John’s Musings

It’s been about 8 months since I’ve posted last. I’ve missed this outlet but never could decide on what new level I should take my rantings to. I do plan to stop bitching and whining so much and would like to begin posting in a way that will hopefully benefit my ~5 faithful readers. I also plan on changing domain names soon. I’ll be sure to inform you as to what the latest and greatest name and domain will be once I work it out.

Anyhow, a brief update is due.

I got a decent job last April at a local home-construction firm. I got so tired of the futile and stressful environment I was dealing with at the supermarket that I started looking around for a different job. While volunteering with Habitat for Humanity a number of months earlier, I had made the acquaintance of a foreman who had previously worked at my current employer. He suggested that I apply there if interested in a construction job. I applied then and was turned down due to lack of need. However, upon applying last year, I was interviewed on the spot and hired the very next day. I then tried to work full-time with the homebuilder and part-time at Kroger but that naturally left me feeling even more stressed and tired. So I quit Kroger, although I found it necessary at the time to burn the bridge with my download free mp3 ringtones tv ringtones ringtones for cingular phone 24 tv show ringtones download free nextel ringtones polyphonic ringtones for sony ericsson free real ringtones verizon free us cellular audiovox ringtones virgin mobile ringtones nextel real music ringtones boost free ringtones get free ringtones free ringtones tracfone metro pcs phone ringtones download ringtones motorola free mobile ringtones 1600 nokia ringtones free downloadable ringtones free ringtones for verizon phone free sprint cell phone ringtonesoptical communication Kroger supervisor by blowing the whistle free motorola v3 ringtonesfree mobile motorola ringtones t,free mobile ringtones motorola,free mobile motorola ringtonescell free phone ringtones wallpaperericsson polyphonic ringtones sonydownload mosquito ringtonesinfo personal polyphonic remember ringtones voice,info personal polyphonic remember ringtones wwe,info personal polyphonic remember ringtonesverizon motorola ringtones,verizon ringtones,verizon lg ringtonesfree info personal remember ringtones true,free info personal remember ringtones,free info personal remember ringtones usfree maker ringtones softwarefree mp3 ringtones,mp3 ringtones for treo 650 free,free mobile phone mp3 ringtonescricket free kyocera ringtonesblackberry free mp3 ringtonescell phone prepaid ringtonesfree funny ringtonesкомпютри втора употребаfree ringtones via sms,free sms mobile ringtones,free sms ringtonescell download free phone ringtones verizon,cell download free phone ringtones verizon wireless,download free ringtones cell phonetv ringtones,ringtones from tv show 24,tv and movie ringtonesfree download mobile ringtones,download free ringtones for virgin mobile phone,download free mobile ringtones themeinfo nextel personal remember ringtonesringtones for verizon wireless phone,ringtones for prepaid verizon wireless phonefree motorola bollywood ringtones,free latest bollywood ringtones,bollywood free ringtonescellular customer free ringtones usdownloadable free metro pcs ringtones,free metro pcs ringtones,free nokia ringtones for metro pcsinternet loan payday,business internet loan payday start,internet payday loan lawfax instant loan no paydayinfo loan message payday postonline no fax payday loanfax loan payday,credit fax loan no no payday,fax hassle loan no no paydaypayday loan ukcash advance payday loanquick payday cash advance,cash advance till payday,payday cash advanceeasy approval payday loan,quick easy payday loan,easy loan paydayinstant faxless payday loanpayday loan no faxing requiredapproval guaranteed loan paydaygeorgia in loan paydayadvance cash loan? payday ?no faxing payday loanonline casinoyahoo payday loanfree loan payday,interest free payday loan,hassle free payday loanadvance cash loan payday quickonline payday loan instant approvalloan payday yahoopayday loan in toronto,loan payday toronto,payday loan torontoapplication loan online payday1000 loan payday,payday loan 1000,payday loan 1000 dollarsavings account payday loanbank loan no payday statementfaxless payday loanfast loan payday,payday loan,cheap loan payday on something she was doing that really wasn’t a big deal. That is definitely something I wish I never did.

The construction job has been great. I was hired in with Trent, a national guardsman who quickly became a very good buddy of mine. We’ve had some crazy adventures both at work and at various college towns. He’s been deployed to Iraq since December and work has been rather monotonous ever since.

I’ve been going to school this semester and have been working hard at getting accepted into Purdue this fall. I’m thinking about pursuing a degree in Civil Engineering, but that could easily change.

It’s getting late and there’s always more homework to do. I do plan on regularly updating this blog with some meaningful content so please keep coming back.

