I'm pretty sure they didn't use a lot of deoderent back then. So the Scent of Jesus probably wasn't so good.

This idea really grosses me out.

Posted by: Ensie at 09:44 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 miracle candle? yeah, ok. bet THAT works.

Posted by: Dawn (webmiztris) at May 01, 2005 05:19 PM (rfFwe)

2 In the future, whenever I smell BO stank, I'm going to say, "There's the scent of Jesus."

Posted by: ensie at May 02, 2005 05:25 PM (4k5pf)

3 I bet it's patchouli.

Posted by: Eden at May 03, 2005 08:32 PM (M2PUd)

4 It's 'cause Jesus was a dirty hippie.

Posted by: ensie at May 04, 2005 10:12 PM (4k5pf)

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The interview has been delayed due to (shocker!) an error on the part of Bob's Hogs' HR. The Associate Director of of Everything Ensie Currently Does As Well Everything Ensie Would Do In Seattle did not receive my resume.

The HR guy (who apparently screws up everything) had the day off, as well as my resume held hostage in his files.

On the up side, the Regional Director of Everything Ensie Would Do In Seattle called to tell me what areas to focus on during the interview. The end of our call went something like this:

RDEEWDIS: "Good luck! Sara [the District Manager] and I really like you. I probably shouldn't have made this phone call. Good luck! Bye!

This has got to be a sign.

Posted by: Ensie at 05:32 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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After dealing with Young America and T-Mobile the other day, I figured I'd have an uphill battle when I actually got ahold of one of them in person on the phone. Not so. They were surprisingly helpful once we figured out what the problem was.

It turns out that the entire problem stems from Jorge F. Jorge is a high school student working at some crappy mall kiosk selling phone. When we decided to uprade Frinklin's phone on February when his original one-year contract was up, we decided to go to that crappy mall kiosk to do our upgrading. That was obviously a mistake.

Jorge was helpful at the time, and I certainly trusted him, however, he really fucked everything up. While pondering the phone upgrade Jorge informed me that although the phone we wanted was usually $200, they would knock off $50 automatically, making it's cost only $150. Then, we would receive a $100 upgrade rebate, making the phone only $50. After that, we would finally get a $25 credit on the T-Mobile bill, which would show up within a couple of months. We decided to go for it, after all it's a $200 phone for only $25. We had to pay $150 up front, and Jorge helped us fill out the rebate paperwork.

Upon arriving home later that day, I finished the rebate paperwork and noticed that it stated that the rebate was only $50, not $100. I figured it must have been a hearing issue on my part, even though "fifty" and "one hundred" sound completely different. The required barcodes and receipts went into an envelope, and the envelope went off to be processed (please allow 8 - 10 weeks for processing).

Six weeks later I checked the T-Mobile website to view the status of my expected rebate. I got what I expected "Your rebate is still being processed." While on the website, I also verified the available upgrade rebates available at the time we got the new phone and lo and behold--we were eligibe for a $100 rebate! I e-mailed T-Mobile, asking why we had only been given the $50 rebate paperwork. The reply I received had some vague reasoning that the $50 rebate is the one we should have received, so stop complaining! We don't like you! Go away!" [italics added by me, obviously]

I continued to wait, patiently, for my $50. Instead, the letter rejection letter discussed in the previous post arrived. It took four phone calls, but Young America, at last, figured out the reason our rebate was kicked out of the system. It turns out Jorge had given me a "new account" rebate as opposed to the "upgrade" rebate. I also found out that the rebate should have been $100, another paperwork error of Jorge's. After much discussion, the ($100!) rebate request has been resubmitted and a check should be issued within four weeks.

In other "upgrade" feature news; I've left two messages with Jorge about the $25 credit we still haven't received. His supervisor has yet to called me back. I'm wondering if it's worth another round of phone calls and arguing...

Posted by: Ensie at 05:23 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I did it! I made it to the fourth interview for the job in Seattle with Bob's Hogs. I got a call this afternoon to schedule the fourth (and please, God, the last) interview with the Associate Director of Everything Ensie Currently Does As Well Everything Ensie Would Do In Seattle. It's scheduled for tomorrow at 11am PST.

The PST would be important, as I've had two other interviews scheduled, I get all freaked out, and then the interviewer doesn't call. I contact HR to find out what's up, and I find out that the interviews were accidentally scheduled for East Coast time.

Must remember to breathe tomorrow.

Posted by: Ensie at 09:16 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 Good luck!!!!

Posted by: Rachel Ann at April 28, 2005 11:06 PM (fo9pg)

2 Good luck!

Posted by: Erin at April 29, 2005 05:44 AM (iRA6o)

3 Yay yay YAY!!! Congratulations! Good luck! : )

Posted by: Violet at April 29, 2005 07:10 AM (HhDyc)

4 Thank you everyone. The Associate Director called, we spoke for two minutes. It appears that HR forgot to give him my resume, so we have to reschedule next week! I'll take all your good wishes with me though.

