Year: 2008

Cheerwine

I’m a Yankee, born in Massachusetts and raised in Connecticut, so I never really heard of this soda until I moved south. I’ve lived in Dixie for nearly 20 years now and I still hadn’t tasted one. Until today.

I’m pretty much a Diet Dr. Pepper guy, but when I went to the vending area at work this afternoon looking for a carbonated beverage, the machine that normally has the DDP didn’t. I checked the other two machines and as expected they didn’t either, so back to the first machine I went, looking for an alternative drink.

It did have regular Dr. Pepper, but that tastes too sweet to me now. Lemonade, nah. Lipton Brisk Iced Tea, not a chance as that stuff is an aberration. Bottled iced tea is to real iced like instant grits is to regular grits and to quote Sam Tipton of Wazoo, Alabama, “No self respectin’ Southerner uses instant grits.” Wait a minute here is a row of 20oz. bottles selling for a buck instead of the $1.25 of all the others. Let’s see, there is Sundrop and Cheerwine, Sundrop looks lemon lime like and I didn’t want that taste, so I guess I’ll go for the Cheerwine, how bad can it be?

When I got back to my desk I twisted off the top and took a smell. Smelled kind of like paint. Pour half a bottle over ice and tasted it. Tasted vaguely like paint too. I drank three quarters of it in hopes I would become accustomed to the taste, didn’t, so I poured out the last bit into the sink in the Men’s room. Color was kind of dark and it took me three rinses to get the water to come out of the mug clear. When I dried out the inside of the mug with a paper towel the towel came out red tinged, kind of like paint.

Must be an acquired taste.

Started down, went up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/08: 205

Happy Dad’s Day

I’m not one myself (although I do try and treat my godson Gnorm like real family) so I sure hope I didn’t violate any laws of the universe by treating it like one, i.e. sleeping in late and lazing away the afternoon on the couch watching baseball.

Mal: “Jayne, how many weapons you plannin’ on takin’? You only got the two arms.”
Jayne: “Well I just excitable as to choice, like to have my options open.”
Mal: “I don’t plan on any shooting taking place during this job.”
Jayne: “Yeah well, what you plan and what takes place ain’t ever exactly been similar.”

I put the Serenity movie back in my rental queue. It was there before, but I pulled it after I pulled the DVDs of the TV show. I watched like the first 15 minutes of the pilot and turned it off. Turns out I really needed a Browncoat to guide me through the bumpy beginning, because I ended up really liking the show.

Started down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/08: 204

We’ve Done Our Part Mr. President

In the last 3 days between my internet purchases, Donna’s books, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Target and Bed, Bath & Beyond, we dumped nearly eleven hundred bucks back into the economy. With the exception of the Blue Sun Travel Posters everything we bought would have been purchased eventually, but thanks to W the time table was moved in. Matter of fact, if the first round of checks didn’t do the trick, we have an idea on what to spend the sequel on.

For a moment, earlier this evening, I thought we might not need a second economic stimulus payment, I checked our ticket in the Mega Millions lottery drawing from yesterday. First number I look at is the mega ball, because if you don’t have that, you don’t have squat. We had it! We didn’t have the first regular number but we did have the second one. Hey wait, we have the forth too. Alas, that was all though. The ticket is worth $10, so our next 5 weeks of draws will be on the house.

On Monday Goody’s Clothing Stores filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. By Wednesday we knew the store in Aiken was one of over a hundred stores they were going to close. Today they had human pop-up ads on the busy street corners in town. While we were out and about buying other stuff today, we decided to pop in and check out the prices. I’ve got a pair of Levi’s Squad Cargo Shorts I bought there a month or so ago and I thought I might pick up another pair or two. Apparently I was not the only one in town with that idea, their parking lot was jammed, it was never that busy, even the day after Thanksgiving or the weekends before Christmas. I didn’t even want to go in, but Donna talked me into it. Everyone of their half dozen registers were open and the lines at each were, I bet, 20 deep. We didn’t stay long. A friend of ours (Hi Rae) reported she saw us come in and go out while she spent her 40 minutes in line (she did say she got some good deals.) My weekend hourly rate is pretty high so I would have to be saving a lot more than 50% off on a pair of $30 shorts for me to stand in a line for 2/3 of an hour. We went next door to Target where I bought a pair of Mossimo Destroyed Cargo Shorts in Bootcamp Olive.