I am thrilled.

Yesterday I got a text message informing me that Dream Theater tickets at a venue near me were about to go on sale. I rushed to my computer to check it out. Much to my dismay, the cheaper tickets would place me several sections back from the stage. Upon further research, I discovered that I would have to buy a VIP pass to be within the first 10 rows.

I debated it overnight, and decided to buy a gold VIP pass. I went to Ticketmaster.com and searched for a gold VIP ticket. The seating arrangement found for me couldn’t be any better. It placed me in row D (fourth from the front) of the first section, which was located stage left. That couldn’t have been any better, as the seat would be right in front of where John Petrucci plays. From a musical perspective, I idolize the man and am fascinated by his skill.

After a few more moments of deliberation, I bought the ticket. It set me back $150, but hey, it’s an opportunity that I’ve been wanting to experience for a while.

I’m having trouble with Washington Mutual. Again.

About a month ago I called WaMu and told them I’d like for them to close my account and cut me a check for my current balance. They informed me that I would have to bring my account balance to $0.00 before they could close it. No problem. I whipped out my debit card and debited the remaining balance from my account. I then called Washington Mutual and asked them to close my account. They informed me that they would do so.

I then assumed that they would be true to their word. However, I would find out that that would not be the case. Washington Mutual owed me $0.03 interest, and since I was closing my account, they deposited the interest into my checking account. Since my account was then at $0.03, WaMu decided that they couldn’t close it. They did not inform me of this, so I was unaware that they decided to keep my account open.

About a week ago a charity that I support deducted $32.00 from my savings account. WaMu allowed this transfer to go through and then charged me a $32.00 overdraft fee. I was livid when I got the text message alert that informed me that my account had reached a negative balance. I logged into my account and discovered that I now owed WaMu $63.97 ($32.00 + $32.00 - $0.03).

I called WaMu and calmly explained to them that if they had closed my account like I requested, then this wouldn’t have happened. I had met their requirements, as I had brought my account balance to $0.00. They informed me that since they owed me $0.03, they could not close my account. I asked why they didn’t either inform me of this or cut me a check for $0.03. The representative just told me that I owed them the full amount. Then she asked me in a sickly-sweet voice if there was anything else she could do for me.

My question is, do I owe WaMu the full amount, $32.00 for the donation, or nothing at all?

One of the commonly-seen aspects of basic cable is the presence of one or even several public-access channels. Due to the 1984 Cable Franchise Policy and Communications Act, US cable companies are required to fund local organizations to provide training and access to media technology and cable distribution on the local cable systems. Many times these channels provide an important service to citizens. These channels provide local governments with a medium that allows them to broadcast local meetings and other similar functions. These meetings are about as popular with the under-90 crowd as CSPAN-2 is, but they do serve their purpose. However, some of the content that appears on public-access could be considered some of the worst possible content that the human mind can conjure.

Point in case. I was watching television until the wee hours of the morning. Due to my rather drowsy state, I would land on a channel and watch it despite its content. One of these channels happened to be Fort Wayne Access. The “show” consisted of a darkly-lit set with a brick wall background. The “hosts” were a 15-year-old male and an 18-year-old female. Both were dressed in punk/goth clothes. The male “host” sounded quite gay, as he mostlikely had multiple oral piercings that gave him a quite effeminate lisp. Both of the “hosts” were not well-spoken nor intelligent. Some of their conversations caused me to enter a state of great distress and agony.

“Um, yeah, so, what kind of clothes do you wear”, asked the obviously unintelligent female.
“I, uh, wear punk clothes, because I want to be different”, returned the microscopically marginally smarter co-host.
“What is punk clothes?”
“Black clothes, baggy, you know”
“Faded with holes in them”
“No, that would be grunge”
“Nirvana is a grunge band, right?”
“Uh, yeah”
“So, what’s the difference between a rock band show and a punk band show?”
“Well, rock bands have lots of, uh, strobe lights and colored lights. Punk bands have a lot of red lights”
“What kind of lights do punk bands have?”
“Mainly strobe lights”
“So no flashing lights?”

It was like I was staring at a horrible car accident. You are shocked by it, yet can’t look away. I felt I was getting more stupid as the horrible excuse of as show progressed. I think the thing that bothered me most was how stupid these “hosts” were. Do the powers that be at Fort Wayne Access screen their hosts before they film them? Do they have to meet a retard quota when they find their hosts?

Maybe I shouldn’t get so worked up over such matters.

