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Category Archives: Rants & Gripes

Our trip to Target

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My back hurts like hell (like I could tell it might go out on me) but I needed to get diapers so I headed to Target with the boy, figuring how hard could it be. So we are shopping and I picked out a bunch of baby food, sippy cups, etc., then he was getting a little fussy, so I grabbed a pack of yogurt fruit chips (a new snack) off the shelf to give him. And he proceeded to vomit his entire lunch all over him and the cart cover (at least I had that on). I should know better than to give him a new snack like that.

>:XX

I didn’t have the diaper bag (because it was just going to be a quick run) which meant I had no wipes—just his one burp cloth (which wasn’t much help because he barfed on that, too). It stunk so bad it made me about gag. And then I felt like the bad mom because I couldn’t even clean up my kid—and he was covered, literally, from neck to knee in barf.

And I hadn’t even gotten to the diapers yet, so I thought “Do I keep shopping, or just leave the cart? But I need diapers…” so I grabbed the diapers and waited in line. Feeling like a complete schmuck. With a smelly baby. Wishing it wasn’t the holiday season with five people in each line.

Well, he had barfed on a sippy cup package, so I held that and had the girl scan it, telling her WHY. So I pay, rush him out to the car, and…

>:XX

I throw my back out when putting him in the car seat. Well, not technically throw my back out, but you know how you can just feel your back catch and it’s like someone knifed you and you can’t move? Yeah, that. So I was practically in tears just trying to get him in the car seat, while trying to cover the barfed-on coat with another clean burp cloth so the barf wouldn’t get all over the car seat.

So then I go to put the bags in the car and…

>:XX

I didn’t have my bag with all the baby stuff in it. I had the diapers and the barfed-on sippy cup, but that’s it. So I pulled up and parked in the fire zone (something I NEVER DO), locked the car, and ran in to the register to see if my bag was still there. The same young girl was there (because, swear to god, it was only like five minutes later) and she looked at me with NO recognition whatsoever (I had really expected her to be like “Oh, here is your bag!” like usually happens) so I said “I came back to get my bag” and she was all “Huh? What?” and asked when I had been there because she just came on.

>:XX

SERIOUSLY??

You can’t remember me when I just left a few minutes before? (I’ve been a cashier. You don’t forget that quickly. Especially when I had a story about a barfing kid.) So she asks what was in the bag and I told her baby food, sippy cups, etc. and she STILL doesn’t remember. Ugh. She tells me I can take the receipt to customer service and I can probably go get the stuff again.

Of course that is a pain in the ass because I have A BABY IN THE >:XX CAR PARKED IN THE FIRE LANE and I’m trying to rush—and I don’t want to bring him back in because he’s covered head to toe in vomit AND my back is on fire. So I think “I’ll just ask for my money back” so I run out to get the receipt, run back, and see about 10 people in line. At which point I almost lost it.

>:XX

So I call the store from the parking lot and relay the story and the girl says I can come back in today to either get the stuff again or get my money back. At least that went well, but now I either have to go back out once Tom gets home or send him, neither of which sound appealing, but it’s like $50 worth of stuff. Ugh.

So, not a fun “quick trip” to Target—and forget hitting Kroger on the way home like I had planned.

Why I hate people.

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Today was a perfect example of why I say I hate people. |-|

I had one item to buy at Sam’s Club. One. Every line was packed, as normal, so I picked the one with one full cart and one push cart with three items. Then, as luck would have it, the full cart pulled aside to wait for someone, so I was immediately behind the three-item push cart. WOOHOO.

And then the trouble began.

The chick of the couple was one of those annoying people who apparently freak out if their items go down the conveyor belt out of their reach, so she was constantly grabbing the box and dragging it back, dragging it back, dragging it back—until the employee saw her doing it and turned off the belt.

Of course, they didn’t want to ring up all the items together.

Then the TV was an unboxed special so they had to call a manager to deal with that discount. Then she paid in cash—hundreds—so the cashier had to deal with all that (checking the authenticity).

Then they rang up the second item (cereal) and paid cash.

Then it was time for the boxed item on the conveyor belt—a DLP Projector. It rang up and a total was given and oh, that’s a marked down special, too. So a manager had to be called back over to void the transaction and start over. Then there was some other issue in ringing it up. Then she went to pay with a credit card and it wasn’t accepting it. She tried about five times. The cashier was just standing there waiting for—who knows what. THEN THE LADY CALLS HER CREDIT CARD COMPANY! With no urgency whatsoever. Like we haven’t already been waiting long enough. While all of us in line are just staring at them like YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. I just wanted to tell the cashier to put their item on hold or void it and CHECK THE REST OF US OUT WHILE SHE’S FIGURING OUT HER SHIT. After about five more minutes, she found out that her payment hadn’t gone through yet, so she only had $400 left to charge. So she charged that, then had to pay cash for the rest. Which was $50 and change, so she was digging around in her purse for exact change, and some of it fell on the ground, so she was picking it up—and taking forever because she had long fake nails and couldn’t pick anything up.

OH.

MY.

GOD.

>:XX

Oh, and I forgot to mention that she was on the phone almost the entire transaction—she had to hang up on her phone call to make the call to her credit card company.

Want to see the source of my frustration?

