If I reuse a box and can’t get the label completely off, it’s black sharpie time!!!
IMHO, for anyone sitting outside not moving, that is cold.
Our Antarctic cruise is 16 days with only 4 port calls. We won’t stop at all from when we leave Ushuaia on Jan 26 till we stop at Falkland Islands on Feb 1. Most of that time, we’ll be cruising around the ice continent - I expect we’ll spend a fair amount of time watching icebergs go by, or napping, or wandering the ship or hot tubbing…
This doesn’t even make my list of hated chores. Not that I like handwashing, but it’s better than dusting or scrubbing the shower or cleaning baseboards! Get back to me when my dishwasher dies and see how I feel…
Woke shortly after 3 this morning, and that was that. It was raining - probably still is - but theoretically it’ll stop this morning and just be overcast and chilly all day. Daughter wants to take the kids out around 5:30 so I’ll have supper with them and hope they get bored within an hour or so. If we’re lucky, it’ll be in the low 50s but I fear it may drop into the 40s, dammit.
If it’s Tuesday, it must be laundry day!! I’ll get a good fire going in the basement and with luck, Tobias won’t try to help me fold anything. I’m so glad he can self-entertain much of the time, but there’s so much stuff in the basement, that’s no surprise.
Our microwave is supposed to get to Lowe’s today for pickup - fingers crossed! Tho we wouldn’t be installing it today anyway. Still, it’ll be good to get it. I miss the work light over my stove, not to mention the larger capacity oven compared to the loaner we’re using now.
It’s 30F, dark and clear outside. However, clouds will start moving in around 8:00 a.m., and by afternoon, we’ll reach a daytime high of around 56F and have fully cloudy skies.
I have a furnace person coming out today sometime between 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. Hopefully, it’ll only cost a few hundred dollars, but I’m not holding my breath. I got so busy with work that I didn’t call about the dishwasher. It’s difficult; the local appliance repair places don’t have the best ratings. I found one that looks decent, so I will try to call them first thing when they open. If that doesn’t work, I’ll schedule through KitchenAid, but I don’t consider that a good option. And yes, having a dishwasher spoils you, but I do handwash many of my dishes, too. All my pots and pans are hand-washed, as are my good knives. The real problem is how many dishes my husband uses while cooking; it’s rather ridiculous.
Catglove, wow! What a week. I hope your husband keeps improving.
Seanette! Yay for DH’s temp job! Something is better than nothing, and this one sounds good!
sari, I’m glad the move is done. I hope you’ll now have time to settle in.
I forgot to mention that the house that gave out popcorn balls also gave out caramel apples. Those were reserved for the kids they knew (I was one), so that was a special treat. I can’t think of a favorite costume as a kid, but as adults, my husband and I had full-on chicken costumes and showed up to a Halloween party with a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken. The host and I worked for an organization that had a reputation for “eating their young,” so the joke was not lost on the host, and we won best costume.
I spent yesterday trying to catch up on work, but still have a ways to go. Other than that, it was relatively quiet. I spoke with both the director and the deputy too.
Welp, that’s all that’s going on in my little corner of the PNW. Two more wake-up and I’ll have a three-day weekend which I’ll use to catch up on some sleep. I’m dang tired.
We got the promised snow cover last night. In fact, it’s still coming down at a pretty good clip. We’ll have to go out later, as the wife needs to get one of her meds at the local Rx joint. Not a big deal, although she seems to think it is. Otherwise, a boring day ahead.
Turns out it was a good thing that I ordered a new vacuum cleaner - my old Shark isn’t doing as well as it used to, and just this morning, I discovered the crappy cheap vacuum in the basement is dead. Dead. Dead. So on Sat, I should have a shiny new Shark for upstairs and the old Shark should be fine for the basement.
First load in the washer. Basement temp is low 70s so no need for a fire. Kid on the way. And so it begins…
Mornin’ folks. It’s 0845, a bit over an hour after sunrise here at home. I was up and balconatin’ from about an hour before sunrise until it emerged from behind the offshore clouds awhile ago. Now clear and sunny nearly everywhere. 75/24 on the way to 89/32. Cold from up north is headed south over the next couple days but ought to stall out before we get more than about 9F/5C of cooling.
Truefish: {{{hugs}}}! Good to hear you’re alive, sorry to hear everything is such a struggle. At least the poly thing is looking up.
Wheelie: that’s friggin stupid of your top management to fall for their top management’s trickery. Yaay for a few more hours, boo for the gratuitous inconvenience.
Yep to locals-only, plus maaaybe ex-pats. Not tourists. The best ethnic restaurants, no matter where you are or what the cuisine, are the ones where you’re the only person of the “wrong” ethnicity in the joint.
