Not a morning person
So this tall thin Asian guy this morning apparently missed his stop. The train had stopped at Clinton, and suddenly he jumped out of his seat and stared helplessly at the doors as they closed. "Fuck!!" he yelled, throwing himself back against the glass partition in frustration. I watched covertly, because he was between me and my door and my stop was next and I wanted to plan my escape if he decided to do something dangerously weird. He flopped back against the partition melodramatically a few more times, and swore a bunch more, to make good and sure that we all knew just how completely the CTA had screwed him, and then he opened his messenger bag, took out his Burberry plaid umbrella, and threw it onto the floor. I'm not sure what the poor umbrella ever did to him, but there it lay, and I looked at it and looked at him and wondered if umbrellas could be made into pipe bombs. We got to Halsted, and I and another lady were hanging back warily to see what he'd do. The doors opened, and he gave the umbrella a vicious kick, sending it almost off the other side of the platform. He exited after it, and we followed at a safe distance. We of course chuckled nervously about him, and then she somehow turned the conversation to "Is your hair naturally curly? I love it!"

Talk about your anticlimactic endings.

[ObWeatherNote: It is very rainy today. My hair is therefore frighteningly curly, and people in the know realize that that is *not* a good thing. I put it up in a bun as soon as I got to the lab.]

And now, for the continuing stooooory of a woman who's at the end of her rope: I got paid today for a job that I don't have. Again. And not only that, but several of the various corrections I was expecting either didn't happen or happened too much, and I checked my bank account and there are two deposits from U of I that I can't explain at all (although I later did identify one of them, and it's stupid but at least I know why it's there). And the HR/billing system is down for maintenance today, because of course payday is the perfect day to do maintenance. I'm about ready to get a sleeping bag and live outside the president's office until he personally fixes every single thing wrong with my paycheck. Seriously, the university is flinging bunches of money at me right and left, and they WON'T FUCKING STOP!! This mess is not going to be sorted out this year, I'm sure. Which makes me wonder how this is going to mess up my income taxes for 2004 AND 2005.

Last plant phys class is Monday night. I am very glad. I have to admit though that he talked about some things that caught my fancy last night, regarding Swertia (American columbo) and Amaranthus plants brought to Illinois by the Indians. I also really like the hemlock and water hemlock stuff - poisonous plants are very cool - but was puzzled by his assertion that it used to be thought that poisons and essential oils and such are anti-herbivory agents, but that is no longer the belief. Really? Having a hard time believing that and would like to know more.

Not sure the nut allergen thing will work out. Will do more research.

- posted by Diane @ 11:13 AM