OPERATOR ERROR

 Someone needs to slow down the earth's rotation.  Good grief ... another month has slipped by in the snap of a finger.  Cloudy skies are the norm and our temps are down into the 60's at night.  It was a McDonald's  I'm loving it kind of day!!

Here's my sidekick hanging out while I finish loading another quilt.  If you were wondering why he's wearing his "jammy tops", it's because he has a black spot on his leg that he licks constantly.  It's not a hot spot but some weird growth the Vet has not seen before.  He licks it constantly ... so now he gets an allergy-type pill and wears these loosely so he doesn't chew his leg off.  He doesn't seem to mind at all.

This is his big morning stretch ... every morning ... after he wakes me up for a trip outside.  I'm very sad to report however that my favorite and most knowledgeable Vet EVER is leaving us for a teaching position at the Colorado University Veterinary School.  That doesn't bode well for Mr. Cooper and me.  A good Vet is worth their weight in gold and they are very scarce around here.

I hate my house being locked up all summer ... it gets the OLD HOUSE smells.  Finally, I was able to open a window and turn on the central fan.  Guess who noticed that immediately!!  She literally sat there the entire time the window was open.  

I think she must have been an inside kitty.  I just can't imagine how she ended up outside and starving.  Her coat is now soft and shiny and I'm sure she has doubled in weight.  The food dispenser is on the right and is working like a charm.  

So to close out the month on a high note ... let's quilt this one!!  I'm been pretty apprehensive with all the problems I had, but think MAYBE I have figured it out.  Aside from the new bobbin case, I think I was winding the bobbin thread too tight.  This time I used an old bobbin full of thread and it seems to work seamlessly ... until the very end. 

OPERATOR ERROR!  Of course it was me!  I remember thinking I was VERY short of fabric on the backing.  I needed to be sure and use every 1/4 inch, which of course I didn't.  I got to the end and was quilting the leaders on to the quilt.

YIKES!!!  Thankfully, nothing broke before I stopped it.  Do you have any idea the problem I had?  Quilters know.  I had to take the entire thing off, stitch a 3" piece on the bottom and load it back ON the frame so I could quilt the last row.  BIG SIGH .... BIG!!  

Lucky for me, when done, the very bottom of the backing matched up perfectly with the bottom of the quilt.  I just needed the edge to hold it in place while it stitched.  WHEW!!  I dodged a bullet THERE since I have no more of the backing material.

In the meantime, here's the quick update on the RV engine battery.  I talked to a Mercedes repair guy.  The little solar panels they use for trickle chargers will not work with this rig.  It does not produce enough steady power to charge the battery.  So much for that idea.  A small car, yes, but this rig .... NO.

Either drive it every week to ten days, or get a regular truck trickle charger that has bigger alligator clamps.  OR disconnect the battery through the tiny hole in the floorboard, which I have yet to be able to accomplish.  I'm going for bigger clamps.  

Next I was off to the AT&T store for this.  Of course everyone has changed from the old USB connectors to the latest and greatest "C" connectors.  That means they make a lot of profit from us buying all new wall plugins.  

My computer uses those, and in fact I had to buy an adapter to plug in things like my printer.  One did not come with my watch.  To make it even more fun, I got there 15 minutes before the store opened.  I had a lovely conversation with a nice lady waiting in a truck next door.  She said "they aren't going to open that door until EXACTLY 10:00".  We had a good laugh.  She was right.  

In the end, I had to get two ... making their profit margin for the entire day.  Good grief these things are expensive.  Yes I could have found a cheaper one at Walmart, but I wasn't going to take any chances with that ridiculously priced watch.  I know .. I bought the watch ... because I'm addicted to all the information it gives you in once quick glance!!

Back home ... I got bit by the FIX IT bug.  I've been looking at a few things that last couple of weeks that really need attention.  My attention has been elsewhere.  So I grabbed my big hammer and went to town, fixing all the trim work on the garage.

