I did a thing! – Blogtober 2021

October 20, 2021October 19, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ 1 Comment

I am well aware that the title of this post gives you no context. But I couldn’t help it.

Anyway, clickbait aside, I actually got the courage up to go to a writing group sponsored by my local library!

I’ve been pretty much stuck in a rut lately. The thought of going out has become almost terrifying, because I just worry about making things unsafe for my family. But I was really happy with the requirements for joining this group. We all had to be masked, vaxxed, and also have a negative COVID test, taken within the last three days. Overkill? Maybe, but it actually made me feel safe.

The group was called “Writer’s Workshop: How to Write A Novel in a Month”. Basically, a good intro into working on NaNoWriMo (which will be a topic later on in the month). I was actually both excited and nervous about it, but I decided what the hell.

They held the group outside on the patio, which for my thin Florida blood was a bit too cold (thanks wind), carefully socially distanced. It was a good mix of people, from young high schoolers to some older seniors. Also, there was a good mix of presenting genders.

The moderator did a great job of engaging everyone. She got us all talking about what we hoped to get out of the group, whether we just wanted writing advice or encouragement to complete NaNoWriMo. She made a point to ask what everyone was planning on focusing on, which led us to discover that it was basically every end of the writing spectrum.

We didn’t get to do too much due to time, but it felt good to be working on something original again. It was kinda nice to see all sorts of people come together with a common target. Even just in this introduction meeting, we were encouraging each other.

I signed up to take part in the week “write-ins”, where we will meet up to write and discuss what we’re working on. It’s great when you’re having massive writer’s block and you need to get through it to continue on with what your writing.

All in all, it was a great little experience! I was real nervous and almost backed out, but I’m really glad that I took the plunge and did it. It was worth it, 100%.

It got me got me excited for next month. Another heavy writing month, who could’ve guessed it?

Until next time!

Two Weird Experiences, 24 Hours Apart – Blogtober 2021

October 18, 2021October 18, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

Honestly, I’m still trying to understand this one. Over the course of twenty four hours, I had one of my worst experiences in writing fanfic in the last several years, and then less than a day later, I had one of my best.

Let me tell you about it.

Two days ago, I got a private message over on FF.Net, where I don’t post or update anymore. Since PMs also get sent to email, that’s how I knew about it. The message was a request for me to write a fic for this person, in a fandom that I don’t write in anymore, and a pairing that I never wrote for in the first place. I politely declined, saying that I don’t really write for that fandom anymore, and wished them well. Then I moved on, back over to AO3.

Well. That was my first mistake. For the next twenty minutes, I received several PMs, all of which basically said I was every name in the book for not writing this pairing. It was… well, ridiculous. Actually, that’s putting it politely. What I was called and told can’t be repeated in polite company.

My reasons for not writing this type of fic are pretty firm. I don’t like the pairing for a lot of reasons (one character was an adult, the other was a young teenager). The pairing splits up a canon pairing that is pretty much endgame. Oh, and this is in a children’s cartoon. So… Yeah, I’m not comfortable with that, in any way.

I quickly blocked the account (something that AO3 needs to impliment at some point). About fifteen minutes later, more PMs came in, from a different user. Same reterick, same talking points. I wasn’t responding, but they just kept coming.

By the time FF.Net’s Abuse Admins got everything handled, I’d recieved 32 PMs from three different accounts, all spewing the same disgusting comments. The person behind it was IP banned. I don’t exactly know what set them off, but whatever it was, it was pretty brutal.

I’m really not a fan of being treated like crap.

Of course, then you have the flip side. Yesterday around midnight, I posted my next Whumptober fic. I didn’t mean to post it that early, I just accidently hit post instead of save draft.

At 3AM my time, AO3 sends out an email to every user that has posted a story. In it has all the stories written by you, that have received a “kudo” in the previous 24 hours. It’s honestly a smart idea, since I’m now getting approxmately 70 kudos a day thanks to Whumptober.

Well, yesterday at 3AM, I discovered that I already had 24 kudos. That meant at least 24 people had already read my fic. In under three hours. Which to me was insane.

By last night, I’d already cracked 100 kudos and over ten comments, which for me is amazing. Never in less than 24 hours has I received a response to a fic like this. It’s surprising and insane to me. I’m actually really touched.

