unemployment benefits

the true benefits of being unemployed? i had a bunch of things i needed to do today and i got them all done, with so little stress that i found plenty of opportunities to doze and i could take my time with lunch.

i woke up early-ish (9am) to move my dental appointment to a far more convenient time, then (hopefully) finished with the insurance cancellation that i began earlier. i took a deep breath and left the apartment, heading for the hospital.

there's something surreal about walking through a crowded hospital listening to tool's 10000 days album.

registering for the blood tests took far less time than previously, but the wait between registering and being called up was insanely long. i read a lot, i dozed a lot, and the latter was scary because they were calling the numbers in seemingly random order so i could totally have missed mine and never known... it was also difficult to avoid as the voice calling the numbers was so pleasant it made for a perfect lullaby...

the actual extraction took seconds, not minutes, and i went straight from there to my bank to sort something out. the wait was short and the teller informed me that my timing was spot-on :)
from there i headed to l'artère to see what their new vegan offerings were like. not a particularly impressive list, though what they did have was tasty. after a fair amount of time reading, eating and drinking coffee i made my way home.

stopping at walmart on the way to check out their laptops. i was quite disappointed, and decided to try the neighbourhood pc / security store before shopping online from best buy or future shop. it's a good thing i decided to take the metro (it's cold and windy) because it was just as i passed through the turnstyle that i registered that i'd left my book at the walmart while sorting out my tuque, gloves and pockets... so i had to hurry back, pick it up and then leave again :P

the store experience was pretty weird: i walked in, asked about laptops, gave my specs, and was asked if second-hand was okay. it took me less than two minutes to check it out and decide it was right, and i quickly paid and left carrying a decidedly inexpensive laptop that's got more than enough power for my needs. awesome!

i've been setting it up since i returned, it's pretty much done except for an annoying microphone issue, and then i'll be heading off to muay thai. big day!