This summer has been kind of quiet. Best part of it has been getting Javalina on the weights. He seems to like it and takes instruction pretty well. I am not forcing him to do it, it comes mostly from him. As a matter of fact, he is taking little digs at me, because I am quick with the excuses to not work out, but I am not the one trying to get stronger for the football season. We have commandeered the living room, since Wife is only here on the weekends, it was not hard to do. We have the bench right under the big screen TV, the punching bag in one corner of the room and then we have the floor for drills, as best we can, I certainly don't want to go outside in this freaking sun. I know he won't have a choice in a couple more weeks, but at least we can wish for a freak break in the High pressure system and maybe we get inundated with clouds.
The only other thing we could label interesting/scary was Boy getting sick from some weird third world disease. Luckily, it was caught by the doctors here fairly quickly. It is still going to cost a couple thousand bucks to pay off all the doctor visits and tests they did, but at least Boy is well. We had a deal at the beginning of summer, kind of like my folks put on me, that during the summer I was to pay for my vehicle, well he was going to do the same thing, but that is the money I will be using to pay his doctor bills, at least we have that.
Wife had her two weeks off and it was great having her home fro awhile. She was then able to schedule some conferences here and was in town all of last week, but that is coming to an end. At least we get to have her here a couple more long weekends (they only work 4 day weeks during the summer).
As for me, I continue my march on night shift. I am kind of tired of it, but I worked a couple of weeks on days and it did not seem any better. Work just kind of sucks, paycuts will do that to your mood. I like chemistry, but I actually leave work damp from sweating when I have to run back and forth from the acid hoods to the tools. I know I'm brown but I never signed up to be a day laborer, shit my lab coats need Clorox to stay white, I shouldn't be that busy.
Tuesday, July 31, 2018
Monday, July 30, 2018
7/30/18 The Middle (Series Final)
This was always the little show that could. I am really surprised it lasted this long. The show focuses on the Heck family. The mom was Patricia Heaton (from Everybody Loves Raymond), always meaning well, but we usually disagreed with her parenting skills. The dad, Neil Flynn (Janitor, from Scrubs), very stoic, a man of few words, but always there for his kids. Then the three kids, each totally different but cool in their own dorky ways. Axl Heck was the older boy, always very confidant and a bit of a douche, but in a non-threatening way. Sue Heck was the dorkiest girl ever, but you couldn't help love her for her "never give up" attitude. Finally, the little brother Brick, who was a mega nerd, happiest when reading for his own pleasure. His greatest accomplishment was buying the library micro-fiche which gave him so much info to read and learn from.
The show ran for 9 years and we saw the kids go from grade school through high school and the eldest boy Axl even managed to finish college and in the final episode we see him taking a job in Denver. Mama does not take this well, seeing her family moving apart but struggling because the right thing to do is support the son and let him make his mind up.
Sue grows up constantly competing to join groups and never quite making it, but she does well enough by forming her own, including a cheer squad in high school and a drama group in college. She is still working on becoming the best version of herself and it was cute to unite her with Axl's best friend who is studying to be a doctor, although they did try to marry her off after high school with Axl's other best friend that became a plumber before her character was sent to college, which is a much better storyline, but living in the rust belt, marrying her off post high school would have possibly worked too, but she was still too immature. The end episode tells s she is ok and eventually marries the doctor, I believe she lived happily ever after. She summarized the title perfectly, as she has been a little sister to Axl and a big sister to Brick, it has been perfect living in the middle.
Brick had some funny quirks as a smaller kid. he would repeat certain words and then when they fixed that, he would whoop every now and then. He was constantly reading and I would say he raised himself, going as far as getting his driver's license on his own. In the end, the mom says he became a writer having fantasy stories falling into his microfiche machine and solving mysteries along the way, which sounds perfect for him.
I never thought this show would last, it wasn't as exciting as some of the others that came and went. Nothing much seemed to happen from week to week and I didn't think either parent was that great at parenting, other than being there for their kids. Still, we had a good cry as we said goodbye to the little show that could, shit with 214 episodes, it should be in circulation for a long time.
The show ran for 9 years and we saw the kids go from grade school through high school and the eldest boy Axl even managed to finish college and in the final episode we see him taking a job in Denver. Mama does not take this well, seeing her family moving apart but struggling because the right thing to do is support the son and let him make his mind up.
Sue grows up constantly competing to join groups and never quite making it, but she does well enough by forming her own, including a cheer squad in high school and a drama group in college. She is still working on becoming the best version of herself and it was cute to unite her with Axl's best friend who is studying to be a doctor, although they did try to marry her off after high school with Axl's other best friend that became a plumber before her character was sent to college, which is a much better storyline, but living in the rust belt, marrying her off post high school would have possibly worked too, but she was still too immature. The end episode tells s she is ok and eventually marries the doctor, I believe she lived happily ever after. She summarized the title perfectly, as she has been a little sister to Axl and a big sister to Brick, it has been perfect living in the middle.
Brick had some funny quirks as a smaller kid. he would repeat certain words and then when they fixed that, he would whoop every now and then. He was constantly reading and I would say he raised himself, going as far as getting his driver's license on his own. In the end, the mom says he became a writer having fantasy stories falling into his microfiche machine and solving mysteries along the way, which sounds perfect for him.
I never thought this show would last, it wasn't as exciting as some of the others that came and went. Nothing much seemed to happen from week to week and I didn't think either parent was that great at parenting, other than being there for their kids. Still, we had a good cry as we said goodbye to the little show that could, shit with 214 episodes, it should be in circulation for a long time.
Sunday, July 29, 2018
7/29/18 How Hard Is It Best Buy?
I don't know if it is a sign to slow down or if it is high time to bitch and maybe just start shopping for everything through Amazon. Javalina is having a problem with his TV, when you turn it on, sometimes it will not light up, but you can see that it is on very faintly, if the room is dark enough. There may be a way to fix it, but in this age of disposable goods, I thought it much easier to just replace it with a newer and bigger and maybe even fancier TV.
Last year Boy upgraded to a 60in 4K HDTV which we luckily found as a return on the floor for under $400. I told Javalina, if you are lucky, we can maybe get a similar thing. We found a TV which was 65in and 4K and HDTV. I am sure Boy's has better chips and things inside it, but a bigger picture is a bigger picture. The bigger TV is $569-$599, depending when and where we get it. Javalina though kept most of his money last time we went to Disney and so when we came back, his wallet had $500. Because of this, I told him, well, give us $200 to pay upfront and then it's like we're just buying a $400 unit. After all this, they didn't have any in stock. We looked around and found a comparable unit for $579. Again, they didn't have it in stock and couldn't look into ordering it for 3 weeks. Wife tried at home to get either of the units at home online and it was the same shit. She was unable to find either of the units to order.
Other than Best Buy we enjoyed the afternoon by taking a ride towards the lake and around 620. We ended up at Lakeline Mall, which to me looks like it has seen better days, there were a few too many stores closed, Sears is in the process of closing and a few too many stores selling used junk/memorabilia. After we left, we were headed to Carraba's for some stinky Italian cheese, but we saw a buffet restaurant, Dimassi's Mediterranean Restaurant. Since it was cheaper (we checked on the phone) and looked like something different, we decided to give it a try.
The food was really really good, even the Sprite tasted better than ever. I think it's because we hadn't really eaten all day. As good as the food was, it only took one plate to realize I was gonna have to use the facilities. I started breaking it down and the way I was already gurgling and I was going to get a second plate, judging we were about 20 miles from the house, I was not going to make it to my personal throne, so a road pooping it was. I came out wanting more food, I hadn't had dessert, but everyone knew I destroyed that bathroom, how would it look for me to nonchalantly continue eating? I cut my losses at 2 plated, but realized I could have had more, the meats were especially good.
The night ended with a pit stop at HEB for breakfast material, and then we saw the first three episodes of Orange Is The New Black. It was a pretty good day for Casa Gallegos.
Last year Boy upgraded to a 60in 4K HDTV which we luckily found as a return on the floor for under $400. I told Javalina, if you are lucky, we can maybe get a similar thing. We found a TV which was 65in and 4K and HDTV. I am sure Boy's has better chips and things inside it, but a bigger picture is a bigger picture. The bigger TV is $569-$599, depending when and where we get it. Javalina though kept most of his money last time we went to Disney and so when we came back, his wallet had $500. Because of this, I told him, well, give us $200 to pay upfront and then it's like we're just buying a $400 unit. After all this, they didn't have any in stock. We looked around and found a comparable unit for $579. Again, they didn't have it in stock and couldn't look into ordering it for 3 weeks. Wife tried at home to get either of the units at home online and it was the same shit. She was unable to find either of the units to order.
Other than Best Buy we enjoyed the afternoon by taking a ride towards the lake and around 620. We ended up at Lakeline Mall, which to me looks like it has seen better days, there were a few too many stores closed, Sears is in the process of closing and a few too many stores selling used junk/memorabilia. After we left, we were headed to Carraba's for some stinky Italian cheese, but we saw a buffet restaurant, Dimassi's Mediterranean Restaurant. Since it was cheaper (we checked on the phone) and looked like something different, we decided to give it a try.
The food was really really good, even the Sprite tasted better than ever. I think it's because we hadn't really eaten all day. As good as the food was, it only took one plate to realize I was gonna have to use the facilities. I started breaking it down and the way I was already gurgling and I was going to get a second plate, judging we were about 20 miles from the house, I was not going to make it to my personal throne, so a road pooping it was. I came out wanting more food, I hadn't had dessert, but everyone knew I destroyed that bathroom, how would it look for me to nonchalantly continue eating? I cut my losses at 2 plated, but realized I could have had more, the meats were especially good.
The night ended with a pit stop at HEB for breakfast material, and then we saw the first three episodes of Orange Is The New Black. It was a pretty good day for Casa Gallegos.
Saturday, July 28, 2018
7/28/18 Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)
I did not like the end of this movie, like it was almost intentional to keep the big money machine going. There were many things not believable and that made the movie even harder to swallow. I don't believe the island would be abandoned of government entities making sure shenanigans like stealing of smaller dinosaurs didn't happen. There is no policing and so a small army can come in and take the animals and sold/kept at no cost to anyone?
The movie picks up with the island where the dinosaurs live is in danger due to a volcano that is just naturally becoming active and Claire has set up some sort of small organization to try and save the dinos from a certain extinction. Jeff Goldblum is still around but detached from the action. He is in front of Congress trying to convince them to let the dinosaurs die with the island, as things go. He worries that they could be used for bad, just as some maniacal maniac has just started that plan.
Enter Eli Mills, who is in charge of the Lockwood Estate, who is the old business partner of Hammond, the financier from the very first movie. He tricks Claire into agreeing to go to the island and using her fingerprint to unlock the safety system and if she could, "take Owen, who trained Blue because we need Blue who is super smart for ummm nefarious reasons." He has her tricked into believing they have another island set up where the dinosaurs could live without human interference, but of course, that would be too easy and nobody would profit from that.
Within minutes of getting on the island, they find Blue, the dummies are tricked, Owen is shot with a tranquilizer and the "bad guys" take everything they want, including Blue. Owen then wakes up, just in time, and runs back to the control center, where Claire and the computer dude, who we are all pretty sure is not going to make it are, having just escaped an attack by a dinosaur. They all run to the edge of the island, the volcano has gone into full eruption mode and it is spitting and oozing hot lava everywhere.
The setup for the next movie is pretty much made by taking a good twenty or thirty good sized dinosaurs back to the US, again the boat just comes in, there is no customs to check in, just a giant boat, never mind what could be getting delivered. There is a collection of bad guys on the Lockwood estate and they are bidding for the dinosaurs to take and do with as they please. It only takes a small-ish dinosaur to wreak havoc as he escapes with the prodding of Owen. This causes everything to fall apart as the bad guys with money disperse and/or get destroyed by the few dinosaurs that get free. One of the security guys accidentally shoots a container with some poison and of course, the system that pushes fresh air is disabled, so the dinosaurs that are still contained are all going to slowly die. Claire, the idiot that she is, starts freeing up the dinosaurs, then the little girl finishes the fuck up by releasing the dinosaurs out the gates into the woods and beyond.
We find that the girl is a clone and although we don't really care, it gives her fuel to be ok with releasing the dinosaurs out to the world. I saw it as a dick move because in a real world, these few dinosaurs are going to cause a few hundred to a few thousand deaths, just because she determined they were like her and they have a right to live. Maybe they have a right, but you can't release alpha predators like huge dinosaurs into our backyards. It's going to be her fault as far as the predators and how many Americans they destroy.
The movie picks up with the island where the dinosaurs live is in danger due to a volcano that is just naturally becoming active and Claire has set up some sort of small organization to try and save the dinos from a certain extinction. Jeff Goldblum is still around but detached from the action. He is in front of Congress trying to convince them to let the dinosaurs die with the island, as things go. He worries that they could be used for bad, just as some maniacal maniac has just started that plan.
Enter Eli Mills, who is in charge of the Lockwood Estate, who is the old business partner of Hammond, the financier from the very first movie. He tricks Claire into agreeing to go to the island and using her fingerprint to unlock the safety system and if she could, "take Owen, who trained Blue because we need Blue who is super smart for ummm nefarious reasons." He has her tricked into believing they have another island set up where the dinosaurs could live without human interference, but of course, that would be too easy and nobody would profit from that.
Within minutes of getting on the island, they find Blue, the dummies are tricked, Owen is shot with a tranquilizer and the "bad guys" take everything they want, including Blue. Owen then wakes up, just in time, and runs back to the control center, where Claire and the computer dude, who we are all pretty sure is not going to make it are, having just escaped an attack by a dinosaur. They all run to the edge of the island, the volcano has gone into full eruption mode and it is spitting and oozing hot lava everywhere.
The setup for the next movie is pretty much made by taking a good twenty or thirty good sized dinosaurs back to the US, again the boat just comes in, there is no customs to check in, just a giant boat, never mind what could be getting delivered. There is a collection of bad guys on the Lockwood estate and they are bidding for the dinosaurs to take and do with as they please. It only takes a small-ish dinosaur to wreak havoc as he escapes with the prodding of Owen. This causes everything to fall apart as the bad guys with money disperse and/or get destroyed by the few dinosaurs that get free. One of the security guys accidentally shoots a container with some poison and of course, the system that pushes fresh air is disabled, so the dinosaurs that are still contained are all going to slowly die. Claire, the idiot that she is, starts freeing up the dinosaurs, then the little girl finishes the fuck up by releasing the dinosaurs out the gates into the woods and beyond.
We find that the girl is a clone and although we don't really care, it gives her fuel to be ok with releasing the dinosaurs out to the world. I saw it as a dick move because in a real world, these few dinosaurs are going to cause a few hundred to a few thousand deaths, just because she determined they were like her and they have a right to live. Maybe they have a right, but you can't release alpha predators like huge dinosaurs into our backyards. It's going to be her fault as far as the predators and how many Americans they destroy.
Friday, July 27, 2018
7/27/18 Father Of The Year (2018) (Netflix)
I love a good David Spade movie, I know it's really an Adam Sandler movie, but I have always liked Spade. He is kind of a weasel with a heart of gold. He always plans and schemes to win with minimal effort but in the end, he never wants to hurt those around him that count on him and he generally gives as much as he can, even when he plays these sorry characters like Joe Dirt.
There is no doubt he is trailer trash as he comes out from under a trailer in the first scene of the movie. His son is debating whether to spend time with him or not and apparently they have been talking because Spade is in the "basement" of his trailer pulling out a very old and stained mattress for his kid to sleep on. His kid is of course, some kind of genius and has a dream job lined up now that he has graduated from college. I loved the first ten minutes of the movie, Spade then invites them to go for a swim and the first image shows Spade in this beautiful blue water, he is swimming underwater, facing up. Then the camera pans out and the "swimming pool" is the back of a neighbor's truck with a blue liner. It is most funny when a lady comes out and hurriedly takes off without noticing the swimming pool and Spade swimming, he lasts about 8 seconds back there, like a bull, he gets thrown off naked, it was hilarious.
