rear window movie

 just before midday i went to see a movie in Columbia heights, it was 'rear window' as part of this year's Hitchcock film festival. i like Jimmy Stewart and this one had me guessing until the end. i knew this movie as being parodied on 'the Simpsons' and name-checked in a Lady Gaga song. this was 'bad romance'. it was my second visit to this theater, and while there i got an idea for another visit. there is a Cary Grant series starting soon, seven movies in all. i prefer to make it count and will likely just see one of them. when i already have 'affair to remember' on DVD, then of course that one is out. there was a good crowd for this screening, the second of two at this venue. i still know it as the sister theater to the trylon, which i get to more often. after the movie it was time for lunch and i went to a buffet in a plaza, one block over. probably a good thing that i don't go to buffets much as there is always a temptation to overeat. i stopped before i felt full, though. i liked how there was soft-serve ice cream there, so i had some. i tried to watch a united football league game when i got home, but i was tired. the St. Louis Battlehawks were home against the Birmingham Stallions. i decided to lay down at halftime and when i woke up it was near the end of the game, but St. Louis went on to win it. i had the evening meal and then near the end of the night i did the dishes. 

great awakening movie

 in the evening i went to see the movie 'great awakening', in Woodbury. it had been a minute since i had seen a movie in this theater, as i like my loyalty programs. this one isn't a part of the AMC or Emagine chains. i figured it would be a good idea to sit up front, but not in this theater. one is way too close to the screen in the first row. when the movie began, i moved back two rows, and it was a much better view. i did not recognize any of the actors in it, but i cared more about the story. even though i majored in history, the preacher in it, George Whitefield, wasn't in any of the history books i had read. this was ben franklin's friend. there was a hymn in it that i recognized from easter services, a Wesley hymn as Whitefield knew the Wesleys. this was 'love divine'. it did have the feel of many other biopics i had seen, where some but not all of franklin's accomplishments were mentioned. and i knew full well to expect the discovery of electricity with the kite and key as it was in the previews. i liked how it ended on a high note, as franklin didn't love all that long after the constitutional convention. nothing in his life was depicted after that. little or nothing was depicted from the American revolutionary war as i recall, it was more about events before and after it. i have been to franklin's home in London, which still stands, unlike the one in Philadelphia, and i have been to that city too. there were things to do before this event, though. i went to a lecture at the Minnesota history center just before midday, it was about John Adams. then i had lunch in the restaurant district just down the road near the hockey arena, at a pizza place. after lunch i returned to the museum and toured the Julia Child exhibit. i was there until just before closing time, but i wanted to get a good look around. i found out Julia was spoofed on 'Saturday night live' and 'sesame street'. it is proof that one is famous if one has been spoofed. it made me feel old when i saw VHS tapes on display as a museum artifact as i still have some of those. then i made it to Aldi for groceries before i went to the movie. 

patriotic rubber ducks

 in the morning i made it to Walgreen and bought more than just cookies and a drink. in the seasonal aisle i saw some patriotic rubber ducks and bought two of them. one looks like Uncle Sam and the other looks like the statue of liberty. both were a buck-fifty so i could justify that amount easily, so two more america-250 items have been acquired. in the evening i went to the Dunkin donuts in Eagan and got coffee and a donut, then headed to the Hy-Vee. saw the cashier that often recognizes me. i chatted with another employee before checking out, picking up some Oreos. although i was bored with hearing about her life as a supermom and paralegal. she couldn't get her facts straight about famous people, either. at work i added a day off to our team's calendar, in early June. i got a rare call on my laptop phone, the courier needed help with finding the building. this was the delivery of the check stock order. there was mention of a wallpaper and screen saver change as well. this might explain why the team lead spoke at the huddle about our website where we log into payroll, since it has changed too, showing us palm trees. don't know how this affects me though, as i leave for the day after logging out and finally seeing a 'blue screen' with the time on it. 

dead battery was culprit

 the doorbell to the check shop was finally fixed in the afternoon, after a month of waiting. the tech arrived just as i was about to leave for lunch, but it was handled fairly quickly. i decided to eat my lunch in the shop, on an alternate table from where i do most of my work. the tech said the culprit was dead batteries, and those were swapped out. i helped with testing it, and that is what i said when the second work order was created. i wanted techs to show up when i am there so i could help with testing. i was told the first visit, the one before my start time for the day, was likely from building management and not his company. a check for payroll was picked up in the morning, and another in the afternoon, not long after the doorbell was up and running again. payroll is now in the same building, but on floor 13. i guess this building does not skip that floor, but some do. two boxes of envelopes arrived, but there are still two others that i am waiting for. i let my colleague know and found out the courier envelopes hadn't been ordered yet. i liked how another thing was finally handled, a check that was on dashboard for two weeks that was awaiting approval. it was the proverbial 'get off the pot'. i let I.T. know this time, as letting the business line know yielded no response. found out the check was no longer needed, so the line item was removed. a check for the manager that likes karaoke was sent to another floor late in the afternoon, after i had sent the regular mail tubs to the mailroom. i stopped on main floor to send UPS envelopes to the box, then i was on my way. it was a 'drop and leave' as the manager was in a conference room waiting for a dial-in meeting to begin. in the evening i drank the can of miller lite with my meal and now there are three beers waiting. 

table about tech conference

 when i was on my way back to the shop after the rescheduled team huddle, i was on the main floor and decided to ask what the table near the turnstiles was about. it was an upcoming technology conference if i am not mistaken, but i don't know how i could make my role more efficient. and it sounds like these are long sessions and i have just one vacation replacement. i did pick up a plastic cup with the bank's logo on it, after playing their 'Plinko' game. there were 11 boxes of check stock just outside the door of the shop when i made it back. sometimes i have to leave the floor, it can't be helped. i got out a cart and brought them in, making two trips to complete it. i was asked to hold a payroll check until the next day, not a big deal. the team huddle did speak of the survey that is due soon, i said i would do it once i got another reminder. the boss asked for the cost center from the business line related to the special project, as we've ordered the supplies already to cover the demand. i was asked for a tracking number on the Cincinnati file, even though this business line sends them to me. it was related to me saying i was using just one label after noticing three checks were going to the same address in NYC. once i checked the tracking, i found out delivery had been delayed, something about the incorrect suite number. good chance it gets sent back to Oregon. 

early arrival, tax specialist

 i saw an instant message from the tax specialist asking about a Canadian check. i said it wasn't printed yet but i could get it done soon, just needed to swap out the check stock for the Canadian kind. it was afternoon and i had just printed the main ad-hoc file of tax checks, 18 in all. normally these would all be picked up the next morning, but i was told the Canadian check needed to go out same day to avoid fines. i was asked where the UPS box is, as this dude is new to the building. i said it was on the main floor between two food outlets, in the hall. the boss was ill, so our team huddle didn't happen. i was given a PO box address for a PDF check that had no address on it. this is a rare occurrence. the big envelope order arrived, then i asked when the check stock order would be arriving. looks like the supplier still needed the purchase order, and a colleague sent it on my behalf. 

yellow bird tops

 in the evening i went to a Walgreen to see what easter candy was available since it would be discounted. i chose two tubes of Reese's peanut butter mini-cups, and these had yellow bird tops on them. while there i responded to a text message from my niece, who said there would be no birthday party for her elder daughter, but a wish list would be available on Facebook. i also got some cheese sticks and a Charlie Brown gift box. at work it was largely uneventful. there was a check for the manager that likes karaoke, it was in the second i-pay file of the day. i was asked to hold it until the next day as she was working from home. before i made it to Walgreen i went to the copy store and printed an event ticket, an upcoming history lecture. 

bunny cookies

 i went to the Easter Sunday service at a church in downtown St. Paul. there was an Easter egg hunt after the service for the kids, so they wanted us adults to leave the sanctuary right away. it meant going to the fellowship hall, where i had some cheese, juice, and a bunny cookie. when i got home it was time for lunch, and another day of frying up some Spam and boiling some ramen noodles. now there is just one noodle packet that remains from the February purchase. i watched some Charlie Brown DVDs, i was a little behind on that. there was the 'Easter beagle', then the first Valentines special. i went to mall of America in the early evening for a blizzard treat at dairy queen. i also wanted to have pizza there, but i noticed some of the food outlets were closed. either closed all day due to the holiday or had closed early. since this was true of my preferred choices, i didn't eat there. i got a sandwich and some juice at a speedway gas station. then i went to a bar, but found out there was no open-mic, also likely due to the holiday. i did chat a little with a bar patron that had recognized me from performing, though. in the evening i called my dad, who said he'd received the event invite from my cousin. then after the call i did the dishes. 

thief movie

 in the evening i went to see a movie at the trylon, it was 'thief', starring James Caan. also in it was Willie Nelson, but in a small role. Jim Belushi had more screen time than Willie did. this was about a safe cracker that wanted to do one last job, and the setting was Chicago. i laughed at times as James proved to be witty, or just plain dour. a reminder of the setting was seeing a bag from the jewel grocery store, which is common in the Chicago metro area. i will likely get to another movie at this venue next month. the day was also about errand running. in the morning i went to the post office, but no orders to be picked up. i moved up going to Aldi for groceries, going there just after lunch was done. i did some cooking, frying up some spam and boiling some ramen noodles. before lunch i went to have some change counted at the credit union. there was a sign up that said pennies would no longer be accepted later in the month, but then a teller said that was no longer true and said it was being taken down. over four dollars in change went into my savings account. after i went to Aldi, i went to see the St. Paul Saints baseball game, my first of the season. the weather report didn't look good, but a full nine-inning game was played. i chose this day as i wanted the magnet schedule. the saints lost to Worcester, the Red Sox team, 5-3. there were some snow flurries during the game. there was plenty of the long ball, but i am used to this by now. with triple-a baseball, those players have to be good hitters just to make it this far. since i ate before i made it to the stadium, i didn't need as much when i was there. it was just as well, as there was a small crowd due to the chilly weather and not every concession stand was open. i got some hot chocolate, then later on some cheese curds. i chatted with an usher for a while during the game. i bought two souvenirs. there was the license plate magnet, and a Softee baseball. i did have a brief interlude at home, then i went to have a sandwich at a holiday gas station before heading to the movie. i didn't do much after the movie. 

