fan zone, two photos

 just before midday i went to mall of America as i had heard there was a 'fan zone' at the rotunda related to special Olympics. i knew it was a good idea to leave my volunteer shirt at home as i was off duty. it was a small event, didn't take long to cover the stations, but it was nice to get two photos sent to me by email. one of them was AI-generated, when i said my dream job was author. i created a poster as well, then got a picture of it and donated it to the cause and it was put on display. i wrote on it about what i did for my volunteer shift, unloading bags from buses at the university. when i was done it was time for lunch and went to a pizza place nearby. i go there as i know i will likely get airline miles. then it was to the 'Japan store', Ebisu, and i found another container of chewing gum with the Charlie Brown characters on it. this one was green, the other was yellow, and was a slightly different lineup although snoopy was on both. then it was time to get to the St. Paul Saints baseball game. i left some things at home, picked up a few such as the jersey i would be wearing. i made it before the national anthem. it was a slugfest that went into extra innings. the saints lost to Omaha, 15-12, in 11 innings. a non-pitcher was pitching for the home team in what became the final inning. i saw the dude i know from the ticket office, and i heard about a non-baseball event coming up at this venue. it was being promoted on the video board in center field. it sounds like plenty of daredevil stunts, but it is called a circus. i got a ticket for it, it is over a month from now. also saw the young lady i know from the alumni chapter and spoke of how there is an event in a few days. then i went to perform nearby. it was a thin lineup but i still liked having the stage time. one performer much have had stage fright, as he basically just said hi and bye and then left. 

culligan mascot

 i went to the car show at the state fairgrounds in the afternoon, and one thing i saw early upon arrival was a dressed-up mascot for Culligan water. it reminded me of their decades-old slogan, 'hey Culligan man!' i got a picture of this mascot, which looked like a woman, and had some of their water as well. most important thing early on was lunch. i found a basket of fries and chicken strips, then eventually a beer. wanted a Modelo, apparently the vendor had run out, so i got a Michelob. i enjoyed this event despite a friend of mine being absent, this would be the retired postal worker. i took two buses to get there, and shortly after starting the second leg of my journey i checked my phone and was told he didn't make it. something about his two classic cars not being registered. i was tired and my feet hurt, so i had to sit every so often. i was pleased that i managed to last more than three hours there and walked the lion's share of the fairgrounds. by early evening i headed home, taking two buses again. i saw plenty of cars that reminded me of movies i had seen. this included 'Christine', the 'Herbie' franchise, as well as 'rain man'. often not the same model years, but close. i got pictures of those. i saw a Porsche speedster, much like what mike fox drove in 'doc Hollywood' but didn't get a pic of it. my final car pic of the day was of an Edsel, which reminded me of the Billy Joel song 'we didn't start the fire'. i had seen some before but still surprised to see as many as i have when it was a famous failure. in the morning i got groceries at Aldi, then went and got another america-250 item at Barnes and Noble. not the one i was searching for, but it was a nice pack of items, including a poster, magazine, and postcards. at Walmart i found the word find i was looking for, that had been seen at Hy-Vee a month ago. i also bought some snack cakes with the same theme there. in the evening i tried watching the baseball game on TV, Mets-Phillies, but fell asleep. 

