Labels: food, health, shopping, sickness, sports, television

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 10:50:00 PM

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"So," I said to James, "what do we have to do today?"

You know what? Nothing. No need to go out in the damn heat. So that's what we did. I happened to change stations on the television to find something better for Snowy and came upon the last day of the Royal Ascot races showing on NBC Sports until one p.m. Ascot is basically like the Kentucky Derby spread out in five days. The Queen opens it and often watches the races (sometimes she has horses entered herself), and everyone wears their best clothes (men wear morning suits!) and men have top hats and women wear all these little colorful confections of hats. I love watching the English race horses. American horses seem almost uniformly brown—chestnuts, bays, blood bays. The horses at Ascot come in all colors, and a beautiful grey horse (not a dapple grey, which is born black and gets whiter as he gets older, but a stunning silvery pewter color) won the Hardwicke Stakes, name Defoe. You can tell this horse was well raised; he was very calm and curious about everything, ears forward, just taking it all in. Little bit of a dish to his face; that's the Arabian blood showing through.

After the races ended I put on The Right Stuff. Lots of facts tweaked and humor added, and I understand Gordon Cooper hated Dennis Quaid's portrayal of him, but a great film about the awe of flight. I was curious what happened to Jane Dornacker, the actress who played the deadpan "Nurse Murch," so looked her up. Very interesting, but ultimately sad: apparently she was the postal service's first female carrier. She did Right Stuff and another film, then got into comedy and did news reports for WNBC radio. In 1986 she and the pilot of the helicopter she was riding in crashed in the Hudson River and both died. Since her husband had died not long before, this left their only child an orphan.

[Alas, on Sunday, my lower GI was in an uproar. I got the towels washed and the meds sorted, but I was pretty sick all day. Nearly threw up a couple of times.]

Labels: illness, movies, sports

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 11:15:00 PM

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Since the Stupor Bowl was being held this year at new our Origami Stadium—that's what I call Mercedes Benz Stadium anyway, because of the way its roof unfolds—there was more of a furor than usual around getting ready for it. I didn't want to set foot in a supermarket this weekend, so on Friday I went to Sam's Club (for milk and popcorn mainly, but also picked up a rotisserie chicken) and to Publix (for the twofers, and also found some nice lamb shanks) and got that over with. Both places were definitely more crowded than they usually are on Friday and you had to swing your cart wide to avoid the pyramids of soda cans, stands of snack foods, and the overflowing bakery plinths.

So we had a whole weekend with nothing to do! What a treat! On Saturday, we went to the Container Store (we had a coupon) and got James a new lunchbox for work. He hated to give the old one up, but its vinyl innards were shredding. They didn't have the little flashers for his power chair, though; not sure if they were out of stock or they quit selling them. Since we went to the Perimeter Mall store, we could also walk past the makeup store and nip into Barnes & Noble. I hate it that they no longer put the new books "up front" in the various genre sections. This makes it very hard to see what's new in mystery, SF, etc. One of the clerks told me once that all the new books face out, which is a fib; I've seen books facing out that have been out for six months sometimes.

We took our time and by the time we were finished it was late enough to head to Town Center for dinner: we went back to Fried Tomato Buffet. We figured going early we would beat the crowd, but there were at least two birthday parties in there! They found us a booth in the back and a place to park the chair, so it was copacetic. Later we drove home through the Kennesaw battlefield park, and there, amongst the walkers out in droves, were three deer calmly grazing on the greensward in front of the park building, between the sidewalk and the hiking trail at the back.

James spent some time down in his "man cave" that night while I listened to some episodes of the "Happier" podcast. Next morning we were able to sleep in, only going out to CVS (with another coupon) to get Band-Aids. Once again he spent the afternoon in the man cave and I watched the Puppy Bowl, part of the Kitten Bowl (adorable, but dull), and some Caught in Providence. I bet my mom and dad would have liked this show.

At 6:30 I put the Stupor Bowl on to see Gladys Knight sing the National Anthem—finally, someone who can carry a tune! instead of these recent pop stars and their dreadful vocal fry—and catch the Thunderbirds flyover of the Origami (they had the roof open for it, then closed it for the game), and learned to my dismay that this had been part of the pre-game show. Huh. To me the National Anthem is part of the game. Phooey on you, NFL.

In the evening, of course, it was time for another installment of Victoria. I had not known that person was going to be killed off, least of all in conjunction with another historical event (the cholera epidemic in which Dr. John Snow figured out that the vector was not bad air or "poverty," it was one particular contaminated well). Apparently the actor has another continuing role in another series where they play the polar opposite of the one portrayed on Victoria. It was very sad.

Labels: books, food, hobbies, shopping, sports, television, wildlife

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 11:16:00 PM

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(or "Football Game? What Football Game?")