clorets chewing gum

 in the evening i went to eat at mall of America, at A and W. i had a fish sandwich, and this rounded out my fish fry tour for the Lenten season. then i went to get some ice cream at a cookie place as i wanted some airline miles. and after that it was to the Japan store as i call it, 'Ebisu'. i bought two more Charlie Brown items there. one of them was Clorets chewing gum, the other was Snoopy popcorn that was produced by Frito-Lay. good thing i got the gum this time as there weren't many containers left compared to my most recent visit about six weeks ago. then it was on to Hy-Vee in Eagan, for a nine-item order that included a can of Spam. i still have some ramen noodle packets remaining and the Spam will help with using up the noodles. at work, i let a business line know that a check has been stuck in 'awaiting approval' for over a week. it was time to say something, but who knows when this shared box will respond? when two checks for our tax specialist were picked up by the courier, i looked at one of them and noticed it went to another office first. this led to me saying i had no idea there were other tax specialists, i found out his team has fifteen people on it. this means it is a larger team than the one i am on. in the morning, i saw the manager that likes karaoke when i was picking up the reject fax. i wasn't expecting to see anyone on the floor as usually it is deserted on a Friday. there was mention of how 'easter Monday' is a holiday in Ireland, and the bank has offices there. i also saw a senior leader before leaving the floor and we chatted a little before his dial-in meeting began. 

no twin labels

i had a question from a colleague based in the Marshall office, it was about the UPS overnight labels i print. i said i print just one per envelope. sounds like their office prints two per envelope and one of them goes inside. i said usually i am asked to send a check and nothing else. when i was shown how to do the overnighting no one said i needed to print each label twice. and it would be hard to justify doing so when i do a high volume of overnights. the previous day, i did forty. i got a closer look at the invite that my cousin sent me and it looks like no day off is needed for me to attend it. this makes the logistics easier for me. i still need to make reservations such as for the hotel, though. it was popcorn day, i like doing this event, on the skyway level. i made a point of saying this to one of the people handling the popcorn table. i am aware of how the higher headcount in this building is likely why there are more events for employees at the current location than the previous one. the boss was in the shop and saw the email about a special project for the Jacksonville file soon. i responded to it when i saw it and said we don't have enough envelopes and check stock to cover the volume; we would need to order it. this is a file where we get just twenty checks on most days, but there have been times where the volume will spike into the thousands. in the evening i drank the can of a mixed drink. it was called 'cold brooze', whiskey and coffee, and was produced in Texas. i went to the liquor store and got a can of blue moon so there still are four beers waiting.  

train delay, lawsuit threat

i know one thing i don't miss from no longer doing call center work is what i called 'the daily lawsuit threat'. i heard one of these in the morning. there was a delay on the train taking me to work, actually two. the second one was longer. we had to get off the train and wait for the next one. and once we had re-boarded there was a dude near me who said he'd be suing. for what? far as i know, there were no injuries or fatalities. this was the first time i had sent a text to vacation replacement once i was given the current number. it was the typical 'train is late' then 'i am back on' and these texts were about seven minutes apart. there still are riders that end up arguing with the fare enforcement team when unable to produce a paid fare. one of them spoke about a birthday in the family. i had a request from the Kansas City business line to add four more checks to the 'return to business line' envelope. at the outset it was only going to be two. after finding three of the four, i was told the fourth was already slated to be overnighted to the address on the check. then i found it. when vacation replacement arrived in the shop, i handed off the returned checks for our group, it was just five. near the end of the day, the boss was in the shop and sent two scanned checks to an I.T. rep and now the MICR line is fine. we found out there was some confusion about which one i was asking to have moved down, as there were two files but one of these, we don't see near as often and has a much lower volume as well when we do see it. 

team kudo board

an employee in another office, in Marshall, shared a plan to start a 'team kudo board'. it was in relation to being recognized by our colleagues. hard to say if i will participate, though. i do get these and sometimes my boss responds when i get them but i just want to get my work done. there was a response to a year-old email in the morning, saw it when i arrived for the day. then i was told to disregard it, okay. i did a quick dial-in meeting with the boss, who was working remotely. there was a question about the contact for the court file, i said it likely was someone in Arizona who has a cowboy hat on in his photo. a big shipment of envelopes arrived just minutes after a check was picked up. it was the full 27-box order instead of just the 14-box backorder. since it is the end of the month, i decided to order fewer boxes for April. all about ordering what i need, no more no less. an instant message from commercial customer service after i had left for the day, i responded on arrival. it was asking about payee names on checks. i said i had seen some long names and it should be fine to continue onto the second line. then i got the acknowledgement of my answer later in the day. i spoke to the manager that likes karaoke about alternate plans as i see the weather report for this week's St. Paul Saints baseball games. if a game is postponed, i would still like to see a game in the same series, if at all possible. near the end of the day, vacation replacement showed up to pick up some returned checks. i did hear the reason for being absent the previous day. something about how his cousin is getting divorced and wanting to advise him about it. getting an attorney is good advice. other things were related to finance, due to working in finance. seeing things like the other party cleaning out a joint account. in the evening i got an event invite through Facebook from a cousin. now i would like to figure out the logistics of attending.  

self-slap meme

at work there was an instant message asking me to disregard a check that been approved in the Cincinnati file. i said i could print it and just send it to the shred bin, and i did. i noticed there was a meme after this, and it was a yellow face slapping itself. it reminded me of a beer commercial from Amstel light, with a deadpan delivery. as a man in a lab coat at the brewery slapped himself. 'Sorry, we're from Amsterdam, we didn't know light beer was supposed to suck'. the commercial is still really funny to me and i like viewing it on YouTube. another payroll check was picked up. i decided to add myself to an email thread about sending returned checks to st. louis, but by the end of the day there was no response, even though i said 'please advise'. i also said the two main options were regular mail, or inter-office. i did a dial-in meeting mid-morning about work orders and it was mainly facility managers. i spoke of the unfinished work order i had created and was told i was the main contact for the department i am in. this is likely due to being the main employee in the check shop. it reminded me a little of an old sitcom. in the evening i went to perform. it did stories about the bank, attending a fish fry, seeing a play, seeing a movie, and two times i said i wasn't tech-savvy. 

scream 7 movie

 in the early afternoon i went to see 'scream 7', in Edina, at Southdale mall. i know i hadn't seen all of the previous movies in this franchise, i can only recall seeing 1,2, and 5. it is a reminder of how the movie industry has changed in the past 30 years. i have one of them on DVD, it is in a blockbuster case. and i saw '5' as a Redbox rental. both of those companies have ceased to exist as we know it. i watched my DVD copy of '1' in the morning, then went to have lunch at McDonald's. after lunch i headed to the movie. it was a good thing i re-watched that disc as movie franchises often copy things from earlier installments. it is what the fans expect, and often want, as it is familiar. i laughed a decent amount while watching it, so i enjoyed my time there. my only Halloween costume is the 'Ghostface' costume inspired by these movies, but i wasn't wearing it at this screening. it does remind me of where i was living when i saw '1' and '2', though, which was West Des Moines, Iowa. i paid my rent down the block in a costume shop and that shop sold the costume, but i didn't buy it there. i bought it after i had moved to suburban Chicago. some of the previews were of other horror movies, but the 'scream' franchise seems to be the only one i really like from that genre. after the movie i went to print two years of tax returns at a FedEx office. it worked just fine on printing with a release code as it was self-service. i found out the St. Paul Saints ticket i had ordered can be sent to google wallet, so one less thing that i needed to print. i had used that app just once so far, for the world junior hockey tournament. when i attend plenty of Saints games each season, this saves me some trips to the copy store to print those tickets out. after the copy store i got gas at a nearby speedway gas station and went inside for some snacks as well. i was getting annoyed with the clerk, though. he was flirting with the lady in front of me and then wanted to lecture me about still using the loyalty card and said i should be using the app. i didn't do much after getting home. i did the dishes, then hooked up my phone to recharge the battery. 

mrs. parker, mr. porter play

 in the evening i went to a play inside the loft literary center building in Minneapolis, called 'Mrs. parker, Mr. porter'. it was about writer Dorothy Parker, and musician Cole Porter. the staging reminded me of the round theater, just down the street a little. first time i recall being there for something that wasn't a loft event, an organization that i am a member of. there was plenty of music in it, and plenty of Dorothy quips. one of them was familiar from the movie i had seen where Jennifer Jason Leigh played her, the one ending with 'you might as well live'. at one point i could tell what happened likely wasn't in the script, it was when an actor had sat down in a chair at the edge of the 'stage' and a drink was spilled. good show, thankful i attended it. the card said it was a world premiere, through 'stage north'. i had seen it promoted at a venue i perform in. i did plenty of chores and errand running before heading to the play. there was going to the post office to mail two letters to family. while there i picked up a sheet of stamps of American revolution battlefields. i tried to print some things at FedEx office but it just wasn't happening, unable to get logged into Hotmail on one of their computers. i didn't like how an employee wasn't helpful at all, claiming it was due to 'caps lock' when it wasn't. i was able to get logged in at home, so i know it had nothing to do with the password i was typing in. i had lunch at Jersey Mike's and got groceries at Aldi. i tried another FedEx and was told, as expected, the issue was too much security that prevented me from getting logged in. i liked how an alternate idea was given- if PDF then send it to one of our printers and make a note of the code emailed to you when it is sent to get it released. after this i went to eat at chick-fil-a. it does remind me of what i have said before- 'don't get frustrated, get smarter' when i am trying to figure out technology issues. 