That brought about even MORE banging when I discovered two boards had fallen off the fence.  Yes it's old and needs to be replaced.  This is the one the neighbor said he would completely replace last year.  It hasn't happened yet, so I pounded loudly for 30 minutes, tacking a few back up.  Most are screwed in, but I ran out towards the end.  

You can probably guess what dinner was once again.  It's a good thing I'm in love with BACON.  Until these tomatoes are all gone (I now have ten in the fridge) ... I will be eating a BLT for every meal.  

It was just as delicious as it looks!!!

You know what day it is .... time to put on my steel pants and gather up my shields for the latest Bingo crowd.  It should be a big one considering everyone got paid last week.

The good news ... it is NOT a full moon.  That's holding out for NEXT week!!!

Look Out For That Tree!

 It's surprising to me how interesting and satisfying it is to see THIS when I walk out into the back yard.   Yet another huge pile of dead ants.  Can you just imagine how many are lying there?  It's about 6" across and half an inch thick.  Trouble is, in spite of the scene, it means there are many more down there hauling these out.  More Amdro is required. 

The good news is that FINALLY ... I was able to pick these tomatoes without being stung or bitten by an ant.  I admit, I'm getting a little tomatoed out.

Breakfast was quick and easy ... sausage and an egg.  I cooked enough for three meals.  Unfortunately, I ate half of it!!

Okay ... time to hit the road.  I lifted all the shades, closed all the drawers and shut the fridge doors.  That was AFTER I washed the entire front end.  There was so much dirt on the windshield I couldn't see a thing.  After washing, I STILL couldn't see a thing.  The inside was almost as bad as the outside.  

My plan was to hit up Hobby Lobby, but I forgot they are closed on Sundays.  I went that direction anyway, finally landing two towns over in the Safeway parking lot.  I had a list which did not actually include any food at all.

Here's my view.  See those trees?  I guess I saw them, but didn't pay any attention until I came back out.  YIKES!!  When it feels like you are just driving your truck, you don't pay attention to TALL things.  My plan for an easy escape quickly disappeared.

There is something to be said about Safeway's flower section, which is HUGE.  It actually makes you feel pretty good when you walk in the door and see this!

Then THIS kills that feeling instantly.  Hamburger ... $11.00 a pound.  What do you suppose happens to this stuff that no one buys because it's too expensive?  I admit, it's 90% lean, but I would NEVER buy this and I'm sure most everyone else thinks the same.

I found my garlic sourdough bread, two packages of English muffins, some veggies, a block of cheese and a few other minor things like a $20 bag of cat food, which was one of two things I was after.  Three actually, since if you clicked on the coupon, bacon was $4.99 a package.  I got four.  The bill came to $120.00.  WHAT?  

So my decision to come here to shop once a week ... in the van ... vanished into thin air.  Good grief ... Hobby Lobby is MUCH cheaper!!  And I never did find the strapping tape I was looking for ... the main item I needed.  

I did find some Super Glue I used to reattach the bottom rail to one window shade.  They just don't make them like they used to.  Once that sets, my plan is to get two small magnets to hold the shade tight to the metal door.  That way there is no rattling as I go down the road.

THAT'S when I noticed the tree limbs.  My best laid plan of driving forward to get out vanished into thin air.  I'm pretty sure I would lose the satellite dish at the very least.  Of COURSE someone in a small car parked 12" from the right side.  I held up two big pickups while I huchi-gued back and forth trying to make the turn.  Note to self ... next time park WAY OUT at the far end of the lot where NO trees live.    

Back home I came up with another tip ... mostly for Dave since I know he has a similar rig.  The side window covers have magnets to hold them to the door while you shut it.  They are not strong enough, and 9 times out of ten it falls off because it's so heavy.  

These Monkey magnets were suggested by good friend Barbara Westerfield.  They hold everything from window shades to kitchen drawers to doors.  They come with a sticky backing you can apply, or with screws.  I stuck one piece on the shade to see if it would stick to it and then placed the shade on the door.  IT WORKED PERFECTLY!!  No more messing with the shade falling off when I try to shut the door.  THANK YOU BARBARA!