I actually took the picture at the very beginning of the transaction, because I wanted to submit it to People of Walmart. I mean, the bra straps, the hideous heels and the too-long/too tight jeans and the gold lamé belt that only appeared to be hooked through the back loops and the underwear showing because the belt was hiking up the pants so far and the long fake nails and of course her talking on the phone pretty much the whole time.

So they had three items that took 25 minutes to ring up. Three items. TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES. Ugh. And the cashier was not very with it.

And this is why I say I hate people.

Craiglist Idiots

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When we first moved here, we had great luck with things we listed on Craigslist. No morons asking for 50-80% discounts, no one asking for us to ship items (when it clearly says PICKUP ONLY), no one haggling at all. It was heaven. Sigh.

But now, the idiots are out.

  • One person offered less than half of what we were asking for a set of DVDs. Now, I do leave room to haggle, but starting out offering a pittance will get you nowhere.
  • One person told me he could buy an older version of a remote control for much less. Well, yes, an older version doesn’t have the features MY newer version has…which is why mine costs MORE. Duh. :crazy:
  • One person told me the shower curtain I was selling should cost less because the item is used AND discontinued—and I wrote back and said it should actually cost MORE because it’s an in-demand item and I’ve seen them go for twice as much as I was asking.

But this is the current email conversation I’m having in trying to sell an old stereo receiver (the listing is VERY detailed):

Craigslist Idiot: do you still have this?

Me: Yes we do.

Craigslist Idiot: These are 10 year old models. Does all of its features work and can it be demoed?

Me: As I stated in the listing, we can show you that it can power on, but it cannot be demoed since we already have a new receiver hooked up. Please check my ebay feedback (as also stated in the listing) if you are concerned about our honesty regarding the status and quality of the product. Thanks!

Craigslist Idiot: I am just asking if the unit is 100% operable?

Me: Yes, it is. [By the way, this is clearly stated in the listing.]

Craigslist Idiot: Since it can’t be demod, can I pay with Paypal?

At this point I am so irritated with him, but I really want to get rid of this thing. I figure it would just be like an ebay transaction except with local pickup.

Me: Yes, that would be fine. My paypal email is the same as this.

Craigslist Idiot: [Two days later] Could I paypal you $100

ARGH!!!!!!!!!

I really want to tell this guy to take a flying leap. But I really want the money—and this thing—out of my house. But it just irritates the >:XX out of me that NOW he asks for a discount. I am tempted to email him back and say there has been other interest in the item, I can maybe go down $25 if he wants to come get it ASAP…and see what happens.

— time lapse —

Me: $100 cash or $125 via Paypal.

Craigslist Idiot: Why so much more for paypal? do you come out closer to Novi at all?

Me: It’s not so much that it’s more for paypal, but moreso that it’s a discount for handing over hard cash. I’m already discounting it by $25 for Paypal or $50 for cash. That said, Paypal is more of a hassle for me to get the cash in my hand.

[You notice I didn’t even address him wanting me to deliver it now?]

This guy is SOOOO irritating me, yet I can’t wait to see what he says next. I just can’t believe he’s bitching when I am offering him either a 20% or 33% discount!!! I really want to tell him to shit or get off the pot because this back and forth is ridiculous—you either want it or you don’t—but I want the money.

— time lapse —

Oh. My. Gawd.

Craigslist Idiot: I get paid today and will have $73-76 free after my insurance payment. Will that work.

Me: I’d like this deal to get worked out, but I cannot discount it that much. My last offer would be for you to pay half now (either $50 cash or about $63 Paypal) and I will hold the receiver (take it off Craigslist) until you have the rest of the money. If you then decide not to purchase it, you would lose your payment.

As an additional note, I do have someone else possibly interested in the unit, although no deals have been made.

Please let me know what you’d like to do.

Craigslist Idiot: What if I paid you the $70 I’ll have cash and $30 on paypal?

Me: I guess that would work. When can you pay me and pick up the item?

Craigslist Idiot: I am at work in Brighton. Can we meet in Novi or such?

Me: No. My ad clearly stated pickup only and I’m firm on that. Sorry.

At this point, I’m expecting him to come back and change his offer to $74.50 + package of licorice + Boyz II Men CD + some pocket lint.

— time lapse —

Well, I just decided I had had enough, and I wrote him back and told him the unit was taken (we will probably donate it and then write it off our taxes). I swear, I have never experienced so much run around on a stupid Craigslist item…EVER.

And I certainly don’t plan to do it again.

Baggers. Again. Ugh.

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I seriously wonder how all the Kroger baggers can have NO common sense?

I bring bags, so I obviously don’t want theirs. All my items easily fit into the bag(s) I brought (I have taken to filling my bag as I shop, thinking it would help the issue)…yet they STILL end up giving me a bag for something small.

Today it was relish. Yes, they couldn’t fit a small jar of relish in my bag (where, of course, there was PLENTY of room) so they put it in its own bag. Even after I said “It will all fit in one bag!” And TWO guys were bagging! So both were morons!!

I don’t know why this irritates me so, but it does.

The 4th of July is over. Please be quiet.

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Ugh.

So right now, the neighbor boy is lighting off what I can only assume are leftovers. Not even fireworks, but just shit that makes loud pops and bangs. Really >:XX irritating to me since the baby is napping, I’m trying to nap, and the dog is freaking out.

It’s just not necessary.

