Morning all. Up bright and early to start soccer this morning at 8:30, should be on the fields until about 1pm, then can come home and address things here. Excited a bit, always am the first day of a season, just hope things go well.
Have read all but not ready to retain much, so will try to catch up with the backlog this afternoon. Have a good Sattiday all.
Mornin’ all.
It’s 38 degrees Fahrenheit and mostly clear outside. It’ll be mostly sunny with a high of 62 degrees Fahrenheit.
shoe, I hope your next shift goes smoothly, and no one calls out sick. It seems like there has been a lot of calling out lately.
nellie, I’m glad you’re feeling better and that you’ve tested negative. I hope your usual energy returns quickly.
JtC, while Western Washington is definitely green, you need the green to live here. We consistently place in the top five for most expensive housing costs, and paying at the pump for fuel is eye-watering. I know you mentioned cost as a factor in your determination to move, so there you have it. Food costs are high here, too. I’m glad you found a place that checks all your boxes.
The fence guys are coming here today to provide a quote. I’m sure it won’t be cheap. I’m still pretty irritated that I’m paying for fencing that benefits others, too, but I’m getting no help with the costs. On the other hand, I can let the dogs out and not worry about them getting out. In his youth, Polar literally destroyed fences, but as he aged, that destructive behavior stopped, and I didn’t have to worry about it. I know I’ve got at least another year and a half of destructive behavior to contend with, so I’m not taking chances. Buster is going to be such a bruiser.
This Lovely property was the place I was talking about the other day. It went in a day and is already pending. The house is a little too small, but the property is awesome. What made this place particularly special was the price. Something like this usually runs in 700 to 800 thousand dollar range.
FCM, I’m glad you get to enjoy an evening away from MiL’s care. Constantly loud TVs and shouting would definitely get on my last nerve. I know it can’t be helped, but that doesn’t make it less irritating.
I would like to stand in the corner with Quiet folks at the party too, please. I’ll buy the good stuff for you all.
Welp, the pups are fussing and it’s just about time for their breakfast, so that makes sense. Gotta run.
Hi, all. We’re selling our home and moving, as I’ve posted before.
Yesterday the realtor’s photographers were here to do the house photos, and we cleared out of the place for three or so hours. All the while we were out, there was a positive deluge going on. I know that one of the things these photographers do nowadays is to take a drone video of the house and neighborhood from above. I wonder if they were able to get that drone aloft in such a tropical downpour, and if so, what kind of footage they could get.
I had dressed up the house in various white ornaments which I bought from Home Goods. Our place has dated decor from the late nineties - lots of dark colors and deep jewel tones. I know that younger people today want things lighter and paler. Over Mr. brown’s protests, I lightened the place up with strategically placed vases of white silk flowers, white cushions, and white bath towels. Now I’m taking everything back to the store! The stuff was kind of cheapo, but it looked well enough for photography.
Today we’re bringing everything back out of hiding that we cleared away so the place wouldn’t look cluttered. I’m bushed, but we’ll have to do it all over again for the open house this weekend - minus the white ornaments.
I hope a home opens up in the town where we’re moving. The realtor says our place will sell fast, but I don’t want it to be so fast that we’re homeless while waiting for a new place. I haven’t done this in 25 years and I can’t quite remember how that contingency thing worked back then.
Blah.
I second that.
Exactly! I won’t say anything to MIL, nor to FCD. That’s why I love the MMP - I can come here and get it out of my system, secure in the knowledge that I don’t have to watch any of you roll your eyes or say “Not that again!!” or skip over my posts. My safe place!
I felt so sorry for MIL this morning. I helped her with her shower - getting her in, then out, and helping her dry off and dress. She was only halfway dressed when it was obvious that she was exhausted. And she said “I don’t understand - I was in such good shape!” Yeah, being 92 with a bad heart will do that to a person. She wants someone to tell her “If you do [this] and [that], you’ll be back to your old self.” But she never will be - not even close. Getting really old sucketh mightily.
Anyway, FCD is at the boat. MIL is back in bed snoozing. I have a load of towels in the washer, and I’m clean and dressed in appropriate attire for digging up my veggie bed. I need a small load of topsoil and composted manure, and I’d love to get it all in today, what with rain coming next week. But no way that can happen. I don’t think I can even get the old dirt dug out, much less get some new soil, put down landscape cloth to control weeds. and get it ready to plant - not all in one day, even if I had help. So maybe next week…
Meanwhile, it’s just in the 40s out there, so I’ll chill a bit longer. Maybe empty the dishwasher. My motivation is pretty low at the moment.
Happy Saturday!
