Car Part II

After I took care of the police report for the car break-in, made my way to Rand and Lex's house--they were putting me up for the evening. Rand had some heavy duty plastic and duct tape and I was able to close up the hole. Knowing that I would be heading through rain, I did my best to double-up the new "window" to ensure no leakage would occur.

While running a few errands on Tuesday before getting on the road, I noticed a bit of wind noise from the "window". To be expected, I guess. It seemed to keep out the rain, though. There was one other unexpected side effect, however. When I turned my head to check behind when changing lanes, or to parallel park, the translucent plastic looks different than the window glass, and it makes me think there's something there.

When Lex and I got back to the house after the errands, I called up AAA to submit a claim and see about getting the window fixed. When I called, they routed me to the "Glass Center", which had a few standard questions for me. My favorite question is as follows: "Was anyone injured in the incident that caused the breakage?" The response: "If the robber was injured breaking into my car, I don't care." They don't cover the theft of items in the car, so the iPod is a lost cause. This means I could upgrade when I get around to replacing it, but for now I'll just have to live without it.

I vacuumed up the broken glass and in the process found the murder weapon: a rock the size of a small orange. My poor car's main windows on the passenger side (the ones which will go up or down, not the fixed triangular window in the back) each survived a breakage attempt with the same rock. Mr. L is right: If Volvo can make a window glass that can withstand that kind of blow, why can't they put it in place for that small window segment, too?

Don't Miss It II

As an addendum to my earlier post, I really don't miss the Bay Area. This time, after being in town for only four hours, my car was broken into, and my iPod stolen. This is going to make the drive back to Seattle really suck. Fortunately, the punk thief didn't take my CDs. I'll be relegated to shuffling them by hand during the trip, but I won't have to suffer through radio dead zones.

Dirty Girl

After three days of driving through rainy conditions, where all the road grime gets mixed in with the rainwater and kicked up by the other cars and then it gloms on to my car. So after sixteen hundred miles, she's FILTHY. Washing the car now would just be pointless, as I have another few miles to drive to make it back home.

The funny thing is that I see lots of other cars like mine, with the same windswept streaks of grime. I've even seen the same motorhome with Washington plates traveling the same roads, on Wednesday in Oregon somewhere, and today driving through Arizona. Funny to think that someone else would be taking the same route over three days like me.

But the upside to the dirty car thing is that it's MINE. I'll have proof of that in a few days when I get the title mailed to me. Yes, that's right, as a Christmas gift to myself, I mailed off my last payment on the car a few days ago. I went to the loan's website to check to see if my payment had been registered, and I was told "This account doesn't exist." Well, fine then. I guess they're just pissed off 'cause they got gypped out of fifteen months of interest since I paid off the car early. Haha!

Driving Sucks

Ordinarly, I have no problem (and even enjoy) long-haul driving trips on my own. My car has a great ride, and the seats are comfy. I've got my iPod for persistent tuneage, and I have a travel-ready bladder, inspired by Survivor (Outwit, Outplay, Outlast [tm]). So spending six (or more) hours in a row in the car usually isn't a problem for me.

Today was different.

Got a bit of a late start--I kept forgetting things in the house, so I ran back in several times to fetch things. And then traffic getting out of Seattle was bad. Since I hadn't left early enough, I got snared in commute traffic, which an accident had only made worse.

Made up some time getting towards Portland, not too bad. But then the rain begain in earnest, and slowed me down somewhat. Fortunately the Siskiyou Pass wasn't a problem, but the descent from there past Dunsmuir and Shasta into the Central Valley was problematic. Add nighttime, a torrential downpour, and twisty roads to the mix, and my usual progress was slowed down considerably.

Once I finally made it to the flats of the Central Valley, the rain had slackened, and I was able to make up some time. Nonetheless, 13-1/2 hours in a car takes it out of you. Time for bed.

But first, the lesson of the day: When your traveling companion who was going to drive with you changes their mind to decide to fly to the destination instead, take their cue.

The Wrong Curtains

In the pursuit of furnishing my house, I've started to acquire some furniture, lamps, kitchen tools, glassware, etc. One thing that I desperately needed was some window coverings. My large windows were not only affording me only a minimal measure of privacy, they were also bleeding heat like mad, in the midst of the Seattle winter.

While my mother was here around Thanksgiving, she and I did some shopping, and got some ideas for how I could fill the need for curtains. When I went to buy the drapery panels, there weren't enough to cover my windows. Fine, sure, I'll take what you've got, then order the rest.

After a short wait, the curtains arrived in a big box at my front door! Hurrah. When I opened the box, the first thing I noticed were two decorative pillows, in a powder blue color. Since I had ordered dark olive curtains, I thought, "Hmm, perhaps they're under the pillows." Nope. I checked the invoice; perhaps the order simply got crossed up. Nope--four 42"x84" drapery panels, in dark olive. Contents of the box? Not so much.