unloading bags from buses

 this was a day off for me due to the bank holiday, but i stayed active. it was the day of my shift with special Olympics. first i had to get registered onsite, at the U of M. hard to find the correct building at first, some were closed. then i went in one where a sign was up and was shown a map, it was a white tent in a parking lot behind the hockey arena. i said i know there that is and was on my way. i got my shirt and hat, then went to another venue. hard to find anyone 'in the know' at first, then i found another volunteer. we were sent to a 'superblock', where some residence halls were. i had been to the athletic venues north of the light rail tracks, this was the first time i am aware of where i have been south of the tracks on this campus. it wasn't too big of a deal, i was unloading bags from buses when the athletes arrived. there was plenty of down time between buses. i did use this window of opportunity to go get a sandwich at jimmy john's nearby as it was time to have lunch. i wasn't away for long, and not long after i returned there were some sandwiches brought to us. oops! but i didn't know when or even what they were going to bring us when signing up, months ago. i had a half sandwich and a cookie, and i was full. i lost count of how many state delegations we helped, at least a dozen. except Iowa, my native state, wasn't one of them. the capital city was, though, and California was split into northern and southern halves. i was used to being at work during this time of day so not a big deal to have a shift of about five hours. then i took the light rail back to my car in the early evening. i picked up a few items at a Walgreen in the morning. after my shift was done i was home for a short time and then went to get a sandwich at jersey mike's. after that it was groceries at Hy-Vee in Eagan. i did see the employee i sometimes chat with, as i was leaving, and alluded to what i was wearing as i still had the volunteer outfit on. 

harmar mall article

 i spoke of an article i had found recently about Harmar mall in Roseville to vacation replacement. it said that the mall has an uncertain future. no surprise there when most of the storefronts are now empty. i have been to the cub foods grocery store there, as well as the Barnes and Noble book shop, and that is about it. not much else of note is still there. the response from my colleague was that it was old and outdated, surprised that they haven't closed down yet. like most people, i go to Rosedale more often, in the same town, way more stores there. the tax specialist was out, and i was told to hold all checks until Monday. i got a rare request on the Fargo file, it was to pull out 58 checks as those were duplicated. this made sense as i did pull one of them from the foreign pile, and another from the special handling file. i saw the list of check numbers from the printed email, and i still wanted to send checks through the machine in a timely fashion. i noticed the check numbers were not scattered throughout the file; it meant just one stack needed to be set aside for a short time to find what i needed. the boss brought cookies from another floor, made by the colleague that places supply orders for me. another payroll check was picked up, by the colleague that i more typically see from that department. late in the day i had to say that i was unable to help with a pull and shred request on a check as i had already sent the regular mail tubs to the mailroom. 

just a line item

 a colleague in another office tried to gaslight me on a form that was sent as an attachment to be included with a check from the Marshall file. i said it didn't look like a bill to me, just a line item from an excel spreadsheet. i am used to a bill having more information on it, such as where to mail payments to. then eventually i got a form where this address was added to the page with just a 'line item' on it. i showed it to vacation replacement, who said the same thing as i did about seeing it. there were questions about overnighted checks from this same file, and i was asked by instant message about it. i decided to add her to the email thread, when the check in question was mentioned there. i said someone in Marshall sends me to overnight labels that i use. i got an ice cream sandwich and a can of sparkling water from the convenience store on the main floor, in the afternoon. 

ginger beer

 in the breakroom at work, i saw four unopened bottles of ginger beer on the table. i claimed one of them, i don't think I've had it before. the label said it was from Aldi, but it was confusing that the brand name was summit as that is the name of a local beer as well. this drink was much sweeter than i care for, but i finished the bottle. the bottlecap was a plain one, black, no logo or anything like that on it. a payroll check was picked up before i went to lunch. the employee from that department asked if it was a good time, i said it was good as any as i wasn't at lunch yet. it was an elevator ride down two floors to get to me. i did follow up with the team lead from the earlier inquiry, i spoke of sector 7-g as i like to say this is what i call my work area. it is in reference to 'the Simpsons' and i usually have it written down somewhere to remind me. it feels more at home when i do this. 

cherry top donut

 there was an email early in the workday saying there was donuts in honor of 44 years of service to the bank. i didn't know the colleague but i went to that floor and chose a donut with a cherry on top. it was from the place that is in the skyway nearby and opened in the past year. there was a dial-in meeting mid-morning, a quarterly town hall if i am not mistaken. when the team lead asked how things were going by instant message, i said i was doing the best i can. i know this was due to the boss being out, but i still like the gesture. in the evening was a mic that i normally perform at, but this is the first one that i skipped. i found another one where i feel more comfortable and welcome at, which is most important. 

