3 October 2003 / Friday - Last week I went to West Trenton to wash some clothes and noticed a red dog leash in the yard -- no dog anywhere -- on 1 October I went back, again to do some wash and to get leftovers from the fridge and there was this adult female dog, one of those Alaskan ones with the bright blue eyes -- really cute, large-ish, and wildly playful -- -- sort of a hyper, over active woofwoof, but also friendly, even though she growled at me softly a couple times. Yesterday I called Bernar to, once again, ask for the return of my Kodak digital camera that he borrowed over a year ago, knowing that he would mention the critter -- and he asked if I saw the dog -- What dog, I replied! I did not see any dog -- where do you have it? Anyway, he told me that her name is Natasha, and that she is about 2 or 3 years old, house trained, runs wild in the large yard and therefore has to be kept on a leash, and usually sleeps on the sofa -- I went back today and took her out in the yard with the retractable cord thing, and tried to take her pic -- she just would not stay still long enough, so the photo you see above was taken in the back porch after her romp in the yard. He now keeps the 2 sphynx cats in the basement, and they are always trying to keep warm under some old blanket near the washing machine. Some months ago he asked to borrow my oldest and first female, BeanTuska, to keep his male, AttaTurk, company -- if I could I would take her back, but with the bunch I already have, my others would get jealous after so much time, and I do not need cat fights to worry about constantly.
I have been relatively uptight for about a year already because my teeth, what is left of them, are really in bad shape -- my usual assembly-line-type dentist told me last year that what I have left have to be taken out and replaced with an upper and lower whatevertheyarecalled, partial plates or dentures? Anyway, what I would have liked to do was have a couple implants, 2 or 3, in the lower jaw, with a denture that somehow was connected to them as it did with the crowns I had -- all the crowns just simply fell out and the dentist refused to put them back in again -- that is how the whole thing started over a year ago and they have been on a downhill swing ever since! But implants are extremely expensive and there is no way that I could get that kind of work done as I constantly struggle just to pay the reurring monthly bills. It is time that I do something about my teeth, even if it is simply replacing them with complete upper and lower dentures -- for many months I have not been able to even eat many things because they were too hard, and since I do not have a single molar left, natural or artificial, I cannot chew anything! It is not a very positive situation to be trying to deal with on a daily basis, along with my other worries, and I really have to try to remedy the situation before Christmas, if I can, anyway I can! Although I can feel absolutely no physical pain associated with the few natural lower incisor teeth I have left, my mental anguish sometimes gets the best of me! I did get a crock pot/slow cooker at Sam's Club last month and have used it twice already -- but that will be another news note when I get the pics taken and write the story about my experiments with it. I already have most, if not all, of my Christmas presents bought already, so that is at least one thing that I do not have to worry about -- if I live until the holidays!
It has gotten VERY cold lately -- I now wear long pants, a long sleeved shirt and undershirt, and a knit cap in the apartment, as I always do during the winter, but autumn has basically just begun -- inside the temperature has dropped to 60 degrees Fahrenheit, which is my usual COLD HANDS starting point -- actually I am almost shivering as I type this -- outside it is now 44 and going lower! The cats are all snuggled together to conserve warmth. If the inside temp falls much lower I will be forced to light the furnace, but then comes the greatly increased gas bills over a prolonged several months and I really do not have money for it.
Speaking of prolonged -- I just noticed that this YES page has reached the 80mB level, so, for the first time, I guess I may have to start a third YES page this year! Maybe I should just be less yappy? As you can see, I suppose, you are now reading my new third 2003 Year End Summary page -- what a milestone! Perhaps it is the sudden onset of unusually cold weather, my teeth problems and other major worries, or a combination of both, but I have been working on a real lot of web pages lately, now that I have piles of cyber space to do basically whatever I have always wanted to -- will I still have time?
11 October 2003 / Saturday - I have been working my cojones off trying to reorganize this part of my web site a little, simplifying the YES links, but as I simplify them, I had to make totally new pages to reorganize a few other things! So, in the process, we now have an entirely new SPECIAL REPORTS page on which will be linked any special pages I made for anything through the years, and another that only has Christmas related stuff on and linked to it. It is a very slow and tedious process -- first I have to make a list of what I can remember that I did, then find the pages among the thousands I have in my web site folders, and keep shuffling the links in chronological order until at least most of them are organized -- some pages will also have to be loaded onto Kardas.net from my other web site servers. Simplifying the intricate spider web of eclectic things I always put on two different main web sites due to space constraints is not an easy task, even now when I have loads of space or bandwidth to work with, finally!
At the same time we have been experiencing Indian Summer, with temperatures in the upper 70s over the last few days, although the nights do dip into the 50s -- a welcome change from the colder 60s days and 40s nights we had been having -- not that the warmer days did very much for me except that I opened the windows to let the heat in! I did not spend any time outside on any of them -- incidently, Evelio always used to make a big thing out of the Indian Summer days, quite simply probably because he liked Indians and just that word in anything was enough to catch his interest! He had a habit of latching onto favorite English words and repeating them over and over in different contexts, and his memory for such things was phenomenal.
I did make a slow cooker page, including three recipes I experimented with thus far -- -- all of which were great -- each, up until now, has a CAI of 10, which means that both the cats and I found them very tasty.
Bernar will be taking a trip to Arizona from the 13th to the 24th, so I guess I shall have to go over to West Trenton every day to let Tasha out in the yard, on a leash, of course. Remember the Kodak DC3400 digital camera that I lent him over a year ago? The one I asked for at least 5-6 times already? Well, the last time I accidently saw him (he is very rarely home during the day), he first said that he cannot find it, and then asked me if he gave it back to me already! DUH! If he gave it back, why have I been asking for it for months already?