Posted by: ensie at April 29, 2005 04:28 PM (4k5pf)

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Wrong. I hate the South. I'm not a fan of overly cold winters. I loathe Florida. Las Vegas is literally hell on Earth for far too much of the year. Hawaii might be nice.

But overall--WRONG.

Posted by: Ensie at 07:11 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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1 heh....I'm going to "hell on Earth" in June... hope it's not too hellish.

Posted by: Dawn (webmiztris) at April 28, 2005 12:33 PM (oNdEw)

2 I just took the quiz, and my #1 choice came out as New York City, which is one place that I have never, not once in my life, had the slightest desire to live. The quiz is junk.

Posted by: Mediocre Fred at April 29, 2005 06:49 PM (mzrXZ)

3 Thank you for that validation. Frinklin took it and it was dead-on; tied for Seattle and San Francisco, both places that suit him very well. Lots of Portland and other rainy places. I think he's just a freak.

Posted by: ensie at April 29, 2005 08:17 PM (4k5pf)

4 Hah Hah, I got Honolulu, Las Angelas, San Fransisco, San Diego, and Seattle. Perfectly fine with me. Love ya, Katie

Posted by: Katie at May 10, 2005 02:18 PM (S6Wcf)

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In fact, the whole household did, depite the propane leak. The stove spent some vacation time away from it's usual spot between the counters until this afternoon when The Boonies Propane Co. stopped by with the sniffer. The sniffer is cool. It's a handheld box that "smells" propane in the air. It emits a ticking sound while searching and an alarm when it finds gas.

Well, the sniffer didn't find anything. Not a trace of gas. The propane guy even tested it by turning on the stove's burners and showing that it did recognize propane when the burner was on. But there was no propane smell then, and still no propane smell now. No obvious leaks.

The stove went back to it's usual home and the propane guy advised us to just pay attention when we were in the kitchen, occasionally getting down on our hands and knees to smell the air near the floor, as propane is heavier than air. I feel much safer now. Thanks.

If I don't post in the next week you'll know our house exploded.

Posted by: Ensie at 06:59 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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We have a propane leak right now in our house. It wasn't there when we got home at five, but by six we could smell it all over the kitchen.

I've turned off the propane to the house at the tank, opened all the windows, called my landlords to let them know what's going on, and, finally, called the propane company to come and assess the problem. I was hoping it would be quick and easy, but obviously the propane has gone to my brain, as nothing is every quick and easy with The Boonies Propane Company.

We have a 100 gallon propane tank that should be regularly filled with propane in order to make sure that we never run out. At least, that's what The Boonies Propane Co. told me when we moved in. Since then we've run out FIVE TIMES in three years. The fill schedule we are on coincides perfectly with the calendar, allowing us to be out of popane for each Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. And if you think it's a pain in the ass to get ahold of The Boonies Propane Co. on Christmas Eve, you are totally right. I'm averaging 3 - 5 phone calls before I get anyone to take me seriously.

The first time we ran out was the first hosting of the Ensie/Frinklin joint Thanksgiving dinner in our new house, which shall henceforth be called "The Thanksgiving Day That Will Live In Infamy." It was horrible. There was no propane until late that afternoon so everything was late, the wind knocked out the power, my Dad and Uncle were in some sort of holy-roller mode and gave a 40 minute "blessing" complete with Abraham Lincoln quotes and something from the Bible about women being subservient to men. My Dad made my brother cry. My Dad made me cry. I told my Uncle that if he didn't stop harrassing me he was going to be booted from the house never to return. It all climaxed with me in a sobbing mess in the spare bedroom. Really, I think the whole bad day can be traced back to the lack of propane that morning that prevented showers and the early cooking I had planned on.

So, now, I sit. Waiting for the propane guy to rescue us. To relight our fires and allow for hot water once again. At least this time we didn't just run out like usual. We have an actual leakage issue to contend with.

Pray for me and hot showers please.

Update! Karl, the Boonies Propane Co. delivery driver showed up to help, sort of. Our stove is now four feet away from it's home and the propane has been shut off at the wall. There were three half-chewed dog bones nestling in the dust bunnies where the stove normally lives. The water heater pilot light is lit again (although we had to hear all about Karl's mishaps with the relighting of various pilot lights including the one where all Karl's hair "got fried clean off!") We will have hot showers in the morning. Hallelujah! I will be spending most of the day at home tomorrow, waiting for the "real propane guy" with the "sniffer" to help diagnose our propane problem further.