Started down, went up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/08: 204

Changed Our Minds

We went back to Kohl’s to look one more time at the comforter set we really liked last week and loved on the web page. Neither one of us were thrilled with it this week. So we looked around and picked out something different. Then to coordinate (we hope) we bought a separate boxpleat bedskirt and a couple standard pillow shams in a color called Incense. Tomorrow we think we’ll head to Bed, Bath and Beyond to get a set of sheets using a 20% off coupon we got in the mail.

My godson Gnorm is famous. I’m hoping he doesn’t see the link that CT posted in his comment for yesterday’s entry, might take the euphoric winds right out of his sails.

We rode the tandem to work today and when we got home we hopped in the car went shopping in Augusta and drove home the long way, over the dam at Lake Thurmond. Good thing our primary purpose of cycling to work isn’t to save gas, because our little evening trip negated about a weeks worth bicycle commuting.

Started down, went up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/08: 202

A Sign From The Gods?

Our company auctions off excess stuff that no longer efficiently serves us in the furtherance of our lofty goals of solenoid valve manufacturing. Usually it is crap, so I pay no attention to the auctions, like the one that ended this morning.

Until I noticed something that didn’t even get one stinking bid, Item#2 – 3 frames. I went out to the red tag area (what they call the section when the items for these auctions sit) and saw that the frames were the typical black aluminum filled with motivational posters.

A·D·V·E·R·S·I·T·Y
Do Not fear the winds of adversity.
Remember that a kite rises against the wind, not with it.

The best thing was that they were more than big enough for my coveted Blue Sun Travel Posters. The frames are 24 x 30 and the posters are 17 x 22 so I could put 3-1/2 to 4 inch matting around three of the posters to make them fit. We have a big blank wall in the hallway where they will look great. The other two would probably end up on my wall at work.

I went into HR and asked if it was too late to place a bid on an item that had received none. It was not. I guess technically I could have bid 50¢, but that would have made me seem vulture-ish, so I offered them what I would have if I was going to actually bid on them – $5. I am now the proud owner of three motivational posters in black aluminum frames.

So tonight I bought some fiction travel posters.

For future reference, a 24 x 30 picture will not fit in the trunk of a Miata. It will not even go inside one if the top is up. It will ride nicely behind the seats sticking out at an angle over the trunk. The framed art would probably even add a bit of down force at speed. I didn’t try that out though as we had no way to secure it down and ended driving home like your grandmother.

Started down, went up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/08: 200

Further Stimulation

Finally picked up our custom cut 16 x 22 oval mirror for the small bathroom this afternoon. It is only 6 days late from when it was originally promised. I was going to hang it first thing when we got home, but I couldn’t find the clear mirror hangers I had taken down off the original mirror. I took them off and put them somewhere, but just can’t remember where. We did buy some more tonight on our trip to Lowes, to get the white electrical stuff we couldn’t get at Home Depot yesterday, so I’ll probably find the originals now.

We then walked next door to Hobby Lobby and bought another 16 x 20 frame like the first two, so we could hang two pictures on one of the bedroom walls and still have a matching frame covering the medicine cabinet. The final detail for the small bathroom is a new shower curtain. We’ve got a plain tan one in there now, but we are waiting until we get the bedding for the adjoining room, so we can coordinate. We are fairly sure that we are getting this set – Chaps Nantucket Garden Plaid Comforter Set. We want to go back to the Kohl’s in Augusta on Friday and take one last look though.

Most of the Economic Stimulus check is going to something sensible, making a big payment to the credit card we used to finance the bathrooms remodeling, but the CFO has authorized a small stipend for each family member for a frivolous purchase. Right now I am captivated by these Blue Sun Travel Posters. I can’t afford to frame them and I have no place to put them, but then again if I could and did, it wouldn’t be frivolous would it?