The movie is supposed to be a coming of age, the friends are kind of lost and working shitty jobs, but it gets focused when the two friends start talking about whose father would win in a fight. Spade is mentioned of the theoretical fight and when he gets in a drunken stupor heads out to find the friend's dad. The dad is a big ole pus and wants nothing to do with fighting him. They run around all over the house, end up on the roof and the son and Spade fall off the roof unto the neighbor's giant greenhouse, demolishing it in the process. They end up in jail, and before you know it, the son loses his job offer. The neighbor is an old lady willing to drop the charges if the kid builds her a swimming pool for her grandkids.
There is a lot of silliness but I think Spade's son learns to appreciate his father and when face to face with his hero, he finds out some stuff that helps make his mind up as to what to do with the rest of his life. I don't want to give too much of the story away, but there is a love interest also.
There is no doubt he is trailer trash as he comes out from under a trailer in the first scene of the movie. His son is debating whether to spend time with him or not and apparently they have been talking because Spade is in the "basement" of his trailer pulling out a very old and stained mattress for his kid to sleep on. His kid is of course, some kind of genius and has a dream job lined up now that he has graduated from college. I loved the first ten minutes of the movie, Spade then invites them to go for a swim and the first image shows Spade in this beautiful blue water, he is swimming underwater, facing up. Then the camera pans out and the "swimming pool" is the back of a neighbor's truck with a blue liner. It is most funny when a lady comes out and hurriedly takes off without noticing the swimming pool and Spade swimming, he lasts about 8 seconds back there, like a bull, he gets thrown off naked, it was hilarious.
The movie is supposed to be a coming of age, the friends are kind of lost and working shitty jobs, but it gets focused when the two friends start talking about whose father would win in a fight. Spade is mentioned of the theoretical fight and when he gets in a drunken stupor heads out to find the friend's dad. The dad is a big ole pus and wants nothing to do with fighting him. They run around all over the house, end up on the roof and the son and Spade fall off the roof unto the neighbor's giant greenhouse, demolishing it in the process. They end up in jail, and before you know it, the son loses his job offer. The neighbor is an old lady willing to drop the charges if the kid builds her a swimming pool for her grandkids.
There is a lot of silliness but I think Spade's son learns to appreciate his father and when face to face with his hero, he finds out some stuff that helps make his mind up as to what to do with the rest of his life. I don't want to give too much of the story away, but there is a love interest also.
Thursday, July 26, 2018
7/26/18 The Spectacular Now? (Netflix)
I don't like to admit it but I think I secretly like watching these almost girly coming of age movies. I can't watch them with Wife or in company (she has a horrible habit of laughing/smiling at me if I tear up in sentimental parts) but I always find them good filler for when I have to kill a couple of hours at work and the YouTube videos aren't quite working.
This one was about a guy at that point in life when he has to decide whether he is going to settle for the simple life and stay in middle America enjoying the simplicity of small town life or if he is going to challenge himself and attempt to go to college and be somebody.
The movie starts with him explaining to a college form what makes him special and he decides to write about the relationship he just broke up from. The kid looks like he is a minute away from doing something sleazy, so I'll agree with the girl that dumped him that he looked suspicious, but in reality, he is kind of a good guy. He explains how he is trying to help his best friend get a "lady" and they go cruising, he pushes his friend and the girl he is interested on a canoe and then waits patiently in the car with the girl's friend. I don't see any shenanigans, still he was dumped. The girl moves on fairly quickly, so maybe she had other plans. Anyways, he seems to have a bit of a drinking problem, he always has a flask with alcohol and seems to be always drunk.
In the next scene, a "nerdy" or "good" girl finds him passed out in some random yard and they start talking. He finds that he likes her, but somehow he's not supposed to, even his dopey friend doesn't think this is a good enough girl for him to be associating with. He finds that this is really the girl of his dreams, slowly giving him the strength to confront her mother and find out about his father. He helps her too, she too has a mother that demands too much of her and he gives her the strength to tell her she is going off to some university somewhere.
His father ends up being a loser in the worst way a drunk can be. He invites him to come over, but when he gets there he doesn't really want to spend time with him. The kid sees himself in his father and starts pushing the girl away immediately, he doesn't want to poison her with his evil ways since he reckons he is his father. A bunch of drama ensues, but eventually he has another encounter with him mom and she ensures him that he is nothing like his father, his father thinks only of himself, but you are the most considerate person I have ever known she tells him. This speech and the thought of losing the good girl I think inspires him to ultimately get his shit together and write a coherent enough college entrance paper so that in the final scene he is reuniting with the good girl coming out of one of her university buildings.
The movie was good and quick. It showed what it needed to and not much more. I enjoyed it, and maybe a tear or two were shed, in a good way.
This one was about a guy at that point in life when he has to decide whether he is going to settle for the simple life and stay in middle America enjoying the simplicity of small town life or if he is going to challenge himself and attempt to go to college and be somebody.
The movie starts with him explaining to a college form what makes him special and he decides to write about the relationship he just broke up from. The kid looks like he is a minute away from doing something sleazy, so I'll agree with the girl that dumped him that he looked suspicious, but in reality, he is kind of a good guy. He explains how he is trying to help his best friend get a "lady" and they go cruising, he pushes his friend and the girl he is interested on a canoe and then waits patiently in the car with the girl's friend. I don't see any shenanigans, still he was dumped. The girl moves on fairly quickly, so maybe she had other plans. Anyways, he seems to have a bit of a drinking problem, he always has a flask with alcohol and seems to be always drunk.
In the next scene, a "nerdy" or "good" girl finds him passed out in some random yard and they start talking. He finds that he likes her, but somehow he's not supposed to, even his dopey friend doesn't think this is a good enough girl for him to be associating with. He finds that this is really the girl of his dreams, slowly giving him the strength to confront her mother and find out about his father. He helps her too, she too has a mother that demands too much of her and he gives her the strength to tell her she is going off to some university somewhere.
His father ends up being a loser in the worst way a drunk can be. He invites him to come over, but when he gets there he doesn't really want to spend time with him. The kid sees himself in his father and starts pushing the girl away immediately, he doesn't want to poison her with his evil ways since he reckons he is his father. A bunch of drama ensues, but eventually he has another encounter with him mom and she ensures him that he is nothing like his father, his father thinks only of himself, but you are the most considerate person I have ever known she tells him. This speech and the thought of losing the good girl I think inspires him to ultimately get his shit together and write a coherent enough college entrance paper so that in the final scene he is reuniting with the good girl coming out of one of her university buildings.
The movie was good and quick. It showed what it needed to and not much more. I enjoyed it, and maybe a tear or two were shed, in a good way.
Wednesday, July 25, 2018
7/25/18 Everybody Wants Some? (Hulu)
I don't know who pulled this magic off, but this is a bonafide 80's movie complete with a bunch of naked random titties like we grew up watching in the style of Porky's or Fast Times at Ridgmont High. The movie follows a freshman baseball player starting out his first year in college. Of course, there are the assortments of personalities and stereotypes right off the bat. There was not a single face I recognized in the movie, not that it mattered. Another thing that was weird was that although it was set in the 80's, the movie was made and/or released in 2016, but it had that gritty film look to it, it wasn't all Wi-Fi HDMI 4K fancy looking.
There was the bullying that goes with being a freshman from the upperclassmen. The outside of classroom education these upperclassmen are only too willing to give to the young and naïve. Although they are all on the baseball team, and that is all they talk about, they don't actually get out on a field until about an hour and fifteen minutes into the movie. The hothead freshman who has no time to make friends and wants to fast track himself to the pros is humbled in his first attempt at pitching when the team homerun king smacks his third pitch over the fence not to show off, but to calm him down that the season is long, and you are better off being a team player than trying to do this alone.
There was a ticker counting down until baseball playing day which gave it some significance, but I don't think all the guys were that worked up for it. Of course they have some coach coming in talking about rules and no alcohol in the house, and especially no girls in the bedrooms only to be obviously ignored when it is party time and the guys need a place to drink and party. They end up partying in a disco, in a country and western bar and then in a house full of theatrical art students. It seems someone wanted to get deep with the psychology of mankind, the freshman kid is asking one of the upperclassmen if perhaps they are confused about who they really are when they go out one night as cowboys, one night as hippies, and another night as punks, all in the same weekend. The upperclassman puts him at ease by saying "there are some animal species where the male sacrifices his life to get laid, all we are doing is changing our wardrobe a little bit in an attempt to get laid."
Overall, the movie was stupid but entertaining, there wasn't much of a point to it other than to show them coming together over alcohol, which we have seen too many times. It was a bit longer than it had to be at almost two hours long, but since I am stuck at work with nowhere to go and have to stay awake, the movie did its job.
There was the bullying that goes with being a freshman from the upperclassmen. The outside of classroom education these upperclassmen are only too willing to give to the young and naïve. Although they are all on the baseball team, and that is all they talk about, they don't actually get out on a field until about an hour and fifteen minutes into the movie. The hothead freshman who has no time to make friends and wants to fast track himself to the pros is humbled in his first attempt at pitching when the team homerun king smacks his third pitch over the fence not to show off, but to calm him down that the season is long, and you are better off being a team player than trying to do this alone.
There was a ticker counting down until baseball playing day which gave it some significance, but I don't think all the guys were that worked up for it. Of course they have some coach coming in talking about rules and no alcohol in the house, and especially no girls in the bedrooms only to be obviously ignored when it is party time and the guys need a place to drink and party. They end up partying in a disco, in a country and western bar and then in a house full of theatrical art students. It seems someone wanted to get deep with the psychology of mankind, the freshman kid is asking one of the upperclassmen if perhaps they are confused about who they really are when they go out one night as cowboys, one night as hippies, and another night as punks, all in the same weekend. The upperclassman puts him at ease by saying "there are some animal species where the male sacrifices his life to get laid, all we are doing is changing our wardrobe a little bit in an attempt to get laid."
Overall, the movie was stupid but entertaining, there wasn't much of a point to it other than to show them coming together over alcohol, which we have seen too many times. It was a bit longer than it had to be at almost two hours long, but since I am stuck at work with nowhere to go and have to stay awake, the movie did its job.
Tuesday, July 24, 2018
7/24/18 The Perfect Mug?
I have been searching for the perfect cup for awhile. Because I am a (as Javalina says) Big Boy, I need or at least want to carry more than 32 ounces, which I can chug in one swig, but then greater than 50 plus ounces, it probably won't sit in a cup holder good. If it does, it means it is going to be top heavy because the bottom has to be quite narrow in relation.
The reason I "need" this is because chemistry doesn't allow the same BS time that imaging did. I pretty much go in there and one little thing leads to another leads to another and before you know it, I am in the acid hoods and I never even got a cup of coffee. I can do without the coffee if I stay as busy as I do most of the time, but because of the constant air movement (the room is as close to a cleanroom as it can be without forcing us to smock up), it dries your throat and a swig of water is nice. Funny note is that we have 3-4 faucets in the room, but the water in there is too pure to drink, it would/could make one sick. Another reason I honestly bring water with me is that when I drive in to work it is the afternoon and the thought of getting stranded between the house and work with no water scares me a little bit, specially since I am driving an older vehicle. The alternator went out in the spring on my Excursion and we were stranded not once but twice (I had thought it was just the battery) that day, luckily it was not too hot and Boy was able to come pick us up within a half hour.
We do have a bunch of large sized vessels which I could use and I've tried some. I felt goofy with the one from Six Flags with the bright colors and the lame little yellow handle. So no. I have been using a blue one which holds a decent amount of drink, but it is a little fat on the bottom and only fits on one of the cupholders in the Excursion, but that blocks the controls to the radio. My mom bought me an aluminum UT glass that is perfectly designed for the job, but I swear I can taste the aluminum in my fillings and I wasn't even sure we could use Aluminum containers since our tool is very delicate and Aluminum is one of the metals frequently looked at. I wouldn't want to be a source of contamination, but our boss came in with one, so I guess it is ok, other than the weird feeling I get in my teeth.
The reason I "need" this is because chemistry doesn't allow the same BS time that imaging did. I pretty much go in there and one little thing leads to another leads to another and before you know it, I am in the acid hoods and I never even got a cup of coffee. I can do without the coffee if I stay as busy as I do most of the time, but because of the constant air movement (the room is as close to a cleanroom as it can be without forcing us to smock up), it dries your throat and a swig of water is nice. Funny note is that we have 3-4 faucets in the room, but the water in there is too pure to drink, it would/could make one sick. Another reason I honestly bring water with me is that when I drive in to work it is the afternoon and the thought of getting stranded between the house and work with no water scares me a little bit, specially since I am driving an older vehicle. The alternator went out in the spring on my Excursion and we were stranded not once but twice (I had thought it was just the battery) that day, luckily it was not too hot and Boy was able to come pick us up within a half hour.
We do have a bunch of large sized vessels which I could use and I've tried some. I felt goofy with the one from Six Flags with the bright colors and the lame little yellow handle. So no. I have been using a blue one which holds a decent amount of drink, but it is a little fat on the bottom and only fits on one of the cupholders in the Excursion, but that blocks the controls to the radio. My mom bought me an aluminum UT glass that is perfectly designed for the job, but I swear I can taste the aluminum in my fillings and I wasn't even sure we could use Aluminum containers since our tool is very delicate and Aluminum is one of the metals frequently looked at. I wouldn't want to be a source of contamination, but our boss came in with one, so I guess it is ok, other than the weird feeling I get in my teeth.
Monday, July 23, 2018
7/23/18 Slow Weekend?
I like the summers in that Wife is only working four days a week and then gets to come up on Thursday nights. It almost feels like she is here full time. She got here Thursday, with Pizzas in hand, smoking from the discussion I had had with Boy. All that turned out to be mostly miscommunication as we all sat down and came away as really there was nothing there to argue over after going through everything for possibly two hours or more. The big things and I think they are important to most relationships is having an open dialogue. I have seen this BS where the son/daughter speaks for their spouse and the message gets misconstrued and that just creates rifts and valleys, then nobody knows how to talk to each other and you create weird feelings where there shouldn't be any. We told her to speak for herself, Boy can barely string sentences together for his own god, let alone for someone else. Ultimately, she wants their personal time to be private and not be discussed, which is easy enough to respect, and Boy doesn't like for Mama to call on GF when he is MIA, to which we say fine, but respond quicker. We all see texts right away and ignore somewhen we feel like it.
Wife and I digested this over the weekend. We know Boy is growing, but he is not an adult until he starts paying his way.
Saturday and Sunday it was just too hot to do anything. We got up at a decent time on Saturday, came down, ate breakfast, just as the last of Javalina's friends left from his sleepover, he had like 4-5 boys spending the night. As soon as we finished eating Saturday, it was right back to napping and we didn't get up until like 7:00pm. We went out for a drive, stopped at World Market and maybe made some other dumb stops. I say dumb because we managed to buy $10 worth of chocolate candy which I ate most of before we got home, it wasn't a good stop.
Sunday was more of the same. We didn't get up until around 2:00pm, went to eat at PokeJoe's, I love their big salad. It was a bit weird, I then had to run home to poop, got out and Wife started with "are you ready to go eat dinner?" I was confused as it hadn't been an hour since we had eaten lunch. We hung out another while, Her and Javalina have been obsessed with Superstore on Hulu, so we watched 3-4 episodes, then we left so Wife could scout where her conference was going to be today. I honestly sat in the car and passed out from the heat, dammit do I hate it when it gets in the +100 degrees temp.