Posted by: Ensie at 07:20 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Me: Was the Koo-Aid Man wearing pants?

Frinklin: I believe that he was wearing pants.

Me: Why was the Kool-Aid Man wearing pants?

Frinklin: I don't know. He doesn't appear to have any sort of Kool-Aid genetalia.

Me: Thank God. Image that for a moment.

Posted by: Ensie at 06:31 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Bob's Hogs has decided that I am ready to move into the current century and has granted me a laptop computer with actual internet access at work.

Now that you've stopped laughing at the total lack of web access in a place we spend far too many hours in to be web-less, I will now announce that this means that I can now blog from work.

That's right. I can blog in real-time instead of having rely on my completely unreliable memory each day.

It arrives on Wednesday.

Posted by: Ensie at 06:48 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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1 Oooooh. Live BH&WP dish.

Posted by: eden at April 23, 2005 08:11 AM (M2PUd)

2 Wait – are we supposed to consider this a positive development? Just kidding. I kid because I love...

Posted by: Richard at April 24, 2005 08:50 PM (XtiK2)

3 Haha.

Posted by: ensie at April 25, 2005 07:50 PM (4k5pf)

4 I have an old piece of shit with a 13-inch monitor and dial-up connection at work. Ugh.

Posted by: Dawn (webmiztris) at April 26, 2005 07:43 AM (zMhug)

5 Until now I didn't even have a real computer at work! It's a dummy monitor and CPU that I can't do anything on but e-mail and access Bob's Hogs programs. No internet access. I can't even change the view on the control panel. I have been privy to "PC Anywhere" software allowing our IT guys to "jump" into my computer and do whatever they want with it. Viewing your mouse indicator flying around the screen while actual mouse sits motionless on the desk is a little erie.

Posted by: ensie at April 26, 2005 01:51 PM (4k5pf)

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T-Mobile's rebate company, Young America (which by the way is just the lamest name EVER), sent me a letter today. It very politely informed me that "We regret that we are unable to process your request as received. The 10 digit T-Mobile wireless number you provided is not valid or found in our data base at this time your request was processed."

First off--"...at this time your request was processed." makes no sense.

But my real complaint is this--how can the number I provided not exist when this letter shows up the SAME DAY as the actual BILL from the company that holds the account? Shouldn't these two letters have caused some sort of time/space continuum error by sharing space in the same mailbox together? At the very least I think I shouldn't have to pay my bill since the number doesn't exist.

Elizabeth, the T-Mobile rep who helped me on the phone confirmed that I do, indeed, have an account with T-Mobile and I should contact Young America immediately so they can confirm it with T-Mobile via phone. However, Young America has annoyed me further by closing before my mail is even delivered. Now, after waiting 8 weeks for a rebate (and checking on it two weeks ago and being assurred that "It is in process") I must wait through the weekend to vent my righteous anger upon discuss this issue further with a Young America customer service representative.

Posted by: Ensie at 06:09 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I attended a training meeting in another city today. The meeting was held inside another Bog's Hogs, located behind the Orange Curtain (Orange County, or "The O.C" if you're a big TV fan). Also present at the meeting were several staff members from other San Diego/Orange County stores and our District Manager.

Shortly after the meeting concluded, I began speaking with District Manager and a few other Bob's Hogs folk. As we spoke, our volume apparently increased so that a customer browsing nearby felt the need to turn around and shush us, rather harshly.

"You know, you're not the only one here!" she yelled down the aisle.

We all turned and stared, exposing our Bob's Hogs name tags to her, apparently further antagonizing her.

"You people all work here?" she hissed, eyes narrowing into slits.

"Yes. And we are very sorry to have disturbed you." offered one of my coworkers.

"Damn," District Manager let slip under her breath, prompting us all to giggle and receive further glares from the unhappy customer. DM continued, "You'd think she owned the store."

I love DM. I'll miss her when we leave.

Posted by: Ensie at 06:30 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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The third interview for the Seattle job with Bob's Hogs finally came through. It went well and at the end of the interview the District Manager told me, "Should you not get this job, and I'm not trying to project one way or the other, please let me know when you want to relocate to Seattle, as I would love to have you in any of my stores."

I feel better about this than I have in months.

Posted by: Ensie at 09:09 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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After the mention of Ben and Jerry's ice cream a couple of posts ago, I thought I should check out just what it takes to create a new taste sensation for Ben and Jerry. Upon finding their website, I was distracted by the fact that Free Cone Day at Ben and Jerry's Scoop Shops is tomorrow, April 19th!

You can find a store near you by clicking here. Fee scoops are offered from noon until 8pm.

Enjoy!

