young washington movie

 just before midday i went to see the movie 'young Washington', at the Grandview theater in St. Paul. liked seeing Kelsey Grammer- from 'Cheers' and 'Frasier'- in it, albeit in a small role. i am used to the disclaimer that was in the closing credits, which said 'some scenes and characters were invented for dramatic effect'. when the storyline got to fort Duquesne, now known as Pittsburgh, it reminded me of a fellow comic, brawler, who is from that city. i was the only one in the theater for this screening, this has happened before. i had lunch at the subway sandwich shop nearby after the movie. it was nice hearing Sia's 'cheap thrills' there. when i was getting a sandwich there i noticed one employee was holding an infant, but not the one that served me. after this was done i went to have an oil change done for my car. then later on i went to perform at an open mic. one performer said it was the best set he'd heard from me. it likely helped that it included a rant about my ex-boss, who i spotted at an event the previous day but thankfully i just kept moving before i was recognized and called out to. in the morning i did laundry, although i was tired in the evening and didn't get around to doing the dishes. i guess i will have to do them the next day. 

mary oliver movie

 in the afternoon i went to see the documentary movie about poet Mary Oliver, at st. Anthony main in Minneapolis. i still haven't found a better view in the twin cities than the one i see just outside of this theater, looking straight across the river to the skyline. i hadn't heard of this writer, but since it was about a writer it intrigued me enough to go. i found it when scanning fandango this week so it was a late add to my schedule. there were some interviews with celebrities, but some worked for me better than others. i liked the one with journalist Maria Shriver, who interviewed her and clips of the interview are shown. what makes you feel different? not belonging. that statement really resonated with me, as it would with many who are in the arts. the ones with two talk show hosts, Steve Colbert and Oprah Winfrey, didn't do much for me. besides reading her poems, they seemed to offer little beyond being 'fans' who happened to be famous. it was nice to hear Edith Piaf's 'la vie en rose' in the lobby, a good 'walking out song'. i made it to whiz-bang days in Robbinsdale before the movie and bought the festival button i was looking for. i briefly stopped in the branch, but it was basically just a hi and bye as not many were in there. i was recognized by one employee though, who said it was basically an entirely new crew since i was moved to another office. a deejay played nirvana's 'teen spirit' as part of the block party. and i had lunch at the McDonald's. i went to the car show as well, nice seeing a Shelby cobra there. and there was a pink Edsel. although it made me feel old to see an 83 cutlass there. went to the Walgreen and bought a six pack of Coca-Cola in bottles, since it had the america-250 logo on it. in the evening i went to see 'cosmic ball' at the Saints stadium. a friend in st. louis said he hadn't heard of it. shortly after the event ended, i sent a text and described it well. the showmanship reminded me of the Harlem globetrotters, pro wrestling, and a 3-ring circus. there was music throughout, which i liked. this included Elton John's 'I'm still standing' and Djo's 'end of beginning'. at one point, a player sat down next to me and i said 'there is a lot going on'. the dude was wearing a jersey with '3:16' on the back. if anything didn't land with me, it was the blow-up doll version of a cow, a recurring gag. if it was meant to be their version of a 'rubber chicken', then that wouldn't have landed with me either. 

letters not practical

 i joined a dial-in meeting with the boss, it was about a big ask on checks. the expected volume is fifteen thousand, and legal department asked us to send out letters with it as well. but this is not practical when the volume is that high. sounds like the request might have went as high as one level below the CEO. the boss said it would make more sense to have legal send out those letters in advance, instead of with the checks. whatever happens, i won't see these refund checks right away. there will likely be more meetings about it, but i won't necessarily be on the later ones. the boss went home a little early, spoke of the gout acting up and needing to take meds for it. there was one check for the tax specialist, the first of this month. it will likely be picked up in person the next business day. i decided to respond on the email thread about the supply orders, where i said we have had cartons of check stock put on backorder before. i see it when the packing list arrives, and we are not told in advance when that happens. this seemed to be one reason why the order was held up, along with the main contact being on vacation. i said i was fine with being sent whatever they currently have in stock, and this seemed to be enough to break the logjam. in the evening i went to get groceries at Hy-Vee in Eagan and saw the employee i sometimes chat with. songs i heard there included 'closing time', although it wasn't all that close to closing time when i was there. the other was 'X's and O's' by Elle King. i bought some more america-250 items, this time it was discounted napkins. 