This really turned around my mindset. Though I knew I didn’t do anything wrong with turning down that guy the day before, it kinda stuck with me all day. Waking up to this yesterday, and getting more and more comments as the day progressed, just really made me feel so good.

So yeah. Two weird moments in my life. Both fanfiction related, but both important to me, because they have shown both sides of the coin.

BTW, don’t be like the first guy. It’s rude.

Until next time!

Mid Month Check In – Blogtober

October 15, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

It’s been a very stressful few weeks, so I decided that having a Mid Month Check In would probably be a good idea.

Starting at the top, I’ve been on top of Blogtober every day! Only a few days have I been “late” to post. By late, I mean past 5PM PST. My personal goal is to always have the next day’s post ready to go and be scheduled to go up at 12pm (though, I usually get the notification between 12:30pm to 1:30pm). I’m not sure what topics I’ll be focusing on during the back half of the month, minus of course the 9-1-1 episode reviews. But I’m happy that I’ve been getting better about it.

I’m also so glad that I got ahead on Whumptober, because I have been in burnout mode for weeks. Before October, I ended up writing up through October 17th (and a few other random days). I know I have to finish the rest, hopefully within the next few days. Something I decided to do was keep up with the stats of each story, which has been amazing to do and watch. I’ve been surprised about which fics are getting more noticed, and which ones haven’t been. I’ll go thorugh all the stats in November, once it’s been a couple days for the last story.

Which leads me into the next part. So, because I’m post every day in October and planning to posting throughout December, I decided that I want to take a bit of a step back in November. So, I’m hoping to post twice a week, probably Tuesdays and Thursdays, but that’s subject to change. I’m trying to avoid completely burning out, and this will probably help.

November is already shaping up to be busy. I have to finish a Halloween/fall fic for a “fic crawl” right as November starts. Then I have to make massive progress on my Holiday Gift Fic for someone on the 118 Discord. I also have to write a bunch of continuations of different Whumptober fics, which will be… stressful. On top of that is my birthday in the middle of the month, and also I’m responsible for Thanksgiving planning and cooking and everything. It’s going to be… a busy month.

As for December, I’m again going to do Blogmas, which is from December 1st through the 25th. I did it last year and enjoyed it, so I decided to do it again. I don’t have too many plans for this time. The only true December plan that I have is that I want to watch 25 new (to me) movies. I’ll be spending the rest of October and all of November deciding them, and I’ll be announcing the list at the end of November. Any suggestions for things I should watch can be thrown into the comments.

In my personal life, I actually had some news, thought I wouldn’t say great. I actually recieved a email from a position that I really want! I even had a short interview via phone, where I was told that I’d hear something between three days to the end of the week. That timeframe just happened to end… last Friday. I’m somewhat discouraged, because this is a position that I really want. It’s looking more and more like I didn’t get one of the ten spots. But I’m actually somewhat OK, because I know that I at least made it in once. That means I can do it again.

Until next time!

I’m Doing a Book UnHaul – Blogtober 2021

October 8, 2021October 8, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ 1 Comment

So, I’m doing something that I don’t really like to do all that often. It’s something that actually bothers me a little bit, but I’m doing it for a good reason.

I’m doing a book unhaul.

For those of you that don’t spend too much time on Booktube, an unhaul is when you remove books from your collection. It’s called a haul, because it is the opposite of a book haul, where you get new books.

I don’t normally do book unhauls, because I like having my shelves filled with books, both read and unread. Unfortunately, I’m at the point that I really don’t have a choice anymore. I’ve double parked my books on my shelves, and I’m absolutely sick of seeing some of them. A good portion of them were gifts or panic bought at the beginning of the pandemic last year. The last major pile are book box books.

So, what are my criteria for keeping or unhauling books? Let’s discuss.

(Just a quick note, I’m going to try to avoid naming and shaming some books, because I don’t want to be that person. I will name some that I’ve made comments about in the past, both good and bad. So don’t expect to see a massive list of books here, this is just my thought process.)

Automatic Keep

These are the books that I doubt I’ll ever remove from my collect, at least any time soon. I don’t count a lot of books on that list, but there are enough to make a bullet point all on their own.

Some of the books on this list are my Owlcrate and BNYA Book Club books, regardless of my feelings for the books (which means, yes, I still have Wilder Girls, which I absolutely hated. I have at this point amassed most of both of the ever growing collections, but I want to be able to say that I have just about all of them (not counting the first twelve Owlcrate books, as I didn’t join until box 13).