As to shipping, I just peel the extra barcodes off, or obliterate them with a Sharpie or cover them with my new label. I’m not nearly as crafty as dear Shoe.
It has always surprised me to get packages in fresh new boxes from e.g. Amazon, with barcodes for the product itself, barcodes for/from the originating warehouse, barcodes for the long-haul shipper, and sometimes barcodes for the last-mile local delivery service. How each system keeps all that straight seems like a set-up to lose a lot of packages along the way. Some temporarily and some permanently.
Jeebus there CatGlove what a week! I’m sorry you went through all that. Best of luck with poor ailing Hubs. BTDT and give him a {{{hug}}} for me. You take {{{one}}} too. Heck, have several; they’re small.
Sari as badly as the deed was done, it is now in fact done. And won’t be recurring. You can take a lot of pride and solace in getting to the other end of that move with sanity intact. Yes, the old place still needs fixup & selling, but that doesn’t have to disrupt every minute of every day which was the case while you were in transit.
Nettie: At the union jobs I worked the dues were a smaller amount than the wages were larger than at the equivalent non-union jobs. It’s easy to focus on paying something while overlooking what you get in return. I definitely made a profit on my union membership over the years. Not really any different than paying Costco $100 for an annual membership that lets you save $1,000.
Lots of folks love to complain about union dues. Until they go back to working non-union and wonder what hit them in the pocket book.
Cookie Hooray for snow, though not so much on an errand day.
As to me and now:
Got home a bit later than planned, the train ended up with 30 minutes of delays due to unplanned single track ops for part of the line. Growl. Basically ripped off clothes, dumped them plus suitcase full of stinky sweaties into washer, took a shower, re-dressed in cleans, and felt human again. It was an outdoors & sweaty-stinky trip even on the all indoors go-home day. Once clean we ate a light dinner & caught each other up on our activities & pix. We’d texted a bit while I was gone, but it’s not the same. She’d done a bunch of fun things too, mostly evening live music w friends.
Stayed up too late, got up too early. A nap sounds good for later. My legs definitely say they got an unaccustomed workout the last few days. The right answer is to make that an accustomed level of workout every day. The wrong, but much more inviting, answer is to couch potato until the mild soreness goes away. Sucks being older; the recovery time gets longer.
The rest of today is TBD. Once Her Ladyship emerges and I can make noise I have two pair of shoes to clean, a suitcase to close back up, mail to go through, and my regular at-home laundry to run. I might choose to clean out the last of my work stuff, dispose of my uniforms, etc. I’m feelin’ pretty over it all now, 6-1/2 weeks into retirement. Traveling this week was good. It was odd to walk through my old irkplaces and see everybody in their outfits at the airports and know that (especially now with my beard) I was completely invisible to them. I didn’t notice anyone I actually recognized though; it’s a huge facility with lots of irkers. But I definitely felt OK in my new role as hitchhiker, not pining for my old fjords of irk.
Tonight is Taco Tuesday and since trick or treating kids aren’t part of our environment we’ll probably do that. Tomorrow = Wed we’re going out for ruling class dinner at a new place nearby. Should be nice, if potentially too much overeating.
Me & Halloween:
We lived in ordinary suburbia when I was a kid in the 1960s and ToT was easy & safe. Got quite a haul as a little one, but that all tapered off to nothing when I was 10 or 11. Almost always had the store-bought costumes; Mom was the antithesis of a crafty person. As a teen we were pranky, but not so much attached to Halloween. We’d do vexing shit any day for any stupid reason that occurred to stupid us.
Once past about age 12 I’ve never been much for Halloween costumes, and by extension Halloween parties. My creativity is small, my willingness to hand-craft anything is less, and going to some rental company to pay to borrow some stinky oddball outfit seems, well, pointless. Yep, boring as hell. I’m happy to attend costume-optional parties and admire the handiwork of the others. Being one? Not really. I’m booorrrriiiiing!!! As Dirty Harry said: “A man has got to know his limitations.”
From age about 28 to 38 I lived in a middle class suburb w lots of little kids and giving out goodies to the ravening hordes was fun. My late first wife specialized in horrible Halloween jokes & puns. Later from age ~45 to 55 we lived in a ritzier area of big houses on big lots and fewer and older kids. We still stocked up and it was interesting to see how many of the kids were clearly from out-of-area. By then the parental paranoia had reached full swing and everybody, regardless of age, had hovering parents out at the street.
