Leather Coat

     I got a leather coat at a Goodwill today, and did some other errand running. I also had a date, we went to see 'The Conspirator'. It was about the Lincoln assassination, and we saw it in the late afternoon, in Lakeville. I noticed how much of it was filmed in Savannah, GA, by watching the credits at the end. It also said the typical disclaimer 'Based on actual events, but some scenes invented for dramatic effect'. It explains why it didn't look right when the scene from the play 'Our American Cousin' was depicted, since I recall the drop from the president's box to the stage at Ford's Theater being more than was actually shown. I saw the theater on my first visit to Washington, DC. We went to a cracker barrel for the first time after the movie, and it was nice seeing the old-school ads on the wall. It included one of my employer, General Electric. I made a joke many times before about how I see the logo everywhere, even when not at work.

affect and effect

after work today i had to do laundry, and notice how i can really observe people well there. in this case it was somebody who asked me if i worked there, no i was waiting for laundry to be done in the dryer. then he said he was going out to relieve himself, don't know where, and i've used the bathroom at this laundromat before. unsure what was wrong with it. later on he was talking to somebody that may have been his girlfriend as he said 'love you' at the end. in the call he was asking about the difference between affect and effect, i knew the answer but he wasn't asking me and he must have got the answer he wanted. i knew 'effect' was the result, 'affect' is not. this is why there is the term 'cause and effect'. even played the pinball game there, first time doing so, called 'fish tales'. made me think of Emerson Hough since there was a creel (a bag used for fishing) as part of the display, and Hough's creel is on display at the Izaak Walton clubhouse in Newton.
  i went to use coupon number 17 tonight at Taco Bell, first time in a while i got a receipt. it appears to make a difference if it's the manager helping with the order at some point, often they will turn to him not knowing what to do with the card i give them. then i got some toilet paper and a bar of soap at Walgreen as i needed both and wanted change for the laundromat, not wanting to put a $10 in the machine but something smaller. i later realized i needed razors as well. will have to get them saturday.
    work was fairly routine today, once i got there. i was late as the bus that normally takes me there did not arrive, was told it broke down. so we were on one that arrived 15 minutes later, and had probably double the number of passengers, explaining why it was full. my 'tag team partner' was out today, but i had no problem getting the payoff reports and new titles done. it made the day go more quickly when i was busy for most of the day.
    the news said the iowa-minnesota baseball game at the Twins stadium was a 1-0 Minnesota win. surprised it made the local TV news when college baseball usually doesn't. but the Twins were out of town, explaining why the venue was available, and it filled the void especially at 6pm since the Twins game hadn't started yet. hopeful for good weather for saturday's game, i prefer attending it but willing to move it back to sunday if postponed. the weather report doesn't look good for a saturday game, better for sunday. tickets are sold on the day of the game, so it would be rather simple to switch days if need be.

health insurance claims

after my normal duties were finished at work i decided to spend some time on dealing with health insurance claims. got a card saying the IRS needed proof of what claims they paid on being a legitimate expense. so i sent in a fax copy of what i had, this was on a debit card they gave us for paying deductibles and co-payments. at the same time i asked about sending in a reimbursement request for claims where the provider won't accept the card. so there was multiple calls and faxes to make. i looked at the claim history and at first i didn't recognize one date of service. but it was from october 2010, then wondered if it was the flu shot and it was. it led me to think about sending an email to our 'facility czar' telling her i did it as she was very persuasive about getting one, my first-ever flu shot, the previous year.
  walked across the bridge over the river at lunch, then went in to do a weigh-in for our company's health ahead program. i'm maintaining weight but i had wanted to lose a few pounds, likely need to go walking more and try to eat less. i can get back into practice on it, as i like walking the bridges.
  checking the weather for the weekend as i want to attend an iowa-minnesota baseball game at the twins stadium. looks like it is better weather on sunday but prefer going on saturday if possible.
    liked how a comedian friend tagged me on facebook about their wedding pictures from october. i was playing the harmonica, really had a nice time there. even said hearing 'the way i am' on the radio reminds me of being there.