I also include certain books from my childhood, including my set of Harry Potter novels (my paperback copies from college). Though the books are now surrounded by controversary (thanks JKR), they are staying because the books themselves hold a special place in my heart. I’m also keeping my entire Percy Jackson collection, because I’m reading it alongside my cousin.

The final set of books being kept are books that I absolutely enjoy, regardless of rating or popularity. I have several books (including two copies of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson) that I refuse to be parted with. They will be staying regardless.

Kept For Reading

There are another good amount of books that I’m keeping simply because they are on my TBR, or to be read list. I’d say that there are about twenty on that list, including six books from the same series. These are books that I’m actively planning on reading at some point soon, though I haven’t yet do to time or because of other reasons. I’m trying to keep this list pretty low, but there are some that will be staying around only until after I’ve read them.

This category also includes books that are sequels to books from Owlcrate or BNYA Book Club. Several of these books now have sequels, and for the most part I’m reading all of these in the next year or so.

Kept For the End of the Year

Something that I like to do is take a photo of all the physical media that I read over the year. This means that I’m keeping several books until December/January for one purpose. They are staying on my shelves simply because I don’t have any other place for them, but they will be leaving once I’m finished with that.

If you’re curious about which books these might be, my Goodreads is mostly up to date. If a book was rated low and wasn’t part of a club/box, it’s probably on this list.

Automatically Leaving

Books by problematic authors. This is number one on my list. Several books in my collection, both read or unread, are written by authors that are now under scrutiny for publicly being problematic. As such, I’m removing several novels from my library that I can no longer stand to have in my collection.

There is also a series I’m removing this time around, as I’ve fallen out of love with it due to time. This series is quite large, and I’ve read most of the books, but I have completely lost interest in it. I’d rather pass on everything to others that might enjoy it more than I would now.

Leaving Because of TBR

Like I said at the top, I managed to buy a large amount of cheap books early on in the pandemic. And then, of course, I got hit with a massive reading slump. Most of these books are living on my book cart going completely unread at this point. I need the space, honestly. And for most of them, I’m just not going to read them. They either don’t really interest me after reading their summaries, or I’ve tried and put them down.

This part of the list also includes books that came recommended to be my way of YouTube or Tiktok. There were a bunch I picked up that ended up not being something I didn’t want to read.

Leaving Due to Lack of Interest / Fandom

So, here is where I’m actually going to name and shame, a little bit. I ended up purchasing several books that I ended up not liking. Most of these never ended up on my GoodReads for various reasons, mostly because I put them down within ten to fifteen chapters or in under 100 pages.

One of these series is the Shadow and Bone series (as well as the Six of Crows duology). I realized quickly that these were not for me, and I also wasn’t really impressed with the Netflix show, so I see no need to keep them.

The other is The Raven Cycle series. I was recommended this one early on by exactly one person on Tumblr. I gave it a try and was just not interested. So, passing them on to people who will like them more.

There are also a few other books that I was encourage to read, but those are also joining the goodbye pile.

So… Where Are They Going?

By the time I finish packing up the books going, it’s probably going to be at least two boxes (hopefully three). They are going to be donated to my local library. We (as Mom is paring down her collection as well) chose to donate to the library instead of selling them for a couple of reasons.

The books we’re donating are in really good condition, and stand a good chance of being added to the library’s collection. What can’t be added actually gets added to the library’s own used book store, which raises money for local charities and to give back to the library. Last year, all proceeds from the library book store in October and early November actually went to buying Thanksgiving dinner to nearly 100 needy families, and from November 15th through December 22nd helped by Holiday presents for those same struggling families. (They were called holiday presents to keep to being non-religious, as my suburb is very diverse in faith.)

The reason we chose not to sell them is because trying to sell books online is an incredibly annoying task that I’ve done before, and I swore to never do it again. This way, these books, which tell amazing stories that should be told, will go into the hands of people who will enjoy them.

I’d love to donate to one of our local schools. Unfortunately, they are not accepting donations at this time, due to COVID restrictions. I tried to personally reach out (using the Nextdoor app) but got no takers.

The only other place we thought of was to add books to some of the local Little Free Libraries. I went to a couple of them, and unfortunately, they were already overflowing with mostly romance novels, and novels by Stephen King and James Patterson. It wasn’t possible to add to the boxes. But I did try!

