2994 Craft Fair Part 2

Saturday, June 19, 2010

"By a curious confusion, many modern critics have passed from the proposition
that a masterpiece may be unpopular to the other proposition
that unless it is unpopular it cannot be a masterpiece."
-- G. K. Chesterton --

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Continued from previous post.

Organic and herbal soaps & cosmetics:

Jams and jellies in all kinds of strange flavors and combinations:

Tarts:

Baskets:

Fruit breads and pies. They actually had sugar-free fruit pies, so I bought a 6-inch blueberry pie.

Biscotti. Again, she had sugar-free, so I bought three containers - almond, lemon, and cappuccino chocolate. I was surprised to find that many of the food vendors had sugar-free wares this year. Or maybe they always had them and I just didn't notice. By the way, everybody offers tastes. You can make a whole (unbalanced) meal in this building.

Painter, I think, maybe photography. I forget.

Shea butter seems very popular, wharever it is:

Handmade Victorian doodads:
Carved wood:

Glass paperweight-sort of things. Those are frilly glass jellyfish inside.

Stained glass with fossil and fossil-like inclusions:

Wooden jewelry boxes:

Soft leather:

Wood:

Pottery (love the Hershey's Kisses):

Leather:

Wooden utensils:

Hats:

There was lots of jewelry, everywhere, some of it very creative. This is not a particularly good photo representation, but when I hit jewelry booths, I was looking, not shooting. (I bought a necklace made of horse shoe nails.)

In many of the booths, craftsmen were actually making things right there (he stepped away just as I took the photo):

Furniture:

I do enjoy the craft fair. My two favorite artists were not there this year. One guy paints the most incredibly detailed local scenes, tiny brush strokes, every blade of grass is individual. The other guy has photos from his travels around the world - mostly architectural detail. I have in the past bought something from each of them about every other year or so. I haven't seen either of them in two or three years. I miss them.
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2993 Craft Fair

Saturday, June 19, 2010

"It is not necessary to understand things in order to argue about them."
--Pierre Beaumarchais--

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I went to the Rhinebeck craft fair today. I think it was very courageous of me, given what happened the last time I went to the fairgrounds, for the antiques fair - I couldn't complete the circuit of the booths because I got so very weak, almost didn't make it back to the car, and that night I lost consciousness twice. I haven't walked any great distance since then, because, frankly, I was afraid to test me. I was afraid the same thing would happen today. If there was something horribly wrong, I didn't want to know. Not until after I've moved, anyway.

It didn't happen again. I made it through all the buildings, visited all the booths, and wasn't tired or weak at all. I swung right along like always before. I am very relieved.

I have occasionally invited people to go to the craft fair with me, and they always say, "Nah, I'll skip it", thinking I guess of little old ladies crocheting doll clothes, the usual church Christmas craft fairs. This is nothing like that. The stuff is all gorgeous, all handmade by true artists, and, unfortunately, mostly outrageously expensive. But it sure is fun to look at.

Forged aluminum platters:

Bags and painted portraits:

Handmade canoes (I overheard someone say they were $3K):

Pottery and stained glass:

Baskets:
One of the three long buildings (there's a fourth large square building). There are two aisles the length of the building, with booths on either side (four rows of booths per building). Most people walk down one aisle looking at things on both sides, then back up the other aisle. I walk down the first aisle looking only to the right, then back up the same aisle, again looking only to the right. That way I don't miss anything, but I end up walking twice the distance.

Glass paperweights:

Pottery:

Scrap sculpture. I didn't use the flash in the building, so I wouldn't disturb anyone, which means the camera had to be held very still. So some of the photos are fuzzy, but I included them anyway, just to show the variety.

This photo is disappointing because it doesn't show the beauty of these whatsises. They are made of thick pieces of natural color heavily weathered and textured old barn wood, and are very three-dimensional. This photo makes them look flat and boring, almost just paintings. They're not! I absolutely love them.

Handmade lamps and shades:

My lunch, a Greek salad with roast chicken, and that yummy yogurt and cucumber sauce on top. Good, but a bit expensive at $9 for the salad and $2 for a small bottle of water.

This is the large rectangular building. Booths around the outside walls, and then three or four "islands" of booths in the middle. This building is mostly craft foods, cosmetics, and a few stray other crafters. This particular photo shows the six or seven local wineries offering tastings. They are always set up along the wall just inside the entrance.

I don't know how many photos one can include in one post, so I'll stop here and continue in the next post.
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2992 More things I don't understand

Friday, June 18, 2010

"All human beings should try to learn before they die
what they are running from, and to, and why."
-- James Thurber --

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I've finally found someone willing to work on the van, and now I can't find the keys.

Typical.

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From yesterday's episode of "The Drs", a true story:

A guy working in a pizzeria was injured when a freezer door swung open unexpectedly and hit him in the back. He needs back surgery. A court ruled that the employer (through workman's compensation insurance?) must pay for the back surgery.

So far, so good. Sounds right and fair to me.

However, the guy weighs well over 300 lbs. Back surgery on someone that overweight is unlikely to be successful, so no reputable surgeon will operate until he loses weight first.

So the court has ruled that the employer must also pay for lap band surgery! If Workman's Comp won't pay for it, the employer must pay out of his own pocket.

What!?! How is the employer responsible for the guy's being too fat for back surgery?

I think this is very wrong.

The result will be that no one will want to hire overweight people, if they'll end up held responsible for the consequences of that obesity.

Bad bad bad court!

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Just found an article on the above: http://www.weightlosssurgerychannel.com/breaking-wls-news/lap-band-surgery-to-be-covered-by-pizza-shop.html/

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On POTUS radio today, two guys were discussing what that mineral discovery in Afghanistan might mean to the Afghan people.

The "expert" said not much, that the local warlords and government officials would be putting the profits into their personal bank accounts, and the Afghan people won't see much improvement in their lives from it, that in fact it's happening already. China has been for some time paying warlords and certain government officials for the right to mine in Afghanistan.

Both the interviewer and the expert were unhappy with that.

That left me wondering. What did they want to see happen? That the general population would share in the wealth somehow, sort of like some oil-rich middle eastern countries, where every citizen gets a cut of the oil money, so much so that most of them have no need to work? Or like Alaska, where citizens get a cut of oil and gas contracts? Isn't that, um, socialism? [Wikipedia defines socialism as "a social and economic system (or the political philosophy advocating such a system) in which the economic means of production are owned and controlled collectively by the people.]