We ended the evening by eating at Johnny Carino's, which isn't the best, but it is close to the house and Wife usually has a coupon for at least one free meal. The four of us ate like a family, which is rare nowadays. Boy is usually doing his own thing or brings along the GF or a friend. We did talk about going to the lake, an old friend had pics of them sitting by Canyon Lake and the water looked so pretty and blue-ish. They were even sitting on a sandy beach, but after Wife texted her, finding out the place, we couldn't get excited about sitting outside in +100 degree weather, so we said later.
Wife and I digested this over the weekend. We know Boy is growing, but he is not an adult until he starts paying his way.
Saturday and Sunday it was just too hot to do anything. We got up at a decent time on Saturday, came down, ate breakfast, just as the last of Javalina's friends left from his sleepover, he had like 4-5 boys spending the night. As soon as we finished eating Saturday, it was right back to napping and we didn't get up until like 7:00pm. We went out for a drive, stopped at World Market and maybe made some other dumb stops. I say dumb because we managed to buy $10 worth of chocolate candy which I ate most of before we got home, it wasn't a good stop.
Sunday was more of the same. We didn't get up until around 2:00pm, went to eat at PokeJoe's, I love their big salad. It was a bit weird, I then had to run home to poop, got out and Wife started with "are you ready to go eat dinner?" I was confused as it hadn't been an hour since we had eaten lunch. We hung out another while, Her and Javalina have been obsessed with Superstore on Hulu, so we watched 3-4 episodes, then we left so Wife could scout where her conference was going to be today. I honestly sat in the car and passed out from the heat, dammit do I hate it when it gets in the +100 degrees temp.
We ended the evening by eating at Johnny Carino's, which isn't the best, but it is close to the house and Wife usually has a coupon for at least one free meal. The four of us ate like a family, which is rare nowadays. Boy is usually doing his own thing or brings along the GF or a friend. We did talk about going to the lake, an old friend had pics of them sitting by Canyon Lake and the water looked so pretty and blue-ish. They were even sitting on a sandy beach, but after Wife texted her, finding out the place, we couldn't get excited about sitting outside in +100 degree weather, so we said later.
Sunday, July 22, 2018
7/22/18 Obvious Child? (Netflix)
I saw this movie on nothing more than the lead actress on the cover of the Netflix image is cute and a tad familiar. She's come out on a couple of other shows we watch, such as Married, and Parks And Rec amongst others. Looking at her IMDB, I didn't realize she has been on so many cartoons that we watch. The female is Jenny Slate, and although she has only been around since 2005, she has quite the long list of projects on Netflix.
Anyways, in this movie she is working as a stand up comedian, and she spemaks easily of her relationship which the boyfriend does not appreciate when his business is put on display. Because of this or despite of it after one of her performances he comes up to her and admits he has been having an affair with her friend "Becky" or whatever. This sends her into a spiral of depression and to add to that, her day job at the bookstore is also closing, so life is not going great. Enter a new guy who has perfect chemistry with her and they hit it off, ending with drunk sex.
After going back and forth whether to tell him or not, she eventually puts it into her comedy routine and he finds out. Along the way, she finds out that he is a student of her mother's. Her mother and her have kind of forced relationship but she mentions the boy's name and the mom quickly adds That is not the kind of guy you usually date. Guys you date tend to be smelly and more organic, which sort of makes the both of them laugh. When she comes back to tell her mom that she is pregnant but has already planned an abortion, her mom tells her a story of when in her youth, she too had a similar event, but instead of going to the doctor, she drove to New York in the middle of the night to go to some random ladies house and had a procedure done on a kitchen table. She relayed she was glad she was doing the responsible thing, even if it was hard.
The guy eventually finds out and accepts the outcome standing by her side in the after scenes of her procedure. He shows himself to be a good guy by being ever so calm and letting her sit and slowly heal at her pace. The last scene shows the camera panning out as they sit and watch Gone With The Wind , her laying on the sofa and he holding her feet in his lap, both looking relaxed. like they belong where they are at. She might finally have the focus she needed in life to move ahead, or not.
This was a very short movie that gave us a small glimpse into the life of this comedian who has to deal with a very serious decision. I think she does the right thing as I feel unwanted kids equal future criminals and troublemakers, not that this movie is about that. She also seems to have stumbled upon the right guy at possibly the right time, as we see the last guy she breaks up with is another in a long line of man/children.
Anyways, in this movie she is working as a stand up comedian, and she spemaks easily of her relationship which the boyfriend does not appreciate when his business is put on display. Because of this or despite of it after one of her performances he comes up to her and admits he has been having an affair with her friend "Becky" or whatever. This sends her into a spiral of depression and to add to that, her day job at the bookstore is also closing, so life is not going great. Enter a new guy who has perfect chemistry with her and they hit it off, ending with drunk sex.
After going back and forth whether to tell him or not, she eventually puts it into her comedy routine and he finds out. Along the way, she finds out that he is a student of her mother's. Her mother and her have kind of forced relationship but she mentions the boy's name and the mom quickly adds That is not the kind of guy you usually date. Guys you date tend to be smelly and more organic, which sort of makes the both of them laugh. When she comes back to tell her mom that she is pregnant but has already planned an abortion, her mom tells her a story of when in her youth, she too had a similar event, but instead of going to the doctor, she drove to New York in the middle of the night to go to some random ladies house and had a procedure done on a kitchen table. She relayed she was glad she was doing the responsible thing, even if it was hard.
The guy eventually finds out and accepts the outcome standing by her side in the after scenes of her procedure. He shows himself to be a good guy by being ever so calm and letting her sit and slowly heal at her pace. The last scene shows the camera panning out as they sit and watch Gone With The Wind , her laying on the sofa and he holding her feet in his lap, both looking relaxed. like they belong where they are at. She might finally have the focus she needed in life to move ahead, or not.
This was a very short movie that gave us a small glimpse into the life of this comedian who has to deal with a very serious decision. I think she does the right thing as I feel unwanted kids equal future criminals and troublemakers, not that this movie is about that. She also seems to have stumbled upon the right guy at possibly the right time, as we see the last guy she breaks up with is another in a long line of man/children.
Saturday, July 21, 2018
7/21/18 Bad Santa 2? (Netflix)
I just saw this movie last night and if you enjoyed the first one, this is a lot of the same stuff, but bigger. Lauren Graham is gone as the love interest and Willie, Billy Bob, seems like he has continued right on drinking since the last movie. He looks wasted away and almost skin and bones.
The movie picks up about ten years later after the last one and we find Willie still depressed and trying to commit suicide in a shitty apartment when the kid, Thurman Merman, knocks on his door bringing him his mail and a package. Thurman is now grown up and socially awkward sees Willie hanging himself and determines he is playing a game or something, doesn't try to stop him. The package is from Marcus Skidmore, his sidekick elf, to WIllie's Santa impersonation. He has sent him some money and invited him to come to Chicago to steal from a charity. Willie has more honor than that, but he finds out the true master running the operation is his long lost mother and he feels obligated to stick around and help.
The dirty shenanigans continue with Willie saving the day when Marcus can't seal the deal with a security guard that likes herself a dirty man, which of course Willie finds ways to make sex acts dirtier than they have to be. He also almost finds love in the target they are trying to steal from. He finds out she is in a loveless marriage and therefore implants himself in as a disposable whore for the lady which at first she acts disgusted by him, but then comes around and uses him more than one time.
The surprise actor in this one is Kathy Bates as Willie's mom and we find out she can do nasty and gross as good as Billie Bob. She expertly cons him into going along with the con and opening the safe, and all would have probably worked out except for ole Thurman Merman coming through and giving Willie a touch of heart and just finding his own way of getting in the way.
The movie was very cliché, but I found myself laughing out loud several times, so I must say I enjoyed it enough. It is hard to see Willie throughout the movie just looking washed out and half dead, he looks like a genuine alcoholic loser. Having the kid grown up and still somewhat slow/naïve is a great addition to the movie and about the only way to add any humanity to the disgusting and cranky ole Willie.
The movie picks up about ten years later after the last one and we find Willie still depressed and trying to commit suicide in a shitty apartment when the kid, Thurman Merman, knocks on his door bringing him his mail and a package. Thurman is now grown up and socially awkward sees Willie hanging himself and determines he is playing a game or something, doesn't try to stop him. The package is from Marcus Skidmore, his sidekick elf, to WIllie's Santa impersonation. He has sent him some money and invited him to come to Chicago to steal from a charity. Willie has more honor than that, but he finds out the true master running the operation is his long lost mother and he feels obligated to stick around and help.
The dirty shenanigans continue with Willie saving the day when Marcus can't seal the deal with a security guard that likes herself a dirty man, which of course Willie finds ways to make sex acts dirtier than they have to be. He also almost finds love in the target they are trying to steal from. He finds out she is in a loveless marriage and therefore implants himself in as a disposable whore for the lady which at first she acts disgusted by him, but then comes around and uses him more than one time.
The surprise actor in this one is Kathy Bates as Willie's mom and we find out she can do nasty and gross as good as Billie Bob. She expertly cons him into going along with the con and opening the safe, and all would have probably worked out except for ole Thurman Merman coming through and giving Willie a touch of heart and just finding his own way of getting in the way.
The movie was very cliché, but I found myself laughing out loud several times, so I must say I enjoyed it enough. It is hard to see Willie throughout the movie just looking washed out and half dead, he looks like a genuine alcoholic loser. Having the kid grown up and still somewhat slow/naïve is a great addition to the movie and about the only way to add any humanity to the disgusting and cranky ole Willie.
Friday, July 20, 2018
7/20/18 I Don't Want To But It's What I Do?
I am left confused more than anything. I have been talked to by one of my closest allies and what they said left me more confused than I thought possible. It seems their girlfriend may have a problem with how we are, I don't see how being that we are who we are all the time and she has known us for a good ten years. You come at either Wife or me with some weak shit and yes, we will be sarcastic and goof on your idea. What are we supposed to do, take you seriously?
This is the same person who finds it normal and ok to come in the house and greet me by squeezing my stomach like I am a stuffed bear, I mean I know that I'm a fat fuck, but when did we lose all sense of respect or formality? There is no way in hell I would walk into my in-law's house and do any kind of grabbing on my mother on law or Wife go and rub my Dad's stomach and go "aww, how is the chubby guy doing today? So I figure we have dropped the formalities, we have known each other for a decade, even if you just now moved closer to becoming family. I then crack a few jokes and you decide I have gone too far? You cannot have it both ways. Either you are with us, go ahead, rub my stomach, crack jokes about my manhood (when I get my testosterone shots) but take the teasing about the weird red meats (which is good but different), the contraceptive protection (fucking awesome show of responsibility there), and the LOLs (with you, never at you). Or we can all take a step back and just address ourselves as Mr and Ms/Mrs. and we will just keep it formal.
You can't declare talking about contraception is out of bounds when you are chanting sarcastically "no babies 2018" as you pop your pill over our sink on a Friday night. I don't care nor do I know if it is for birth control or for a myriad of other reasons people take the pill, that is not of my concern, but awesome that you are mature enough to do this.
Now, trying to get my family structure changed to accommodate you, helps me how? I need my Pride and Joy home so that my other younger seedling is not alone, how easy is that math problem? You have been dating for a couple months, give it a year or two before you start thinking of separating the family to your satisfaction, no? You two knuckleheads haven't even dealt with whose Thanksgiving are you going to be at, or where you spend Christmas, or hell, how much is an apartment in Austin, how much does milk cost, eggs? Your monthly payment on your car, son? How do you jump all this real shit and concern yourselves with Why can't we sleep together? How about finishing your degrees, we are going on seven years for a Bachelor's degree, if you're going to come at me like adults.
I am not angry, yet. There is no way Boy would turn on me this way on his own, he knows how much we spoil him, how much we love him. I have seen these types of shenanigans played out before and how I fucking wish people had heeded my advice, but live and let live. When it all comes crashing down, we'll be there. Removing that Puppet Master's hand will be the hardest thing, but this should have never happened in the first place if this is where we are so soon.
This is the same person who finds it normal and ok to come in the house and greet me by squeezing my stomach like I am a stuffed bear, I mean I know that I'm a fat fuck, but when did we lose all sense of respect or formality? There is no way in hell I would walk into my in-law's house and do any kind of grabbing on my mother on law or Wife go and rub my Dad's stomach and go "aww, how is the chubby guy doing today? So I figure we have dropped the formalities, we have known each other for a decade, even if you just now moved closer to becoming family. I then crack a few jokes and you decide I have gone too far? You cannot have it both ways. Either you are with us, go ahead, rub my stomach, crack jokes about my manhood (when I get my testosterone shots) but take the teasing about the weird red meats (which is good but different), the contraceptive protection (fucking awesome show of responsibility there), and the LOLs (with you, never at you). Or we can all take a step back and just address ourselves as Mr and Ms/Mrs. and we will just keep it formal.
You can't declare talking about contraception is out of bounds when you are chanting sarcastically "no babies 2018" as you pop your pill over our sink on a Friday night. I don't care nor do I know if it is for birth control or for a myriad of other reasons people take the pill, that is not of my concern, but awesome that you are mature enough to do this.
Now, trying to get my family structure changed to accommodate you, helps me how? I need my Pride and Joy home so that my other younger seedling is not alone, how easy is that math problem? You have been dating for a couple months, give it a year or two before you start thinking of separating the family to your satisfaction, no? You two knuckleheads haven't even dealt with whose Thanksgiving are you going to be at, or where you spend Christmas, or hell, how much is an apartment in Austin, how much does milk cost, eggs? Your monthly payment on your car, son? How do you jump all this real shit and concern yourselves with Why can't we sleep together? How about finishing your degrees, we are going on seven years for a Bachelor's degree, if you're going to come at me like adults.
I am not angry, yet. There is no way Boy would turn on me this way on his own, he knows how much we spoil him, how much we love him. I have seen these types of shenanigans played out before and how I fucking wish people had heeded my advice, but live and let live. When it all comes crashing down, we'll be there. Removing that Puppet Master's hand will be the hardest thing, but this should have never happened in the first place if this is where we are so soon.
Thursday, July 19, 2018
7/19/18 Amazon Is Amazing?
I am surprised I haven't talked about this already. I guess it hadn't affected me much until now. We have entered into the era of specialized training for kids that want to go all the way. Since birth, my sister and brother in law have been training their boys to be athletes in one way or another. Honestly, plenty of parents do this, it is not a niche thing, most parents want to have a superstar kid, if not for the money, then for the fame or just to say that "I knew what I was doing."
I hadn't had many thoughts like that. To become a star athlete you need more than a good pitch or a fast 40yd dash. Who knows, this year's star can be next year's newest drug addict with a small injury and the strength of opiate drugs given so easily to satiate a hungry "hurting" population. People quickly go from Vicadin to oxycontin, to worse to feel better. Boy was never athletic and his interests were and still are in building and engineering. His interests have not changed much and we have allowed him as much breadth and trust with power tools and even chemicals like fiberglass and the necessary solvents for a long time, at least since high school.
All this could easily be found at Home Depot, just a swipe of the old credit card to help Mijo back in his high school days. Along comes my Javelina. He was not allowed to play football all through the pee-wee years because he was a jumbo shrimp, so I thought he might be behind the curve when it came time to play in organized sports at school. Turns out, he loves it and because there were only a handful of Big-'uns, he got to start on the line immediately.
Along with being a behemoth lineman, he also has a huge ego and considers himself one of the strongest kids on the team. To that end, he joined track and field to try and throw discuss and shotput. Although he was only an alternate on discuss, he did good enough to earn 1 of 3 starting spots in the shot put. He closed out the season very upset because first, he started late, because he is in an advanced group of students academically, he must maintain an 80 or above and he had a 79 in math. After the slow start however, he did improve and by the time the city tournament came around, he threw solidly for 7th out of like 30 boys with his longest throw in the 27 feet range. He had then been bragging to me that he was throwing to 30feet for the last meet and even as I got excited because that is where the top boys were throwing, but then the last meet was cancelled.