calling my dad

i called my dad after work today since a message was waiting on my cellphone when i turned it back on. he wanted to confirm finalizing plans for me visiting soon. he said he was starting to watch 'rooster cogburn', a john wayne movie. i knew he likes john wayne and clint eastwood, and he had already said he had a hard time accepting that 'true grit' was remade this year. it was a shorter call than typical, i let him know i wanted to get to the comedy club. i had more than just beer this time when i went, as i had a bag of popcorn as well. somebody offered me their cheese pizza as well, 2 slices left, so i ate them. i liked how the headliner did his 'adam and steve' joke, it's one of my favorites.
   at work i decided to do some laps around the floor at the end of the day, we are doing that often with the 'health ahead' program that is ongoing. doesn't take me long to do a lap, i am a brisk walker. same is true with walking a bridge at lunchtime, it is not a liesurely stroll when i do it. don't care to waste time getting somewhere. i did a bridge walk today, but it was a little windy and not too warm.

morning rain

there was rain this morning, likely one reason why i didn't want to get out of bed right away but knew i had to eventually to get ready for work. now it makes me think of an oasis song, 'live forever', since it mentions rain. 'did you ever feel the pain of the morning rain soaked you to the bone?'
   i spoke with friends for a while after the show at the comedy club tonight, i like speaking about the craft as i understand it when i get the chance. likely was more relevant on a night when i was onstage of course. i was the first comic after the emcee. i ran the act a little short but it went fine, better than running it long. i did make a reference to a song there, 'when smokey sings', a new wave song. it seemed relevant to how i feel about writing, how it's so beautiful and natural. 'when smokey sings, i hear violins. when smokey sings, i forget everything.' also did a 'simpsons' reference when meeting the emcee, saying i didn't want to disturb the man in charge while eating. since homer liked to say 'no talk now, eating.' he said i show save the jokes for the stage, i knew i still had many left.

double denim

one of my friends at the comedy club tonight said i was 'killing denim' since it was the type of jacket and shirt i had on. purely coincidental, of course. sometimes i forget i am around comedians as many of them want to make a joke out of nearly everything. the show closer made a reference to cardinals, the baseball team, when doing a bit about lent and the catholic chcurch, and i understood it. he even referred to how 'one person got it' when he spoke of ozzie smith.
   there was the 2 goth chicks on the bus after work, and they caused trouble from the word go about paying the fare. the driver said they would be arrested by transit cops next week since they were a repeat offender. i wondered why they just didn't shut up, but one of them kept arguing and swearing about it after sitting down. i really wanted to get to my stop and off the bus badly, which was their stop as well.

3 movies

i had a date and we saw 2 movies at her place, she wanted to see 'rain man' and '8 mile' and i had both on DVD. when i was done i left to go see a third, at the MSP film festival, first time at the st. anthony main in minneapolis. nice neighborhood there, near the river. saw 'twelve thirty', since i liked reading about it in the paper, filmed in my native iowa. in fact, some of it was in iowa city, where i went to college. was rushing to get there after getting parked, so i didn't get popcorn though i had a nose for it. went to a convenience store and got some lay's bbq chips after the movie, found out the clerk from saturday didn't add points like he said he would. i liked seeing the old capitol in the movie, i recognized it as being iowa city, a well known landmark on campus. first time attending the film festival, guess i had to get a good idea of what was playing and when. there were some others that interested me, but the scheduling didn't work, like the biographical movie about norman mailer, the writer. may have a chance at seeing them in wider release later on, or even on video. guess that means checking at blockbuster about one that i liked seeing previews of, with a setting in texas and starring melissa leo. liked her in 'frozen river', and had seen her in 'the fighter', an oscar-winning role.
   my date had a book about president lincoln, had just bought it this weekend at a cracker barrel while out of town for a concert. liked reading it with all of the photos, even was interested in hearing about something called cooper union, since it was given credit with making lincoln president.

new hoodie and jersey

The Emerson Hough hoodie arrived, picked it up at a fedex earlier today. i sure like having it. also went over to the st. paul saints baseball stadium and got a saints jersey. there wasn't many to choose from, didn't mind getting one they told me was actually double extra-large. it still fits me fine. it was a big day of errand running, wanted to move up doing groceries when easter is sunday and i expect to be busy. saw a colleague there, which was nice. most important errand likely was done first, getting license plate tabs since they expire at the end of the month.
   also found the time to get to a civil war event at a nearby library. but i wasn't too impressed with it, the speaker left a lot to be desired. i could have done it better, with minimal training. i know the subject of history since i majored in it and could get the facts straight. she wasn't good at public speaking either. i may be a history snob but there's nothing wrong with having standards.
    i liked some of the music i heard on the radio while errand running. there was 'moment 4 life' by nicki and drake, also 'perfect' by pink. powerful messages in the lyrics. the former- everybody dies but not everybody lives. the latter- look i'm still around, i swallowed the fear.