Up, caffeinating, breakfasted and fixing to do KP.
I was looking at my calendar yesterday because I usually get a text from the tax guys to come in. I got no such text this year, nor was there an appointment date. So guess what I’m doing today? I figure that, given my income and lack of anything but standard deductions, I’ll do the damn things myself. Joy! 
Stay safe and healthy y’all!
Blah, blah, blah!
Mornin’ all. It’s 830ish as I start driveling. I’ve been up about 2 hours, starting a bit pre-dawn. NWS says 66/19 on the way to 79/26 under nearly cloudless skies. It was very pretty outside, but too cool to linger there, so I’m inside. Caffinatin’ is mostly done, with MMPin’, shevelin’, n’ feedin’ next.
My yesterday was pretty darn nice.
Went to Rally’s / Checkers for my Buford as planned but was stymied in my quest. I got there mid lunch rush and they had several cars lined up plus 3 folks at the walkup window who’d not ordered yet. The staff here are generally goofballs. You hear lots of angry shouting between the three of them, stuff is screwed up, and even when you are the only customer in sight the place has the feel of a Chinese fire drill inside their tiny booth of a store. Not good.
I waited about 5 minutes, saw zero progress in either the drive through or the waiting to order walk-ups then bailed out for the Five Guys a mile away on the way to the beach. Whereat I had a similarly guilty-pleasure burger. And peanuts. Made quickly by cheerful capable workers who seemed to be having fun with each other.
Ref my ill-received comments about Five Guys’ FF’s earlier (last week?), I tried a different fry-eating strategy. I ate only the bonus fries tossed in the bag and completely skipped the actual serving in the cup. That was just right for my stoopit pancreas.
Then off to the park near the beach for some sun, since it was too windy to enjoy the beach. Plus the beach parking lots were full, it being a 3-day weekend. Once done at the park I decided to try the beach again. And snagged a convenient parking place (woot!) and to my happiness found the wind had dropped enough to be tolerable and was forecast to continue dropping all day. While the surf was up by our low standards.
I was there until 9pm, having “swam” (read “waded and body surfed”) several times, walked 4 miles in the shallows, and had a caipirinha (Brazilian cocktail) at one place, cheap prime rib dinner at another, and a stogie at a cigar bar.
The good news is that all felt great. Although I need to dial back the stogies: two per year is fine; two+ per month is not. And I OD’d on solar radiation just a bit. Next couple days should be both beautiful outdoors, and me fully dressed.
Once home, I launched a load of laundry, slathered my reddened skin where needed, and crawled in bed.
Never did get in sync with car pal for a meal or happy hour. Gonna try again today. Otherwise no plans.
As to y’all and your 30 posts since noonish yesterday …
My late wife and I called those “once in a lifetime experiences”. As in “unlikely to be repeated”. But it sounds like you had some fun with it and the niece visits were good.
Crap. Sure be nice if we could shoot the businesspeople who do routine wage theft.
Although from your later post this seems more like abject incompetence than malice.
That and a stop in a park if it’s warm or a coffeehouse if it’s not and you can make an outing out of it.
When I have one of those long drives to fix a DumbGuy oops I try hard to recast it so fixing the oops is the smallest part of the trip; everything else is the real point. I feel so much smarter when I fool myself that way. Hmmm. 
Best of luck w dinner whichever way you finally decide you prefer.
These two things don’t go together. I know you’re kidding but I couldn’t resist. Great line on your part. 
Congrats on the referral; hope they can get you some hiply improvement.
Yaay!!1! Despite the lingering aftereffects.
I think you misspelled “hanging up the phone” there at the end. Thank goodness for supportive kids & sibs & friends to offset the idjit(s).
This.
Indeed. And with savings to boot.
Ouch!
At my end … overnight the Feds have extracted their pounds of flesh from HL’s & my joint funds. Another major square filled on the way to fully disconnected bliss. Just one more hefty check to write, one bang of the gavel, and we’ll be done.
Ouch. Apparently yesterday was the day for alternate meals when Plan A flames out.
Hampton Inn is headquartered in St. Louis. And is one of the few hotel chains not owned by behemoth IHG or Marriott. I’ve always had a soft spot for them when staying cheap; they don’t leave out the “cheerful” like other cheap more-corporate chains do.
In addition to breakfast they always had free evening popcorn & a couple of free cheap drinks. The popcorn became a casualty of COVID but is now coming back location by location. I love a bag (or 3) of fresh popcorn as the reward for a long day’s drive.