a different bridge traveled

 i went to another fish fry in the evening and this is a venue i had been to before. this time a different bridge was used to get there. i was going by the directions given by MapQuest, and it worked out just fine. it meant i wasn't going uphill to get to the church. this was St. Matt's in St. Paul. i liked not just the view of the river while on the bridge, but also of the skyline. there was music, and i decided to sit closer this time. but it also helped that i didn't have a cup of beer to carry on my food tray. my food was brought to me. recognized just one song played, it was 'pop goes the weasel'. now there is one more fish fry to attend during this season. then it was on to the Hy-Vee in Eagan. i did see the employee i sometimes chat with and was asked about weekend plans, i said it was to see a movie. at work i was sent some recognition for the check copy requests that i handle. near the end of the day i did acknowledge and respond to it, saying thank you. i asked vacation replacement about doing these and the response was the PDF files are not as fun to search as the other ones. i said i don't enjoy doing those as my understood marching orders are to get the live checks out. but i will admit it is nice to hear some appreciation from anyone for what i do. i also asked the supplier when the backorder on the envelopes would be arriving for the Fargo files. just half of the order had arrived this month. sounds like the rest of it should be delivered early next week. 

no color logos

 at work i was asked if there are any colors on the checks i print, and i said no. another issue on getting started in the morning, this time i saw weird characters on the checks instead of DDA digits. looks like we just had to wait until all of the software updates took place, even though i figured this would have happened overnight. another check was sent to the manager that likes karaoke, in the afternoon. this was a 'drop and leave' as she was in a meeting and i had other things i needed to get done. another check was printed for payroll, when i notified that department i was told to hold it until Monday. day four of the food events was donuts from cardigan again, this time i got an actual donut instead of donut holes. in the evening i had a can of natural ice with my meal. i also went to the nearby liquor store and got a can of toppling goliath, brewed in Decorah, Iowa. i still have four beers waiting. 

genuine legal tender bill

 i was surprised by what i received near the end of the workday. vacation replacement spoke of a gift, figured it was a joke in reference to being sent mail to be sent out. but it wasn't. it was a two-dollar bill, commemorative related to my 'animal year' with the Chinese New Year. i did say thank you and asked if there was anything i could do in return. day three of the food events was sandwiches from Jimmy John's. i had two small sandwiches, although i think one had no bread at all and was just wrapped in lettuce. notable about the morning was how long it took to get logged in. i knew something wasn't right as all i saw was a 'globe icon'. this means the wi-fi isn't working. i know things are fine if i see a 'fountain icon' as it means the wi-fi is up and running. eventually i asked for help by going to another floor and was advised to choose my own wi-fi system, something that i didn't have to do before. i was also on an email thread related to a check from the PDF file. i said it wasn't overnighted as i didn't see this word in the comment section. with another check, the newer Cincinnati file, there was too many questions after i said two checks going to the same place would go in the same envelope and which label wasn't being used. i say this as a courtesy in case there is questions about why there is no activity on one of the labels. it meant not only forwarding back one of the labels. but also sending a 'screen snip' to prove who the other requestor was. 

eraser found

 in the evening i went on a walk and one place i went into i had hoped to find some coins on the floor. instead, i found an eraser, looks like a perfectly good one to me, so i claimed it. day two on food events at work was bagels. i chose one with what i understood was strawberry spread but i think it was plain spread when i tasted it. there were more 'pull and shred' requests on the fraud file than typical. one requestor sent four, but i found only one. another requestor i am familiar with from discussing st. louis sent one a little late. i heard the instant message ping, sent after the email, this helped with having enough time to find it. there was the department, or team, luncheon, at d-Brian's, a place i chose as it is my birthday month. i ordered a Reuben sandwich, most places have one and can't go too far wrong with it. 

printed, why not forwarded?

 near the end of the workday i send the mail tubs to the mailroom. one of those employees decided to give me a printed email about retuned checks i send to st. louis, which goes through digital mail. i said it was better to just forward me the email thread so i can ask more questions there. and i say i like being able to copy someone on an email to keep them in the loop. a check was picked up by the payroll department. there was some surprise that the doorbell still wasn't fixed yet. i sent another check to a different floor. it was for the manager that likes karaoke, but i was told to leave it with the team lead. and while there, i did the first of the food events for employee appreciation week. it was donuts from cardigan, i chose some donut holes. there was some confusion on a check i had scanned. i said it needs an overnight label, as there was no address on it. on my response when there were questions, i said if it is intended to go regular mail then i need to know where. eventually i was sent an overnight label. in the evening i went to perform. i did stories about an open house, a meetup event, a movie conversation, drink tickets, and the bank. 

matewan movie

 in the evening i went to the trylon and saw the movie 'Matewan'. i wanted to see it as James Earl Jones is in it. i also ended up liking another character, it was the teenage preacher. the music in it was good. notable was the song 'gathering storm' by hazel dickens. this was during a funeral scene. after i had seen the movie i found out she performed some other songs for this same movie. this was about trying to establish a labor union in a coal mining town. it was the second movie i have seen in the 'bad company'- or evil corporation- series being done at this theater. i had some popcorn while there. and before the movie, i chatted a little more with the cub foods dude that i saw at the screening of 'Soylent green' a little over two weeks ago. the dude was surprised that i had seen 'goat' but i did say the music in it helped. something about not expecting me to like animated movies. there are some more movies that i would like to see at this venue real soon, but i am still trying to figure out the logistics. my guess is i will continue to average at least one movie a month there, based on what is scheduled for the next few months. i made it to Aldi for groceries just before midday and had breakfast at McDonald's. the college basketball tournament is ongoing, i watched some of the games on CBS. i know Iowa stunned Florida to make it to the regionals.  i was following the score a little before leaving for the movie. i watched st. john's beat Kansas. 

rochester dude, meetup event

 i went to a meetup event at a micro-brewery in Robbinsdale in the mid-afternoon. notable about being there was meeting a dude that drove up from Rochester and spoke of working in i.t. at mayo clinic. surprised me that someone would travel that far for an event. i had one beer and some popcorn and stayed until the end of the time allotment. actually, a little past that. i said i needed to get the evening meal, and i went to the nearby McDonald's. i wanted a shamrock shake with my meal and got one. when i was eating my meal i noticed some young people nearby. a dude was badgering a lady and eventually backed off. after i was done i went to the gas station at Hy-Vee down the road. before the event i went to the dollar tree and got a bottle of dish soap. a little weird going back to this area as it was familiar from working nearby, but the move was already over a year ago. in the morning i went to the post office, one e-bay order was picked up. it was a postcard from New Ulm. i had lunch at home as i wanted to finish up a few things. i spent enough time out of town that the visit to Aldi will have to wait until the next day. not a big deal, though. a little bummed that a friend, the retired postal worker, was unable to attend but i still had a good time. there was mention of being on a board of directors for a theater organization, there was a scheduling conflict. 

fish fry drink tickets

as a performer i had seen drink tickets before and have used them. it surprised me a little that i was given two tickets when i went to a fish fry in the evening. i used one of them for a Surly beer and kept the other as a souvenir.  because i had not only a tray of food, and a full cup of beer, i wanted to sit down right away so i didn't spill the beer. it meant sitting near the back of the dining hall, where it was hard to hear the people onstage playing music. the din of the voices was considerable. two checks were printed that i am to hold in the shop for now. one is 'hold for pick-up' and is for payroll. the other is for the manager that likes karaoke, and i might have to send to the team lead instead of her. i was asked to request Saturday delivery for a check to be overnighted, far as i know i hadn't done this before. there was just one box to check, and then i shared the tracking number on the thread. this was part of replacement checks were the boss said they weren't positive paid, from the PDF file. why they weren't, i don't know. there was a visitor in the shop in the morning, but it wasn't for the doorbell. mailroom brought over someone doing HVAC work, and i was given a business card. a red piece of tape was place on a bar on the ceiling, marking where their work is to be done when returning next week. in the evening i went to Hy-Vee in Eagan for groceries, after the fish fry. i did see the cashier that likes to ask about my weekend plans, i spoke of those being a meetup event. 

third check overnighted

 there was an email from a colleague in Milwaukee saying that two checks i had overnighted were received. i was asked about a third one, i said it had printed this morning and i would overnight it as well. i said it is all about when a check gets approved and i don't know who the approvers are. the MICR toner cartridge was delivered around midday, the correct one, and the case was closed. although there were two reasons why i had opened it. but it looks like i am on my own on getting the laser-jet cartridge returned. another work order was put in for the doorbell that doesn't work. i reported it last week and no one had shown up yet, so it was time. when i went into the system to create the newer case, there was feedback requested about the earlier one. i gave negative feedback as it wasn't fixed the first time. i don't know if they were waiting for this acknowledgement when i had responded earlier through the email i was sent when they claim it was fixed. at lunchtime there was some pizza in the breakroom, not a lot left though. i saw two boxes, two slices, i heated up one slice. i sent an instant message to the manager that likes karaoke, asking if any baseball tickets for the upcoming season had been ordered yet. this helped me by being accountable to someone, and in the evening i did order one for a game i had expressed interest in. also in the evening, i drank the can of blue moon with my meal and went to the liquor store and got a can of Budweiser, and miller lite. now there are four beers waiting. 

connections, collections

 i like how i hardly ever have to void a UPS label that I've created. i realized it was a good idea on one where i was asked for a tracking number. when i saw i entered 'collections' and the business name is 'connections' i created another one. i didn't want any questions about it. i am still sending more check samples to someone in i.t. related to the MICR line. i say the same thing each time, please lower it, but it hasn't moved at all. i am doing my part, it is all i can say. i think my boss is quite aware of my frustration about it by now. in the evening i went to the loft literary center, where i am a member, to a member/friend event. i had written a poem the night before so i could read it at this mic. it was about the protest of the immigration agent activity, but a different perspective than what others had. as usual i liked partaking of the food and drink at this event. it was mostly finger foods. there is an exhibit on the main floor of this building, now i need to figure out when i want to make it back to see it. looks like i have at least a month though, most likely to go on a weekend when i have more time to look around. 

