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***I hope you brought a lunch***

Well, it's been an interesting week...and it's only Tuesday, y'all! Let's do this thing.

Jobby Job - Well, I kept this under wraps, but I had a job interview on Friday afternoon. I was scheduled to interview with 5 people (5!) all at once for a position that was closer to home, better pay, a lot less stressful, better hours, not so much traveling around, etc. Basically, it was just the kind of job a fella like me would like. I was the last interview on Friday, so I thought Dang...these people are going to want to get outta here. I'm at SUCH a disadvantage. It was raining. My pants got wet (and not from Egg Drop Soup, thank you) and I was tired from the day. It just wasn't a good set-up. I got there and they fired all kinds of questions at me and like someone who REALLY wanted a new job, I wound up and cracked off a pretty decent answer for all of them. I left feeling pretty good about the whole thing, but then I (of course) started 2nd guessing myself.

Why did I say THAT?
What did so-and-so mean when she asked me about my future with the company?
Did I sound like a braggart and a jerk?
Was my handshake weak?
Why didn't I get that degree?

This went on for the entire weekend. Despite that, I started (in my head) planning on how I was going to break the news to my boss about my new job (which I didn't have) and how awesome it was going to be to NOT have to travel waaaay up north for weeks at a time to train miserable nurses and techs on a system they probably don't care about. I do this everytime. I imagine life in my new job and I get all happy and what-not only to get the crushing news a few weeks later that I'm no good or whatever.

Of course, I wanted to know NOW if I got the job. The worst part? I made up a nice list of references before the interview and only when I got back home did I realize I'd forgotten to offer them. I was screwed.

Cut to Monday afternoon. I'm enjoying lunch at, you guessed it, Chipotle with some co-workers. You know one of them. He was the dude in the Crazy Monday video. You remember the guy. Anyway, we were talking and I said: "I just want to know NOW if I got it, you know? Is that so much to ask?"

I recounted how I got my current job. It was end of August and I got an interview here in the morning. What sucked was that it fell on the day Laura and I and her family were going to go to the State Fair (the Great Minnesota Get-Together). So, I went to the interview, thought I did okay, and went to the fair. I got a call on my cell phone (while in the Midway) and was offered the job. That was like a 2 hour turnaround!

Anyway, I thought it'd be nice to get something like that going, so when I got back to work I checked my e-mail for a nugget. Nothing. I drummed my fingers. I checked Craigslist for jobs. Nothing good. Not thinking I'd hear anything so soon, I dialed up my voicemail at home.

"You have...1 new message."

There's nothing quite like having that crabby electronic lady tell you you've got a message waiting. When you don't have one, it's like she gets all ugly about it. "YOU HAVE NO MESSAGES." Fine lady, be that way.

But yesterday...I had a message, y'all.

I punched in the codes and listened. It was the head-honcho lady for the department where I'd interviewed. She sounded nice n' friendly and wanted me to give her a call back. She ended the message by saying: "I look forward to talking to you."

I freaked. Could this be good news? I played it again, listening for tone and what-not. Would someone really be looking forward to talking to me if she wanted to tell me I didn't get the job? Could this woman be that cruel? I asked my co-workers. I listened to it again. I had them listen to it. I tried not to soil myself (and succeeded).

I called her back. Long story short? She said both groups that were looking for someone were BLOWN AWAY (huh? really?) by me in the interview. She offered me the job and gave me my choice of which specialty area I wanted to choose from.

"Really?" I asked. "I can pick?"

I had my choice between the Medicine Specialty group or the Cardiology/Pulmonary group. I thought they'd just put me where they thought I'd be best, but I guess they both wanted me, so it was up to me to decide. Since I like hearts n' stuff, I picked Cardiology/Pulmonary. The big boss lady said those two Directors will be thrilled and that's it. I've got a new job, starting on May 5th!

Crazy!