I know, I know, it’s a boy and boys do crap like that but the parents are obviously letting him. Whatever. It’s still >:XX irritating. I can literally feel my blood pressure rising with each bang and pop.

Yes, I’m turning into a crotchety old person. GET OFF MY LAWN.

Idiot Baggers

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WHY DON’T BAGGERS LISTEN?

I don’t want to use plastic bags, which is why I brought mine.

And if I tell you to “just put the items in the bag” as I see you reaching for the plastic bags—PLEASE put them in the bag—I know those three LIGHT bags of potato chips will fit JUST FINE on top of the four cans of baked beans and carton of macaroni salad. >:XX

It was all I could do to NOT take the chips out of the TWO plastic bags and throw the stupid unwanted bags back on the counter.

Facebook Updates

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  • Jennifer Hudson really wants a squarespace website, but just can’t afford the version I want. Oh well. Life goes on.
  • Jennifer Hudson just got attacked by a tray of brownies. For realz.
  • Jennifer Hudson was slacking at the computer and missed the Vine newsletter when it arrived…so got squat this month. Boo hiss.
  • Jennifer Hudson liked Bert & Ernie better as puppets, not claymation.
  • Jennifer Hudson thinks maybe she will make brownies when the kid goes down for a nap. Which should be momentarily.
  • Jennifer Hudson loves a strawberry smoothie on a hot day.
  • Jennifer Hudson says “Seriously, ThinkGeek? You call THIS a women’s 2X? It’s waaaay smaller than my husband’s Large tee-shirts.” Booooooooo!
  • Jennifer Hudson really needs the boy to take a longer nap. None of this 30 minute BS. 🙂
  • Jennifer Hudson has a smart dog. I started taking away pieces that she had chewed off, and she grabbed the toy and ran into the other room!
  • Jennifer Hudson finds it hilarious that the boy loves to turn on his mobiles himself by rolling down the crib and kicking the buttons with his feet. Swear to god he looks like he’s aiming. 🙂
  • Jennifer Hudson should have napped with the boy, but I never would have guessed he’d be out for going on 2.5 hours. The story of my life.
  • Jennifer Hudson is trying to figure out the fun that is RTM—syncing, gmail, bookmarklets, firefox addons, etc.
  • Jennifer Hudson hates driving anywhere anymore because of all the freaking idiots and douchebags on the road. Everyone seem to think they’re the ONLY car on the road. Grrrr.
  • Jennifer Hudson really wishes she had chips to go with her sandwich. Yes, I’m eating lunch at 10:40.
  • Jennifer Hudson loves when the boy falls asleep on her…sooo sweet. Now off to shower and start laundry! YAY!
  • Jennifer Hudson says YAY! We can to go Kentucky with the fam! It’s a good day!
  • Jennifer Hudson wishes mint.com would actually update/refresh.
  • Jennifer Hudson loves a sleeping baby. So cute. So quiet. So peaceful. So needed. 🙂
  • Jennifer Hudson says Owen either needs to nap, eat more, or poop, because mom is tiiiiired of the cranky.
  • Jennifer Hudson is getting closer to getting her hair cut. I think I might get it trimmed one more time, then chopped. So maybe in a few more months?
  • Jennifer Hudson just fed the boy a teaspoon of oatmeal cereal! He’s getting better!
  • Jennifer Hudson woke up to check the monitor and see…Owen on his stomach! OMG!
  • Jennifer Hudson wonders who the #$%@ thinks it’s a good idea to cut down a tree and shoot fireworks at 8:30 on a Sunday night? Seriously. GET OFF MY LAWN!

A/C issues update

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Well, the landlord called and said he talked to the guy and from what I had told him, it sounded like the system was working just fine. That it is typical for the upstairs to NOT cool like the rest of the house, especially when the weather is so hot. (Yeah, so what the hell is the point of A/C when it only works well when it’s COOL outside? :roll:) He even told me that THEIR OWN HOUSE, with TWO A/C units (one for each floor) doesn’t cool the second floor as well (that unit runs 24/7 while the other unit doesn’t).

He suggested closing off vents (which we have already done, which doesn’t help much at all—since most of the vents are so old and crappy that even in the closed position cold air still blows through) and setting up fans. Again: 🙄

Then the A/C guy called me and basically told me the same thing, but added that it’s probably a ductwork issue: old house, crappy ductwork, not really designed for A/C. Go figure.

So basically we have to deal with it.

I shouldn’t be surprised, as this is just about what we had to deal with in North Carolina—the upstairs was always warmer than anywhere else, and the living room specifically was under-vented so that room was always warm, even with the upstairs A/C unit running 24/7.

Ugh. Summer.

I can’t wait for fall.

Ugh. A/C issues. Again.

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Really? Another house where the A/C doesn’t work for shit upstairs? C’mon. Give us a break.

It’s a comfy 75 downstairs and a balmy 82-84 upstairs. WTF? >:XX

And here we had hoped to not even turn the damn A/C on, being a Michigan summer and all, having been used to North Carolina summers. But shit, it’s like 81 and humid, which is still uncomfortable. And we can’t have the baby’s room that warm…so we have fans going non-stop and we just turned the A/C down another few degrees to see if it helps.

And I am going to email the landlord, but I anticipate him saying “Your house, your problem” since technically that’s what our lease says. Ugh.