I suspect that local people are working in the Chinese mines, so they have a job and are getting paid. The profits are going to the top dogs. If you want to make a whole bunch of money, you just have to grow yourself into a top dog. Um, isn't that the essence of capitalism?

So, um, if capitalism is so wonderful and socialism is so bad, what exactly is the problem with what's happening in Afghanistan?
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2991 Garter Glutton

Thursday, June 17, 2010

No matter how far wrong you’ve gone, you can always turn around.

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I was picking black raspberries in the front flowerbed (told ya it was overtaken by weeds!) a few minutes ago, and almost stepped on a green and yellow striped garter snake.

He was about 14 inches long, very slender, and he had a bulge in his middle third so large that he could barely move.

I suspect I have one fewer chipmunk.

I thought garter snakes ate only bugs and other itty-bitty things like worms and tree frogs. They have small mouths, and I didn't think they are big or strong enough to crush a chipmunk skull. I don't understand how he could have swallowed something as large as that bulge.

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Later, after reading the Wikipedia entry on garter snakes:

Ahah! The other possibility is that it's a she, and she's very pregnant, and about to give birth! Garter snakes mate in the spring, gestation is 2 to 3 months, the young are born live, and she can have anywhere from 3 to 80 babies. So the timing fits, and the location of the bulge fits.

That makes more sense.
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2990 I am small, too.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

"The word 'politics' is derived from the word 'poly', meaning 'many',
and the word 'ticks', meaning 'blood sucking parasites'."
-- Larry Hardiman --

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People are all upset at the BP guy's reference to "the small people".

Oh, come on. Give it up! By "the small people" he means the ordinary folks who don't have gazillion-dollar lawyers behind them, who don't have power, who can't force anyone with power to recognize them, and anyone who doesn't recognize that is an idiot and is just looking for any little thing to complain about, to get people emotionally worked up. I don't think the term needs to be attributed to "an error in translation", demonstrates arrogance, or needs an apology. You are a "small person" when compared to multinational corporations - or any corporation or government, for that matter.

Hell of a lot of misplaced anger and emotional drum-beating going around. Get over it, folks. It was an accident. Now focus on the real issues.
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2989 Not depressed. Disgusted. All is Futile!

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

"At least two-thirds of our miseries spring from human stupidity,
human malice and those great motivators and justifiers
of malice and stupidity: idealism, dogmatism and proselytizing zeal
on behalf of religious or political ideas."
-- Aldous Huxley --

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I spent a little time this afternoon reading through posts in this journal from 2008. Don't remember why I went there, but I was amazed that back then, I had well-thought-out opinions on lots of things, and I wrote about them.

Even before there were blogs, or even computers, I always used to write about my thoughts. Writing things down helped me to organize my opinions, explore them fully, test them. It worked better than talking about them with others, because if the other person disagreed, I'd back down, lose the thread, start to doubt myself, give up before my thoughts were fully formed.

I don't know what's been going on for the past year. I don't seem to be thinking about things. Don't seem to have all that many opinions.

Part of it might be that I'm not listening to talk radio as much. Not reading magazines. Not visiting political and news blogs so much. When things do drift past, I think, "Oh, I need to think about that a bit", and then my mind sort of wanders off.

I've got a whole stack of things saved in bookmarks or Bloglines that I wanted to comment on, but when I go back and look at them later, I decide they're not so important to me any more.

Maybe I just don't want to get angry. I don't think it's depression, because I still enjoy things, and still want to go out to fun things. Maybe I'm just tired of the stupidity of the masses out there. I don't want to think about it any more. I don't want to think about or deal with the idiots who, for example, now seem to think that it was Obama who gave the gazillion dollars to bail out the banks. And so on.

It's not depression. It's disgust.

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Sort of the same topic, and an example.

On NPR in the car today, a woman from Woodstock, NY, was talking about throwing a prom/benefit in Woodstock later this month for Constance McMillen. She's the girl who wanted to wear a tuxedo and take her girlfriend to her high school prom, but the principal/school board canceled the prom rather than allow it.

Some parents of other students organized a private prom, to which she was not invited, since it was her fault the school prom had been canceled.

The girl, with the assistance of the ACLU, is suing the school district administration for subjecting her to humiliation.

Now, here's the kicker. Since the story was picked up by the media, she's been interviewed on several national TV news and talk shows, she will be the Grand Marshall of the NYC gay pride parade, they're throwing this big-name benefit/party/prom for her in Woodstock, and they're making a movie of the situation and the making of the benefit, which movie they expect to go international.

My thoughts in the car were, "Doesn't all the positive attention she's getting kind of negate the 'lingering effects' of the humiliation? If she were truly humiliated, wouldn't she be more shy about it? What effect will all this have on her lawsuit? If the lawsuit is to make a point about prejudice toward gays, is she hurting rather than helping that cause by jeopardizing her case?"

When I got home and looked up details on the internet, I got disgusted. I don't want to think about it any more. Especially after I found out about Juin Baize, a cross-dressing student in Constance's school who suffered even worse harassment than Constance. Constance didn't get to go to the prom. Boohoo. How sad. Juin got suspended, expelled, and eventually his family was hounded out of town. So, uh, why is Constance getting all the attention, and Juin gets none?

I don't even want to think about it any more.

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By the way, why is it that we know all about the oil in the gulf, but we know nothing about the horrific flooding all over Europe? Many towns and villages under water.

Just an example of how we are shaped by what the media chooses to tell us, or not tell us.
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2988 Shifting the Blame

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

"Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time;
it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable."
-- Sidney J. Harris --

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I wrote the following in my post " 2108 Ok, I'm a Conspiracy Nut", dated November 9, 2008, when it seemed to me that the Republican party was royally screwing up the campaign, doing everything possible to ensure that they lost the election:

The pundits are all blathering about the "split" in the Republican party. I think there's another split they've missed. I think The Powers of the Republican party didn't really want to win this election. It helps to explain some of the stupidities of the Republican campaign.

The next President is inheriting a royal mess. There are things that will have to be done that will be very unpopular. Many of those actions will look very socialistic, which will strongly alienate the Republican voting base, who will not understand the absolute necessity for those actions. Many problems will require more than four years to show improvement.

So if the next President and Congress does a good job, and gets things turned around and headed onto the right track, it probably won't pay off during the first term, and it could be at the cost of popularity. So why not let the Democrats take that heat, instead of the Republicans? 2012 is the right time to waltz in and reap the benefits.