Well, surprise! I went over there today and looked on his desk, and there was my camera! I took it back with me, naturally, because I see guidebooks about rafting from Las Vegas through the Colorado River to Arizona, and would hate to have my only backup camera washed overboard or something. Is it not a tad cold to do rafting at this time of year? Tasha was as friendly as ever and I took her for a spin in the yard. When I returned to the apartment I took out the FlashCard and found about 150 pics of his trip to Hawaii in January 2003 -- so I downloaded them onto my TiBook and burned a CD of the photo files and shall leave it on his desk the next time I go there -- I suspish that he did not even look at them yet. I had to reformat the camera because the settings were on GOOD instead of BEST, and the date had reverted back to 2000, probably because he removed the batteries -- the GOOD setting gives you a lot more photos, but the quality is not the finest -- I always use the BEST setting for what I do. Now I can experiment with this camera a little to see if the colors turn out better than with the Nikon, where I frequently have to tweek a couple colors to get them as they should be, in particular the reds and greens. Sometimes the color of the background influences the color of the bear or whatever I am taking a pic of, which is sort of logical, I guess. The more neutral the background, the better they seem to turn out -- the lighting conditions may only be a secondary factor, but an important one -- but since the camera is automatic, things should just turn out right, automatically, and they usually do. Today was once again in the lower 70s.
12 October 2003 / Sunday - Come along with me to see Donald Duck's big party --
23 October 2003 / Thursday - I had been working on some pages dealing with general guidelines for photos used on web pages and finally got them online -- I hope they make sense. I also added a new recipe to my Slow Cooker page -- then I wanted to get a new format together for my eBay stuff during the Christmas season and put up one item using the new look just to see what it looks like -- I already made a couple more changes for when I start using the format at the end of this month.
It has become increasingly colder with nights in the 40s -- today the temperature in my stody went down to 58 and I was shivering, so I finally relented and put the heat on -- the cats discovered that the radiator was getting warm, so they are now all sitting on top of the narrow baseboard heater tops!
I went to West Trenton to feed Bernar's cats -- and he was back from Nevada, Arizona and Colorado! I thought he was supposed to return tomorrow. He took pictures with his old film camera, a Canon Eros, and took them to Sam's Club, where they will put them on CDs -- curiously, the last time I used my film cameras about 5-6 years ago, I took the film to where I had a yearly discount membership, Moto Photo, and had them put on a floppy disk -- they were the first major photo processing chain to use the then innovative technology -- I still have the floppy stashed somewhere -- since then I have not used my film cameras because I got a Kodak DC50, one of the first Kodak digital cameras, using it for many of the pics on my early web site pages. He gave me a kewl ceramic tile having SouthWest colors and designs, and already have it on a shelf near where I am working -- I shall eventully get a scan or pic and add it here. Oh, yes, the temperature in my study is now 67.1 -- outside it is 34!
A major solar storm, an X Class Flare, is in progress and is predicted to affect global communications and the geomagnetic field in the coming days -- another is expected next week -- there is a real-time solar activity indicator on the main index page of this web site.
Do not forget to set your clocks back Saturday night/Sunday morning -- -- Spring FOREWARD, Fall BACK.
31 October 2003 / Friday - I put a new and exciting crock pot recipe up -- make your bored taste buds start vibrating with my really erotically stimulating Apple and Carrot Ricey Boob Temptation -- NO batteries needed!
Everything is ready for tonight, when all the horrible monsters and gobblins float by -- I doubt that there will be too many in Bush costumes, though, even though he is really scarey as hell!
a couple years ago I got a bunch of smallish white bags from Sam's Club, where I get most of the things for my Halloween treats -- I fill each bag with the candy and other thingys and carry them downstairs to the front of the shop steps on the main street, the only place they would come, as the apartment steps are on the side street and nobody would bring their kids there
this year I filled 43 bags with stuff
the girls usually get the Beanies, and the boys will get the model cars -- but since I have fewer of the diecast cars, some boys will probably get a Curly bear instead
So if any of my readers needs a Princess or Curly bear, Spinner the Spider, a kewl diecast race car with video game on CD and the other goodies and candy, don't hesitate to stop by!
And you better start practicing something really kewl and scarey, because you don't get any TREAT if you can't TRICK!
13 November 2003 / Thursday - Can you spell .. m . i . s . e . r . a . b . l . e ? In my case, just the first and last letter should do it -- ME!
The weather has changed from balmy Indian Summer to blustery Frigid Winter just about overnight! I seem to have caught a cold or whatever -- I cannot find my thermometer, but think I have a fever -- caughing -- sniffling, the whole thing. I found some caugh syrup I got in Spain, Pazbronquial, a couple years ago and started taking that -- also an old thingy of a few Biaxin tablets, an antibiotic, dated today, 13 November, 1996 -- which were probably for the same symptoms I have now! Today the winds were more impressive than those of the over-rated Hurricane Isabel of several weeks ago! This morning the lights went out for 2 hours, as I started to do something on the computer -- and just when the battery started getting low, they came back on. My uncle in VA said the winds there were doing more damage than during Isabel, and I saw some large tree branches on the roads going to West Trenton this afternoon --
there is a chill in the apartment that even the 66 degrees on the thermostat does not seem to take care of, and the cats are always clumped together for warmth -- I found a nice high wooden wine case at the place in West Trenton and painted the inside white, which replaces a cardboard box they like to curl up in near the radiator in the kitchen. Of the two cats in the bedroom, Yakshini never seems to sleep under the covers -- one of the few cats I ever had which does not, for whatever reason -- I find her daughter, Tiger Girl, frequently under the covers when I go in there, but when I crawl into bed, fully clothed, she stays on top the covers, which is weird.
