Frys Food Stores

I have an on-going love-hate relationship with Fry's Food Stores.
Mostly, I only write about them when some ridiculous or outrageous thing occurs when I go there.
Just one, eensy teensy tiney example would be yesterday when I was walking out of the store and the dreaded alarm goes off.
It happens to me frequently anymore. I do not appreciate it, either. I have been going to Fry's since I was 10 years old, meaning I am a 35 year shopper at their stores. I do not recall ever stealing anything from them, even as a teenager, but certainly I do NOT steal items from them now, neither will I ever do so.

I am not that kind of preson, I still have morals and a conscience. That alarm going off is not only annoying, it is also at least somewhat humiliating. It announces to the Fry's shopping world that: "Hey, looky there, that guy is a thief, he is trying to steal something, tackle him to the floor" - or certainly that's the feeling one gets when that very LOUD thing goes off and then some dude standing there starts raising his voice at you and chasing you out the door, demanding to see your receipt.

I refuse to stop anymore. I don't even acknowledge that they are saying anything to me, or if I do, it's not anything that would be deemed nice or amenable. Nowadays, the store I shop at has a police officer standing out front. They are off-duty cops doing store security. Although I mean no disrespect to the officer, I will also ignore them as well. If they want to tackle me to the ground and arrest me, the City of Tempe and Fry's Food Stores will be slapped with a lawsuit so fast you'll wonder how I even had time to get home to call the lawyer to file the complaint.

Seriously. Dead serious. I am SICK of that damned alarm and yes, I did call Fry's corporate headquarters yesterday - and not surprisingly, I am definitely not the first person to call and complain about it. I have stood there and watched - for years now - that alarm going off on the elderly, young couples, all kinds of people who freeze in their tracks at the loudness of the sound going off and look around wondering what the bleep to do next. I am going to start making a big issue out of this until they change their modus operandi. I have seen those kinds of alarms all over the place at all kinds of different stores, I have NEVER seen them going off even close to as much as they go off at Fry's.

I will give Fry's one round of kudos today. I was in there waiting in an obscenely long line - there were only 2 full service registers going and the self-service registers were also backed up. The lady from the Service Department counter came up to me and said as long as I don't have anything that needs weighed - like veggies and such - she could help me over there. For as long as the wait would have been, I would have dumped anything that would need to be weighed just to get out of there. It's hardly set up for doing groceries - making her job even more difficult - but she did it cheefully and I was amazed at how long it was taking for the line I was originally in to get the one grouping of people that were first in line done with.

It never ceases to amaze me that a person forgets something, so - they leave the line, walk to the other side of the store - get what they want and come strolling back as if there was nothing else going on. Notwithstanding the fact that the line is being held up for everyone else that is waiting. This is another thing I have never understood why these stores allow to happen. There were 5 ladies that were buying something like 20 pies, 10 bags of potatoes and some other things that decided that they needed more pies - and had no qualms taking their sweet old time going to get them. The pies were half a store away from where they were.

Another thing that gets me are the people that apparently think all of this stuff they are buying is free. They MUST think that, because they don't even begin to get out their wallet until AFTER - EVERYTHING - is scanned, the total is rung up and the cashier is standing there, looking at the person blankly while asking for payment. I am guessing they aren't allowed to say anything negative to these people, that's no problem, I have no qualms identifying the fact that it's pretty much a sure thing that, if they get into line and all of this stuff is scanned and added up with tax, that they are probably going to have to pay for it.

Yes, I've pissed more than a few people off with my statements - and this should bother me? "Excuse me, miss, did you think you were going to get all of this stuff for free?" - and other little points that I like to make. They usually look at me funny at first and then realize what I am saying - and get mad of course. I am no less put off by their lack of action, ESPECIALLY those that are getting out checkbooks. If you are writing a check for your purchase, PLEASE GET IT OUT AT THE TIME THE CASHIER STARTS TO RING UP THE GOODS, not AFTER she/he is done with everything.

When this cashier was done and I paid for everything and was leaving - these people were STILL there, holding up the line. I can assure you right now that if I had had to stand there and wait for all of this nonsense, choice words would have been expressed at my displeasure - they had made at least 2 trips to get more pies.

Unbelievable.

Saturday

I did not get my paycheck yesterday. I'm not sure which is more unbelievable - that I forgot to ask for it or that my manager forgot to give it to me. Not the end of the world, it just dawned on me that my mortgage payment is still sitting at work. The mortgage company sent me a PILE of papers to read and sign. Ridiculous. I've ALREADY read, signed and sent more paperwork than it should take to buy 50 homes. Well, this paperwork is worth signing since it reduces my interest rate by 1.5 percentage - doesn't sound like much but when it comes to a loan that big, the savings both monthly and over the life of the loan are substantial.

Well, 2 days off. Non-paying tenant - paid last night. I have 2 weekly renters in here. I have no idea why this guy couldn't pay last week, but at least he communicated with me about it. I can deal with that - as long as there is an intended date to pay it up. The other weekly renter doesn't come "home" until - well today or tomorrow usually. He'll hand over $100. That's $275 total and some of that is going to Christmas presents.

I have a bunch of stuff to do around here - but I'm not even thinking of getting it all done this weekend. Just on-going projects and such. More walls in the house needed painted and I need to continue on with the drip system which was put on the back-burner while I was doing other stuff. I'm thinking of having my neighbor's son install a new condensor in my car - save a ton of money doing it that way versus having a shop do it - and then take it into a shop to have the system vacuumed and then recharged with freon.

Ummm, so today I think what I'm really going to focus on is trying to get my son's present. An iPod. A used one, and no, I'm not shelling out the money for an iPod touch. An amazing electronic gadget, yes, but - it's way too much money. No, he said he would be happy with one of the older models. Craigslist here I come, basically, see what I can find and if I can make deal today.

I would really, though, like to spend some time outside today working around the plants and yard. I have put all of that on back burner as well trying to get other stuff done. I am only having to water plants maybe every 4 days now. The ground stays moist and that's all it needs. I can't imagine how much lower my next water bill will be, but I'm sure it will be a pleasant surprise.

Umm, just rambling, really. I haven't read the news yet today, I'm sure there is some entertainment to be found there. Instead of getting mad at the stupidity - especially what our elected politicans are doing - I find ways to look at through humor. The health care bill - nothing humorous about it, but the way these people are acting is quite entertaininig. Like a bunch of kinder-garteners falling all over themselves, trying to all get their names out there so they can go down in history as part of "The Group" that will get this thing passed.

I wonder, however, how favorably history will actually look back at them. They will undoubtedly get this thing shoved through and I fear the financial chaos that will ensue. I have nowhere to go. People talking about leaving this country because of everything going on. Well, nice, but wherever you go, you are going to find problems - maybe different sets of them, but never-the-less, problems. Maybe go live in Somalia........lol.

I'm done - for now. Going to get started on getting things done around here plus have to go shopping.

Have a great day : )

ben

Let's Get On With It, Shall We?

I am sitting on the threshold of a 2-day weekend - as normal, then 2 days of work and then........5 days off! YEEEEHAAAAAAAWW!!

And Lord knows I need it. Another of our drivers is currently off and will be off until after New Year's!??! Okay, my turn's a coming. In a couple of months from now, I intend on taking a full week off plus weekends cushioning both sides which would make a full 9 days off.

I am again being entertained by the daily news I find on the internet. This time, a Senator was told he could not go on any further with his speech he was delivering, he was cut off. The reason? They wanted to get done with a defense bill they were trying to get passed and rush to get started on the health bill.

Isn't that the problem here? They are so full-blown into wanting to get this thing done, yet from what I have read, many of these senators haven't even bothered to read the entire script of the thing. They want to get this bill passed before or even ON Christmas Day.

Thanks, politicians, just what we need. Yours and Obama's legacy of casting trillions of dollars worth of debt that will never see and end. How much taxation will it take being dumped on each individual before we all stand up and say enough is enough? I dunno. I know the "taxation without representation" movement - if you don't know what I'm talking about then you must have missed high school entirely - well, elementary school as well for that matter - must have taken some serious guts to actually initiate and engage in.

I would like to see HOW it is that not passing this bill will cause the federal government to go bankrupt. Obama likes to throw out stuff to make people afraid - I'm not buying it.

Today's fare includes a trip to Scottsdale and then an attempt to pull, load and deliver a rather large order. Yes, well we'll see about that. The order may be put off until Monday because as far as I know, nothing has been done on it yet. My limited hours at work usually have me cut off from even starting on the next day's deliveries in terms of pulling the orders - I get off of work about the time that normally used to start happening when the hour reduction came.

Weekend plans are nothing more than attempting to find Caleb the Christmas present he wants, doing whatever as Secret Santa to someone on KCL - the person never did fill out the survey so I'm going to get "something" and if they don't like it, tough. I also have absolutely no clue what my middle brother wants, I have asked him several times. My mother's present is done and my oldest brother's present is on it's way. I have very few people to buy for - on purpose. I am not going to go broke spending money on presents that, mostly, have no meaning to the recipient. Christmas has mostly lost it's meaning to individuals who see it nothing more than a spending spree to get things. I'm more into the giving side of things than the receiving side, but I was most appreciative of mother's gift of a carpet cleaning machine.