So, did I call it, or did I call it?
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2987 Touchdown

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

" I don't believe in an afterlife, so I don't have to spend my whole life
fearing hell, or fearing heaven even more. For whatever the tortures of
hell, I think the boredom of heaven would be even worse."
-- Isaac Asimov --

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I am amused that the above random quote from my collection happened to come up for this entry.

I am also amused that Touchdown Jesus (a.k.a. King of Kings, that enormous 6-story torso rising out of a pond in Monroe, Ohio) was hit by lightning last night and burned down to the metal framework. Story everywhere, just search for touchdown Jesus.

[Photo credit - Morhange.]

I am amused that this was an "act of God", although I doubt Most Christians will see it that way.

Something that has always bothered me about Christianity is the way so many Christians worship Jesus, pray to Jesus. I have visions of Jesus begging God to forgive him: "I didn't mean for that to happen! I didn't mean to take your place! They did it themselves!", but God remains pissed.

I consider all those representations of Jesus, especially those in, on, or in front of churches, to be idols, graven images. An object of veneration in the place of God. If you want to represent God, plant a tree.

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P.S. I do not consider myself Christian, precisely because of that. I will follow the teachings, because they were good teachings, but those teachings were meant to lead us to God, not to divert us to the teacher.

And yeah, there's the "trinity" thing. Another diversion to justify the making of the idol. Doesn't fly.
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2986 Secret in their eyes

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.
After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.

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I saw a movie this evening - "The Secret in Their Eyes". I very highly recommend it. See it if it's anywhere near you.  [Later Note - this is the 2009 Argentine movie, not the 2015 remake.  The remake is crap.]

It won an Oscar for best foreign-language film (Spanish, English subtitles). I'm not usually aware of the technical aspects of movies, but this was some of the best direction and camera work I've seen in ages. The male and female lead were excellent, the eyes and their secrets are all over the place.

The New Yorker review is here: http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/cinema/2010/04/19/100419crci_cinema_denby.

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Yes, I've changed the template for this blog, not entirely on purpose. The way Blogger used to work it, you could try out various templates, and if you didn't like the new one, you could always go back to the old one. They've got some new templates and a new interface. Unfortunately, the old template I had been using no longer exists, so after I'd tried a few of the new ones, I couldn't go back.

This was the least offensive of the new ones.
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2985 Mid-June Doldrums

Sunday, June 13, 2010

"People are more violently opposed to fur than leather
because it's safer to harass rich women
than motorcycle gangs."

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I haven't been very bloggy lately. I don't know why. I guess because there's not a lot happening in my life right now that I want to save for later reference (the REAL purpose of this journal), and nothing I have to let off steam about.

There are a few troubling things. First Woman has, I think, been self-adjusting her meds, and I think she is headed for a major crash. She's been taking violent offense at the most innocent things and attacking people left and right, to the point where people are very angry with her. She's the president of the local Mensa chapter, and people would like to remove her or have her censured. I'm worried that attacking back will push her into something drastic, like suicide. That's not excessive. I understand she has attempted it before.

I would feel very guilty if I saw it coming and did nothing, but a) I don't know what I could do, since off her meds she would see nothing wrong with her, it's everyone else who's wrong, and b) I am frankly very afraid of her. I know that's my problem, that I'm afraid to say anything to arouse her anger, but there it is. Do they make courage pills? Usually it's the family who sees what's happening and steps in or contacts the doctor, but she has no family, and at this point, no friends. Last night I sent an email to that effect to several active Mensa members, particularly those whom she has attacked, asking if anyone has any experience with interventions, and have not yet had any response.

A little compassion is in order, but I suspect her outrageous attacks have killed it before it could start.

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In other news, still no closing date on the new house. The sale of stock is going to pay for it, to be replaced when this house sells, but the stock market has been especially volatile ever since I signed the contract, so I hesitate to sell until I absolutely have to. Worse, the sale of my BP stock was going to be a large portion of the payment. Ick. BP, by the way, is listed as a "buy" by most market analysts right now, because the price is low, they have oodles of assets, and they won't be allowed to die. That "too big to fail" theory. Uh huh.

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Some cool things from Google maps:

The first find is a natural surface formation in Alberta, Canada. See http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=50%C2%B0+0%2738.20%22N+110%C2%B0+6%2748.32%22W&sll=45.504618,-73.568459&sspn=0.007986,0.021136&ie=UTF8&t=h&ll=50.009739,-110.114443&spn=0.008233,0.022724&z=16.

The second is in Australia. Some people have said they're buildings, but I don't think so. I think they may be something like mine entrances. Anyway, they look like USB cords and plugs. See http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=embed&hl=en&q=Waubra+Victoria+3352,+Australia&sll=-37.571029,143.851835&sspn=0.013912,0.01929&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=FUPuxf0dV8aPCA&split=0&hq=&hnear=Waubra+Victoria,+Australia&t=h&ll=-37.329065,143.610352&spn=0.003839,0.006448&z=17

Of course, you can use the controls on the left of the map to zoom in or out for a better view.
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A not-so-cool-thing.

This is downright scary! I don't understand how something like this is legal, unlicensed. Is it real? Switched.com thinks it is.

It's a laser pointer, portable, and powerful. The cautionary note from the company's own literature:

Warning: Extremely dangerous is an understatement to the power of 1W of laser power. It will blind permanently and instantly and set fire quickly to skin and other body parts, use with extreme caution and only when using the included eye protection. Customers will be required to completely read and agree to our Class IV Laser Hazard Acknowledgment Form.

I don't know how big or heavy it is, although the pictures make it look like a Star Wars light saber, and I understand that it's meant for wonks who want to build their own home theaters and stuff, but hey! The darn thing is dangerous! And if it's as "portable" as it looks, it is a weapon. Blinds instantly and permanently? Sets fire to skin? Not just burns - sets fire to! And unlike a gun, you don't have to aim for it to have effect. Just wave it around.

The kicker - it costs $197.97. Less than a handgun.

The company ships it with a CD about the dangers, and a lengthy instruction sheet, but you know darn well wonks and miscreants who buy this thing will take it out of the box, turn it on, and aim it at the nearest wall, or randomly out the window, without reading or watching anything. Or at poor kitty. Oops - dangerous moth there, kitty! Fwooooomph! Moth caught you!