docking station request

 vacation replacement was working from home and i was asked to look inside a little box. i did find a docking station in it, something about his no longer works. guess it will be picked up next week. there were some cords in it as well. i checked and i have a little box just like it, from when my laptop arrived. i am thankful i haven't needed much from it yet. i think i let a tech look in the box though when the second check printer was set up and a cord was used from it. the supply order for the month has not arrived yet and i have reported it. and it sounds like i am dealing with the typical summer issue at the bank and the supplier- vacations. the help desk app closed the second ticket; the one opened for requesting a maintenance kit for a check printer. i let vacation replacement know that i did find an event for a rare weekend this summer where i hadn't booked anything yet. this was for august, and a movie i would like to see would be in theaters by then. i spoke of how i tend to go the second weekend instead of the first, and it reminded me of a former coworker. the dude seemed upset with me when i said i wouldn't watch a 'Star Wars' movie on opening weekend. why, i don't know. i didn't refuse to see it entirely. i just prefer waiting a little when the crowds tend to be smaller. the music of the day included one i heard at the convenience store on the main floor, it was 'pink pony club'. then there was 'what's up' by 4 non-blondes, when i was riding the bus home. also notable was seeing a movie outdoors, 'sing', in the evening. i had seen both it and the sequel, but it had been a minute. i saw both as Redbox rentals four years ago. 

hold for documents

 the Marshall file sometimes has checks where we are emailed and it says, 'hold for documents'. these are sent inter-office and arrive a few days later. thankful that a UPS envelope and label are included, and these usually have titles in them as well. we had two of those to pull out of the file for the day. at the start of the week, the boss spoke of being in the office for three days near the end of the week. but this was not to be, as we got an email this morning where the boss spoke of being ill, and would not be in. and as usual, call the cell if necessary. we started off the week with a big backlog of checks from the Fargo file, but it is slowly going down. it was five thousand, then four, and now two. i send out as many as i can each day, but no more than four regular mail tubs. it also makes a difference as to when we get those files, and lately they have been arriving later than typical. 

no set lunchtime

 i did hear from a former coworker and was told that this dude doesn't have a set lunchtime. it sounds a lot like me, often snacking or just having small lunches. i had asked about lunching together, guess i could still find another way for us to chat in person sometime soon. it would be nice to see some more familiar faces. there aren't many coworkers i miss from a former job, but this is one of them. a payroll check was picked up. vacation replacement was helping out with the Marshall file, and one check we were asked to set aside and match up with a form was in the second file of the day. i think it was for a traffic ticket as it was for a hundred dollars, and those are often sent to a PO box instead of being overnighted. 

envious, why?

 at work i spoke of the weekend to the manager that likes karaoke, and the response was 'envious'. but why? i am single, i said, and the choices are to go solo or not at all. something about her cleaning out a former apartment in order to turn in the keys. the advice was that when you stop looking, the perfect person is right there. i let someone know that i preferred a ticket be left open until the correct toner cartridge arrives. but i am used to this colleague wanting to close the case right away. and i still had questions about how to send back the wrong kind, but it sounded like i was on my own there. and i got an odd message about issues on a check upload, had to ask them what business line as i didn't recognize their name. then i found out it is the one based in st. louis and it meant we weren't getting a file for the day from them. not a big deal, it is usually a small file. in the evening i went to sing at a karaoke bar, as i still wanted stage time after the previous day's show didn't happen. i sang twice, it was 'alive' by Sia, and 'wake me up when September ends' by green day. i was thinking those were the best two as i am looking forward to seeing movies about both in the next month or so. after i did the first song, i went back to the bar with my drink and the lady after me did 'I'll fly away'. it was a reminder of me singing it at my aunt's funeral.