I believe I’ve previously established the following unfortunate fact: Modern society has generally lowered its standards when it comes to art. I personally see film making as a form of art; therefore I hold the films I watch up to high standards. However, most of the movies that I end up seeing are barely to be even considered as art, at least in my opinion.

Point in case: The movie entitled “Disturbia”. Most of my peers believe this movie to be a very fine movie. I have acquaintances who have described this movie as an awesome movie that they would see again. It even received a thumbs up from Roeper.

However, I failed to see the reason behind the rave reviews. Essentially, this movie is mainly Disney fluff full of product placements.

The idea behind the story is good. However, that’s where the movie falls flat. The movie starts out with a boy’s father dying in an accident that looks quite suspicious. He punches his teacher a few months later and is sentenced to 3 months of house arrest. Due to his boredom, our “hero” resorts to voyeurism, a choice that is obviously shown to the movie-watchers in a favorable light. Our “hero” even watches a girl undress in her bedroom. Our “hero” sees that as acceptable, yet rats out the neighbor boys for watching porn in their bedroom.

The movie continued on in a typical fashion. More Disney fluff and out of place brand endorsements. The end of the movie was approaching.

10 minutes of suspenseful and gory action then followed.

And that was pretty much it. I’d advise you no to watch it.

It’s been a month since I’ve posted. Quite a bit has happened during this past month.

I started looking for work about three weeks ago. One day I grabbed an application from Cheddar’s, a local restaurant. On my way home, a random idea struck me. The idea was to apply again at a local homebuilding company. I had applied there last May, yet failed to get a job. I drove out of the way so I could swing by this business and pick up an application. I knew it was a long shot, but thought it would be worth a try. I walked in, introduced myself, and asked for an application. I was then told to wait for a moment. The Service Department manager then walked out and interviewed me on the spot. Apparently they had just lost a worker, and needed a replacement.

Ultimately, I got the job. It’s a great job that pays more and has less stress than Kroger does.

I put in my two weeks at Kroger and worked about 6 accounting shifts, many of them on the same day as my construction shift. On the last day at Kroger, I ran into an issue with my direct supervisor, an issue that forced me to quit on the spot. It was not the way I wished for my last day to pass, but I really don’t mind. I’m just glad that Kroger is behind me forever.

I’m clueless right now. I’m lacking direction. I have not an idea as to what I’m going to do with my life.

About a week ago I went to my school’s student services department and presented them with my predicament. I told them that CIS was not a field that I was interested in. I was earning B’s and C’s in my classes and completely lacked enthusiasm. I then asked the student advisor as to what I should do. Upon looking up my file, she informed me that I was officially no longer a student of Ivy Tech, as I neglected to pay. This was not intentional, as I had set up a student loan account and had filed the paperwork for a loan with a local bank. However, no one called me and I quickly forgot all about it, thus missing the deadline. I can describe my feeling at that point as 50% relief and 50% dread, as I realized that I was losing time. I also realized that one of my uncles was going to kick my ass for this oversight. I’m still figuring out how I’ll break this to him. However, I managed to avoid the tuition fees.

I continued to work in accounting at Kroger. This week we’ve been hit with a dreaded 10 for $10 sale plus an insane 4-day sale. There have been few times that I’ve experienced the type of stress that I dealt with during those 4 days. I dealt with the stress of customers, pissed-off managers, and self-righteous, hypocritical co-workers, the last factor being the one that caused me the most stress and frustration.

Today I decided that I had enough. I requested that I only work 24 hours per week, the first step in leaving this job. I’m going to apply at various construction businesses starting tomorrow, and hope obtain a job in that field. Since construction is the field I’m interested in currently, I’d like to give it a try and see if it’s something I’d like to pursue on a more professional level.

I know I’m letting some people down and pissing others off my my decision, but it stands. I can’t focus on schoolwork right now. I don’t know what field I wish to pursue. I’m just going to work for a while until I figure this out.

Several months ago I was watching prime-time television. While flipping through channels I saw a commercial for a bank called Washington Mutual, or otherwise known as WaMu. This bank advertised itself as being better, non-typical, and unlike any other bank that’s out there.

Being the easily influenced individual that I am, I signed up with WaMu. I should have first noticed that WaMu doesn’t have much of a presence east of the Mississippi. Essentially, I would only have online access to my accounts, with no bank that I could make a deposit or withdrawal at. However, the promise of a 5% savings account and unlimited checks (which I had no need for) lured me in.