Been a decade since I’ve seen a trick-or-treater in the wild and that’ll probably be true until I turn into a ghost and can do haunting for realsies. High rise living is like that. Organized “safe” trunk or treats seem the tradition of the present and future. It was fun to take Daughter’s Horde out two weekends ago. Not the same as my childhood traditions, but what else is the same as way back then? Nearly nada.
It’s 10am, Her Ladyship has just emerged, and the pretty day beckons.
As a veteran, Mrs. L.A. has her Veterans Administration benefits. Unfortunately, the only place that had the new vaccine doesn’t accept TRICARE. She paid $150 out-of-pocket because she wanted to be protected before we went on the cruise. (My insurance coverage paid for mine.)
Morning all. It’s 41F this morning and the heater has cranked into life. I also have a room heater for the computer room turned on since I spend way more of my day in here than elsewhere in the house. Need to stop at Credit Union to make a deposit and also stop at the store for salt, of all things. Also on the list is to check in on my credit cards and inform them I’ll be traveling so any charges I make out of country aren’t flagged. Then gym and sloth until T or T time.
Sari, glad the move is pretty much over, hope Adam can adjust. And {{{ }}} and skritches for Echo.
BBBoo, remind me of that when I get back after Thanksgiving, that does look like an interesting alternative…now do you want all my spare candy from T or T???
JtC, yeah, I’ve noticed more places around here doing the Trunk or Treat thing.
Nettie, glad for DH, hope it morphs into something more permanent. And I’ve played the “what the hell’s in HERE” game before; best of luck.
FCM, yeah, I had 3 days across the Drake passage on a ship about 1/6 the size of yours, even on a cruise liner it’s probably going to be rougher than normal. Enjoy. Will cross fingers for a microwave arrival.
Taters, hope the furnace doesn’t cost you and arm and a leg; a couple toes only.
Pilot, welcome home
OK, need to get dressed and (moderately) active. Have a good 2sDay all.
not really the prank type, and mum did not like pranks, practical jokes, or jumping out at people. she considered it all mean, “not done”, and bullying.
she was reluctant about halloween trick or treating. pagan thing, you know, “not done”; quite a few priests would give the “that is not orthodox” in the weeks leading up to halloween.
she only agreed to “good” costumes, ie angel, historical figure, or saint; that sort of thing. i don’t remember how i got greek godess by her for one year. our school did a trick or treat for unicef thing, you got a little box for people to put change in when you went on your rounds. mum agreed to me trick or treating because it was a charity thing.
as i got older i would go with vampire, goth, victorian person, festive shirt, that sort of thing.
my office has a halloween lunch thing and encourages costumes. so far i was a panda, goth, cheetah (wore my pajamas for that one!) black cat, and a crayola crayon. today i am in hogwarts clothes, ravenclaw, of course. perhaps i will get the robe for next year. i have the sweater and tie. very easy and doesn’t look too odd.
i have stuff ready for trick or treating tonight. our condo has us set up in the lobby and the kids will go around the table to get the goodies. the building did have a door to door thing, but that was scrapped as it is a big building and took a very long time for the kids to get around.
this way it is one hour in the lobby, then the kids could go out into the neighbourhood or just go back home. one year the last trick or treater got a huge bonanza. people didn’t want to take things home so quite a few people dumped entire bowls into his bag, we had to give him a spare bag it was so much stuff. later found out his mum is a dentist.
So back in the Mez today. Of course smalls was screaming for me as soon as I left. Apparently I’m the only one who can run the belt efficiently. So work went fine, but then I was under assault by TVCTPMO. The back room freeze4rs at the poor people’s Aldi had gone down, and they hadn’t had a truck in 4 days. The place was practically empty. The I went to pick up my new glasses, and they managed to screw them up(the transition line in the left lens was the bottom third of the thing). It is also rainy and cold. On the bright side, none of my sports teams are playing, so they can’t crush my spirit today. And it’s manhattan night.
“And on today’s excursion, we’ll be seeing how far a sheep can wander into an Argentinian minefield before going to Sheep Valhalla. Also we will be seeing 14 different species of lichen” - Cruise tour coordinator
Exciting happenings going on over the fence. There are four guys doing a lot of stuff around and under the trailer and I can see wheels and tires in the back of the work truck. We think it will get yanked out very soon and I’m really kinda ticked over the long delay. Now it is too cold and windy to sit on my back porch and supervise.
Our housekeeper called off today due to family sickness. This is only the second time she has had to do this in over 6 years so we are fine. She will be here tomorrow which will be inconvenient because its a surplus produce day and I don’t like dragging boxes through the house when she is working. Hopefully, it will stay cool enough for me to leave it in the trunk for a couple of hours so I can avoid making a mess and getting in her way.