I decided not to put the heat on in the place across the street this winter -- that should save me a couple hundred dollars every month with no gas bill to worry about. Although I also turned the water off, I still get connection bills every trimestre for around $30! When my parents had a place at the shore, they always turned everything off for the winter.
Last month and this, two different peeps have come to look at the place across the street and this one -- I do have smallish FOR SALE BY OWNER signs in the windows at both places -- one was a Hispanic dude and his wife -- he is the maintenance man at an apartment complex here in town, and they live rent free at the place -- a couple daughters and a friendly small short-haired dachshund -- they also have two rental properties near the high school. OK, they loved the places -- want to put a laundry in the shop -- they suggested simply exchanging their two rental places for mine, but I looked at them and they were not exactly the kind of real estate I might ever think of buying, or even trading! My terms are -- you want one or both, in AS IS CONDITION, you give me a 25k CASH deposit to start the ball rolling, we sign a simple one-page transfer contract that I make up, I get my lawyer to draw up the transfer deed, about a week or so later we meet at his office and do the usual CLOSING, they pay me the balance, we sign deed transfers, I have a nominal 40 days to remove my stuff and hand over the keys. They looked at the places twice, saw that they needed some work, and loved them -- they took out a mortgage on one of their rental properties, then, for whatever reason, mentioned the fabulous deal with the lawyer at the apartment complex -- lawyers being the ass holes which they always are, would find my terms somewhat unusual, and I know that -- each and every property that I ever bought or sold, both in Spain and here, were done on a handshake and a personal, very loose and liberal signed contract, without a problem -- I told them it was as if I were selling them a bag of potato chips at the supermarket -- they want it, they buy it. So the dipshit lawyer calls me and wants the usual contract, which can be 3-4 pages long, with all kinds of administrative shit about guarantees about this and that, escrow, and the usual crap. Knowing that his idas would be radically different than mine and simply business-like, after spending a long time on the phone with his whining, and trying to be as diplomatic as possible, I finally told him to go to hell. He, of course, convinced the guys that the there could be a big risk in doing it my way, blahblahblah, and they have not contacted me again -- that was in early October.
Curiously, a day or two after their first contact, a young 20-ish Jewish guy, Marc, looked at both places -- he too loves them -- agreed to my terms -- said he would get back to me. He got back to me after a couple weeks saying that the city might not allow the place across the street to be used as a rental property due to parking concerns, and that he lost interest. OK, end of story -- until he called me a couple days ago, saying that a friend, Mike, has an interest in both properties, so they both came over and looked at them -- dressed in the usual black with that yamulka or whatever you call that beanie -- the pal also loves them -- did not say what he would use them for -- Marc calls and asks about what my contract would be like, so I fax him a revised copy of the one I did for the Hispanics and he faxes me a copy of the contract that Mike and some other pal are using for the purchase of another Trenton place, and it turned out to be the usual, standard form that one can buy at any stationary store, not a surprise, I have them too! Marc got tired of acting as a middle man, so the next couple phone calls were from Mike -- my contract seemed overly simplistic, which is exactly what I intended it to be -- he made a counter offer, which was ridiculous, and I simply hung up on him. He calls again and jews me down (pun definitely intended!) some 20k, I yawn, caugh, and say OK, what the hell -- BUT, I take out the mantel pieces leaving unfinishd walls behind them, chandeliers and other antique lighting, not even leaving light bulbs in their place, and what ever else I might be able to use elsewhere.
Then his pal, Ben, apparently a business partner in whatever they invest in (on the FAX I got from Mike it said DOWN TOWN FEATHER, which sounds slightly swishy to me, not that it would be a major problem!), gets on the line and starts a spiel about that there are certain things in my contract that are not understood, and he wants to change them -- he was basically a deviously logical thinker, more one-sided than friendly, and I told him that he already had me over a barrel on the price, that I was doing him a favor (after he said he was doing me a favor by wanting to buy them!), and that unfortunately he would do it my way or he could check around Trenton for some really dilapadated boarded up places and try his luck with them. He also suggested a really weird simple contract of his own, which I am sure he thought up at the spur of the moment, and would have kept yapping for hours if I did not tell him that I had other things to do and that he should think about it -- he finally asked if he could he come by tomorrow and discuss changes in my contract -- NO WAY, I am not a flea market dealer (any more!), and he got the absolute bottom line on price and contract -- end of story -- if he wants to come over, try not to forget the moola, in cash. Incidently, I have an asking price of 65k on the three-story brick townhouse across the street, and 170k for the shop, apartment and 3 garages -- and I was crazy enough to allow him to jew me down to 155k for both! I am so sick and tired of bullshitters already!
My plan basically would be to get 25k as a deposit, get the papers drawn up, pay off some outstanding bills and back taxes, in a week or so do the closing and deed transfers, and with the money try to find somewhere to live and stash all my goodies, which is the main reason for the 40-day period to actually vacate the places -- I have NO idea where I would go at this point, and I do not relish the idea of having to rent some storage area for all my stuff, plus the moving costs -- and NOBODY to help me!
