Up, caffeinated, and sheveled. Off to heave n’ sort. And it’s my Firday.!
{{{{nellie}}}}
The first nice day in the spring (high 40’s, low 50’s) we open kitchen and dining room windows and get some cross ventilation and air the place out a bit. But after that, windows stay shut to keep pollens out, except for the bathroom window that gets cracked open after showers.
It’s been a week. Last week my sister informed me that the Groupon she bought for golfing at the local community course expires June 1 and asked when was I available to go with her. Since we’re going up north next week, that left this week as the only open time. Since I regularly work Thursdays and Fridays and since I haven’t golfed in close to 20 years, I said Wednesday so I had the max amount of time to get in some work on the ole bod so I didn’t totally embarrass myself. Thus commenced 6 days of increased workouts at the Fitness Center. Normally I just do the NuStep for 36-40 minutes 2 or 3 times a week and some leg press once or twice a week but this called for much more. So, I was doing about 7 different machines, biceps, triceps, abs, deltoids, lower back, abs, and one twisty about the waist machine, each day adding reps and/or weight.
So then Wednesday came. First I couldn’t find my wallet, anywhere, not anywhere in the house, the car, outside. I couldn’t be late because I didn’t want to rile up my sister from the get go so I just got in the car and drove very slowly and carefully, staying several miles under the speed limit and coming to FULL stops with a definite pause at each stop sign. I got to the course one minute late and received a little side eye. But she said we’re just here to have fun so don’t worry about the outcome of any swing. Well, I didn’t do toooo bad. I had 2 pars, 2 bogies, a number of doubles, triples, quadruples and probably even at least one quintuple bogey. But I got better as the round went on and I had fun. I ended up playing 17 holes, I probably could have played the 18th but I’d had enough. So I invited my sister over for BLT’s before she had to drive home, about a half hour away. My DH had already cooked bacon so all I had to do was toast the bread, slice ‘maters, slather on some mayo and layer everything on. My sister expressed her thanks for lunch but she couldn’t leave without getting in a subtle dig about how the house needs to be decluttered. SISTERS!
So then commenced a much more intensive search for the wallet. I looked everywhere in the house 2 or 3 times, got on my knees and peered under and between the seats in the car, I even put on a glove and painstakingly pulled out everything in the trash can, eggshell by eggshell, banana peels, corn shucks, Kleenex, empty food containers, etc. and came up empty. So, what to do but call VISA to see if anyone had attempted to use the credit card. Luckily no so I just put a hold on it in the hope that the wallet turns up; but now it’s Saturday and no sign of it yet.
Next order of business was to get a replacement license. I called the Police Station to find out when and what time the Drivers License Bureau would be open and was told that it closed 3 months ago permanently, likely due to budget cuts. Aargh. So I opened the Secretary of State’s website to see what I needed to bring and it just said bring sufficient evidence of your identity; aack, what the heck does that mean?!?. But it also said that you MUST have an appointment, no walk-ins anymore. Each day they open up appointments at 8am for the next morning and at noon for the next afternoon. It further said that appointments fill up fast. Well they weren’t kidding about that. The next morning I was on my iPad at 7:59am and waited until the time flipped to 8:00 to press the make appointment button at the SOS office in my city. Well, my reflexes must have been slow because I received a message saying that I couldn’t be connected to the site because volume was too high and to wait a moment or so before trying again. So then I tried a second City, same thing so I tried a third, same so back to first city, then second city and finally received a calendar with some open time slots at the third city. Well then there is info to fill in and a lot of questions to answer and by the time I pressed the SUBMIT button, I received a message that the time slot was no longer available and that all time slots for the next morning were all full. Drat! So, what to do? I packed my mini iPad to take to work with the intention of being late to a scheduled noon meeting and very carefully drove to work. I set an alarm on my phone for 11:57. Luckily, the noon meeting was escalated to 10am. So, at 11:59, I started trying to get an appointment and on my second or 3rd try, got a calendar with open time slots so I chose a late afternoon time thinking that most people would try for earlier ones, and now with familiarity of all the prompts that needed to be filled in, did so as rapidly as possible, and this time when I pressed the SUBMIT button, I received a screen that said I was now scheduled for Friday at 4:20pm. Next task was to come up with documents to prove my identity. I have a work badge that has my name and picture on it, also took recent bank statement, credit card statement, application for absentee ballot, utility bill. In digging through a junk basket I found a drivers license that had expired in 2018. To cut to the chase while I still had to stand in line for about 40 minutes at the SOS office, when I made it to the counter, the clerk was very pleasant and very efficient. I was pleased when he informed me that since my license was due to expire in less than a year, that I could renew it rather than replace it, meaning I wouldn’t have to come back next year! So obvi I chose to renew. Although this meant I had to take a vision test and due to the pandemic, I was past due for an eye dr. appointment. At first the letters were blurry but I readjusted and I was able to see them clearly enough so that I passed. But darn if I could make out if the first letter was a C or a G or an O. Next was a picture and making out a check then SUCCESS, the nice clerk handed me a temporary license. Yay, I’m driving legally again.