I always gave verbal thanks to the various cooks / cleaners at the ever increasing fraction of hotels that do the half-assed breakfast buffet in lieu of having a sit down service and real kitchen. Many seemed pretty happy to get noticed, not fussed at. Cash was always appreciated too.
Your lady was crying at the moment, but she was happier at the end of the day for what you generously did. You’re a generous person and keeping that going in whatever way is an important part of keeping karma and civilization alive.
ETA: What Shoe said.
Probably Rolla. Home of the UM School of Mines. Now updated to be the Missouri University of Science and Technology. But still mostly mines, with a side order of computers. It was sort of the local MIT for techno-nerd Missourians.
Darned pretty countryside out that way. I miss that sort of green too, albeit not so badly as the oh-so-brown Junction makes you miss it.
Hooray for friends, more friends, and live music to boot!
Sounds so fun.
I’ve been meaning to ask how the volunteer program feels about a childless unmarried man hanging out with all those kids?
When I was in MO a single 40-something male friend got his teaching credential as a planned change of career. Only after that did he realize that there was a near-universal hush-hush moratorium on hiring (or retaining) male school teachers. “Every one of them guys must be a sexual predator; why else would they want to hang out with kids?” was the predominant attitude. He couldn’t even get accepted as a volunteer, much less a substitute, or full timer. He eventually and sadly went back to IT just to earn a paycheck.
Nice to hear that you and your area aren’t having that particular moral panic.
This. And wow Taters, that was a sweet hunk of land.
Contingencies can be all over the place. But IME they are an obsolete concept in most markets. Your local expert(s) can tell you what to expect in your market(s).
IME almost nobody is willing to tie their deal up with somebody else’s deal anymore. So I recommend getting your mind right about either owning two houses or zero houses for at least a month and maybe a year. It’s (probably) gonna happen whether you like it or not. We’d all love for the timing to work out neatly. It probably won’t, and buying or selling wrongly in one transaction just to align its calendar with your other transaction is probably long term pain not worth the short-term gain. Probably.
Damn shame it was raining on photo day. Interior photos taken on gray days always look dismal and gloomy. Doubly so in a place decorated in a dated dark fashion.
It might be worth rescheduling (and paying again) for pix on a bright sunny day. Nowadays with the internet being the primary house shopping venue, folks will view thirty or a hundred properties before going to see just 3 or 4. The pictures are THE big filter on which places they go see after filtering on the basics of bedroom count and price range. Dull pictures will kill the numbers of would-be buyers. Or at least that’s what I’m told and have experienced in my last 3 sales attempts in MO & FL.
Best of luck with everything!
Fuss forth; we’re here to help.
Another truth that’s hard to take. Whoever designed the human condition has much to answer for. {{Hugs}} to you both.
My own enthusiasm for attaining great old age has declined a bunch watching my late wife rapidly age up to about de facto age 85 in the space of far fewer years, then dealing with late aged MIL struggling along to 96. Seems like an awful lot of work and misery for rather little gain. Not that we have much choice in the matter, but IMO dying earlier on the decrepitude scale is probably a nicer experience overall.
And back to me …
Whew! 1:45 later I caught up to the end of the thread. Still no word from car pal ref a Big Boy meetup. So we shall see. Roomie is having friends over soon to help eat his spaghetti sauce over rigatoni, and I’ll join it with that as breakfast.
Off to shevel before another five of you post!
Cheers and happy Sattiday Easter eve to all!!
Whatever it is, they are cheating me. If only I had screenshot the check which, instead of the first week of March, it says Nov. 22, when I worked at the other store.
Waiting to hear from corporate.
Its a bad place to work.
I do start my new one Tuesday.
I could make my own fish tacos. I just don’t wanna.
Ten 'til eight, so I’ll have to think about breakfast. The Spousal Unit is having yoghurt. I’m giong to make a SPAM® and cheese omelette with salsa for me.
She’s on the road now! Thank you for all your kind words. It’s true; she’s the one all her friends call in an emergency, and she’s a more cautious driver than either of her parents. And we taught both our daughters how to change tires and check basic things under the hood when they got their learner’s permits. More important, she has a current up to date AAA membership and a backup credit card. She’s also planning to soothe her neurotic parents by texting us at every stop along the way.
I’m impressed by the speed with which you’ve made your decision to move and glad you’ve found a house so quickly! In your shoes, I’d have still been in the making vague plans stage. And, hey, if enough liberals move to red states, we can turn them around eventually!
Let me add to the general rejoicing that you’re on the mend! You’re still entitled to sloth all you want until the fatigue goes away.