I learned one important thing, totally on my own, when I was in my teens -- do I want the responsibility of getting that chinchilla, that red squirrel that came over to me and climbed onto my lap, the bats I found in a cave -- to much later things -- the Siamese and Sphynx cats, a pair of porcelain vases or some stained glass windows at a flea market, boxes full of books for my research library, real estate property in Spain or the USA, or even that bicycle, or chain saw (I finally got one at Sam's Club and filled up a gas container today, so I may finally get around to cutting down that damn tree in the patio before the first snow fall, and repaint the garages!) or laptop computer? How about something as simple as a friend? Hesitation for only a few seconds can change a real opportunity into NOTHING but another missed opportunity -- either one is awake enough to see the potential in something, or they lose it forever -- life has always been that way, and I have met really FEW peeps who I might consider awake enough (Marion in Florida, George in Alabama, Horacio in Spain, and some of my cheapass eBay winners)! They can be extraordinary humans -- or just manipulative self-interested creeps who take advantage of anyone or anything, if the price is right, for themself! And the difference between the two is not always readily apparent, even to a somewhat skilled, logical observer. The concepts of logic and reason do not seem evident, used, functional or valid in today's weird world, somehow. Now wonder it is so fucked up!
19 November 2003 / Wednesday - OK, the real estate property story plot thickens! I got a call from Millie and Virgilio, the Hispanics interested in my two places -- they did not get back to me sooner because they were in the Dominican Republic visiting a sick relative -- they stopped over again, this time with their daughter, and saw the properties, AGAIN -- it almost seems that I am a tour operator or something -- this is the third time they have seen the places, from top to bottom -- maybe the real estate property I own is like SEX, worth repeating? If only I could say the same thing about sex!
He wanted to see if the heat worked across the street, so I lit the gas furnace 3 hours before they arrived -- of course it works, and always did! They said they would buy that place, a three story brick town house featured on another of my web pages -- after that, when they could, they also had an interest in putting in a coin-operated laundry in the first story shop section of where I am now living, and they would live in the apartment above it. Millie would go to the bank and get the cash -- I mentioned that Marc, Mike and Ben had called me, and mentioned the town near Philadelphia where they lived -- WOWSERS! It just happens to be the same town that the guy who owns their building lives in, and with whom their lawyer deals! So when they visited their lawyer, talking over the potential great propertydeal, he obviously allerted his pals and they called me about the places! Lawyers are pure SCUM!
Millie called and said her bank would NOT give her 25k cash -- they told her it was way too dangerous for someone to be carrying that much money in Trenton! I then suggested a cashier's check instead. Some years ago I had the same problem with a cashier's check for a LOT more money -- I could deposit it in my account, but could not get the cash -- I quietly discussed with the bank person/s that it is MY money, I have a safe at home that I can keep it in, etc., etc -- they continued their spiel and then I started to get really loud and wanted to speak to the bank manager and all the supervisors they could find me! I TOLD them quite plainly that I prefer holding the money myself and that I do not trust banks for shit, saying the only reason they want it is to make large profits from it, which, of course, are NOT passed on to me -- it took quite a while, but they finally gave in and sat me in a back room, where I slowly counted the pile of moola bill-by-bill, three times!
OK, NOW COMES THE INTERESTING PART -- I later get calls over three days on my answering machine from Marc and Ben again! They would come over with a suitcase full of cash IF I sign the properties over to them at that time, which simply means a closing at my lawyer's office! The details of how long I would have to move out would theoretically be mutually agreed to -- I still would need a minimum of 40 days to get all my junk out of both places and I would basically be doing it myself -- and then, where do I put it all? I would be homeless, with some cash on hand, but finding something the size I would need would be extremely difficult, and the moving costs enormous! THIS WHOLE THING SUCKS! At this point I would prefer selling the townhouse to Millie and Virgilio, and if they eventually buy the other place, OK, it would allow me some breathing room, at least -- their problem is that they take way too long to actually do anything -- what happens if the Jews arrive, before the Hispanics decide, bringing a brief case full of cash for me to sniff and run through my hands? Then what do I do?he concepts of logic and reason do not seem evident, used, functional or valid in today's weird world, somehow. Now wonder it is so fucked up!
27 November 2003 / Thursday - It is now about 03h on Thanksgiving Day -- my brother'e daughter invited me to their place again this year for the family feast, but since I had another 2 teeth fall out within the last 3 weeks and never seem to find the time to get to the dentist, I prefer not going anywhere -- maybe I have foot and mouth disease or something? I still have some leftover chicken breast with veggies and kasha that I made 2 days ago, so that is as close to turkey as I shall get. Thom, from Philly, emailed me to invite me to his new place in Philadelphia, which I have not even seen yet since he got it over a year ago, for the holiday meal -- same reply. The hispanics have not gotten back to me about the house.
A couple days ago it was in the 60s, so I went to the small patio behind this place to see what was wrong with the wire bringing electricity into the garages -- broken wire due to dipshit Tom who very unprofessionally cut a couple smallish tree/weeds down in the yard last year, never finishing the job! (story in my YES, somewhere) So I did a quicky repair and was almost amazed that I finally, once again, had lights in the garage! I also swept the branches and junk from the roof of the garages, almost tripping over 3 damn telephone wires a couple inches above the roof surface coming from two houses on the other street -- called the company yesterday and told them I want them out of there, and do not care if they were there for 20 years, they consider them grandfathered or whatever shit they can think up, because if I trip over the fuckin things, I am NOT going to sue their grandfathers! I always did have a refined sense of diplomacy when trying to deal with complete idiots!
eBay has been very erratic in many ways lately, largely due to their constant mindless bungling with their coding, always making things more convoluted and time consuming -- I have been able, somehow by chance, to get screen shots of some of their grotsque Frankensteinish experimentation, and have a page of commentary and pics HERE - Weird eBay, but that link may change to this server when I get a chance to switch the many files.