Basically, what’s going is a bunch of standalone novels, some series, and some manga that I bought last year, but I’ve fallen out of love with. (This does not count SAO, Negima, or any manga I brought with me from Florida, as I still don’t want to part with them yet.)

When is this happening?

Currently, the library is accepting two boxes of donations per car on Mondays and Fridays during normal business hours. We’re hopeful to get at least two boxes dropped off on Friday, and another two on Monday (as Mom has a four day weekend, so this makes it perfect timing.

I’ve already started pulling books, which yes means that this post is technically premature, but I wanted to get a jump start. The goal for tomorrow is to cull my collection by a third. Hopefully, by more.

(Fun fact, when we moved across the country, I had 14 boxes of books, as well as several Owlcrate boxes with manga. That was the remaining third of the collection I’d been growing since I was in middle school and could pick my own books out at the bookstore. I’ve regrown that collection since we moved here, and I’d say I’ve added about 150 books as this point. I’d say I’ve doubled what I brought out here.)

So, I’m going to go finish pulling the books I want to pass on. Have a good day!

Until next time!

September Challenge Wrap-up! – Blogtober 2021

October 2, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

September is done and over with, and what a whirlwind it was.

I’ll be the first to admit that I didn’t complete all of the challenges I set for myself for this month. In fact, I technically only completed one, with a second being kinda on a technicality. But there are reasons, personal ones, that I’ll explain after I go through all five parts of the challenge.

Part One: Reading

Okay, I tried. I really did. But I think limiting myself just made it worse. I only read two books off of the list, towards the beginning of the month, That Weekend and Yolk (both reviews are posted). I actually did try reading some of the others, but I really haven’t been in the mood for sci-fi or fantasy, and that’s what most of the rest of the list deals with.

I did try, I swear! I read a third of The Witch Haven, and Ace of Spades is on my bedside table. I just… I just couldn’t. I guess reader’s block still exists.

Part Two: Writing

This is where I make an exception. So, the goal was to do five bingo squares. I didn’t. Like, at all. I think I looked at my bingo card twice this month, and once was because there was confusion on the rules and I may have not written enough for the prompts (I was right, the rules had gotten mixed up by a former mod, all is well and good).

However, I did write! A lot actually. I ended up finishing up 18 (yes, 18) Whumptober prompts. That was over 21000 words. So, while it’s not bingo squares, I’m counting it as a win anyway. (And this is all before the main event as well.)

(If you’re curious, I’m finished with the following days: 1-9, 11-13, 15-17, 22, 29, and 31. 10 is almost done, and 14 is plotted out, I just haven’t started it yet.)

Part Three: Gaming

Here is my success!

I finished Lego The Hobbit. Finally. After the game kept fighting me in the end. But I finally finished it, and it was a wonderful day. Mostly because I ended up mismanaging my studs, and I had to spend an hour making a loop in one of the areas so that studs would respawn. It was a thing.

I didn’t get started on my next game, only because I’ve been so focused on Whumptober and Blogtober prep. I have Lego Pirates of the Caribbean all set to go, I just am taking a minute. Probably next week, if all goes well.

Part Four: Watching

I am so glad that I gave myself permission to fail this part of the challenge, because I did. In spades.

So, I normally watch One Chicago on the Peacock app on my PS4, while writing. Unfortunately, for some reason, it’s been glitching for me (even post updates) and I can’t get an episode to save my life. Watching on my computer meant I can’t write, and I just can’t, because it means no notes. So… I watched like three episodes on my phone. That’s it.

Of course, it doesn’t help that I rewatched 9-1-1 Season Four ahead of the Season Five premiere, as well as 5×01 and 5×02. I can’t help it. I just think I like 9-1-1 more.

Part Five: Creating

This is where things get tricky.

So, I basically failed at Instagram. I just got distracted by everything going. I did update my story, but that was just with some of my Tiktoks.

Speaking of Tiktok, I basically stopped posting anything when I finished Lego The Hobbit (since that ended up being a great source for jokes). It’s on my list to get back to, but I just haven’t uploaded anything. I did film some, but deleted them for various reasons.

I’ve been more active on Twitter, thanks to Fox FanHub and Tudum, as well as talking about the Dodgers and 9-1-1. This is something I’m going to continue, so I’ll count this part a success.

Wrap Up

So, two completes, one somewhat, and two outright failures. Hey, 50% isn’t terrible, right?

