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long weekend, long entry 2006-09-05 Well, that was a good 3 day weekend, but I'm pretty tired today, due to not sleeping great last night. It was hot, and Esther coughed twice (she's been coughing more lately; I don't like it), and it took a long time to go to sleep. We got up early this morning (a little before 5:00) and went for a long walk, which was nice, and hopefully we'll sleep better tonight because of it. Anyway, this weekend we: 1) Went to the Goodwill on Friday night [I got a fake fur coat that wasn't the one I had my eye on; it's an even Better one], and then again yesterday morning, because they were having a big sale. Yesterday Francisco and Sharky got a bunch of clothes/jackets, and I got 3 sweaters (one hand knit), a crocheted wool throw blanket, a crocheted wool baby blanket (for the cats' basket), 5 rolls of film I have to assume is expired [hoorah!], and a Polaroid Impulse [99 cents]. This brings the total number of cameras in our house to 9; 7 or 8 of which work: Cameras We Now Own: --Nikon Coolpix 3500 (our only digital) After the Goodwill, we went to another store, where I purchased Polaroid film--this was very painful for me because I didn't realize Polaroid film was quite That expensive: $11.99 for a 10 photo cartridge. I put it in the camera and took one picture, and the camera works perfectly. I am hoarding the other 9 pictures--this camera will need to be a special occasion thing; otherwise it could bankrupt us. This morning at eBay I bid on Polaroid film--12 ten packs that are a couple of years expired but which should still be fine. If I win them (I will pay with the eBay gift certificate my former coworkers gave me), I wil shove them into the refrigerator to keep them good as long as possible. I really really love that Polaroid camera--it is the only one I've ever had and it's so FUN. 2) Saw Twyla and the nieces on Saturday and Sunday--they came over in the afternoon on Saturday, and we went to the fair. It was pretty fun, though Lou was out of sorts from having gotten a Dramamine for car sickness. The Dramamine eventually wore off and she was much happier, and also a shave ice treat helped. I even got a shave ice, in clear violation of my no-dessert policy, and it was delicious, plus Frances made a stellar groced out face when I put a small bite of it in her mouth. I think it was the tangerine flavor she didn't like, because she was okay with the other flavors she was given. Anyhow, a semi-good time was had by all at the fair, except can I just say that ranch dressing has no place on a gyro? We got gyros for dinner and I didn't like mine due to the ranch dressing situation, and plus the falafel was super dry. Living so close to the fair and rodeo grounds isn't the best thing ever, because the streets fill up with parked cars and yesterday there was a vehicle that had one of those proximity alarms, parked in front of the house next door. That em-effing alarm went off every few minutes All Day Long, and I was ready to write a nasty note for the windshield but then I decided to try a little tenderness and let it go. But good lord, how crazy making. I'm glad this fair and rodeo business is only one weekend per year; otherwise it would be unbearable. Anyway, on Sunday morning Francisco made pancakes and Twyla packed up the girls and we went to the park before they hit the road. It was so great to see them, and I hope they end up moving over here next summer, as they are tentatively planning. The very best thing would be if they could rent the house that's being built next door ("being built" meaning, at this point, that the foundation is dug and nothing's happening)--it's going to be a rental, so it depends on when it'll be finished and if the owner charges an appropriate amount of rent. Having them next door would be so great I can hardly stand to think of it. I don't want to get my hopes up. 3) Saw Little Miss Sunshine on Sunday evening. It was as good as everyone is saying, and though the ending was a little cheesy, it fit and I enjoyed it. Two thumbs up. In other news, on Saturday I was stung by a yellowjacket on my right pinky toe (how Rude) and it didn't hurt too bad but it's itching like crazy now and bugging me. I haven't been stung by anything in years, I think since that scorpion got me in Alabama in 1992. That's a long time to not be stung; I feel lucky. Since I've been listening to KEXP in recent days, I've heard some songs from Yo La Tengo's new album, "I'm Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass". I haven't bought a whole album in a long time, because I prefer to buy individual songs, but I might have to buy that one, to reward it for the amazing title. Best title ever. Okay, one of my new coworkers who was on vacation since before I started working here returned today, and she's not overly friendly, but I think eventually I'm going to like her. For one thing, she's seen Napoleon Dynamite several times, and if that's not a basis for a solid friendship, then I don't know what is. This morning Francisco and Sharky went to the hills to get firewood--Sharky goes back to school tomorrow and he was rather bitter at being made to 'waste' his last day of freedom working, but that's just tough. Francisco got a permit to gather this firewood--it's in specific areas that have been commercially logged, and basically he's gleaning what they left behind. It'll be nice to have fires in the wood stove this winter; I know it's going to get quite cold and every bit of free heat will help. Francisco emailed me this afternoon at work to tell me the following: "I kicked myself and kicked myself this morning on the way to the DNR land where we cut wood--for not having a camera, natch. Jacob and I (inside the more-or-less safe confines of the truck) were engulfed by a cattle drive down one of the local roads (Rd 81, I believe it was). 4 or 5 cowboys (and one girl cowboy, as Jacob observed) were herding several hundred beeves down the road going the opposite direction. Not much for us to do but stop the truck and watch as they jostled their way around us. I could have reached my hand out the window and touched them, but didn't. The only points of discomfort came when one beef nudged the front of the truck (no harm done) and when a young male attempted to mount a female maybe 3 feet from my face, out my open window. I don't know exactly what I was nervous about, but it just seemed like a lot of heaving flesh so close by, and I suppose there was the uncomfortable thought that he might bust a nut on my forehead. It was a little early in the day for bovine bukake." I am so Jealous of them for being caught in a cattle drive. If ONLY he'd had a camera, but I guess one never knows when one's vehicle will be surrounded by cattle. Who can plan? This weekend I did not accomplish my goal of getting all that rollover paperwork done. I could do one form, and actually can probably do another (didn't look at it because I was vexed), but the one form I need for the rollover from one company to another requires not only signatures from the company the rollover is going to, but also from the employer through whom I started that account, over ten years ago. And I just. I know this company doesn't want me to take my money away from them, and they are therefore making the process as painful as possible, but good lord, the sum I want to move is small--it's Nothing to them--so why must they make it so hard? Asses. I'ma need to make some calls before I can finish that thing up, and given my hatred for the phone, it might take awhile longer.
come over some time & see me - 2011-02-25 |
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