…was one of those days.
Living on a corner has its moments: we face a cross street and there is a major city arterial running past our west side that never stops: it serves the Maple Street Bridge; and of bridges that cross the river, there is the Monroe Street, the Washington (you really can’t count the Lincoln, which carries little traffic) and that’s pretty well it for the downtown—so we get traffic, it’s a one-way street, and downhill, and people speed like fiends.
I was out feeding the fishes and noticed a very heavy engine parked near our fence, in the most-used lane. Fire truck. This deserved a look—and opening the gate showed not just the fire truck but a police b&w, an ambulance, a badly wrecked black car—front left turned to tinfoil—facing diagonally the wrong way on the one-way; another black car facing the opposite, correct-way diagonal—if he hadn’t been 10 feet off the road and up in a thick growth of juniper on the side of the house across the street. There was besides, a white car parked diagonally at the point of our corner, going the wrong lane onto our street, and two other cars stopped on our street going the right way. There were people all over talking to the officer in charge, while the monster fire engine and ambulance served as barriers. I don’t know if anybody was taken in the ambulance: the officer was talking to everybody, and did open the back door of the ambulance to talk to someone, but if it had been serious, I’m sure the ambulance would have moved on.
Anyway it was a warm day in the 80’s, and about 8 people were camped on a brick retaining wall waiting. A wrecker showed up to move the black car, there’d have to be another to fish the second car out of the bushes, and over all, it was a wild day on our street. Hard to figure who was at fault, but the energy that sent the car into the bushes was considerable: Jane thinks, and I concur, that that car was rear-ended, and that speed likely played a major part in it. A car trying to pull out from our street’s stop sign is another possibility. The physics of it all posed quite a challenge.
Then half our kitchen floor samples arrived, and they’re exactly what both of us wanted. Grey mottling like weathered old limestone. And waterproof. The catch is—somebody didn’t pack the box right, somebody else dropped it, and every single piece has a corner too damaged to use. So that has to go back to Home Depot as unusable. But I think we do have our floor color and pattern. It’s really pretty and does not show the ‘repeats’ that can drive you visually crazy.
We got Jane’s car to the repair shop—it’s got some problem that’s not the battery. Won’t start. This means we have half the garage free to put junk in and we have called for a dumpster to be set in our drive so we can do a major house and yard cleanout. Yay! Jane found our city will rent you one and pick it up. And this is what, after a move inside OKC, then a move up here to one apartment, then to another apartment, then to this house—all inside eleven years—we desperately need.
The blood pressure is now in the normal zone on both numbers thanks to that new med. And I got to the eye doc to order a pair of distance glasses. I tried all the frilly pretty frames the assistant showed me, wanting larger lenses for general viewing, and all of them were a no-go down to ridiculous. I finally said, y’know, what I look best in is aviator glasses, never mind they’re always in the ‘men’s’ section. Put them on, and the assistant looked highly surprised, and said, “You’re right!” Yep. Those look right on my face. The Harry Potter look makes me look like an owl, the cat-eye makes me look like I need high heels, leopard tights, and a bun with a pencil stuck in it, and some of the others defy any description but awful. So aviators it is.
And out of the blue last evening, thunder, a lot of it, driving sideways rain (unusual in the PNW, where rain usually mists down over several days) and then the sky lit up vivid orange shading to pink. Sunsets are very unusual in the Inland Empire. But the lowering sunlight managed to push through those storm clouds in a way I’ve never seen in ten years up here. And ours are generally ‘sea’ clouds, filmy and silky and not the clumpy ridged sort you get from horizon to horizon in Oklahoma that make the sky look like a bed of coals. Ours looked on one horizon like a forest fire, intense orange, and overhead it was cotton candy pink billows. Really unusual. We don’t get the violent weather up here as a rule, so we don’t get the sunsets that go with them. But last night we did.
That’s lucky on the city dumpster; if you want one around here, you have to go through one of the 2 commercial trash pickup companies, and even the smallest one is not cheap (about 2 cubic yards). We had one when we first moved into our house, which needed a couple of emptyings because ‘contents intact’ means you have to throw out whatever the packrat owner deemed too interesting to ditch for themselves. There is something glorious about being able to throw away an entire decrepit recliner.