A and W locations

after work tonight i decided to drive past one of my favorite haunts in a town i once lived in, an A and W location. but i noticed it had closed, lights were off and a real estate sign saying 'available' was up. there are a few others in the area, 6 within a reasonable driving distance. as the saying goes, time marches on. had to think of the same when seeing a bank's branch office near my workplace had closed. had wondered about it when i noticed they had taken down the bank clock outside the building. it served as a good landmark.
    one of the items i searched online today was baseball jerseys, was pleased to find out a st. paul saints jersey is just $30 so i may just want to order one. baseball jerseys tend to cost much more. i like how the saints are fan friendly, so what if they're minor league? what helps with me and many others is keeping things affordable for the customers. i got used to minor league ball when growing up near des moines, iowa, since it was cheaper and closer. naturally the saints stand out from most baseball clubs, since they have plenty of wacky promotions. one of them planned for this season is a 'metrodome whoopie cushion' giveaway, in reference to the roof collapse at the dome in december.
    there was a door tag waiting for me when i got home, as expected. i had ordered a hoodie with the Emerson Hough school name on it, i notified fedex about wanting to have it sent to a kinko's where i can pick it up when i have the time to do so. my workplace has a policy about not wanting us to have packages delivered there, so it means making alternate plans.
   a big news story on many media outlets- including 'nightline' on ABC tonight-was the weather in st. louis, a place i visit regularly. apparently there is some damage at the airport. despite this, they still played the baseball game there, after delaying it. not so in other cities, like in minneapolis the twins-indians game was rained out. but it's april, there are plenty of opportunities to make up the game this ealry in the season.

go lay down

i recall how a classmate, an annoying one, liked saying this. but that's what i did tonight as i was tired- i did 'go lay down'. figured it would be for one hour, but it became more like 5 or 6 by the time i woke up. after watching 'big bang theory' and then going to the grocery store to get some food i decided that rest was a good idea. i just didn't realize i was tired to this level, though i have been shorting myself on sleep for a while. one of the reasons was wanting to do entries on this blog.
   i did get my commentary on a performance evaluation in at work, a day before the deadline. there's a greater chance of getting a decent evaluation back from my boss and HR when i comment on it, not just leaving it up to them. since i can write really well i can articulate what i am good at. i kept pushing it back a day, wanting to stay caugght up on work each day. but then i decided 'this is the day' and i needed to get it done, and thankfully it didn't take long to do.

    

bank statements

i went through 3 months worth of bank statements tonight, seeing how good i am with record keeping. not as good as i thought, missed a few lines on the statement, must have misplaced the receipts. i've been out of practice on getting those entered right away, hate how i've been busier but just probably need better time management. made it to the comedy club tonight, did the record keeping before and after it. nice how i get a shoutout from the MC, i think. in some cases they may just be wondering if i'm having a good time, but i am. in some cases i am just tired, if they are going by crowd reaction it might be confusing. who knows? there were some '4/20' jokes, but i think more about marijuana than about adolf hitler. finished the workday basically caught up, and went to part of a lunch and learn about the health ahead program, shared some ideas about walking bridges at midday.

support assistant

i learned something tonight while checking email, i can multi-task while waiting for an upgrade to happen with my computer. i just went about checking email while it was installed. i had support assistant done over the weekend, and it was taking way longer than expected. though what made a difference was when as well, since i wanted to shut off the system after getting done what i wanted to do. with anything, it 's live and learn. most important thing is not necessary how or when learning, but whether or not it is learned.
    i liked looking up more wikipedia articles as well, in this case it was the theodore roosevelt association. i understand their mission as to establish memorials to the president, including the island in the potomac in washington, DC. i saw it when staying at a hotel in arlington, virginia. i think it also extended to schools, as there are plenty of schools named for TR. this includes roosevelt high schools in minneapolis, (the teddies) and des moines (the rough riders). haven't made it to his home on long island, but i will someday, on my next visit to new york.
   the other article was about william faulkner, the writer. when doing a tour of the school on sunday, i saw how one of his books was on display at the library, though not sure which one. the 3 notable ones listed were sound and fury, as i lay dying, and light in august. also a nobel and pulitzer prize winner. i like to read about writers, and i'm aware of how i haven't written about emerson hough for a while. but i did order a hoodie with the school's name on it and it should be arriving in a few days. i have also referred to a hough quote in comedy routines, how his college education was 'perfectly good, perfectly worthless'. i said i wanted an emerson hough school hoodie for a while, i wanted a few other items as well but decided to got with one item at a time.