James tramped sleepily off to work on Saturday and I commenced the hunt for the wild laptop. I stopped at Sam's Club, but they had nothing interesting. However, I did get milk, Skinny Pop, Chex Mix, onions and sugarless gum. Stuffing the milk in the insulated bags, I took our dry cleaning by the cleaner finally, having discovered that we hadn't done any dry cleaning since Leigh and Robbie got married. (Yes, that was last March.) Chatted to the elderly lady who runs the place. She broke her leg last May and was in a cast for the first eight weeks of summer. Bleah.

From the cleaner I went to MicroCenter. Why do they have 15.6 inch laptops for $300 and all the smaller ones are "gaming computers" that are $1,500? Gah. I did see a Dell two-way that looked interesting. The thing I liked best, however, in the entire store was a mechanical keyboard. Computer keyboards just don't give you that visceral feedback that typewriter keyboards used to. They had some keys sticking out of the box so you could try them out, and it was dreamy. But it was on sale for $129!

Since we had gone to Office Max last night and not seen anything promising on the laptop front (more huge cheap ones and expensive small ones, except for one that was a maybe), there was no use in stopping at Office Depot since they're now the same store. So I bit the bullet and went to Best Buy. I hate Best Buy half from a bill altercation I had with them years ago and half because their fluorescent lights make me lightheaded. Looked at a Lenovo 2-in-1 that would have been promising had it not had a lousy monitor; it looked like someone turned down the contrast button on the screen (but there is no contrast button on a computer, so I couldn't figure that one out). I was kinda taken by the 11.6 inch Yoga, which was small, but the keyboard just fit my fingers, but when I test typed on it, I understood the lengthy complaints on Amazon reviews: they have made the right shift key so small (the same size as a letter key) and then stuck it there next to the page up key so that when you touch type anything that needs a capital letter at the left side of the keyboard instead of a capital the cursor leaps one line up and you get a lowercase letter instead. Evidently the engineers do not touch type.

I should have stopped at HHGregg, but I was getting tired and hungry since it was nearly two o'clock. I did try to get into Costco, but the whole place was in a furor of pre-goodie buying for the Stupid Bowl and I couldn't find a parking place even at hiking distance. So I went to Barnes & Noble to get myself something to read (the collection of Valdemar short stories, and also picked up the formerly expensive making-of-Back to the Future book for 75 percent off) and then did a survey and had lunch cheap from Tin Drum, and finally went home to wait for James to get back from work so we could go to dinner (Hibachi Grill).

I have spoilt myself looking at that silly Surface Pro 4, but I can't help it. It has a dream processor and the screen is gorgeous. Looking at laptops after that is like driving a dump truck after testing out a Maserati. But I need to find a peppy dump truck and get on with it.  So we went back to MicroCenter to look at the Dell that was so promising, but it was now sold out. However, on the next table full of laptops was an Acer with the same specs (8GB RAM and a 256SSD) and not a bad picture. Guess what, they were out of that, too, but the Gwinnett store had three left. So we made arrangements to pick it up today. Just came home because James was tired and watched some Rosemary & Thyme and got off to bed.

So after this morning's breakfast and dog walking and tiresome going to the grocery store (where I got cut in line at the deli just for taking a minute to talk to James by some woman stocking up on a ginormous store of cold cuts for "the big game"), we headed out to Gwinnett County. Hadn't been to the MicroCenter here since they were near the Aviarium. The new store is as untidy as the old one, but larger and filled with all sorts of little gadgets and gizmos. Need to come back before Christmas to buy for geekish friends. All we did was pick up the laptop and come home because James wasn't feeling well. Spent the afternoon watching the Puppy Bowl and setting it up. (Also stumbled upon National Geographic Wild's Fish Bowl which was a series of terrible puns before settling on the National Dog Challenge.) We had a late lunch of chicken and wild rice soup from Publix and then just noshed for supper.

So I've caught up on Victoria, have WordPerfect and my HTML editor and Paint Shop Pro 5 loaded on the laptop, and after all the sturm und drang the Falcons lost to the Patriots, so there is no joy in Mudville Atlanta. At least there won't be a victory parade holding up traffic tomorrow.

Labels: books, electronics, errands, food, shopping, sports, television

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 11:05:00 PM

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Why is that alarm going off at eight on a Saturday morning? Because we had to be somewhere by nine.

The Butlers and the Boroses are always talking about this small meat market in Austell called Patak's. It's open during the week, but also one Saturday a month, the first weekend. We decided to finally go check it out this morning after a quick breakfast and a dog walk.

Next time we'll be there by 8:30...there was a line outside the small building and parking was at a premium; James almost had to park in the street then noticed a handicapped space was available. It took us about 45 minutes just to get inside; people were coming out with big, big bags full of all sorts of meat, and it's said people drive two and three hours to shop here once a month.