homer simpson shirt, green beer

 in the evening i went to a meetup event at a bar. since it was St. Patrick's Day, there was green beer. i did ask if it was going to taste any different, i was told it would not. i said i was fine with green beer then. i changed shirts before i went. there were emails encouraging us to wear green at work, but i knew that the one i decided to wear at the bar wasn't as appropriate for work. it was Homer Simpson with a green beer saying, 'drink duff'. i had hoped to see a friend of mine there, sent a text but it was not to be. i had also hoped that the world baseball classic would be on at the bar, but i saw 'play-in' college basketball games on all TV monitors instead. this was why i went home after just one hour, as i knew i could find the baseball game on my own TV. the Americans played Venezuela in the finals of the classic, a close game but the Americans lost, 3-2. at work, vacation replacement arrived late in the day and asked that some checks for our tax specialist be sent inter-office. mid-morning there was the meeting where some dialed in about the Fargo checks. it was a big enough file, over three thousand, but it didn't error out like before. i went to another floor and got two cookies and a green necklace and the necklace was worn when at the bar in the evening. 

nearby pigeon

 i had hoped to be on the light rail right away after work but there was a delay, mechanical issues we were told. i was chatting with a dude on the platform for a little while. then i saw a pigeon get really close and i was told this had already happened to him. one of the things i spoke of during that time was how it was refreshing when i needed to try on pants at a Walmart less than a year after college ended and i wasn't hassled at all. the response was that sometimes getting older is a good thing. at work there was an all-staff meeting, but i decided to dial in to it as it was mid-morning and i had the big check files to print. i went onto the app to get a case opened to get the correct toner cartridge sent. after a few days of having the laser-jet kind, which i can't use, it was time. it was a day after the snowstorm, sounds like all of my colleagues decided to work from home so i went to another floor to pick up the reject fax. i am dealing with the MICR line issue again, some of the less frequent check files were available. one was fine, i sent the other to someone in i.t. though. the Kansas City file that arrived late was printed in the morning. i let the business line know the prior workday how it was going to wait and yet i still had to repeat myself. when i sent the tracking numbers for the day i did it just once. despite there being three files instead of two, only had to send six tracking numbers. i did point out which ones were from Friday's file. in the evening i went to perform. i did stories about a fish fry, what i saw at the grocery store, the bank, clapping back to a condescending idiot, and seeing a movie. 

taxes and snowstorm

 not much was planned for the day. i stayed in and the snow kept falling as expected. i saw a short video from a fellow comic, a snowplow driver for the state, advising people to stay home. this is the one i call newsboy hat if i am not mistaken. it was a good time to get my income taxes done, i filed them online. i did check and i filed at the same time a year ago, also in mid-March. i like how it is just one small fee to do the federal and state forms with Jackson Hewitt. couple that with direct deposit, the refunds should be arriving in a timely fashion. it sounds like a healthy amount is coming, enough to pay off a credit card balance. the trip to Chicago in January was largely paid for on a credit card. eventually i need to print my own hard copy of the tax return as i like having one for my records. another thing i did was do some shredding of junk mail, hadn't done it in a while. looks like i had last done it over a month ago. a snow emergency was declared, as expected. 

goat movie

just before midday, i went to see the movie 'goat', in Edina at Southdale mall. i moved it up one day as i knew the weather report said a snowstorm was coming soon. i used another birthday offer, at this theater chain it wasn't just a tub of popcorn, but also a big drink. it was self-serve and i chose fruit punch. i managed to last through the movie without needing a bathroom break as i didn't much of the fruit punch during it. i laughed a lot while watching this movie, not just the 'single but loud ha' but also longer laughs. it is not too often that i laugh this much during a movie as i did this time. wiping away a tear? i did that too, during the scene when the song 'don't dream it's over' was played. two versions were in it, this scene had the Bryant Barnes cover, and the Crowded House original is in the closing credits. the movie doesn't cover any new ground but i didn't mind. the story of the underdog that triumphs- it still works for me, and many others as well. one part of the storyline reminded me of 'the natural'. player gets signed, player sits on the bench for a while, player finally goes in when team is out of options. i knew full well that the main character, the goat (despite being told that smalls don't ball) would take the court eventually as it wouldn't be much of a movie if he doesn't. in the morning i got a haircut at great clips, didn't wait long as i made it there in the first hour of their workday. in the early evening i made it to Aldi for groceries. it started to snow before the evening was out, and i got a picture of it. i saw a kiddy car on a sidewalk and one of the wheels was missing, it had fallen off and was nearby. good thing that i checked email before venturing out again. i had planned on seeing a play in the evening, the one where i reserved a free ticket, but it said the rest of the run was canceled, two performances. not just due to the weather but also apparently due to an illness in the cast. guess it means seeing a meetup friend, the retired postal worker, some other time. 

country roads, takeout dinner

 in the evening i went to the Ukraine community center in northeast Minneapolis to pick up my take-out fish fry dinner. while there i found out i could go inside the dining hall if i wish. i said i had other things planned for the evening but was willing to stay long enough to take some pictures. one of them was of the musicians onstage. as i was leaving i heard them say 'we will do this song in English and in Ukrainian'. then i said 'i know this one' as it was John Denver's 'country roads'. i skipped a year on getting a meal at this place as last year the line for dine-in was wrapped around the block, and hour-long wait. i said i had learned my lesson, i was going back to having it as take-out. i had to stop at a gas station first, then it was home, where i ate the meal after heating up some of it. much of it was familiar, the fish, fries, and coleslaw. the other item, pierogi if i am not mistaken, tasted fine as well. then it was on to Hy-Vee in Eagan for my weekly grocery order. i found a snoopy candy bar left over from valentine's day in the magazine section so this was part of my order. at work i was asked to overnight a check to Burnsville, but at first i had to tell them when emailed that the file still needed to be approved. i got it printed once i saw it was approved. the boss did show up to help with sending check samples and was there for just an hour but that was enough time to review most of them. only ones left are files we don't see too often. in the morning i had to deal with the condescending employee at Walgreen again. this time i stopped him right away when i was looking at greeting cards, saying something different. i said i could afford to spend a few extra dollars, and if i needed help i will ask for it. another check i was asked to overnight, from the Cincinnati file, i was told needed to be delivered by Saturday. i said all i can do is to get it in the UPS box by the given pick-up time and then it is up to the courier to pick it up and deliver it. after getting back from the grocery store in the evening, i watched some of the world baseball classic on fox. team USA was playing Canada. when i first tuned in the Americans were leading, 5-1, and went on to win it, 5-3. this sent them to the semifinals. 

printed 9 times

 9 times, the same number of sick days in the movie 'Ferris Bueller'. i was sending check samples to someone in i.t. and this is how often i was told to 'try again' or 're-print it'. the boss saw me say this was 'challenging' when i also wanted to stay ahead on my normal duties and decided the best game plan was to show up the next day. also, due to being stuck on this one check, as we didn't get to many business lines, in terms of changing the signature. the MICR line was off if the signature was too big. some of this was due to not being on the same page, as i understood i was to send samples of each one. but i.t. said just send the ones in need of a fix, scanning it inside of the ruler. payroll picked up a check after i said the previous day that i heard 'sending it inter-office' after the mail tubs were sent to the mailroom for the day. i said i go by what is on the check in the comment section, if it says 'notify' then i do that first. there were three ladies who showed up as i recall, and i only knew one of them. the work order on the doorbell was closed, but it is still not ringing. when i have the time, i will have to tell them to show up during my normal working hours. i saw the email arrived before i had for the day. it is easier to test things when i am there. i had the can of bell's 'fish IPA' with the evening meal, and bought a can of natural ice this week, so there still are three beers waiting. after the day i had i was no doubt ready for a drink by then. 

can't use laser jet

 the deliveries continued to arrive. after the two boxes of UPS envelopes, and the fluid bottle for the inserter machine, there was the toner cartridge this morning. the boss had sent an email saying it had been ordered so i knew it would be arriving soon. except it is the same problem that we've had before, as a laser jet cartridge was sent and we can't use that. we can only use a MICR cartridge for check printing. when i can find the time, i will have to let them know to send the right kind. other than that, the workday was largely uneventful and that was fine with me. mailroom employee found me in the breakroom to let me know the cartridge had arrived, i was lunching. i went back to the shop as it was in front of the door, i put it inside along with returned checks and then returned to lunching. in the evening i did an automated phone payment on my main credit card. i like knowing i have one less bill this month as the other credit card was paid off last month. the other card was used to pay a big car repair bill and i like how most months my main card is only used when needing to get gas for the car. naturally, i am still looking forward to this summer when the final car loan payment will be sent to the credit union. 

signage good enough?

 there was activity on two work orders. i entered a new one, it was due to the check shop doorbell not working. it was reported by the tax specialist. the other was acknowledgement of an earlier one, saying my request to put up a sign was canceled. i am told that the signage is already good enough to point out where the mailroom is, even though i still end up giving directions there to lost people. payroll manager said that envelopes were coming soon, except i haven't seen their file of paystubs for a few days. i am not complaining about that though, as i still have plenty of other things keeping me busy. i noticed a check file wasn't printing on one printer but it printed on another. since the boss was in the shop for the day, i hear the typical thing: call in a ticket. then eventually it did print. sometimes this happens when there is a delay of at least ten minutes on printing after hitting 'print', sometimes even longer than that such as nearly an hour. it had been a while so i guess i forgot this could still happen. it was a small file, the PDF checks, so it was just 40 checks that were duplicated that i had to shred. it was why i was willing to try again on a different printer as it doesn't matter as much when the file is small. 