sending pocket schedules

i am sending pocket schedules of two baseball teams, the twins and saints, to my dad tonight. also sending a card and letter to my aunt since she had wrote me recently and spoke of the 150th anniversary of the civil war. the third item is my utility bill. i ended up leaving the comedy club early tonight since i was tired and wanted to get some important things done like these mailings. i was falling asleep on the bus after work since i was so tired. this wasn't a good idea since i was between the 'goth chicks' i had spoke of before, they got on at a later stop. i thought about not going tonight but figured i had to go hobnob and see if i get picked, then i left shortly after one of my friends was onstage. it was still early, he was the 8th comic out of about 20. another relevant thing to get done was sending an online ballot in to vote on the board of directors for one of the organizations i am a member of. i closely read their candidate statements, it is how i choose who i vote for, 5 out of 8. i want to know what they are for and what they want to do. if it is too brief, or a one-issue candidate, then i am not interested.
   it was a typical monday at work, really busy with payoff reports. when i had the time at lunch i did look up the definitions of toreador and matador, since i spoke of it on a date this weekend. i thought of toreador as a mascot for a former conference rival in boone, iowa. found out those two terms are just used in english, and 'matador' means 'killer' in spanish. it is actually 'matador de toros', or 'killer of bulls'. the proper term is 'torero' for bullfighter, but sometimes something is lost in the translation into another language. there is mention of this high school's mascot on wikipedia, on the disambiguation page, so it really must be a rare mascot name.

stinger in elbow

i had a date earlier today, we went to the pancake breakfast as roosevelt high school in minneapolis. i complained of having a stinger in my left elbow while eating, it wouldn't go away. then i examined it and saw a splinter there, don't know how i got it. my date helped with taking it out, actually just above the left elbow, hard for me to reach. attended it last year as well, liked doing the school tour like before. this time after the tour ended we saw a trophy case with homecoming buttons, also a centennial teddy bear from a few years back since the school's athletic teams are called 'teddies' after president theodore roosevelt. also looked at yearbooks in what i called a 'legacy room', found ex-governor jesse ventura in there, under hos real name of james janos.
    after the date was done i did some errand running like grocery shopping, also priced some items at target since i spoke of some of them on my date. this included a strong box for important documents, a bookcase as i have enough books for a second case, and an electric razor since i cut myself a lot with a manual one. all of them are affordable, just a matter of when i get them, maybe one a month.
     i had more stagetime tonight at a bar in coon rapids, took a while to drive out there. i changed clothes before i went, figuring a twins baseball jersey would go over better than an iowa hawkeye sweatshirt. i am more comfortable onstage the more i am there, and enjoy it more as well.
   ther drive back reminded me of driving back after a date in plymouth in 2009, when i woke up shivering after one hour if sleep despite being under the covers so i went home where it was more comfortable and familiar. i said that drive early in the morning made me think of a movie called 'broken' with heather graham, since they drive though a city early in the morning at dawn. i thought of it again since it was the same route for quite a while.
   in the evening i made visit number 16 to taco bell to use up coupons, again no receipt, but i noticed they changed the style of wrappers, from yellow to white.

clarence darrow play

i saw a play about clarence darrow, the lawyer, earlier today. it was called 'naked darrow'. it was a one-man play, 2 if you count the man playing the bassoon every so often. i liked how it covered most every trial he is famous for, such as the jury tampering in california, dr. ossian sweet, leopold and loeb, and the scopes monkey trial. i was afraid of being late due to doing too much errand running before getting there, such as taking out trash, getting baseball tickets, dropping off a goodwill donation, and getting lunch. but i made it with a few minutes to spare, which is nice. saw how this theater, park square in st. paul, will have another play that interests me next season, about george gershwin, the musician, in december. there usually is at least one play a year that interests me. a funny story, to some anyway, how i first found out about it. i was waiting for a date back in 2007 and she stood me up. it was in a walkway where there's a farmer's market in the summer, and the theater was nearby. she accused me of getting the date wrong, but i didn't. i don't think it would have worked anyway, since she was way too political. the first play i saw was 'of mice and men'.
  i did do more cleanup, liked finding more things of course. it really does help to look through every box and bag there is to know what one has.