What; you object to ‘sexy librarian’ glasses? Snerk. I like larger frames as well which have been hard to find. The past few years, the fad for smallish flattened frames meant that when I was trying bifocals, no incarnation would work without me craning my neck like a curious bird. It’s about time for my next vision check. My insurance permits a new set of frames every 2 years, but I’ve had a rotten time finding ones I like.
I’m surprised you didn’t hear the commotion when the original accident happened; your fence must be doing its job.
I still have 600+ square feet of Pergo waiting in the Captain’s Cabin to be laid throughout the house after the cats die. That’s more trauma than I want to put them through, what with taking all the furniture out and ripping up carpet. The color is ‘coastal pine’, gray-white with pinkish streaks that will go nicely with our bleached redwood walls, as well as lightening the whole house.
I get nervous pulling out onto Ash St. I’d hate to have to do that every day, backing out of my garage.
Generally if you wait long enough you will get a clear lane to back into. There are two lights upstream that bunch traffic up. But it is indeed an intersection where careful checking of traffic is useful!
Hah, if and when I can eventually get new glasses, I want bronze or copper frames. But that might not be available, so I’ll see when/if the time comes. Note: I wouldn’t mind a sexy librarian. How cute is he? LOL. :angel:
Last night, the apt. complex was jumpin’ a little too much. From about 1:30 to 5:30 am, yes, am, there were folks partying with stereos, but not as loud as could be, and with talking, singing, flirting, maybe mild making out, so…hey, I didn’t hear anyone getting hurt or objecting, no fighting, so, although my insomnia could’ve used the sleep, well…OK, so I’m not too ticked, just…today was kind of a wash. I napped during the day. That’s twice lately, and not so cool. Ah, fairly early on in this, it did sound as though one of the neighbor teens had arrived back home having learned he’d perhaps partied a bit too hard and hand drunk too much. I believe, however, he made it to his home under his own power and in one piece and, one hopes, smarter in the morning…afternoon…whichever. Either his voice is still changing or it’s stuck that way. — I still have only really met anyone in passing hello’s, no real getting to know people yet. My fault and my (lack of) sleep pattern, I think. But my insomnia looks positively normal compared to how active this place is round the clock. Mostly Latinos and many seem to work, come and go, during the night. Also, even kids and teens (and adults) can be up at night, playing ball or hanging out. I don’t know it it’s an adaptation to, that’s the only time famiilies and friends get to be together, or if there’s something cultural (and climate) going on, or what it is. But it’s very unusual to me. My current eyesight makes me nervous about hanging out and socializing when it’s too dark out for me to see well. But I’m more a night owl than an early bird, so…I don’t know, but I haven’t got myself out to meet folks much yet, and need to. Note, though, there are enough families and enough kids/teens, that it feels very safe and friendly around here to me, just, I haven’t really gotten to know people yet. Gotta work on that. — It makes me wonder if it’s just how most other people live, and it’s just my own upbringing, or what’s going on, socially and time-wise.
Might be a good thing, though, to get a fountain or noise machine for your bedroom—some white noise to cover the night owls.
BCS — this is an excellent idea; try a sound machine. It really works. bought one to cover up boys across the street fixing pickups and revving engines at 2 a.m., boys across the street drinking beer with girlfriends at 3 a.m.,husband watching news and weather at 6 a.m., neighbors getting picked up by coworkers at 6:30 a.m. (lots of horns honking); it works like a charm and at last I have enough sleep!
If you have a smartphone, there’s an app. Several.
What an exciting day. Interesting. (Chinese sense).
Meanwhile in Fort Lauderdale, cable/phone/internet were down for about 7 hours in the middle of the day for no apparent reason. I had just updated the router and plex didn’t want to work so Lorraine couldn’t even watch movies we’d stored on the computer. Not a fun day.
@BCS, a “college age” party in a nearby apartment complex was keeping me awake, so I got dressed, went over and told them if they were going to keep me awake all night, the least they could do was give me a beer. They got a kick out of it, I got a beer out of it, we chatted across the age gap while I drank it, then shortly after I left, the party noticeably quieted down — or else the beer gave me enough of a buzz that I didn’t notice the noise so much.
:snerk: I do like that idea. LOL!