Started down, went up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/08: 198

We’ve Been Stimulated

George Bush’s check came in the mail yesterday and in an effort to help stave off a recession we decided to spend some money today.

Stop #1 – Bank. We needed to deposit the stimulus check and cash a couple medical flex spending reimbursement checks. We had the same male teller we had about a week and a half ago. Our first experience with him led us to believe it was his first day on the job. He kept looking back and forth between the check & the computer, hesitantly hitting keys some and then looking back and forth again. He seemed so shy at it that he stumbled on his words when asking us if we were having a good day. Today was more of the same and by his mannerism there was a couple of times that Donna was worried he was actually debiting our account the total of the two checks along with giving us the cash. After we left we thought that maybe next time we’ll just wait on a different teller.

Stop #2 – Home Depot. I needed a couple of shiny new white light switches and four new white outlets for the bedroom I just finished painting. (Why is it that you get the covers included when you buy the switch, but they have to be purchased separately with the outlets?) At the check out counter our cashier scanned the lights, she scanned the outlets with three coming up as $1.99 and one rang up as $2.30. I wasn’t going to quibble over 31¢, but when she dragged the outlet covers over the scanner it booped instead of beeped, didn’t register. She tried again, and again, and again. She pulled out the hand held scanner and it wouldn’t register a price either. Scan, boop. Scan, boop. Next she attempted to key in the numbers below the barcode and was greeted with the same noise signifying failure. Now what? She tries scanning it again. And again, and again. Donna and I look at each other, nod and tell the cashier goodbye. She can be heard in the background pleading as we exit the door, “You don’t want any of this?”

Stop #3 – Kroger. I needed bananas and Donna wanted some English muffins. When we were shopping on Saturday I managed to get 3 bananas that were ripe enough to eat, the rest were the color of the Master’s Champion’s jacket. Tonight there weren’t any at all that weren’t bright green, estimated time on the counter until ripe enough to eat, 4 days. We turned around and left, not even picking up the English muffins.

Stop #4 – Cable Company. July is coming up and as always we will temporarily upgrade to the digital service so we can get Outdoor Life Network Versus. Even though Lance Armstrong is not riding anymore and most of the American hopefuls aren’t living up to their perceived potential or have been suspended for doping we still like to watch the Tour de France. This year we decided to go ahead and get the converter box a couple weeks early to check out some other bike racing action leading up to the big race. We entered the office and there were 4 women sitting at the counter and all four didn’t look up when we came in. We were the only customers in there yet it took a minute or so for one of them to look up and say, “I can try and help you.” “What can I do for you?” I said I’d like to upgrade to basic digital service. She said, “I can give you the box, but it can’t be programed until the computers come back up.” “I tell you what,” I said, “We’ll come back.” When she tried to apologize I waved her off, “We aren’t taking it personally, it’s just the way our day is going.”

Stop #5 – Olive Oils. Donna had a coupon from the local paper that entitled us to a buy one, get one free entr? (from a list of 4.) After the last few stops Donna questioned the intelligence of trying to go out and eat. I told her don’t worry, after the last few experiences, the law of averages was on our side. Olive Oils opens at five and closes at ten, but the best time to get there is early because the place is small and popular. We got there at around 5:30 and the parking lot was empty. The restaurant looked dark, we began to wonder if they were even open. The door was unlocked and as we opened the screen door the inner door opened and a waitress welcomed us. We told her that we would sit outside on the porch if they turned on the ceiling fans. Although it was wicked hot, we would rather be outside and the shade of the porch with the breeze of the fan would make it bearable. There was a flurry of activity as two waitresses hunted for the switch. It seemed to be taking a while so Donna started counting slowly up to ten. I knew if she made it to the top we were leaving. At about 9 one of the waitresses came back and said that the fans were on a timer that is locked up. After last night’s 2-1/2 hour power failure every clock in the place was 2.5 hours early. We opted for inside. We were their first customers of the evening and as such our meal was served piping hot. By the time we left there were two other couples dinning there. I guess Tuesday is a pretty slow night.

Started down, went up, back down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 01/01/08: 196