I got my car back from the repair shop today - and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed. The loaner car I'd been given was a vehicle with all the bells and whistles: leather seats, an A/C system with a setting for subzero, state of the art sound system, sunroof, and about twenty button-controlled options I really never had a chance to explore. The only thing missing was a personal masseuse.
The loaner vehicle was something I could live in. So great was my longing I actually looked into the price - which was way out of my range. Unless...
I e-mailed Motivated Mom saying I needed to her to cast a vote.
For what? she asked.
I replied, To increase our debt limit.
Her lack of a response made it obvious I needed to explain in more detail.
We vote, I call the bank and tell them to approve a loan we can't possibly repay for twenty years. When the bank questions me I'll tell them our household financial oversight committee voted to increase our debt ceiling - so now we can legally move forward with borrowing the funds required to purchase a car we can't afford.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Time Slip
It's gonna be a hot one out there today.
The words coming through the speakers of the car radio were familiar - but the timing was all wrong.
August is when I expect to hear the helpful suggestions about staying inside an air conditioned building, drinking lots of water, and planning outdoor activities for early morning and evening.
So what's with the heat warnings in June? Has time slipped? Did the recent earthquakes hopscotch us through a season? Will chilly temperatures return in September rather November?
Time will tell I suppose. Just to be on the safe side, I better squeeze in some extra beach time.
The words coming through the speakers of the car radio were familiar - but the timing was all wrong.
August is when I expect to hear the helpful suggestions about staying inside an air conditioned building, drinking lots of water, and planning outdoor activities for early morning and evening.
So what's with the heat warnings in June? Has time slipped? Did the recent earthquakes hopscotch us through a season? Will chilly temperatures return in September rather November?
Time will tell I suppose. Just to be on the safe side, I better squeeze in some extra beach time.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Car Zen
It always seems car problems happen at the worst possible time. So on my way home from work today I was actually pleasantly surprised that my car decided to start misbehaving a mere seven miles from the dealership.
The service team was very attentive when I came coasting in, but I was feeling less than optimistic when three different service specialists scratched their heads and said Never saw THAT happen before. Ultimately it was decided the car would need to be remain with the service center for diagnostics.
And while Motivated Mom was less than thrilled that my car issues cost her a 45 mile drive to rescue me from the dealership, we did end up having a pleasant dinner at a nearby dining establishment.
So in the end it was all Zen. No one was hurt, no one missed work, and no one had to cook dinner.
The service team was very attentive when I came coasting in, but I was feeling less than optimistic when three different service specialists scratched their heads and said Never saw THAT happen before. Ultimately it was decided the car would need to be remain with the service center for diagnostics.
And while Motivated Mom was less than thrilled that my car issues cost her a 45 mile drive to rescue me from the dealership, we did end up having a pleasant dinner at a nearby dining establishment.
So in the end it was all Zen. No one was hurt, no one missed work, and no one had to cook dinner.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Of Cars and Geese
It was not the way I wanted to start the workweek - sitting in stalled traffic. Cars were coming from the opposite direction as sporadically as vehicles in front of me were advancing. The knowledge that both sides of the road shared the hold up did little to relieve my anxiety.
When the truck blocking my view turned off, I was able to see a parade of geese crossing the road. They came intermittently: ma and pa followed by two goslings, another couple with four youngsters, and still another set of parents followed by a whole train of furry children.
It seemed an entire community had decided the grass was greener on the other side of the highway and orderly evacuations were under way. Orderly in that the feathered and downy families were spaced just far enough apart that a couple of cars were able to creep forward between goose crossings.
When it was finally my turn at the front of the line of traffic, I waited as a proud mother and father strutted across the concrete roadway with two goslings in tow. I wondered what the geese were more proud of - their children or their ability to bring tons of rolling steel to a halt.
When the truck blocking my view turned off, I was able to see a parade of geese crossing the road. They came intermittently: ma and pa followed by two goslings, another couple with four youngsters, and still another set of parents followed by a whole train of furry children.
It seemed an entire community had decided the grass was greener on the other side of the highway and orderly evacuations were under way. Orderly in that the feathered and downy families were spaced just far enough apart that a couple of cars were able to creep forward between goose crossings.
When it was finally my turn at the front of the line of traffic, I waited as a proud mother and father strutted across the concrete roadway with two goslings in tow. I wondered what the geese were more proud of - their children or their ability to bring tons of rolling steel to a halt.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Chriping of Hundreds
I couldn't be sure when it had started - and was amazed I hadn't heard it begin.
Apart from an occasional cry of a gull or rumble of a passing car, all had been quiet when I had first gone out on the patio. Of course there was the constant trickle of the waterfall, but that sound was so commonplace that I took no particular notice.