Lappity Lappity - I sort of anticipated that I was going to have to stay up north a bunch this summer for my (old) job, so I decided I wanted to be more productive whilst on the road. In the past, I would drag an Xbox or a Playstation 2 (sometimes both) with me and when I was done teaching my classes, I would hole up like a hermit in my hotel room and just play video games. Seriously. Like from 4pm - midnight. Yes. Time well spent.

Since I've decided THIS IS THE YEAR THINGS HAPPEN, I didn't want to do that. I've got a pretty big writing to-do list, so I decided I needed to get a laptop. Nothing too fancy, just something where I can put words on a screen...maybe do a little with the world wide community of the internets...perhaps burn a dvd or two...and, all right, edit a video or what not.

So, anyway, I got one. I almost wonder what's wrong with it since I got such a good deal. It's got a 17" widescreen display, CD/DVD burner, a built in webcam (that I don't know what I'll use it for) and all kinds of other crap. It's thin, lightweight and is quicker than brown chocolate powder you stir in milk.

But yeah! I'm portable, baby! I know I'm like 10 years behind the times and all my writer pals are like...

Yeah, great TKT. Welcome to 2008!

But it'll be great. I can go into coffee shops and fire up my laptop (to be named later) sit there until the stink of coffee makes me sick and then go out to another place where I can just sit and type to my heart's content! I can blog from the road! I can check my e-mail just about everywhere. I CAN DO STUFF.

Beddy Bed - Man, this post is getting out of hand. Feel free to check out when I lose you. My feelings won't be hurt. Anyway, Travis go an upgraded bed yesterday. He was rockin' the toddler bed for a little over a year and we decided it was time to get him a bed big enough for us to lie in as well. So, when we got his crib all those years back (3) we got one of those Transformer beds. You know, you can convert it from a crib (insert Transformers sound effect here) into...a FULL SIZE bed.

Full size? For our little Travis?

Yes. He's skipped past the Twin Size bed (which I had until I was 16 and old enough to buy myself a futon) right to the deluxe accomodations a Full size provides.

I converted the crib to the bed (no easy task) and delivery of his new mattress and box spring came last night while I was working out at the club. I came home all sweaty and a bit stinky and he was THRILLED!

"Dad! Dad!" I could hear him drop his Hot Wheels cars and come running over. "I got my big boy bed! Come see! Come see!"

I followed him to his room and lo and behold, there it was. Laura wasted no time in making it up and putting his brand-spanking-new Cars quilt on it. I imagined little Travis sleeping in that enormous bed and I have to admit I got a little misty.

He tried to climb in it and couldn't. The bed was too high and he was a bit too short.

Last night when I got back from another (suicide attempt!) EMT call, I went into his room and lay with him a little bit. He said he was scared of his new 'big boy' bed and that he wanted to sleep in Mom and Dad's bed. I told him he didn't need to. He was a big kid now and big kids slept in their own beds. He told me he had bad dreams. I reminded him that dreams were just pretend things that happened in his head and that he couldn't get hurt by bad dreams.

"Besides, I'm right downstairs under your room listening for you." (That's where the Nerdery is, where I spend my free time in the evening, crafting those book things I mess around with.)

He looked at me like he didn't know I was right below him.

"I also check on you a bunch of times at night to see if you're okay," I told him.

"You do?"

"Absolutely," I said. "I want to make sure my little guy is doing okay."

I then told him about how I came in a couple nights ago and how he was asleep and his arms were up like he was on a rollercoaster.

"Like this?" He put his arms up over his head and opened his mouth.

"Exactly," I said. "Another time, you were buried under deedees (his word for blankets). I had to lift them up to see if you were in there."

"I was?"

"Yep. So go to sleep, Buddy. You'll be okay."

He smiled and closed his eyes. I gave him a kiss on his crazy little head and told him I loved him. As I walked away, he sat up.

"Dad!"

"Yeah?" I turned around, half-expecting him to ask again to sleep in our bed. Not this time.

"I love you, too." He then promptly laid down and dropped off to sleep.

Seriously? Kids rock. Well, at least mine does.