Anyway, I'm outta here - work day is almost here.
Have a good one!
ben

Free Shipping Thursday - Today Is Free Shipping Day

.......and I intend on taking advantage of it.
Allegedly, hundreds of internet sites are coming together, so to speak, to all give away free shipping.
Omaha Steaks is on that list. Since my oldest brother and his wife are going to bother to do Christmas this year, I am going to continue on with my now-yearly tradition of sending them a steak package from Omaha Steaks. The free shipping will save a lot of money right there - they have to ship it in dried ice and that shipping isn't cheap.
Some of the sites are giving away free shipping for any amount, some are giving it away if you spend X amount of money.

Onto other things. "The Federal Government will go bankrupt" if the health care bill fails. He blames an "unsustainable path" for medicare and medicaid if no action is taken. Gee, there, Mr. President, we are throwing TRILLIONS of dollars at everything BUT those systems, if we would have just paid for those things and fixed Social Security, maybe this country would be far better off.
I don't know that the federal government going bankrupt is such a bad idea.

Perhaps some entity would then force us to change our outrageous spending habits. Or perhaps our lenders would take everything over? Now wouldn't that be fun, the United States of China - or - The United States of America run by the Chinese Federal Government. Turn us all into a bunch of communists and blatant socialists. How would you like to be told how many kids you can have, or how many pets you can have? No guns. No freedom of religion - they claim such over there but in reality, if you want to express your religious views, they force you to do it in state-run churches. If you go outside of them, you risk getting killed, basically.

Whatever. I drove over 300 miles yesterday - all over the place. A trip to Tucson - I-10 was pretty much open season for high speeds and I was going high speeds. There just wasn't that much traffic out there to slow everything down. It's funny to pass a cop sitting on the side of the road going 75mph or even a little faster and have them do nothing about it. Because it's legal, yes - just sayin' it's pretty good speed for a semi. A couple of small deliveries today - so small they are going to be done in the pickup truck. There is plenty to do around here - the yard that is - if nothing else comes up. We are slowly moving all material from the back yard to the front yard. Inventory is coming soon - we have to get the stuff moved and then located in the computer system.

Ummm, work day approaches, I must get offa here.
ben

Wednesday

I wonder what kind of contingency plan is in place when these pilots are testing new commercial jets in case the thing fails and crashes and burns. I assume this first Boeing 787 that took off - was it yesterday? - must have been flying over water or uninhabited land. Still, I would think there would be some sort of edginess on part of the pilots who - from my view - are risking their lives to fly for the first time a totally untested aircraft.

Who knows if the thing's wings are going to fall off after the behemoth gets off the ground? Especially with this composite material they are using to build these things now - even moreso when you consider that had to delay the first take off the plane on more than one occasion - but one of them being that they had to strengthen the area where the wings are attached to the fuselage.

At least the figured this out BEFORE the plan ever took off. It's fascinating stuff to me - I wouldn't want to be on that first takeoff - but I would have loved to stand there and watch it.

Today is allegedly another trip to Tucson. Apparently they couldn't fit the pipe onto the transfer truck that comes up every Wednesday. Yeah, I'll bet. Load the truck correctly and that pipe could have been draped over the top of everything, securely tied down and safely transported up here without a hitch. I know the driver - I'm not a big fan. I dunno, but I have to go to the jobsite first with another load, then another jobsite and THEN head to Tucson. If the Tucson trip is still a go, this is going to be a long day. I don't mind going down to Tucson, that isn't the point - the point is a waste of man-hours, fuel, wear-and tear on the truck - etc etc etc when it could have just been brought up on the truck that is already coming.

Oh well. I don't run the company, I do express my views at times. The contractor is apparently not happy that they have to wait for the rest of the pipe - though, from the beginning - the contractor was informed of the time it was going to take to manuacture this pipe and get it ready to go, it is no surprise. The contractor, howwever, apparently has a crew of people who are going to be doing - nothing - apparently.

By the time I get everything done and get back from Tucson, this day will be cashed and that pipe will probably not get delivered until tomorrow morning.

Well, onto other things. Not much else going on, really.
In fact, I have only a few minutes left and want to read about the now widely held belief that Iran is on the brink of being able to produce a nuclear weapon.

THAT is a bit scary.

G'day, folks.
ben

Obamaism

The news, as always, is a source of great entertainment. Lol. A statue of Obama erected in Jakarta? Lol. Now, of course, there is an outrage in that country by citizens who say that there are leaders from that nation that a deserving of such a statue but none of them have one. What IS the craze about Obama? The Nobel Peace Prize? ROFL!!! I am in no way racist and surely saying what I am about to will label me as one, I couldn't care less: this is more about the color of the man's skin than the alleged "greatness" of the man himself. There, I said it and I most certainly do not feel bad about it, because I happen to believe that, to a very great extent, it's true. Much of the world views Obama as a wimp, not as a great leader that has done - what? Let's see a list of things, folks, I would love to review it.

Next is Lieberman. He is dissing his own party, lol!!! Democrats are "furious" as the news puts it about his stance on the health bill and the desire to increase Medicaid benefits - as well as other issues. What always grasps my attention are the words "1 TRILLION dollars". This is what they believe it will cost to implement this program for the next 10 years. 1,000,000,000,000. Look at that number. Mark my words, if this thing passes and surely it will - they are hell-bent on it - it will end up costing DOUBLE or TRIPLE that figure. NOTHING the government EVER does stays on budget.

Where are we headed, people? I'm serious - how is all of this going to be paid for? How is all of this money already spent going to be paid for? The nation is UNEMPLOYED, taxes are NOT being paid right now, but these people in-charge think it a grand idea to burden the deficit and the public debt to the point - it's gotta break somewhere, sooner or later. WHAT happens when "it" breaks, I have no clue, but there is going to a point where we are no longer going to enjoy the lifestyle that we have fought and worked so hard to get that we have right now. The people that are making these decisions are RICH people, they don't have to fear and worry about the things the average-Joe like me has to, ie: how are we going to survive this?

I read in Craigslist ads every day the desperation of entire families that are broke, about to lose whatever dwelling place they have and can someone loan them the money or just plain give it to them so they can pay the rent? No, I am not trying to help these people, I am reading the stories, though. It gives a face to the seriousness of the situation that we are in, the same situation that our nation's so-called leaders apparently have forgotten about. Those people get the best health care coverage on earth - free. They don't pay a dime for it. It's like they get elected into office and then leap to another planet, leaving planet Earth and America FAR behind in their thoughts and actions.

I am fortunate enough to be able to say that if it really got THAT bad - where I lost my job, my home, everything, at least I have parents that would help me out. I know, it would be the lowest low of my life, but it would be better than living on the streets. Not everyone can say that they have that kind of backup. My brother is ALWAYS asking me what my backup plan is. Whenever I see him - which isn't that often - but whenever I see him, that's his question. I have no clue, dude. What is YOUR backup plan? Who has a backup plan in a recession or really, a depression such as what we're going through?

I'd be pounding the pavement like everyone else and take what I could get. That's my backup plan. I hope to hope's sake for sake's sake that I don't have to go there. I work my butt off at work, I press forward and I get the job done, do everything that's asked of me and go well beyond that without complaining and hope that, at the end of the day, I am still employed. What else am I supposed to do? Have we lost sight of the fact that there are still hundreds of thousands of Americans losing their jobs EVERY single month? And yet our clueless government keeps wanting to dump TRILLIONS of dollars into things that may have merit - I am not opposed to everyone being able to get health-care - but are TOTALLY ill-advised at this point. We don't HAVE trillions of dollars is my point. We aren't likely to have it any time soon. Let's just sell America to the world!!! Yayyyy - get taken over by the Chinese and whoever else is "investing" in America. The Canadians are coming to these parts in droves picking up cheap homes.

Whatever. My rant is over.
ben

Friday

Slept pretty well last night - that happens far less frequently than not. I did wake up at around 2:30 am but managed - somehow - to get back to sleep. If the alarm didn't go off this morning I would have slept many more hours, I am sure. Normally, I am awake well before the alarm goes off.

I got most of the Christmas lights up for my front yard yesterday afternoon. It looks pretty good - just a few dark spots I need to address and it's done. I would like to get a "Merry Christmas" sign - maybe someone's selling one on Craigslist. I forgot to check this morning and see how much electricty those lights are using - but I am not using anything near the 8,000 lights I got in that package deal. Some of the rest of those lights well be used indoors.

I still can't get over the fact that Midland Mortgage company actually reduced my loan interest rate. I have been riding on this one for days now. It's almost scary - like they were taunting me and in a week, they're going to call me back and say April Fool's in December.

It's funny that I am close to 2 years worth of payments on that house and the priniple amount has only come down maybe 2 grand. Hey, a lower interest rate will allow for more of the monthly payment to go to princple reduction. Or is that principal? I could never remember the 2, I have always goofed those 2 words up all my life.

We have 2 rogue nations that are nuclear weapons bound. I don't wonder if neither is doing anything to listen to the U.N. on the subject because - they can see that the other has had nothing done to it. N Korea has snooted UN resolutions for - a long time. Iran is so full of rhetoric - you wonder if those are manniquens you are looking at speaking on the TV instead of real Iranian officials. Certainly their president looks nothing short of a goofball. Actually, when I first saw that man, I immediately thought of a homeless person living on the streets.