Enter finally Amazon, apparently, you can order anything, including shotputs, of which Javalina is now the proud owner of a 4kg shot (official for 8th grade) and a 12pound shot (official weight for high school. We just need to make a ring in the greenbelt behind our house and he can become the Best that he can be. Thank you, Amazon, once again.
I hadn't had many thoughts like that. To become a star athlete you need more than a good pitch or a fast 40yd dash. Who knows, this year's star can be next year's newest drug addict with a small injury and the strength of opiate drugs given so easily to satiate a hungry "hurting" population. People quickly go from Vicadin to oxycontin, to worse to feel better. Boy was never athletic and his interests were and still are in building and engineering. His interests have not changed much and we have allowed him as much breadth and trust with power tools and even chemicals like fiberglass and the necessary solvents for a long time, at least since high school.
All this could easily be found at Home Depot, just a swipe of the old credit card to help Mijo back in his high school days. Along comes my Javelina. He was not allowed to play football all through the pee-wee years because he was a jumbo shrimp, so I thought he might be behind the curve when it came time to play in organized sports at school. Turns out, he loves it and because there were only a handful of Big-'uns, he got to start on the line immediately.
Along with being a behemoth lineman, he also has a huge ego and considers himself one of the strongest kids on the team. To that end, he joined track and field to try and throw discuss and shotput. Although he was only an alternate on discuss, he did good enough to earn 1 of 3 starting spots in the shot put. He closed out the season very upset because first, he started late, because he is in an advanced group of students academically, he must maintain an 80 or above and he had a 79 in math. After the slow start however, he did improve and by the time the city tournament came around, he threw solidly for 7th out of like 30 boys with his longest throw in the 27 feet range. He had then been bragging to me that he was throwing to 30feet for the last meet and even as I got excited because that is where the top boys were throwing, but then the last meet was cancelled.
Enter finally Amazon, apparently, you can order anything, including shotputs, of which Javalina is now the proud owner of a 4kg shot (official for 8th grade) and a 12pound shot (official weight for high school. We just need to make a ring in the greenbelt behind our house and he can become the Best that he can be. Thank you, Amazon, once again.
Wednesday, July 18, 2018
7/18/18 Death Of A Child's Ally?
I know this is now old news, but it struck me as odd Sunday Evening cruising around with Wife looking for a place to eat and we ended up at Poke Joe's on Ben White and Lamar. After we sat down and were mostly done eating, it was almost dark, but not yet, Wife looked over my shoulder out the back doors of the restaurant and you can see the Toys 'R Us storefront, she said "hmm, looks like Toys 'R Us closed early and they are maybe even really closed, even the lights look off. I said "uh, yeah, they went bankrupt like 2-3 months ago. I believe all the stores closed and they are gone (I say I believe because I remember this happening to K-Mart and it somehow survived and I've seen a couple of those stores still open). I thought it most funny that even Javalina had a comment, saying he saw a meme where Geoffrey the Giraffe had his hobo stick and bag on the end saying "I guess everyone grew up." as he walks away into the sunset. That was pretty tear jerky, I thought, from a 13 year old.
It didn't have to go down that way. I liked going in there when the boys were younger, we would let Boy have "whatever" he wanted as he always went for action figures and Lego boxes, then we repeated the same recipe for Javalina, although he wasn't much for action figures, like Boy. I think the store should have been focused on toys, instead, you walked in and the whole middle section was gutted and filled with clothes you could get cheaper at Wal-Mart, about a third of the store was filled with electronics, but where at Best Buy you can handle the games, there, they wanted to treat you like a thief and keep the games locked up, which sucks for just shopping when you can't get a person to help you. Then another third or so was dedicated to furniture, yet they themselves had competition for that in their own Babies 'R Us, which sells nothing but furniture. This only left the two ends of the store for toys, one side was for boys and one side was for girls, how PC.
They were never going to beat Best Buy, Wal-Mart or even Amazon in the video game business, they should have bowed out and brought in more exotic toys. Trying to sell clothes was also a foolhardy plan because then you are competing with the malls, Old Navy, Wal-Mart, Target, too much competition, if you ask me. When we went to Toys 'R Us, it was to splurge on the boys. Even with Grandma in tow, she would frequently say, pick out a toy. No kid has ever said "shit, I'll take the corduroy pants, the toy can wait."
But put freaking grown-ups in charge, and they'll do that, Think like grown-ups. They should have asked a couple kids "how can we make the store better?" Oh well, I guess it had a good run. It served my boys well. We can say kids play with toys less and less, by the time I have grandkids, it'll be just tablets and live screens that talk too much.
It didn't have to go down that way. I liked going in there when the boys were younger, we would let Boy have "whatever" he wanted as he always went for action figures and Lego boxes, then we repeated the same recipe for Javalina, although he wasn't much for action figures, like Boy. I think the store should have been focused on toys, instead, you walked in and the whole middle section was gutted and filled with clothes you could get cheaper at Wal-Mart, about a third of the store was filled with electronics, but where at Best Buy you can handle the games, there, they wanted to treat you like a thief and keep the games locked up, which sucks for just shopping when you can't get a person to help you. Then another third or so was dedicated to furniture, yet they themselves had competition for that in their own Babies 'R Us, which sells nothing but furniture. This only left the two ends of the store for toys, one side was for boys and one side was for girls, how PC.
They were never going to beat Best Buy, Wal-Mart or even Amazon in the video game business, they should have bowed out and brought in more exotic toys. Trying to sell clothes was also a foolhardy plan because then you are competing with the malls, Old Navy, Wal-Mart, Target, too much competition, if you ask me. When we went to Toys 'R Us, it was to splurge on the boys. Even with Grandma in tow, she would frequently say, pick out a toy. No kid has ever said "shit, I'll take the corduroy pants, the toy can wait."
But put freaking grown-ups in charge, and they'll do that, Think like grown-ups. They should have asked a couple kids "how can we make the store better?" Oh well, I guess it had a good run. It served my boys well. We can say kids play with toys less and less, by the time I have grandkids, it'll be just tablets and live screens that talk too much.
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
7/17/18 When Does A Parent's Power Cease?
I was having a non-issue involved conversation with my buddy at work. Honestly, I was dreading the drive home and was sitting there half asleep proselytizing my greatness. He mentioned something about Mexico and it reminded me about the documentary I watched on YouTube about Acapulco, which used to be the Hot spot back in the 70's, we used to hear about it, at least and I know the ducks in the EPCOT Mexico ride run around Acapulco, so it was big enough to make it to a Disney Park. In the last few years, Acapulco has been turned to shit by the cartels. They started showing up asking for "protection money" meaning they wanted a cut of the profits in exchange to keep trouble away. Some of the remaining business owners say they were hit for as much as 50-60 for comic percent of the profits, and as if that wasn't bad enough, the killings and drug activity still showed up and put itself on display.
Fast forward to how this affects me, Boy and his GF thought about going to a wedding out there and my response was an immediate no! When asked why? GF still hasn't learned that because I say so is enough, so I must give her a couple of reasons. 1. It is the middle of the semester, you 2 knuckleheads need to focus on school. 2. It is a tremendous expense for people you hardly know. 3. Now that I know how much drug trouble Acapulco itself suffers from, I change my answer to Never! You will never go there.
This is where my good buddy woke me and laughed. He said I have a right to tell him my thoughts, but I don't have the right to stop him from doing what he will. I laughed because he is wrong. The way I see things, Boy is not a grown up who can do as he pleases. He is almost there, finish up that freaking degree, start making some real money and you can then support yourself, then I will say, yes, you are a man. But if I buy your food, clothing, and shelter, vehicle, gas, and insurance, sorry. You be mine. It is the only reason I do so much for you in the first place.
I am guessing this is a Hispanic vs. white culture thing as far as my buddy arguing his silly shenanigans. I mean sure, Boy could be a man for a minute and say I will do what I want and llllllllll
to Mexico, but it would cost him way too much if he has to come back and get an apartment, and feed himself, and get a vehicle or start making payments on his Edge.
Wife will have a good laugh over this one, quietly call my buddy a "pendejo" and she will reason he don't understand how it is under this house, but nice try trying to help out Boy. We have let him go with friends to Florida for Disney, To Houston for Comic cons, to SanAntonio for more comic cons, so no, we don't hold the boy down. We are just careful and Mexico seems like a big No!!!
Fast forward to how this affects me, Boy and his GF thought about going to a wedding out there and my response was an immediate no! When asked why? GF still hasn't learned that because I say so is enough, so I must give her a couple of reasons. 1. It is the middle of the semester, you 2 knuckleheads need to focus on school. 2. It is a tremendous expense for people you hardly know. 3. Now that I know how much drug trouble Acapulco itself suffers from, I change my answer to Never! You will never go there.
This is where my good buddy woke me and laughed. He said I have a right to tell him my thoughts, but I don't have the right to stop him from doing what he will. I laughed because he is wrong. The way I see things, Boy is not a grown up who can do as he pleases. He is almost there, finish up that freaking degree, start making some real money and you can then support yourself, then I will say, yes, you are a man. But if I buy your food, clothing, and shelter, vehicle, gas, and insurance, sorry. You be mine. It is the only reason I do so much for you in the first place.
I am guessing this is a Hispanic vs. white culture thing as far as my buddy arguing his silly shenanigans. I mean sure, Boy could be a man for a minute and say I will do what I want and llllllllll
to Mexico, but it would cost him way too much if he has to come back and get an apartment, and feed himself, and get a vehicle or start making payments on his Edge.
Wife will have a good laugh over this one, quietly call my buddy a "pendejo" and she will reason he don't understand how it is under this house, but nice try trying to help out Boy. We have let him go with friends to Florida for Disney, To Houston for Comic cons, to SanAntonio for more comic cons, so no, we don't hold the boy down. We are just careful and Mexico seems like a big No!!!
Monday, July 16, 2018
7/16/18 No Disney For Another Year?
We got partially excited at the thought of maybe going to Florida to the Disney parks come this Christmas Season. Wife and I talked about it and it sucks not having an official vacation. I know not everybody gets to vacation every year and we are in the middle of getting our affairs in order, so we should be playing it cool. That being said, it sucked when we decided it was in Boy's best interest to stay and make sure he was ok when he got sick a couple weeks ago.
I then got a great idea. I told Wife, we have a little more than half the money to go to Florida, why don't we plan on going in December? She loved the idea, and we probably had a little close to $3000 between this and that, but then reality hit us in the face. My folks and everyone over there are concentrating on my Niece's Quinceanera, and it is going to be a pricey venture for all involved, including us. I am signed up to pay for mariachis and as much as I hope they are $300, I am sure they are going to be closer to $1000. Plus we are expected to show up in tuxedoes, so there is going to be another big cost there.
Not that I was forgetting it, going to the doctor for more than 1visit is going to be expensive also. We started getting the bills for Boy, and man, even without the E/R visit, we are over $700. He still has another doctor visit since his liver is still giving a high signal, so it might be another $100-$200. Those two things are pretty much taking most of the money we have saved up, so we could figure out a way to pay for a Florida trip, it just isn't the best time.mg
I figure in about a year, we will be out of our debt hassles and then we can get back in the swing of things. Going to Disney is important to me. I don't necessarily care for the rides, but just being there feels special, like being a part of Team America, smelling the smells in the air, the cheesy music, the families in various states of Happy to be here all the way to Can we just die now?
Boy found a nice small loophole for us to go, but it would just seem so irresponsible. He says he qualifies for pell grants this year, along with loans that he could borrow more than he needs to give to us. I would just hate for his loans to get maxed out before he finishes and adding a few thousand to have fun today and paying for it tomorrow is how we got into so much credit debt. The best thing is just to wait. I have a feeling more bills are coming too.
I then got a great idea. I told Wife, we have a little more than half the money to go to Florida, why don't we plan on going in December? She loved the idea, and we probably had a little close to $3000 between this and that, but then reality hit us in the face. My folks and everyone over there are concentrating on my Niece's Quinceanera, and it is going to be a pricey venture for all involved, including us. I am signed up to pay for mariachis and as much as I hope they are $300, I am sure they are going to be closer to $1000. Plus we are expected to show up in tuxedoes, so there is going to be another big cost there.
Not that I was forgetting it, going to the doctor for more than 1visit is going to be expensive also. We started getting the bills for Boy, and man, even without the E/R visit, we are over $700. He still has another doctor visit since his liver is still giving a high signal, so it might be another $100-$200. Those two things are pretty much taking most of the money we have saved up, so we could figure out a way to pay for a Florida trip, it just isn't the best time.mg
I figure in about a year, we will be out of our debt hassles and then we can get back in the swing of things. Going to Disney is important to me. I don't necessarily care for the rides, but just being there feels special, like being a part of Team America, smelling the smells in the air, the cheesy music, the families in various states of Happy to be here all the way to Can we just die now?
Boy found a nice small loophole for us to go, but it would just seem so irresponsible. He says he qualifies for pell grants this year, along with loans that he could borrow more than he needs to give to us. I would just hate for his loans to get maxed out before he finishes and adding a few thousand to have fun today and paying for it tomorrow is how we got into so much credit debt. The best thing is just to wait. I have a feeling more bills are coming too.
7/15/18 Wife's Vacation Is Over?
Wife is currently asleep, I forgot to write this earlier today, it is now about midnight and I am one blog behind. Wife has to go back to reality in the morning, about 4:00am, in fact. We had a nice "staycation" here in our house. We were supposed to go to Wisconsin, but then Boy got sick. He still has high readings of whatever they check in his liver, so I guess he is not out of complete danger yet. She likes to give me a hard time about being sleepy all the time, but she was staying up until 2:00-3:00am, then sleeping until 1:00or 2:00pm.
We didn't accomplish much, but it was nice living like a normal couple, both of us under the same roof. We did clean up the front yard, trimmed our hedges, planted a new tree, removed a dead one, and even worked on the pool a bit, but that was all the first week. This past week, we didn't do much at all. I worked, and days at that. I would get home between 6:00 and 7:00pm and man, all I wanted was to eat some dinner and go to sleep. This is the week I finally committed to Javalina to start working out with free weights. The workout is fun and I love his enthusiasm, but coming in tired from being on my feet all day, well it was hard getting fired up. Not only does Big Boy want to lift weights, he wants me to hold the bag so he can practice blocking schemes. I may still weigh almost twice what he weighs, but he comes at you like a train, and it takes a good amount of focus to stay upright.
As I understand it, the first month of summer was summer school, so she was working her normal hours. This next few weeks is just them getting to the new school year, so she will be working Monday through Thursday, coming back on Thursday evenings and leaving on Monday Mornings. The change to leaving Monday mornings made a huge difference. She used to leave on Sundays and in order to not drive at night, she would leave by 3:00-4:00pm. That means we were on our own for dinners on Sunday and that used to be BBQ night. Now she stays, but she has to go to bed by 9:00-10:00pm, as she gets up at 4:15am sharp to get showered and ready to be on the road by 5:00am. Since it takes about three hours, she manages to get there between 7:30 and 8:00am.
We are still hoping on a couple more things that she might be able to bring her skills back home, but we are also accepting that she likes the people she works with and it may be a full 3rd year without her around during the week. Our love is strong and we both understand this is a sacrifice we are doing to improve her career opportunities in the future.
We didn't accomplish much, but it was nice living like a normal couple, both of us under the same roof. We did clean up the front yard, trimmed our hedges, planted a new tree, removed a dead one, and even worked on the pool a bit, but that was all the first week. This past week, we didn't do much at all. I worked, and days at that. I would get home between 6:00 and 7:00pm and man, all I wanted was to eat some dinner and go to sleep. This is the week I finally committed to Javalina to start working out with free weights. The workout is fun and I love his enthusiasm, but coming in tired from being on my feet all day, well it was hard getting fired up. Not only does Big Boy want to lift weights, he wants me to hold the bag so he can practice blocking schemes. I may still weigh almost twice what he weighs, but he comes at you like a train, and it takes a good amount of focus to stay upright.