And so I drove 50 miles on this day, hoping it's enough to keep the rig battery charged up.  I mean just how many miles are you supposed to drive to keep it healthy?  And what do I do when I'm parked for a month in Arizona?  

I guess I'll have to find a place for my charger and just plug it in for the day while I'm in the rig.  It's too bad they don't have a battery readout like with the lithiums.  At least you would have an idea of when to charge it up.  I'm sure there's a way to hook up something to the battery that you can just attach and disconnect from the charger when you want, but that's WAY beyond my skill level.  

And so I leave you with this beautiful pumpkin picture while I contemplate decorating for Halloween.  

After that, I will contemplate what I need to pack, because there's a short trip scheduled this week in the van.  If it starts!!

Accounting ... SO MUCH Accounting

 Ugh ... the KID got me up at 3:45.  He had to go outside, and how could I say no.  Literally ten minutes later, he's fast asleep on the couch while I'm wide awake.  It's going to be a two-cuppa day.

Little did I know what was in store for me.  I had an appointment for bookwork at 10:00.  That got waylaid until 10:30, so I played with my watch a bit.  They put so much stuff on it that the batteries don't last.  AGAIN with the batteries!!  I decided the moving constantly face wasn't helping.

So I changed it to this.  In spite of seeing my sweet boy more often, it doesn't work for me either.  I need the day, date and time.  It appears most folks are just interested in the time because there's not many with the date showing also.

Since I had 30 minutes to waste ... POOF ... another one gone.  The last of the cherry tomatoes has disappeared into the trash can.  NO MORE WATERING!  I think I ate seven that were left on the vines.

At long last I took off for a marathon of accounting.  They kept telling me all these big accounts rarely EVER had any transactions, but when I started to delve in, they were OH SO wrong!  There were things crisscrossing the planet right and left, to the tune of a LONG frustrating FIVE HOURS of work.  I finished one of eight projects before throwing up my hands.  That's enough for one day.

Back home, I was pacing the floor.  I probably could have taken a little nap, but then I sleep even worse.  So let's start another quilting project.  I loaded this one on the machine, hoping the entire time that the new parts and pieces will work perfectly.  

NO PROBLEMS will be allowed!  This is a duplicate of the Yellowstone series quilt.  Duplicate in colors anyway.  If I have time, I'll start on it later today because hopefully I'll be relaxing as I sail down the highways getting the RV battery up to snuff.

You're going to laugh at this one.  October is almost here ... time to start decorating for Halloween.  These are simple googley eyes (very cheap and made in China) that I'm going to put up on my house windows.  They glow in the dark.  I'm just going to add one every couple of days and see if anyone notices.  I'll post pictures as they go up.

Dinner was once again pasta.  It's funny about pasta ... it's like Chinese food.  You eat an entire bowl and you are still hungry.  That's bad news for me ... I scoured the fridge for more and ended up eating half a loaf of sourdough bread.  BAD NANCY!

More watch playing ensued as I tried to delete everything possible that I didn't need.  THEY seem to think I need to know twelve things about my heart and health, along with taking phone calls, writing down notes, where the sun is in the solar system and what time it is in every part of the world.  All I want is three things that don't use up the battery before the end of one day.  I deleted everything I possibly could.

And so ended a nice but brain-crushing day.  

Finally ..... OH NO ... a terrible thing happened ... Kitters let me pick her up and hold her.  That is SUCH a bad sign!!!!  On the other hand, I found another recruit to check on her while I'm gone.

Charging It Up

 Woohoo ... it's Saturday ... I think.  Isn't it funny how you forget just what day it is?  My brain says I'm SO happy to be retired, I don't even CARE what day it is any more!!  Unless I have an appointment ... then I care so much I have to write post-it notes all over the house so I don't forget!

One good thing ... there's no worries abut forgetting to feed Kitters.  That automatic feeder is working perfectly!  Still ... every time I open the door, there she is.  I have never in my life been around a cat that is this affectionate.  Someone said they are Angels in disguise.