No, really, that's the first thought that entered my mind. The guy LOOKS uneducated - whether he is or isn't, I don't know. Of course, our president is viewed as lame, weak and timid the world over at this point. Great portrayal for the greatest position of authority and power on the face of the earth, IMO anyway.

Umm, well that wasn't really a political rant, just more observations. Until the world really does something besides sanctions against these nations, they are going to continue to defy everyone. If Iran ever gets it's hands on nuclear weapons - I predict WWIII. I could be wrong, but the world will have to line up either for or against them, I have no doubt in my mind that those people would fire off a rocket with a nuclear package on it without thinking too terribly much about it. In fact, I think they would relish the idea of war and dying for their religious beliefs.

It would be Iran V Israel and then - of course - the world would have to get involved unless they just totally destroy each other. I have serious doubts, however, that Israel will ever be destroyed. Yes, that belief is steeped in religious belief, but I reserve that belief in certain biblical statements.

And since it' the CHRISTMAS Season (versus the Holiday Season, or Happy Holidays, or whatever other rubbish the world wants to come up with, I could care LESS if anyone gets offended that I say MERRY CHRISTMAS to them) I will take a few moments here and there to speak about religious beliefs and that's that.

Regardless, the work day is starting and I just found 2 deliveries that need to be pulled, loaded and taken to a new jobsite. Woohooooo! Gotta love it!
I do love my job, did I ever say that? Oh yes, like a thousand times!
C'ya later.
ben

Tuesday

Rain is gone.
Bummmmmmer!!!!
It was fun while it lasted.
I am at work - before signing in of course - reading the news online.
Chavez is an entertaining person to read, if nothing else. He's sort of a
circus-type mad-man who also happens to be president of his country.
I had wondered at first, when seeing him with Aminehmad or however that Iranian
president's name is spelled - that the connection was.
The connection is simply that these are 2 people that act like charlatons and make
wild, bold and outrageous threats on the world-stage, mostly, I am assuming, for publicity's sake.

When it comes to war, history always repeats itself. If I am not seeing the foundation for the next World War being put into place - if ever so slowly - then I don't know WHAT it is I am seeing. Russians are helping Venezuela by giving them a 2 billion dollar line of credit for - what else - weapons. Iran is defying the entire world, not just the U.S., in it's alleged quest of nuclear armament. Japanese have started a rift about U.S. bases on the island - whatever the name of it is - over there and a "pact" that is now threatened to be ignored. The Russians have always been a wild card, they're game for a show-down if anyone wants to engage in such. Then there's North Korea - all that garbage and the always effervescent Chinese.

The world simply cannot peacefully co-exist with such radically different views and takes on how life should be lived - or more importantly - how religion should be treated. It always seems to boil down to radical religious views that start major uprisings. Certainly Iran is no newcomer to that arena, now their president is saying that the U.S. is plotting to "block the return of mankind's Saviour" - and no, they are not naming the name of Jesus Christ as such, but some - entity I guess - that I have never heard of.

These are, however, just my musings and look at things political, religious and global. I have never espoused the idea of living in constant fear of something that might happen. Instead, I simply espouse the idea of being ready for your death on a daily basis. I don't necessarily even invoke the name of fear into that - but there is some validity to the idea of living each day as though it were your last. If you could pinpoint the day and hour of your death, I suppose you could therefore adjust your life accordingly near the end - if you were so inclined.

But you can't. I could get into the semi this morning, get on one of the freeways and be killed in some gruesome, horrific accident. This isn't way out there, either. I am coming to terms with things in my life as Christmas approaches and I ponder the meaning of Christmas, a thing that I can say with a certain amount of authority that most people are NOT doing. Of course, that statement is purely anecdotal, but still. Although the term "God" is still relevant in America, the exact definition of who God is has become quite muddied, and the name of my Lord and Savior - Jesus Christ - certainly is frowned upon by more than not.

Having lived the life of a missionary for half a decade and further ministry related activities after that, however, has me used to the idea that to profess Christ as your Savior somehow also paints you as a yellow-bellied, lemonade-bleeding, effiminate piece of human waste that is absorbing and using valuable resources - your, or my, life, therefore should simply end and discontinue the practice of breathing and wasting air.

I can most definitely assure you that I am no wimp. The things that I engaged in in my teen years are mostly held in disbelief by the people of whom push me about such stories as I am not apt to discuss them very much. It was a hideous, evil time of my life and I take no pride in the things that I did, especially to other people. I have had a life-long battle in dealing with the emotions that arise when I am faced with certain of life's perplexities - emotions that were born and nurtured during those teen years and such that I acted out on frequently.

Basically, when someone confronts me in anger, stupidity, whatever - someone is attempting to threaten me in some way, my natural tendency - the thing that arises within me - is to simply beat the s*** out of them, break their ribs, nose, jaw and a few other bones, send them to the hospital and let them have some time to think about their choices in life.

That was what life was about in my teen years. I do not, of course, allow those feelings and emotions to take over and actually act them out in my adult life, but I admit those things still occasionally raise their ugly heads and dealing with it can be internally torturous.

The point is that many men and women that profess Christ - lived a life of hell before they came to profess such. Murderers/brawlers/thieves - a huge list of things. It is conceivable that a person could push the wrong button on one of those people and then, the button-pushing person would find out just what a wimp that individual really - is NOT. Again, I take no pride in such feelings, in fact, it's an embarassment to me if I do happen to let some emotion take over.

So, my reflection upon the season. It's Christmas, not a holiday. Or, it's a holiday BECAUSE it's Christmas. And really, it takes much more inside of a person to just let another person's vile remarks wash over you like so much water on a duck's feathers than it does to get angry. It's easy to get angry, just let your emotion take over, it's a much more intricate and harder thing to NOT get angry, face the demons within you, confront them and back them down - and hopefully OUT.

I have learned quite alot in my adult portion of life in dealing with such emotion, but admittedly, I haven't "arrived" yet, and may never actually reach the pinnacle where I can say "I don't get angry anymore". The anger is almost always contained within me and rarely is it ever let out. Even if it is, it is pretty tame stuff. Fortunately, I rarely get angry anymore. Injustices heaped upon me are far better dealt with in a civilized, professional manner than to simply let loose. You get far better results and you don't feel stupid after you have acquired those results. Getting angry - doesn't really make a person look very good unless, of course, it's a "righteous" anger, such a thing that a person SHOULD get angry about. Even then, there is no purpose to violence excepting in very limited circumstances. I can see getting extremely angry about a person breaking into my home and hurting the occupants thereof - that's the kind of thing I'm referring to.

Just expressing some views here, I must be about the business of work at this point.

G'day.
ben

The Party

KCL isn't down today, but I cannot access - again - the posting screen, so, here we go again.
Party was awesome. Really, it was totally cool. The GM of our company's house is one of the most amazing houses I have ever been in. They just finished building it this year and moved in - took 2 and a half years to build. I'm guessing a minimum million for that house. The wood flooring - was quite unusual. It wasn't the generic stuff people are putting on their floors nowadays. No, it was from the floor of an old barn somewhere in the midwest. The pieces are all sizes - lengths and widths are all irregular.

But the effect was incredible. It was - glazed over is all I can say about it. The kitchen counter and island were also made of some old wood that had been perfectly fitted together and cracks filled in with some black substance and then coated. A built in coffee-maker - push a button and a cup of freshly brewed coffee comes out.

The square footage of their patio must have been the same as my 2,000 square foot house, it was THAT big. The grilling area was a griller's paradise. Gas grill - huge - with a built-in hibachi next to it. Stainless everything, including a refrigerator and heating drawers. Words cannot adequately describe the place, but the impression that hit me when I was walking in was that of walking into an old, rustic resort hotel.

Most were drinking heavily. I was not so inclined. I don't like getting drunk - I don't mind a couple of drinks but drunkeness is out of the question and I most certainly am not going to get busted driving home drunk and face the end of my trucking career. I had a couple of glasses of some very fine wine and also a cigar from a certain country.............

There are always awkward moments at parties. You know, when the talking lags, or you meet face-to-face you might have been at odds with - especially concerning a company party. I made it a point to talk to the dude that I have felt some tension with for some time now. I hit the "thaw" button when I started talking about being from Pittsburgh and a huge Steelers fan. Yup, he loves the Steelers too, though he's not from Pittsburgh.

The ops manager seemed to lighten up towards me quite a bit as well. He's usually pretty - quiet. He seems to be that way around the hourly workers. His wife seems to think everyone is afraid of him. I make it a point in life not to fear management. They are only human beings. They may be in a position of power, and certainly they deserve to be respected - but I also deserve to be respected, just like anyone else. I do a damn good job at what I do and I am proud of my accomplishments within the company whether anyone wants to recognize those accomplishments or not. I can guarantee you those managers can't do the job I am doing. Not saying that in haughtiness or brashness - the point is that within the workings of a company, it's all a big jigsaw puzzle. You don't have the full picture unless every piece is in it's place. Miss a piece, the picture is not complete.