I think that I decided to only send Christmas cards to those I get them from this year -- that will help me balance the unusually high percentage of GRINCHES on my holiday card page -- and save me time, money and effort also. It is late and I am tired-- time to crawl up with TigerCat and Yakshini, under the covers in bed, dressed and all -- I am almost shivering! NITERS!
29 November 2003 / Saturday - Went to the post office to mail out some eBay stuff -- Kyra surprised me with a postal bin filled with plates of Thanksgiving goodies -- turkey, ham, beef, collard greens, baked squash, pumpkin and squash pies! I also got some left overs from the old West Trenton place -- the poor dog, Natasha, was left outside in the cold -- I assume that she was becoming a nuisance on the enclosed back porch area. She effusively greeted me, as usual -- I know that Bernar is tired of her already and I only wish I could adopt the baby -- she is slightly wild-ish for lack of attention -- he is rarely home.
Thom, from Philadelphia, stopped over for one of his very rare visits -- it was basically to have me walk him through how to use PageMill to do his new web site -- after a few hours he finally was able to make a new page, add and change links on the 3 other pages, and get them online. He treated me to a yummy pound cake from Philly. He was my first visitor in many months -- great to actually see another live person in the apartment!
3 December 2003 / Wednesday - SURPRISE! When I looked out the window yesterday morning, everything was covered with snow! It did not last through the day, as cold as it was -- .
You may remember that last year the ice pulled down part of the roof drain pipe from the place across the street? Since it happened I called at least 5 guys to come over to give me an estimate -- one was the roofer who did my rubber roofs, and he died in the meantime! I had seen roofers working in the neighborhood and asked them for an estimate -- NADA! Then, last week, I saw a bunch of dudes working on a roof a few houses away and I talked to the young Hispanic boss -- Antonio, from Costa Rica -- he actually looked at what had to be done and gave me a quote right there! It did take him over a week to finally get here and start working, and yesterday he finished the front part -- -- the old fashioned strong galvanized fluted-round tubing -- I'll have to paint it black in the fall -- --. The back also needs some work, and he promised he would get to it as soon as he can -- hmmmmm -- at least the front part is done and I can get some grout and fill in the spaces that the water washed out. I have to paint the wrought iron gate too, with that special antirust paint I got in the Canaries years ago -- I have to wait until we have a day over 50 degrees, IF we do. It cost $375, and I gave him a bottle of wine and a Christmas baseball teddy bear for him and his 2 helpers as a surprise bonus.
Yesterday I also stopped at the hospital thrift shop to ask if they wanted the 3000+ comic books I have stashed in about 15 boxes in the garage -- the gal said, yes, of course -- so I just made a list of this new batch of donations and have to get them into the Jeep, maybe in two loads, and take them there, hopefully before the week is out. Several pieces of medical equipment, loads of vintage hard cover books, clothes, electronic stuff, oil paintings and other art works, and more goodies. It will free up some space in the apartment and garage and I can attempt to organize things a tad more -- not to mention the multi 1000 clam tax write-off!
Another lower incisor is wobbling out -- when it finally falls out I really have to call the dentist and get the few others removed and finally start whatever reconstruction I can afford -- I have been putting it off way too long already. Last night I finally ate the turkey and other goodies that Kyra gave me -- today I guess I shall start some meat in sauce that I got at Bernar's place.
Devi, my oldest Siamese cat is not her old self for some weeks already -- I usually let her out of the kitchen, where she has to contend with the 4 Sphynxes -- I put food for her in the bathroom, and she usually comes into my study and either sleeps in a box filled with shredded paper that she likes, or comes over and lays on my lap -- she was born in 1987, so she is 16+ years old already! Still as lovable, friendly with all the others, but seemingly slower than she used to be. She has been with me through many adventures, happy and sad times, both in Spain and here.
14 December 2003 / Sunday - Snowing again -- and just when the last snow had disappeared from the ground!
Last Monday I finally went to the dentist to get three more teeth out -- one cracked about half way down and the other two were stubs of crowns that fell out months ago and had sharp edges -- the next appointment is for 6 January when they remove the last three lower incisors and a couple stubs at gum level -- I assume that I may have to wait for a week (they told me a month!) or so before they even think of fitting me for a new upper plate and a totally new lower. I hope that I survive until then! Hey, a song just popped into my had -- All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth -- well, I still have three left, so I guess that will be the only Christmas gifts I shall be able to count on this year!
On Wednesday I decided to do my special Holiday notes, which I usually added at the end of each eBay item description, changing them with every batch, to a single web page which can be accessed at leasure -- -- I updated it, adding three new sections -- yesterday I did my usual online Christmas page and uploaded it -- also made a small number of Limited Edition Holiday cards, since I changed my mind and shall send cards to those from whom I received them last year, which number 29 -- -- I already got three and am two weeks behind when I usually send mine out. My Christmas index page is also updated with what pages I could find thus far, and there may be more links when I get a chance to look for them. I already have a special batch of $1 Christmas Day specials ready for eBay, and have to gather together other batches for Boxing Day, New Years and Los Reyes Magos -- the format varies slightly, so it is not that much extra work. Packing the items won, since November, takes me twice as long as usual because I add a little surprise gift neatly wrapped in every package -- perhaps a related book or a Limited Edition teddy bear.