I freaking hate summer, no matter the state.

Secretary of State, Part 2

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So I went to get Tom’s plate taken care of and change our addresses. I was there five minutes before they opened and was third in line. By the time they opened, there were about 15 people waiting!

I got waited on right away (they had about five people behind the counter) and boy, was it eye-opening. :crazy:

Basically, Tom wanted to go back to using his MSU-themed license plate. He had it on his previous car, but then switched to a North Carolina plate because it was cheaper than registering the new car in Michigan. Fine. I didn’t think there would be any issue at all.

I was wrong.

The lady was VERY nice, and told me that “Yeah, you don’t want to use this plate.” Um, okay, why not? Basically, to use the same plate, we would have had to pay for the entire time it was UNUSED in order to “bring it up to date.” Michigan is one of those states where you apparently can’t let the plate lapse for any reason. Ugh. It was a matter of like $260 vs. $140 or something crazy like that. Yeah, um, give us a regular plate. 🙄 She said if we really wanted the MSU plate, we could try again in a few months, or just get a new one entirely. At least she was very nice about it, but what a strange thing. Even if we could prove the plate was unused during that time…we’d still have to pay. Oh well.

Then I changed our addresses and I was out of there in under 15 minutes. YAY!

To the Woman Sitting Behind Me

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http://blogs.chron.com/ar…dience_mem.html

This is a great letter a friend wrote about his recent experience at the theater. We are trying to convince him to write it as a Letter to the Editor! He sent it to the local newspaper blogger and they published it!

To the Woman Sitting Behind Me at Fiddler on the Roof:

Thanks so much for your recent performance. I could tell you are not a professional performer due the fact you were unable to hit the right notes and you didn’t care about pitch or tone. But kudos to you for belting out every song like you were one of the trained, highly skilled and experienced performers up on stage. You didn’t let your lack of traditional talent get in the way! I also liked the way you, at times, sung all the lyrics half a second ahead of the people on stage, obviously to let those around you know that you had, in fact, memorized the lyrics and weren’t just singing along. I caught what you were doing, you sneaky devil, and am in awe of your skill!

I also noticed all the other touches your brought to the performance. It was very helpful that you blurted out the names of each new character that came on stage and let out a spastic little round of applause like an excited 3-year-old at Christmas. I’m glad I didn’t have to wait for the story to unfold as the writer intended. An added bonus was you blurting out the punchlines to the jokes ahead of the actors. Obviously the comedic timing of the actors was off and you corrected it all by speeding it up. Good job! And your enthusiastic clapping along to the music, when no one else in the audience was, really added to the performance. Why would I want to hear the trained orchestra when I could hear that wonderful clapping? I loved that you didn’t choose to clap on the beat, as most people would, but sort of randomly clapped here and there, imitating (in an obviously mocking fashion) people who have no rhythm. What a great interpretation!

Finally, at the end of the performance, I loved the loss of hearing I temporarily enjoyed as you repeatedly shouted, at the the top of your lungs, “Bravo,” and “Topol,” (refering to name of the actor in the lead role) directly into my right ear. Yes, the standing ovation the rest of the theater engaged in seemed like a spit in the face compared to your enthusiastic celebration of the performance.

Your new fan,
Theater Goer

PS: I heard you mention on your way out of the theater that you had tickets to an upcoming performance of Cabaret. I just checked my calendar and it is with great disappointment I must tell your that I will be busy with other engagements during that show’s entire run.

It’s the little things.

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I hate that little things make me lose my mind lately.

Like just now, putting the sheet pan into the oven with sliced garlic bread and chicken nuggets on it, and I hit the edge just right and the entire tray tipped into the oven and across the door.

And I lost it.

None of it even hit the floor, and it was all salvageable within a minute, but I still lost it. I slammed the pan down, slammed the oven door, etc.

I hate being like this, never knowing what is going to set me off.

I blame it on sleep-deprivation.

Again, it’s a good thing Owen is cute and worth it. 😀

Secretary of State – Ugh.

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So Tom has to change license plates. Well, let me rephrase. He wants to go back to his Michigan State University license plate vs. the North Carolina license plate he got when he bought the car.

Of course, it’s a total PITA to get to the SOS with his schedule, so I figured that I would just call the out-of-state military resident line to hopefully just change our address (which is what we did to change us to an out-of-state address) but noooooooooo…since we are in the state we have to go in and fill out paperwork. :crazy:

I should have just lied and said we were moving back soon and here’s our new address. But then with my luck, she would have just said “Well just wait until you actually move here and come into the office.”

I know if you could just change you address on the phone, everyone would do it. But we’re not everyone, we are military. Cut us some freaking slack.

>:XX

Accident!

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So Tom had to work today (of course) and he called to let me know he was going to be a little late…someone on a bike hit him as he was pulling out of his parking lot!!

He didn’t give me many details because the cops were just getting there, so I was left wondering just what happened! He said bike so I thought motorcyle, and he had commented that his car was pretty bad—so I imagined the worst.

So, what happened?

Tom was in the drive waiting to pull out across a divided four-lane road into his turn lane. He checked for traffic and seeing none (and only seeing two bikers way off in the distance), pulled out—when a guy on a 10-speed ran into him and flew over the hood!