My giant trays of cheeses and meats were a success as well. I brought plenty back - I didn't realize that so much food was going to end up there - but more than half of it was eaten. It will not sit around here and rot, that's for sure, it will disappear by tomorrow evening probably.

I could become a socialite again if I really wanted to. I'm not sure I'm there right now, but it does a person good to get out and away from the house and mingle with people. It's easy to get stuck in a rut and do the same thing over and over again every day.

I thought it very important to make a showing, really was the gist of it, but the party was good, too. The GM is all about relationship and teamwork - mostly thinking of the team as family in some regards and the way he addresses it in his mass emailings. I'm not really invited to alot of the stuff that goes on within the main branch office and people talking about going out doing this and that - not that I am having a pity party or feeling sorry for myself, quite the opposite. But it might be nice once in a while to get out with some of them and hang out a little.

So I'm home. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving get-together with "family", if you can call it that. My brother's son called my mom today asking if his uncle Ben and cousin Caleb were going to be there, apparently asking her to call me and confirm. I thought it strange - he could've just called me, I don't bite. But yes, I will be there with Caleb and we will do our best to enjoy the moment.

I got home too late - I was going to start painting the hallway. I didn't figure I would have enough time before - going to bed like in 15 minutes from now. I may hit that tomorrow morning - but I am really starting to get ancy about getting Christmas lights and stuff up. It's already the 5th of December and I have NOTHING out there. One of the neighbors down the street has their entire front yard decked out - I want mine to look at least close to it. Most of the people on my street do nothing for Christmas - not even a few lights in the windows. Wish that would change. Sorta reminds me of Christmas with the Klanks - the "deadbeats" who decided not to have Christmas. You'd have to see the movie to understand. Except this is opposite, instead of everyone on the street doing Christmas full-blown, hardly anyone does it.

Gonna have to get my energy levels back up and start hitting the stuff around here hard after work to get it all done.

Anyway, enough for one entry.
g'nite.
ben

KCL is down - well it's not really down, but I can't access it, everything is dragging. I have yet to be able to get to the 'new post' portion of my journal there since I started trying to several hours ago.

So I'll post here instead.

Yesterday evening - actually it was night time - it hit me. I have waited far more than long enough for my car insurance company to do something about getting my car fixed. Lke, what, a month and a half since the accident?

I started looking up the company's official's names online - this company has a site that has senior management names, phone numbers, email adresses and cell phone numbers. I was apalled. I would never put out my cell phone if I was a high ranking dude or dudette in a company. I called the number, of course, and yes, this man - the Chief Operations Officer of the company answered.

I detailed - detailed - the entire story, including the extreme rudeness of the woman that is in charge of my "case" and "investigation". He wanted off the phone - he was obviously not at work judging from the noises coming from the background and was also obviously annoyed at my intrusion into his personal life.

Tough. Don't like it, take your freakin' cellphone number off the WORLD WIDE WEB. After I made my point - excessively and on purpose since this company isn't doing it's job - he told me to send him an email with all of my info and he guaranteed that someone would call me back before noon today.

Sure enough, the manager that I had spoken with after I demanded a manager in the first round of calls - almost 2 months ago - was on the line. How can I help you, Mr. Ben B? Well, ma'am I have heard absolutely NOTHING from your company since I initially file the claim. No snail mail, no email, no phone call, nothing.

She's checking her information on her computer. She wanted to verify the address. I figured this one out before she gave me the address: they sent it to my old address, even though I have updated it, ON THE PHONE, WITH THEM, several times now. LONG before the accident occured as well. She claimed they has sent out a check on November 3rd. That's a while back. She sat on the phone, claimed she was cancelling the check and issuing a new one, yada yada yada.

She then questioned my letter to the Chief Ops Officer. I stated more info in there, including the part about the adjuster blaring at me on the phone that I was going to be charged with fault for the accident. The manager on the phone with me asked me how I had come to that conclusion? BECAUSE THAT"S WHAT THAT WOMAN TOLD ME. Oh, she replies. That's incorrect - the other party in the accident never called us, never filed a claim, we have closed the file and no-one has been charged with the accident.

I found a little gem on the computer online last night: I don't know if it's federal law or what, but there was a chart online showing people's complaints about this particular company and the law that was violated. You CANNOT be charged with fault for an accident unless the other party actually contacts the company and makes a statement. Well, you can if you call your insurance company and tell them you ran a red light, T-Boned another car, thanks for playing.

So, a new check is being sent out, and I'm sure it's low-ball. They already told me that if there is more that needs repaired that the check doesn't cover to have the insurance company call them and file a "supplemental claim". I'll bet a large proportion of accidents have such claims filed. They already told me that this check would not cover getting my AC fixed. Well, there's probably $500 right there at least.

Certainly this isn't behind me yet, but it's a step in the right direction. I forgot to ask whether I have rental car coverage or not - I will have to be able to get to work somehow during the repair process - which is usually at least a week in such cases as the damage to my car - not extensive but enough to make it worth several days. There is a good auto-body shop across the street from my work, since they are sending me the check, I am going to get an estimate from them and see what they come up with.

Changing gears. I'm toodling down I-17 today in the semi, singing to a song on the radio, enjoying the ride, watching extremely stupid drivers do extremely stupid things in traffic. The phone rings. I only recognize that it's one of the numbers for our main branch, I cheerily answer with my company's name and my name. It's the Ops manager. He NEVER calls me, I had no clue. He's calling me to tell me what to bring to the company party tomorrow.

I had responded to him last week about bringing something - everyone is supposed to bring some kind of dish - and that I didn't know what needed to be brought. He wrote back and said he would let me know. It's the day before the party and now I know, lol. A meat and cheese tray.

I stopped by Walmart on the way home - their trays looked pathetic, small, not much meat or cheese but a hefty price tag at $15. I then stopped at Fry's Food Stores - same thing, good sized price tag, but for $15 - the same price, I figured I could make my own tray and get 4 times the product at least for the same price or a little more.

I bought a half ham; pepperoni; a large summer sausage; 3 kinds of cheese and a box of crackers. Total cost $20. I won't be taking all of it. I'm simply going to cut all of it up tomorrow morning, put it on a couple of large trays and take it to the party. The other half - at least - that I keep will be for me : )

Today, I go to a contractor's yard to deliver a fire hydrant. An older gentlemen comes up - we start talking. He asks me to get into the loader and get the hydrant off the truck. Sorry, I am not allowed to operate another company's equipment - as much as I would have LOVED to, I love those machines, they're huge, powerful and fun looking. He got in - couldn't figure out how to start it. Then he couldn't figure out how to move the arms up and down. Then - he never did figure out how to get the thing to move. I figured there is a safety switch somewhere, but Iwasn't in the machine and I couldn't play with it.

Sure enough, there is a safety on one of the joysticks. Another guy showed up and - he took a while to figure it out, too, actually. Half an hour to unload one, single hydrant. No big deal.

I also dropped off 200 feet of schedule40 PVC pipe at my house today. Freebie. This pipe has been out of inventory, in our yard for years now. It is never going to sell. I am going to use it for a water outlet in the back where I figure to put an evap cooler out there when summer comes for the dogs. My neighbor - the car selling dude who has the used lot all over our street - was out there working on a boat he apparently acquired. I finally said hello to him. I have stayed away from him because of that felon next door to him - the ex-drug dealer. He's a cocky, mouthy, arrogant, heady SOB who is almost always over at my neighbor's house, I just totally ignore them for the most part. He said hi back - he was obviously still sick. He helped me unload the pipe.

The second newest tenant showed up several days late last week to pay the weekly rent. He was coming home - today actually on Fridays - to pay it. I haven't seen him and I can only suspect he is having trouble getting the money together. I offered to reduce the rent - not substantially but some - rather keep people as long as possible than have to continuously keep finding new people and having to lose rent in the interim of not having them in here.

Ummm - so - I'm trying to get my head into the "party mode" for the company party tomorrow afternoon. Dunno why I can't seem to be able to do it - yet anyway. I will spend a good hour just cutting all that cheese and meat I bought for the party tray. I dunno, but it's after 9:00pm, my bedtime and I'm outta here

G'nite.
ben

Thursday

I've been having a bit of a problem at a particular contractor at one of their sites when I go to deliver material there. The problem is having to wait extended amounts of time to get the truck unloaded. I will unload the truck myself if it's something I can do - but in the case of 20,000 pounds of pipe, that isn't a happening event.

Mostly, I have to wait at least an hour to get the truck unloaded - which is unacceptable. My new manager is having a little trouble trying to figure out what, exactly, to do in such situations, my old manager is giving him some good advice - the same thing I have already said to him in various ways a couple of times now. When something like this becomes a recurrent issue - the manager calls the person in charge at the site and gives an ultimatum: get the truck unloaded within the next 30 minutes or my driver is going to leave and you can come pick up the material at our yard.

Today, getting the truck unloaded wasn't an issue. I called ahead, they told me where to go with the pipe, the loader operator met up with me, we got the pipe off of there. The guy said we should unload the rest of the stuff in their yard, about half a mile away. No prob. I get there, get the rest of the material unloaded, he signs off on the paper, I start pulling out to leave. I'm almost at the exit gate when the "big dude" comes walking out in a big hurry, motioning me to stop.