merging and spilling

after work i knew i had to start an ambitious cleanup. it meant looking through boxes and bags i hadn't looked at for a while. this meant merging bags, or spilling them into bigger bags or a bigger box. this did pay off, since i freed up many of the tote bags i was using. papers are better off in boxes, especially the copy paper boxes i am getting from work. i did get another box today, but it was a dell computer box after reading about it in the company's weekly newsletter. it meant getting to see the office's nerve center, where the box was, which was nice. this also means getting rid of some items i wasn't using, either in the trash or donating them to goodwill. i've got a box with a few items already in it, like a deck of cards. i had 3 decks and don't play cards much, so i figured having 1 deck donated would be no big deal. also another coffee mug and 2 tote bags, since i just have too many.
   pleased how i found things like movie tickets to show on my next date, though the print is faded on some of them and hard to read. then there's how i got into comedy, i've said it was 2 funerals and a wedding in 2008, although it doesn't have the same ring to it as '4 weddings and a funeral'. i found the cards from  the 2 funerals, my grandma and a colleague from work. going to the colleague's benefit event led me to getting the comedy club gift certificate to the comedy club.
   i did have a '1 on 1' meeting with my boss earlier today, i did speak of wanting to have more writing opportunities though there aren't many. likely means finding them outside of work, no big deal to me. i liked getting laundry done tonight, though i prefer to do something else on a friday evening after work. i got the paper read while there, went to a grocery store across the street to find a paper since i didn't get one at lunchtime. though i liked taking the time to walk another bridge at lunch, just couldn't find a paper at a convenience store close to work since i didn't have the proper change for the coin rack. liked reading about one movie that's already premiered, called 'company men' i think, about dealing with being laid off. i think i had seen the previews before at the theater, where one line was 'a corporation, not a charity'. i've said it before myself.

dead squirrel

i did one thing today i hadn't done in a while, which was walk a bridge over the river during lunchtime. it can be windy on the bridge but it didn't taske long, since i am a brisk walker. one thing i noticed just before getting over there was seeing a squirrel near a tree. i was wondering why it wasn't moving when i was getting close to it, then i saw its eyes were closed and said 'yep, it's dead'. there was a tornado drill at work this morning, i was notified about it a day in advance and made sure i went to the bathroom a few minutes before.
   got started reading a book about etiquette earlier today, it seems to cover most every interaction where it my be needed. more than 300 pages, need to get it back to the library in just over a week. after watching 'big bang theory' tonight i went to the grocery store and got some cheese sticks along with a 6-pack of raisin boxes, along with a bag of chips. like the lay's sweet southern heat BBQ. the raisins were on the discount table, sometimes there are some good things there but one must be careful as it might be items that just expired or soon will be. it was where i got the paul newman cookies from december.

cliff clavin

i'm wondering if cliff clavin, the know it all mailman from 'cheers', delivers my mail. the past few days some of it isn't in the box but in the rack above the mailboxes. it's a joke i've done before. don't know why, though it is a smaller mailbox than my last home.
     i found the '60 minutes' feature about baseball player albert pujols, on youtube. i like baseball a lot and i like interviews so it was good to see it. the feature reminds me of seeing the movie 'sugar', about a dominican baseball player. i've read articles before about baseball in the D.R., like when i was having an oil change done at a jiffy lube. it was said recruiting players from there goes back to the 1950s, since Cuba had went communist. also hopes that it's the sport of choice in a poor nation where there are few options, besides working in the sugar cane fields or making clothes.
    i had a midday dental appointment, the hygienist is very interested in me doing comedy but we do a refresher course each time about how all of my family lives in iowa. was also interested in how i'm dating somebody, hard to understand how people are so impressed with this. seems a little hypocritical when people want to talk to you more, do more things with you, when you're part of a couple. you're the same person, why does having somebody on your arm make a person more attractive to others and more in demand? i stayed late at work to get caught up on things and to make up some time due to being at the appointment. shouldn't have to take shorter lunches for the rest of the week. i was reading a Time magazine article while waiting in the dentist office, the one about the 150th anniversary of the Civil War beginning. it said 'still fighting the civil war' and it interested me, as a history major. didn't finish it before i was called, liked how they offered it to me so i could finish the article later.