Turns out the guy was riding the wrong way on the street (against traffic—he should have been on the other side of the divided road) and he tried to “go around” the car instead of waiting for it—so Tom hadn’t seen him at all because he was coming from the wrong direction!

He crashed into the car, skidded across the hood, and went flying into the road. He was wearing a helmet, thankfully, and Tom said he seemed okay. There were witnesses, the cops were called, and it was definitely the biker’s fault.

Unfortunately, the biker didn’t get a ticket.

Fortunately, we didn’t have to pay our deductible because it wasn’t our fault.

Dental is expensive, too!

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Yeah, so I went to the dentist today. Love love love the hygienist and the dentist…but not what they recommended. XX(

Yeah, I need a $500 bite guard. Because I grind my teeth and clench my jaw. This I know because previous dentists have told me.

However.

Not a single one of them ever showed me just what was happening…the ridges along the bottom of my top front teeth? From grinding. My shorter teeth? From grinding. (I know, I never even thought about some of my teeth being shorter than others! She said she saw a 2mm loss on a few of them! HOLY WAH!)

She also wondered if I had TMJ issues and I said yes, I can’t chew gum, anything really chewy hurts, my jaw clicks and pops—and she piped up, yep, I have TMD:

WHAT ARE TMJ / TMD’s?

Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) occur as a result of problems with the jaw, jaw joint and surrounding facial muscles that control chewing and moving the jaw. These disorders are often incorrectly called TMJ, which stands for temporomandibular joint.

And a bite guard (to be worn mostly at night) should help with all of that. They sent it in to insurance to see if it would be covered, but we aren’t holding out hope.

After I had my mouth open for the x-rays and the cleaning and the exam, my jaw was about dead. The dentist then said “This will hurt a bit now, but should help later” and then stuck her fingers in my mouth and massaged the tendon around the jaw. Egads, that was painful.

They also saw some groundwork for cavities, so now I have this special paste (at $16/tube) that I have to apply to my teeth every night to try and stop the process. (I think she called it recalcifying.)

And I do have one cavity that needs work soon (the appointment is next week).

But my gums look good!

Lordy.

At least this one was only $64 out-of-pocket today. But that damn bite guard…

>:XX

Eye care is too expensive.

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Holy crap.

We have vision insurance through the military, but it’s not good insurance. Meaning, it covers the eye exam—ONLY. Meaning, because I choose to wear contacts, they don’t cover anything contact-related (i.e. the procedure for measuring the eyes, etc.). Meaning they also do not cover the heavily-recommended tests (for glaucoma and whatever the other one is). Meaning they don’t cover any part of glasses (lenses or frames) and of course nothing regarding contacts. >:XX

So, of the $129 for the total eye exam, they paid $84. Which, if that’s all I needed, that wouldn’t be too bad.

But alas, I wear contacts. And needed new glasses. So about $500 later (well, $584 if you count what insurance covered) I walked out of there. But that didn’t include the contacts that I would still need to purchase (I am testing out a new brand now so didn’t buy any yet.) That said, I did opt to finally get a backup pair of glasses—I am wearing them more often now, and with a baby…I imagine I will have a higher than normal chance of something happening to them.

So, it sucked to have to pay that amount, but at least I was getting two pair of glasses out of it.

But then I got to thinking…I didn’t know how much my prescription had changed. Contacts I definitely needed to upgrade…but glasses—especially for a backup pair (i.e. just using them at night for the baby)—I might not need the absolute best/updated and could sneak by and save the $129 (and instead put that already-paid money toward the contacts that I have yet to buy). So I called my old eye doc in Jacksonville to get my old eyeglass prescription.

Long story short, the prescription changed a little…but for a backup pair of glasses it should be just fine. So, YAY! :>>

Except.

In talking to the girl, I have only paid for the one pair of new glasses (lenses/frames) and the eye appointment itself. For $500. I have not yet paid for the second pair of lenses. (Or the contacts, of course.) Hoo boy.

So I am definitely thinking I do not need the backup pair of glasses—I will use my old ones as they are.

Blech. XX(

Of course, they said I am a perfect candidate for Lasik—at about $3500. 88|

So I can’t wait to see the actual line item bill—they will have it for me on Friday. It all made sense when she was reading it off to me last week, but now that I am adding things up, I am not getting the same total:

129 for the appointment
-84 covered by Tricare
+44 for extra eye tests
+169 for new lenses
+80 for new frames
+129 for backup lenses
=======================
$467

But I paid $498 last week. And they just told me I haven’t paid for the backup lenses yet…but I included that in my price. ❓

Hoo boy.

My $200 Lesson

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So this morning Tom came back in the house to tell me I had left the car door open so the light was on—so I had better check the battery when I got up. I was still very drowsy (it was 5am after all) but I was pretty certain there was no way I had left the door open enough to leave the light on. But I didn’t think too much about it since I know I had gone back out to the car for something in the afternoon.

Fast forward to Tom coming back home about 6:30 to shower because he forgot his towel. He started the car to test it and it was fine.

Fast forward to me leaving to do some errands, and the first thing I noticed is that my iPod is missing—the tape adapter cord was lying on the passenger seat NOT ATTACHED TO ANYTHING.

>:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX

>:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX

>:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX >:XX

So, the one night I forget to lock the car AND left iPod out… Yeah, Tom gets on me about keeping the car locked, and I am usually quite good about it—and the few times I’ve forgotten, he has remembered. But not last night. And I also just happened to start using the iPod again last week after about a six-month hiatus. :no:

The thing that confused me is that they didn’t take the GPS—which was right there between the seats. But after some thought, we figured that Tom must have scared them off when he opened the garage door at 5am—they must have been in the car right then, and then skedaddled when the door started opening, and just left the door ajar (with the light on).

Bastards.

Yes, I know technically it was my fault…but still.

Bastards.

I went to file a report (just so it would be on record, we know we will never see the iPod again and we’re not filing an insurance claim) and the cops all but laughed at me, saying they know they have troubles in our area…and we need to take valuables inside. 🙄 I didn’t have the serial number, which the cop said I really had to have if they ever happened to find it. So I brought the form home and had to get the S/N from within iTunes (one saving grace—I didn’t even know it kept that info). So, I will end up filing a report, just in case.

Ugh.

So that was my $200 lesson for the day.

>:XX

2am

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It is currently 4:15am as I write this.

Yes, 4:15. >:XX

Owen decided he was hungry at about 2am, which meant I was up until just after 3am.

And then I had to pump, which I did in semi-darkness to stay sleepy.

But then I wasn’t really tired, so my mind wandered to some things I needed to remember to do today, so I turned on my phone and emailed myself some reminders. I thought that would be enough and my mind would be clear so I could fall asleep.

Then Bella decided to puke, so I got up to clean that…because the last thing I want to do in the morning is step in wet cat puke unexpectedly.

And then since I was up, I thought “Well, I will just go downstairs real quick and grab a protein shake since I am suddenly hungry.” (This often happens after I get up with the kid, although the need for sleep usually outweighs the need for sustenance.)

So I was doing everything in the dark to try and keep me sedate, so I didn’t really wake up too much.

And once I was downstairs, Bella threw up again. Which, obviously, necessitated turning on lights to clean it up.

So now I was really quite fully awake.

>:XX

So decided to check my email and do a few things I had been thinking about (that I didn’t email myself reminders for).

And now it’s 4:15. Well, 4:20 since I’ve been typing steadily for five minutes.

I really do need to try and get back to bed because Owen will surely be crying for me about 6 or 6:30 if the past few days have been any indicator.

At least Grandpa Mike and Grandma Linda will be here later this afternoon and I might be able to catch a nap…

Michigan Weather!

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So yesterday it got to be probably 85°.

Now, you would think that after the yucky cold winter we just had that we would have loved yesterday. Well, we really didn’t because it was just too warm.

And this house is (we just learned) annoying when windows are open and it’s at all breezy. You see, the windows open from side to side and upstairs? The blinds all open up and down…meaning that you have to have the blinds all completely open so that the breeze doesn’t hit them and bang them around. And even if you do that, the cord/cabling system is not hooked down, so that then flies around and smacks the wall as well. Very irritating.

That said, most of the downstairs get good cross-ventilation—except, of course, for the room we are in the most: the living room (kind of like our house in NC where the living room got the worst A/C flow of the entire house). There is a nice big window in the living room, but of course the big heavy couch is in front of it so you have to climb on the couch to heave open the window (because, of course, that window doesn’t slide easily). But it is under the awning, so we can leave the window open when it rains.

But this house gets WARM. It wasn’t really even THAT warm or humid yesterday—and the day even got cooled off by a thunderstorm mid-afternoon—but the house was WARM. And upstairs was worse. Poor Owen—first his room is too cold so we buy a heater…now it’s too warm and we’re NOT buying a portable air conditioner so he will have to make do with a fan. We got out a fan for our room, too—as well as a fan in the living room.

Needless to say WE MISS CEILING FANS. This house would be a lot more bearable weather-wise with ceiling fans.

We are not looking forward to warmer weather. We do have A/C, but we’re sure something will be wrong with it, LOL.

Stupid Freaking Comcast.

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So I get up this morning and go to check my email and see that there is no connection. That happens, so I rebooted…and nothing. Rebooted the modem…and nothing.

I turned on the TV and there was no cable—which meant a serious problem. I called Tom to see what he did the last time this happened (somewhat recently) and he said he had to call them. He said he would call again since he had their number already.

So he calls me back while on hold with Comcast to fill me in…and you will NOT believe what it was. Someone requested that our service be disconnected!! And he was on hold while they tried to figure out the details. He called me afterwards to tell me—are you ready? That he had to go to the main office to PROVE WHO HE WAS in order to have the service turned back on!!

So apparently someone can just call up and have service disconnected WITHOUT PROOF OF WHO THEY ARE, but now we have to prove who we were? :crazy:

So Tom had to come home to get his social security card. I had to dig through boxes in the basement to find the combination to the safe in order to get the card (which, as an aside, wasn’t there, so I pulled his passport instead). I also gave him our recent bill with our address on it.

Now, are you ready for the pièce de résistance?

Apparently someone faxed in a death certificate for Tom and requested the cable be turned off! ❗ ❗ ❗

True story.

Of course it must be a case of mistaken identity, but how freaking bizarre is that?! Tom said that they told him the name of the person who faxed it in, and it was something like Paul Thomas or Hudson Paul—some combination of his name, so that it was obviously just a transposing of names. But to not confirm the address? Or maybe they did? Who knows.

So Tom apparently read them the riot act and they are “working on” getting us a copy of the document, they gave us a free month, and said they would have our service turned back on today.