Do I have first world problems or what?
We didn’t feel like driving to town for candy this morning because we try to avoid rush hour and now I don’t want to go anywhere due to Fear Of Missing Out so hubs is going to go to the junction and get a handful of candy bars in case they are needed. He also suggested that the crew behind us would probably like coffee and cookies so I’ll report back in a while.
Exciting update: The trailer has been jacked up and has wheels and tires now. The workers think it will be pulled out today, maybe, if the truck finished up somewhere else early.
There were communication issues, Spanglish is great for casual small talk, not so good for precise details.
Dang. I hope you are able to stay comfortable until you can get it replaced. Here’s hoping that it isn’t horrible pricey and that all of the necessary parts are available.
Started Typing: 12:20 PM ET
Clicked Reply: 2:45 PM ET
Happy Halloween!
(This post is likely to be interrupted: I’m eating lunch while typing, plus I have a one-on-one with my boss at 1pm.)
I just cored/sliced/started eating a Gala apple. I’ve always liked apples, but never really had them in the house before I had bariatric surgery; even then, I bought pre-packaged slices until recently. I’ve never cared for the mess involved with biting into whole apples, and it took me way too long to realize that I could simply buy a corer/slicer. Bananas are still my fruit of choice, but these days I typically have 1-3 apples in my fridge.
After the apple will be PB&J (a “regular” Uncrustable). I also brought some sugar-free Maria cookies in from the kitchen, in case that urge strikes me later. I had no idea what those cookies were when I bought them: the “sugar free” label caught my eye, so I figured I’d try them. Turns out they kinda taste like animal crackers! Yay! They could be a little sweeter, but I figure that’s the “sugar free” part. I probably won’t buy them again, but I’ll finish this packet.
In March 2022, an old friend lost a long battle with cancer. I’d last seen her and her wife in the summer of 2018, when I visited their small central Washington town for a great little jazz festival (they were both on the festival’s board). I couldn’t return in 2019, but had planned to go to the festival again in 2020… Anyway, at the time she passed I was only 4 months post-op and simply couldn’t handle a cross-country trip for her funeral (although I was physically recovered, food/eating was very complicated then). But she was a retired U.S. Navy Commander, and I knew the plan was always for her cremains to eventually be interred in Arlington National Cemetery. That day is finally coming next week. There will be a dinner with friends/family on Wednesday evening, and the service will be the next morning (two days before Veterans Day, rather fittingly).
I’ve known about the ceremony for a couple of months and I put in a leave request for that day right away, but it turns out I’m now taking the entire week off. Tuesday is Election Day (I’ll work 15-17 hours as an election officer), Thursday is the service, and Friday is when Veterans Day is observed, and I figure three days off may as well be five! Plus: Bailey has a vet appointment on Monday afternoon (injection #2 of the new thing we’re trying for her arthritis), later on Monday I’ll want to go help set up the polling place, and Wednesday morning I’ll be tired. I’ve told my direct reports that they can call me on Monday or Wednesday if needed, but I’m hoping for actual downtime on those days…
taters Sorry to hear about the furnace. I’m kinda dreading the visit from those guys to look at mine on friday.
Sari Please remind me who Adam is? At one point I thought you said you’d put his pot up on a table, so I was thinking some kind of plant…
I’m done helping the high school play, so delving back into the computer to give the museum a couple more options on exhibit placement. And need to prep for going to the fund raiser event on firday.
Well, things worked out OK today. I got mostly packed last night, and woke up early enough this morning to get everything together without rushing. It was less complicated than I tried to make it; I just changed my shirt and shoes at the airport and crammed them in my suitcase before checking it. No line at security, and boarding starts in 45 minutes. Both flights are still allegedly on time.
This morning’s work was relatively light. I didn’t get too dirty, and since it’s chilly I didn’t get sweaty either. And, I was just offered a 2-week project starting November 13th. Yay!
Just finished my giant Starbucks, so time to empty my bladder and head toward the gate. I’ll say hi from Houston between flights.
I’m so glad he can self-entertain much of the time, but there’s so much stuff in the basement, that’s no surprise.
!!
day.
Bananas are still my fruit of choice, but these days I typically have 1-3 apples in my fridge.
Anyway, at the time she passed I was only 4 months post-op and simply couldn’t handle a cross-country trip for her funeral (although I was physically recovered, food/eating was very complicated then). But she was a retired U.S. Navy Commander, and I knew the plan was always for her cremains to eventually be interred in Arlington National Cemetery. That day is finally coming next week. 
There will be a dinner with friends/family on Wednesday evening, and the service will be the next morning (two days before Veterans Day, rather fittingly).