cisco pike movie

 i liked how i didn't have that much booked for the day. the main thing was getting to a movie at the Trylon, it was 'cisco pike', starring Kris Kristofferson and Gene Hackman, in the afternoon. the former was a musician, blackmailed by the latter, a dirty cop, into selling weed to have a charge dropped. i recognized a few other actors in it, but not too many. there was Roscoe Lee Browne, as a pawnbroker, in the early part of the movie. i did some research leading up to seeing it and i found out musicians have been in movies pretty much as long as there have been movies. i had seen the ones with Elvis Presley, and the Beatles, but it goes back even farther than that. one article spoke of Frank Sinatra, as well as Bing Crosby, doing movies in the 1940s. i had seen Sinatra in 'cannonball run', but not those earlier ones. with Crosby i had heard of the 'road movies' done with Bob Hope, guess i could likely find some of them on amazon. as usual, there were promos for upcoming film series at this venue. one of them was the 'road movie' series for the summer. there are three in that series that interest me. i bought a ticket for another movie at this venue over the weekend, but in a different series, a month from now. around midday i went to a park and had a cup of booya soup. i am used to this kind of event being just in the fall. before the booya i watched a DVD, a recent purchase, 'vacation'. since both movies seem to play just fine on this disc, i am fine with junking the other one as one of them on the earlier disc did not. after the movie i had some pizza at home and then went to perform at an open mic where the friend is the show runner. i got some more ideas for places to perform at, since another mic is in transition and i don't like the show runner that just took over. i didn't do much else in the evening, besides call my dad, who has a birthday coming up soon. 

two-dollar beers

 in the afternoon i went to the twins-cardinals baseball game in Minneapolis. i had heard there was two-dollar beers at those games, from gates open until first pitch. i made it there early enough to get one. i found out it was for just three kinds of 12-ounce beers in cans, i chose bud light. i waited in line for a beer on the main level, then went to my seat on the upper level and found out i could have bought one there. you live, you learn, i guess. i also got the giveaway item, a pack of Topps baseball cards. the company is marking 75 years in business. i got a bag of peanuts with the beer, but as expected not all of the nuts were eaten there. about half of them were taken home as that is a lot to eat all by myself. as for the game, the cardinals won, 9-6, and never trailed in this one. although a relief pitcher walked the bases loaded in the ninth but gave up just one run in that inning. i got some things done in the morning. there was going to the post office and i picked up an amazon order, a DVD. i also got some stamps, profiling historical figures from the American Revolution. after the game, i went home and rested a little, then went to a meetup event in downtown St. Paul near the Saints baseball stadium. in the morning, i went to Aldi for groceries, then got on the light rail to the baseball game. 

mailroom at lunch

 sometimes mailroom employees can be weird. i was at lunch and one of them finds me in the breakroom, and leaves before i can even get up. then the same one returns a few minutes later and i am asked to sign for something. not a big deal, I've done it before. then whatever i am given i put inside the shop and go back to lunch. vacation replacement heard about it and said this is why he'd stay in the shop for lunch. well i said it wasn't the hill i wanted to die on, as the saying goes. sometimes i get a sorry but not every time. also at work, i noticed a UPS envelope going to Wisconsin, from the Marshall file, had just one check for ten dollars instead of two checks for five each. i let the business line know that i was sending all of it in just one envelope, and the second UPS envelope i used for something else. when i was flipping through envelopes in the Fargo file before getting them in the regular mail tub, i found three that were refund checks. i set them aside, no need to send them out as they would eventually be sent to us when it is the same address. in the evening i bought a few items at a speedway gas station, as well as the Aldi. one of them from the latter was an america-250 themed product, Rice Krispies. 

