Curtains up for shade

The curtains are up, finally, and Thomas and Lois went out to look for a book, "Mere Christianity" by C. S. Lewis and to buy a lampshade. I don't think the weather will hold out for them, but I could be wrong.

Work award

Unlike martial arts, you don't want greater degrees of burns. This one is a second degree burn.

Spot remover

Lois' spot shrinks every day ... thank God for that!

It came, it stinks, it goes to work

I had to put my money where my mouth was and I bought this one to replace the bad ones at work. DHL delivered it. Either DHL or the company itself reeks of old cigarettes --

puyuck ... pettooee, pew. Thank goodness it goes to work.

Blech!

Remember walking in the sand

As luck would have it, I went out for dinner and a walk with a friend from work. There is a lake nearby, so we walked there.

+ entry title from Aerosmith

Mission: put my money where my mouth is

I mentioned a situation, then I had to solve it. I found a solution, but I had to pay for it, though I'll get re-imbursed for it. Huh. I wonder how often I'll find "solutions".

Y not

Thomas and Lois might, just might, make a habit of going to the YMCA more often in the week. They seem invigorated and livelier when they are done. Being healthier too, as a side benefit, isn't too shabby either.

Got their bags

Thomas and Lois headed off for the YMCA today, after months of absence. As foreboding or as a test of their comittment, a storm raged full mostly of wind -- cursing their travels. Stallwarts as they were, they weathered the storm to make it to the YMCA. There, Lois usually does water aerobics, but with her leg spot (cancer removed), she isn't to be in water for long periods of time until it is better healed. Explain her long showers ...
anyway, Thomas got a chance to go to the golf dome and hit balls. He's aching to really golf, you know ... on a course, with flags, fairways, and all of that stuff there.

story teller, based on fact

I spoke with the manager who is supposed to register me for a class, then generally are 10-3 on the day they are run. This just about puts me out of doing that and going to work. I could, in theory, do the class then drive up and start work from like 4 "ish" to close. Now that, ladies and gentleman, would be a long friggin' day!

I was reading over the book. The "testing", as the manager put it, will be for me to verbally recall the sections, in mostly their entirety answering all of the questions in the book, and then able to verbally answer the panel's other questions. This is for step one of many hurdles. There is a lot to remember, thankfully I don't think some parts are on later tests.

I looked over it all and it appears to me that I'll be telling the "Illiad" and at the end, be open for questions.

Curtains down, trellis up

The curtains came down today to make way for painting. The painting hasn't started.

The trellis in the front was blown down in the Winter. This is the first time that we had a chance to fix it. After a small investment of parts -- up again it is. The thick growth on it, mixed with an old robin's nest didn't help it stay up either. The back was a mess with sticks -- so, we picked up those as well.

The curtains cost $54 to clean. Oi! I guess I'd need to know what the cost is on other things to be cleaned.

Played out

Ah, dear Charlie called me for he had not seen me in a long time.
"... needs a new job", for I work hours that eliminate me from playtime with him.

Charlie wanted to play the 'spinny' "where you do this ... and that" game. Twister, with Keith and myself, Charlie especially. The two dogs didn't really want to be stuck on the sofa. They are, after all, children with thicker hair. They needed to play too.

Marcus got a chance to help Keith, here, to move a sofa in place of another one. Charlie didn't take well to the change. In happier news, they found where they would like to send him for Kindergarten -- a Montesourri school.

I included this in the family blog because my good buddy Charlie always thinks of me.

........

Thomas and Lois went out on Monday to get some things from Menards. They mistakenly left them in the van, but Marcus retrieved them when they remembered. Otherwise, they had an alright day. Lois is tired of being tired all the time, but declines coffee that I could make her -- keeping her lively for hours if need be.

positively work

There's a woman at work who is diabetic. She has to administer shots to herself while at work. She does it in the arm, bruising easily. After I mentioned that Lois does this, but in the abdomen, this woman rebuffed the idea of stomach shots for the same reason -- bruising. At least she's pro-active with it and taking it seriously!