As I understand it, the first month of summer was summer school, so she was working her normal hours. This next few weeks is just them getting to the new school year, so she will be working Monday through Thursday, coming back on Thursday evenings and leaving on Monday Mornings. The change to leaving Monday mornings made a huge difference. She used to leave on Sundays and in order to not drive at night, she would leave by 3:00-4:00pm. That means we were on our own for dinners on Sunday and that used to be BBQ night. Now she stays, but she has to go to bed by 9:00-10:00pm, as she gets up at 4:15am sharp to get showered and ready to be on the road by 5:00am. Since it takes about three hours, she manages to get there between 7:30 and 8:00am.
We are still hoping on a couple more things that she might be able to bring her skills back home, but we are also accepting that she likes the people she works with and it may be a full 3rd year without her around during the week. Our love is strong and we both understand this is a sacrifice we are doing to improve her career opportunities in the future.
Saturday, July 14, 2018
7/14/18 G.L.O.W.- Season 2?
I got Wife to watch Glow from the beginning about the start of her two week break. The first season was ten episodes long and the second season was the same, with each episode being about 30 minutes long. Wife might have liked it more than I did, she loves to sit and binge a show for hours on end. I like watching 2-3 episodes a day or night to make it last awhile. Since we were stuck at home, with Boy sick a week ago, this is about all we did.
The show is extremely good, but I think it is just a recipe that works. Kind of like Orange is The New Black. There are a bunch of women that are in a given environment where we get to see them not necessarily be themselves but surviving and then we get the flashback to their real lives and realize these people are more than props for a show, they are real, with their own goings on and goals they are trying to accomplish. The Welfare Queen, a good and decent black woman, with her boy going to Stanford and proud as can be, finally exposes that world to her son when she is recognized out of costume. Her son is at once embarrassed by the nasty stereotype, but proud that her mama does what she does and doesn't let it affect her.
I really like the turn Sam the Director has taken. In the first season, he is constantly using drugs and he doesn't care about the show, he considers it something he must put up with to get his pet project completed. He is also banging one of the wrestlers just because he can. Enter Justine, his daughter from a fling he didn't realize existed and by the 2nd season has her enrolled back in high school, he is acting like a caring father, talking to her about her life choices and consequences. He even pleads with Ruth to help him not fuck it up, when Justine's mom shows up to take her, saying he doesn't want to lose her. The cherry on top for his converted personality is when he is at the strip bar, sees one of his wrestlers on the stage, goes and gives her money and tells her Not to take her clothes off until he leaves. Old Sam would have taken advantage of her.
All the characters grew one way or another, and I like that. Wolf girl accepted that she had fans and wasn't being mocked. The old Betties transformed into radioactive characters, Ruth of course is the background brains of the whole operations. She keeps doing things to keep the show fresh and interesting.
Add to that, the girls are committed and getting better every week, Bash the producer is in constant battle with his mom for more money. Then they add more complexity to the storyline as Bash's butler suddenly dies of pneumonia, which in the 80s was code for HIV/AIDS. He seems like he could be a little gay and that is why he seems worried or he is disgusted for letting a gay guy with HIV into his house. It is not clear, but clearly, he wants to chemically peel any trace of his old friend from his mansion, hiring cleaners and telling them to use bleach and burn everything that might be in his old room.
He seemed genuinely attracted to Machu Pichu in the first season, but at the end does a total weird move that left us confused. Either he is trying to distance himself from Machu Pichu as he might pop up with HIV or he is an a-hole trying to move on and bang another gal.
We really do like the show and the characters, hoping it can stay on the air for a few seasons.
The show is extremely good, but I think it is just a recipe that works. Kind of like Orange is The New Black. There are a bunch of women that are in a given environment where we get to see them not necessarily be themselves but surviving and then we get the flashback to their real lives and realize these people are more than props for a show, they are real, with their own goings on and goals they are trying to accomplish. The Welfare Queen, a good and decent black woman, with her boy going to Stanford and proud as can be, finally exposes that world to her son when she is recognized out of costume. Her son is at once embarrassed by the nasty stereotype, but proud that her mama does what she does and doesn't let it affect her.
I really like the turn Sam the Director has taken. In the first season, he is constantly using drugs and he doesn't care about the show, he considers it something he must put up with to get his pet project completed. He is also banging one of the wrestlers just because he can. Enter Justine, his daughter from a fling he didn't realize existed and by the 2nd season has her enrolled back in high school, he is acting like a caring father, talking to her about her life choices and consequences. He even pleads with Ruth to help him not fuck it up, when Justine's mom shows up to take her, saying he doesn't want to lose her. The cherry on top for his converted personality is when he is at the strip bar, sees one of his wrestlers on the stage, goes and gives her money and tells her Not to take her clothes off until he leaves. Old Sam would have taken advantage of her.
All the characters grew one way or another, and I like that. Wolf girl accepted that she had fans and wasn't being mocked. The old Betties transformed into radioactive characters, Ruth of course is the background brains of the whole operations. She keeps doing things to keep the show fresh and interesting.
Add to that, the girls are committed and getting better every week, Bash the producer is in constant battle with his mom for more money. Then they add more complexity to the storyline as Bash's butler suddenly dies of pneumonia, which in the 80s was code for HIV/AIDS. He seems like he could be a little gay and that is why he seems worried or he is disgusted for letting a gay guy with HIV into his house. It is not clear, but clearly, he wants to chemically peel any trace of his old friend from his mansion, hiring cleaners and telling them to use bleach and burn everything that might be in his old room.
He seemed genuinely attracted to Machu Pichu in the first season, but at the end does a total weird move that left us confused. Either he is trying to distance himself from Machu Pichu as he might pop up with HIV or he is an a-hole trying to move on and bang another gal.
We really do like the show and the characters, hoping it can stay on the air for a few seasons.
Friday, July 13, 2018
7/13/18 What Happened To Friday The 13th?
Remember more innocent times when kids knew little chants like "stepping on a crack broke your mama's back" or even "an apple a day keeps the doctor away"? Modern times have been turned to shit thanks to a small miserable lot who think they benefit at the cost of human life. Kids have to watch out for peers shooting them down in schools because they were bullied by assholes. Workers have to watch for coworkers shooting them down at work like postal workers in the 80's and 90's.
We used to have fun with being scared about the number 13, hell most hotels don't have a 13th floor, check the elevator next time. In Scotland, there is no Gate 13, instead they use a Gate 12B at airports. The fear of the number 13 started in Norse mythology, when a feast by some 12 gods was broken/disturbed by Loki of Avengers fame, and Hod the blind god of Darkness to shoot Baldur, the god of joy and gladness with an arrow. Baldur was killed and the Earth was plunged into darkness. Another Norse myth has to do with Frigg, the goddess of marriage, the germans upon being introduced to the people of Norway, confused Frigg with Freya, the goddess of love. In their mistake, they banished Frigg to the mountains and there she met 12 other witches and the devil on the 13th day. This all supposedly started the whole Friday the 13th is a bad day.
There is also a biblical reference to the unlucky number 13. Judas was the 13th gues to the last supper and he was the one that betrayed Jesus Christ. If you need one more superstitious story, how about in Rome, it is said witches would gather in groups of 12 and wait for their 13th guest, the Devil.
Today kids are not impressed by old time shenanigans. First off, 9/11 in 2001 forced us to grow up. It enforced in us a reality that there is an ugly side on this planet that doesn't like the American way of life. Worrying about a day of the week coinciding with some vague number doesn't mean as much in today's world where given any day of the week, some lame kid who has been bullied one too many times is going to pick up a gun and fire up his school, and yes it is almost always a Boy and yes it is almost always a white boy who does this. Why? I don't know, other than people like to copy. Maybe it is honorable in their minds to follow the path others have left, but who knows.
It just struck me as odd that I woke up and nobody had made noise that it was Friday the 13th, and in my youth, we always seemed to be aware of it. People might wear their socks inside out for luck, or sing some chant to get through the day, but in today's tough world, we just ain't got no time for these kinds of Shenanigans.
We used to have fun with being scared about the number 13, hell most hotels don't have a 13th floor, check the elevator next time. In Scotland, there is no Gate 13, instead they use a Gate 12B at airports. The fear of the number 13 started in Norse mythology, when a feast by some 12 gods was broken/disturbed by Loki of Avengers fame, and Hod the blind god of Darkness to shoot Baldur, the god of joy and gladness with an arrow. Baldur was killed and the Earth was plunged into darkness. Another Norse myth has to do with Frigg, the goddess of marriage, the germans upon being introduced to the people of Norway, confused Frigg with Freya, the goddess of love. In their mistake, they banished Frigg to the mountains and there she met 12 other witches and the devil on the 13th day. This all supposedly started the whole Friday the 13th is a bad day.
There is also a biblical reference to the unlucky number 13. Judas was the 13th gues to the last supper and he was the one that betrayed Jesus Christ. If you need one more superstitious story, how about in Rome, it is said witches would gather in groups of 12 and wait for their 13th guest, the Devil.
Today kids are not impressed by old time shenanigans. First off, 9/11 in 2001 forced us to grow up. It enforced in us a reality that there is an ugly side on this planet that doesn't like the American way of life. Worrying about a day of the week coinciding with some vague number doesn't mean as much in today's world where given any day of the week, some lame kid who has been bullied one too many times is going to pick up a gun and fire up his school, and yes it is almost always a Boy and yes it is almost always a white boy who does this. Why? I don't know, other than people like to copy. Maybe it is honorable in their minds to follow the path others have left, but who knows.
It just struck me as odd that I woke up and nobody had made noise that it was Friday the 13th, and in my youth, we always seemed to be aware of it. People might wear their socks inside out for luck, or sing some chant to get through the day, but in today's tough world, we just ain't got no time for these kinds of Shenanigans.
Thursday, July 12, 2018
7/12/18 Ready To Go Back To The Night Life?
I don't know that I liked the day shift all that much this week. There were some good perks, like coming home and eating dinner like a family, not just pulling my leftovers from the fridge and microwaving some magic into them. I have also been doing a light workout with Javalina, being that I am working my way back into the weightlifting, I too feel sore from pretty much every where.
I don't understand where my time goes though. When I work nights, I may get out at 7:00am, and have a couple hours until 9:00-10:00am to screw around, though I wasn't lifting before. I then go to bed at 10:am and get up around 4:00pm, pick up Javalina, and whether we eat out or come home, we have another almost 3 hours, until 7:00pm before I head back to work. Now that I flipped it, I came home, couldn't wait to fall asleep by 9:00pm and even though I got up at 4:00am, it took me that long to get to work by 6:00pm. Maybe it's the working out with Javalina that is making it feel like there is no free time, I don't know.
Work has been good. I see how others are working and I am trying to gauge myself and slow down some. I go in at night with a head of steam and want to get every job done, but on days, they focus their attention on what is coming due, not just because it is sitting there taking up space. I don't know which way is best, but I do like sitting with some coffee now and then to hear and argue the latest whatever.
I might have also missed out on some automatic OT with people out on TEM/Fib and working days does not help the group. Being on nights helps the crew get usage of tools sitting idle, so it naturally improves throughput time.
Some day, I might come to days, but I don't think it will be anytime soon, even if I only have the dinky 5%shift differential. That is not the reason I stay on nights. Anyways, the morning is getting away from me, I already snoozed for about 15 minutes trying to add more, so I will just stop. Have a good day.
I don't understand where my time goes though. When I work nights, I may get out at 7:00am, and have a couple hours until 9:00-10:00am to screw around, though I wasn't lifting before. I then go to bed at 10:am and get up around 4:00pm, pick up Javalina, and whether we eat out or come home, we have another almost 3 hours, until 7:00pm before I head back to work. Now that I flipped it, I came home, couldn't wait to fall asleep by 9:00pm and even though I got up at 4:00am, it took me that long to get to work by 6:00pm. Maybe it's the working out with Javalina that is making it feel like there is no free time, I don't know.
Work has been good. I see how others are working and I am trying to gauge myself and slow down some. I go in at night with a head of steam and want to get every job done, but on days, they focus their attention on what is coming due, not just because it is sitting there taking up space. I don't know which way is best, but I do like sitting with some coffee now and then to hear and argue the latest whatever.
I might have also missed out on some automatic OT with people out on TEM/Fib and working days does not help the group. Being on nights helps the crew get usage of tools sitting idle, so it naturally improves throughput time.
Some day, I might come to days, but I don't think it will be anytime soon, even if I only have the dinky 5%shift differential. That is not the reason I stay on nights. Anyways, the morning is getting away from me, I already snoozed for about 15 minutes trying to add more, so I will just stop. Have a good day.
Wednesday, July 11, 2018
7/11/18 Javalina Has The Lactic Acid Blues?
The best thing this week about working days is that I have time to work out with Javalina, as I had promised him we would. No sooner do I walk in the door in the afternoon, and he is waiting for me to get going. Monday I walked in and didn't even get my shoes off and he was on me like a fly at a picnic. It was good, we worked out until his baby muscles cried. I love that he is the one pushing me. I keep wanting to come over and sit with Wife to see how her day was, but the little pain kept up with me enough to tell me "Come on, it's your turn." Since we had touched on the bench press and arms on Sunday, I decided to go with shoulders on Monday.
To work the shoulders, is to know there are three muscles forming the deltoid muscle on the shoulder, so it is best to hit it from all directions. I like to warm up the area with something like a military press, where you take a moderate amount of weight and do 3 sets of 6-12 repetitions. For this press, standing or sitting, lift the weight above your head and back down to a resting state in front of your chest. After this, then I like to spend time on each of the specific deltoid muscles by lifting a smaller amount of weight forward, for the front deltoid, sideways for the middle deltoid, and the hardest of the three to train, bend over at the waist, forming a 90 degree shape and extend the arms out and above your head. We then followed this with some exercises with the medicine ball, throwing it back and forth to each other until I had enough. I kept him at it by himself by having him throw the 20 pound ball up and catch it himself.
The weakest part of the workout is actual football technique, as I am not an expert in any way on that. I played in junior high, but I didn't learn anything special then. We did go out and buy a cylindrical tackling dummy, so we have something solid for him to explode unto and manhandle a bit.
I came home and pretty much it was the same thing, Girlie was here visiting and looking for some lost mail, and he wouldn't even let me sit and say hi. She left a few minutes later and we got back to it. This time it was chest and arms. We started with the bench press for a good warm up of the chest and stretching of the pectorals. Turns out, the chest muscles are very important to a lineman. A good to great lineman is going to keep pushing his competition for 3-4 hours, as long as the game lasts. We then hit the biceps and triceps equally hard.
It has been fun, finally having a training partner who I think is going to stay in it and push me equally as I push him. He has started complaining of the soreness which I told him will last two weeks and then he can start really digging into some interesting possibilities.
To work the shoulders, is to know there are three muscles forming the deltoid muscle on the shoulder, so it is best to hit it from all directions. I like to warm up the area with something like a military press, where you take a moderate amount of weight and do 3 sets of 6-12 repetitions. For this press, standing or sitting, lift the weight above your head and back down to a resting state in front of your chest. After this, then I like to spend time on each of the specific deltoid muscles by lifting a smaller amount of weight forward, for the front deltoid, sideways for the middle deltoid, and the hardest of the three to train, bend over at the waist, forming a 90 degree shape and extend the arms out and above your head. We then followed this with some exercises with the medicine ball, throwing it back and forth to each other until I had enough. I kept him at it by himself by having him throw the 20 pound ball up and catch it himself.