same high school mascot

 there are many days when the tax specialist will pick up checks in person, and this was one of them. there was two, one from the PDF file and the other was from vacation replacement. i saw this dude in the breakroom after the checks were picked up, as i was there to get some water. i found out we may have went to different high schools, but we had the same mascot, the cardinals. i did seem to get an answer, although i wasn't asking why i was seeing him there. something about being disappointed for not getting a raise from the bank this year and hearing that two colleagues will be laid off at the end of the month. i said i got a small raise for the year, and i know full well to try to keep costs down. this is a colleague that will be moving to the other tower soon, as i recall it will be at the end of the month. i showed vacation replacement the greeting card i bought from a convenience store in the skyway late last week. it was a st. Patrick's day card with a 'wizard of oz' theme. mailroom brought the checks i had ordered for my personal checking account. i was expecting it to go to the branch at the skyway level but not complaining that it was sent directly to me. i kept both items at work as i prefer to wait to take them home until i have a bag that those can go into. when i take the light rail to and from work, i am used to having the lunch bag as it is easy to grab when i need to go. and anything else if not in a bag might get left on the seat next to me. there is a luncheon invite for next week sent by the boss; it was the sandwich place that i spoke of. in the evening i went to perform. i did stories about the bank, seeing two movies, the baseball game, stickers on a car, and birthday offers from loyalty programs. 

lalaland movie

 in the mid-afternoon i went to see a movie in Eagan as part of the 'flashback cinema' series. it was 'Lalaland'. unsure why i passed it nearly ten years ago, most likely because there can be too many movies to choose from. it was a good story, but bittersweet, nonetheless. there was an intro given before it began, with plenty of background information about the movie. not too familiar with the actors in it, but J.K. Simmons had a small role in it. i was emailed a birthday offer from this theater chain, and i claimed it after the movie. this was the small tub of popcorn for free, but still plenty of popcorn. i ate some of it there but not a lot, most of it was taken home. i wanted to see the previews and i arrived just before the scheduled starting time. one of these previews was for the biopic about musician Michael Jackson. i picked up a poster for the movie 'goat' while there but haven't seen it yet. more likely to see it a week later when i have fewer things booked. i had enough time to get some ice cream at the nearby dairy queen, i got the blizzard of the month, mint Oreo. in the morning i went to do laundry and i used a birthday offer at the nearby caribou coffee. i didn't do much after the movie, i drove home and had the evening meal at home. besides laundry, i did do the customary morning walk and found more food near a dumpster. i claimed nine items this time, including a big box of cheerios cereal and two jars of peanut butter. it was unexpired, and unopened, and non-perishable, so why not? most of it will be eaten fairly quickly, probably won't be much left a week from now. 

squeeze play, ftw

 in the evening i went to another gopher baseball game, indoors at the Vikings stadium. this was part of the Cambria classic, and i briefly sat in an oversized wooden chair provided by the event's sponsor. gophers won, 3-2, over South Dakota State, in ten innings. a squeeze play was used to win it, and this is rare. i was smarter this time in more ways than one. i gave myself more time and ate at the Bobby and Steve's nearby where the food is cheaper than at the venue. and they serve small godfather's pizzas, i got the last one found under the heat lamps, 3-meat. the upper-level seating was blocked off so some of it was eaten in my car, which was parked nearby, along with a donut. the parking was cheap and i liked that. naturally, some things were moved up due to the event in the evening. in the afternoon i went to Aldi for groceries. for lunch i went to Ikea and had the Swedish meatball meal. not immediately aware of any birthday offers from them but still a good place to eat. when i saw dessert items while in line i said i am choosing the cheesecake as i know what that is. the other item was oatmeal balls, not familiar with those. after getting back from there i went to a micro-brewery and picked up a pack of girl scout cookies. i ordered a beer as well. i was there to see the girls walk around the place and say it was the last call for cookies as i arrived during the final hour of the three-hour time allotment. it is the second box or pack bought, two different kinds of peanut butter. still a question of when those will be eaten as i am still working on the Hershey's kisses bought the day after Valentine's Day. it was a big bag. in the morning i went to the post office, but there were no orders to pick up. birthday wishes are rolling in on Facebook. first one was from a classmate that is now an instructor in the Carolinas. i usually give it a few days before i say thank you to all of the postings. 

soylent green movie

 in the evening i went to see the movie 'Soylent Green', at the trylon. this was part of their 'bad company' series and i already have a ticket for another movie in this series. we were given what looked like a timecard when i claimed my ticket from being an advance purchase. it is a punch card but i don't plan on seeing enough movies to meet the standard of the prizes offered, such as popcorn for seeing four of them. this was a good movie though, thankful i saw it as i do recall a comic once did a set that name-checked this movie. i was expecting it to be 'melancholy' as it is a 'dystopian' movie, but it was actually funny at times. it helps that the main character, Charlton Heston playing a cop, was punching people, making out with the 'furniture', and stealing luxuries that once were common items such as a cake of soap. i also liked seeing Dick Van Patten as a 'death parlor attendant', although in the credits he's listed as 'usher number one'. later on, when i looked for the trailer on YouTube, i found a clip from 'the Simpsons' which is a parody of that scene. it was lost on me as i hadn't seen the movie yet. also liked chatting with a dude in the front row before the movie who was wearing a cub foods shirt, who said he'd be going to see another movie, in Columbia Heights, that same night. not a lot of down time, less than an hour, especially when needing to drive over there. for the evening meal i went to have a fish sandwich at McDonald's. after the movie i went home and watched 'Boston Blue'. i changed the logistics a little this week due to the movie, having moved up my trip to Hy-Vee one day. at work, the boss asked me to print some test checks from a link in an email. there was three, all fit in the MICR ruler. a colleague asked me to pull a check, had to ask why as it was in a morning PDF file. eventually i was told it was due to being already paid by another method. i saw to it that others were notified by the team lead being copied on the thread. a check copy request was familiar, i found out i had already sent it two days prior. there was an email from the CEO, Employee Appreciation Day. not sure if there was any award such as points, though. i got an 'Ace Ventura' meme from vacation replacement as my birthday is soon. there was also an 'all-call' email about what was in the 'digital mailroom', it was to all on our team. three items scanned there, i left it as it wasn't a check and didn't know what to do with it. 

carwash letter

 the mailroom sent me a FedEx envelope that had been opened and re-taped, not sure why. i got a look at it and it was a letter from a carwash company about terminating a contract. there was one bank employee listed, according to the directory it was in Arizona. i don't know why i ended up with it. i did send a scan to this dude and the response, after some others were copied, was to send it inter-office to someone in the same building as me, but a higher floor than me. a colleague from payroll arrived to pick up checks, but this time was physically in the shop, likely let in by the boss. i said there was just three that had been printed and ready for pick-up. i was told there might be more, but all a matter of when they are approved. sounds like i am being asked to send the others by inter-office, though. this was also popcorn day, in the skyway. this served as a good reminder of 'get while the getting is good'. i didn't go right when the time allotment started, which is an hour and a half, as i wanted to be caught up on my normal duties first. but i am thankful i went when i did. there was a brief wait for popcorn, and i know this doesn't happen every time. not long after i got a bag, i was hearing the machine had broken down and security was told to 'close up shop'. this meant any others were turned away. i was still there when it happened but nearly finished with eating the popcorn that i had. 

headphones icon

 the first sighting of a 'headphones icon' was this morning when trying to log on. i don't know why it is there as i didn't need it at all. and when it popped up it blocked me from being able to log into the check-printing system that i use. for this reason, i minimized it and then eventually hit 'close window' and it went away. vacation replacement was in the shop around midday and i said there were returned checks and a refund check to pick up. those were placed on another table and i was told they would be picked up after going to get lunch, except by the end of the day they remained. if they stay there long enough i will have to move them myself to another floor where they belong. the envelope order arrived in the morning, but not all of it. i let the supplier know and eventually the boss was copied on it. we have enough to cover our needs for a while so we can afford to wait a little bit to hear some more. about half of this month's order had arrived. this was just before the check stock order arrived, which we did get in full. as usual it meant the courier needed to make two trips due to volume. 

payee name change, then overnight

 i see all kinds of things when working with checks all day. in this case, i was asked to overnight seven checks by UPS. one had already been printed, and i had the label, just had to wait for the other six. and i found out these were the ones i had recently been told to shred because the payee name was not correct. once i had all seven i got them ready and got them in the box and said when the daily pick-up is. a senior leader had a dial-in meeting, i have joked that at times i have to remind myself that she's here as she's up high enough on the ladder that i don't hear from her that much. there was mention of how my role is likely changing later in the year, and the boss had spoken about this already. in the morning i let the boss know i was fine with a sandwich place i haven't been to in the skyway for an upcoming luncheon. i also had a check intercept request but they kept getting my name wrong, even though my name is clearly stated in my email signature. i let them know what the correct name is. 

prints by mistake

 no, not me, at least not in this case. every so often now, i am seeing prints showing up on the check printer that are sent there by mistake. i don't know who is sending them but i know more printers are showing up as available than before. what i have been doing is keeping that check printer empty so it doesn't automatically print. then when i know it isn't one of mine, from checking the message board, i cancel the job. it has been some weird things like meeting agendas, or even what looked like children's homework. since we just passed the first of the month, i started on the online classes i was assigned back in January. no need to do them too early when we get three months to do them. i figured starting them with just under a month ago is early enough. i did one class and there are four due soon, and i tend to do one per day in the morning until i am finished. i spoke of the weekend to the manager that likes karaoke, as it included not just the baseball game but also hearing from a college roommate. i said 'it has been a minute' since we've had an in-person visit, and i was advised to try doing another one again sometime soon. now i just have to figure out when is a good time. i wanted to do one when i was coming back from Dubuque in November but the logistics didn't work then. 

