3303 Loaded, no bears.

Saturday, July 9, 2011

"Next time I will...." "From now on I will...." -What makes me think
I am wiser today than I will be tomorrow?”
-- Hugh Prather, Notes to Myself --

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I'm about to close up here and head back downriver. Fred is carrying a full load -

• Hanuman (a heavy wooden statue of the Hindu deity Hanuman, plastered and gilded),
• a guitar signed by Les Paul just before he died,
• a large oil painting,
• a large framed print,
• an antique wood-framed mirror,
• a large ceramic giraffe,
• a bunch of kitchen utensils,
• a bag of refrigerator storage containers,
• a load of summer clothes,
• seven singing bowls,
• a mammoth tusk carved with a herd of mammoths,
• a box of netsukes,
• two ostrich eggs, one carved, one plain, and
• three wheeled briefcase-laptop-overnighters (that I plan to drop off at Good Will. When you put 8-10 compartments and pockets in those things, with the requisite zippers, they get ridiculously heavy, even if they do have wheels, and all the compartment separators leave little room for anything else. I have never used them.)
• And some other stuff. I forget what all.
• Oh, yeah, and a hot-air popcorn popper. I've been hungry for popcorn, but my microwave at the new house is dead.

So I'm packing up the laptop now, and heading out.

Hey, remember that woman who was promised a new Toyota, and sued when what she got was a new toy Yoda? I was reminded of that today. I went to a charity auction once and bid on and bought a nice looking pendant and chain necklace. I had looked at it before bidding, and the auctioneer distinctly said it was a "diamond necklace". When I opened the box after taking possession, under the velvet cradling the necklace was a dime. The necklace was crystal. I'd bought a "dime and necklace". I found that box today, with the dime still in it.
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3300 Running around

Thursday, July 7, 2011

A "nine-days' wonder" is taken as a matter of course on the tenth day.
-- Robert Heinlein --

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Yesterday I mowed the back yard, babysat in the morning and a little in the afternoon while Daughter got some stuff done, and squeezed in a mammogram.

I'd always wondered what people meant when they said mammograms hurt, because they never bothered me in the least. This time, the right didn't hurt, but the left did. I wonder if it was the way she arranged me. Every other time, and on the right yesterday, the technician arranged the "fold" (you know how you get folded in half?) exactly across the nipple. Yesterday, I noticed that for both views on the left, the fold was below the nipple, so that the nipple was sort of flat against the top plate. I hope that's what made it hurt, and not something going on in there.

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I'm now at the old house. I didn't get on the road as soon as I'd wanted to today, but it was good enough, I guess, to get a few things done. I got up here in time to go to the radiology lab and pick up my old mammo films. I'll take them to the new place on Monday.

I went to the DMV and picked up forms to get new copies of the NY titles for my vehicles. I'm sure they're around here somewhere, but I can't find them. I'll need them to register the cars in NJ. There's a problem - NY will send the copies only to the "address of record", which is the old house. I'm having my mail forwarded, and that's working fine, BUT the post office will not forward official government mail. So they will be returned. Duh. The woman at the DMV gave me a number to call to ask how I can get them sent to my new address.

I stopped at the post office to verify that, and yeah, they won't forward them. But she said that they'll be returned with a sticker on them with my new address, so NY should then send them again to the new address.

Uh, yeah, but remember this is the DMV we're talking about. Logic and "makes sense" don't apply.

Then I got Fred the van inspected at an oil change place. The NY inspection expires the end of this month. His serpentine belt is bald, and they told me he couldn't pass inspection with that belt, and they can't fix it. Well, sort of. The mechanic offered to pass him if I gave him "a little extra". It took me a minute to understand what he was saying. I said, "Uh, no, I'd really rather do this legally." Later the manager came to me and said he "has a soft spot for the elderly and disabled" (Fred's a wheelchair van) so they'd pass him anyway, but I'd have to promise to get the belt fixed within the next ten days.

"Elderly?"

So then I went to a Dodge dealership to see if I could get it done tomorrow. They have no open time slots, but want me to call tomorrow and maybe they can squeeze him in.

Then I went to the garage that's working on Suzie (they haven't got to her yet) to get her VIN to order her new title, and to make sure they had my new phone number.

I stopped somewhere else, too, but darned if I can remember where.

Right now I'm watching "Big Bang Theory", and plan to watch "Big Brother" (shame! shame!) later. All that running around after a 2.75 hour drive has left me drained.

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I mentioned I'd started a Meetup dining out group. I was disappointed because it got no action for two days. I didn't realize that Meetup hadn't released it to the public yet. They released it yesterday, and I already have 22 members, and three have RSVP'd to a dinner I scheduled for July 7.

I'm afraid I might see some of the same craziness that drove me away the last time. I clearly stated I wanted to keep it local, even gave a north and south limit. So, one of the new members lives in Manhattan, and has suggested that we meet at some Manhattan restaurants. Sigh. Actually, if she wants to, I guess I could let her host it....
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