I've discovered her hiding spot underneath a low growing shrub in the back yard.  She blends right in, but has a perfect view of the back door.  I have to be careful because she doesn't understand the FOOT thing and I don't want any broken bones.

So first thing, I checked the engine battery.  Here's the weird thing about this engine.  The battery is actually located UNDER your feet when sitting in the drivers seat.  This picture shows where you can charge it up the easiest.  They say to drive it at least every two weeks (I think that time is too long) because it has so much electronic stuff running all the time, it will drain the battery completely.   Who drives their RV every two weeks??  Of course they don't mention that when you buy it.

See the round red thing?  That's the positive post.  You have to push that red plastic back to connect a cable.  The trickle charger I have apparently does not have strong enough teeth to stay attached, which is why it went dead.  The ground rod is way over on the right hand side by the second red arrow.  A note here ... both my jumper cables and the charger cables reach this far.

On the other hand, yes I do have one of those battery jump units.  It's been sitting for about 6 months and was still 3/4 charged ... enough for a jump.  HOWEVER ... when the red clamp above (with really good "teeth") is connected, the black ground does not reach.  Everything I can see except the little piece of light grey above the little white tank with a black lid ... is plastic.  I have no clue WHAT to connect the ground to should I need a jump again.  

And so, I still have the same problem.  The trickle charger worked for three months.  Maybe I just have to disconnect and reconnect it every couple of weeks to be sure it has a good connection.  I'll try to do the lunch once a week thing ... or maybe a trip to Hobby Lobby two towns over will work.  It's frustrating to say the least.

There is a battery disconnect near the floor in the middle of the dash.  You lay on your left side under the steering wheel, reach into a very small space with your LEFT hand, pull the knob to the right as hard as you can until it comes off.  I've tried that four times and been unsuccessful.  Doing it right-handed means your face is smashed into the accelerator.  I'm afraid if I get it OFF, I will never get it back ON again.  Yes, it's that awkward and hard to reach.

A few hours later ... I got a frantic call about organizational skills when it comes to paperwork and accounting.  You know those big rolling floor to ceiling cabinets like you see on TV at the FBI office?  Yeah, those ... that's what I was dealing with.  Well that was fun!!

I got home in time to whip up some pasta with that homemade tomato sauce.  I admit, my cooking skills are a little lacking, but it actually tasted wonderful.  So much so that I ate TWO bowls smothered in parmesan.  And THAT is why I try NOT to cook pasta very often.  I pig out every time.

In case you didn't remember, Halloween is right around the corner.  That means the Pumpkin Patch is opening up TODAY.  Wasn't I surprised to hear a knock on the door at 7:00 pm.  I heard "DINNER IS SERVED".  There stood one of the owners with their latest and greatest invention ... caramel corn!!  He asked for a test run and I was MORE than happy to oblige!!

This stuff is Heaven in a plastic bag.  They will make a nice profit from this, but I'm wondering WHO is actually making it.  It's not that easy to whip up, and a royal pain to CLEAN up after.  I smiled knowing it wasn't going to be ME!!

And so ended a frustrating but sugary goodness day with me lying wide awake for the next two hours.  Never eat caramel corn just before bedtime.

Today I'll be back in the depths of the rolling file cabinets the size of my house, trying to figure out what can go and what can stay.  OH THE FUN!!

The Dermatologist!! Woohoo!

 And just like THAT ... the weather has changed.  Autumn has finally arrived as leaves start to fall from my two big trees out front.  I am not enamored with those sycamores.  They make me sneeze and they create a mess out front, not to mention it will soon be gutter cleaning time.  

Too bad for me, I cannot use those gutter cover thingies.  There is way too much dirt in this part of the country that quickly fills up gutters, so much so that the weight will literally rip them from the eaves.  The mud and dirt must be cleaned out at least twice a year to keep them intact.  This year I will try and find someone to do that for me.