As for why I didn’t get done as much as I wanted to, a couple updates in my personal life are needed to be said.

A few weeks ago, I got a call from a place I interviewed at around the end of July. This was the first time I’d heard from them in six weeks. They offered me a second interview, which was surprising because I thought I absolutely bombed the first one. Anyway, I went, and I was offered a “working interview” the next day, which I accepted. Unfortunately, I had a panic attack about ninety minutes into the working interview, which I can directly attribute to not feeling safe. Too many people were coming into the location I was working at without masks, or pulling them down to talk to the owner and I behind the desk, and it just wasn’t safe in my opinion. So, I politely declined to continue the interview. (I also wasn’t impressed with the job, and it really felt like I would be micromanaged forever by everyone in the building, including past the trial period.)

But then, I do have some tentative good news on the same front! A few weeks ago, I became aware of a job posting for a position that I really would love to do (goverment job). I applied immediately after it was posted, and I received an email on Tuesday that basically said I had it, though that’s not entirely accurate. I had a three question phone interview on Thursday, and I’m waiting to hear back to see if I got one of the ten spots. If I did, I’m going to be much busier, but this is the type of position that I’ve wanted. It’s mostly work from home, with only the occasional trip into the office. It’s giving back to the people that need help most. It’s exactly what I have wanted to get into since I graduated from college, but there were never any openings to outside people, only currently government workers and veterans. So, this could be the chance of a lifetime.

I bring up both of these because this is partially why I didn’t finish. I’ve been emotionally exhausted because of this for days. Now I’m waiting for an email that could basically change my life, and I’ll probably hear something this upcoming week.

And now, that’s all that. See you all tomorrow!

Until next time!

It’s Time for Blogtober! – Blogtober 2021

October 1, 2021October 1, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

This is the time of year that I make plans… and live to regret them. Oh well.

It’s October 1st, which means that it’s finally time for Blogtober! I started doing this after seeing so many people doing Vlogtober and Vlogmas over on Youtube. Because of what was going on in the world, I knew I didn’t have enough content during the day to record a decent length video every day. But, I do have the power of the written word, so instead I have chosen to do this!

Every day around 12PM pst, I’ll be publishing a post. It may be a book review, a stream of thought post, me ranting about a tv show, anything. Every day one will go up. (Hopefully. Some times I may end up late. Such is life.)

Because I’m also a glutton for punishment, I’m also doing Whumptober, which is a 31 day fandom challenge. I’m doing writing, focusing on 9-1-1. I’m pretty much set through at least the 10th at this point, as the creators thankfully released the prompt list at the beginning of September.

I have two other goals that I’m going to try to accomplish this month. One is that I want to post on Instagram at least once a day, if possible. Of course, if nothing happens during the day, I’ll skip it. But it’s a goal of mine to at least be more productive.

The other goal is to read something every day. I’m not going to try to limit myself to just a certain group of books. Instead, the goal is to just read something. I have a large backlog of books to get through, so I’m hoping to get through some of them (mostly so that I can donate them in time for them to be able to go out to charity around the holidays).

So, that’s the plan! I hope you guys stick with me this month. If you have any ideas of things you want me to write on, please drop them in the comments or on any of my social medias. I’m always up for people sharing ideas.

Until next time!

I Can Finally Stream Again!

August 20, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

Hey all, I guess this is the week of me only talking about personal things. We’ll be back on more fandom/book related things next week.

I’ve kept this really quiet, but my apartment complex has been having massive internet issues. It’s something that has been getting steadily worse over the past year (thanks pandemic), but it really got horrific around May. I discovered that I couldn’t stream on Twitch for more than a half hour, otherwise I’d drop frames and crash. It was to the point that I basically just gave up.

Other issues were that Mom would be kicked off randomly, which was bad because she works for the government and this was affecting her job. She’d be on calls with coworkers and suddenly she’d get disconnected.

While all this has been going on, several of our neighbors have moved in and out, and I’ve been noticing that things have just been getting worse. The last straw was last week, when Mom was kicked on and off the internet a grand total of 26 times in under an hour. Yes, that’s almost once every two minutes.

So we called our ISP and had a grand old time trying to troubleshoot. (I’m summarizing the four conversations, but suffice to say the Italian in Mom came out… Loudly.) Finally, during the fourth call we got them to agree to send someone out.