He is obviously unhappy about something. I turn the truck off - it makes too much noise to have a conversation - and ask him what's up. He begins to chastise me for not having HIM check the load. He then goes into the last time I was there - earlier this week - when I had to wait over an hour and a half to get the truck unloaded. I had waited in the yard - spoken to fully 3 honchos - none of them got anyone there to get the truck unloaded. I went into the head honchos office again and he said he would have someone out there - that was one of the guys I had ALREADY spoken to well over an hour earlier.

The point? I'm getting to that. I was told to restrap the truck - after the guy noted that I was getting the truck ready to be unloaded at the yard - and go to the street to unload all of that pipe. So, I had left the stuff I could unload by hand at the yard, I had the pipe unloaded by the street. Yet another foreman told me to simply have the loader operator sign off on the material. So, he did.

Mr. Big Man today had a cow about that. WHY didn't you have ME check the material? In very nice tones - giving him respect even though he was talking down to me - I informed him that that is because I was instructed by (name inserted here) to have the loader operator unload the truck, and since I had spent 2 hours at the sight, I needed to get out of there anyway.

Well, he says, those guys don't check the material, from now on, you will come and get me to sign off on the paperwork and I will check to make sure everything's there. Further, I spoke to (the outside salesman, name inserted here) and he said that however long it takes, you (me) will have to wait, it's water under the bridge".

Yeah, right dude. I didn't say that and I did not argue with him, I simply accepted his statement, waited for him to check the material, it was all good, I left. I did not, however, accept his statement in reality, I just nodded my head, said okay. It is most definitely NOT acceptable for an outside salesman to give the contractor permission to take however long they want to get a truck unloaded. It never has been and it never will be. I explained all of this to my new manager, he consulted with my old manager - who told him the 30 - minute rule. He wrote to the Ops manager and others in higher level management - the outside salesman is going to have a dose of reality served to him.

But that isn't the end of this. The INSIDE salesman for this account called me just before I was leaving work. "Did you get into an argument with this guy?" NO, I did NOT. I NEVER get into arguments with contractors, if they are going to get argumentative I always refer them to the salesman. Yada yada yada, I'm being instructed by a 23 year old know-nothing that is always screwing things up. I explained to him WHY this guy was probably perturbed with him. I have no doubts that the outside salesman for this account is going to have a cow and is going to try, once again, to get me reprimanded (or fired). He has tried in the past, but I have done nothing wrong. I cross my T's and dot my I's in this business. I have been there, done that and I KNOW what possibly can come down the pike.

That's my day - at least at work. It was a bit irritating with all of this coming from all sides. At home - where I am at now - the exterminator showed up, "Scorched The Earth" as they describe the treatment to get rid of tics. I'm staying inside longer than they recommended - the dogs don't need to get poisoned and neither do I.

ben

Tuesday

My new manager brought in the washer and dryer set today. It looks great - albeit the fact the set is 10 years old. I did not install them, I just got them on the property and will be thinking about doing that tomorrow. Can't go wrong for the pair at $50 - can't unless, of course, the units fail in 2 weeks. Lol, I didn't ask but he wants me to use them for a month and if they are still working then, give him the $50.
Okay.

I can't count the number of times I was cut off in traffic today in the semi. I had a heavy load on so I was easing back on any speed factors. I'm in your way, so go ahead, fly around me, cut directly in front of my truck and then slam on your brakes to make that right turn that you just saved a billionth of a second in executing by executing your outrageous reaction.

I took that heavy load right into the Driver's License division place today - right into the CDL test track. No testing was going on. In fact, I have NEVER seen any testing going on there. I wanted to find out how long I have to renew my license and also to pick up a CDL manual to study for the test. I could pass the test without it, but - I'm just one of those people, study, study, study and then go in and do the test. I figure sometime next week. Get it out of the way before the end of month - JUST in case, I DON'T pass it.

However, the test isn't that hard and the questions are all basically answered through the manual. Too bad the State of Arizona, at least according to the lady behind the counter, is out of the manuals. When she said they didn't have any, I asked where the nearest location is that does have one. "There ARE no more manuals, we have them ordered but right now, the best you can do is print it off the internet".

I stood there in silence, looking at her. Huh? There are NO locations that have this manual anywhere? In my mind, I thought: Who is the genious that lets ALL of their stock of these rather necessary manuals to run out completely? As if she were reading my mind, she says: I've ordered more but for right now, you'll have to go through this, handing me a piece of paper with instructions on how to find the manual online.

I looked around the room. This room was for nothing but CDL stuff, no regular licensing in here. I saw the faces of future truck drivers and wondered if they had any clue what they were getting themselves into. I watched a guy getting exasperated because he had failed the written test. How do you fail the written test? It's 100 questions. If you study the manual and memorize most of it, you will pass the test.

I didn't feel bad for him - he either came unprepared or he doesn't have a clue. At his age, starting out on a "career" like this one (he looked to be in his 40's) and not even being able to pass the written portion of the test - which is definitely the easiest portion of the test - he probably doesn't belong on the road.

I finished the conversation with the lady behind the window - she was all for me taking the test today, no way I could do it. I was on my way to a jobsite, the only reason I picked today to stop was I really had NO idea when my license was going to suddenly expire (it was good until I turn age 65 on my birthday, now they changed the rule to have to have it renewed every 5 years) and needed the peace-of-mind of that particular date. Some serious backing skills were used just to get OUT of the place they have trucks park. I guess they don't expect drivers to pull in with loaded trucks on a fishing expedition.

The jobsite was a joke. These people make me wait a minimum of 1 hour to get unloaded. Today started to piss me off. The dude above dudes was waiting for my arrival - he needed a fitting. He took it an left. Another guy showed up for another fitting - he took 3 of those and left, but not before I asked him about getting the truck unloaded. He said he would take care of it.

Been there, done that, I've talked to 2 people about getting the truck unloaded now, let's wait and see. I don't see, actually. I close my eyes and go to sleep. I have no reason to sit there for 45 minutes doing nothing, I would rather just take a nap. I REALLY fell asleep - about 30 minutes worth, no-one had showed up. I get out of the truck, go to the office and the 3rd person I talk to about getting it unloaded - I'm now over an hour at this site - is surprised to see me still here.

Yes, well this isn't the first time he's seen me walking in after he's allegedly told someone to come unload the truck. He assures me that someone will come to unload the thing. The dude above dudes shows up - this is now 75 minutes later. He says we have to take the pipe to another location, that they really don't want to unload the pipe here.

Now, this is where I'm starting to get a bit peeved. He KNEW I would unstrap the load there, I told him that was what I was doing, now an hour and 15 minutes later he's telling me to put " a couple of straps on it we have to take it down the road a bit".

I informed the man that I will have to fully restrap the load - the pipe is too heavy and I can't drive it on the street like that. You wanna know what would happen if I got into an accident with understrapped load? Even if the accident weren't my fault? Even if the load didn't come off? BIG trouble. I told him he could come back in 20 minutes cause' that's how long it's going to take. He didn't say anything, I just started the strapping process. I'm not losing my career - or killing someone - because he's suddenly in a hurry.

We get out on the road - another of this company's foremen sees me - coming from the other direction on the street - pulls over and then pulls in front of me - totally cuts me off. Okay, dude, where ARE we going with all of this? I am REALLY starting to get annoyed with all of this now, but I'm keeping a lid on it. This guy that cuts me off? We get to a stop sign, he signals for me to stop. The signal is putting your hand out the window, clench your fist and open it and clench it again. WHY does he want me to stop in the middle of the street? There are 10 cars behind me.

He gets out, races to the barricades and starts removing them. I have not positioned the truck to turn into THAT mess. It's a right hand turn - there are barricades on every corner. I end up going into opposing traffic lanes, all 4 corners are stopped waiting - they have no clue what I'm doing. I'm heading northwest to make a turn going east. Lol. I swung the truck around the entire intersection and then heading back east to make the turn. I went slow - never know if one of those car drivers are going to think I'm doing something that I'm not.

This delivery seemed endless. The loader operater dropped an entire lift of pipe onto the ground. He also dropped a stick of ductile iron pipe. He was lucky the street had been torn up and it was now dirt - if it had been asphalt, most of that pipe would have been destroyed due to the hard surface and shattering effect.

FINALLY this delivery is over and I am making poste-haste for the yard. I have to get back, get into the pickup and drive home with the washer-dryer set. Off the clock, of course, but I'm already 3 hours over and only 2 days into the pay period. I would be 4 hours over if I had gotten my breaks yesterday and today. I suppose you could call my snooze at the contractor's yard a break, so I'll call it half an hour from yesterday - I was moving all day long.

My life really doesn't have a lot of changes. I have financial emergencies seemingly frequently. I get out, but not a lot. I've been thinking about a change for a while now. I dunno what, but life needs to take a new direction with new challenges.

Well, it's almost time to go to bed.

G'nite.
ben

Printer

It's literally been many months - close to half a year - since I've had a working printer. I have one sitting there - it won't print. The thing was knocked onto the floor thanks to dogs and it will not sync itself on the rail. I've looked on Craiglist I dunno how many times trying to find another one - this is old but works well enough, I though to find someone selling one so I could use my full in cartidges in it.