Drama over for now, hopefully for at least the next week.
Today I have to go in to the office to finish an assignment I was unable to complete yesterday since had to leave early. The rest of the day I will be getting ready (laundry, grocery shopping, packing) so we can leave tomorrow morning for the cottage I rented up north.
All y’all have a Great day!
This is going to be an interesting day. Once I’m done with my intrarwebz routine, I’m going to don grubbies and fill a couple of gas cans (and my car) at Wawa. Mowage is first chore of the day. I convinced FCD that he should NOT try to mow, but he’s going to vacuum the house. That won’t jostle his back and it’s definitely needed.
Once I finish mowing, I’ll shower and dress for our afternoon of baseball - watching, not playing. We’ll head over to the stadium to pick up our Senior Season Tickets (10 Tuesday night games) then watch the free exhibition game. We may not make the whole game - it depends on how FCD feels. It’s going to be hot and the seats aren’t as comfy as his recliner…
Depending on when we get home, I may start edging the ceiling in the basement so I can get it painted before Thursday. Then tomorrow, I’ll paint the trim and do more on the ceiling. It’s all starting to come together.
My mom sent a mass email - she’s hosting Christmas in July, since we didn’t do a family gathering this past holiday. So that’s on my calendar - less than 2 months away? Why is this year zipping by so fast??
Happy Sunday!
Looks like rain is heading into western Mitten State - and the weather app agrees with me. Meanwhile, it is hyoomid bleah.
I have to do two (2) things this weekend if I’m to have any hope of getting my personal shitshow in gear next week.
- Update resume (don’t ask)
- Start my own even more convoluted version of the new “Getting a Drivers License” dance. (I managed to, ah, misplace my backup identity forms, naturalization certif. etc. during Dah Big Move.)
I’d just about rather cut off my own foot than plow through either task.
8:45 a.m. and I’m already all, “Hmmm, maybe I SHOULD get a jump on that afternoon nap!”
Gimme some moral support, Dopers! Or a virtual kick in the ass - I could use either one.
Good Mornin’ Y’all! Up and caffeinatin’. YAWN I was a slugabed until just after eight a.m. 
‘Tis 66 Amurrkin out and N.O.S. with a predicted high of 90 and mostly N.O.S. for the day. Nuttin’ of import on today’s agenda. I have a small ham I shall bake in the slow cooker/oven thingy. That along with green beans, N.O.T. sallit, and rolls will comprise Sunday N.O.L. I shall make the N.O.T. sallit this mornin’. I foresee some quality cee-mint pond time this afternoon. Any need to feed today shall be via forage. There are plenty of sammich makin’s and chips, so starvation is not a possibility.
shoe try to accomplish one, or a big part of one task, then call it a day. Gettin’ a start will make you feel you feel like you got sump’n done.
Now I need more caffeine and to feed rumbly tummy. Then, onward into the day! Rah,
Happy Sattidy Y’all!
Morning all. Soccer starts in about an hour, getting dressed now for it. Referee at 9am, then drive 45 miles to coach at noon and 2pm. Last games of the season, so will have to find something else to do with my time.
Cat Glove, sounds like quite the adventure. Sorry about the wallet, I bet it shows up in the least likely place once you’ve replaced everything…
shoe, you can get those jobs done. I’ve found the biggest problem is starting; once underway it usually goes faster than you think. Just tell yourself I"m going to start NOW and then do it.
FCM, enjoy the game and the day out!