Man, that’s a lot of calculation! Congratulations on the savings, and good luck on the basketball. My UNM Lobos are out, as we all expected, and I haven’t been keeping track of anyone else. Looks like neither of the MI teams nor the MN one are still in either, so I’ll likely keep on not paying attention.
We’re poking extra holes in one of ours in your honor! I’ll try to get some pictures.
I have an old friend I haven’t talked to in years, and this is inspiring me to call her out of the blue. We always had a deal that we wouldn’t guilt each other for not keeping in touch well, and I can put it to the test! It’s always nice to catch up with people who knew you back when.
Those are one of my go-to Christmas stocking stuffers! It’s dangerous for me to remember you can buy them at any time of the year. And I vote that you can prefer to work with those specific guys rather than those specific gals and still keep your Woman Card.
I’ve been baking for decades, and I had no idea there was a cake you can start in a cold oven. Sounds delicious.
It’s been a long time since I’ve had to do taxes, but I understand it’s gotten easier than ever to do them online. Mr. L is part-owner of two LLCs (ask me about legitimate shell companies!), and we are now completely incompetent to do our own taxes. All the stories of people’s tax accountants vanishing make me really nervous.
You know this, but it’s worthwhile taking better care about that! Sun damage can really do a number on aging skin.
Now I’m off to find a stake and appropriate ties for a semi-dwarf apple tree before the wind cranks up to 30 mph this afternoon. I suppose it would have been smarter to read up on fruit tree care before actually getting the tree, but it would have been out of character for me.
A happy Saturday to all!
One of the better things around here is the Saturday Dumpling Market. You place your order online on Wednesday, then pick up the frozen order of Asian dumplings and other delights on Saturday between 1000 and 1300. It’s a family business that has expanded from their home to a storefront. The dumplings come in a variety of fillings (beef, pork, chicken, shrimp, veggie), a variety of house-made sauces, and are well stuffed and tasty. We just picked up our order this morning and will have them for lunch with the daughter.
Now. . .laundry time (cue horror music).
Huh. Was he certified in elementary ed only? At the HS where I taught, men outnumbered women. The middle school was about evenly split. Only about 2% of elementary ed majors are men, maybe partly because the stereotype is that elementary teachers are nurturers. I could see a district worrying about men being child molesters, though, and not saying so openly. (I don’t agree with such notions.)
We’re bored little lambs
who have lost our way.
Blah, blah, blah.
So, so true. I may not be able to live here next year.
Reasonable heaving, a little last minute consternation, since some of the stuff that went to the “Closed” trailer didn’t get the old labels crossed out, so they had 2 carts of misssorts on 128. But I made enough for Spot’s gin this week, so all is well.
That’s why I enjoy having a working washer and dryer, I skip the Children’s Riot Festival at the local laundromat.
Not to be confused with RANDY “THE MACHO MAN” SAVAGE!!!
https://tse4.explicit.bing.net/th?id=OIP.YO1CMNrZkFtYMOsarD6TugAAAA&pid=Api&P=0&h=180
“If you transplant your brain into a 19 year old, you’ll feel much better”
pour encourager les autres- Voltaire
I haz a sad jealousy right now. Or a jealous sadness. Or, both.
It’s a chilly, drippy day here in western Mitten State - perfect for turning off the heat, opening the bedroom window a bit more, and sleeping the hell in.
(Sorry, pilot, I bet the mere concept gives you the heebie-jeebies.)
So now I’m bathrobe-ing while Monkey explores the great damp outdoors.
My back is very stiff, which used to be very unusual for me - I blame sleeping deeply for a satisfyingly long time. Sucks that it has to be a trade-off: on restless nights, I guess I move around too much for things to get tightened up.
Ah, the MMP: home of laundry updates, real estate news, and laments on aging.
Well, a slightly damp-furred Monkey just trotted back in, so imma fuss over him for a bit. Y’all have a good Sattiday!
FCM sorry to hear that there is still so much work to be done on the boat. Are you going to bring MIL down to the boatyard while you and FCD are working on it? Or possibly get a temp companion to sit with her?
Me too. Sounds delish.
don’t believe everything you hear. Your understanding is far from the truth. except for the Flint water supply problem, that was/is real.
How do you know they’re flavorless? Have you eaten them?
I’m so glad to hear you’re on the mend!
I’ve been wearing masks and distancing for 4 years now (March 2020-Feb 2022 for COVID reasons, Feb 2022-present for Hubs medical situation) and I haven’t been sick at all during that time. So, taking precautions really does work!
Mind if I join you?
I put a pound of angus ground beef in frig to thaw out yesterday. It is verboten to thaw out on counter per Stem Cell Transplant dietician. Asked Hubs if he wants hamburgers, meatloaf or million dollar pasta casserole for dinner. He wants a cheeseburger.
