25 posts tagged “qotd”
What won't you miss about 2007?
Submitted by uncagedbird.
- I definitely won't miss living in Phoenix. It's insanely hot here during the summer, it's huge and spread out, and in traffic it can take 2 or more hours just to get across town. ACROSS A SINGLE CITY! That's ridiculous!
- I won't miss my job. I work in a cubicle and I answer calls all day long for investors and financial advisers. It's a ridiculously stressful job; people call in and yell at you for absolutely not reason. Also, even if the caller is completely satisfied with your service - beyond satisfied and jokes around with you on the phone - you can still "fail" your calls because they grade on EVERY SINGLE LITTLE DETAIL.
- I won't miss the traffic. People here can't drive. Apparently, merging on to the freeway doesn't just involve the people GETTING ON THE FREEWAY, it involves everyone else driving and following speeding laws. Even people in the fast lane or the carpool lane must slow down because, Oh God!, there are cars getting on the freeway once every mile. ...Absolutely ridiculous.
- I won't miss the lack of family owned and operated businesses. Sure, there are some here and there, but they're so damn hard to find and when you do, it's sometimes not even worth it. Everything else is a chain restaurant.
- I won't miss... being overweight, moody, and unhappy.
- I won't miss being in debt and never having enough to make a difference on payments.
Hopefully the new year brings a solution to all of these problems. The problems that revolve around Phoenix are being solved here pretty soon - last minute decision to move back to my hometown and in with my parents. This will also help with the debt problem, since the whole reason behind it is to not have rent and all of those other bills that come with renting a place... all of that money can just be thrown at the debt.
I have hopes for 2008.
What is the best present you have ever given?
Submitted by quornflour.
This is kind of a difficult question. I don't really think the "best" present can be decided by the person that gave it - can it be judged by how much you spent on it? How lavish the appearance? How useful, how decorative, how much thought you put into deciding what to get?
You can think that the present you've given to someone is an awesome gift, but I think the deciding factor should be the reaction you get back from the person that received it.
Looking at it that way, I'd have to say there are two gifts that I've given that really stand out.
Firstly, I took my boyfriend to a surprise concert that he had no idea about for a belated birthday present. I paid for the gas to drive up there, the whole day if we spent money, and on the tickets. It was a 3 Doors Down concert in Lake Tahoe, and it was a small concert room so the tickets weren't cheap. I played it off like we were going to go see his family for a day, hang out on the beach, have dinner and then come home - he'd been talking about going to Lake Tahoe since we started dating and I finally just said, "Hey, let's go!"
We spent the day with his family playing video games, going to the beach, and ended up having a small dinner there. Then we left and by then I finally just told him where we were going, but I waited until we reached the hotel/casino it was at.
He loved it. The concert was awesome, the day spent with his family was fun - it was really just a perfect day.
The other present I really think turned out awesomely was the snowboard that I bought for him later last year for Christmas. It was a little under $500, so it was the most expensive gift I've ever given, and he hadn't had a snowboard since he broke his board when he broke his foot.
We have yet to go snowboarding with it because we moved to Phoenix immediately after Christmas, but eventually the snowboard will get some good use on it, and we'll both get back into snowboarding.
Did you shop for great deals on Black Friday or Cyber Monday? Or did you observe Buy Nothing Day?
I took advantage of ONE sale that day, and one sale only: 80G iPod for only $247. I believe it's still on sale for that price and will likely continue to be for a while because of the holiday season, but I wanted to make sure I got one while they were in stock.
I've wanted one for over three years now, so it's about darn time I bought one for myself. And really, I did buy it for myself, but my boyfriend is going to be paying me back for it. He didn't have the money for it now while it's on sale and in stock, but he was going to get me one for Christmas - so I kind of ruined that idea, didn't I?
Other than that, I didn't buy anything; I went shopping the next day with a friend just for some candles and an iPod cover, but that's it.
Unfortunately, I don't have money available to really spend on Christmas presents this year - I shouldn't have even gotten the iPod, but life goes on.
What did you do as a child that you feel guilty about even to this day?
As a child (well, a pre-teen and then teenaged kid) my father and I did not get along. Shortly after I started developing my own thoughts, I went from a "daddy's girl" to a young woman that literally butted heads with her dad on a daily basis. It didn't matter if it was in reference to going out with friends, or getting my ears pierced - we didn't agree on anything, and I always held the idea that he was just too old to understand.