It took them a few hours, but they did come out and get us going again. And now we have to watch to see we get credit for this (or next) month.

What an ordeal.

ARGH!!!!!

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Sometimes, you just want to scream. Mostly when a bunch of little things irritate you within a short period of time.

Like today.

  • It was raining, which was a pain in the butt for running errands with the boy. Normally no big deal, but it was the start of things.
  • The sections of couch will NOT stay in place, and I am constantly moving them back where they should be. We thought the carpet piece would help, but it doesn’t. Again, this is not a big deal, but it happens day after day after day after day after day…
  • Things are constantly falling in between the sections—today, it was my cell phone (twice) which I try to keep near me at all times. Sometimes I put it in the basket (which houses most of my day-to-day essentials) but I had just set it down because Tom had called.
  • Charlie, my lover lap kitty, wanted attention at the same time I was feeding Owen, and she would not leave me alone.
  • Of course, when I say “feeding Owen” I mean ATTEMPTING to feed Owen, because he was being supremely fussy and wiggly and although he was hungry (he was giving me the snorting cry) he would not settle down enough to actually eat.
  • I decided to try and watch a Netflix movie that has been sitting here for over a week—and normally it’s no big deal to watch something on TV. I mean, I watch TV on a daily basis with the kid awake and/or feeding him or whatnot. But not today, apparently. After having to rewind the movie three times in the first five minutes…I gave up.
  • Oh, and I have kept forgetting to reprogram the remote, so when you hit “watch DVD” everything changes correctly EXCEPT the receiver, which doesn’t get the correct sound input…normally not a big deal, except I had JUST sat down to feed the boy, and he was being cranky and the cat was nudging me for attention and I had just dropped my phone between the couch sections…so I got up (keeping the bottle in his mouth—a feat in itself!) and fixed the sound, got myself reseated on the couch, and then noticed…
  • I had dropped both burp cloths AND the boppy (both of which I need during feeding).
  • In the meantime, Owen has cranked it up two notches and was SCREAMING but REFUSING to eat.
  • And on top of all this, I have apparently forgotten how to deal with a period and I will leave it at that.

ARRRRRGH!!!!!!

So I put the boy in his crib (well, pack-and-play), gave him a pacifier, turned his mobile on…and that seemed to be the answer.

In the resulting quiet, I was able to clean up the kitchen a bit (including put away most of my Target bags from this morning), change the laundry, and just sit and enjoy the silence.

And I just realized I could have been watching the movie this whole time. |-|

First Overnighter

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For mom and dad, that is. :>>

Grandpa Mike and Grandma Linda were here for a few days, and Linda offered to take the night shift…and since there is no way I would get any sleep if I was in the same house and could hear him, we decided to get a hotel.

We wanted something close to home with an in-room jacuzzi for less than our monthly grocery budget (LOL). Seriously, most rooms I called about were upwards of $140! 88| So when we saw the marquee at Knights Inn saying a jacuzzi room was $69.95, we were in. We needed some “alone time,” some muscle relaxation, AND a full night’s sleep—so this place seemed perfect.

Unfortunately, it was much less than perfect.

It started with them not having our reservation—they mistakenly made the reservation for the night Tom called, not the night we requested. (The place was nearly empty, though, so it was no big deal. They also assured us they hadn’t charged us for that night. Um, good thing.) Then, I asked Tom how much it was (we got a military discount) and when he told me I said WHAT? They had quoted me less on the phone and charged him more than that. Ugh. But we were just excited to be out so we let it slide.

We could tell from the first moment entering the room that it was old and run down: the main light switch had a burned out bulb, there was an old room smell, and it just looked, well, cheap. Which is not what we wanted since we were paying almost $100. We had brought beverages for later, and were surprised to see no refrigerator—something we didn’t think to ask about since every jacuzzi room we’ve ever had has had a refrigerator (hell, most hotel rooms these days regardless of price have refrigerators). So we thought well we will just get ice and put everything in the sink. It’s a one-story drive-up-to-your-room hotel so we wondered where the ice machine was. I had to call the front desk. Oh, it’s IN the lobby. So Tom got in the car (yes, the car, it was quite a distance from our room) to get ice. The jacuzzi seemed just fine, and that was my major concern. We were going out to dinner so didn’t look much beyond that.

When we got back, we went to brush our teeth, the first thing I noticed was the splash of something (god knows what) on the wall. Ketchup? Blood? Soy Sauce? Egads. |-| But I figured as long as I didn’t have to touch it or go near it, I could live with it.

Then I noticed the sad state of the lights in the bathroom area—the plastic panels were bowing and coming out, and the support beams were rusty. Ick. But I could still live with it (see pics).

Then we went to brush our teeth and I noticed…no cups. Hmmm. Okay. I can’t say as if I’ve ever been in a hotel that didn’t have at least plastic cups, but whatever. We then went to spit in the toilet (since the sink was full of ice and beverages) and…lifted the lid…and…YUCK. Dirty. It looked like cigarette ash (it was a non-smoking room, though, so who knows—I didn’t want to get that close to check it out).