Inside, two walls are lined with meat cases, and there's a big freezer on the right as you walk in with pierogies, liver sausage, and other items. To the left are shelves with different ethnic foods. They even had flavored vinegars which I want to try next time, and lemon butter; lots of interesting things, plus big loaves of bread (ones I couldn't finish before they went stale). Once you get to the counter, one attendant serves you through the whole process. We bought a pound each of ground pork, mild Italian sausage, pork schnitzel, and thin-cut round steak; also a half pound of gypsy ham and a half pound of mortadella. The freezer is full, so we passed on the huge chicken drumsticks. They also had lots of different types of sausages and salamis and some of the fattest hot dogs I've ever seen. Made it out at less than $30.

Then we shoved it all into the insulated shopping bag and headed to Titan Comics for Free Comic Book Day. I couldn't look around much because of the lines through the store—graphic novels were 25 percent off and something else was half off, and unless there's more Elfquest out or they've done another adaptation of Bryant & May, I'm not much into graphic novels anyway and I don't game. I did get what I wanted: the Doctor Who comic, the comic book in which there was a new Owly story, and the Serenity comic.

We took the meat home and each had a sandwich of our respective cold cuts (nice mortadella). Tucker's eyes got really big when I brought the bags in the house; I couldn't blame him as I could smell the mortadella outside the bag. It made a nice sandwich in the baguette I got from Publix.

We went out to the Forum this afternoon, intending to stop at the Barnes & Noble (James still has a coupon left) and then go to Trader Joe's. The weather was 51°F and beautifully cool this morning, but by the time we left Patak's it was already hot and had crept up to 80 by the end of the afternoon. Some people are energized by the sun; for me it's like the sun takes a great big straw, sticks it in my neck, and sucks all my energy away through my spine. By the time we'd gone through the clearance items and I'd picked up A Front Page Affair (pre WWI mystery), "Just Cross Stitch" and a coloring magazine, and James had picked up a bunch of modeling magazines and "Cook's Illustrated," I was wiped out. We headed for Trader Joe's, but I couldn't bear the thought of standing out in the sun cranking the power chair down again and then back up again when we came out.

So, since it was 3:30, we just went on to supper at Williamson Barbecue. I'd been jonesing for riblets. They were good (lots of cartilage, which I love to crunch), but they always recall better than they taste. These were a bit overdone, too. James just had the appetizer sampler platter and took 2/3 of it home (it's a big "appetizer"). He went to the doctor on Wednesday and then Thursday, and it turns out he has two infections, including a nasty sinus infection that is making it hard for him to taste anything. What he does taste tastes mostly "off." Hopefully the antibiotic will kick in soon.

We got home way in time before the Kentucky Derby to see them run a turf race on an inner track at Churchill Downs. I didn't even know we did turf races here; I thought that was solely a British thing. Two horses fell in the turf race, but neither they nor the jockeys seemed to be seriously injured. The Derby favorite, Nyquist—people keep making cold medicine jokes—won by a length, the jockey keeping him up front for most of the race, but reined in, and then putting on the "gas" after the final turn.

Spent the evening with Father Brown and Rosemary & Thyme (I confess I napped through most of the latter) and Britcoms, did two other dog walks, and finally put TuneIn radio on. I've been itching all night, probably from being in the sun. Stupid thing.

Labels: comics, food, shopping, sports, television

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 11:53:00 PM

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First up: eight hours sleep. Very important. Unfortunately, I was very restless last night, tormented with dreams of things left undone, and, conversely, things done, ones that lay the foundations for other things.

Well, that's suitably cryptic. Let's get on to the day: awakened, walked the dog, grabbed a Belvita bar for breakfast. It was supposed to be 88°F today and I wanted to get to Sam's Club early. But first, took three Xerox paper boxes full of "stuff" to Goodwill: slippers that won't fit, two old antennas, a pillow for James that didn't work, ending with Mom's old television along with its converter box.

At Sam's we looked at sound bars, but didn't buy. Our 20 (?—maybe older) year old receiver is about to die—if we watch some movie, for example, and the music reaches a big crescendo, or if there's an explosion, the receiver will just turn itself off—and we're looking at a replacement, but in a rather desultory fashion. We were actually there for milk, $2.29/gallon, and a bag of Skinny Pop; also nabbed ibuprofin and omeprazole, and a couple of other items.

Then we came home for the afternoon. I copied off all but two episodes of Locke and vacuumed out the now cleared-of-junk spare room (except for the Christmas gifts that are slowly piling up in corners). I couldn't get the remainder done because the vet had called James yesterday and said Tucker needed his shots. I was flabbergasted; I thought he'd gotten all his shots in March when we boarded him and Snowy for Atomicon. Anyway, we got there, waited for a while and Tucker schmoozed with an elderly lady. Then we cooled our heels in the exam room while they took samples and gave shots, and then Dr. Mike came in and chatted with us for a while. He said there was no medical reason for Tucker's recent sexual interest in his blanket. Okay. Then we either stop him when he does it or just look the other way.