At the Thursday appointment, the PA said she would call us when the tacro results were in. She would call if the results indicated a need to change the dosage of Prograf and she would call if the results indicated that the dosage would remain the same because I had told her that we didn’t have enough of .5mg Prograf for the week. Well she never called. So I called the nurse yesterday and asked if she would look into it. She called back and said no change to the dosage. So I asked if the PA had called in the scrip to the local medical center pharmacy; she hadn’t, so the nurse told me it would be done yesterday. I called this morning to ensure the scrip had been filled and was ready for pickup. No, it hadn’t because the pharm tech said that insurance wouldn’t cover it. Heck. So, pharm tech sent a message to the Dr. Hope we can get it straightened out on Monday. We do have enough pills until then. At least I didn’t make a fruitless trip to the pharmacy.
For the record, I was being tongue-in-cheek about Detroit.
The state in general is lovely. I took a multi-hour drive last autumn and nearly ran off the road repeatedly because OMG PRETTY TREES! 
Bleah, what a mess. It’s good hubs has you to be his advocate! Dealing with this kind of shit when both sick AND alone shortens lifespans.
Alrighty, back to work. Repeat after me:
“I’m not covering for anyone; I’m not closing tonight. I’m not covering for anyone; I’m not closing tonight.”
Daughter visit went well. Unfortunately, laundry day didn’t go so well. The wife hurt her back unloading the dryer. I normally help with this chore, but she told me to stay with our company and did it all herself. Now she’s lying down and in pain. Fuck!
Good afternoon. Soccer has been refereed and coached (the 10U girls won 4-1 and the 8U girls tied 1-1). Had thought about going to the gym after soccer, but 5 hours of moving and running around soccer fields has tired me right out. Had a beautiful day for it, in the 70’s and hardly a cloud to be seen.
As for catching up with 40-50 posts, let’s see…
Well, the AYSO does run background checks on all volunteers and the parents are usually there for practice and games, and I make very sure there is no other contact either during or after the season with the kids. So they are glad to have me.
I tend to concur, I remember the writer Hunter S. Thompson was once reported saying:
So that is what I’m trying to do.
Now for the other 40-some messages…
Coppertone, One day that check will show up when you least expect it. Hope the new job works out better. And I’ve never been to that place nor will I plan to in the future.
Oopsie, it’s not a ‘weighted’ blanket, just a very large and very well-padded comforter that keeps me quite warm and comforatable at night. Guess I’m cold-blooded, I prefer being too warm than too cold.
Legend, bet someone can use a smelly dresser. And while New Mexico to Michigan is a long haul, I’m sure she’ll be fine. And hope the tree bears fruit in a short time. Fascinating story behind it.
Cookie, glad the Dr. appointment was good, need to schedule mine for the end of the month. And the Dumpling Market sounds marvelous! Hope wife gets to feeling better, my back has been behaving itself but once in awhile I’ll get a big ache/spasm that freezes me from moving. Is she taking anything for it?
FCM, enioy your time out with Mr. Rainbow.
nellie, Yay! for the negative test! And cousins can be…taxing. At least you have many more folks to talk to.
Oh, the stories i could tell…
red, sounds like Nelson is doing great with all the socialization/playing. And I’ve been using Turbo Tax for the past 6 years, takes some time and money but not a hassle.
Cat glove, I not quite that obsessive about Kroger points, but I have started doing more of my shopping on Friday to earn the 4X bonus, so I guess it is working for them. Need to get gas tomorrow or Monday, we’ll see how much I save. Best wishes on getting the Scrip figured out.
JtC, so glad the house-hunting went so well and that you get along with the in-laws. And tip any damn time you want; tears of joy are always good recompense.
Wheelie, that is a nice surprise and hope you can make connections with the old friend. And good that the Doc meshes well with you; that is important.
shoe, at least the paycheck should be pleasant to look at after a long week.
taters, my fence (probably smaller than yours in total yardage) is all mine but around here someone will put it up, all the back yards in the entire development are 6-ft. fenced.
lucky, I think I concur with Pilot that it might be worth some dollars to get the pics done on a bright sunny day. But you can see the resulting pics from today, so your call.
Pilot, the nearest Checkers is 15 miles from me and I don’t like their food that well to go that distance.
doggio, Spot drinks gin?
Takes bets on shoe closing…
Whooo. Think I’m caught up, apologies for anyone I missed. Will now seach out my Saturday You Tube channels and spend some time until dinner rolls around watching stuff. Take care all.