I did hear the teen outside this afternoon, so he survived however the worse for wear; hopefully, he learned without too much headache, etc. — I later heard him and his mom calling back and forth, the usual teen/parent tension, getting along OK, so all is as well as it can be, sounds like.
Yes, I can hear that much from my bedroom or kitchen without trying. My hearing’s above average, but not that much. At least I don’t usually hear more than the tone or beyond a word or two. But it feels disquieting, pun intended.
…And the Most Non-Assertive Cat in the Universe is insisting on traipsing back and forth over the keyboard, wanting attention. Heh…
I hope everyone had a good day. Doing OK here, but it sure feels strange saying hi to people, yet still not really knowing my neighbors. :shrugs:
I can stand the phone or the telly being out. Such are our lives nowadays that if the internet is down I find myself thinking of this and that thing I could do—but no! I can’t.
Phone problems must be catching. DH’s office phone went out yesterday afternoon. One of his clients who sets up phone networks verified that it was a problem in the line between the building and the pole. Called Hawaiian Tel, was told “We’ll be out next Tuesday, maybe sooner if we have an opening.” Meanwhile, his customers are getting a busy signal when they try to call in. DH is NOT pleased.
There is an international DDOS attack going on. Some systems with exposure may be at risk. This would be a good time to install updates if you have not. This is another ransomware attack, mostly involving a business software and involving the Ukraine, but given the way programs cross borders, be wary, be backed up, and be updated.
Saw this, https://www.youtube.com/embed/EzedMdx6QG4?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&autohide=2&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent and cheered.
Saw this, http://twistedsifter.com/videos/viral-dancing-gorilla-gets-perfect-soundtrack/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Twistedsifter+%28TwistedSifter+%29 and laughed.
Oh, yes! “Hello…. scammers…I am here to negotiate.”
“Mine is an evil laugh!” — Alan Tudyk as Wash as Tyrannosaurus rex. (My reaction to the first video. 😀 )
Hah, ~loved~ the dancing gorilla and music. Now there’s some girl power for ya! 😀
Hmm, she seems like a fun date!
I don’t suppose she has a gay brother? :: raises eyebrows :: (LOL.)
(And somehow, this made me think of mahendo’sat, though they always seem a bit more chimpanzee / australopithecine. I suppose really they’re more an amalgam.) (I bet Jik, Goldtooth, and Some are all good dancers, somehow.)
OT, I just stumbled on to a wonderful store!
https://www.lehmans.com/?partner_id=bcbgoog&gclid=CJGFlYva5NQCFQePaQodrtcCNg
I’m thinking about one of the grain mills. The difference in price between a pound of barley and a pound of barley flour makes me think it might soon pay for itself!
I live on a fairly busy street – 4 lanes, and the other side is “light industry” from a quarter mile east to a mile west, between two major streets – so I hear sirens a lot, and tend to ignore them unless they stop right out front. It can be interesting…in the ancient-Chinese-saying way.
Last winter, they had to replace one of the utility poles in the next block – it had been hit and sheared at sidewalk level (12-inch diameter wood pole!), and they’d used a long 2×4 and three guy ropes to stabilized between when it was hit and when they replace it. A month or so later, the pole almost opposite it was hit by a pickup and seriously dinged, but it’s still solid enough that they left it in place. (I went past not long after it happened, as in before the cops and the tow truck arrived. Truck veered across the street and hit it.)
And last weekend, as I was on approach to the supermarket, the fire trucks were arriving at a nearby house that was smoking gently. Took a different route when leaving, to avoid the mess; they had been starting to close the street when I went by.
The library is next door to the local fire station, so we have a ready resource in case of emergency. Our children’s librarian likes to set up annual visits there; the fire fighters teach fire safety and let the kids climb around the engines and they demonstrate hoses (supervised closely). We just had a major program; I think we were pushing the boundaries of what the fire marshall would consider safe occupancy!
The house we moved into when I was in HS was on the same street as the fire station and the branch library. The station was about halfway between.
The only fire I remember on that section of street, in 12 years, was in the library. (Started in the wiring in the attic. They saved nearly all the books – because the station was that close. And rebuilt in the same location. It’s been rebuilt again since than. Irony: the adult section of that building had been the truck bay for the previous fire station, and the children’s section, below the area where the fire started, had been the library at that time. That city recycled buildings.)