late arriving postcard

a postcard that a friend sent me from their vacation in mexico last month finally arrived today. looks like there was big delays in having it postmarked as well as delivered. but it's nice to have it, finally. wasn't expecting it, figured it just was lost.
   already looking at plenty of concert schedules, including first avenue in minneapolis. never been there, but know it's a famous venue. it was tough to know what show to choose, when it's a small venue and tends to sell out quick. but i noticed there still were tickets for the jimmy eat world show next month so i bought one. i liked their song 'the middle', a reminder of my time in suburban chicago as i think of a radio commercial showing a dog shaking out bath water to the tune of this song. then later on when the st. louis cardinals dealt with the death of a pitcher, darryl kile, the song seemed appropriate. 'everything will be just fine, everything will be all right'. sometimes we need that assurance in life. it may not be a 'bucket list' item to get there, but i kept thinking about how i hadn't been there every time i pass by it when going to an event at target center. there are stars painted on the outside wall in reference to many of the music acts that have played there over the years.
   it was busier at work today, which was nice. at lunchtime i allowed myself enough time to get over to a theater to get a ticket for their play about clarence darrow this weekend. i recall how one of the first comments about the blog was when i wrote about darrow, a famous lawyer. it was nice being at the comedy club as usual. liked getting a shout out, it was after a joke about parents i could relate to.

eminem and dr. dre

i like the song i heard on the radio tonight on the way to the comedy club, called 'call me a doctor' that eminem does with dr. dre. you can tell from the lyrics how it's really personal, when Em sings 'it was you who believed in me when everyone was telling you don't sign me. you risked your career for me.'it's a catchy song, when the chorus is 'i'm about to lose my mind, call me a doctor to bring me back to life.'
   also liked finding different versions of 'devil went down to georgia', after this weekend's date i found out there were multiple versions to be found. i just knew of charlie daniels band performing it. made me laugh when one version on youtube was on the muppet show.
   i was onstage tonight, one friend said it was my best set ever, it was good but i don't know if it was the best ever. but i like how well i do when onstage, it is a natural thing now. just like driving a car.
  it was slow at work today, so i got caught up on paperwork, like getting vacation day requests in and eliminating some torn files, along with helping out where i can with colleagues.

event tickets

i had another date, we went to the twins game and they lost to oakland 5-3. after the game we went to dairy queen and had mini blizzards. then eventually i saw some more of her event tickets, especially from movies. i had seen some of the movies  but not all. i thought of how it was sometimes close to when she saw them, one of them was the first day at work after moving here. that was the hockey movie, 'miracle'. saw it just before moving.

St. Paul Saints Public Forum

I went to a public forum about a possible new St. Paul Saints baseball stadium downtown today. It didn't seem to be all that well organized. Some of the speakers were stammering which I didn't like.
Then there was somebody who wanted to inject a red herring into the debate, as he wanted to talk about the Saints live pig mascots he didn't like. He claimed the one about Obama was in bad taste. I liked how somebody else reminded him how they change that mascot every year. The organization is known as 'BFF', or Ballpark Fans and Friends. I have two of those buttons, one of them of Mudonna the dressed-up mascot. The other is of 'the nerd', one of the ushertainers. The event was in a Lowertown building I hadn't been to before.
   Before this event, there was errand running like getting my car out of the shop. In the mail I saw a card from my aunt. I said I had skipped a family event in Iowa, a wedding anniversary, as I would be looking forward to attending the wedding in Wisconsin instead. She said my cousin's wedding in June is now a no-go. It's kind of sad as I had received two 'magnet invites' well in advance, and i hardly ever see those. But it's better off that he finds out now than later that it won't work. I hadn't made any travel reservations yet so no real big loss on my end. It likely means I will replace the event with a nearby baseball game, but must check the schedule first to see who happens to be home.