Posted by: Ensie at 09:00 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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All nine boxes arrived from the Bob's Hogs and Weiner Pigs Free Schlock Party (aka the Vendor Expo) today. Whee! See the pictures. Be frightened of how much crap we can unload in 10 minutes: more...

Posted by: Ensie at 08:55 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Did someone say eBay?

Posted by: Richard at April 18, 2005 10:29 PM (iN3tV)

2 Oh my gosh. You need help! : )

Posted by: violet at April 19, 2005 06:12 AM (6krEN)

3 *gasp* *gape* I covet your library! That's amazing. And good luck on the BH&WP Seattle job. That would be nifty.

Posted by: eden at April 19, 2005 07:24 AM (M2PUd)

4 Richard, Funny that you should mention that, as I picked up a book on starting an eBay store. Actually, I picked it up for Eden, as she has been wondering about that topic. Violet, We do need help. Remember, you offered to help us move! You're actually in luck, as you would likely be a driver, not a mover. We are so hiring a moving company this time. Eden, Glad to see someone is impressed by it. It's mostly a big mess. We desperately need more bookshelves. I'm such a book whore. I'll send your books out to you on Friday most likely.

Posted by: ensie at April 19, 2005 03:26 PM (4k5pf)

5 You can load up on bookcases at the Ikea(s) in Seattle

Posted by: eden at April 20, 2005 04:02 PM (M2PUd)

6 That's where most of our current cases came from! (Well, from Ikea, not from the Ikea in Seattle. I even looked for one when we visited in December. Found it! It's in Renton.)

Posted by: ensie at April 20, 2005 09:05 PM (4k5pf)

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Frinklin, sister Katie, and myself attended the 19th annual Fallbrook Avocado Festival yesterday. Just in case you though that guacamole was the only way to eat avocados, let me assure you--you are wrong:

The best guac I've ever eaten

Like avocado tempura, crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside. Served with ranch dressing as dip

What we searched for all day...

Behold! The avocado ice cream!

DELICIOUS. It tasted exta creamy and smelled like ripe avocados. Just what you would expect from avocado ice cream. Now I must convince Ben and Jerry's to pick it up.

Posted by: Ensie at 08:51 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Indications are that the season one Scrubs DVD streets on May 17th.

And there was much rejoicing in the Frinklin/Ensie household.

It's about time! Lost's season one is already scheduled to street on September 6th, and it hasn't finished airing all of the episodes yet!

(I'm a bit ashamed as apparently this is common knowledge and I had neglected to check the status in the last couple months)

Posted by: Ensie at 08:58 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Eight weeks and one day after my tax return arrived at it's destination, I receive my state tax refund.

Watch me get audited now.

Posted by: Ensie at 08:31 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Big ups to the Gay Comic Book Store Dude (as opposed to the Ms. Comic Book Shop Owner or Scary Comic Book Store Dude) who recommended the book In Me Own Words: The Autobiography of Bigfoot by Graham Roumieu.

I haven't laughed this hard since, well, since I fell of my chair last weekend looking at The Passion of the Tchotche. It's a great collection of thoughts from the big hairy guy, accompanied by perfect watercolor illustrations. An excerpt:

I am not Chewbacca. Me think Chewbacca jerk. He no can act. he ride Bigfoot coat tails. He think he cool, but he not. He phoney loser with no class. He all messed up on crack me think. People think me Chewbacca sometimes. No! Me have job. Bad Wookie. Bad.

Through his own words, you will experience Bigfoot's frustration with neighborhood squirrels, rejection in highschool, disasterous political career, and what really happened to Koko the gorilla and the cat they both knew so well.

Well worth the $12.95. This is my new present everyone should expect from me this year.

Posted by: Ensie at 08:29 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Dear Earth,

Hi. I know we don't speak a lot, but I need to ask a favor of you. Early this morning at 4:06am there was a 4.0 earthquake centered 30 miles away from my house. Now, I know your're under a lot of pressue (pun intended), but I have things to do at that time of day. OK, technically, I just have one thing to do at 4am; I don't appreciate my dreams being interrupted by a 60 lb. dog jumping on my head*.

Love,

ensie

*Actually, that's what usually happens when an earthquake strikes (or the smoke alarm starts beeping because the battery is dead). This earthquake coincided with The Jeffery standing up, shaking, and trying to get under the covers (all normal activities for The Jeffery at 4am). I actually woke up and said, "I thought that was an earthquake, but it was just The Jeffery." Frinklin replied, "Mmmmf." Turns out it was an earthquake.

Posted by: Ensie at 08:35 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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An update on my earlier post regarding the idea of hunting feral cats in Wisconsin. Check out Don't Shoot the Cat to sign the petition against this idea. As of this moment over 19,000 have already signed.

Posted by: Ensie at 08:05 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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