In the meantime, Kitters is sleeping soundly every morning when I peek out the window.  I guess that's what happens when you have a full stomach.  

Cooper has been feeling left out in the blog, so here he is in his "I need a treat" stance ... one foot up.

I guess it's been a couple of months now that I've been feeding her, and the difference is dramatic.  Her face has really filled out and her fur is soft and shiny ... though you can't tell through the window.  Now she has taken to rolling over on her back so SOMEONE can rub her belly.  I admit it ... I'm a sucker for animals.

A garden check resulted in a huge amount of crummy looking tomatoes.  Half of them were attached to the vines that were lying flat on the ground from the collapse.  Once peeled however, they taste pretty yummy!!

I forgot where my next appointment was ... with the dermatologist ... and whipped up the last of the sourdough garlic bread with cheese and of course ... tomato.  I'm buying another loaf of that bread if I can remember where I found it!!

The Dermatologist ... no biggie, just removal of a couple of spots on my temples.  I had this done in Arizona, where I almost knocked out the doc because it felt like he stabbed me through the brain with a knife.  No kidding ... it was that bad.

So I was a little reticent and ready for the fight.  You see they gave me the impression that I would see this guy first, then have to come BACK to see the REAL doctor.  Not again ... not like my glasses where they billed me TWICE for what should have been one visit.

All that disappeared when this gorgeous hunk of man walked into the room.  Don't be thinking that ... he was GRANDSON age, but probably the best looking man I've ever seen in my life.  I said ... oh, you brought the killer can with you.  I was surprised he was actually going to freeze the spots without me having to come back!!  He high fived me and said he was really good at this.  This is my kind of doc!!

Ten minutes later I was out the door, not feeling TOO terrible, until I got to the truck and the pain began in earnest.  Not horrific, just like someone banging my head against the wall.  

Two hours and two aspirin later, I was able to finish up the last of the Veteran quilts for this year.  

That's when everything went SOUTH!  I went out to check on the rig since it had not been plugged in for awhile.  The door clicker didn't work.  Ooooh that is a BAD sign.  It means in spite of the battery tender being hooked up the entire time, the engine battery is DEAD DEAD DEAD.  

It said to reset the cables.  Apparently in getting in and out many times, they had jarred loose just enough not to work.  I set them again and waited.  It said battery fail.  BIG SIGH.  The batteries on these things are a big fat pain in the butt!  There is so much electronics going on constantly that you cannot leave it sit for more than 10 days without it going dead.

GRRRRR ... I opened the gate, which is also a pain, and pulled in with my truck to try a jump start.  I'm always afraid I will electrocute myself.  I let it run for a bit, then hit the button.  Thankfully, it started up.  I put the truck back in the garage, grabbed my purse and headed out for a late night drive to charge it up/  

But WAIT ... it said PARK VEHICLE, LEAVE ENGINE RUNNING.  I thought you were not supposed to do that.  Okay ... twenty minutes later I came back out and the message was gone.  Off I went down the back country roads, going absolutely nowhere, for an hour.  

This morning will tell the tale of whether I need a new battery since this has happened three times now.  Here's my new plan.  Once a week I will drive it SOMEWHERE ... no idea where yet, maybe two towns over ... and have lunch.  I'm hoping that will be enough to keep the battery up.

And so I end today's blog with my tip of the day.  Eat more garlic bread to keep the goonies away and drive yourself to lunch once a week.

Oh ... and I made another appointment to see that good looking dermatologist again!!  

Rest Up Day - NOT

 Well HELLO 4:30 am.  Let me just check my new fancy dancy watch and see just how long I slept last night.  Seven hours ... how lucky can I be ... except for those ELEVEN times I woke up and actually got 9 minutes of deep sleep.  It's not like I can do anything about it, but it's rather interesting to know.

Mr. Cooper and I headed out for a little morning exercise, but we didn't get far.  I think he knows the quicker he turns around, the quicker he gets a tiny treat for being such a GOOD BOY.  In other words, like his Mom, he hasn't lost even an ounce in the last two weeks.