Best wishes, nellie
OK, got the ankle socks on, guess I should get the rest of me dressed. All y’all take care.
red Heh, nope, Cin is a 60 pound mix of…I dunno? I think there’s some terrier in there based on his head shape and personality. He was a rescue from Ohio, so I have no idea of his lineage.
Mornin’ everyone.
I am feeling so much better today. The arm still stings like a mofo at the injection site, but the blahs and tiredness have passed. I lied around all day due to a serious lack of energy. My back is letting me know it didn’t appreciate that AT ALL.
The kids and grandkids are coming today, so I need to tidy up before they get here. I don’t have much to do really; just some vacuuming and dusting. I also need to make sure all the dog poo is picked up in the backyard so Zoe can play out there. I won’t be able to mow, the bin is just stuffed to the top and won’t be emptied until this coming Friday.
Sorry about the wallet, Kitten Mitten, but am glad you were able to get your license renewed. Hopefully, the wallet will turn up so you don’t have to ask for a replacement VISA.
Glad you got your sink unclogged, Flyboy. Your handyman sounds like a good guy and has reasonable prices. It’s hard to find that.
I think it’s cute that Roxy acts a little unhappy when she has to leave your company, FCM. It’s a perfect indicator of just how much she loves and trusts you!
I think we’re supposed to have a nice sunny day, with a high of 72. But, it definitely looks kind of gray outside right now. I hope the weather improves. I’d love for all of us to take and Adam to the park and as well as let Polar get in some walkies. He’d love that.
Okay, well, resume now has the most crucial updates, but I’ll no doubt still futz with it a bit. Then, I gotta find a place to print it - a lot of jobs around here ARE of the “walk in with your resume” type, which I thought had gone extinct.
I haven’t used Word since whenever the hell they made all these newfangled changes, and it made me feel old and dumb. 
But, I also chatted with the next door neighbor, who plowed my driveway a few times over the winter. My yard currently resembles a spring meadow, with long seedheads and various wildflowers, which this hippie loves but he prefers a tidy, mowed postage stamp of monoculture … where was I?
Oh yeah, he’s gonna mow my lawn, before I get charged by prop. mgmnt.
Folded some laundry - looks like I’ll definitely need at least one more storage tub for all these warm clothes.
Plus the cats are out of gooshy food (gasp!) so when I need another break, I can “enjoy” a trip to Wally World.
Staged some warm boots by the basement steps for a trip downstairs once enough have gathered, too.
Boy, I’m really diving into this procrastination thing, huh?
But { whines } I STARTED and got the damn thing current, so that’s something. Right?
Busy morning here. Agway for dog food, stop by the mechanic to re-torque the lugs from when they put new tires on the truck, booze store for, well, booze, Lowes for a new “ethnic” saw, Trader Joes, then Aldi.
Interesting mix of mask usage, no employees wearing masks at Agway and about half the customers, no masks at all at the mechanic, all masks at the booze store, all masks at Lowes, all masks at TJ’s, half masks at Aldi. In my hippy-dippy town I expect the public will be wearing masks as a signal for a while.
Put shit away, then fixed the steering on the lawn tractor. That was no fun, kneeling on the floor of the garage trying to get my arms inside a space not big enough for my arms. I think I got some new cuts and scrapes. So damn humid I was literally dripping sweat by the time I finished.
I think it may be time to get a new mower. A buddy offered me his old one, which is about 30 years newer than the one I’ve got now. Anybody know how to get rid of an old riding mower?
On to rest of the day!!! A thrilling mix of laundering all the cold weather clothes and getting those flannels into storage bins, then some quality couch/back porch time.
Happy saturday, all!
Saturday, hashbrowns day. Spuds, deadpig strips, and cackleberries have been consumed.
I’ll wait 15 or 30 minutes for the carbohydrates to hit my system, and then start moving bricks and pulling horsetails and other weeds.
Worked, laundered, cleaned the bathroom. Hit the likker sto, and grabbed some bourbon and cognac. When the other ingredients go on sale next month, I can be making Vieux Carres and sazeracs just like Flyboy.
Staples, the public library, and a lot of shipping stores will print. And yay for being productive
You adopted Gordie’s cousin(he’s a 60lbs. Jack Russell terror).
Well, dammit! They had one (1) storage tub left of the same brand/size I’ve been using … and no lid for it. (Believe me, I looked.)