Maytag Bowl

I've often said recently how my hometown of Newton,Iowa is a big memorial to Maytag and Emerson Hough. I was searching online articles and found out the Maytag Bowl, inside the park-and next to the pool- of the same name, has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designated in late 2010. It is relevant to me and many others in Newton as the high school graduations are held there, weather permitting of course. The pool was one place where I learned to swim. So now the park and bowl has something in common with Emerson Hough School. According to the article the historic designation was done in hopes of getting funding to renovate it. When searching I found out there was an article that mentioned Emerson Hough was superintendent at Yellowstone Park, I had known he was a catalyst behind the law protecting buffalo there. Something about the clacking typewriter and smoking. I don't think I have written about Hough often enough recently. I did mention him in one of my jokes ontage, how we went to the same college, and how he described his university education as 'perfectly good and perfectly worthless'. 
    I was tired after work tonight, had hoped to get my car out of the shop but didn't make it in time as it closed at 6 p.m. So it means trying again in the morning. After that I went over to the Best Buy near there to pay on my account, spoke of how it was frustrating to be unable to get my rewards account registered after a recent purchase of a digital camera. Spoke on the phone with somebody who used the f-bomb to describe himself, saying he was old, and still unable to register it. Then I went home and tried it by myself, after a few tries I realized that I hadn't tried the zip code of my previous residence when needing to enter a code like when on the Ticketmaster site. Tried the old zip code and it worked on the first try! I've heard the quote before about how there's nothing more maddening then continuing to try something that doesn't work. It sure describes what I was doing. You'd think I wouldn't have to update it separately with them when the account statement address had been changed already. I got caught up on record-keeping for the checking account as well, need to enter the debit-card receipts regularly. Once a week is best but I haven't been keeping to this routine well enough and need to try harder.
   At work it was the last day for a few people, bagels were there, I had 2. There was also some popcorn for the Twins home opener, but I was late on taking lunch, not until 1 p.m., that I missed out. no big deal to me. I was wearing my Twins jersey I've had since high school. Bought a Twins shirt from a skyway sportswear shop for $10, so now I have 2 shirts.

car in shop

i don't like having to get my car in the shop again so soon, but i wanted the power windows working again. so i went to the dealer right after work in order to get there before closing at 6 p.m. it also meant getting a rental car so i could get around while it's being worked on.
  still trying to find the time to read the book about etiquette, hard to do when driving to work of course. and i have been a little too busy in the evenings after work. but friday evening may be a good time to get started on it. the 3 weeks will likely go quick.
   a meeting at work today was canceled, but i didn't hear about it until one colleague went to find out why 2 committee members were absent. they are still being borrowed for the special project. would have liked more of an advance notice, who wouldn't?
   

university president reception

after work tonight i went to a reception for the president of the university of iowa in minneapolis. saw a few people i had recognized from previous events. but there wasn't much much, just hors doeuvres, so i ended up getting a small godfather's pizza after it. we heard more about the ways they are dealing with the aftermath of the flooding, trying to rebuild wherever able. apparently the artwork is still out of town, since the art gallery flooded.
   made it to the comedy club after the reception, but i was a few minutes after the show the show began. i didn't like having to move a dental appointment due to the reception, but it was easier to move the dental appointment. so now it is a week later.
    i like having youtube available, so much music on it. recently i looked up the theme song for the TV show 'perfect strangers'. it was a show i recall watching while in school, it was a show i referred to as to why i was willing to leave small-town iowa and seek my fortune in a big city. this is a common storyline in some shows- people moving to where the opportunity is. but i'm not sure why i was a little emotional after hearing the song, i know the larry character is a hard-nosed midwesterner like me. 'standing tall on the wings of my dreams'. one line from the song. made me chuckle when balki hops onto the back of a horse drawn wagon and the sign next to him says 'america or burst'. then he loves seeing the statue of liberty when the ship pulls into new york harbor. though even in the 1980s i think it had shifted- where more immigrants were arriving by plane than on ships. and yes, it helped that i moved to suburban chicago and the show had a setting in chicago, as to giving it some credit for why i moved there. some thought it was odd.
   the other song was 'closer to fine' by the indigo girls. since they have a concert in july nearby. seen them before but can see them again. the song is a reminder of my leaving suburban chicago more than 7 years ago, hearing it in the moving van near the end of my drive.