Info here:
http://dvice.com/archives/2010/06/spyder-iii-the.php
http://www.wickedlasers.com/lasers/Spyder_III_Pro_Arctic_Series-96-37.html
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2984 Waiting and wondering

Thursday, June 10, 2010

"There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact."
-- Sherlock Holmes --

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Still haven't heard anything about the new house. Contract is signed by both parties, down payment is made, and ... I'm waiting. The builder has to give me three weeks' notice before closing, so it won't be for at least three more weeks, and that's all I know. I've been selling stock a bit at a time as bits of it go up.

Also, I want to use the van to move a lot of stuff myself, and the guy who agreed to work on it something like three weeks ago has not yet come for it. I'm considering checking whether Captain Vantastic would like a go at it.

In the meantime, time passes.

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I stopped in at Piper's office at about 11:30 am to ask him to cut me a check for the estimated taxes due next week. His daughter, who has begun working with him and is positioned to take over the business, was there. She likes me, and wants to see her father and me together. (She doesn't take the hint.)

They were very busy, both yelling into phones. He asked me if I was free in the afternoon for a late lunch with the two of them, and I said yes, and went back home to wait for his call.

At 1:30 the Hairless Hunk came over, and I offered him a ride in Hal. Well, actually, he had the ride last week - I offered to let him drive. I called Piper, and he said they'd be busy for another hour, and then the late lunch. So HH and I went for a ride. I don't mind others driving Hal, because I get more of the openness of the top-down experience when someone else drives.

I never got the call from Piper. I called his cell and his office at 4:30, and left messages. Don't know what happened. In the meantime, since I still need to eat every 2.5 to 3 hours anyway, I've been nibbling.

The Hairless Hunk is so excited by Hal he wants to take a day next week and go somewhere, like Maine for lobster, or Canada, or wherever I want to go - a full day trip. He'll pay for the gas and meals, and tolls, and anything else, as long as he can drive.

I'd love to, but I'm not sure it's a good idea. His wife would not go, and that seems a bit awkward (to say the least). Maybe I could invite another person, like a chaperone, preferably male, but I don't know who would be available in the middle of the week.

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There are still things I haven't figured out about Hal. He is often parked unlocked outside the house, or elsewhere if I'm not planning to leave him alone long. Then I walk up to him, open the door, and get in. No big deal.

I've left him locked and unlocked with the top down in the driveway, and he didn't react when I touched his body. But once I left him unlocked outside Piper's office, and when I leaned over him to get my hat out of the back seat and brushed the edge of the door, he had a fit, screaming bloody murder until I could find the "shut up" button.

Yesterday I parked right next to the deli door while I ran in for V8, very quick, and left him off and unlocked, top up, just like in the driveway at home. When I came out and touched the door handle, he freaked and shrieked.

Why? What was different? Nothing. I don't understand.

I'm getting paranoid, like maybe he's aware that there were more people walking past him in the village and at the deli, and is more comfortable at home.

I'm afraid I may have named him well.

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I have almost no TV reception this evening, even channels that usually come in clearly (no cable - rooftop antenna). Makes me wonder what's going on weatherwise in the Albany area. Or maybe sunspots? Would that affect non-satellite reception? I didn't think so - usually thick cloud cover or wind screws up my channels ever since we went digital, but there's nothing going on here.
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2983 I haven't been THAT good!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

I takes 42 muscles to frown, and only 4 to reach out and smack you.

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When I arrived so early for the movie yesterday, I decided to window shop a little in Rhinebeck. I tried on a pair of on-sale slacks in Winter Sun. They were a little loose. They were size XS.

I weighed me this morning for the first time in a week or more. I'm at 123 lbs. That's the first time I've been below 125 in at least 20 years.

I don't know whether to celebrate or worry.
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2982 Lipstick

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

“I’ve made smarter things than you by eating fiber.”

--------------------------------

The Lipstick Dance:
I go through a few years when I can't find a color I like. I buy and discard many tubes, then I finally find the perfect color. I buy several tubes of that color, use them for a few years, and by the time I use them up, that color has been discontinued, and the dance begins again.

I had been dancing the past two years. I was desperate enough to pay $30-35 for special stuff. A few weeks ago, I bought a tube at the drug store simply because it was 75% off, it was like $2 or less, and it's perfect!

Naturally, it was 75% off because it's already discontinued.

I used it for two weeks just to make sure, and yes, it's perfect. It somehow seems to make my eyes look brighter and my cheeks rosier. People have actually remarked that I "look healthy", or "look younger".

With the internet, it is suddenly easier to find discontinued products. I've been scouring eBay, Amazon, and discount drug stores for "my" color. I'm cornering the market on Revlon Icy Violet 475. It's out there at widely varying prices, from a low of $2 a tube to a high of $14 each. So far I've got ten tubes, at $2-3 each. Two more for the freezer, and I'll be set for life.

This evening I noticed something odd. I had put lipstick on the right side of my lips, and was interrupted before finishing the left ... and I couldn't tell where it started and stopped.

Icy violet (which isn't at all icy or violet, by the way) apparently happens to be exactly the same color as the natural color of my lips! Not that I could just do without it. The lipstick smooths and sharpens the edges, softens the texture, and evens the color, so it does do a job for me. I just thought it was interesting that my perfect color is my natural color.
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2981 Double double toll and trouble

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Love longs for union.

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I filled out the two E-ZPass dispute forms yesterday evening, included a check in each for the actual toll, and mailed the return envelopes last night. Two seconds after dropping them in the mailbox outside the PO, at 11 PM, I realized that the 1st class postage had gone up in April, and I'd used old stamps, without adding the extra 2-cent stamps.

Oops.

I don't know what happens to postage-due mail these days. I don't have time to find out, because if the violation isn't paid or disputed within a very short time frame, the fine doubles.

So I went to the NJ E-ZPass website to file the dispute there, and pay the toll maybe with a credit card. Surprise - all I had to do there was tell them I have a valid NY E-ZPass, and they'll charge the toll to that account, and forgive the violation and fine.

Duh? Why couldn't the notices I had received say that in the first place? So now I hope the forms I mailed come back to me so I can tear the checks up.

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One of the problems with retirement is that you forget what day it is. There's a movie I want to see showing at the artsy-fartsy theater, on Wednesday, at 5:45. I glanced at the clock this afternoon, noticed it was already 4:45, and panicked. Ran out of the house barely put together and unwashed, went to the theater, tried to buy a ticket, and the clerk said, "You're 24 hours early. Is that ok?"