Only one find and the person advertised it too high - I could have bought a new printer for that money - and I told them so. They didn't care, too bad. I checked back several times - it wasn't sold.

Today I thought to do a search on all of this Cyber Monday junk and see if I could find a super deal. I went to a lot of websites before finding Office Max deal on an epson printer that is normally $149.99 selling for $69.99 with free shipping. Yes, I don't even have to go to the store. And yes, I bought it. I can't go without a printer, I have needed one on too many occasions. The printer I am getting is cool - it works through my wi-fi network, it's wireless and I won't have to worry about dogs pulling the wires on it - accidentally of course - and smashing it on the floor.

In fact, if I so opted - which I probably won't but just sayin' - this printer can be used by anyone in the house with a computer. Printers have come a long way, baby. I had no idea they were building them with wifi access, that's just weird, really.

I would have bought an extended warranty for at least a year - but there was none offered. It should be here before the week's end.

I have a new tenant - and this guy is a keeper if at all possible. Clean, quiet, normal. Works out - he has arms as big as my legs - getting to the point of motivating me to start working out again. He's paying weekly - I guess that's all he can afford. I'm going to sweeten the deal - I'm charging him $110 per week, I offered him $40 back at the end of the month if he stayed the entire month. I normally only charge $375 per month for that room - so I figure to offer him all the money down to $375 back if he stays - and pays of course - for the entire month. Meaning the 4th week he would pay all of $45.

He spent an hour cleaning that bedroom - moved the furniture, vacuuming, spray cleaner with paper towels, whatever he was doing in there he was cleaning like crazy. He brought my vacuum back out - the canister was FULL of dirt.

Ohhh that I could get more tenants like that. Well, really, one of my current tenants is here so infrequently, he really doesn't live here. The ex-Marine is leaving sooner or later - though he just paid up last month and ALL of this month. I'll take that and clean up some of his messes in the bathroom, which is basically his "major" fault.

I dunno, I am just happy that 3 rooms are rented and if one is emptied, I hope to be able to re-rent it quickly.

Anyway, a sigh of relief.

I am hopefully getting the washer and dryer set tomorrow. My manager - who is giving them to me for $50 - didn't bring them today because his help to get the machines into the vehicle didn't show up. I have loaded and removed washers and dryers in and out of pickups by myself. Pretty simple: Put a blanket on the bed; lay the machine down on it; slide it to the tailgate; slide it until it starts lowering; grab bottom of machine; slowly allow it to come down to the ground. No damage to truck, no damage to machine, walaah. Yes, I've done that with refrigerators as well. Not everyone, I guess, is as motivated about things like this as I am. I need the set, I will gladly unload them into my back yard by myself if no-one else is around and get the job done.

Well that's it. I got up at 4:00AM this morning, at work at 5, off work at 3 something, don't even remember. Have gotten nothing done around the house - don't care. When I'm this tired, I just do some basic cleaning around the house and that's it.

G'nite.
ben

If I Accomplished Nothing Else..........

..........this weekend, today's event would have been enough. The man showed up with his bags and rented the room sight unseen. He didn't care. Very nicely dressed dude - on some pretty hard luck and bad times. The room isn't even available yet - won't be until tomorrow morning. He didn't care about that, either. He's living in a hotel, paying bookoo bucks to stay there and wants out of it. Yes, he handed over the first week's rent and I gave him a receipt, and yes, that money is non-refundable. I put his bags in my bedroom closet, locked them up. He said he would be back tomorrow and that was the end of that.

Amazing. That was much easier than most of these rentals. A woman called 10 minutes ago asking about the room, I forgot to take the ad down (now accomplished). Weekly rentals are a bit unnerving - especially having 2 of them now, since they can pretty much leave at anytime. Not that they can do that legally - there is minimum notice given by the state of AZ - but I allow for short notice. I am trying to get people in here.

Even better is that this man is paying $110 per week - $440 per month. I normally get $375 per month for that room, but weekly renters will always pay more.

Anyway, that is a sigh of relief - at least temporarily - until the next person leaves, which would be the ex-Marine, no date as a move-out day yet.

I HAVE accomplished quite a lot around here this weekend, stopped in the middle of it to fix turkey dinner. I have to say that cooking a turkey is the easy part, it's the part about getting all of that meat off of it that takes time. I clean that bird down to the last smithering of meat. What is not good for humans goes to the dogs - meat anyway, the bones are already in the trash. Excellent dinner, btw, a nice way to end the weekend.

Busy day at work tomorrow. I have to be there at 5:00am, meaning getting up around 4:00am. I don't really like getting up that early, but duty calls and the product has to be on the jobsite for month-end final push to get whatever we can out the door and onto the books. It just means I will get off even earlier, like at noon I believe. There are 3 deliveries - 2 of them large and one small. The truck is almost done being loaded, and this was another "Technical Load", I like to call it, where you are racking your brains attempting to figure out how to get all of that stuff onto the truck, have a safe load and be able get it all of at respective delivery spots without having to take anything else off to get at it.

So, I'm almost at the point of giving myself a pass for the rest of the day - almost. I have more I want to get done outside so - I'm headed out there in a few minutes to git-er done. It's just that I know next weekend I will be next to useless. There is company part on Saturday and our family's Thanksgiving get-together on Sunday. I won't get anything done excepting maybe laundry so - just want to get some things done around here today.

So there it is. Plenty done in the last several days including visiting my dad on Thanksgiving for dinner, I think I'll put in another hour or 2 and call it done for the weekend.

ben

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just want to take a moment to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving and hope that you all will take a moment to reflect on the things you have in your life and give thanks to - whoever you give thanks to - I personally give thanks to the Lord God Almighty. And Jesus the Christ for hanging on a cross, shedding his blood and giving us all the opportunity to have eternal life. And, of course, the Holy Spirit, who is here with us, teaching us, comforting us and showing us the way.

I would go into it more, but I have limited time on this hotel computer - though no-one seems to be waiting to use it. I guess most people have laptops nowadays and the rooms have plug-ins for high-speed internet.

If I buy another computer, it will not be a laptop. It will be another desktop with a bit faster processor and a lot more ram and such.

Anyway, Caleb and I got here yesterday and visited everyone at my dad's house. They were, however, mostly drunk. Not my dad - he has a glass of wine here and there but drunkenness is not in the cards for him (thankfully). The 2 fathers of his wife's kids are a different story. They had been drinking for quite a while before we arrived and were yakking it up - and not letting other guests have much of anything to say.

I usually just back off in such situations, it's not worth trying to out talk someone who is quite inebriated and is enamored with the sound of their own voice - and that is exactly what I did. Instead, I spent time talking with dad and his wife and - it was freezing cold! They had a HUGE spread of food out there - of which I partook - but sparingly. I'm trying to get a handle on weight gain and make it go the opposite way. I give myself permission, however, to indulge today.

For that, I only had a bagel at their huge breakfast offering at this hotel. We are eating Thanksgiving dinner at noon-thirty - so that was enough for me. Caleb loves coming to these hotels with workout gyms and heated pools. It's sort of a mini-vacation excepting our stay here is limited to last night and we are checking out in about an hour and a half.

I haven't had any more inquiries about the room - but I only posted the ad once. Tomorrow one lady is supposed to visit and take a look. Another guy called from out of state - but I am going to re-run the ad.

That's about it, I think there are other people waiting to use this computer and I don't want to be a computer hog, so I am going to get offa here.
Hope you and yours have a wonderful day and a nice feast if you happen to celebrate the day.
ben

Dogs Revisited/Fry's Food Stores

The neighbors to the east of me have apparently banished their dogs to the east side of THEIR house - since I am on their west side, that means I don't have to listen to those dogs barking all night long!! Yayyyyyyy! I wonder how long that is going to last?
I had thought they might have gotten rid of them since I haven't been hearing anything from them at all - but I saw the puppy peeking out the gate on the other side of their house yesterday. The dog actually likes me, but there is no way for me to pet the dog or give it the attention it badly needs. Those 2 dogs are totally neglected in terms of any kind of affection.

The German Shepherds on the other side are also, apparently - and hopefully NOT temporarily - being kept indoors at night as well.

Well, I bought my turkey at Fry's Food Stores yesterday. I was picking through the pile, looking for the largest one they had. If you're going to cook a turkey, you might as well cook a BIG turkey for all of that kind of work. The biggest one in there was a 15 pounder - 5 pounds shy of what I would have liked to have gotten (good English, aye?). I know the cashier from mobile home park days, of which neither she nor I (that's a little better English, doncha think?) live anymore, I was commenting about the lack of any large turkeys.

I was NOT complaining, though I was considering buying 2 of them since the sale price is 37 cents per pound. I have room in my freezer and even if I don't, there is room in the freezer at work here (here, cause' that's where I'm at right now and about to go to work for the day). She called to the back, talked to someone on the phone and a few minutes later - kablaaam! It's the dude that started trouble with me many months ago. Every time I'm in that store, he gives me the stares and glares routine. I simply smile back at him - life is too short to waste precious, internal resources on stupid people.