Kitters is on guard duty as always.  If I don't see her, I count to five and she comes running across the yard.  I seriously do NOT have room for another critter in the van, NOR a kitty litter box.

My personal body guard is never far from sight.  If only I could sleep like him!

Early mornings outside sound like this.  Oh how I miss the sounds of crickets and frogs on the ranch.  They would sing me to sleep every night and accompany me down to the barn every morning in the dark.  You knew something was up when they stopped chirping.  

SO ... my day started out at the Lodge once again.  The AC guy was going to show up at 10:00 to meet with Mark and I.  Not that I know anything about it, but I do have a bit of common sense that comes in handy now and then.  

Right off the bat, the guys says ... oh yes, I had my men out here yesterday and they found one of the big pieces of duct work not attached to ANYTHING.  They fixed it, which well they should.  Mark thinks they forgot to reattach it when the unit was put in over a month ago.  So all this time the nice cold air was going into the attic, in spite of all our complaints.

That is just SO IRRITATING.  Especially after all our calls that it was not working.  Cranky Nancy appeared in a flash.  So while standing there, I made note that air was actually moving around the room now and it was COOL air.  Hopefully the problem is fixed.  Well ... except for the SECOND AC unit that has decided to die.  Just like my house, it's never ending.

On the way home, I stopped in at Costco for my new glasses.  I put them on and instantly could not see right.  I almost got dizzy they were so bad.  Well that's never happened before.  He took them back, made all kinds of new measurements and said they would be remade.  The sunglasses had a little tweak also, but I brought them home to see if I just needed to get used to them.  

Though this was supposed to be a rest-up day, it wasn't to be.  I noticed the night before that my Rid-a-Rat was lacking in brilliance, meaning the batteries needed to be replaced.  They last about six months, so I can't complain.  Ever since using these on every rig I've had, I have NEVER (knock on wood) had a mouse or rat get inside or do any damage.  

Scooching under the low profile rig through dirt and spiders was a challenge, but I got it done.  At $44.00, it's a deal, since this one is now almost 5 years old. 

The rest of the day involved plucking yet MORE tomatoes from the vines.  You've seen enough pictures of  those for the next year.  I think there's at least ten more BLT sandwiches there.  

They are NOT good for Mr. Cooper however, so I decided to cook up the last of that cheap pork loin.  Let's try something new.  I've seen Patsy say she cooked some in her air fryer.  That would not be my choice of cooking implement, but I decided to give it a try.  

Darn it ... I didn't get a picture of it right out of the fryer, but 30 minutes at 360 degrees produced a tender, juicy, just a tiny bit rare piece of deliciousness.  Who knew??  No muss, no fuss ... just a perfect piece of pork.

Of course I had some for dinner, but not much because I was still stuffed with the BLT from lunch.  Here it is ... all chopped up and ready for the freezer.  This is why the freezer in the van is completely full of food, but not for me.  I am chinzy though ... he gets maybe 2 tablespoons with his dry food.

NO ... there is NOT room for kitty food!!!

The entire day was gloomy with clouds covering the sky.  There was lots of threatening and predictions, but no water fell on this day.  

I spent the rest of the day stitching up the binding on the LAST VETERANS QUILT!  I will be so excited to see that done!!

Maybe TODAY can be my Rest Up day!!  

What's That Smell?

 Up .. down .. up .. down ... we are back in the heat of things once again.  If only Mother Nature would make up her mind and be cool abut it.  Overnight low ... 70 degrees.  Are my tomatoes loving it?  I've no idea.  I haven't checked on the Early Girls in three days.  Obviously I was never meant to be a gardener.  The infatuation burned off quickly!

It's another night of magic at the Magic Kingdom of Bingo, where peasants try to kill you with their looks and get you high the second you walk out the door.  More on that later.