At first, WaMu seemed like a great bank. They had good customer service and had a few tools, although their selection was rather limited, as they don’t support BillPay and other amenities that most banks offer.

However, after a short period of time, I started to realize that WaMu was indeed a bank.

And banks tend to rape me.

First it was the “Excess Activity Fee” that was appended to my savings account if I made more than four withdrawals per month from it. Each time I made a withdrawal I got charged $3.

Then it was the “Non-Sufficient Funds” fee that was charged when the bank denied a transfer request because of NSF. Now, WaMu didn’t actually let the transfer go through, pay for the transfer, let my account obtain a negative balance, and then charge a fee. No, WaMu denied the transfer and then charged me $32.

Then it was the bogus debit transaction that was posted to my account. It was very similar in description to the purchases I had made at Kroger, with the word “Florida” placed right before the regular debit description. This charge was reversed a week later.

However, the last straw occurred yesterday. I was going to buy some food at Kroger last night and thought to check my checking account balance before I would make my purchase. I performed a balance inquiry at the ATM at work. I got a balance and made my purchase accordingly.

However, upon viewing my account history this morning, I saw this:

*ATM BALANCE INQUIRY FEE - DOMESTIC
$7.00

I’m already in the process of transferring my direct deposit to my account at Wells Fargo. Once I get that set up and once I get my tax refund transferred out of WaMu, I will close the account.

Don’t bank with WaMu. They find numerous ways to screw you out of your money, usually by way of one hideously over-priced fee at a time.

I was working in accounting yesterday. At around 5 PM Jess, the girl in customer service, frantically called me over. Apparently she ran a customer’s lottery playslips through the lotto machine and then proceeded to rip them up and throw them out. Being relatively new to customer service, she was not aware that standard procedure is to hand the playslips back to the customer.

Essentially, this was a minor inconvenience for the customer. However, it is easy to make a new playslip by looking at the ticket and copying the information.

However, the customer was beside himself, and he went on a verbal rampage.

“Why the fuck is that stupid girl in customer service? Get that girl out of the office! She doesn’t know what she is doing!”

This tirade was quite loud and was made in the presence of other customers. Jess, in utter shock and devastation, quickly retreated to the accounting office, where she quickly became reduced to tears, remaining in that state for over an hour.
White-hot rage flashed through me, so powerfully that my vision blacked out for a fraction of a second. I had not been in such a state of outrage since the employee assault incident I wrote about a few weeks back. However, I mustered up my strength, gritted my teeth, and calmly, yet firmly said the following:

“Sir, I will not serve you if you continue to speak of my coworker in such a disrespectful manner.”

At that moment I wanted to hit the despicable bastard. Yet I chose the higher path, calmly dealing with him while maintaining steady eye contact with a stone-cold face.

Then, despite his outrageous and shocking behavior, his wife spoke up.

“Why did that girl rip up his playslip? What was she thinking?”

I was in an utter state of unbelief. Not only did this woman tolerate her husband’s horrible outburst, but she also backed up his pathetic cause.

There were a million things I wanted to say. One of them being, “How dare you speak in such a degrading manner to my co-worker? Are you happy you publicly berated her over some damned playslips? You should feel proud of yourself for breaking her down like that, you damned son of a bitch. Get out of here. You are not ever welcome back”

That’s what I’d do anywhere else.

But I remembered the ever-familiar adage of the retail world. The adage coined by corporate to maximize profits, even if it requires allowing yourself and your co-workers to be harassed and cursed at. The adage that orders us to tolerate some of the garbage that walks through our doors. The adage that forces us to allow anything up to the point where a law is being broken.

The customer is always right.

Thanks for the lesson. I’ll be moving on.

A thought passed through my mind today while I was working my usual 3-11:30 PM accounting shift.

What the hell am I doing here?

I started to do some thinking.

Last week’s paycheck was $210.07. That was for 40+ hours of work. During that period of time I have had to deal with high levels of stress. I had to deal with managers talking to me in a condescending and disrespectful manner. I had to listen to customers yell at me. I had to listen to customers and managers order me around as if I were a dog. I had to deal with co-workers giving me a hell of a time. I had to pick up the slack when co-workers were lazy.

I then thought about what happened this Friday.

I leisurely finished a project for a customer that I found on Elance. The project that I completed probably took me 3 hours to complete. I charged $199 for the job, a fee which my client happily paid.

In summary, I’ve come to the realization that I need to cut back my hours at Kroger and eventually quit. There’s no need to take the shitty wage and frequent disrespectful treatment if I can make better money while maintaining my dignity.