became hot chicken

when i saw vacation replacement in the shop, i spoke of how some dairy queen locations have closed in the area. i had to look up one of them, haven't been there since it was 'repurposed' as it became a hot chicken place. i said i am more of the kind that gets chicken at Kentucky fried, popeye's, chick-fil-a, and cane's, pretty much in that order of appeal to me. this stems from Kentucky being the only option when i was growing up in small-town Iowa. i heard from the i.t. person and did test check printing in the morning. it was postponed from the previous day as i had more time for it in the morning. i am trying to get overnighted checks out the door late in the day. the boss was out of the office, but the boss was still copied when i sent the ten scanned copies that i had. i heard from the Marshall office, their UPS app was down and asked if i could do a label for a CarMax check. i said i had plenty of other labels to create, and hopefully i get that label the next day. looks like the light rail line that i take to work will be unavailable again later this month. last year it was for two weeks, but this time it will be longer. i will find a way to manage to get to work during that 'interim period'. i learned what works best for me when it happened last year.  

carolina caroline movie

 in the evening i went to see a movie, 'Carolina Caroline', in Inver grove heights. first time in a while at that venue. this was an independent film in limited release so i didn't want to wait too long to see it. this movie can be filed under various genres- a thriller, crime drama, romance, and road movie. i didn't recognize many of the actors in it, but i just care about if it's a good story. Kyra Sedgwick was in it, but in a small role as the mom. plenty of scenes were in bars, and in the south, so this explains why there was plenty of country music. this included a song by Loretta Lynn. i recognized a rock song in it as well, it was 'shooting star' by bad company. it was about a couple that went on a bank robbing spree. i was sold a discounted ticket, likely since it was on a weeknight. when i was already pretty much booked for the weekend, i figured it was best to 'move it up'. it wasn't the only event i did after work, though. i did one at the loft literary center, it was a member/friend event. i had hoped to be one of the readers like many times before but i guess they ran out of time. i can save what i wrote for the next one. i had enough to eat there that i didn't need anything at the movie theater. at work, an i.t. person called about the 'red line' on the dashboard left over from the Fargo file on Monday. i said all checks had been printed and positive paid. there was a PDF check for the manager that likes karaoke. i was told to expect one and when i checked the file i said 'we got one!' much like the secretary in 'ghostbusters'. sounds like i was offered a bobblehead but not sure when that might be arriving. i entered a vacation day for next month and notified vacation replacement about it. in the morning there was a team huddle. i had to say that we got just five sample envelopes from the supplier. i ran them through the machine, using copy paper to test it, but that was not enough for an accurate test. i also saw the tax specialist, twice. first time was shortly after the team huddle. then again in the afternoon as i was told those checks needed to go out same day. 

overnighting costs

 there was a question about overnighting costs from an instant message. i said it usually isn't that much unless it is going to a foreign land. sounds like doing a wire transfer is even more, but i haven't done any of those. and it sounds like we don't charge back to a business line when we overnight checks. i ended up overnighting three checks from a fraud file to a bank on Staten Island. a payroll check was picked up by the manager, usually it is picked up by their aide. but i don't care who picks it up. there was an e-invoice request from a different payroll manager, it was found by vacation replacement. it was more like an ACH statement and not a check when it was forwarded on. 

where's my phone, mitski

 when i was driving to a performance venue in the evening, i had the radio on as usual. i liked one song in particular, it was 'where's my phone' by Mitski. first song i heard by this artist was 'bug like an angel', on the same radio station, 89.3 the current. this one has a more frantic pace to it, but it still works for me. watched the video on YouTube and both have a choir in it. there was a change in the show runner and i am not pleased with who it is, but i performed tonight anyway. but i do have plans ready to use where i end up performing at alternate shows and venues. i did stories about a movie at the Trylon, an art exhibit, a play, and the bank. at work, vacation replacement said there was a server issue and i was able to print the PDF checks right away but not the ones in the older system. there was a delay on the two Fargo files, i was able to import them before leaving for the day but printing them will be done the next day. 