Duh.

Today's Tuesday.

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Jasper seems to think there's mice in the master bath and the dining room. He's been trying to rearrange those rooms. He's so cute when he's intent. He doesn't get enough play, enough mental stimulation, so I haven't objected to being awakened several times a night by his frantic leaps and scrabblings.

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Another thing that's cute is pointing. When you try to point to something with a dog, to direct a dog's attention, the doggie will sniff your finger.

When you point with a cat, the cat will rub her cheeks on your finger.

Beasties just don't understand pointing - except my old long-gone Smokie cat. She would actually look where you pointed, and I didn't have to teach her that.
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2980 Toll Trouble

Monday, June 7, 2010

"Actions lie louder than words."
--Carolyn Wells--

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It rained yesterday. That means I did nothing yesterday. Seriously - I turn off when it rains, like some expensive piece of electronic equipment avoiding a short circuit. I think I read a lot, or something. I don't even remember.

On my last trip to NJ I took Hal, and the EZ-Pass, down the Garden State Parkway. I went through EZ-Pass lanes, and at two of them, Bergen on the way down, and "ESS" (whatever that stands for) on the way home the next day, instead of getting the "Toll Paid" signal, I got "Toll Not Paid - GO", which I'd never seen before.

The notice of fines arrived in the mail. I owe $1 for each of the two tolls (Wow! When did that happen? Remember when GSP tolls were 30 cents?), and $25 "administrative fee" for each.

I'm going to dispute them.

My EZ-Pass worked fine in the toll plazas before and after each of them, so they must have had some bad readers. In fact, I noticed that the car in front of me on the southbound trip got exactly the same message.

Now, I'm not accusing New Jersey of anything, just kind of letting my mind wander, but what do you suppose would happen if a pass reader were turned off for a while? It costs a certain amount to send out the fine notices, let's say $4 each. Many of those people will dispute the $25 fine, but many will just shrug and pay it rather than go through the fuss. If anything more than, say, one in 6 pay the fine, then NJ comes out ahead.

I hear the explanation on a dispute is almost always accepted, so they're pretty good about it, but still, it's not exactly incentive to fix broken readers, is it?
.

2979 Typecast Again!

Saturday, June 5, 2010

"Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum."
(I think that I think, therefore I think that I am.)
--Ambrose Bierce--

------------------------------------------------

I just got Hal's Sirius radio info package in the US mail. The BMW salesman initialized the free subscription by cell phone while we were in the car, giving them my name, address, phone number, and email address. I wondered why Sirius didn't just email the packet.

The email id I gave BMW was "SilkenAir".

The email id shown in the package is "SiliconPair".

Snork! They're REAL!!!!
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2978 Update

Friday, June 4, 2010

" ... the use of our intelligence quite properly gives us pleasure.
In this respect the brain is like a muscle. When we think well, we feel good.
Understanding is a kind of ecstasy."
--Carl Sagan--

----------------------------------------

Update: The young man from the previous post (he's from Manhattan), who spent 4.5 days waiting to be found after a car accident, has told the police that he swerved to avoid a deer and lost control. Ok, about what I figured was possible on that road. But he still went awfully far into the woods for 55 mph.

My annoyance stands.
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2977 Ramdom Thoughts #459 or so, with indignation

Friday, June 4, 2010

The basic tool for the manipulation of reality is the manipulation of words.
If you can control the meaning of words, you can control the people who must use them.
--Philip K. Dick--

--------------------------------------

There's a story on the news now about a young man who was driving on the Taconic Parkway when his car "went airborne" into the woods, rolled four times, and ended up hidden from the road. He suffered back and internal injuries, tried to crawl to the road, and was out there unfound for 4.5 days. He was located by his cell phone signal, and taken to Albany Med, where he is expected to recover. Altogether unthinkable. Horrible experience.

But, here's what bothers me: He was driving a BMW. Those things grab the road and hold it. The speed limit on the Taconic is 55 mph even though it's four lane divided because it's actually a localish road with many crossing roads and no traffic lights. It is NOT a limited access road, not a throughway. Local folks get very angry at fools who whip down the Taconic like it's some kind of freeway - it's not! Not one news report over the past two days, and there have been many, have mentioned what caused the one-car accident. It could have been a deer, I suppose, which is another reason the speed limit is 55. (Rolled four times, in the woods, after losing control at 55?)

I have my suspicions, and I suspect he may have reaped what he sowed.

---------------------------------

I guess I'm into blaming people for their own screwups today.

I read an article a few days ago about education loan debt. The author of the article seemed to think that it was the fault of the college financial offices that graduates were leaving school saddled with enormous debt, that the schools are not advising them correctly. The example used was a young woman who, with her widowed mother, and no savings for college, and no big academic scholarships, decided that even so she needed to get degrees from the most prestigious of schools to assure her future. The best of the NY state schools (and there are some good ones, including a very good FREE school in NYC) would not do.

She kept borrowing money, and ended up with a masters' degree and $97,000 debt - and she can't find a job that offers more than a hair over minimum wage. Since the loans were from several sources, the payments are concurrent, and she can't afford to pay them. Declaring bankruptcy won't work, because educational loans cannot be discharged by bankruptcy. She's in a bad place.

Now, we're supposed to feel sorry for her, and agree that she got some bad advice, and the fault lies with the school financial office.

Sorry. I don't think so. She made some very bad decisions, and I suspect she ignored some very good advice that wasn't what she and her mother wanted to hear.

The absolute kicker came finally in the last paragraph. It was so bad it made me swear out loud. Can you guess what her super expensive degrees, the degrees that absolutely had to come from prestigious schools and were to assure her a comfortable future in her choice of assured high-paying jobs, are in? Some technical, financial, professional, or scientific discipline, right?

Nope.

The answer is at the butt end of this post. Wait for it. Don't jump ahead. It'll spoil your mood for an hour. You'll want to kick her, and the author of the article, around the block.

---------------------------------------

NYS's budget is in deep do-do. The governor wants to add a new tax on sugared carbonated drinks, "juices" with less than something like 10% real juice, and other crap in a bottle.

This proposal has been countered by a barrage of commercials with a young mother unloading grocery bags, and pointing out that the tax will raise her monthly grocery bill by some outrageous amount, and in this economy, she can barely feed her family, so please Governor Patterson, don't take money out of my family's mouths.