The look of shock on his face when he saw who he was bringing the turkey to was priceless, I ever-so-wish I had had my camera with me to eternalize that moment (now were getting into the really-good English, lol). He actually wasn't going to give me the turkey! He dropped his hand down with the turkey in it and started to walk to the back, I stopped him, said I'll take that and thank you so much, have a great day. He did not give me the same amenities in return, he instead grumbled, got a scowl on his face, muttered something else unintellible (and I'm sure I wouldn't want to know, anyway) and walked off.

Nice, huh? I didn't get management this time, not worth wasting my time. This is one miserable person whose misery started LONG before I ever showed up, I want no part of it. I guess he doesn't have to interact with the public too terribly much, which is a good thing for him cause' if he did, I would assume that, inevitably, customer service issues would arise.

Well, it's 2 minutes before I have to log-in, so I'm outta here.
Have a great day!
ben

The Newest Tenant............

.....may already be leaving. Sucks. Good guy, easy to get along with. He came to Phoenix from NC specifically to go to ASU - Arizona State University. They are telling him he has to be here a year before he can get resident status - and get resident status rates. The difference? $3,000 and change per year for tuition for residents: over $19,000 per year for non-residents. OUCH!!! He's meeting with the Dean of whatever - admissions I guess - on Monday to see if he can somehow get a waiver.

If he can't, he says he's moving back to North Carolina and go to school there. He was telling me an amazing story of his first kill - off the coast of Somalia earlier. Yes, it was pirates, and the pirates were going to shoot off a rocket launcher it him and the boat he was in - he got the kill shot on that dude and that dude - is dead. I have no sympathy for those pirates and now they have made it much worse for themselves by killing that captain of the Maersk. You think the Chinese military is going to have any problem shooting first and asking questions later? I thought not.

Well, anyway, at least I will know soon whether he's leaving or not so I can get an ad up in time for month-end. It appears the ex-Marine is staying at least through December. The other guy I have no clue about. I would love for this guy to stay - he wants to do the work-for-reduced rent thing starting December and I have plenty for him to do. Whatever, I have resolved myself that this is just going to be an on-going thing: finding tenants. It's a transient world, it's a transient house apparently.

To another subject, Michael stopped in earlier to get the boys to go play football. When they returned, he dropped a bomb. Anthony wants to apologize and move back in. Lol. Lessee - broke my windows, threw rocks at me, made some of the most demoralizing statements I have ever heard - especially coming from a kid, doesn't work, doesn't go to school, smokes pot all day long, steals. That's a tough decision.

I'm trying to motivate myself to get outside and start doing some stuff. I met up with Sugarcane/Kelly of KCL today and it was a nice time out. She's a very cool person - we ate at a diner which has some fine food and great service. Good times. But I was stuffed and still am - which usually slows down the idea of going outside and doing anything. Or inside for that matter.

No, the lazy button has been pushed on me and there is nothing pressing. I rarely take a day off on the weekends, but today is apparently going to be one of those days. When I do take a day off, I usually regret not having had gone into a flurry of activity and getting things done, but I don't think that will happen this time. I have been going for a long time now - every day doing something around here beyond work. Waterings can wait up to 3 days at this point, so that can even be put on hold today as well.

The only real thing I want to accomplish this weekend is get some new tennis shoes for casual junk and probably a decent pair of pants for my trip for Thanksgiving with the folks. It's going to be held at a fancy restaurant and I want to be semi-dressed up for the event.

So, I have made up my mind- nothing today. Undoubtedly, that will change. I will end up starting to clean the place up and doing my weekend cleaning so that I can have tomorrow to work outside.

Oh well, it was a nice plan, anyway.

ben

Quest For New Washer/Dryer Set

My washing machine is going to take a dive any day now. It's making a noise so loud I have to shut the door on that room to keep it down and the thing is shaking the entire house, literally.

I was at Home Depot yesterday getting yet another doggie door - this is the 4th one I believe - on warranty. I have an arrangement I have set with myself now - all receipts go into the trunk of my car. I will not lose them there, they will not get sun-bleached in there and I can FIND what I am looking for in there. I take the doggie door back in it's original box - yes I keep boxes until I figure that a product is good and I won't need to be taking it back - with receipt, get my money back and then go get another one.
Well, I'm in there and conversing with the lady at the counter where I was returning the door about the service at Home Depot. An older lady chimes in that it's because they are working there - it was all good - but I was being serious. Every time I go in there I get a hello, how ya doin', stuff like that -whereas before, I would get glares, stares and jeers. We had a pleasant conversation that went well beyond the time of the refund - there was no-one else there to return anything so I wasn't holding up any line.

I leave and go back, find the exact same doggie door at the exact same price. The older lady happens to be walking by me at the back of the store while I'm walking past the washers and dryers, lusting after the front load deals. Those washers use less water, less electricity and are just plain beautiful. What I was astounded by was the price tag: $400 - down from $800. They are on sale. She stopped and we started talking again. She was trying to talk me into buying one - I was considering it, but not seriously. After that, a guy walks up and pleasantly tries to talk me into buying another one that's on sale for $300. It's smaller, but he says the only difference between the other one is that the smaller one goes up to Queen sized comforters and not King sized. I don't have a king sized bed and I don't want one. However and generally, I usually opt for the larger sizes because of tenants dumping huge loads into the machines.

I said thanks, can't really afford it and left. I considered asking my dad for a loan to get the washer only - my dryer is working perfectly, it's the washer that is nose-diving - but I opted against that. I don't want to abuse the priviledge simply because he is a giving man. I really tried to think of any way I could come up with that kind of money. In actuality, I HAVE the money to pay for it, I don't want to spend it. I have a small emergency fund going that I would like to keep intact. If/when the washer I have now stops working, then it's an emergency - but that doesn't equate to a $400 machine when I can find something like what I have now for $100 to $200. I'm just thinking these machines are better built and the reduced use of electricity and water would be a great plus.

So, anyway, today I went to Craigslist and started my normal lowballing. Offers up to half off of what the advertiser is asking. I usually get some interesting replies to my offers - today is no exception and no, I haven't had any takers yet. I am not at the emergency/desperation level yet, I can offer less money and see if someone is desperate. I did that with the set I have now - just patiently waited and I ended up with those machines for $100 for the pair. I have no been particularly happy with the washer - it can eat clothes and pull out threading - but as long as it works, I am content to not spend money on something else.

I can safely say that I have gotten my money's worth and 10 times that out of these machines. I'm not complaining - the amount of laundry being done for 4 separate parties in one house can be substantial. I am going to go around Google for awhile and see if there are any payment places that might take some money down and payments thereafter. I briefly considered Aaron Rents - but they will want 24 payments at who knows what per month - probably around $100 or even more - and end up paying 3 times or more as much as the machine is worth. I would rather dig into $200 of emergency funds and get it over with than pay $2,400 for an $800 machine.

That's my latest quest. Get a machine at an obscene price - or - dump $400 out for that front loader plus another $99 for a 4 year extended warranty. It wouldn't be worth it in my situation to buy a brand new machine, knowing the amount of use it's going to get, and not get an extended warranty on it. I figure this is one extended warranty that would be worth getting.

That's it.

C'ya later.

ben

Today

Amazing.

I'm talking with my manager this morning and he's telling me that when they cut jobs down to 24 people, then we can get our hours back.

???? We're now at 32 people - down over 40 - and they want it to go down 8 more? WHO are they going to get rid of and WHAT is the criteria going to be? I have no clue, but I have firmly decided that I better get my @$$ to the annual Christmas function whether I want to go or not.

I do not want to go. It's a 40 mile drive one way and then 40 miles back. Booze is usually flowing heavily and though it's usually a great time, I have no inclinations for such right now. I'm not the socialite I once was - by choice. I love talking with people, I can do parties, but I don't want to. I am not shy or intimidated or whatever - it's just where I'm at in life right now. I have always been referred to as the life of the party - the dude that can get people talking when it's all cold and silent. I have done it hundreds of times over - I hate a lifeless party and I want to see life in it.

I have not yet officially committed to going - and I will be going alone - but I feel if for nothing else that I best get there, make a good showing and have a good time. I will take a nice, fat cigar with me this time - the last Christmas parties had guys standing around smoking cigars and I had nothing. I was woefully deficient in such - I love to smoke a good cigar occasionally.

Oh, these are almost all great people, I have no problems with that. I think I'm in my version of a mid-life crisis. I don't want toys and huge houses and giant bankrolls (well Iwouldn't mind some things, I just am not in a mode 0f get them or die), I just want to hibernate in my cave. I have spent the last 32 years as a socialite - doing all kind of volunteerism and very outgoing - I'm not there right now. I believe it will come back to me, but a badly needed break - an extended one at that - is necessary right now. Burnt-out is actually a more accurate definer of my situation versus mid-life crisis, now that I think about it.

Life must take on a new direction - I have always done that. Do something until it is "conquerered" and move on. I have several ideas of such things - things I want to do and things I know I can succeed at. But - it's not time yet.

Work today. Okay, well, I go to a jobsite right next to the Superstition 60 freeway. I try to get into the site where they want product delivered - the turn from hell. I cannot possibly make a right turn into THAT situation, I would have had to take the semi into opposing lanes, cut off a lot of traffic and possibly create a "situation".