a chorus line

 in the afternoon i went to see a play, it was 'a chorus line'. first time at this venue in a while, park square in downtown St. Paul. thankful i saw this play, which is marking 50 years, and the venue is as well. based on what i knew about the play before seeing it, i understood why it became a hit. sometimes we want plays that make us happy, but sometimes we want what is real. and the latter is true here, as it is about trying to get hired for a play. some of the stories told during the auditions, the lion's share of the play, were priceless. there was no intermission, but i managed just fine. it helped that i had no drink order before the play. there was a post-show discussion with this performance but i didn't stay for it. i got some popcorn from the nearby Candyland and ate it while walking around downtown. in the morning i watched a movie, a recent DVD purchase from amazon, 'rock and roll high school'. the movie was mentioned in an interview with green day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong, whose band is having a movie release later this year. the movie was ridiculous at times, but the music in it was pretty good. this included the Ramones song i know best, 'blitzkrieg bop'; as it was in the first 'vacation' movie. Clint Howard's role, the wheeler dealer, stood out to me. i watched part of the UFL football playoff game when i got home, Louisville went on to beat st. louis. in the evening i went to a meetup event, at dual citizen brewing in St. Paul. saw a familiar face there, the dude from Austin, Texas. still hopeful to see the credit union employee at another event, but it sounds like it might be a while. sent a text while there and this is what i was told. 

german exhibit, art institute

 in the afternoon i went to the German exhibit at the Minneapolis art institute. i knew it had been there since March and it closes next month, so it was time to go see it. as usual, some things worked better than others for me. three paintings in particular i really liked. one had plenty of color in it, and depicted cars, it was about city life. one near it was about passengers getting on a train. a third was mocking pillars of society. with the third one it was a reminder of how it was a good idea to read the descriptions next to the paintings. i ended up looking at them more closely due to what i read there. i am also thankful i reviewed pictures before leaving. it led to me re-taking some. and it led to me finding a room near the entrance that i had skipped the first time around, didn't know it was there. i bought some postcards in the souvenir shop, and a sticker that showed Woodstock from the Charlie Brown cartoons saying ''do not disturb'. for lunch i went to have a sandwich at Jersey Mike's. while there i heard 'she drives me crazy' by fine young cannibals. it made me feel old as i recall when it was a hit, the same year when my family got cable TV so i saw MTV more often. after the exhibit, driving home i heard 'sign of the times' by prince. still my favorite prince song due to the social commentary in it. this was the big prince weekend, a block party in downtown Minneapolis, no surprise to hear some of his songs on a local radio station. in the evening i went to another movie in Columbia Heights, it was 'everyone is lying to you for money'. it was a documentary about cryptocurrency. in the morning i picked up one order from the post office, a DVD i would like to watch soon. 

test check file split

 there were some big files of test checks at work. at first i printed all of them and was ready to send them to the boss and to someone in i.t. but after sending the first scan, 53 checks in all, i was told to wait until i heard more. i split the file into thirds. later on, there was another file to print but i was told to send just ten in all, five each from the two Fargo files. fine with me. i saw a senior leader in the morning when i was on another floor to pick up the reject fax. this time it was just six pages, and none were duplicated. i spoke of a dial-in meeting about the checks from the Marshall office, it was in the afternoon. a file from a week ago was finally approved so i sent it out. no surprise how it was approved only when the business line had another one to send. this was related to aviation. a check file from st. louis was late. in the evening i went to the Hy-Vee in Eagan for groceries. i picked up another america-250 item, a second coloring book but this one some founding fathers were in it and national parks. the earlier one, from Crayola, was about the states. 

