Sticky in Adventures in paradise

I’m half considering opening an OnlyFans with the way the cost of living is in Australia at the moment. We were already an expensive country, but now it’s noticably out of control, especially for someone like me on a minimum wage. Maybe I could turn to prostitution, or dealing drugs. They are lucrative, right?
I’m thankful I don’t drive a car, as that would be yet another ridiculous expense. I never used to dread hiring one, but lately, I am, the next time I need to.

There are small mercies, like our state government giving everyone a $150 off their next power bill and free flu vaccinations until the end of June. I had mine last Wednesday at a nearby Priceline that had an appointment. I had to wait a little while because there was obviously a newbie working, and she was waiting to give the equipment to the older guy working, who was being hassled by customer after customer. One guy was there on behalf of his girlfriend, and by the way he was carrying on, it sounded like the poor bitch was dying, asking the pharmacist what drugs he recommended for all types of conditions. I did hear him say, “Oh we don’t have time for a doctor” and I just rolled my eyes. The amount of shit that pharmacy workers must have had to deal with these past 2.5 years, my God. I only had to deal with toilet paper!
When I finally got called into the room, I learned that the pharmacist was an Iranian guy who used to live in -25 degree C temperatures back home, so Brisbane WInters were pleasant for him. I was surprised it got that cold there, but he lived at a high altitude. He’d noticed I’d just worn a singlet there, despite it being cold outside (by Brisbane standards anyway) but I’d just worn it to make adminsitering the flu shot easier, something I’ve always done. After he gave me the shot, I thought he’d left the needle dangling out of my arm! But he hadn’t. He was just looking to see if I was going to bleed and if I needed a bandaid. I didn’t bleed, but he gave me one anyway. Probably wasn’t warm enough for the blood to run.

I only had a small sniffle and a sore arm after my flu shot. My arm hurt WAY more than it did after the Covid shots. I found myself being proud of my body not having any major effects from either vaccine. There’s articles going around nowdays wondering how some people still haven’t contracted Covid. That’s the point we’re at, apparently. Apparently I am now a unicorn, as I have yet to get it.
I figure that’s probably because I avoid people like the plague and never go out. I work in customer service, so that’s more than likely where it’ll come from. When a customer asks me anything, I always turn my head away from them, but that also works well in that I can hear them better. I think my ears are blocked, or I’m inheriting my father’s horrible hearing loss. God no.

There’s so many new people at work, that I’ve actually been doing my normal hours the past few weeks. It does mean that I’m constantly having to create work for them to do, until they know the ropes at least. I was asked, however, if I wanted to work an extra shift yesterday (Monday) but I said no, as I wanted to rest my back some more. It’s still a bit of a bitch, but noticably better. I find myself bracing for the pain each time I need to get up from the couch, as that’s what I’ve been used to the past few weeks, and recently realising that I didn’t need to. So THAT’S good. And I should have taken the extra shift yesterday, as I refer back to the cost of living issue. My store manager actually asked me if I’ve considered a 2IC role, but with my back issues lately, I don’t think my answer was very good (I said I was happy doing what I’m doing). Maybe I should consider going back to a stressful work-life for a few extra bucks a week. I’ve always thought a 2IC role wasn’t worth it, as it’s like an extra 50c an hour or some shit. But hey 50c an hour would cover a likely rent rise haha. I’m not in a bad-place savings-wise, but I’m still sure that I’ll never own my own property in my lifetime, and with an interest-rate rise yet again today, that’s just depressing.
My 10 years with the company is coming up next month, so I was given a $100 gift card, so that was nice. He asked if I wanted a morning tea or anything, which was nice of him to ask. I said, “Free food? Yes please.” So I guess that’ll be happening next month? Not sure why I got the gift card so soon, but hey, not complaining.

The Reserve Bank raised interest rates again today, like they did last month. This doesn’t affect me directly, as being a homeowner is and will always be out of reach in his country, but I feel it will still affect me indirectly, as I learned via the property managers mistake-email about our lease “ending in July” that he wants to put it up another $30 a week. My housemate replied with our lease, which we have signed until January 2023, but I still feel like the rent will increase, despite us being in the lease. Apparently that is legal. Fuck me that my wages haven’t increased, right? Anyway, it’ll be $15 since I have a housemate.
He’s barely ever home. I can only assume he has found himself a husband and he is stayng there for most of the week. I threw mail in his room last week and I still haven’t seen him since then. Of course I am once again in my head about a housemate not liking me and therefore avoiding me, which is annoying. People just have a life, and I don’t haha. It’s cheaper to not have a life and waste away.

Having said that, I am off to the Gold Coast after work this Thursday though, to see the new Jurassic Park/World movie with Brent. He asked me, so why not. We are seeing it in Gold Class, which is a bit fancy but oh well. I think the only real benefit of Gold Class is the reclining leather seats. We could get food brought out to us too but of course that costs extra so I think we’re just going to candy-bar it. I always enjoy the dinosaur movies, since it was a part of my mid-teenage years.

FUCK it’s COLD. I always love that my city only really has three weeks of Winter a year, but right now I’m in the middle of those three weeks, and I want them to fuck off already. This Queenslander is not made for the cold. I guess I am outside on the outdoor sofa writing this, so it’s really nice, just cold.
I spent yesterday applying velcro to the upper cushions of the outdoor sofa, and so far so good. I just wish both sides were sticky, but only the part that attaches to the wicker was sticky, and the other side is meant to be sewn on. Well, that was a complete disaster. Only one of them is sewn on, before I gave up on that project. I guess stickiness just doesn’t work on fabric. So anyway, I have shoe-glued the other side insted of sewing them LOL. I have probably destroyed the cushion covers in doing so, but so far so good. The glue seems to be holding to the cushion covers, the sticky side of the velcro seems to be holding to the wicker, and the velcro is obviously holding to the velcro. So I guess if one fails, the other two will maybe still hold HA.
They haven’t flown off in the wind over the past 24 hours like they used to, but it is early days. The base ones aren’t velcro’d down, as the upper ones are kind of holding them down, but a big gust of wind may change that. I keep expecting to look over the side of my balcony and seeing my cushions floating in the pool below.

Last updated June 07, 2022