19 December 2003 / Friday - My Christmas cards went out a couple days ago and I have been taking a break from eBay to gather together stuff to take to the hospital thrift shop -- yesterday I took a Jeep full, and today another -- although I thought that two trips would be enough, I still have more for another car full, hopefully planned for next week on the first day it does not rain or snow. Without too much trying, I am sure that I could find another ton of things to donate, but that can wait until early next year. At least I got rid of the 20 or so boxes of comic books (over 3,000 new comics from the 70s and 80s, most individually bagged, many first issues and sets) which have been taking up space in the garage for over a decade already! Now I can better organize the cases of Postal Service shipping boxes and related things that I stash there. The lady looked at some of the old medical books and the large seascapes in oil and said I could probably sell them for a mint on eBay -- hehe -- I probably could, but I am really sick and tired of having to wrap a lot of heavy and/or oversized things, that generally do not bring in even a tenth of what they are really worth -- not to mention the cost of listing and commissions -- my donations are valued at around 2/3 of their resale potential and it does help at tax time as a charitable contribution -- these batches are written up at about 17k!
I just crawled into the two large windows downstairs in the shop and cleaned the tiles for the first time in two years -- GAWD, I had to take a CELEBREX because I could not move afterward! I put a couple Holiday decorations in the windows, and a seven-light Christmas candelabra and a menorah with the usual colored bulbs -- now where do I have my monster stash of replacement bulbs? Probably still neatly stored in a large plastic bin in West Trenton, so I have to go there to see if I can find them, perhaps tomorrow -- and do another batch of laundry while I am at it. And as nice as all my cacti are in those windows, my arms are full of the damn spines!
25 December 2003 / Thursday - I updated my Christmas page in the early hours of the morning. At about 10h I thought I would go to the mall near Princeton to see what sales they might be having -- the day is sunny and the temperature slightly above freezing -- very little traffic -- Sam's Club was closed -- Target was closed -- Circuit City was closed -- WalMart was closed -- Builders Square was closed -- Border's Book Store was closed -- the big supermarkets were all closed! How do these places think they can have really great Holiday sales if they are not open for the really late shoppers? But maybe they plan it that way so that they get in the news headlines when crazed shoppers looking for bargains get trampled by the mindless herds? baaaaaaaaaaa
On my way back, at about 11h, I was passing St. Hedwig's Polish Catholic Church, which I stopped in once, years ago -- so I decided to go to Mass -- everything was in Polish, as might be expected -- problem is, I do not speak or understand the language-- and it was super kewl to see many other folks with a nose similar to mine -- what an assemblage of beaks! Quite a few very thin-ish young guys and gals, probably recent arrivals from Poland -- older short women, simply dressed, with knit caps on -- many leather jackets, but the general dress was not what one might term mode-ish. Loads of poinsettias and a beautifully decorated altar and large creche on the right -- three old gray-haired priests officiating -- a kewl group of young kids dressed in colorful native attire, singing -- and a choir accompanied by heavenly organ music from the choir loft. And when it came time for that traditional greeting of PEACE, it was amazing that peeps even 2-3 pews away extended their hand and looked you straight in the eyes -- quite unlike the neighborhood Italian Church I usually go to, where, with any luck, the persons on either side might give you their hand! Maybe the Poles hold a much deeper sense of PEACE than some others?
I reflected on how kewl it is for a nationality, such as the Poles, to retain their own language and customs, while completely fitting in to the American way of life -- they do not demand that ballots or driver tests or other governmental stuff be in Polish, or constantly complain about their supposed minority status, and/or what they think the USA owes them -- and I doubt that they have that innate theoretical inferiority complex that some other cultural groups seem to exhibit way too frequently, nor that BUZZWORD, a hypothetical lack of self esteem, when in fact those other groups think they are God's greatest gift to civilization, and they are better than everybody else -- one would never even imagine/hallucinate such a conclusion, observing how totally self-centered and devious they can be -- which is NOT quite what I might even term civilized!
18:15h - The doorbell rang -- it was Kyra, my friend from the Post Office -- she brought me a large plastic bag, weighing a monster 7.1 pounds -- containing four plates, over-filled with Holiday dinner -- -- from a selection of salads and veggies, including her fabulous collard greens, to several meats, olives, cranberry sauce, rolls -- -- and just look at that desert plate! Pumpkin and apple pies, a cannoli, a cream filled iced chocolate chip cake, and a hormongous slice of a cream-filled carrot layer cake! [drool] And a Mountain Dew to wash it all down with -- oh, yes, and napkins, too. hmmmmm Should I, or should I not?
At 16 hours I started a new crock pot Christmas delight (which eventually will appear on that special web page), but it will not be ready until 22h, so I guess I shall dig into Kyra's goodies and save the other for tomorrow, perhaps for breakfast, since I rarely have more than coffee and a donut or toasted raison bread for breatfast -- you already know that my schedule for doing things is not quite what one might call normal, so a dinner-breakfast would be just another example. Somehow I sort of think that I am going to regain all those unwanted pounds back! Oh, well, what the hell! One only lives once, so they might as well enjoy thmselves a little while living! And this has certainly been a most enjoyable Christmas for me!
27 December 2003 / Saturday - well, yesterday I had to go to a local mall to try to find small bulbs for my Christmas light sets -- everything was half off, as usual, and I did find bulbs, and a couple boxes of Holiday cards, which I do not really need because I already have a couple plastic bins full! I started caughing on the 25th, and it has continued, even worse, today -- watery eyes, runny nose, weak leg muscles, the galloping shits -- I may have a fever -- let me check -- yuppers, 101 -- if it continues I may call the MD and get it looked at. I do not think that going to the mall on the cold days of the 25th and 26th helped any, since the flu is apparently going around -- I feel totally miserable!