To this day, I still think that his perspective on things might be a little too old fashioned to have dictated my decisions the way he did. Sure, as a father, he has a right to guide and help decide (well, to a certain age he has the right to actually decide for me, legally); however, my parents raised me to be very independent. So for them to have raised me that way - to make my own decisions and voice my opinion - and then my dad to turn around and dictate my life and decisions (take into consideration, these are situations where my mom was okay with it, and she's significantly younger than my dad. that's where my belief that he was just far too old fashioned came into play) wasn't okay with me.
And I made sure he knew that wasn't okay with me. I usually did whatever I wanted anyway. Sure, this makes me sound like a rebellious little turd, but these were a few select occasions that were large matters in my mind.
For example: Getting my ears pierced when I was a child. My mom okay'd it, my dad said it was the only piercing I was allowed to have until I was 18 and out from under his roof. When I was later 13 or 14, I found that rule to be ridiculous, and pierced a second hole into my ears on my own with a safety pin. I hid the double piercing from him for months, and when he finally found out, s--- hit the fan.
Along the same lines, I got my belly button pierced 3 months prior to turning 18. My mom okay'd it, had no problem with it, and my dad would have never agreed to it. His view on the matter of piercings and tattoos is that the "wrong crowd" gets those sorts of things done, and I couldn't do anything like that.
In my eyes, that is an ignorant stand point on the issue, and I chose to get piercings as well as my first tattoo (after I turned 18; but he still didn't approve and didn't speak to me for months after he found out about it) regardless of his approval or opinion.
ANYWAY. When it all boiled down to it, my father and I had huge problems in communication and in our father-daughter relationship throughout my childhood... and I told him that I hated him. Repeatedly. I don't think a week would go by without us literally screaming at each other, him busting my door down to follow me into my room and yell at me even more. His face would be red and he'd be out of breath, and I would tell him, "I HATE YOU". And really, I did. I hated his opinions and his way of dealing with my disagreement; I hated his dictatorship over my life; I hated him.
Now our relationship is much smoother. I love my dad. I wish I could take back the many times we exchanged such harsh words; it's heartbreaking to think of. We could have had so many more years with the friendship we have now... and instead, we missed out on so much. Even now we butt heads on some issues - tattoos, piercings, and life decisions are still topics we don't agree upon. However, it's mostly reached the point where he recognizes they're my decisions to make, and he's there for me no matter what the outcome is.
As far as tattoos or piercings that're possible in the future, I hope he's reached an understanding that tattoos and piercings do not change who I am as a person. They're my personal preference for whether or not I want them on my body, and although they used to stand for rough necks or difficult crowds in his "day and age", they do not automatically mean I'm a horrible person, or I'm going to drugs, or I'm going to make poor life choices.
Al Gore was recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work raising awareness on global warming. Who would you award a Nobel Peace Prize to?
I would just like to say that a Nobel Peace Prize being given for global warming isn't very peace-specific and is pretty silly.
That's all I have to say on it, unfortunately. It makes me chuckle. Sorry everyone for the bland response!
Do professional athletes make too much money, or do they deserve every penny? Why?
Personally, I think they get paid way too much. I'm not really a huge sports fan, but I don't hate sports. I enjoy sports to a degree. I have my favorite baseball and football teams (which are such losers for years now, I'm sad that I ended up falling for such losing teams, lol), and I'll watch them and, if given the chance, actually go to a live game. But I'm not following their every move.
With that said, this is just based on my knowledge that they make buttloads of cash. They're already better off than many other people in the world because they're physical (unless they're the fat athletes that're just on the field to throw their mass at people), so they're benefiting from their job that way. They get paid a TON of money, and sure, they should get paid a lot due to physical activity, but not as much as they do. Benefits should cover all and any injuries, sure; that I can understand.
And to think... there are some of these athletes out there that actually complain about not making enough. Shut up.
What's the best thing you ever bought off of Ebay or Craigslist?
Furniture in general, and not off of eBay, but Craigslist. I prefer Craigslist because personally, if I get my heart stuck on something and want to buy it, I don't want to bid repeatedly and stalk the site that it's on in order to win my prize. I just want to go buy it.
Also, I find it easier to purchase through Craigslist because I often go check out the furniture or object before I buy it. I don't really think that's as easily done with eBay, which kind of makes it hard to determine whether or not it's junk.
When I started college, I only had a tiny table for my kitchen with stools that tucked in underneath it, a computer desk, a TV stand, and two bookshelves. Well, I also had a TV and computer too, but those are electronics, not furniture.
