New job, yay!

So I started my new editor jobby at the shiny Capitol building on Wednesday. And I love it here! Not only do I get to see glenn5 every day, but this is just the coolest job EVAH.

Been timing the commute and getting it streamlined. Travel time takes me between 1hr 15min to 1hr 30min one way, which is the longest commute I’ve ever done–bumping my drive when I was in college from Bloomington to Champaign, IL down to second–but most of it is on the MARTA train, which makes all the difference. I can read, write, listen to music and podcasts, or sleep even. So far, the trek up and down the Capitol building steps has felt more arduous. (*pant* I’m so out of shape. *wheeze*)

glenn5 took me to lunch on my first day, and walking downtown reminded me of why we decided to move here in the first place when we were contemplating a relocate. I really love Atlanta, its energy and feel. Happy jobness.

However, my other hamsters have gotten a bit more unwieldy, as I’ve lost some productivity time due to transit et al. With Dragon*Con looming, I’m finding myself way stressed at how much I’ve got to do still for the Daily Dragon. And I’ve started getting emails from people clamoring about when we’re going to get the program schedule up. Meep.

And we seem to have a wasp’s nest nestled at our house’s foundation. I discovered it when I went out to retrieve the lawnmower after fosteronfilm got stung when he was mowing the lawn on Tuesday–at which point he hobbled in so I could give him an ice pack, Benadryl, and vasty gobs of sympathy and head petting. (I didn’t get stung. I’ve never been stung by a bee or wasp, largely, I suspect, because when I see them coming, I don’t freak or flail, but simply back away. ‘Course that means I have no idea whether I’m allergic or not.) Then, because he did not learn from his experience, he went back out yesterday to finish the lawn, and, yep, got stung again. So he’s banned from the yard until we get that taken care of. Can anyone recommend a good, inexpensive exterminator?

   


Writing Stuff

Haven’t gotten much in the way of new writing done, and for the first time ever, I’ve got stories languishing that I need to send out. Usually I rapid-fire them back into the marketplace when they get rejected, but I either haven’t had the time to do so, or I’m waiting for other subs to clear from markets before I can send them out. Glargh.

Received:
– 211-day very cordial, personal, and at times amusing rejection from the Until Somebody Loses an Eye anthology after making it to the final round of consideration. Snartleblast. A lot.
– 3-day “no GUD” from GUD.
– 27-day personal and congenial “sorry” from Pseudopod on a reprint with invite to submit again.
– Email from the MechMuse editor wanting to confirm how my name is pronounced so the voiceover person doing my intro bio thingum for “The Storyteller’s Wife” won’t get it wrong. He also said my story’s slated to be one of the first ones going up for their summer 2006 issue. Very excited. I love hearing my stories read aloud.

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27 Responses to New job, yay!

  1. Yay on the new job!!!! 😀

  2. radjacee says:

    Woohoo!!! for you. I’m so jealous. I need a cool job. Of course it would help if I knew what I wanted to do. But just coming out of my bad experience with grad school, I am in limbo about what I want to be when I grow up. And school doesn’t count as experience in the real world – go figure.

    • Eugie Foster says:

      I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before you land a sweet job of your own (whatever “sweetness” turns out to be for you). The job situation is getting pretty rosy in this area.

  3. gardenwaltz says:

    hurrah! i was wincing for you about the commute until i saw that it was on the train. that sounds very calming. perhaps you can find a way to do hamster grooming on the train.

    oh, and on the wasp situation. i had my first wasp bite at the age of 33. i stepped on him. neither one of us were very happy with the situation, but at least i found out that i’m not allergic.

    • Eugie Foster says:

      Yah, if I had to drive into the city, I’d be on the road much longer and also very, VERY stressed about the commute. But the train makes it no biggie. Actually, the worst part is driving to and from the train station. Now I’m hoping they build another station further north and closer to us. It’s unlikely, but hope springs . . .

      And ouch on the wasp stepping/stinging.

  4. Great to hear that the new job is good to you!

  5. vila_resthal says:

    On the matter of wasp/bee/hornet/yellowjacket/bumble bee stings: A good home remedy that I *know* to work is to take two or three teaspoons of Baking Soda and dribble in a teaspoon (or less) of vinegar, stir it into a thick paste, and smear the paste on the sting. The chemical reaction of the vinegar and soda helps break down the formic acid of the insect sting and kills the pain quite quickly. It also reduces the swelling from the acid in the insect sting. Since fire ant bites are also formic acid in nature, it should also work on them as well.

    Home remedy for *small* wasp/etc. nests: throw a cup of gasoline on the nest. DO NOT LIGHT THE GASOLINE! As the gasoline evaporates, it both freezes the insect into imobility and sothers them. Their spicules cannot draw in anything but the fuel vapors and they quickly die. Now, this is not a very *safe* way of killing wasps, as not only does one have to get close enough to the nest to douse it, but the fire hazard is not inconsiderable.