haircut suggestions

at the comedy club tonight one friend said he would pay for my haircut if i got one just like his. unsure why. but he has suggested in this area before. i liked seeing another friend of course, he wanted to do a '3 amigos' type salute when i was leaving.
   i don't like having to think all that far ahead on planning events, but sometimes you have to when tickets can be hard to find. this is true with a minnesota twins game in august. i bought them off stubhub as it is a game against the boston red sox. my favorite movie is 'good will hunting', which has baseball overtones in the storyline, and a boston setting. the way i keep the memory alive of the movie is by seeing at least one red sox game a year. last year it was in april, in kansas city. since the red sox were the opponent that opened the new twins stadium last season, i decided to find another place to see them. would have needed a day off from work, and be willing to pay a lot for tickets, which didn't appeal to me.
   this also seems to apply to concerts as well. saw the list of 'zoo concerts' for the zoo in apple valley, it includes the indigo girls. saw them at the same venue a few years back. will have to check  if any of the summer festivals i enjoy, like the state fair, has some good shows.

comedy documentary

tonight at the comedy club a film crew was there to do a documentary. may have been why the show started late, i left right as the show closer was beginning. stopped at a walgreen to get some dish soap as i was out. plenty of suds were generated when i washed out the last of the soap in the bottle. i get ajax, i think because it reminds me of my former boss and mentor, whose name is almost the same. one comedian friend spoke of a band called the stooges, not familiar but he said iggy pop was in it.
   bought both the minneapolis and st. paul papers again today, as i wanted to read more about the closing of porky's. but not much was in there, mostly pictures. some mention was made of trying to preserve or move it, moving it is the best idea since the light rail project was one hindrance. it's still hard to get caught up at work, with many colleagues unavailable due to the special project, but i made some progress in that area, doing what i can after the payoff reports are done.

ambitious errand running

after my date today i really got plenty done with errand running. typed up some letters to send, picked up a book at the library about etiquette. then on to get a pair of levi's jeans at JC Penney. i took advantage of the discounts available- on sale and had a gift card. then on to get some more pictures from the last day at porky's in st. paul. it was the proverbial 50's macho fest, as some wanted to show off their cars by peeling out. i ended up covering my face as there was so much smoke. it made the sign look hazy in the picture. may not have eaten there like on thursday but thankful i still made it. liked getting pictures of the classic cars, like a corvette and a camaro z-28, as well as a pontiac firebird trans am like in the movie 'smokey and the bandit'. plenty of media outlets there, as well as the police. i got 3 of the pictures posted to facebook, another stop on my errand running much like groceries and dishes. called my dad to let him know about a planned visit next month.

washington exhibit

enjoyed seeing the washington exhibit at the minnesota history center earlier today, as expected i learned something while there. like how few mention baron von steuben's real name, baron is his title. then in the gift shop i spoke of parson weems and his fable of washington chopping down the cherry tree, not part of the exhibit. and the gift shop clerk said parson was his title, i had heard of mason weems as well and got confused, wondering if it was the same person.

fish fry and basketball

after work tonight i went to a fish fry at an american legion, same place i had been to last year. decided it was best to go there on the night i was going to the wolves game vs. miami. i was given some tomatoes from a potluck at work and ate half of them, left the others in a container at the fish fry. good food for just $8.50, and I got 3 peanut butter cookies for 50 cents. no big deal how i had ice water as the drink, unsure what else they had and i don't have coffee much. it was a reminder of the american legion in my hometown, since it was near the football stadium and there was usually some events during the season to take advantage of the crowds like a chili supper.
   also given to me at the potluck: ketchup and mustard bottles. i can get some use out of those. looks like the type for commercial use, for restaurants. was told these items would otherwise be thrown away, since there is a refrigerator cleaner that comes through each week, at 5 p.m. on friday.
   the wolves made it close for a while, leading 52-51 at the half, but came out flat in the second half against the miami heat and lost 111-92. plenty of finesse and slam dunks. i was familiar with how there is a rap song that mentions lebron james and dewayne wade, but i think it was written when they played for different teams. it was my third game of the season, guess i wanted to see if this team was for real and they seem to be. most i had done before was 2, and some years just 1. i did get a souvenir there, 2 postcards of the target center for $1.
   i bought 2 papers at lunchtime to read about the closing of Porky's restaurant, it was on the front page of the St. Paul paper and made the Minneapolis paper as well. in the latter paper the headline was 'that's all, folks'. seemed appropriate, since the line is a reference to Porky Pig and the Warner/Loony Tunes cartoons. some writers sure know what to write. there is talk of saving it and getting historic preservation status, but it may be too little and too late. considering the long line on thursday, it's just as well i went when i did.