But knowing how JCPenney is with their customer service, I had no fear that the issue could be resolved without much difficulty. The only problem was going to be waiting for the arrival of the second order of curtains....

Which arrived today. So I got two pillows for free?! Being the Boy Scout that I am, I returned those (also to double-check that I hadn't been charged twice), and finished up my holiday shopping at the same time. Phew!

Rice Burner

I'm not talking about a car. And I'm not talking about a motorcycle, either. No, I'm talking about a kitchen appliance. One which would ordinarily be quite useful in preparing rice. Any variety, really, from basmati to calrose. This device would typically sit calmly on the counter, awaiting its opportunity to provide tasty nourishment. It would steam rice, then keep it warm until the time of consumption.

That's a nice theory. The practice of the matter is altogether different. Oh, my cooker does steam rice. But once it's complete, the "stay warm" feature is quite a bit overzealous. There's always a layer of burned rice at the bottom of the pan. Thankfully, it's not too onerous to clean up, since the pan is non-stick, but crunchy burned rice is just not what it's about!

And as an aside to the geeks, TiVo recommendations picked up two consecutive episodes of Star Trek: Next Generation. Encounter at Farpoint (1/2), and ... All Good Things (2/2). Guess that just about covers the whole series.

House of Sandy and Fog

Because my (east-facing) bedroom window currently lacks curtains (c'monnn SANTA!), I typically rise with the sun. I've seen some truly spectacular sunrises over my time in this house. Today, however, was different. I woke up this morning to find the world shrouded in grey. And I don't mean clouds. This was different. Even the streetlamps at the corner were a bit fuzzy. At first, I thought I just had eye boogers, but determined wiping of the eyes still didn't obliterate the fuzz. It was foggy!

I love fog. It's one of the things I always remember fondly about Carmel. I can remember once walking down the street which fronts on the beach. The fog was so thick that I could hear the surf, but not see it. It has the silencing effect of a new snowfall, which is another thing I enjoy.

Since no post to this blog would be complete without some griping, here goes. The heating vents in my upstairs (including the bedroom and office) are ceiling vents. They have little pulls which are used to open or close the vent. These pulls are fabricated out of a length of chain. Something about the fabric from which my chair is constructed, or perhaps the plastic mat on which the chair sits tends to build up a bit of static charge. When I stand up to head downstairs to the kitchen, my "stand and turn" pattern brings my head into contact with the pull chain for the heating vent. And yes, you guessed it. Static discharge. Zot! Clearly, I should just remain seated at the computer. Or avoid it entirely.

Horribly, Completely, Stupid Bad

Just watched Species II. Mistake.

The premise was thinner than tissue. The acting was overwrought or nonexistent... and the other times, it was just bad. I was surprised to see so many recognizable faces in the cast; I would have figured that those actors would have known better. In certain shots, Michael Madsen looked like he was stifling a laugh. Even the promise of Natasha Henstridge wasn't enough to rate this anything higher than 1/5 stars... 'cause I can't figure out how to give it zero.

Why did I keep watching, even though it was on Netflix, and all I had to do was slip it back in the envelope and whisper to the Calgon genie? The aforementioned Miss Henstridge. She's not really my type, but she's easy on the eyes. Too bad there wasn't enough easiness to go around. Thankfully, like most comedy films, it was only 90 minutes.

Touchpads

My lappy (a Powerbook), has one of those ubiquitous touchpads with which to move the pointer. Naturally, yes? Don't want to have a mouse connected to the laptop all the time, right? Well, I've recently found a reason to keep the mouse handy: cold hands. That's right, if my hands are cold (like this morning), my mouse pointer stays put. I actually have to blow on my hands to warm them up in order for the touchpad to register. This could be problematic after a walk down to the cafe--pop the laptop open, start trying to do email or work... nothing! I'd have to order coffee just to warm up the icicles attached to my wrists....

I Am Not Prometheus

Note: Ok, before I begin, I want to just put in a Kudo or two for the customer service people at JC Penneys. The "why" will become clear soon.

On Saturday, I went to JC Penney to try to rectify the lighting situation. With the aforementioned sale on lighting, I stood to save some funds while buying something I desperately needed. I took some time to wander around the store and check out a few styles. I settled on one I liked; a brass floor lamp with several different lighting modes. The lamp seems well crafted, decent shade, etc.

