BINGO!!!

 Hear ye, HEAR YE!!  The time change and Bingo are an awful combination!!  I survived, but barely.  Sometimes I think I should just call in sick!

The day started off right enough, with sunny skies, not too cold and not too warm.  It was JUST RIGHT.  Time to tackle the light fixture.  I should have done this the other day when I had the ladder out.  For some reason, it seemed heavier on this day.

This doesn't look like the new one, right?  Well you would be right.  I searched the entire patio to finally locate the little holder thingy ... the one that came loose.  They usually break, but this one appeared to be intact.  

It took some doing, and some balancing on the top of the ladder, but I finally got it to stick enough to push the fixture back up into the ceiling.  I don't really think it's all that tight, but it stayed.  SUCCESS!!  I expect it to fall out again, so I'll look on the internet for more clips.  On a cursory visit, I found nothing, but hope springs eternal.  Maybe I'll even find the same fixture and replace the whole thing.

With that done, I sewed a bit, but mostly just lounged around putting on one piece after another of that heavy steel plate armor.  It's rather tiring, but off I went to see what trouble I could get into.  I played bartender on this night.  I sang happy birthday to one guy, consoled a helper who just lost her puppy of 14 years ... it was so sad ... and solved three more problems before I got across the first room.  

In no time, it was TIME.  Thankfully my very best, fastest counting Lady in Waiting arrived in time to begin earlier than normal.  That brought about cries of "I'm supposed to be first in line".  Can you believe it?  There's even an ORDER that the peasants enforce with pitchforks they have sharpened to pointy points.  

There was quite the pushing and shoving match before order was restored.  Good grief folks ... relax!!  It wasn't fifteen minutes in before I required a pick-me-up.  Snickers came to the rescue.

Though the infernal machine did his job flawlessly on this night, the mini machine did not.  You would think folks would get the message with this sign.  How can you miss it?  It says the same thing right on the PIN number pad.  NO TAPPING.  

We do not have a "tapping" type account, so in spite of a machine that allows it, WE do not.  My spiel is getting longer.  Debit card?  No credit cards are allowed.  Do you want cash back?  TAPPING IS NOT ALLOWED.  Please put your card in the machine.  And STILL they tap.  

Most of the time that goes through the bank just fine, but sometimes not ... so every time they tap, I have to get their name and phone number.  On this night, they tapped up a storm before I could catch them.  At least no flaming torches burned my hair when I told them NOT to do that.  

The absolute worst part of the night was the new caller.  We have a guy.  That should tell you the story right there.  He's a nice guy, nice enough to volunteer saying he's done this many times before.  Well ... not for such a big crowd and not THIS crowd.  

First off, he talks WAY too much.  Don't talk ... just call the numbers.  I think maybe he called for a tiny group of old ladies ... this crowd is another story.  He was SO SLOW!!  The machine has a timer and beeps when you are to call the next number.  He ignored that completely.  He called the speed game at the same speed he called everything else.  

He chitty chatted WAY too much BETWEEN games, meaning I was going to be stuck here until midnight!!  The crowd got restless.  "I" got restless.  CALL FASTER!!  MY pitchfork came out this time!

The crowd behaved when he dropped the first ball ... but by the time he dropped the third one, they were in an uproar.  The knights had to calm everyone down ... including me.  A long last his time was over ... and then he announced a 15 minute break.  WE DON'T TAKE A 15 MINUTE BREAK.  None of us said a word other than thank you.

Thank goodness he did not call the second half.  "I have to get home he said ... I'm late!"  NO KIDDING!  Sadly, the rest of us had to stay there another 90 minutes!!  I ate another candy bar.  Hey, it wasn't just me ... the back room was hollering louder than I was!!  I imagine someone will help him out next time.  This is like PROFESSIONAL BINGO .......... not your Sunday church group.

Thankfully no one attacked him, and he escaped unscathed.  I'm thinking next week he will just call the early birds before everyone gets warmed up enough to draw and quarter him.  

Lucky for me, the infernal machine took pity on me and balanced to a tee.  It was midnight when I got home to Mr. Cooper who was waiting at the door.  Such a greeting puts a smile on my face every time.  I'm dragging butt this morning, but hopefully will get some pep in my step soon.  I learned from the Veterans Captain that I need to whip up 20 quilts by November.  I'm hoping that's possible, but time will tell.

But first ..... maybe a little nap ... at 6:00 in the morning.