I determined the only way to get in there was to come from the other direction and make a left turn, giving me much more clearance on the turn and get into this very narrow drive that lead - from my view - nowhere. Yet, this is where the dude on the phone told me to go.

I go up the road, flip a Uey -come back and still have to tie up traffic making that turn as well. I get in there and see that it really DOES lead NOWHERE. A yard and then - a friggin' CANAL. I get out of the truck before I get myself so dug into this situation that it will take a half hour worth of backing up and pullups to get out of there, it was THAT bad - the worst place I have been in in a while, and that is saying something considering some of the stuff I have had to go into in recent times.

The man with the plan says yeah, go in there and then you can go out the back and onto a road that leads out of there. I am just not seeing it, but I haven't been in there. I'm always game for a challenge, though, so I just drive in there. It is such a small yard with vehicles everywhere, that I have to stop the truck and wait for all the equipment to move. Yes, they do see me coming and they do start hurrying to get their metal out of my way.

I'm in no hurry - and anyway - this particular contractor is HUGE business for us and right now, that means a lot. I get in there, get the pipe unloaded - and then do my usual walkaround.

I do an inspection of the truck and trailer every time I get out, I don't care if I'm only there 30 seconds, I will walk all the way around the truck to make sure the load is secure, the tires aren't flat - whatever. I've been in this business long enough to know things can happen without you knowing about it and you have to make visual inspections to identify any problems.

Well, this time, I did find something. I saw the mud flaps on my tractor on the ground. ???? I took a triple look at that until it registered that roger, Houston, we have a problem. Fortunately, I'm not in Apollo 13 headed for the moon, but still. The airbags were totally deflated and no, this tractor is not equipped with a dump valve. I'm a former truck mechanic, so I get on my back in my nice clothes, under the truck and start lookin' around.

Nothing visible. The levellor rod is intact. I tapped on the valve with a hammer to see if I could get it to release - I'm thinking right away a stuck valve. Nothing. I turn the truck off and evacuate the system - all of it - of pressurized air by opening the relief cocks on the air tanks - when that's done, turn the truck on and see if it will correct itself.

Nothing. Again and again. I finally give up on it - my ways aren't working. I contact the manufacturer to assess that my knowledge is still correct - driving a truck in that condition can damage the drive train. " We can't advise you on that". What a crock of BS. I just got off the phone with them after that. I call our fleet service contract - yes, you drive it, the drive axle is not on the plane it is intended and is at an angle going into the transmission that will TRASH the rear of that transmission, don't drive it.

Ironically, his service tech was at our main branch fixing a problem there, and yes, he would dispatch him to my location after he is done there.

So, resolving that and getting the truck out of the way and walking over to Starbuck's for a cup of joe - I wander back to the truck and look at this rear exit of theirs. Unbelievable. The chain link fenced yard ends and a canal starts with a narrow dirt "road" in between the 2 and I'm supposed to turn right out of that. Lol.

I decide to pull the truck out of that miserable thoroughfare - it is always quite amazing at what people that don't drive trucks think a truck can make it through. I already knew that to make it around that, the trailer axles would be going up over a giant heap of dirt - and I was not let down on that prospect.

Somewhere along this maneuver, the tractor woke up and decided that it needed it's airbags fully charged. Great. I have already been on the phone with half a doznen people concerning this situation because it was going to hold up a "we-need-it-right-now" delivery. Now I'm on the phone all over - it's good to go, at least for now: cancel the emergency roadside appointment; call the inside salesman; call my manager. I'm on the road and - not feeling good at all. I am losing entirely too much sleep and am at the point where I am going to be forced to start taking Ambien again - I cannot function like this.

Long day today, really. Got home and took a nap. Dogs were not happy - I could tell that my leaving them outside was not their first choice. Get over it, is all I can say about that and told them so, though I have serious doubts they actually understood me ; )

The vet's projection that their balls would grow to the size of grapefruits temporarily has yet to surface. There is some slight expansion, but they are almost flat. I really don't want to see them going through that, I believed the vet, but - I don't see it yet. I have no regrets in getting this procedure done, either. I had thoughts that - for some reason - I would regret it - but - what is there to regret? I thought about it - the family "name". No more Princes and no more Dukes. I'm good with that, there are plenty of Dane breeders out there making sure the supply line never goes empty. I am totally NOT into puppies, anyway.

As for here - I did not dig anymore holes as I had hoped I would today, instead, I just watered everything and devised a few plans.

And, I am very tired and am done with this entry.

G'nite.

Ben

Blogs

FYI, I have at least 8 different blogs on numerous different sites. I have a couple of blogs that are for me only. No-one knows where they're at and I haven't seen them on any Google searches. I don't write on those very often - sorty of puking blogs - get it out of the system and move on.

The one I switched to recently is the same one I was using after JS crashed and really didn't know where to go on Wordpress. I consider that a sort of anonymous blog - some people know where it is, but it's all people that I know from JS or online anyway, so no big deal there.

I doubt I will ever totally abandon blogging, but there are definitely times where the "I don't feel like writing so I won't" atmosphere sets in and I'm done with it for awhile.

We are getting closer and closer to Christmas, that atmosphere has not set in, rather, somewhat of a disgust at what certain, other bloggers were doing got me to going to other places to write my entries.
As I said, just an FYI.

The newest tenant is - broke pretty much. He is a bartender - just out of the military as well - had a heckuva time finding work. When he finally did find a gig, it's pretty much minimum wage. He's a good guy and he's out putting in the applications all over the place, at least he's trying. This particular person is going to do the "work for reduced rent" scenario.

I have PLENTY of work I can keep him busy at around my house, that's a fact. There are odd jobs I don't want to do, really, which hopefully he has basic skills such as painting walls and pulling grass - junk like that. His rent will be $200 with the work, $375 without it. Judging from his sounds of desperation, I will be getting the work out of him - my ad stated a minimum of 25 hours per month. You break that down into an hourly wage, and it ain't much, but I made it clear on my ad what I was offering and ain't forcin' no-one to do it.

In fact, I made it VERY clear about how it's going to work. He's got this month paid up so he doesn't want to start until next month. All well and fine, if he's serious about it, I am going to have him keep a log of hours worked and what was done. This is the only way to keep track of it. The situation with Mary was intolerable, yes, but at the same time, she did probably 50 hours of work per month and she was still paying $400 per month for the room.

I've got myself half talked into letting her go on the lawsuit - the work she did on the front of the house remains and it was worth a lot more than the rent I took off every month. The only stickling point with her about letting her off the hook was her attempt to get police to arrest me by claiming that I had shoved her.

I don't shove ladies - or in her case a woman, ladies don't use meth in my book, women might, but not the ladies - I don't hit them, pull their hair, spit on them, whatever. That's kind of been a life-long thing for me, I doubt that will EVER change. It's pretty much a simple enough thing to walk away from a person or hang up the phone when someone is being abusive than to get angry and start thinking about a fight or violence.

The question must pose oneself when challenged to a fight is, which is harder? To walk away or stand there and fight? I'll tell you right now, it's much harder to walk away, oh yes it is. Especially if a person is taunting you, maybe throwing in the C-word: Coward, yellow-belly, lemonade-bleeding wimp - all that wonderful stuff. I have walked away from people saying that stuff to me. I have no doubt that if those people would have laid a finger on me, the outcome would have been different, but they didn't, it was all talk, and in the end, they have to live with their childishness and I am able to cope that I walked away from a cocky, mouthy, moron and not get into it.

So, anyway, we'll see how the work-for-reduced-rent scenario goes. If he finds a better paying job, I doubt he'll want anything to do with that. In fact, if he finds the money he's trying to get - by getting into a place where bartenders are walking home with anywhere between $200-$400 per night, he'll undoubtedly end up getting his own place. I actually hope I can get at least one month out of him, though, I have some things I have put off simply because I have a plate full of projects right now.

Changing the subject, today is the first official day that the dogs are banished to the great outdoors when I'm away at work. I was watching video surveillance yesterday and that sealed it. They were in my living room, rough-housing. The Dane mix was up on my couch - a thing she KNOWS I hate her doing, standing there with this defiant look on her face. The Danes walked around their living room, smelled one of my indoor plants - and yes - they lifted their legs.

THAT is IT. When I saw that, that sealed their fate. They will never be allowed in the house while I'm gone again - not unless I can figure out a way to get all the smell out of there and get them to stop the activity. For now, they are dogs, they can handle it. I put a nice strip of carpeting out on the cement for them to lay on, that's the best I'm going to do. I'm imagining the only way I will be able to get the behavior to change is to get rid of the carpeting in that living room and go ahead and install the ceramic tile I want to put in there.

Money, of course, is stopping me from doing that. We figured it out - about $800 for the materials to get it done. Totally out of the question right now. I have a savings account where I'm putting a little here and there into it - nothing grand but it's there to eventually fund a project or 2 that I want to get done around there. Frankly, the economy's going to have to come back up and my hours are going to have to be reinstated before any serious projects are going to occur. The drip system is almost totally paid for, I just have to get the work done.

Well, the work day approacheth and thankfully, there IS something to do in there that should eat up the day - or most of it anyway.
ben