Since we were just on the other side of a building from the Dunwoody Sprouts, guess where we went to get supper. I got a large container of chicken noodle soup, two chocolate chip muffins for dessert, some apple wheatberry couscous, and about a quarter pound, if that much, of the dark chocolate covered honeycomb candy. Next Wednesday we get our Sprouts! Next Thursday I want Italian wedding soup for supper!

And, then, unbelievably, as we savor our soup:


First Triple Crown winner in 37 years! American Pharoah has joined Secretariat, War Admiral, Whirlaway, and their compatriots in having won the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. It was a beautiful run: pre-race the horse looked relaxed and interested, his ears flicked forward to the track, and during the race, his jockey held him just ahead of the next fastest horse until they started to emerge from the last curve, and then he had his head and ran like an angel. He barely looked winded as they walked him back.

Spending the rest of the evening watching Tucker sleep (just exhausted from investigating the vet's office and "getting shot") and The Big Picture With Kal Penn. (Maybe Star Talk afterwards.)

A funny: when I took Tucker out an hour ago, he went into hysterics over something on the street. It turns out that the grey-and-white cat that hangs around the neighborhood has become a mother: I counted three grey-and-white kittens. Triple Crown and three kittens.

Labels: chores, food, sports, television, weather

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 10:25:00 PM

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It wasn't the world's most sterling New Year's Day. James had to get up and go to work, although he didn't have to be in until eight. I tried to sleep in and was thwarted by (1) nature and (2) barking. So I got up, took Willow outside and then fed her, messed with e-mail and surveys, tried to read, and finally settled at the computer updating the copyrights on my domain and on my website. Yeah, I know. Thrilling, but it has to be done every year. I was DVR'ing the Rose Parade and didn't watch much, but I was keeping half an eye on it to see the big "controversial" float: I forgot who the sponsor was, but a gay couple was supposed to be married on one of the floats in keeping with the theme "Dreams Come True.". Several people on a mailing list I belonged to said they weren't going to watch it because "it wasn't family material." Sigh. Not family friendly, huh? Two gay men who have been in a stable relationship get married aren't family friendly, but a heterosexual couple who beat up their 2-year-old for peeing his pants are? or who starve their 6-year-old daughter to death? prostitute their children to people on the internet? Married heterosexual couples who abuse old people or sell meth or rob stores together with their child in tow or fence stolen goods are apparently "family friendly" simply because they are heterosexual, but a lesbian couple who are honest and loving aren't? Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

And of course, after all that, as far as I can tell, no one covering the parade showed the ceremony. Probably didn't want to hurt their ratings. Because, of course, it's not about what's right, it's about what sells.

When I got done with the copyright upgrades, I did a full backup of my hard drive. I've only done partials for the last two months, backing up only what needed backing up. I cleared the disk and started clean.

Willow kept me busy all afternoon asking to go out, which means I missed most of a treat: they had a hockey game on this afternoon, the Maple Leafs vs. Detroit, and it was being played outside and it was snowing. Reminds me of the old days when football games were played on real fields and the players got muddy or snowy or wet, not like these pampered, steroid-swollen, overpaid oafs who play in the comfort of a covered stadium. Would have been happy to watch it all afternoon.

I made turkey thighs for supper. Did feed some small pieces, sans gravy, and from the leanest part of the thigh, to Willow, who is definitely hungry, but who still refuses to eat the Hill's food. She had chicken once again, and some broth. Once James got home, I played the Rose Parade as we had supper; Vin Scully was the Grand Marshall and his voice is as mellifluous as ever.

Labels: computers, dogs, food, holidays, news, sports, work

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 9:54:00 PM

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Once they made the change to digital, the local channels ended up with these little "side-channels" or "sub-channels" that had other programming on them. WXIA, Atlanta's NBC station, has two of these sub-channels. One is a silent local radar, with temp and forecasts, the other is Universal Sports. Most of the time that I've surfed by, they seem to be broadcasting bicycle racing (occasionally swimming), but now that winter is here and the Olympics are upcoming, we are seeing snow sports: snowboarding, skiing, etc. Today during lunch they had women's skeleton, which means you like prone on a specially-made board the size of a serving tray and hurtle downhill head first along a twisting chute made of ice at speeds that go up to 75 mph by the time you reach the bottom of the chute.

May I be the first to say "barf ride"? :-)

But it's fun to watch. I love watching winter sports. Can't wait for the Winter Olympics. Last time we had a Winter Olympics we were moving, so I hope we can enjoy watching more this time.

Labels: sports, television, winter

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. . . . . noted and logged by Linda at 2:03:00 PM

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