Okay, I was getting more upset, but still, not too bad. I hate to complain and/or make waves, so I can overlook a lot. That is, until I pulled back the shower curtain to use that faucet. There were pubic hairs in the tub. And not just one, like oops, I happened to miss that one in a far corner…but multiple hairs. GAG ME. It was at this point that I said no way am I staying in this room. Tom was out the door within moments, and back with a new room key.

In a totally different section of the hotel now, we entered our second room. And what a world of difference. Different smell. A mini fridge AND microwave! All light bulbs worked. No hanging and rusty light panels. No splashes of any unidentifiable substances on the walls. And no dirty toilet or pubic hairs. THANK GOD.

The room still wasn’t perfect—the wallpaper was bubbling in one area by the jacuzzi tub and the bathroom counters were a little sketchy, but no sanitary issues. So we stayed.

Unfortunately, the beds were extremely uncomfortable and the pillows were laughable (there were only two flat pillows for a king bed)—had we not been exhausted when we were ready for bed, we would have called for more pillows… And lastly, the room did not seem designed for a jacuzzi…meaning that there was no fan (aside from the small fan in the separate bathroom) so basically the entire surface of the room—walls, doors, windows, tile floor, etc.—were covered in condensation…even through to when we got up in the morning!

So, we didn’t sleep great, but at least we did get to sleep. The next time, we definitely get a nicer hotel…

Homeowners Insurance – UGH – Part 4

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This is STILL a nightmare, going on—what??—six months now? Seven? Eight?

A few weeks back, we got notice that Farm Bureau was cancelling our insurance because we hadn’t paid something (I think it was). Well, we had paid, but they hadn’t received it or the agent had to confirm something or whatever. Whatever it was, we received a cancellation notice. So we got that taken care of and thought we were done. We received the “cancellation rescinded” notice and thought great, we’re REALLY done.

Then we received our mortgage escrow analysis…with a new mortgage payment about $400 more a month! 88| Yeah, turns out they still had the incorrect insurance premium on there. I guess it was confusing since it was our primary residence, then it wasn’t but it was empty, and then we got renters…so actually I should have been surprised if there WEREN’T problems with the statement.

So anyway, since they hadn’t gotten the updated insurance amounts, they said we would have like a $3,000 deficit, which would raise our mortgage payment by like $400. I called to request an escrow REanalysis and they ended up having to call the insurance company to get the correct premium amounts.

So, we did get it figured out, but we still have a shortfall that increases our monthly payment like $150. Which is better than a $400 increase, but still…instead of being in the hole $250 each month like we are now (since we couldn’t rent it for what our actual mortgage was), we will now be in the hole $400 a month.

WHY COULDN’T THE DAMN HOUSE HAVE SOLD? Ugh. XX(

Tom’s job. Ugh.

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So it’s no secret I don’t like his job. The hours suck and he gets maybe one Saturday off a month. He really can’t take any time off because every time he tries, he has to work. Which is exactly what I just found out…

My Grayling baby shower is scheduled for Saturday, April 18. I told him this almost a month ago when we first picked that day. He said he would have no problem getting it off. Cool.

Fast forward to this weekend, when I reminded him about the date. So he asked today and…guess what?

He has to work! Of course!

As it so happens, the big boss is going to be out of town…and someone else is going to be at training…and someone else has some other issue…so Tom will be the only one able to be there—and someone has to be there.

>:XX

So, really, it wouldn’t have even mattered if Tom had requested the day way back when—because the other guys aren’t available due to work things…Tom would have had to work anyway. Even if he had already been cleared for that day.

So now I get to travel to Grayling—with the baby—alone for the weekend.

I am sure I will be just fine, but I am irritated as all hell that Tom can’t go. I mean, it’s not like this is the first set of plans that has been screwed up due to his job.

Oh yeah, did I mention? The big Schwalmlette & Smithlette family reunion this summer? Where the entire family will be together at one time (which hasn’t happened since before we moved to NC, I think)? That we are dying to go to? That Tom assured me he would have no issues getting time off for since we knew MONTHS in advance?

Yeah, he just found out he has training in South Carolina the week before, and it overlaps the vacation time by a day or so. So we either don’t go at all, or pay for the entire week’s share of vacation (not cheap) and are only able to use like 3-4 days of it, or I go alone. What options, eh?

>:XX

I hate lazy, stupid people.

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So I was just at Target and pulling in, a woman coming towards me stopped and put her blinker on. I notice the empty spot she was eyeing, and motioned her in (I needed a spot near the corral so I could snag a cart to put the boy in—but I wouldn’t have taken the spot anyway. But that’s neither here nor there).

So I go to a space about 10 slots down, go grab a cart, unload the boy, get the cart and his diaper bag situated, and start towards the store. The woman, who so desperately wanted that space, was STILL pulling in. Apparently, there were a bunch of carts in that spot, and she took the time to stop pulling in, move them ALL into the roadway, then pull her car in—AND LEFT ALL THE CARTS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE >:XX >:XX LANE.

So I get in the store and am printing out a bridal registry, when she comes in and stops at customer service—of course jumping ahead of others waiting to tell the clerk that someone needs to go out and get some carts that are in the middle of the road.

What a >:XX asshat.

It’s 65 out today. And sunny. And gorgeous. And she was maybe 35 and looked to be in good health. Yet she needed that closer spot and then felt the need to be annoying and push all the carts into the middle of the lane so that others would be inconvenienced, and then cut in line no less to tell someone to go take care of it.

I hate people like her.