Then, in the act of turning a page in the book I had brought along to read, I became aware of the commotion. Hundreds of birds were chirping - creating the kind of din one hears in an auditorium filled with people. Surprised by the onslaught of noise, I looked up expecting to see the neighboring field peppered with birds, only to see empty grass. The ruckus originated further away in the distant treeline.
The avian chatter grew steadily in intensity, as though those birds who had already sought shelter in the trees were calling to their still flying fellows quickly, come quickly, over here, quickly and I wondered what momentous event was about to occur.
Apart from an occasional cry of a gull or rumble of a passing car, all had been quiet when I had first gone out on the patio. Of course there was the constant trickle of the waterfall, but that sound was so commonplace that I took no particular notice.
Then, in the act of turning a page in the book I had brought along to read, I became aware of the commotion. Hundreds of birds were chirping - creating the kind of din one hears in an auditorium filled with people. Surprised by the onslaught of noise, I looked up expecting to see the neighboring field peppered with birds, only to see empty grass. The ruckus originated further away in the distant treeline.
The avian chatter grew steadily in intensity, as though those birds who had already sought shelter in the trees were calling to their still flying fellows quickly, come quickly, over here, quickly and I wondered what momentous event was about to occur.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Selling Point
Did that decorative flag in front of the cemetery really say OPEN?
And just what did OPEN mean? Was the cemetery open for visiting hours so that the living could spend time at the grave of a loved one or was the office open to receive prospective customers? And just what constituted a prospective customer - someone needing to find a place of internment for the recently departed or someone who's just received unwelcome news from their doctor.
Which got me to wondering... If my doctor told me I had only a short time left, would I really want to spend any of that time looking for the perfect to rest forever? For that matter would I want to invest any substantial time in looking for the ideal piece of real estate for a loved one? After all, a hole is a hole.
As I got closer to the OPEN flag my musings were cut short. Immediately next to the cemetery entrance was a second drive. It was this other drive that the flag was marking - announcing the florist at the end of the lane was open for business.
I couldn't help but wonder if the cemetery and florist were run by the same person. Perhaps the proprietor gets customers in the door by selling them flowers then suggests that the bereavement basket would look quite nice on one of the plots next door... when the time came.
And just what did OPEN mean? Was the cemetery open for visiting hours so that the living could spend time at the grave of a loved one or was the office open to receive prospective customers? And just what constituted a prospective customer - someone needing to find a place of internment for the recently departed or someone who's just received unwelcome news from their doctor.
Which got me to wondering... If my doctor told me I had only a short time left, would I really want to spend any of that time looking for the perfect to rest forever? For that matter would I want to invest any substantial time in looking for the ideal piece of real estate for a loved one? After all, a hole is a hole.
As I got closer to the OPEN flag my musings were cut short. Immediately next to the cemetery entrance was a second drive. It was this other drive that the flag was marking - announcing the florist at the end of the lane was open for business.
I couldn't help but wonder if the cemetery and florist were run by the same person. Perhaps the proprietor gets customers in the door by selling them flowers then suggests that the bereavement basket would look quite nice on one of the plots next door... when the time came.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Breakfast With a Squirrel
It seemed to me the squirrel should have been concerned.
He was after all sitting on the very edge of the blacktop and I was steering my car around the curve where he sat. But the squirrel didn't so much as bat a gray eyelid. He simply sat there on his haunches with a nut clenched between his front paws and nibbled on his breakfast.
Even when curiosity got the better of me and I rolled to a stop beside him, the squirrel didn't fidget. He simply eyed me as though he had been expecting me to drop by and share the morning with him. The way the squirrel looked at me, like a gray haired wizened professor looking over a cup of tea, I half expected the squirrel to extend his arms and offer a taste of his morsel.
It's from the fall of 2007 and has aged wonderfully. Try it, I'm sure you'll love the nutty aftertaste.
Alas my morning schedule was more urgent than his and I had to hurry own without the opportunity for a taste test,
He was after all sitting on the very edge of the blacktop and I was steering my car around the curve where he sat. But the squirrel didn't so much as bat a gray eyelid. He simply sat there on his haunches with a nut clenched between his front paws and nibbled on his breakfast.
Even when curiosity got the better of me and I rolled to a stop beside him, the squirrel didn't fidget. He simply eyed me as though he had been expecting me to drop by and share the morning with him. The way the squirrel looked at me, like a gray haired wizened professor looking over a cup of tea, I half expected the squirrel to extend his arms and offer a taste of his morsel.
It's from the fall of 2007 and has aged wonderfully. Try it, I'm sure you'll love the nutty aftertaste.
Alas my morning schedule was more urgent than his and I had to hurry own without the opportunity for a taste test,
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)