kid from cleveland movie

 in the morning i watched a DVD movie, a recent purchase from amazon, 'kid from Cleveland'. it was mentioned in a Facebook posting and i hadn't heard of this baseball movie before. i liked how it had plenty of players appearing as themselves, as this was about the 1948 Cleveland Indians winning the world series. and since i am a St. Paul Saints fan, once co-owned by Mike Veeck, i liked how Bill Veeck, the dad, also appears as himself. one scene in particular stood out to me, where the man challenged his wife in court during a custody hearing, saying 'you never gave me a chance'. as she remarried after becoming a widow, and it sounded like she wanted him around for the wrong reasons. around midday i was on the road, wanting to get to a college baseball game. the Minnesota gophers were playing Kansas, indoors at the Vikings stadium. it was the last of a four-game series. i rode the light rail there and when i was waiting for the train i had a young man with a face covering telling me how there were arrests this morning. this was due to the recent immigration agent activity. it started out with a greeting i didn't recognize, then the dude tried again and said, 'what's up?' and i know that one, most people do. the game was a pitcher's duel for a while, which i liked. but then Kansas went ahead, 4-3, and scored four more runs in the ninth and went on to win, 8-3. not much of a crowd as expected, as college baseball doesn't interest most people, at least in the Midwest. i estimated the crowd as two hundred, three hundred tops. i liked hearing plenty of music being played at the game, including 'Mr. Jones' by counting crows, and 'fortunate son' by CCR. i wasn't home for long after the game. i went to perform in the evening, closing the show as usual with this mic. i did stories about the bank, a movie i had just seen, going out of town, the mascot at the game, and who i see at the grocery store. 

i can only imagine (2)

 in the afternoon i went to see a movie, 'i can only imagine' (2), at the theater in St. Paul, highland park. i think i was the only attendee at this screening. good story, i recognized two of the actors in it, Trace Adkins and Dennis Quaid. i didn't like the opening act at first, because he liked to prank people. a big part of the story was the teenage son of the frontman being on the tour bus and then performing in the tour. i am used to a movie 'based on a true story' having 'some scenes and characters are invented for dramatic effect'. in fact, this one had a disclaimer in the credits saying, 'this is not a documentary'. i liked hearing the story behind the hymn 'it is well with my soul', how the 1871 Chicago fire was a part of it. while there, i heard a song i knew and like, crowded house's 'don't dream it's over'. it was part of the closing credits for the other movie currently showing at this theater, 'goat'. is that enough for me to go see it? i don't know. i know it is about basketball, though. in the morning i picked up an amazon order from the PO box. and there was another parcel, but i opened it and nothing was in what looked like a rolled-up piece of carpet or insulation. it looked like it was from the seller of the e-bay order that i had picked up a week earlier. then i went to Jersey Mike's for lunch. while paying for my sandwich, i made a donation to Special Olympics. it was a dollar and my cookie was free. i did say i am already signed up for a volunteer shift at this summer's event. in the evening there is a meetup event to attend at a micro-brewery. 

what is a commonwealth

 near the end of the day, there was a request from the tax specialist to have same-day courier pick-up on those tax checks. except those checks are not available until the afternoon, and the courier didn't have enough time to get it done. the one deemed most important is for 'the commonwealth of Kentucky'. it reminded me of how i had meant to look this up before, why some states refer to themselves as a 'commonwealth'. there are just four. i googled it and no surprise, it was related to British law, referring to the 'common good'. something about how all of them have that word in their constitution. in the morning there was a check from the travel and expense file to the manager that likes karaoke. she was in a meeting at the time, so in a conference room on a 'dial-in'. she kept saying 'thank you'. i said i did notice in the email thread there was mention of it being a replacement check. near the end of the day, i asked for a tracking number on a check i had overnighted. nothing unusual there, except another department or shared box had asked for the same one just three days prior. i even showed them the proof of the 'duplication of efforts'. it was sent to San Diego. the change of signature happened on the checks, but when i put some into our ruler i noticed one of them was off, the signature was too big. the boss wanted a list of goals sent in the morning, it didn't take long. it was the last day, and the boss was doing just a half day. i was asked to find an ACH statement as well, a copy of a transaction from over two years ago. the request was from payroll. in the evening i went to a fish fry, it was the Lebanese church in Mendota heights. i like their fish fry, plenty of rice with the fish. then i went to Hy-Vee in Eagan for groceries. an employee that has been my cashier before greeted me upon arrival and asked me about my weekend plans. this is someone that i hadn't seen in a while, a few months. 

johnnies bar, river falls, wi

 in the evening i went to perform at a bar called johnnies in river falls, nearby but in Wisconsin. i was invited to do a guest set by the headliner, Yemen native. i did not know the other two performers that well, but might have seen one of them before. i cared a lot about being on time so i did my best to get started earlier on doing the UPS overnight labels. no surprise, this helped out a lot. it didn't take all that long to get there once i got onto i-94. the set was close to the one that i had done earlier in the week, except i also spoke of what i found on the light rail. before i made it to the venue, i stopped at a nearby gas station for the evening meal. it was a circle k, and i knew it was basically a holiday station, which is what i am familiar with. i had some chicken sticks and a hash brown. then i parked in a big public parking lot where i saw a historic bell on display. i got a look at the marker that told its story. i also got a good look around at the venue itself. there were some stained-glass windows, and a mural as well. near the end of the night, the bar owner wanted a photo of all four of us performers next to the mural. even the bathrooms were decorated, above the fixtures were baseball cards behind glass. since it was in Wisconsin, all of them were Brewers players. the 'green room' looked like a storage room to me, but it served the purpose well. i found a table and chairs so we could sit down. dart boards were there, and the dart boards were moved back out to the bar area after the show was over. i enjoyed chatting with some of the patrons, and the bar owner, after the show. i saw a few tickets in the trash and claimed them as souvenirs. i like having souvenirs of the shows i have performed in. at work i went to the branch in the same building, skyway level, and ordered checks. i liked knowing that it is free for me as i am an employee. the ticket on the check printer was closed, again. the boss asked about the signature on the checks i print, but we found out the change in signature didn't take. vacation replacement asked me to pick up some mail from the mailroom, but when i went there i was told there was no mail to pick up. the answer was that it was something to be discussed in person. 

canada check tracking

 one thing i was asked to do was look up a tracking number, after the recipient claimed that it didn't arrive. this was going to Canada, as i recall suburban Toronto. i found out it was delivered. then i researched a little further, and this gave the address. almost the same, but not quite. guess it means it was delivered to a neighbor. not sure what this means for the requestor of the information, as all i do is give it out. unable to stop payments or do a replacement check. this was also a day of three meetings. i like how most days there are no meetings. one was a team huddle; it was a dial-in as the boss is still in California. i did state how it worked to cut the Fargo file in half. then there was a town hall, was told it was mandatory but i barely paid attention to it as i wanted to stay ahead on my normal duties. around midday i was a little paranoid about the third and final one as all it said in the title was 'touch base'. then i found out it was the annual pay rate meeting with the boss. it didn't last the full allotment of 30 minutes but i didn't mind. looks like i am getting a small raise, but i did admit that i don't look at the pay stubs that much. i did go into the workday site to look at one and then at least i know where to look to confirm that it will take effect soon. it was under the 'earnings' tab that i can look for it. i know it is just my take-home pay that i see on the bank statement. 

file cut into thirds

 i tried one thing on a Fargo file that was suggested at the recent dial-in, it was to cut the file in half. the file was over four thousand checks, and actually i decided to cut it into thirds. this worked just fine, as no duplicated checks printed. i let i.t. know about it and was asked if i had let the entire team know. i said the ticket was closed and the best place to leave the notes would be on the ticket. for this reason, this colleague re-opened the ticket for me and i added these notes to it. the two Vermont checks from last week were picked up. since i didn't know too well who it was i asked their name and said i like getting the right checks to the right people. she did say Vermont checks and i was sent an I.M. in advance so i knew to be expecting someone to arrive fairly soon. vacation replacement sent an inter-office envelope to the shop near the end of the day. this was after i had started the inserter machine to get the rest of the checks ready to go into tubs and then to the mailroom. i watched the state of the union address in the evening. the American men's hockey team, the recent Olympic gold medal winners, were one of the honored guests that showed up. there were some awards presented as well, as i recall a purple heart and two congressional medals of honor. good or bad, when i saw this happen i kept thinking of the movie 'Forrest Gump' in terms of what lt. dan said when hearing how Forrest got one. not a new thing for this president, at an earlier state of the union a medal of freedom was presented. at this one there was mention of plans to award the medal of freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, to the goalie on the Olympic hockey team. 

it was after kickoff

 i notified someone in i.t. about a high-volume Fargo check file, usually it is low volume early in the week. i was asked if it was after kickoff, and it was. i had already printed some of the file by then. this must have made it harder to monitor what is happening in 'real time' in terms of why the printer has been stopping and then starting over. the same issue happened, about three quarters of the way through a file of about three thousand checks. thankful i caught it early and this minimized the number of duplicated checks that had printed. vacation replacement asked me for a contact for a business line based in Kansas City. it was one that i don't have to communicate with much as their file usually arrives just once a week. in the evening i went to perform. i did stories about a meetup event, girl scout cookies, the annual meeting, the bank, ramen noodles, and fish fries. 