The weakest part of the workout is actual football technique, as I am not an expert in any way on that. I played in junior high, but I didn't learn anything special then. We did go out and buy a cylindrical tackling dummy, so we have something solid for him to explode unto and manhandle a bit.
I came home and pretty much it was the same thing, Girlie was here visiting and looking for some lost mail, and he wouldn't even let me sit and say hi. She left a few minutes later and we got back to it. This time it was chest and arms. We started with the bench press for a good warm up of the chest and stretching of the pectorals. Turns out, the chest muscles are very important to a lineman. A good to great lineman is going to keep pushing his competition for 3-4 hours, as long as the game lasts. We then hit the biceps and triceps equally hard.
It has been fun, finally having a training partner who I think is going to stay in it and push me equally as I push him. He has started complaining of the soreness which I told him will last two weeks and then he can start really digging into some interesting possibilities.
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
7/10/18 Feeling Fresh After A Week Off?
I went back to work today, deciding to stay on dayshift as I had been offered the opportunity for some training. I got there before most people, at 6:00am and started feeling this urgency to hurry, then I said no. I was walking to the breakroom to make coffee and started walking to the point of my ankle bothering me. I said to myself "Why are you in a hurry?" I slowed down and decided I'll just chill like most people do on days. The work gets done, but nobody is holding off on going to the bathroom or skipping dinner for the sake of work.
I was able to catch up with a few people, some I barely see because I come in later than ever. Luckily, we are not inundated with work, so I did a portion and the other guys did some and we are positioned to stay on top of everything tomorrow. I did notice I was not drowsy most of the day, even though I worked a twelve hour shift and I only managed about five hours sleep last night. I am now sure that there is nothing wrong with me, other than being a fat-ass. My symptoms of narcolepsy are because I don't sleep enough and I've been on night shift for 22+ years, that's got to leave a mark. Even so, I found myself wanting to sleep in this morning, if not for Wife being off and in town for the week. She wants me to get through the week so I can spend more time with her.
We did manage to have lunch, a little late in the day, around 2:30pm. We met at Bill Miller, she woke up Javalina and they were waiting for me. I love their tenders when they are fresh out of the oil or whatever. They manage to be great about 40% of the time. A lot of times it's like they sit under those hot lamps or something, they might be hot but they certainly are not fresh. But still, at $5.99, it's a cheap meal.
I then came home, took a 30 minute nap, and headed back for the last couple of hours. It felt strange going back at 4:30pm, I think most people had left as the lab felt empty quick. I hung out for another good while catching up with another friend, then went back to my little dungeon of acid hoods and loud vacuum noises. I prepped some bottles for tomorrow to make me more efficient and finally left for home around 7:00pm.
I barely walked in the door and Javalina was waiting to work out. We started with some free weights, I showed him the 3 exercises I use on my deltoids plus the military press and then we did some medicine ball work which I am sure will have his shoulders burning tomorrow. We did 2-3 tackle routines, but I was so out of energy, I almost fell over both times. I called it a day and went to sit to write this and wait for some awesome brisket Wife cooked for us. I feel pretty good, blog for tomorrow is done, I am ready for a shower, maybe a poop, and Pete repeat the day tomorrow.
I was able to catch up with a few people, some I barely see because I come in later than ever. Luckily, we are not inundated with work, so I did a portion and the other guys did some and we are positioned to stay on top of everything tomorrow. I did notice I was not drowsy most of the day, even though I worked a twelve hour shift and I only managed about five hours sleep last night. I am now sure that there is nothing wrong with me, other than being a fat-ass. My symptoms of narcolepsy are because I don't sleep enough and I've been on night shift for 22+ years, that's got to leave a mark. Even so, I found myself wanting to sleep in this morning, if not for Wife being off and in town for the week. She wants me to get through the week so I can spend more time with her.
We did manage to have lunch, a little late in the day, around 2:30pm. We met at Bill Miller, she woke up Javalina and they were waiting for me. I love their tenders when they are fresh out of the oil or whatever. They manage to be great about 40% of the time. A lot of times it's like they sit under those hot lamps or something, they might be hot but they certainly are not fresh. But still, at $5.99, it's a cheap meal.
I then came home, took a 30 minute nap, and headed back for the last couple of hours. It felt strange going back at 4:30pm, I think most people had left as the lab felt empty quick. I hung out for another good while catching up with another friend, then went back to my little dungeon of acid hoods and loud vacuum noises. I prepped some bottles for tomorrow to make me more efficient and finally left for home around 7:00pm.
I barely walked in the door and Javalina was waiting to work out. We started with some free weights, I showed him the 3 exercises I use on my deltoids plus the military press and then we did some medicine ball work which I am sure will have his shoulders burning tomorrow. We did 2-3 tackle routines, but I was so out of energy, I almost fell over both times. I called it a day and went to sit to write this and wait for some awesome brisket Wife cooked for us. I feel pretty good, blog for tomorrow is done, I am ready for a shower, maybe a poop, and Pete repeat the day tomorrow.
Monday, July 9, 2018
7/9/18 In-Laws Back In Texas?
I am now back at work. It was a nice week off and I think even though we didn't go anywhere, it was good to be home with my family. Originally, I took the week off so we could go with my in-laws to Wisconsin. The plan was to visit one of Wife's uncles who has been sick and just get out of Austin, sight see a place of the United States we never get a chance to. Enter Boy with his assortment of vague sick symptoms and trip cancelled.
I couldn't get past the vagueness of Boy being sick but every test coming back negative, not that I wanted him to have tumors, but I wanted a cause for his feeling sick. I really thank Wife for being as dogged and determined as she is. I would have let Boy sit there a couple more days hoping his "flu" would pass on its own. It turns out, Boy had typhus which according to the internet, one gets from fleas, ticks, and/or lice. To this, I hate to point a finger (not really), but it seems the new GF is the prime candidate to blame. Not because of her person, but because she has quite a menagerie of animals, with dogs, cats, guinea pigs, and even a tiny pony, who happens to be kind of a jerk, according to her.
But back to my in-laws, they were very nice about us not being able to go with them, but they understood that our son would be a number 1 priority. They had a couple of signs that almost made them cancel the trip too. My father-in-law bought a $500 credit gift card so he wouldn't have to be using his personal bank card and risk the number stolen by some sketchy gas station along the way. He says he bought it two days before the trip, but somebody in Georgia managed to use it to buy stuff online from Arizona. He will eventually get his money back but it will require a police report and other crap, meanwhile I am sure the thief who took the card's original number and spent the card on himself will get away with it. My mother in-law also mentioned that her sister has been very sick, so this was another reason that caused them to also not want to go.
But they went ahead and traded the giant twelve passenger van for a smaller SUV, and they stopped at our house on the way back. We heard some of the stories here at the house and then decided to go eat lunch/dinner with them at TGIF which is down the street.
Lunch was very good, I had a rack of ribs which came off the bone by themselves and even the fries were delicious. But again, even though none of us had anything wild, other than Javalina ordering some wings as an appetizer, our bill was still over $100. I had already gotten up at 7:00am like I did all week, eating a hearty meal like this was all I needed. I gave everyone a hug and told them I was glad they were back and safe and I went straight to my nap. I feel pretty good after sleeping about two hours, until 7:30pm, but I have to think about going back to bed here at 9:00pm. as I am going back to work tomorrow.
I couldn't get past the vagueness of Boy being sick but every test coming back negative, not that I wanted him to have tumors, but I wanted a cause for his feeling sick. I really thank Wife for being as dogged and determined as she is. I would have let Boy sit there a couple more days hoping his "flu" would pass on its own. It turns out, Boy had typhus which according to the internet, one gets from fleas, ticks, and/or lice. To this, I hate to point a finger (not really), but it seems the new GF is the prime candidate to blame. Not because of her person, but because she has quite a menagerie of animals, with dogs, cats, guinea pigs, and even a tiny pony, who happens to be kind of a jerk, according to her.
But back to my in-laws, they were very nice about us not being able to go with them, but they understood that our son would be a number 1 priority. They had a couple of signs that almost made them cancel the trip too. My father-in-law bought a $500 credit gift card so he wouldn't have to be using his personal bank card and risk the number stolen by some sketchy gas station along the way. He says he bought it two days before the trip, but somebody in Georgia managed to use it to buy stuff online from Arizona. He will eventually get his money back but it will require a police report and other crap, meanwhile I am sure the thief who took the card's original number and spent the card on himself will get away with it. My mother in-law also mentioned that her sister has been very sick, so this was another reason that caused them to also not want to go.
But they went ahead and traded the giant twelve passenger van for a smaller SUV, and they stopped at our house on the way back. We heard some of the stories here at the house and then decided to go eat lunch/dinner with them at TGIF which is down the street.
Lunch was very good, I had a rack of ribs which came off the bone by themselves and even the fries were delicious. But again, even though none of us had anything wild, other than Javalina ordering some wings as an appetizer, our bill was still over $100. I had already gotten up at 7:00am like I did all week, eating a hearty meal like this was all I needed. I gave everyone a hug and told them I was glad they were back and safe and I went straight to my nap. I feel pretty good after sleeping about two hours, until 7:30pm, but I have to think about going back to bed here at 9:00pm. as I am going back to work tomorrow.
Sunday, July 8, 2018
7/8/18 A Nice Afternoon in North Austin?
Saturday was about a nice a day as we could have. I got up at 7:00am, finished my blog on Star Wars, got caught up on a couple of YouTube people I follow and then went back to bed around 10:00am. I then woke up at 1:00pm, and guilted Wife into getting up and going somewhere, anywhere. I told her I was going to Cabela's and chop chop if she wanted to go.
Wife convinced me to instead of going to Cabela's, to go north to Bass Pro Shops and then IKEA. I like those places, so I said sure. We headed north and it was almost a run to the finish line seeing the super thick clouds coming from further north. About as soon as we made it inside, we could hear the metal roof come alive with the plink plink sound of rain. This must have gone on for almost an hour.
I am having a hard time deciding whether I want a new boat which I do love looking at and using, but I fear having to pay hundreds of dollars a month for something I barely use twice a month for 3-4 months a year. Luckily, we are still paying down some of our credit cards, and Wife and I decided no big purchases until we pay off all that old crap. I am even trying to hold out and not buy a new truck until we are at $0 debt. But I still love to shop.
After the storms passed, we went to eat a "quick lunch" at Which Wich, quick or not, the tally was still $38 and change which sucks that it is so expensive for decent subs, but we ate. After sitting there for about an hour, it's nice when we have no rush or agenda, Javalina talked us into going to PetSmart, he thought they might have dogs to adopt or sell. I told him it doesn't work that way anymore, but he doesn't listen very well. They had a couple jumbo cats that looked like they had had better days and we enjoyed the stink of animal for about 20 minutes.
I then insisted on going into REI, which I have always felt like I am a long lost customer who discovered pizza and went a different route. That store is everything I wish I was. They sell camping stuff, kayaking, canoeing, biking, hiking and on and on. They had several stand up paddleboards in the $800 range, but their weight limit is still only 300 pounds. Feeling a little defeated, we then headed to Dick's Sporting Goods. This was fun.
Dick's is set up for football season for the kiddos and Javalina is bursting at his Crocs to get out on the field and hit somebody. We got him a new set of high top cleats and full length socks, I got a chair to sit on the bleachers with a bit of a back. I also let him talk me into getting a tackling dummy, those cylindrical dense foam pads, about five feet tall to work on his tackling and blocking. Finally, for strength training, we got basically a 20 pound medicine ball to work on his arm strength of catching and throwing back to me.
I have always had the bench and the dumbbells and stuff, so since Wife is working so far away and we hardly ever have any company, I talked her into moving the weights into the living room. Our deal is that if we use it and it makes a difference to strengthen our boy and myself, then cool, the bench stays. If we get to September and Javalina isn't using the weights, they will go into the garage and out of the house.
Wife convinced me to instead of going to Cabela's, to go north to Bass Pro Shops and then IKEA. I like those places, so I said sure. We headed north and it was almost a run to the finish line seeing the super thick clouds coming from further north. About as soon as we made it inside, we could hear the metal roof come alive with the plink plink sound of rain. This must have gone on for almost an hour.
I am having a hard time deciding whether I want a new boat which I do love looking at and using, but I fear having to pay hundreds of dollars a month for something I barely use twice a month for 3-4 months a year. Luckily, we are still paying down some of our credit cards, and Wife and I decided no big purchases until we pay off all that old crap. I am even trying to hold out and not buy a new truck until we are at $0 debt. But I still love to shop.
After the storms passed, we went to eat a "quick lunch" at Which Wich, quick or not, the tally was still $38 and change which sucks that it is so expensive for decent subs, but we ate. After sitting there for about an hour, it's nice when we have no rush or agenda, Javalina talked us into going to PetSmart, he thought they might have dogs to adopt or sell. I told him it doesn't work that way anymore, but he doesn't listen very well. They had a couple jumbo cats that looked like they had had better days and we enjoyed the stink of animal for about 20 minutes.
I then insisted on going into REI, which I have always felt like I am a long lost customer who discovered pizza and went a different route. That store is everything I wish I was. They sell camping stuff, kayaking, canoeing, biking, hiking and on and on. They had several stand up paddleboards in the $800 range, but their weight limit is still only 300 pounds. Feeling a little defeated, we then headed to Dick's Sporting Goods. This was fun.
Dick's is set up for football season for the kiddos and Javalina is bursting at his Crocs to get out on the field and hit somebody. We got him a new set of high top cleats and full length socks, I got a chair to sit on the bleachers with a bit of a back. I also let him talk me into getting a tackling dummy, those cylindrical dense foam pads, about five feet tall to work on his tackling and blocking. Finally, for strength training, we got basically a 20 pound medicine ball to work on his arm strength of catching and throwing back to me.
I have always had the bench and the dumbbells and stuff, so since Wife is working so far away and we hardly ever have any company, I talked her into moving the weights into the living room. Our deal is that if we use it and it makes a difference to strengthen our boy and myself, then cool, the bench stays. If we get to September and Javalina isn't using the weights, they will go into the garage and out of the house.
Saturday, July 7, 2018
7/7/18 Solo: A Star Wars Story?
We finally saw the new Solo movie and all I can say is that I stayed awake through it. I wish it gave me chills like the latest J.K. Rowling movie, man just the scenery they create for every movie is so much wow. Han Solo was good but I think they were leaning way too much of it on the cute meet between Chewie and Han which was good but not great. Han never before talked Wookie but he broke into it pretty good for a while to save his life. Apart from that, knowing Lando Calrissian was going to have a part in the movie was also exciting and Glover was great, he has been on a roll for a while now as Childish Gambino and his acting.
The movie started on Corellia, where Han and his childhood love are orphans who steal to survive. Even with this horrible upbringing, Han somehow develops a good moral fiber and lives only to get back to his girlfriend, which doesn't make sense. As far as a movie to show us Han's backstory, this did the job. The problem is that this is another Star Wars movie without Jedis. It becomes something like running through mud waiting for some magical jedi moves or Yoda saying something clever.
There were a few things that just did not make sense. The girlfriend in the end talking to Darth Maul made no sense at all other than to try and connect the new to the established Star Wars world. He would not waste his time on a non-Sith lord. She has no jedi/sith powers or we would have seen something in her fighting.
The idea of them stealing the energy things, or coaxium was basically a western in disguise. They even went so far as to try and steal it from a train, how 1930's of them. Another group showed up trying to do the same heist and then it turns out these are the people starting the Rebellion, the real good guys. It is interesting how Solo is there to basically bankroll the start of the Rebel forces, contributing so much Coaxium that the rebel forces can afford to buy X-wing fighters, cannons, and whatever other needs they might have. I can't help but think that someone who grew up poor and on the streets living to survive, one wouldn't have the heart to care for the well being of others who the Empire has rolled over, yet, there he is, giving his hard fought stolen Coaxium, even took the trouble to refine it for them and then just hands it over? Sounds weak to me.