    Congrats on the job, and I’m glad that you’re enjoying it. I don’t envy you having to commute into Atlanta every day, but then I can’t stand cities and crowds any more. As an aside, my wife assures me that if I ever decide to attend Dragon Con, she will be by my side to help me cope with my phobia. Maybe in the next year or two I’ll decide to go. Atlanta is only an hour or so drive from Athens, after all.

    Dan

    • Eugie Foster says:

      The gasoline remedy for our wasp problem sounds scary. But then, it’s what the construction people did to the fire ant hills when they were building our sunroom (five or so years ago). The reek of gasoline was in the air for days. And they dumped something like a gallon of the stuff rather than a cup, and also continued to smoke around the site which made me rather nervous. Erm, the more I think about it, the more I think it’d be best if we maybe buy some spray pesticide at the store.

      I will, however, try the baking soda remedy the next time gets nailed by something stingy. Thanks!

  6. pabba says:

    Yay for the new job! I’m glad you’re liking it. 🙂

  7. j_hotlanta says:

    Go buy a can of Wasp/Hornet spray killer. It shoots a stream about 30 feet so you can stand WAAAAAYYYYY back and zap the little demons. I have to use that when we get them under the deck (about 15 feet up). Usually works best in the evenings when they all come home to the nest and you can get them all at once.

    • Eugie Foster says:

      Yeah, I’m thinking that might be the way to go. I’m a bit concerned that there might be a second nest, but if there is, I’m sure it’ll reveal itself to us in the fullness of time.

  8. cyber_pagan says:

    gah! MARTA! I used to ride the train when I worked downtown. I used to work diagonally from the CNN center. I liked the location enough as far as lunch options and things, but I hated riding MARTA. Homeless people begging on the train gets old, as well as the fights, robberies etc I witnessed. There is a reason they have their own police force! Now I work from home. That’s a commute I can deal with 🙂 Glad to hear you love the job though. Most people don’t and that makes all the difference. Good luck with the wasps. I’m like you, I don’t annoy them and they don’t sting me. But the vibrations from a lawnmower can often piss them off, especially ground dwelling wasps like Yellowjackets and some Hornets. If they have their nest in/on the foundation then the vibes are definitely disturbing them. Just buy a good hornet spray like Raid. It has a 20+ foot range so they usually don’t know they are being attacked until its too late! But you still have to be careful when you use it. The ones that are airborn take a while before they abandon the nest, but should be gone by the next day.

    • Eugie Foster says:

      How long has it been since you worked downtown? I’ve always found the MARTA to be clean and hassle-free. I dunno if it’s new, but they’ve got a zero tolerance panhandler policy, and I haven’t been accosted by a single homeless beggar yet–haven’t even seen one. And so far I’ve never felt unsafe or witnessed any scary behavior.

  9. hyperscoot says:

    congrats on the new Job. See you at dragon*con hopefully.

  10. palmerwriter says:

    Congrats on the job, Eugie. I’m happy for you. And don’t worry about the peeps clamoring for the D*C schedule. Everyone’s gotten all instant gratification thanks to the two Dragon*Con LJs. They should just keep calling for enough roomates to split the cost of their room twenty ways and be patient.

  11. dean13 says:

    Congratulations on the new job! But, oh my, what a commute. How many minutes of that is on the MARTA?

    It takes a more discipline than I have to do work such as software design and coding on a commuter train, but I’ve found it can be an excellent time to read. Then again, you’ve demonstrated a fantastic ability to ignore audio and visual distractions while doing brain intensive tasks, so you could probably write amazing short stories while riding the train.

    • Eugie Foster says:

      It’s about 45-50 minutes on the MARTA. The only sucky part is that I do have to make one train transfer, but it’s at the very end (or very beginning, depending on which way I’m going) so it’s not a hassle except for those times when I just miss a connecting train and have to wait ten minutes for the next one.

      It takes a more discipline than I have to do work such as software design and coding on a commuter train . . . you’ve demonstrated a fantastic ability to ignore audio and visual distractions

      I don’t think I’ll have a hard time concentrating while on the train. My main concern is that I’ll get so wrapped up in what I’m doing that I’ll miss my stop.

  12. yukinooruoni says:

    Which stop do you get off at? 5 points? E1?

    • Eugie Foster says:

      I get off at Five Points and transfer to the Eastbound line, go one stop, and get off at the Georgia State station. The Capitol building is right across the street from the Twin Towers.

      • yukinooruoni says:

        😀

        I used to go there for class … Now I just get off at 5 Points.

        I may see you on the train some time this term … I have class 5 days a week *sigh*

        Lunch, we must do!

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