9-volt battery

 this morning i bought a 9-volt battery from the corner store, along with a roll of toilet paper. the smoke alarm was keeping me up overnight as the battery was weak. when i got back from this shopping trip i turned on the TV as the gold medal game in the Olympic hockey tournament was happening, the men's division. the American team beat Canada 2-1 in overtime. team USA scored the first goal in the first period, Canada tied it in the second, and no goals in the third. the winning goal was early in overtime. it was annoying when the announcers said 'Canada was taking over the game' when they never led. this was said after the tying goal. with a low scoring game, one must give credit to the goalies for stopping shots. this was the final day of the winter Olympic games from Italy. once again, much like two years ago, i didn't watch all that much. if it was on at the bar on a night when i was performing, then i might watch some of it there. this was the only day when i watched it at home. since i was up early to watch the game, i was tired and i fell asleep for about two hours just before midday. then i had the urge to go out and about. i went to Eagan and had lunch at Kentucky Fried Chicken. then i printed two pages at the copy store and went to the Barnes and Noble. i found the special magazine i was looking for, the 'year in review' by time magazine. i got another stamp on my loyalty account there. i watched a 'best of' show that NBC had in the afternoon, much of it profiled American athletes. then it was time to attend a meetup event, my first for this month. it was officially held at a 'spirits place', as that is where i got my nametag from the event coordinator. but i prefer beer and went to the nearby micro-brewery. while there i got a box of girl scout cookies. i like peanut butter, and there are two kinds in this category, i got the one in the orange box. i had pizza at home for the evening meal. i didn't do much in the evening, besides the dishes. 

ramen and spam

 in the evening i did one thing that i don't do that often, cook on the stove top. because i like using my microwave oven a lot. i recently bought ramen noodles and spam and needed to see how well it works. i used two pans as i fried the spam, it meant flipping the patties a lot. i did this while the ramen noodles were boiling. i hadn't tried ramen since before college, when i went to visit my big brother. i think the word i am looking for is 'bland' as to why i didn't have them again for a while. when i was googling ramen in the 'Japan store' before buying it i found out a good meat to go with it is pork shoulder, which is spam. this did give it plenty of flavor. one notable thing was the smoke alarm going off, but i waved the smoke away when this happened. i was nearly finished by then. there are three more ramen packets to use. it might have been a little much to boil two packets as i had to slow down when the plate was nearly empty as i was feeling full. there was plenty to do for the day. just before midday i went to the post office and i picked up an e-bay order, it was the 'America 250' flag that i had ordered. this was larger than the 'desk flag' that i had expected but i didn't mind. i had lunch at home as i had an egg roll and potato chips left. over. it would normally have been eaten on Friday but i went to a fish fry that night. then it was on to Eden Prairie for the annual meeting of the credit union that i am a member of. the keynote speaker had lost a leg due to cancer as a youngster but has traveled the world as an athlete, including the Paralympics. i liked what was said about getting ready for the surgery, refusing the wheelchair, wanting to walk there by himself. after the evening meal i went to Aldi for groceries. then i watched a DVD, it was 'breakfast at tiffany's'. i hear that it is part of a 'flashback cinema' series and good thing i checked what discs i already have. i hadn't seen it in a while. first time was in college, after the song of the same name was popular. i liked the neighbor the most, who took care of her. when i first saw it i said 'that's the old man from A-team', George Peppard. holly, played by Audrey Hepburn, wasn't as likeable as she was a 'hot-mess' and living a lie. trying to be a socialite, wanting to forget that she grew up unsophisticated in the south. a reminder of it was when her estranged husband shows up. 

deviled eggs, 6-pack

 in the evening i went to the Hy-Vee in Eagan for groceries and i found a six-pack of deviled eggs and bought it. i am used to seeing them at potlucks. i will have two per day until they are gone. it was one of eight items in this order. and i made a visit to Walgreen in the morning, but it was a smaller order. there were two checks that i knew i needed to hold for pick-up but i had to contact customer service to find out who it was for. usually, the name is there. i will keep them in an envelope as the colleague spoke of wanting to pick them up next week. late in the day i emailed the mailroom boss as i needed more interoffice envelopes. i like knowing that i don't have to ask for them that much. i am sent plenty when i ask for them. there were questions about overnights from the Cincinnati file. with one of them i had to explain that there was just one UPS pick-up per day, and one check just missed this pick-up, and it was picked up the next day. when i first checked the tracking number it said it was on the way and then i checked a little later and it was delivered. odd how the others on the email thread claimed they couldn't find this information when entering the same tracking number that i had. another was by i.m. in the afternoon. once i found out the payee, i said i had the check and the overnight label so had what i needed. i said it would go to the box later on and would likely be picked up same day. there was a dial-in meeting about the ticket opened due to the check printer stopping and starting over on high-volume files. one thing suggested was to 'cut the file in half'. i have tried this before and when the volume is high again i can try it. there was also a request to intercept a check from a fraud file but i didn't get the request in time so it still went out regular mail. had to be honest about how i need it as early as possible. 

steelcore shovel

 i have a steel core shovel for the snow, thankful to have it even though i don't have to use it all that much. i used it this morning to dig out my car and then i was on my way to the park and ride to get to work. i liked how it didn't take all that long, under ten minutes. it helps that it has a scoop that is two feet wide, and it is a sturdy handle as well. i think all of my colleagues decided to work from home due to the weather. it was why i was asked to go to another floor and pick up the reject fax. then of course i take it back to the shop and scan and forward it to a shared box. i overnighted a check when i saw this request on it, even though it was from a file where i don't get that many kinds of requests. i was asked by i.m. if it was overnighted, and i said it was. then i gave out the tracking number. i said it is easier to send the tracking when it is available when i am emailed. also increases the odds that it will be pulled and overnighted. on another overnight, the manager that sings karaoke was notified about a check going to a fort in Maryland. looks like it was delivered in the morning, earlier in the day than expected. i knew it must have been a big deal when a senior leader was copied on the email thread. i drank the bottle of pilsner urquell with the evening meal so now there are three beers waiting. 

cashier check reporting

 i was asked by the Cincinnati business line for some cashier check reporting. i knew there were plenty of sub-files on this one, as it is the one where i am sent the overnight labels along with the checks. i found out there were ten sub-files with checks in the past year. one of them had over two hundred checks in it, and i sent that reporting first as spreadsheet, gleaned from the dashboard. i wanted to confirm that this was the kind of information that was being requested, and it was. when i found this out, i sent the other nine spreadsheets. some of them had very little activity. around midday i went to the puppy event in another part of the building. as usual i saw a friend from the comedy circuit, who is part of the animal rescue organization. there were five puppies, i am told all from the same litter. i did end up holding one of them but noticed its head kept moving around, seemed restless. then i was advised to put the dog in the playpen with the others. it was a 90-minute time allotment and i arrived during the final 30 minutes. i wanted to see that i was caught up on my normal duties before i went there. vacation replacement arrived near the end of the day to pick up a check. i was asked if i was printing anything. and at the time i wasn't. this was due to wanting to print a check, or it may have been to re-print it. not sure what for, possibly for the refund check file. 

special olympics signup

 recently i had been seeing ads about being a special Olympics volunteer and created a profile but haven't signed up for any shifts. then at my employer, there was an email about signing up through them. i let the team lead know my interest in it and it sounds like using volunteer hours is possible. i hadn't done anything like this just yet at my current employer as my normal duties are important to me. i had done some volunteering through former employers but i didn't enjoy enough of the outings. i haven't met that many people since starting at the bank, and hopefully i can meet some more due to an 'extracurricular' activity like this one. i was sent some FedEx envelopes, in person. it was six and i am told this should last for a while. at this rate, when it has been once a month, hopefully that continues to be true. the mailroom sent a refund check later than most of the others so i let vacation replacement know about it. 

pineapple tidbits, sloppy joes

 it was another day off as this was a bank holiday. for the evening meal it was 'odds and ends'. i ate the second and final frozen meal i had recently found at a bus stop, it was a sloppy joe and corn meal. i also opened up a can of pineapple tidbits. it was one of five items i had claimed out of a box next to a dumpster. all of it was perfectly good, unexpired and unopened food containers. it was two cans of chicken, two cans of pineapple, and a jar of peanut butter i had claimed. this was the final one i was using. a good fallback plan for me on a day off is to head to Mall of America. i had lunch there at the A and W. i had a burger there but got an idea to eat a fish sandwich on a later visit as 'fish fry season' is starting soon. there was an electronic ad about it when i was ordering. then i had a scoop of ice cream at great American cookies as i wanted some airline miles. the other two stops were at a toy store where i found two Charlie Brown items, a charm and a yo-yo. then i got a 5-pack of ramen noodles at the 'Japan store', Ebisu, as snoopy is on the package. there were two museum logos on it as well, one of them is of the snoopy museum in Tokyo. after leaving the mall i got some drain opener at a Walgreen. then i watched 'jeopardy' when i got home, and the final jeopardy clue was about John Knox, the religious reformer. i went to perform in the evening, and did stories about the bank, the day off, seeing a movie, and going to a donut shop. i was pleased that the wild guitar player decided to play a Lewis Capaldi song as i had requested it last week. there was another performer who talked to me after my set, was wearing an outfit that said 'supreme' referring to the shoe brand and spoke of performing in Las Vegas soon. i was annoyed when another performer asked for an opinion about their set and then later pranked me. it is a reminder of why i often leave shortly after the show is over as things like this can happen during the after-show part. 