I looked around for a box containing my prize, but to no avail. Knowing that it's the kind of thing that would likely be stashed in the back, I sought out some customer assitan(ts/ce). I didn't see anyone in lamps right away, so I went back to my old friends in the window coverings section. The woman there called for some assistance. Shortly, the individual arrived at the lamp area. But she was about to leave for the night, so she wrangled someone else to help me. This woman stayed with me for perhaps 20 minutes trying to find lamps in the back, or the model number to order it, or finally to figure out who could ultimately get the answer for me. The result: my name and number were logged in a "callback book", waiting for the lamp wrangler to check inventory and call me back.

By Monday evening, I grew tired of waiting for the wrangler, so I called up the Northgate store again, and asked for lamps. The operator tracked down an appropriate section head to connect me with. I explained the situation, and she busied herself attempting to track down this lamp style at another store. (While I was waiting, the phone wasn't on mute or hold, and I heard "Well, just treat it as a receiptless return, and give her her money back." I remembered my mother's advice that Penneys is renowned for their return policy.) When my helper came back from "hold", I was told that there were seven of these in stock at the Lynnwood store, and three in Southcenter. Ok!

So after a nice dinner of dal and curried peas, I headed off north. I drove to the JC Penneys at the Alderwood Mall, and found the right section. The only box for "my" lamp was for the floor model. Ok, sure. I find another helper, who checks the back for lamps. Nothing. (Wait, not even one of seven? Much less seven of nine?) I tell him that there were supposedly 3 more in stock at Southcenter. He calls up, and after a few minutes is able to verify lampy goodness, then asks for a hold. But apparently their policy at the Southcenter store is for the morning shift to take anything that was on customer hold from the night before and take it off hold. So, the lamp would have been set aside for me for about an hour. No!

Determined not to let the light slip through my fingers like as much sand, I resolved to head down there tonight! I made a quick check with my helper to ensure that the Southcenter store is open just as late as Lynnwood--11pm. Yep, all the stores keep the same hours.

Fastforward (ok, not that fast, but...) to 10pm. I've finally made it from Lynnwood to Renton, and the Southcenter Mall. I'm greeted at the door by a fellow who's informing me that the store is closed. I give him the quick debrief, and he leans in an almost conspiratorial fashion and says "uh, if you go down there, around the corner, there's a small door foor pickups... they can help you in there...."

Making my way to customer pickups, I'm greeted by a somewhat haggard looking fellow after I ring the bell. I explain the situation, he disappears. I'm standing there for perhaps five or ten minutes, fearing that I've come down here only to find that I'm screwed, and will have to return again on the morrow. Instead, as my latest assistant returns, I'm told "OK, the store is closed, but we're going to walk through here to the juniors section where you can pay, and then we'll bring the lamps back up here for pickup." Can my ears be telling the truth?! Hallelujah! Let there be light, and all that.

So we pass through the back storeroom, which includes the customer pickup area, and finally reach a door into the customer part of the store. (Side note: as we passed by a staffer restocking a shelf, she said to us "Good night! ... oh, you work here, nevermind!") I'm guided to the counter in the juniors section (ohhh, is this my size?!), to pay for my lamps, and at last, I'm on my way.

And thanks to the six or so JC Penney employees that made the lights possible! (But sucky that I didn't think to put a hold or verify stock at the Lynnwood store, and therefore had to spend all that time running back and forth.)

Rusty

My sysadmin fu is weak, of late. It took me wayyy too long to get the firewall configured to allow access to my web gallery once more. Clearly a case of "use it or lose it". But now you can once more surf photos to your heart's content.

No Common Sense

Gradually, I've been putting some effort into decorating my house. When I moved up here from the Bay Area, I left pretty much everything behind. I just didn't want to pay to have it all shipped up. So I had no tables of any kind, no seating, no lighting, no window decorations, the list goes on.

Yesterday, my "big ticket" items of furniture arrived. An entertainment center, a side table, and a really nice leather sleeper sofa. So naturally, I wanted to show these items off and have some people over. But I still have this nagging lack of light in my house. People are reduced to wandering around with flashlights.

So when I was at JCPenney's yesterday, with their half-off lamp sale, I had to take a look around. Lots of light sources. Half off! You'd think my house would now be lit up brighter than a hotel on the Vegas Strip. But no, none of the lamps "spoke to me". You'd think I'd just pick up something that gives off light. That's where the common sense comes in.

And today, I forgot to get lunch. Which led, of course, to a blood sugar incident. Fortunately, no one was within range to feel the sting. You'd think I'd know by now that food == good. While in the midst of this low blood sugar state, I was working in the office upstairs. I thought "hmm, it's a bit chilly today". When I checked the thermostat, it had fallen to 52 inside the house until I realized that I should turn it back on. Duh.

Flaky!

Big, fat snowflakes are falling past my window. But it's too warm for it to stick! So sad, no snow monkeys here....