So my options became 1a.) finish organizing & putting away my cold weather stuff, then be constantly irked at the wonky non-stacking, etc. or 2b.) put off organizing & putting away, be irked at the delay, and hope to hell they didn’t discontinue that model.
I opted for the latter, figuring everyone is in “put away the seasonal stuff” mode, and that they just need another shipment.
Or else … you heard it here first, folks … storage tubs will be the NEW TOILET PAPER mwah-hah-hah.
Eye exam looms this afternoon (yes, DH will be driving). Also gotta do some minor erranding.
Some defilthification is needed, especially since DH has a former co-irker coming over with a sick computer. He’s also got a part to install in an ailing one of his own.
Still rather tired post-shot.
Hades Annex is in upheaval with grandboss leaving at the end of the month (smart woman). Supposedly, they’re going to be hiring 150 more people in the next few months. Even without “every other desk” distancing, there is no way they can cram that many in (unless the noobs get to work from home, while the veterans who don’t need that much handholding still have to show up in person) and we have nowhere near enough sups. Best candidate to replace grandboss flatly refuses to take the position, too. I have GOT to get out of there!
If the scale of messed-up goes from “hot mess” to “dumpster fire”, what’s the next step?
Evening all.
{{Nelllie}}
Was unimpressed by the garden show- it looks like some of the traders didn’t turn up, by the markings and gaps, but even if they had, it was pretty tiny for a paid entry event- and most of what was there wasn’t very interesting. Usually there’s lots of specialist plant nurseries at this sort of thing, but there really wasn’t. I don’t have a garden right now, but even if I had, I wouldn’t have got anything.
I was also unimpressed by the ‘safety restrictions’ which included a purely imaginary 1-way system (claimed on the website- there weren’t even signs) and people actually barging others out the way, with no space to keep distance in stalls despite it only being half-full. Even the people supposed to be enforcing the rules had masks with noses poking out or under-chin decorations- we’re not at a vaccine level we’re mask-free here yet. Not much of a day out, really- I spent almost as long trying to find my car after as I did going round. Oh well.
Oh, yeah: I didn’t buy the tub I need, but I did splurge a whole 99c for a pretty container of lip balm … in BIRTHDAY CAKE flavor.
Now I don’t wanna open it!
Oh, yeah v 2.0: I found a pint of a locally favorite creamery (Hudsonville) of “Cake Batter” flavor. It’s so warm that it was already softening in the 5 minutes it took to get home … so naturally, I promptly ate some. (Don’t wanna re-melt ice cream, donchaknow.) Only then did I put away the eggs and mini sausage.
Priorities!
Facebook marketplace, Craigslist, local forum? Offer it for free. People love free stuff! Heck - put it on the curb with a sign that says FREE and it may well disappear!
And, yes, I know it’s Saturday. No clue why I wrote Sunday earlier. Major brain fart.
Summary thus far:
- All trash and recycling taken to the convenience center
- All mowage complete - there’s no way FCD could have done it - even the front lawn, which looks relatively flat and even, made for a bumpy ride. I’ve never had spinal surgery and it was painful for me a few times. But it’s done.
- We got our tickets, but FCD didn’t want to stay for the game - he was really tired and hurting. So…
- Lunch at Famous Dave’s BBQ - happy tummies for two!
He’s napping now and I’m trying to decide whether to do some work in the basement or start working on future grandson’s afghan. I think the afghan will win that battle. 
Pretty sure I expended all of today’s motivation before lunch.
I never knew there was such a thing as an Oscar Meyer Weinermobile whistle, and now I want one! Yes, I’m a big ole’ kid.
I feel ya’. There are 2 little houses across the street that were purchased by somebody who turned them into air B-N-Bs. They’ve hired a landscaping company to keep the yards tidy, and I swear they’re getting paid by the hour, and decibel. 
Kitten Mitten: 
You can do this Shoe. You’re tough.
Bi-Mart had storage tubs on sale a few days ago and I went down to get 10 of them for our move, and they didn’t have any. So I got a rain check, which is currently in my jacket pocket, hanging on the coat rack, 125 miles away, in central Orygun. 
Paintcharge: if you were anywhere near Eugene Orygun my BIL would take your riding mower from you. He fixes them up and sells them. Does pretty well with them too.
Speaking of mowing; It looks like it’s not going to rain today. Time to get the mower out and get busy.
You never watched “The Santa Clause”? 
I don’t think so. If I did I don’t remember it.