Like I said, the movie was likable, but I don't believe a lot of it. If they failed the Vos guy, he would have been quick to kill all of them, why give them another chance to fail? Why would the Vos guy have a direct line to Darth Maul? This is the Empire, yet the train only had like five guys protecting the most valuable stuff in the galaxy. What happened to Han's Girlfriend in the few years he joined the Empire for training on flying and mainly to escape his dire situation? She must have been locked up to pay for stealing the Coaxium, where is the opportunity to meet a playboy like Vos?
I'm sorry but a Star Wars movie needs Jedis to be a Star Wars movie. Disney should be interested in Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi's past, maybe even something showing Yoda getting his start. Then it should focus on a new set of heroes. People are going to get tired of our childhood heroes getting wringed for every penny they can think of.
The movie started on Corellia, where Han and his childhood love are orphans who steal to survive. Even with this horrible upbringing, Han somehow develops a good moral fiber and lives only to get back to his girlfriend, which doesn't make sense. As far as a movie to show us Han's backstory, this did the job. The problem is that this is another Star Wars movie without Jedis. It becomes something like running through mud waiting for some magical jedi moves or Yoda saying something clever.
There were a few things that just did not make sense. The girlfriend in the end talking to Darth Maul made no sense at all other than to try and connect the new to the established Star Wars world. He would not waste his time on a non-Sith lord. She has no jedi/sith powers or we would have seen something in her fighting.
The idea of them stealing the energy things, or coaxium was basically a western in disguise. They even went so far as to try and steal it from a train, how 1930's of them. Another group showed up trying to do the same heist and then it turns out these are the people starting the Rebellion, the real good guys. It is interesting how Solo is there to basically bankroll the start of the Rebel forces, contributing so much Coaxium that the rebel forces can afford to buy X-wing fighters, cannons, and whatever other needs they might have. I can't help but think that someone who grew up poor and on the streets living to survive, one wouldn't have the heart to care for the well being of others who the Empire has rolled over, yet, there he is, giving his hard fought stolen Coaxium, even took the trouble to refine it for them and then just hands it over? Sounds weak to me.
Like I said, the movie was likable, but I don't believe a lot of it. If they failed the Vos guy, he would have been quick to kill all of them, why give them another chance to fail? Why would the Vos guy have a direct line to Darth Maul? This is the Empire, yet the train only had like five guys protecting the most valuable stuff in the galaxy. What happened to Han's Girlfriend in the few years he joined the Empire for training on flying and mainly to escape his dire situation? She must have been locked up to pay for stealing the Coaxium, where is the opportunity to meet a playboy like Vos?
I'm sorry but a Star Wars movie needs Jedis to be a Star Wars movie. Disney should be interested in Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi's past, maybe even something showing Yoda getting his start. Then it should focus on a new set of heroes. People are going to get tired of our childhood heroes getting wringed for every penny they can think of.
Friday, July 6, 2018
7/6/18 Boy Had Typhus?
We finally know what Boy had wrong the past couple of weeks. It seems like he picked up typhus somewhere in his daily pursuits. I guess this time it is good that the boy who rarely cries wolf, but Damn, can he be whiny when things aren't right!!! cried for the E/R right away. I have no love for the high costs of seeing any professionals specially the type that can keep you alive, you know they are going to cost a pretty penny, but in this one instance, Yeaih!, bring on the bills, Mijo is OK.
We are not sure where it came from, we have been jokingly blaming the new GF, she tried being courageous and saying "she's been around forever", to which I just bowled her over with "yeah, but the fluid exchange just started a few weeks ago, I am sure." I believe blushing she said something like "uh, I just walked in the house and this is what we are talking about?" Eh, we keep it real in this house, but we aren't blaming you directly, just the fact that you have cats and dogs and horses and we don't. I mean my mom has Chloe, her dachshund, but she gets monthly treatments for fleas and ticks and nobody better blame Hans, Hans has no time for fleas or ticks, he just says "no thanks" when the flea circus shows up and the fleas respect that.
I still think there is a possibility of a coworker from China or Europe, their office has had a lot of international traffic, so I would think it is not impossible that this is another route for other vectors to attack Boy.
As it stands, his doctor was pretty proud of himself and we are happy too, he finally left the house today, to go to the movies with his friends. He has a call from the CDC to expect, and as I was reading up on typhus a while ago, it seems he might be the third infected person west of the Mississippi. He would be about the 48th person to be documented as having it ever in the US. The doctor was saying there has been a small outbreak of typhus in the area but it is not being made a big deal of because of the Idiots (Doc didn't say Idiots) who treat their pets like family.
Anyways, I am just glad we can put a button on this one and call it done. I am sure it will be a few thousand bucks to pay, but hey, what is an installment plan for? I do want to say thanks to Wife who held up doing the MRI scan as we saw that on the payment guide thing of her insurance and that alone would have been another $800 to rule out tumors, which the cat scan had already ruled them out. Poor Mijo, with his lame description of the pain which I guess was everywhere, he did get an unnecessary spinal tap looking for meningitis. I believe that test continued giving him pain as his back was tender for a few days and what Wife read was that 40% of patients leak specially the skinny ones, look at the child compared to us, he is a toothpick. But fine, no harm, no foul. I just wanted my Boy back to normal and I believe he is getting there. Thanks everyone that contributed to his wellness.
We are not sure where it came from, we have been jokingly blaming the new GF, she tried being courageous and saying "she's been around forever", to which I just bowled her over with "yeah, but the fluid exchange just started a few weeks ago, I am sure." I believe blushing she said something like "uh, I just walked in the house and this is what we are talking about?" Eh, we keep it real in this house, but we aren't blaming you directly, just the fact that you have cats and dogs and horses and we don't. I mean my mom has Chloe, her dachshund, but she gets monthly treatments for fleas and ticks and nobody better blame Hans, Hans has no time for fleas or ticks, he just says "no thanks" when the flea circus shows up and the fleas respect that.
I still think there is a possibility of a coworker from China or Europe, their office has had a lot of international traffic, so I would think it is not impossible that this is another route for other vectors to attack Boy.
As it stands, his doctor was pretty proud of himself and we are happy too, he finally left the house today, to go to the movies with his friends. He has a call from the CDC to expect, and as I was reading up on typhus a while ago, it seems he might be the third infected person west of the Mississippi. He would be about the 48th person to be documented as having it ever in the US. The doctor was saying there has been a small outbreak of typhus in the area but it is not being made a big deal of because of the Idiots (Doc didn't say Idiots) who treat their pets like family.
Anyways, I am just glad we can put a button on this one and call it done. I am sure it will be a few thousand bucks to pay, but hey, what is an installment plan for? I do want to say thanks to Wife who held up doing the MRI scan as we saw that on the payment guide thing of her insurance and that alone would have been another $800 to rule out tumors, which the cat scan had already ruled them out. Poor Mijo, with his lame description of the pain which I guess was everywhere, he did get an unnecessary spinal tap looking for meningitis. I believe that test continued giving him pain as his back was tender for a few days and what Wife read was that 40% of patients leak specially the skinny ones, look at the child compared to us, he is a toothpick. But fine, no harm, no foul. I just wanted my Boy back to normal and I believe he is getting there. Thanks everyone that contributed to his wellness.
7/5/18 Chilling The Week Away?
I don't understand why I keep getting up at 7:00am, but it has been going on all week. I do enjoy the quiet of the morning, and the cloud cover in the mornings, making it seem like it is a perfect fall afternoon, if not for the heat, just looking through the kitchen windows. I tell myself I am getting up to write before everyone gets up and starts making noise, but I have barely been able to write. I don't have much new material to bring to light.
We didn't bother buying fireworks for just us for the 4th of July because people in our community generally suck balls. It's like they sit by the windows with their phones in hands waiting to call on other people if they do something wrong. Generally, I do worry about grass fires and stuff, but it rained for about three hours on the 4th of July, I would be surprised if there were any fires reported. If any, this would have been a perfect 4th to just let the kids have their fun. A house a couple of doors down was popping big fireworks like I like for about ten minutes, which is as long as it took the cops to show up, I figured.
Yesterday, we had our first genuine fun thought and I think we are doing it. Wife and I were talking about how it sucked we didn't go anywhere this year with us cancelling on Wisconsin due to Boy being sick. By the way, there is still no definite cause for his sickness. They gave him antibiotics last time he went and that seemed to finally fix him, but they have done so many tests on him, we just know the bill is going to suck. They have not given us a bill yet, but he has now seen a doctor three times and the E/R once. There was a cat scan, a spinal tap, the E/R visit, tested for most of the STD's, tested for Typhus, Mono, and more.
Sorry, lost focus there. The thought we had, was of going to Disney World in Florida during Christmas. We have talked about it before, but I always hesitate because I like the idea of being home during the holidays. Last year was the first time I took two weeks off and I thought it would be hard to get back to the routine at work, but no, it was actually very nice. I then called my mom and even my dad in the background who both gave the thumbs up, mostly because negative Neal and Contrarian Connie weren't sitting on either side of her like Grima Wormtongue telling her how bad an idea it would be to join us. I would actually enjoy it more if we were all up there, but I know someone is going to have a problem with it. First off, they didn't think of it. so it can't be a great idea. The next step is deciding where we are going to stay. I thought of Westgate Resort because we have stayed there before. But I also liked staying in a house together. I'll be writing more about this, as this is a little interesting and a new idea.
We didn't bother buying fireworks for just us for the 4th of July because people in our community generally suck balls. It's like they sit by the windows with their phones in hands waiting to call on other people if they do something wrong. Generally, I do worry about grass fires and stuff, but it rained for about three hours on the 4th of July, I would be surprised if there were any fires reported. If any, this would have been a perfect 4th to just let the kids have their fun. A house a couple of doors down was popping big fireworks like I like for about ten minutes, which is as long as it took the cops to show up, I figured.
Yesterday, we had our first genuine fun thought and I think we are doing it. Wife and I were talking about how it sucked we didn't go anywhere this year with us cancelling on Wisconsin due to Boy being sick. By the way, there is still no definite cause for his sickness. They gave him antibiotics last time he went and that seemed to finally fix him, but they have done so many tests on him, we just know the bill is going to suck. They have not given us a bill yet, but he has now seen a doctor three times and the E/R once. There was a cat scan, a spinal tap, the E/R visit, tested for most of the STD's, tested for Typhus, Mono, and more.
Sorry, lost focus there. The thought we had, was of going to Disney World in Florida during Christmas. We have talked about it before, but I always hesitate because I like the idea of being home during the holidays. Last year was the first time I took two weeks off and I thought it would be hard to get back to the routine at work, but no, it was actually very nice. I then called my mom and even my dad in the background who both gave the thumbs up, mostly because negative Neal and Contrarian Connie weren't sitting on either side of her like Grima Wormtongue telling her how bad an idea it would be to join us. I would actually enjoy it more if we were all up there, but I know someone is going to have a problem with it. First off, they didn't think of it. so it can't be a great idea. The next step is deciding where we are going to stay. I thought of Westgate Resort because we have stayed there before. But I also liked staying in a house together. I'll be writing more about this, as this is a little interesting and a new idea.
Wednesday, July 4, 2018
7/4/18 4th Of July?
I did not expect much out of the ordinary for today. I got up antsy again, as I have been doing for the past couple of months. I came down around 7:30am thinking I was going to write this. I had no fuel though to write and only managed to sit here and watch a couple of my favorite people I follow on You Tube. That took about an hour and I got bored. By then I had also drank a cup of orange juice, ate 2 Rice Crispy Treats, about a third of one of those large pan de semita, and some potato chips. I found a bagie full of memory chips with pictures over the last ten years or so and I spent a while looking through them. I was amazed at how little Boy has changed compared to Javalina.
After a while, I got bored and went outside and finished trimming our hedges. I had started yesterday, but did not have a long enough electric cord. We went yesterday back to Lowe's and bought it and chemicals and stuff for the pool. The hedge trimmer works like a charm. Within minutes, it was like I had shaved my head, but on a larger scale. With the trimmers you just drag them across slowly bringing them down to the height you want the hedges to be. I them used a small rake and gathered all the clippings in two piles. I just needed one of the boy's to go with me to hold a bag open to fill it up.
This about heated me up and I came upstairs to bed around 10:30am. Wife and even the Boys were still all asleep. I then napped until about 2:00pm when Wife woke me to go get meat for our little BBQ. We saw the last two episodes of Santa Clarita Diet which had an awesome little twist at the end of the second season.
Before we headed to HEB, it was raining and it kept raining while we ate at Mod Pizza and then while we got our groceries. We have been going to the HEB in Kyle because of the stupid bag ban, it just seems easier to head out than to gather bags. It just kind of sucks that the three times we have gone has been around or more than $150. It is expensive to sit around and nibble all day.
It finally stopped raining by the time we got home. We put away our groceries and started the fire on the grill. It was really nice outside after all the rain, it drenched the ground and eliminated the heat, it almost felt like a fall evening.
It seemed nice and quiet around 9:00pm, we ate and started watching GLOW on Netflix, feeling full and sleepy when the fireworks started a couple houses down. They didn't seem to last long, this neighborhood sucks. People just waiting to rat on each other to protect their precious home values.
After a while, I got bored and went outside and finished trimming our hedges. I had started yesterday, but did not have a long enough electric cord. We went yesterday back to Lowe's and bought it and chemicals and stuff for the pool. The hedge trimmer works like a charm. Within minutes, it was like I had shaved my head, but on a larger scale. With the trimmers you just drag them across slowly bringing them down to the height you want the hedges to be. I them used a small rake and gathered all the clippings in two piles. I just needed one of the boy's to go with me to hold a bag open to fill it up.
This about heated me up and I came upstairs to bed around 10:30am. Wife and even the Boys were still all asleep. I then napped until about 2:00pm when Wife woke me to go get meat for our little BBQ. We saw the last two episodes of Santa Clarita Diet which had an awesome little twist at the end of the second season.
Before we headed to HEB, it was raining and it kept raining while we ate at Mod Pizza and then while we got our groceries. We have been going to the HEB in Kyle because of the stupid bag ban, it just seems easier to head out than to gather bags. It just kind of sucks that the three times we have gone has been around or more than $150. It is expensive to sit around and nibble all day.
It finally stopped raining by the time we got home. We put away our groceries and started the fire on the grill. It was really nice outside after all the rain, it drenched the ground and eliminated the heat, it almost felt like a fall evening.
It seemed nice and quiet around 9:00pm, we ate and started watching GLOW on Netflix, feeling full and sleepy when the fireworks started a couple houses down. They didn't seem to last long, this neighborhood sucks. People just waiting to rat on each other to protect their precious home values.
Tuesday, July 3, 2018
7/3/18 Wow, Big Boy Toys Are Expensive?
I spent Sunday morning doing the bills and watching Pool Kings. For those that don't know, it is a show about pool builders who go over the top building dream pools for people who have more money or less brains than I do. On some episodes or maybe it's even a different pool show, they've mentioned the pools costing $150,000 to $200,000. These are TV worthy pools, so I assumed they bumped up the price a bit, thinking civilian pools can't possibly be that expensive.
Not having anything better to do today, we ran over to Cody Pools and met one of the designers. He was great, mentioned he has been with them since he finished high school and has moved himself up to designing some of the pools for their customers. He wasted no time in telling us the pricing is all dependent on many things, but generally, a small-ish pool built by them is going to cost in the $60,000 plus region. Pools with many fancy details, like a hot tub which itself adds $15,000-$20,000 to the overall cost and a slide or grotto can easily push the cost of a pool past the $100,000 mark. At this point, I had dropped a turd and didn't know how to eject myself from the building, so nothing to do but act like I was looking for that and more.