The commercials piss me off. Look, lady, if you need money to feed your family, why are you spending so much of that budget on crap in a bottle anyway? The people putting out those commercials don't care about you, your budget, or your kids. They're just worried that you might buy less of their crap.

I guess I really am in a bad mood today....

---------------------------------------

Ok. Change of pace. Here's a video. It's 6.5 minutes long, and one of the scariest things I've ever seen. If you have a serious problem with heights or edges, don't watch it. If you do watch it, think about what it must have taken to build that path. (I do, and I did, and I lived. Didn't even throw up once, although I did discover that I can still hold my breath for 2 full minutes.)

From http://www.angelfire.com/ak2/intelligencerreport/scariest_path.html:

"This walkway now serves as an approach to Makinodromo, the famous climbing sector of El Chorro in Spain's Andalucia. And it is the hairiest path. The area of El Chorro situated in the south of Spain is renowned amongst travelers and mountain hikers for its stunning scenery and climbs, yet this is not the main attraction on offer, El Chorro is host to one of the most dangerous walkways in the world, built by workers to transport materials between the Chorro and Gaitanejo Falls."

I always thought climbers had to be a little crazy.

-------------------------------------

The answer: The young woman's degrees are in religious and women's studies. Even typing that now, especially when she and the journalist are trying to assign the blame anywhere but on the poor decisions made by her and her mother, pisses me off.
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2976 Oh, about the sick....

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Naturally, the common people don't want war, but after all, it is the leaders of a country who determine the policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag people along whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. This is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in every country.
--Hermann Goering--

-------------------------------------------

I feel better today. Whatever it was seems to be over. Of course I still feel a little weak, but that's not surprising.

I went to the deli early this evening to buy some diet tea, soda, juice, anything to encourage me to drink a lot, and I mentioned the horrible sweating and the need to rehydrate to the gal at the counter (she was surprised because I rarely buy anything in bottles), and it turns out she'd had something similar about two weeks ago - severe weakness, fever, heavy sweating, but no other symptoms. Hers lasted about three days. Then Daughter said this evening that she had something similar a month ago, including the fainting. Hers lasted somewhere between one and three days (she's not sure because her back had gone out, and she was in bed with that). Mine was four days, but I'm a good 30 years older than either of those two and I'm not as resilient.

So, whatever it was seems to be going around, and probably is not systemic or metabolic in me, which was my greatest concern.

Daughter and I both had our backs go out shortly before the onset. That's interesting. Next trip to the deli I'll have to ask about the third case. Whether we'd been using a high SPF sunblock would be interesting, too. If poison is in your belly, you purge from either end. Maybe when poison is in your skin, you sweat copiously. Seems reasonable to me.
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2975 Bits bouncing around for the past two weeks

Wednesday, June 2, 2010 (Oh Good Grief! June already?)

Where would Christianity be if Jesus got eight to fifteen years with time off for good behavior?
--New York State Senator James Donovan, speaking in support of capital punishment--

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The Bible, the Mayan calendar, and various philosophers have decided the end of the world occurs in 2012. This has been echoed and reinforced in movies. One person whose intellect I respect firmly believes it. There's a lot to argue there - the simple fact that the references are obscure, and it's fallible humans doing the interpreting, but believers tend to use the recent natural worldwide disasters as proof. Earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, storms, volcanoes - so very many recent ones.

Well, there really haven't been more than ever before. It's just that now we hear about them. They've been going on for thousands of years. We just weren't aware of what was going on in the rest of the world until recently.

What does worry me is that some religion that teaches that theory will feel a responsibility to take it upon themselves to set it off. It would take a religion to so thoroughly banish common sense.

----------------------------------

The sunscreen the friend recommended arrived today (The Naked Bee). I tried it on my arms, and it was fine, no heavy feeling, no white deposit in creases, didn't paste the hairs down. Then I tried it on my face. My nose did not break out in beads of sweat. We may have a winner.

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Investment advice: The FAA has ruled that all aircraft must have on-board GPS by 2020. That's a lot of devices, and probably not cheap ones. Some GPS manufacturer(s) will make out like bandits, and because they are mandated, there will be no incentive to compete on prices. Unfortunately, who knows which companies will reap the gold?

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Trial lawyers are complaining of the "CSI effect". Jurors expect to see all kinds of swoopy evidence. They don't seem to realize that much (most!) of what they see on the TV show simply does not exist as a technology, and secondly, for what advanced technology does exist, there are very few labs, and third, those labs are very slow and not famous for reliability. Not to mention that most local police departments are not well trained in evidence collection.

So juries are letting otherwise "clearly guilty" defendants off because they didn't see evidence that in their minds, should have been there. They figure that the police must have found it, but it didn't support their theory, so they chose not to present it?

If you expect ever to be on a criminal court jury, you should read http://www.usnews.com/usnews/culture/articles/050425/25csi.htm.

-------------------------------------------

This is my own theory. Men and women have vastly different concepts of what constitutes a lie.

Men seem to believe that you have to tell something that is no way true, ever, for it to be a lie. However, a statement or answer that is in some way, some special context, true, is true enough, and is not a lie.

Jay and Obie were both the most honest and moral men I've ever known (both lovers, both deceased), but even they seemed to believe this. For example, if I asked Jay, "Did you pay the electric bill?", he'd quite honestly, honest in his mind anyway, answer, "Yes." If I asked, "Did you pay this month's electric bill?", he'd quite honestly answer, "No, not yet. I'll pay it tomorrow." Note the difference in the questions. He has often paid the bill, so "Yes, I paid the bill" is true, where "Yes, I paid this month's bill" is not.

Most men will avoid conflict at all costs, and they figure what you don't know won't hurt you. They seem to feel that if they leave things out, and you believe things that are not literally true, well, that's your own fault, not theirs. They didn't lie.

Women, on the other hand, consider being misled, being allowed to believe untruths without correction, is exactly the same as being lied to. Women have a much lower line. If you know that I think you paid this month's bill based on your statement, and you don't correct that impression, then you have allowed me to believe a lie.

It's the facts not the words that matter, guys.
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2974 Scary Sick

Monday, May 31, 2010

Drugs have taught an entire generation of American kids the metric system.
--P.J. O'Rourke--

--------------------------------------

I am sick. Now it's feeling like an ordinary virus, but during Saturday night into Sunday morning, it was very scary. It's odd, but it seems like I have become more susceptible to viruses or whatever since I've been "eating right".