The morning clouds look quite majestic and beautiful, but were harbingers of heat.  They may have banned cloud seeding in the entire U.S., but California does whatever they want.  Those planes kept me up most of the night because our illustrious governor thinks making rain will get him off the hook for not enforcing fire regulations, causing entire cities to burn down.  But that's another story.  

The first thing I did was attack my new watch.  The good news is I finally got it set up.  Not like I want however, since there are a million new settings, and not one of them is the same watch face I used and loved for the past 8 years.  Just give me ONE setting that shows the month, date and time.  They've got nothing.  Zero!

This is the closest I could come.  When you move your wrist, it opens it eyes, blinks, makes a scary face, and laughs at you before going back to sleep.  No kidding ... it's just weird!!  I probably spent four hours trying to figure out my phone updates.  Nothing works like it did previously, and nothing LOOKS like it did previously.  It's going to take a long while to get used to the new setup and how to access what I want to see, but at least I can now tell what time it is.

It's BACON TIME!  Yessiree, I still have three tomatoes in the fridge to eat up.  Unlike the artificially ripened tomatoes you buy in the store, home grown does not last long in the fridge.  They last even  LESS time if you leave them on the counter.  So BLT sandwiches it is!!  

My masterpiece ... on garlic sourdough bread.  Yes, you are right ... it wasn't all that great.  Sourdough was not meant for BLT's.

Since we're going tripping in a couple of months, I'm getting an early start.  Jonathan has been sleeping closer to the floor ... and supported top to bottom .... I decided to cut up two dowels for the bottom of this travel cage.  I'm not all that great with saws, especially when it comes to the notches on the ends that hold it in place.  Hopefully they stay put.

And then it was time to head off to the Castle ... like at 1:00 because now I have to set up the entire room.  I think I have the bingo machine down, and am able to get the sound system working.  Those TV's that display everything are a completely different animal.  Mostly because every single TV is a different brand, with a different remote and none of them program the same way.  

I get to watch baseball for at least 30 minutes every time I turn one television on.  Who does that?  Who is sitting in this big room watching baseball?  Isn't that for the bar where we have TEN showing everything from horse racing to golf to football?

All that time I was dealing with someone who wants to do too much.  Do you know that person?  They follow you so closely that when you stop they run into you?  "I can do that ... give me that" as they grab it from your hands.  I do love having help, but on this night it was cray cray.  Literally every time I turned around, I almost knocked her over.  

I finally sent her off on a wild goose chase while I went upstairs to find the AC not working in the office.  Here's the thing ... old unit died, new unit installed, nothing done to the duct work.  Should work the same, yes?  It doesn't even keep the office down to 80 degrees ... it's HOT.  

Supposedly the repair guys said we need to redo the duct work.  Why?  It worked fine before, why not now?  So today I'm meeting with the repair guy and our Right Hand Man to get that answer.  It's always something.

And it was yet again as one TV just would not work.  RHM (right hand man) checked it, replaced the splitter and VOILA ... Bingo was in business.  Too bad for me, my cashier was not available to work on this night.  My Lady in Waiting was thrilled.  There's something to be said about that, but I'll leave it alone.

We had the usual "you didn't give me that card", which was closely followed by three more, meaning if SHE got an extra card, maybe "I" can too.  Sadly for them, it didn't work.  

And so I sat at the Infernal Machine all night and luckily balanced to a tee.  No animals were hurt in the making of this Magic Castle bingo night.  Well maybe one whose feelings got hurt when she didn't have the correct last number to win the additional $599.   

I headed out the door in record time.  WHAT'S THAT SMELL?  Oh how I know that smell!!  It's Eau de Skunk!!  SO ... in case you didn't know, there is a new brand of MaryJane out there that ... no kidding ... is called Skunk Weed and smells JUST LIKE ONE.  They stand outside the back door and smoke it, stinking up the entire neighborhood.  Rule #9 ... don't ever inhale as you walk out the door ... it's nasty!!

And so I finally made it home to the squeals of a sweet puppy and the purrs of an even sweeter kitty.  That works better than ANY skunk weed EVER could!!