The gentleman from our ISP came on Monday, right after work. After he checked in with us, he went out to where the lines came in. This room (outside, which services our entire building) happens to be located right next to my room. The man opened the door… and let out swear word combinations that I hadn’t heard before. I popped my window and asked if everything was ok, and he asked if I would join him outside, as there was something he needed me to see.

So I masked up (because duh, and he was masked as well), and came out. He showed me a mess of cords and told me that he knew exactly why there were so many issues. And he wasn’t happy about it.

Apparently, there are supposed to be two lines for each apartment that run off the main lines from the ISP. But what was happening was when we had someone new move in, they weren’t setting them up on their clearly marked lines. No, they were splitting OUR lines, because ours happened to be the first they saw. What should have been an easy job just became a nightmare.

The poor man had to call a supervisor out, because this issue far exceeded our apartment. He apologized to me (and in turn Mom, but she was still inside) about the issue. Honestly, I was just glad for an answer.

The supervisor arrived along with an area manager, and the three set out to make things right. Very long story short, they had to let the other residents know, switch out their internet to the lines that were dedicated to them, and apologize for the inconvenience.

Suffice to say, they got our internet back online first, along with a wonderful discount. We got all new equipment too, because ours was burned out after having to run double-time for two years without anyone realizing it.

It’s been a couple days since then, and we haven’t had any issues. In fact, both yesterday and today I have done test Twitch streams, and all worked great. It looks like I’ll be able to stream in the afternoons as well as evenings. Yay!

So, I’m basically back to streaming. No set schedule yet, so ignore the sidebar for now. I’m still trying to lock down a schedule that will work for me. We shall see.

Until Next Time!

So That Happened…

August 16, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

At the end of July, I mentioned in a post that I was going on an interview. This was pretty monumental for me, as I’d only had two phone interviews since I started applying for jobs again in May. (Why? I was waiting for more people to get the vaccine. I live with someone who is immunocompromised, and we both agreed to be safe about it.)

I won’t go into too much detail about the job I was interviewing for, mostly for privacy reasons. What I will say is that it was a receptionist position at a type of health spa. Completely above board (I checked) But I do want to talk about it.

Before we get into the interview, I want to set up where it was. The job was in Calabasas, which is about 30-40 minutes from my town. There are basically three different ways I could get there. One is through the San Fernando Valley, one is taking the 118 to the 23 to the 101, and one is going through Box Canyon. Now, I’ve driven the first two routes before. Mom and I have been taking bi-monthly drives around Ventura and Los Angeles Counties, so that I can get an understanding of the area, and she can tell me about her old stomping grounds.

I actually did a phone interview with the owner’s personal secretary before getting asked to come in for the in person one. It went well! I was able to answer all of her questions, get a good sense for the position, and I made her chuckle, which I thought was a plus. After the phone interview, I was invited to come to the owner’s office building to meet with him for an in person interview. This interview wouldn’t take place at the actual location, but at the owner’s office in Chatsworth. If I succeed in this interview, I would then interview with the manager, but this would be more of a formality. I agreed to this, and set the date and time, which would end up being about five days later (due to the owner’s schedule).

The secretary confirmed the date and time via email several times leading up to the interview. I was fine with this, as I figured that it was a pretty popular position. Receptionist gigs seem to be a dime a dozen, and according to Google, this place made bank.

The night before the interview, I get yet another email from the secretary. Instead of the fourth confirmation of time and location, she was asking if we could push the interview back to 5PM, and instead of being in Chatsworth, it would take place at the actual spa, with both the manager and owner present. I agreed, thinking it would be two birds, one stone.

During the hours before the interview, I kept an eye on the traffic. Up until an hour before I left, it was clear. And then, the thing I worried would happen, happened. Traffic, both routes I had been before.

So I had to take Box Canyon Road. If you’ve never seen it… Think steep, tight, and nightmare inducing. My heart was racing the entire time. I was honestly terrified. I am never driving that way again.

I got to the spa with about twenty minutes to spare. Which was a little later than I wanted, but I was ok. I took the time to get myself mentally prepared, had some water, and put on my mask. Then I went to the building.

What followed was me walking around the damn thing twice, checked the address, used Google Maps for directions (did nothing), and then discovering that it was located in the small hallway off to the side. If you didn’t know it was there, you’d probably never find it.

Apparently, that was a test. Thanks.