wild river movie

 in the afternoon i watched a movie on DVD, it was 'wild river'. it was a recent purchase, part of a 'double feature'. it was about the TVA during the great depression, so of course this was of interest to me as a history major. i recall one history book saying the Tennessee valley authority 'made running rivers walk'. the movie did start with footage of this river flooding. it was about a government agent who must evacuate a small town to make way for a dam, but one resident refused to leave. then the agent falls in love with the granddaughter. i did not recognize any of the actors in it but i liked the story. notable was the old lady telling her story of why she refused to leave, and this was a scene where we see the cemetery on this island. for lunch i went to the mall in Roseville and ate at Tio's tacos. it was a way that i mark the anniversary of me moving to the twin cities for work many years ago, as it was on a Valentine's Day weekend. i had four small tacos and some fries and a bottle of Jarritos soda. then i went to have a blizzard treat at dairy queen. and i bought a small pack of baseball cards from a vending machine. i was pleased that one of them was of Yadier Molina. after i finished watching the movie, i had the urge to get moving again. i went to get some discounted Valentine's candy at Hy-Vee in Eagan. one was a big bag of Hershey's kisses, and another was gummies. both had Charlie Brown characters on the package. in the evening i liked watching two 'Simpsons' episodes. there were some postings on Facebook about this being episode number 800. one i understood was inspired by this year's america-250 celebration as it was about ben franklin and the setting was Philadelphia. this led to some jokes about the 'rocky' movie franchise as well. the other was about Milhouse's dad and crackers, notable as REM frontman Michael Stipe guest stars and the song 'i am superman' is played. 

blue moon movie

 in the late afternoon i went to see the movie 'blue moon' in Columbia heights, first time at this venue, called 'the heights'. this was one of just two screenings scheduled for this Oscar-nominated movie that was on my list. i had seen some other movies with Ethan Hawke, as well as Margaret Qualley. Ethan's character sure does talk a lot in it. this explains why his role was nominated, but no best picture nomination. it depends on who he was talking to. when talking to most people, seemed funny when reminiscing about his career. but with his ex-partner, seemed sad and bitter. but this fits with what i would expect when it is about 'Rodgers and Hart' becoming 'Rodgers and Hammerstein'. it was about the party at a bar after the premiere of 'Oklahoma!', a play i had seen performed by a local community theater. would it surprise me if the movie wasn't entirely factual? no. because one line in it was 'it would become so popular that high schools would perform it'. this is what happened, but was it really said right after the premiere? another one that meant something to me, as a performer, was the line how 'the crowd laughed at the wrong thing'. as a performer i know it is a good idea to know who your crowd is and try to perform something they will like. being edgy and satirical can work, but sometimes nostalgic, light-hearted, and feel-good works. it was time to have the evening meal by the time the movie was done, and i went to the nearby taco bell. one table over from me, there were two teenage boys who had showed up after i did and were arguing. it was added motivation to finish eating and leave in a timely fashion. in the morning i went to the post office, but there were no orders to pick up. for lunch i went to Jersey Mike's. my visit to Aldi for groceries was moved up to the afternoon due to when i attended the movie. i liked finding an Aldi truck on this visit, it will go next to other toy cars i have bought. 

reverse engineer it

i did see some movement on the ticket with the printer stopping and starting over. i saw some instant messages from a tech. eventually it was said he'd try to 'reverse engineer' it. i had to say that most of the checks i print each day are in this system, some are PDF but not a lot. if i needed to be out of it for the tech to get it handled, then it would have to be after-hours. none of my business if it meant the tech is working on it when i have a day off such as the upcoming bank holiday. a toner cartridge arrived for the primary check printer, proving it is still on auto-ship. thankful i don't have to call for that one. i sent plenty of check samples to the boss in a folder that others can use, twenty-five in all. it covers even the checks that i don't have to print much. in some cases, i had to go back a month or two to find one due to 'lack of frequency'. i spoke of promotions for the local baseball team, the twins, to the manager that likes karaoke. there are two in particular that interest me, special theme tickets to order, but those games are not until august. i like a theme ticket, don't have to be first in line that get that kind of giveaway. there was an email request to reroute a check from a Cincinnati file to someone in the same town as me. of course, it meant that it was an overnight request. and there was a dial-in meeting about nearly two hundred tax checks going to a lawyer office in Chicago. i don't get those kinds of files too often, where i have to put it in a box. once completed, i sent it to the mailroom as i knew it wouldn't fit in the UPS drop box. it didn't say 'picked up' right away though. after i got home i checked the tracking number and it finally did, more than an hour after i had left the office for the day. we had to have I.T. on the call to change one thing on the checks, which was rake off an email that is normally listed. the customer service number was left on, though. then once it was re-printed, i let all know so I.T. could switch it back. in the evening i did the customary visit to the Hy-Vee in Eagan for groceries. but before that i stopped at a nearby Dunkin donuts, inspired by the recent super bowl commercial. i got coffee with the donut, and since it was less than an hour before close, i was given three donuts but ordered just one.  

how to find special handling

 there was a quick dial-in meeting with the boss. it was to show how to find special handling in some of the files that i print. i said i do not go through each check in a high-volume file such as the Fargo files. i go by if it is marked as 'overnight' and even more rare, when i am sent an email asking me to pull a check. in these two files and some others, i change the tab to 'comment zip code' and all of those go to the top. makes no difference if it is inter-office, foreign, or overnight. some of those with comments i leave alone, because some don't fall into any of those three categories. later on, i was asked to pull a check from the larger Fargo file and shred it, do not send it out. the maintenance kit arrived for the primary check printer, i was called by the tech on the laptop phone about when to expect the tech on the main floor. i said it was already swapped out, just needed a spare. the rollers were still swapped out by the tech, and the kit i swapped out was hauled away. tech wasn't there for long, didn't need to be. i also had to call for help with the inserter machine. it was stuck on a 'hot product error' on both hoppers, couldn't get much moved through. i was still a day behind on the Fargo files, so i still had some checks that i needed to get out the door. after more than twenty minutes on the call, we got it figured out. one button i don't use much was used, run one check through but do not seal it, and this was enough to clear the error. then it was humming along again. 

incident opened, two calls

i found another case of why i call it the 'not much help desk'. i called in another ticket, this time it was for the printer stopping and starting over. then just as i was about to get the ticket or 'incident' number, the help desk hung up on me and i had to call again and start all over again. who knows when i might see any action on it such as if a tech has to show up. the toner cartridge for the small printer arrived, in the morning. the techs who ordered it wanted to close the case once it was ordered, i said 'on the way' doesn't mean as much to me as 'delivered'. once i was notified that it was signed for in the mailroom on the same floor as me, i went to pick it up. doesn't take long to handle it, just slide one out and slide the other in. when i arrived for work i noticed our tax specialist had sent an instant message overnight, at a time when some are watching the late local news. the question was if there were any tax checks, i said there weren't. still odd to me when i hear from this dude at times. 

duplicated checks, two files

 we are still getting the problem of the check printer stopping and starting over on high-volume days for two Fargo files. it happened with both, but i caught it with the smaller one earlier. the larger one started over about midway through and it meant about two thousand duplicated checks were printed. i have to take good notes when this happens, seeing that the duplicated ones are set aside and do not go out. then of course, seeing where it stopped over and knowing where i need to hit re-print. it meant more than four thousand checks did not go out same day. i am used to some days where there is a backlog, but usually it is not this much. but i am a big believer in seeing that it is done right, even if it takes more time. the boss had sent us a schedule by email. in the next week or so there are days off, as well as days when working remote in California. there was a request from the boss for check samples, i think due to the expected change of signature to be implemented soon. i am aware that not all checks that i print have a customer service number attached to it, though. some do have a letter under the check; others just have itemization. 

two tickets opened

 i don't enjoy having to contact the 'help desk' to open tickets at work, but it was time. i needed things for the machines that i use. there was the small printer, used for overnight labels, needing a toner cartridge. since not much is sent through it, thankful we don't need to order it much, first time since June. the other was a maintenance kit for the primary check printer. i have to treat it the same as toner, where we always want a spare one onsite. it actually didn't take as long as expected, based on past experiences, about twenty minutes. still a case of when it all arrives, but with the smaller printer i know i can print the labels on one of the check printers. when vacation replacement arrived to drop off some mail to go out at the end of the day, i spoke of it. in the evening i went to perform. i did stories about the bank, going to an art museum, a movie on super bowl Sunday, and a posting i saw on Facebook. 

a private life movie

 around midday i went to see a movie, 'a private life', in Edina, at the 50th and France theater. after i parked in the ramp next to the theater, i walked over to the holiday gas station, two blocks away, and picked up a sandwich and ate it before going into the movie. this was a French movie starring Jodie Foster. i know she is fluent in that language. as usual, i was able to follow along with the subtitles fairly well. it was a reminder of how it is loosely translated instead of literally translated. i saw this with the subtitles saying 'fine' when it was actually 'very good' or 'sorry' when it was 'excuse me'. i haven't seen that many movies starring Jodie, i know i saw 'silence of the lambs' but that was in the VHS era. it was a good story, and it was brilliant to have the talking heads song 'psycho killer' in this movie, for two reasons. Jodie was playing a psychiatrist, and some of the lyrics are French and of course Jodie trying to investigate the death of one of her patients, believing she was murdered. i do like me a good thriller, and it did follow what i am used to with thrillers. this includes someone searching for evidence, even though it was 'bending or breaking the law' to do so. one line i really liked was when her son answers the door and said 'you have the wrong floor, ma'am. my mother never apologizes'. sad but true for many, believe me i know. i didn't go home right away after the movie. i stopped in Eagan and picked up two more boxes of Chex cereal with Charlie Brown characters on the box. some stores are running low for that one, but not cub foods. i also got some cheese. then it was home. i was there hours before the super bowl began, and i researched what i did on previous super bowl Sundays for a Facebook posting. good game all around, liked seeing green day as the opening act. then lady gaga made an appearance in the halftime show. seahawks beat the patriots, 29-13. when following the flow of the game, no surprise really. Seattle's defense helped out a lot, with the turnover margin and points off turnovers. Seattle had a more experienced QB as well. the team with the best defense usually wins. four of the commercials were standouts. there was a Dunkin Donuts ad inspired by 'good will hunting'. there was lady gaga in a Pokémon ad. there was two PSAs with songs i was familiar with. one was Enya's 'only time'- about cancer screening- and the Phil Collins song 'against all odds' or 'take a look at me now' where toilets were singing it.