life of oharu movie

 in the evening i went to a movie at the Trylon, it was 'life of Oharu'. it was a subtitled Japanese film from 1952, but the setting was more than two centuries prior. it was a sad story about a lady that was a courtesan and prostitute. it fit the theme of the series, as it is part of 'bleak week'. it led me to look up what 'courtesan' means, found out it meant a whore with a richer, higher-end clientele. i sat in the front row next to a dude that i recognized from some previous screenings, who once wore a cub foods sweater. at work, sometimes i still have to take care of a few things that should have been handled on my day off. vacation replacement said a PDF file wasn't printed, not sure why. i know i start off with a note page each day so the chances of me missing one isn't likely. this was discovered when an internal customer was asking for a tracking number on a check to be overnighted. there was two in an eight-check file, and the other six were to be sent regular mail. when i am doing a count of PDF checks for the day, this is considered to be 'carryover'. i completed an online class in the morning that is due at the end of the month, it was the only one on the list for this quarter. a check for payroll was picked up. the boss had more questions about the Marshall file, i said it was hard to do anything same day on the second one as it arrives late. when i am aware of the deadline on getting the regular mail tubs to the mailroom, it just isn't possible. this is leading to a dial in meeting being set up soon. when on break in the afternoon, i went to the convenience store on the main floor of the building. i got a drink and an ice cream sandwich. while there i heard a song, 'back to friends' by Sombr. hard to put a finger on why i like it, but i do. i know many songs are inspired by love, and this one is, sort of. 

courier calls

 there was some confusion about the courier that was delivering the check stock, and it meant multiple calls about it. some were on my laptop phone, and some were on my personal cell phone. but we got it squared away, my boss claims to have found the courier in the hall. most months until recently, the courier made it to the floor without much fanfare. there was some confusion about PDF check files. one was marked as ad-hoc, but it wasn't for the tax specialist. vacation replacement said it was all about the time stamp. the times were close, but the newer file is a little bit later. the second i-pay file was late, but it was low volume so i still had enough time to send all of it out same day. the Fargo business line asked about test checks, i said i handle those when I.T. tells me there are checks to print. i spoke of the karaoke outing to the manager that likes karaoke but didn't get an answer to my question on if she has sung there. 

special olympics assignment

 i am signed up as a volunteer for special Olympics this month. for a while i had seen some reminders about an assignment to be completed before i do the volunteer shift. i figured this being a day off, for a dental appointment, was the best time to take care of it. this was a lot like the online classes i do at the bank, go through a few screens and then i am done. this was done in the morning, and the appointment was in the afternoon. i ate in downtown St. Paul, close to the dental office. it was a place found in the skyway. i had been there before and went there again as i found out i get airline miles on each visit. i ordered a Cuban sandwich and it tasted good to me. i liked how the appointment was pretty much routine. i said i was trying harder to have better dental visits and this meant way less candy especially around the four 'candy holidays' but i still have some Reese's peanut butter. i gave my car the day off and took the bus there. i noticed one storefront had a sign up about what was coming soon. it was a pharmacy until about a year ago, now it looks like it will be an Islamic deli and grocery store. i watched a DVD in the morning, it was 'European vacation', first time i had seen this movie in a while. probably noticed a few things that i hadn't before. 

back after six years

 i wanted stage time, so i went to a karaoke bar tonight. i needed to get out and celebrate my service anniversary at the bank, six years. i went back to a venue for the first time since the pandemic began. i sang two songs there, it was 'here i go again' by Whitesnake, and 'losing my religion' by REM. the jockey still recognized me, and some of the things still looked familiar. with a mic that i like going to being in transition i knew i had to look at all options to continue with stage time to stay sharp. and i recall why i first started doing karaoke on a regular basis- it was easier to find stage time there than at a comedy mic on the weekends. i was familiar with how it helped my comedy sets as the karaoke stories were priceless. at work, the Marshall office asked if i was getting the UPS labels. we just started doing their checks. a check for payroll was picked up in the morning. the tax specialist had questions about a Canadian check sent his way, and then i realized it wasn't for him and i was fine with it being sent back to me. i figured it was 'ad-hoc' and it was a file that i hadn't seen before, since there were two Canadian files just before midday.