Anyway, I walked into the spa about five minutes before my interview. The first thing I noticed was that the receptionist behind the desk didn’t have her mask on properly, though she did fix it as soon she saw I was wearing mine. But she greeted me, and took my name. She also made a point to give enough space between us as she went to get the manager and owner.

The owner came out to the front, greeted me, attempted a handshake (which I politely declined, because we’re still in a pandemic) and brought me into the back office. I was offered a chair, and he said he’d go grab the manager.

That alone took almost ten minutes. I could hear the owner chatting with several people, including the person I would soon be introduced to as the manager. Because the door to the office had been left open, it felt incredibly awkward.

Finally they both came in, leaving the door open (and tried the handshake again, WTF). The first big issue was that they came off totally unprepared. There wasn’t an extra seat next to the owner, so I had to switch to one that was more in a corner. Then they didn’t have two copies of my resume, only one (luckily I had several copies, so that was covered). They also kept joking amongst themselves as they got situated.

The entire interview lasted about eight minutes. Standard questions (what made me move to California, why did I leave my previous position, why is there such a gap in my work history) were answered quickly. Then there were some more awkward questions, mostly about my sense of style and would I be comfortable moving closer, as they wanted people to be available to come in with a half hour’s notice. I told them that I was happy to work on getting my work wardrobe up to their dress code standards, but moving closer was not possible right now.

It just felt incredibly awkward. The tone that both used came off as if they had already picked someone for the job, and they were just doing my interview because it was scheduled. Some of the questions they asked were somewhat out in left field, ones that I swear were designed to get me to not accept the job.

But honestly, the kicker was that other staff kept popping in with questions or comments to the owner and manager, and they kept stopping the interview to answer. I’ll admit, nothing sounded like it was a major emergency, it was things that totally could have waited. But no, they talked over me to answer those questions. It was… just yuck.

They thanked me for my time and told me I’d hear from them by the next week with their decision. Then they tried once again to shake my hand and I was out the door.

By the time I got to my car, I had already decided that my answer would be no. The pay wasn’t worth the drive, and the rudeness of the staff to interrupt during a meeting more than once was something I wanted no part of. Also, even though at that time there was still a mandate for mask wearing inside, most people were wearing them wrong, if they were wearing them at all. Same with the two patrons I saw. One didn’t have a mask on, and the other was only wearing it over their lips.

From my car, I took the time to quickly email a standard “thank you for the interview, let me know if you need any other information” message. Then I debriefed with Mom as I drove home.

Well, that was right at the end of July. It’s now the middle of August, and it’s been radio silence. The email was never replied to, and the listing for the position is now gone. It’s safe to assume that I didn’t get the job. But not calling when you said you would is just unprofessional.

Granted, I was already tempted to decline like I said, but still.

I should point out that I was sent the initial job listing through Zip Recruiter, I didn’t go find it. The secretary reached out to me, not the other way around.

So that was the worst interview I’ve been on yet. We will have to see what comes next.

Until next time!

When Life Gives You a Headache… Part Two (Update from 7/8/19)

July 9, 2021 ~ Liz Harrison ~ Leave a comment

Hey all,

So, two years ago yesterday I wrote a blog post talking about my life with iih, or Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension. If you want to read that post first, here it is. I wanted to link it because I’m going to contradict some things I said back then, mostly because I wasn’t exactly truthful to anyone, least of all myself. I’m also going to go into detail on some things, so here’s your chance to back out. This is a

Before I start, let me explain what iih is. Also called Pseudotumor Cerebri, WebMD describes it as “a brain condition that causes the same symptoms as a brain tumor: headaches, vision problems, nausea, and dizziness. But it’s not a tumor.” (source) It goes on to say, “It’s causes by increased pressure around the brain.”

Basically, iih is when pressure grows around the brain due to an increased amount of cerebrospinal fluid. To note, this fluid is already surrounding the body’s brain and spinal cord to protect them from injury. Iih occurs when this fluid doesn’t reabsorb into blood vessels, or there is an influx that is not draining properly.

I was diagnosed after having my eyes photographed when getting them checked for a new prescription on Wednesday November 1, 2017. It was a routine checkup, but I had gone in with concerns in the back of my mind (ones that I was planning on addressing whenever I could get to my primary care doctor, if he ever had space for me in his schedule. The curse of living in a town that was frequented by Northerners during the winter months). I had been getting headaches if I looked at a computer too long, I’d had some dizziness at work several times that I’d attributed to the Florida heat, and a few other things that amounted into symptoms (some brief double vision, two very quick blackouts of vision, and ringing in my ears).