I was asked yet another question about the volumes of stuff I was to read and remember. What does this weigh? Uh ... I don't know. The SATs were simple, these tests, whenever I get them, will be grueling, for sure. I'm not nervous or worried, but there is a fartload of stuff that they want me to have committed to memory.

It was funny, I was "attempting" to direct people at work, but it got busy, always and we ran behind. A shift leader, previously an assistant manager before he left the company then returned, noted the volume of business that we did over projected. We were short-staffed and had our butts handed to us. I mentioned on my personal blog about my disappointment with placement and use of personnel. Sometimes, I wonder what goes on in the heads of people. One manager, in particular, tends to send off people during a fifteen minute lull, only see to business surge like a tsunami. For this reason, I consider him quite a fool regarding staffing. Granted, the one guy he sent home was, well, not imbibed with strong work ethics ... sloth-like speed at times, mixed with tendencies toward chatting-in-lieu-of-working and eating the buffet discards (food pulled off buffet that is okay, not on some one's plate), but still. The kid, who might have been selectively placed (special needs person with some limitations regarding cognition) called me, Speedy Gonzales, for dishes can be done fast -- unlike what he shows.

I got freed 25 minutes early, for lack of business ... they had no choice but to drop people -- they kept only the closers. I drove in the evening setting sun and saw around ten wild deer in different fields. There were four in one field, and a couple in another, etc. I'm assuming they had an easy winter, yet again this year.

Cards, spelled W-I-N

Thomas and Lois hosted cards on Friday with friends. Friends and Thomas and Lois rotate houses where it is held. The boys won two or three in a row, but the girls won big twice; 'smack down'! They all had fun, but the guys can't pull a win for anything. Perhaps next, cheating will be used.

I was asked if I knew some background

on the company ... it would be "good for me to know". Ah, I thought it more like filler, but apparently, I should know more stuff. Fun, fun, fun. I don't mind learning, but some of that is inapplicable. "Goes to motive, your honor". "Very well then, procceed."

Unremarkable journey

This is my 50 mile trek. Thank God, truly, for my tiny fuel efficient car.

This is the town where I work. Actually, there are two towns butted against each other. I work somewhere between the two lakes at the top. If only I got out to see them.

This is where I will likely move for 6 months to cut on my travel time. I am not moving there yet. I'm going to kill some debt first, then worry about it. After training, I think I might be placed near Indy, so ... why get a commitment here when I'm not going to be placed here?

From work, with hope

Attache, complete with work and stuff to read ... much of it due Monday. Read 'em and weep!

Postal

Marcus took a postal exam today. The toughest part of it was, "memorize all of this ..." Although there wasn't much to memorize, there was no clear way for me to do a good job or memorizing it. The rest of the test was okay. I don't know how well I did. I will, apparently find out in 4-6 weeks.

Marcus also got a professional-looking attache with study materials for work. He already read one book and will finsih the other tonight. They are thankfully short books, the "motivational" kind of 'do, succeed, rah, rah, rah'. I'm quite happy they are not sell, sell, sell ... your soul, your house ... stuff that doesn't belong to you... be the salesperson of the millenium.

Thomas

I mentioned that Thomas went to the dermatologist. Well, he had some stuff burnt off of him. Nothing serious. He outright refuses to enter anything into the blog, so ... if things are wrong or inflammatory ... oh, well, what the H-E-double hockey sticks.

Ready for Reddy

Lois returned from the cardiologist today with a good report. My heart rate was a little low, so they may remove one medicine or reduce it. She may also, eventually, get off coumadin. Sweet, doubled.

2 out of 3 ain't bad

"I want you (painted); I need you (painted); but there ain't way in the world I can finish you (this week). Now don't be sad, cuz two out of three ain't bad. Nah, two out of three ain't bad." + The harder parts are coming up, over-filled closet and bookcase of old books.

I have not yet heard whether the curtains were finished and what phenomenal price there is for cleaning.

+ Okay, so it isn't truly Meatloaf, but 3.2 of the walls are finished and the ceiling is done in the larger room -- living room, c/o Thomas