31 December 2003 / Wednesday - OK, I have been trying to make heads and tails out of this flu-like thing that I have been laboring under since about 23 December--
the whole thing has been weird -- it started out as the galloping ships and perkickity pees, having an urgency to them -- for two days I was completely filling the bowl -- amazing -- but to top things off, the overflow pipe broke off in the toilet tank, and I had to finagle a manual way of pressing it down until the tank filled, while holding my pants up with the other hand -- I finally took an Imodium and that cleared up this little problem --
when I get a temperature, which is rarely -- my basal temperature is a degree or 2 below the general population average -- when I walk I hear little nondescript sounds in my head, maybe sort of like a light sandpaper, but I can never find a better equivalent to describe it -- maybe a couple clicks or whatever --
the cough was perhaps, and continues to be, a PITA -- somebody gave me a couple Guaifenex and Amoxil, which may be doing some good, maybe --
I couldn't sleep in bed for more than a couple hours, then I went to my study, covered myself with a warm blanket with my feet up on the computer table and slept with my chest in an upright position to breathe better and I could get another hour or so in --
those dozes-off were the most interesting part of the entire thing! I had very vivid halucinations of working on the computer -- never had to log on, NO welcome screen, just text pages with #2 font being the main font, with #4 headers -- in a blue-ish/brown-ish -- NO ads or pop-ups anywhere -- NO page backgrounds, NO banners/headers, some illustrations within the text --
to do a search one just types in text and a new section grows out of what is on the screen, sort of like a budding amoeba, from any side --
checking for emails, they all had the same thing on the mailbox list -- something about that they were checked for viruses, so one never knew what they might find or from whom -- I don't recall a tool bar, but if there was one it was very rudimentary --
the strangeness of the thing was the absolute reality of it all -- how many of you have ever had your hand twirlling the track ball, only to find, when you opened your eyes, that it was your cat's tail? I wrote emails, saved them, read pages, did searches, replied to board posts -- and to top it off, set some prefs on both digital cameras, took pics, processed them and saved them in files!! When my eyes opened I then tried to find what I had just done, but, naturally there was nothing!
Also very curious was that when I really typed something in, it was almost spastic, with errors in just about every attempt at a word, and I couldn't sign my name normally for ship! You all know I type the hunt and peck way -- always have -- basically 2 fingers -- when I closed my eyes and went back to lalaLandia, I knew where the keys were and didn't make an error, being observant, knowing I was not awake and just experimenting -- how can one consciously experiment in sleep mode in this way? -- it seems unreal!
Of course my laptop has AirPort, but it wasn't active -- when I snoozed next to the puter my legs were perpendicular to the screen -- isn't the antenna there? The neural network might have acted as AP channels, even though not active on the puter -- in bed my legs were parallel with the screen, now through a wall, no metal shielding -- both positions were seemingly just as powerful receptors.
Actually, despite the seemingly realness of the whole thing, it was getting scary! How could something so thoroughly take over my brain like this? Is this how Alzheimers works?
I was getting worse on New Years Eve, so about 9h I started calling my health care thing -- they start out all happy sounding and all
let us call this part THE CHORUS -- we have initiated a new automated user system -- you just speak your answers and the latest available information is provided to you -- say if you are a user or a provider -- say your ID number -- you said xxx, is that correct, say yes or no -- what is your birth date, starting with the month, day then year -- you said xxx -- is that correct, say yes or no -- sorry, I could not understand you, was that correct, say yes or no (in reply to that last one, I won't bother telling you the exact words I used!) --
at any time you may return to the main menu by saying back -- to speak with a health care specialist say operator -- BINGO -- OPERATOR --
ring....ring.... what is your name? what is your street address? what city is that? How can I help you --
so I explain the whole symptoms thing, saying I can't stand it any more, and can I get an appointment asap --
you will have to contact your primary care physician -- can't you do that for me? -- no, you will have to call his number -- but I don't have his number; before all I had to do was call some central # and they connected me; can you PLEASE give me his office number -- would you like the one in Trenton or Lawrenceville? -- whichever one causes you the absolute least stress to locate -- thanks a lot.
ring...ring ... I retell the entire story again, and the nice lady says the MD does not have anything open at this time, and that I might try the Emergency Room -- OK, back to THE CHORUS --
ring....ring.... what is your name? what is your street address? what city is that? How can I help you --well I just called my primary health care provider and he has no openings but suggested that I go to the ER -- is there any other option? -- you can change your primary health care provider -- does that mean they would see me today? -- you would have to check the provider to see if they have an opening for today -- can you suggest any in my immediate area? I tried to do this online on your main web site several months ago but the print was so small I couldn't read anything -- so the nice drone gave me three phone numbers of primary care physicians on a nearby street -- thank you so much -- what do I do if they do have an opening? -- you would have to call us again to change your primary care physician -- ok, thanks, you have been very helpful; have a great New Year -- click
ring..ring... Hello, Fox Chase Cancer Center -- but I was just given this number as that of a local Trenton physician on Hamilton Avenue in Trenton -- sorry, you have the wrong number -- click
ring...ring... hello, is this the office of Dr. Levinberg? -- yes, what can we do for you -- then I went into my symptoms asking if they had an opening for a consult -- are you a current patient? -- no, it was suggested that I try to find a new primary care physician who might see me due to the urgency of my problem -- the doctor is not accepting any new patients -- click
OK, back to THE CHORUS --
ring....ring.... what is your name? what is your street address? what city is that? How can I help you --I just tried doing the change primary care physician in order to resolve a recent serious medical problem, but none of them has an opening for new patients, and my primary care physician has no openings for the immediate future -- apparently my only option is to go to an affiliated Emergency Room -- can you suggest any in my immediate area, please, before I just lay down and die -- she dutifully provides me with three in my immediate area, two of which I never knew about, saying that there is a $25 charge for ER admission and that I would have 1-2 days to recontact my health care provider telling them what they did in the ER, etc -- thank you, and have a great New Years -- click
at this point 2 hours have gone by -- I am seething at the gills with so much administrative BS and wonder what their death rate is in just trying to get attended to --
I basically crawl to the Jeep, take a while to get situated behind the wheel, then another couple trying to close the door after me -- cough...cough...