I also got an Ikea couch (I hate Ikea now, but hey, for college it was lightweight, easy to move since I was living alone, and it fit into my tiny 1-bedroom San Francisco apartment) that the previous owner DELIVERED to me and helped me move up my three floors of stairs for only $100
What's the current hottest restaurant in your city? Have you tried it out yet?
I'm honestly not aware of what the "hottest" restaurant is in Phoenix. Aside from lacking funds to try everything and anything for restaurants, I don't pay attention to the popular places. In my experience, the restaurants that are considered popular, posh locations to visit - or are advertised as such - lose their quality and the service is horrendous.
My boyfriend and I tried a sushi restaurant up in the Scottsdale area. Supposedly, it was going to be really good with unique rolls. The rolls were unique, yes, but the service was attroceous and the hostesses were just young women with dyed hair and little clothing. It was a trendy sushi spot, and I don't eat sushi to be part of the trendy crowd. I eat sushi (or any other food, for that matter) because it's GOOD food! I don't go to a restaurant to be seen there.
So pretty much, I avoid the "hot" restaurants and try to find something for myself. When we find our own special little spots, they mean more, anyway.
What would you attempt to do if you knew you could never fail?
Submitted by BeckyPink.
If I knew I couldn't fail? If I knew it would succeed and be profitable and have an enormous gain? If I knew exactly how to do it and run it and keep it moving? If there was absolutely no chance of failure anywhere in the situation?
Plain and simple: I'd open up a restaurant.
It would be my small little italian/sicilian restaurant with a bakery/pastry shop on the side. I LOVE italian food, I'd have the restaurant have fresh bread that was made THERE served with every meal and sold in the bakery. I'd make pastries and pies, and probably some quick lunch ideas for people that just want to stop in and grab a sandwich or panini and something to run with.
That's what I would do if there was no chance of failure. Sure, I don't have the money, but if I knew I wouldn't fail??? I'd do it anyway and take out he loans, knowing that the restaurant would prosper and repay the loans within a decent amount of time.
Mmm..homemade lasagne, as well as grilled vegetable lasagne with whole wheat pasta and low fat/low sodium sauce etc. I'd want to find some healthier ways to indulge in italian food for people watching what they eat, since eating out can be the exact opposite of healthy in most cases.
I don't really want to continue daydreaming about it, but that's what I would do: Open up my restaurant.
What do you have, what do you need and what do you want?
Submitted by Miss Scotch.
- I have: A boyfriend that I'm absolutely in love with, even through rough times, unemployment, and some arguments. I have a wonderfully fat kitty (well, her belly is more droopy/saggy than it is round, but she still looks fat with it!), a family I miss terribly, and a lot of people that care about me and that I care about. I have quite a bit of debt due to our unemployment period earlier this year, but I also have faith that we'll stick together and pay it off. I also have, and am very thankful for, a job that currently pays almost enough to cover all of our bills on my own should anything happen (which is just did - Lorean was let go yesterday, which I'll update about later); sure, I'm going to be completely broke after paying for gas and whatnot, but if I NEED to I can cover everything. wow, that was relatively positive for me lately!
- I need: A good dental plan that would cover almost all of my surgery next week, but realistically that's not going to happen. So what I REALLY need is to get these teeth carved out of my head. I need to see a doctor sometime soon - hopefully my job hires me from my temp position to a permanent one so I'll get benefits finally - to go speak to about my health; my weight, my dizzy spells, etc. I need to keep working out each night and keep my attitude up about it, which is so much harder than it sounds. I need to drop back down to at least 135 to be okay looking at myself in the mirror, which is pretty sad..but hey, that's how self confidence works.
- I want: A few hundred bucks to go shopping. I really should take some money and go buy new clothes for myself, but I don't like the style right now and the things I DO like I won't spend the money on. I guess I see the money going better toward bills or something other than myself. I want to be able to land a great cooking job someplace; if we end up moving to San Diego for his Mercedes-Benz job offer, so be it... if we move back to Reno and he finds a job there, fine. But I WANT a job doing what I love. I want to be cooking, making cakes, baking. I also want to go grocery shopping (in a perfect world, I'd have a much larger kitchen for all of this crap) and buy POUNDS and POUNDS of flour, sugar, and other baking goods and just have at it with the stuff. Just bake up a STORM! Frost up some cakes like it's going out of style. Take off into a baking storm, like a high school girl's inabitions on prom night. Just BAKE THE HELL OUT OF IT!
That's what I have, that's what I need, and that's what I flat out want. I have more than I specified, but those are just the things off of the top of my head that I'm REALLY thankful for. :-)