I've already mentioned being weak Saturday at the antiques fair. I went to bed fairly early Saturday night, and dreamed many annoying dreams, aware I was dreaming. At 4 AM I woke very thirsty, so I went to the kitchen for a drink of water. I'd no sooner swallowed the first tepid mouthful when I started sweating, and my legs started weakening. I've never sweat like that before. I headed straight for the bed. It's about 35 feet from the kitchen sink to my bed, and by the time I rounded the corner into the bedroom, the sweat was literally pouring off me in big drops. I remember that my legs were no longer working at all by then, I leaned against the side of the bed, and then nothing.

I came to on the floor. My head was pillowed on a laundry pile, and I was quite comfortable, so much so at first I thought I was in bed. I was still sweating sopping dripping sheets of water. I tried to get up, and passed out again.

I have no idea how much time passed, but when I woke again the sweating had stopped, and I felt, if not ok, at least functional.

Gotta give me credit. I went to the master bath where there are only the little disposable 1-oz cups, and tried sipping an ounce. The sweating immediately started again. It seems to start as soon as water hits my mouth.

I crawled back into bed, thinking about what it could be. Kidney failure? Diabetic coma? (Which? Would I need protein or sugar?) I thought about calling 911, and then either passed out or fell asleep. I'm not sure. I did definitely think about how long it would be before my body was found.

Sunday I sprouted a fever, 101.2 (normal for me is 97.8), and the body aches, both of which continue into today, so I'm pretty sure it's a virus. Today, Monday, I am finally able to think clearly (relatively), and I'm remembering that the last time I got downed by a virus, I had visited the Cunneen Hackett theater, and had to leave because the scent of mold in the old building was overwhelming. The virus hit two days later.

Surprise.

Thursday, I went to a movie at the old theater in Woodstock. Again, the scent of mold was strong, but I stayed, figuring I would leave if I started to cough. Two days later, pow.

I guess I can't handle mold.

Update, Monday 9:30 pm - 102.6, but I don't feel so very bad.
Update two - so much for feeling better. I dated this entry Saturday.

-----------------------------------------

Comment from "Joey", on an article about women not wanting to work with other women in law offices, in the WSJ law blog:

"Several years ago, I dated a woman who was assistant principal at a junior high school. I’ll always remember her description of the genders: ‘Managing boys is like fighting World War II. You see them coming, they fight, they tell you to f–k off, you lay down the law, and things are fine until the next battle.’

On the other hand: ‘Managing girls is like fighting Al Qaeda. You always know something is coming, but you’re never sure what until it hits. They’ll strike alliances with anyone and then break them when it’s convenient, they are ingenious at finding new ways to hurt their enemies, and when the battle *does* erupt, innocent people can get hurt.’

That always struck me as one of the best insights into human nature, and I think it still resonates in adult, professional settings."

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2973 Sunscreen, back, consignment

Saturday, May 29, 2010

"If we let people see that kind of thing, there would never again be any war."
--senior Pentagon official on reasons why United States military censored footage
showing Iraqi soldiers sliced in two by U.S. helicopter fire--

----------------------------------------------------

A friend left a comment on my earlier post about sunscreens, linking to a site with all kinds of sunscreen info. That site linked to another site rating sunscreens, where you could sort and locate a sunscreen meeting your criteria.

Unfortunately, all the most highly rated sunscreens have ingredients that are not particularly safe, and all have zinc. I suspect it's the zinc that I find most annoying.

So I went to the CVS and bought a few to try. The lower SPFs have less zinc, but it seems to be very difficult to find a 15, which I suspect would work just fine since I'm not swimming or sweating. So far, the one I like best is CVS house brand clear spray-on SPF 30. I spray me in the shower stall before I get dressed, and it's ok, except that it's a tiny bit oily. Not enough to stain clothes, but enough to make the coverup not stay on the nest of blood vessels above my upper lip.

Today the same friend sent an email. She'd found one at the Woodstock flea market I might like. I went to the seller's website and bought it. (Thanks, Gypsy.) It doesn't have zinc or too much oil, but it does have more oxybenzone than the CVS.

-----------------------------------

Last week with The Man, an over-exuberant, um, hug, caused a sharp pain in the right side of my chest, under the center of the breast, which immediately went away. The next day it came back. I thought I may have a cracked rib. Now it hurts only when I do a pulling-to-the-center motion with my right arm - you know, like when you have to overcome the resistance to put a standard transmission in reverse? Hm. It doesn't hurt when I press on individual ribs, so maybe it's just a muscle thing?

Anyway, today it has moved to the back, next to my spine, below the shoulder blades. Feels like someone is jabbing me with a knuckle. I'm used to that, happens often, that's where my father kicked me and ruptured a disk which didn't heal well, and all I have to do is sit and stand straight, no slumping or sagging shoulders. So I went to the annual Antiques Fair at the fairgrounds.

Bad idea. There are about 400 dealers' booths, and a bit of a hike (uphill) from the parking lot. I think the back/rib grinch has affected the way I hold my body or something, because I was only a third of the way through touring the booths when the tops of my thighs, the joint where they join the hips, began to ache. Not pain, more like unbelievably tired. Two-thirds of the way and my knees started to feel like they weren't going to support me any more. I skimmed the last third, and wasn't sure I'd make it back to the car.

I've never ever felt like that walking before. Normally I can walk almost forever.

I still feel achy and tired from the waist down. Probably should take a bubble bath.

I accidentally forgot my checkbook, which was probably lucky. I was restricted to cash. I bought some colorful throw pillows, a vintage Lucite bracelet featuring orchids buried in clear Lucite on a black background,

and a pair of tiny pearl earrings. I put the earrings on to wear for the day, and I left the price tag ($10) dangling from one of them. When someone would mention the price tag, I'd say, "Yes. They're Minnie Pearl's (mini pearls)."

-----------------------------------

Someone suggested that I consign my too-big closet contents to a resale shop, and I said that there are none in or near the village. Well, guess what? Just in the past month, three have opened nearby. I guess the economy's right for it.

I visited one the other day, and I don't think I want to consign my stuff there. She's selling brand new quite fashionable blouses for $3, and gorgeous dresses for $13 or less. (A consignment shop gets a large bite of that.) I'd do better donating and taking the tax deduction!