I arrive at the ER, St. Francis Medical Center -- nobody in the glass enclosures in the waiting room -- what do I have to do now -- a nice lady appears, Brit-sounding, which was kewl -- she gives me a minimal form to write my name and arrival time, which was noon, 31 December 2003 -- she almost immediately ushers me into her glass room -- I explain all my stuff and how I spent hours trying to get to see an MD using my helath care insurance -- she said it is the usual story! She was very friendly -- did the pulse and blood pressure thing on a standing digital device, took my temp -- I was too discombulated to remember the readings, but my BP was higher than normal --
brings me to an examination room, not the standard open air stall that there were many of, all of which were taken anyway -- in that section there were a really old white guy, alone -- a few black guys, one an oversized Mr.T type with some pal sitting at his bedside, he winked at me -- a prisoner with 2 cops at the foot of the bed -- he looked middle aged, extremely emaciated, almost curled up in a fetal position -- an AIDS case?? I was quite moved by it all -- this is almost a new year, and there are loads of peeps who may not even make it!
my UK gal brings me a nice heated blanket and tells me to take my jacket and shirts off, put that open-in-the-back thingy on, and lay down on the table thing --
when I looked down at my feet I noticed that I had two different yet similar-looking leather mocs/deck shoes on -- at this point nothing would have surprised me!
at intervals, one after another peep arrives -- got a kewl orange plastic ID bracelet --12/31/2003 12:54 -- was amazed that Katz Steven was my nominal attending MD -- are they doing the iTunes promo thing too?
blood tests, three tubes full, and an IV was left in for whatever -- -- some kind of an inhaler for 20 minutes -- then on for an X-Ray -- I asked the girl if I could have a set of copies for my own files, she said not a problem -- when they were done, I asked the different girl if they made my copies -- she seemed to have at least 3 sets of negatives under her arm -- she said they never do that, and asked if I would pay for them, but she couldn't do it anyway --
then through the labyrinth to find my holding pen -- that really old guy now had a thinnish 40-ish or 50-ish male dude beside him, probably his son -- if he was still alone I was going to go up to him and say hello and stuff -- Mr.T was gone -- everybody else, except me, had somebody beside them, even if it was just some security guards from the prison -- an ER can be sort of a lonely place, despite all the quiet hustle and bustle --
maybe if they installed some of those rumored digital hub Apple iBoxes, everybody could at least entertain themselves while there, even just pressing buttons and watching flashing lights? Isn't that a major concern for humanity today -- constant enjoyment?
eventually the IV was removed -- Katz Steven made a surprise guest appearance to say my X-Rays showed a severe upper respiratory infection and he gave prescriptions for same -- Albuterol inhaler and Zithromax -- he wasn't a radiologist so he couldn't interpret the X-Rays for me -- I neglected to tell him I love his music or ask for an autograph --
I was left alone again, until a new gal came in with some sheets about Discharge Instructions -- she left and I put my shirts and jacket back on, then went out and asked somebody what I have to do next -- they pointed to the doors and said just walk out -- I did, but where do I pay the $25 ER fee? There wasn't anybody in the waiting room cubicles again, so I decided just to get out of there, run over to Super G and get my meds --
well the inhaler has a nominal retail of 29.69, and my copay was $6 -- the 6 freekin antibiotics have a nominal retail of 49.99 with a copay of $11, which sounds a lot higher than my insurance plan is supposed to cost me under my handicapped status -- I was dumb enough to ask the pharmacist about the copay -- we check your insurance status with the database online and charge the currently allowed fees -- yeah, like I really believe anything that I read online! Anyway, I was just thrilled to have all this over and done with --
it was now 16h -- so I went home, some 4 blocks away, took the meds and jumped into bed with 2 cats, and think I dozed off for a few hours -- got up and went to computer -- found a message on my answering maschine -- some studly voice asking me if I was OK and to log online -- I log on -- get am IM from Terry, asking if I am OK -- he was the studly voice on the answering machine -- this is around 21h -- I doze off again --
I wake up to new IM staring at me --
Terry: You fell asleep in front of the computer again, didn't you? You old fart! MyMASTODON: OMG! we made it to 2004!
It was a couple minutes till midnight in Texas, so I rushed to the kitchen to get that bottle of 1999 Perrier-Jouet that had been languishing in the fridge for some 3 years and one of the kewl enameled champagne flutes that come with it, brought it to the puter, popped it open --
Terry: Happy New Year!!! kiss kiss MyMASTODON: smooches -- great bubbly! MyMASTODON: may 2004 be way better than anything that went before it Terry: for you as well
Terry: you need to sign off your phone is ringing
So I signed off and immediately got a call from Terry and Humberto, and we chatted about stuff -- so I was not totally alone this time -- and, incidently, those halucinations stopped appearing for whatever reason! Hopefully it is a return to the real world, which is always way more satisfying than the imaginary kind!