I told the guy I really wanted a grotto, a cave to hide and do stuff. He had a few examples on his You Tube page and he showed us and explained how his software is really easy to add and remove things. I really liked the shallow area where in a couple of renditions, there always seem to be lounge chairs where the body is partially in the water, but not completely. He said this was the cheapest part and that a 9x12 area only costs something like $350, if I understood correctly.
We then went outside and he showed us their two examples, the fancier one being closer to $100,000 and the other closer to $60,000. I really love the idea of ripping out ours, but at the sound of the replacement costs, I am unsure if we can ever manage this. Wife starts her day by saying no to everything, but even I left saying no way.
Maybe it took that wake-up call to appreciate what I already have in the ground. Wife and I had a good discussion and we came up with a new strategy to try and get around our leaky dilemma. A big help is that new waterproof tape made by the guys that show the boat with a screen door on the bottom being made waterproof with their product. I am going to try and isolate the skimmer box with a piece of acrylic that fits over the hole, perfectly. To bond the acrylic to the skimmer plastic, I bought a latex bonding thing from Loctite, then I put some of that waterproof tape which is 4 inches thick all the way around. If the water still leaks, I will have to assume it is not the skimmer box but one of the return jets that is at the same height as the skimmer box. This could be exciting to get the water back up to the top of the pool
Not having anything better to do today, we ran over to Cody Pools and met one of the designers. He was great, mentioned he has been with them since he finished high school and has moved himself up to designing some of the pools for their customers. He wasted no time in telling us the pricing is all dependent on many things, but generally, a small-ish pool built by them is going to cost in the $60,000 plus region. Pools with many fancy details, like a hot tub which itself adds $15,000-$20,000 to the overall cost and a slide or grotto can easily push the cost of a pool past the $100,000 mark. At this point, I had dropped a turd and didn't know how to eject myself from the building, so nothing to do but act like I was looking for that and more.
I told the guy I really wanted a grotto, a cave to hide and do stuff. He had a few examples on his You Tube page and he showed us and explained how his software is really easy to add and remove things. I really liked the shallow area where in a couple of renditions, there always seem to be lounge chairs where the body is partially in the water, but not completely. He said this was the cheapest part and that a 9x12 area only costs something like $350, if I understood correctly.
We then went outside and he showed us their two examples, the fancier one being closer to $100,000 and the other closer to $60,000. I really love the idea of ripping out ours, but at the sound of the replacement costs, I am unsure if we can ever manage this. Wife starts her day by saying no to everything, but even I left saying no way.
Maybe it took that wake-up call to appreciate what I already have in the ground. Wife and I had a good discussion and we came up with a new strategy to try and get around our leaky dilemma. A big help is that new waterproof tape made by the guys that show the boat with a screen door on the bottom being made waterproof with their product. I am going to try and isolate the skimmer box with a piece of acrylic that fits over the hole, perfectly. To bond the acrylic to the skimmer plastic, I bought a latex bonding thing from Loctite, then I put some of that waterproof tape which is 4 inches thick all the way around. If the water still leaks, I will have to assume it is not the skimmer box but one of the return jets that is at the same height as the skimmer box. This could be exciting to get the water back up to the top of the pool
7/2/18 First Official Vacation Day?
I have been off since Thursday evening, but those days were just my regular time off since I work a twelve hour shift. Tonight, I am starting the clock on using my vacation time. Because I am counting this as my short week, I have to have 36 hours total for my hours to line up. Since 4th of July is a holiday, we get 8 hours free there, I only have to burn 28 hours from my PTO (Personal Time Off). That is not bad to have a week off to rest and reflect. Not to mention, Wife only gets two weeks off in the summer and this is week one, so we get to spend all out time together.
First thing I am noticing, since we have really cut out eating out is the high cost of meals when we get them outside the house, dam! We had two meals on Saturday with just us two and Javalina and the lunch meal was $52 at Red Robbin and like $48 after a 25% coupon at Logan's. The only reason I even agreed to the meals was that Wife got some $200 Visa gift cards from our cable provider a couple months ago that we were going to use on our vacation. Since they expire sometime in August, I thought it better to just go ahead and use them. Those two meals ate up about a hundred bucks and even worse, we went to Panera Bread Sunday afternoon to get Boy out of the house and that meal was like $53, and I would say fine, but Boy had a bowl of chicken noodle soup, I had a smallish sandwich of Turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato, same with Wife, some small sandwich and Javalina did too. They advertise food that is good and good for you, but wow, it is not what a fat man calls very filling. After the 3rd doctor visit for Boy, we came home, I napped (I have been getting up before 7:00am to come to the table to write). I woke up just as hungry after my nap as if I had not eaten anything at that dinky sandwich place.
I am still curious as to how that new mower is going to perform. The reviews say it is much quieter than a two stroke engine and not as smelly (this one is supposed to be a four stroke, but it has no manual or paperwork to verify anything. It being a push mower with front wheel drive will also be helpful in the backyard where the yard has a bit of a slope down and away from the house as you get closer to the fence and greenbelt.
This is after using the mower... The mower works pretty great. It only took us about half an hour to cut the backyard. That was with Wife pushing the new mower. She got how to use it pretty quickly, I just had to explain to let the forward thrust go when walking in reverse. Other than that, it was all good.
First thing I am noticing, since we have really cut out eating out is the high cost of meals when we get them outside the house, dam! We had two meals on Saturday with just us two and Javalina and the lunch meal was $52 at Red Robbin and like $48 after a 25% coupon at Logan's. The only reason I even agreed to the meals was that Wife got some $200 Visa gift cards from our cable provider a couple months ago that we were going to use on our vacation. Since they expire sometime in August, I thought it better to just go ahead and use them. Those two meals ate up about a hundred bucks and even worse, we went to Panera Bread Sunday afternoon to get Boy out of the house and that meal was like $53, and I would say fine, but Boy had a bowl of chicken noodle soup, I had a smallish sandwich of Turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato, same with Wife, some small sandwich and Javalina did too. They advertise food that is good and good for you, but wow, it is not what a fat man calls very filling. After the 3rd doctor visit for Boy, we came home, I napped (I have been getting up before 7:00am to come to the table to write). I woke up just as hungry after my nap as if I had not eaten anything at that dinky sandwich place.
I am still curious as to how that new mower is going to perform. The reviews say it is much quieter than a two stroke engine and not as smelly (this one is supposed to be a four stroke, but it has no manual or paperwork to verify anything. It being a push mower with front wheel drive will also be helpful in the backyard where the yard has a bit of a slope down and away from the house as you get closer to the fence and greenbelt.
This is after using the mower... The mower works pretty great. It only took us about half an hour to cut the backyard. That was with Wife pushing the new mower. She got how to use it pretty quickly, I just had to explain to let the forward thrust go when walking in reverse. Other than that, it was all good.
Sunday, July 1, 2018
7/1/18 Finally, Out On The Town?
Saturday had us out of the house not just for lunch, but also dinner, which is something we have not been doing at all. I was up extra early trying to catch up with these blogs (we need to do more, so I have stuff to talk and complain about). Being constantly at work just dries me up of ideas to write about. Wife got up with fuel in her tank and she wanted to go. She was suggesting Logan's, not so much because we love it, but she had a 25% off coupon. We started heading out to the one by Cabela's but traffic on I-35 was almost at a stand still, so we headed back and went to the one on Stassney Lane, but it was closed. Looks like the same thing happened to Macaroni Grill, which I wouldn't have minded eating at.
We sat there and thought for a minutes, we were stopped right next to Twin Peaks, but Wife said no. Javalina then suggested Red Robin and I reminded Wife that the new one should be open over by Brodie Lane. We then headed over that way, although the restaurant wasn't packed, it took a bit to get seated, they said something about being short handed. Once we sat down, it went much better. I don't know how it works. They advertise never ending fries, and I have gone to other Red Robins and straight up just asked for the fries to start coming, but damn, do I feel like a fat fuck doing it. It is a burger place and I should have ordered a freaking burger. I ordered a grilled cheese smothered in bacon, but it barely had cheese to cover the bread itself. Having the refills of Dr. Pepper and fries helped save the meal from being a total dud. They also have a delicious tower of onion as an appetizer that doesn't disappoint.
We headed to Best Buy afterwards. Like I mentioned, his TV has been turning on sometimes and sometimes not, so I thought about replacing it. Because I like to upgrade, not just replace, we looked at 60-65 inch TVs and found a couple in the $400-$600 range. After going to Lowe's, I changed my mind. We are still paying for Boy's new computer from less than two months ago, so since his TV works most of the time, we told him to maybe wait until his birthday, so the TV has some meaning when we give it to him, or even Christmas. Lowe's was an exhausting experience as I wrote yesterday, I was there about three hours, Wife even left me there while she took Javalina home and she came back with the Excursion to be able to fit the mower in the back.
When we got back, she knows me too well, as she said my favorite words, go upstairs and take a nap. It was probably 6:00pm. I slept until 9:00pm, getting up mostly because her and Javalina were hungry and ready to go.
We ended up going to Logan's in Buda. I love the peanuts and the rolls, I hate when you have to ask them to bring more. Nothing against the skinny servers, but if you see big people, think big. One fucking biscuit isn't going to fill me up or make me say aah. The steak looked good and then it had a piece of fat bacon stabbed on top, but the execution was different. I had a tiny steak that visually looked like a small piece of chicken breast with a skewer holding a small bacon. The loaded baked potato helped, along with the appetizer of loaded nachos. Anyways, it was mostly a good meal on both occasions, Boy is still feeling groggy, I am glad we are at least around, but he needs to try harder to get up. The doctors haven't found anything to make him be this "sick."
We sat there and thought for a minutes, we were stopped right next to Twin Peaks, but Wife said no. Javalina then suggested Red Robin and I reminded Wife that the new one should be open over by Brodie Lane. We then headed over that way, although the restaurant wasn't packed, it took a bit to get seated, they said something about being short handed. Once we sat down, it went much better. I don't know how it works. They advertise never ending fries, and I have gone to other Red Robins and straight up just asked for the fries to start coming, but damn, do I feel like a fat fuck doing it. It is a burger place and I should have ordered a freaking burger. I ordered a grilled cheese smothered in bacon, but it barely had cheese to cover the bread itself. Having the refills of Dr. Pepper and fries helped save the meal from being a total dud. They also have a delicious tower of onion as an appetizer that doesn't disappoint.
We headed to Best Buy afterwards. Like I mentioned, his TV has been turning on sometimes and sometimes not, so I thought about replacing it. Because I like to upgrade, not just replace, we looked at 60-65 inch TVs and found a couple in the $400-$600 range. After going to Lowe's, I changed my mind. We are still paying for Boy's new computer from less than two months ago, so since his TV works most of the time, we told him to maybe wait until his birthday, so the TV has some meaning when we give it to him, or even Christmas. Lowe's was an exhausting experience as I wrote yesterday, I was there about three hours, Wife even left me there while she took Javalina home and she came back with the Excursion to be able to fit the mower in the back.
When we got back, she knows me too well, as she said my favorite words, go upstairs and take a nap. It was probably 6:00pm. I slept until 9:00pm, getting up mostly because her and Javalina were hungry and ready to go.
We ended up going to Logan's in Buda. I love the peanuts and the rolls, I hate when you have to ask them to bring more. Nothing against the skinny servers, but if you see big people, think big. One fucking biscuit isn't going to fill me up or make me say aah. The steak looked good and then it had a piece of fat bacon stabbed on top, but the execution was different. I had a tiny steak that visually looked like a small piece of chicken breast with a skewer holding a small bacon. The loaded baked potato helped, along with the appetizer of loaded nachos. Anyways, it was mostly a good meal on both occasions, Boy is still feeling groggy, I am glad we are at least around, but he needs to try harder to get up. The doctors haven't found anything to make him be this "sick."
6/30/18 Lowe's, A Man's Toy Store?
I managed to pay off our Lowe's account about a month ago and swore to not use it, but I am also a liar to myself and I have very little discipline. Yesterday, we decided to go out for a couple things for the house. We ate and went to Best Buy, but I shall talk about that separately. Eventually, we made our way to the Lowe's on Brodie Lane. My main reason for going is that I want to see about installing a water softener to help remove all the calcium depositing in our copper pipes.
We rang the little bell that calls a service guy and a young kid came over. I wasn't expecting much, but he did say that the one I was looking at was overkill and the smaller $300 was going to do the job just fine. Right there, he cold have saved me about $300 as the largest one that I was considering was $600. Before I go spending money, though, he said to take a test kit to see where our water was at. He gave me about 4 little test kits which just look like pH strips. This meant we were not going to spend money on this today, so I went over to Wife as she was looking through the different bottles of cleaners, such as Clorox. We had talked about needing new yard tools, including possibly a new awn mower, so we headed over there.
Lawn mowers have come a long way. They had 4 different types: manual push type, traditional with engine, battery powered, and even 1 that ran on electricity (from a cord). Prices had quite a large range. I have actually bought most styles, so I consider myself an "expert" here. When we first moved to our fist house, I bought a manual push type, it kind of works, but it is more for a tiny yard because it does require a strong body to get it spinning and keep spinning. Our current yard is too big for one of these. Gas mowers work great, but you need to have gas and they are loud and smelly. The electrical variety works great, but you have to have a long extension cord and stay aware of where it is or risk running over it. I love the idea of the battery powered mower and several years ago I had bought one from Sears. It was fine for maybe two seasons, but then the battery would not hold enough battery power to get through the yard, even when I was willing to split the front and back into two separate days. I did consider that nowadays, one can order an extra battery, but that would be an extra $40-$200, depending on the Amp the battery is set for. I was mostly leaning towards the battery type mower until Wife saw a returned mower sitting in front of the bay where the mowers were at. This got interesting, specially when considering the prize went from a new $260, to a used $134.50. This mower was gas and had front wheel drive, so at less than half the price of the battery powered one, and I wouldn't need to tinker with extra batteries, it was a huge savings, money-wise.
We added a new hedge trimmer because our hedges are at chest height and I kind of like that, but most people keep their hedges down around four feet tall.
We rang the little bell that calls a service guy and a young kid came over. I wasn't expecting much, but he did say that the one I was looking at was overkill and the smaller $300 was going to do the job just fine. Right there, he cold have saved me about $300 as the largest one that I was considering was $600. Before I go spending money, though, he said to take a test kit to see where our water was at. He gave me about 4 little test kits which just look like pH strips. This meant we were not going to spend money on this today, so I went over to Wife as she was looking through the different bottles of cleaners, such as Clorox. We had talked about needing new yard tools, including possibly a new awn mower, so we headed over there.
Lawn mowers have come a long way. They had 4 different types: manual push type, traditional with engine, battery powered, and even 1 that ran on electricity (from a cord). Prices had quite a large range. I have actually bought most styles, so I consider myself an "expert" here. When we first moved to our fist house, I bought a manual push type, it kind of works, but it is more for a tiny yard because it does require a strong body to get it spinning and keep spinning. Our current yard is too big for one of these. Gas mowers work great, but you need to have gas and they are loud and smelly. The electrical variety works great, but you have to have a long extension cord and stay aware of where it is or risk running over it. I love the idea of the battery powered mower and several years ago I had bought one from Sears. It was fine for maybe two seasons, but then the battery would not hold enough battery power to get through the yard, even when I was willing to split the front and back into two separate days. I did consider that nowadays, one can order an extra battery, but that would be an extra $40-$200, depending on the Amp the battery is set for. I was mostly leaning towards the battery type mower until Wife saw a returned mower sitting in front of the bay where the mowers were at. This got interesting, specially when considering the prize went from a new $260, to a used $134.50. This mower was gas and had front wheel drive, so at less than half the price of the battery powered one, and I wouldn't need to tinker with extra batteries, it was a huge savings, money-wise.
We added a new hedge trimmer because our hedges are at chest height and I kind of like that, but most people keep their hedges down around four feet tall.
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