I can't go back there. The place is dangerous. I bought a blouse and two very flattering dresses. Not helpful.
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2972 A well-balanced meal

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

I believe every human has a finite number of heartbeats.
I don't intend to waste any of mine running around doing exercises.
--Neil Armstrong--

-------------------------------------------

I stopped at the diner and picked up a take-out hamburger. It comes with french fries and "salad of the day". I did not intend to eat the fries, but was looking forward to the salad. Three bean salad? Tossed salad? Cucumber salad? Cole slaw? Sauerkraut salad?

When I got home I opened the container. Potato salad!

Odd that the folks at the diner see nothing wrong with french fries and potato salad on the same plate.
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2971 Ouch!

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Some grow with responsibility, others just swell.

------------------------------

6:15 PM. 97 degrees F.

Windows open, but no breeze.

Too hot to put the top down.

------------------------------------------------

I have a sunblock question. I am very fair and absolutely need sunblock. (And a hat. My hair is translucent and I don't want to burn the scalp on the top of my head.)

I can use almost anything on my arms, neck, back, chest without breaking out, but creams seem to block my pores or something - it feels very hot and I can't perspire. I can't use anything thicker than moisturizer on my face without breaking out. I don't get pimples. I get huge blocked pores where oil builds up under the skin, like a wen.

I tried an "oil-free" sunblock once. It made what felt like a hot plastic skin on my face, that, once I started sweating, formed a gritty scale that itched and peeled off. No good.

I bought Neutrogena Sensitive Skin lotion, SPF 60+. Again, it feels like I'm wearing a hotpad everywhere it's applied, it makes the hair on my arms stick down, and makes my face sweat so badly that it all sweats off within minutes. I put it on in the bathroom this morning, way before it got hot!, walked to the kitchen, and by the time I got to the kitchen, there were huge beads of sweat on my nose. Caused not by heat, but by the cream. SPF effectively dropped to zero.

Not to mention that it LOOKS like I have white paste on my skin, and it settles in white marks in pits and creases. No, I'm not using too much. It's just very thick.

So, suggestions? SPF 30 or up, that won't block my large pores? Won't make my skin feel gummy?
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2970 Smokey sketch, life phases

Monday, May 24, 2010

A witty saying proves nothing.
--Voltaire--

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In 1966 my cat Smokey, black with a white spot on her chest and a white bar on her belly, was eight years old. She was sitting on a table looking out the window one day, and I happened to be holding a ballpoint pen and notepad. I quickly sketched this:
She died in 1975, aged 18 years. I've had a lot of cats over the past 50 years. At one time I had seven cats (two adults and five kittens), but Smokey remains the most unique and memorable. She was extremely intelligent and sensitive to my emotional needs. It's been 35 years, and I still miss her.

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To niece, who said that the BMW rode hard, and I should get a Mercedes, I now know what you meant. They gave me a 2010 128 loaner (Hal is a 2011 135), and the older car rides hard and handles awkwardly by comparison. I felt every bump in my street and driveway yesterday.

"John" called this morning to tell me Hal was ready (they found and fixed a pinched speaker wire), and I mentioned the difference to him, and he gushed yes, such a difference. They softened the suspension in mid-2010 or somewhen, and the newer cars corner better and feel solidly heavy. The 135i, being a convertible, feels especially heavy, which smooths the ride, but steering and cornering are still dancer nimble.

---------------------------

The Man turns 50 today. He is embarking on some major and scary changes to his life path. When he's stressed he withdraws, and I know that, but it doesn't make it any easier to be rejected when you want to help.

I sent him a happy birthday email at midnight in which I mentioned that he's starting the second half of the 60-year adult phase, in which one gets to start over, redefine, redirect. He's absolutely doing that, but I'm not sure he understood what I meant and I didn't explain it.

I have a theory that the ideal life has four phases:

1. First 20 years - youth - you get to be silly and childish and experimental.
2. Next 60 years - adulthood, which has two subparts:
• First 30 years of adulthood - you have to be sensible and responsible, building a family, a future, a support structure for later years, perhaps doing what you have to do rather than what you want to do.
• Second thirty years of adulthood - you get to reexamine the first thirty, and restructure your life, redirect your energies to something you really want to do, using different criteria for decisions, perhaps contributing more to society than to the economy.
3. Next twenty years - youth again - you get to be silly and childish and experimental.

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2969 Another Level

Monday, May 24, 2010

The victor will always judge the defeated, and always find him guilty.
--Goering, during the Nuremberg Trials--

--------------------------------------------------------

I mentioned I'd been driving tin cans, used cars, and a Dodge wheelchair mini-van for the past 45 years. With the exception of the van (needed for Jay) they were always the cheapest but still dependable thing I could find. Hal is my first brand new luxury car. I am just now finding out what that means.

The van has a lot of fancy do-dads on it, so some of Hal's bells and whistles didn't impress me. The service does. Wow. There's a big difference between the BMW service garage and the local independent garage, or the Ford or Chevy or Dodge service garages. Or even Mazda, for that matter (the BMW dealership is the same complex that used to be Mazda - I bought a Mazda GLC hatchback there in 1983).

There seems to be a loose wire in the driver-side speaker, so Hal had his first service visit today.

I don't have a key for Hal. I have what looks like a remote thingy that locks and unlocks, and allows me to push the button to start the motor. Actually, I have two thingies, meant for two drivers, and each of them remembers the settings for the seats, temperature, mirrors, radio, and so on for the driver who uses that particular thingy.

When I got to the BMW service area, the guy stuck my thingy in a reader box on his PC, and it gave him all kinds of info, including my name, address, phone number, service and warranty info on the car, mileage, and heaven only knows what else.

They also gave me a new BMW (about the same size as Hal) to use until Hal is released.

Every other service garage I'd ever seen had a greasy oily cement floor. This place was paved with sparkling clean foot-square beige ceramic tiles.

About 1 in 6 times I've taken a car in for service, I've got it back with grease on the seat belts from mechanic's hands. I've actually had clothing ruined by it. Today, a mechanic walked into the reception area while I was there, and he was removing his latex surgical gloves.

I'm finding that "the rich" aren't different, but "they" sure get treated differently. I could get used to this. I could even get addicted to it, which might explain the crazy things that people do when they are in danger of losing it. I'm amused that owning a BMW gets you "rich" treatment, even just on the streets, but the interesting thing is that you don't have to be rich or classy or "better" to own one - just very foolish will do.
.