The optometrist I went to was new to the practice and very thorough. She went through every test carefully, not rushing in the slightest. At one point, she had noticed that my optic nerve looked swollen, though she though it could just be eye strain, due to the fact that my current glasses had scratches right in the middle of the glass and my eyes were trying to focus around to compensate. Her final test was taking a picture behind my eyes. It was here that the appointment took a turn.

When she took the picture and started to study it, I had sat uneasy. Her easygoing demeanor had shifted to serious. She pulled out my pictures and ones that were from someone else. Mine showed that my optic nerve was swollen, though not due to eye strain. It looked like there was something pushing against it. The other picture did not show this at all.

It was here that she gave me the two options. Go immediately to a specialist that she consulted with, or go to the emergency room two minutes from the store and get an MRI on my brain.

I chose the former option.

And there’s a part of me that kinda regrets that I picked so quickly.

Now, I want to be clear, I’m not mad at this optometrist for scaring me. In fact, she was in the wrong for giving me options. I would come to find out later that she was supposed to (apparently by law) call for an ambulance immediately and have me sent to the ER, as my vision could be compromised. Instead she gave me a choice and let me drive to the specialist, a five minute drive in the other direction.

But I digress.

Anyway, I had to make two calls. The first was to my boss, because I was supposed to go into work not two hours later, and there was no way I would be able to. She wasn’t happy, in the least. I promised to drive down as soon as I had a medical note in hand. She covered my shift, but she was not happy about it. (She got over it the next day when I presented her with my diagnosis and proof of seeing a medical professional. I guess two other people called out with similar reasons, and I was the only one to back it up. She bought me dinner the next night I worked to apologize for being mad.)

The other call, which I made as soon as I left the optometrist, was to my Mom.

Mom was at home, working away, expecting my “all clear” call. It’s something we started doing when I started to go to medical appointments without her, though I always appreciated her support.

And I broke her heart.

Over thirteen years prior, Mom received the “Houston we have a problem” call from my dad, after he went to the ER following work one day, feeling sick enough to drop. He didn’t warn my mom, he just went. He’d called from the ER, while they were prepping to take him for some scans. He was diagnosed with cancer, which would eventually kill him sixteen months later.

And now here I was, giving her the same call.

Mom met me (not beat me to, as I said in the original post) at the specialist’s office and joined me for every step and every test, even though no one would give me a straight answer. It took almost an hour to find out.

When the specialist spelled it out, I almost laughed. I was one of those people that was could be described as disgustingly healthy. I’d never broken a bone, never gotten more sick than a cold during the change of the seasons. Only had strep throat once. Only had lice once, after a breakout in my preschool. No allergies that we were sure of. The only thing “medically wrong” with me was that I needed glasses.

That day, he gave me statistics. Said that he would be blunt, that my weight was the main factor (pro tip, it wasn’t, but thanks). Said that there was no cure (wrong again). Said that this would effect every part of my life (… ok, that one’s true).

I was referred to another practice that was within my healthcare network, and was treated by a doctor that apparently specialized in iih. He had me on diamox (a medicine usually used to treat the ends, though had had some success here) for over a year. I had a spinal tap and a failed operation to insert a shunt, both of which resulted in a week of bedrest.

Since my move to California, two of the symptoms that I was initially treated for have come back. I still get blinding headaches that are borderline migraines which leave me unable to do much of anything. I’ve gained back some of the weight I’d lost because of being on diamox. But according to the doctor I just went to after my last headache (yesterday, hence the late post), I don’t have iih anymore. I just have migraines. He’s not sure what triggers them, yet, but my eyes are fine.

Actually, he said that I probably never had anything to worry about.

Last night, as the headache behind my eyes finally stopped aching, I thought about it. What would have been different if I’d gone to the ER? Would I have been treated immediately there, instead of the runaround that I got? Would I have had answers quicker? Would the doctor that did the shunt operation had done things differently so that it would have actually worked?

Of course, there’s no way to know. I can’t go back and rewrite history. I can only live in the here and now.

So, to recap, I still get massive headaches, but that’s just my head. No fluid buildup, no false tumor. Did I ever have it? Possibly. But right now, I’m healing.

Let’s see what the future holds for me.

Until next time!