the antibiotic and it needed to be, so for two days I had treated him with bad medicine. I took him back to the vet and got another round of antibiotics. He hates taking medicine, and half the time I end up squirting it on the side of his face instead of in his mouth. It sucks.
The next thing that went wrong was that it turns out that Mojo has two congenital problems that will likely kill him very soon. He has this thing called pectus excavatum which makes his chest cavity smaller and can push his organs around in unnatural places, and potentially kill him. But it seems that his case is rather mild and survivable. But then he has this other problem--a hernia between something and something that is already pushing his organs around in bad places. His heart is apparently round, rather than being shaped like a heart. He was in quarantine until yesterday and has turned out to be the worst underfoot cat I've ever had. I have unintentionally kicked him 10 times already, because he goes and sits on my foot while I'm walking. Someone is currently looking for a placement for him. We want him to be able to live out his short life in comfort and with attention.
Then the third thing that went wrong was that I heard yesterday morning from the guy that adopted Quinn and Emma that they had decided they needed to return both of them. They loved them, but one of their original cats just wasn't taking to the new batch. I went and picked them up today. It was obvious that they were really upset. And now it sounds like he's reconsidering, and may take Emma back. Quinn was the one that really antagonized their other cat. Emma just stayed out of her way.
Now I have 10 (TEN!) cats in my house. They're just everywhere.
Current Location: The Apartment
Current Mood:  gloomy
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July 23rd, 2008
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