empty dirt cup

 i recall one vacuum cleaner saying 'empty dirt cup' when i was young. this is what i did tonight, for the same reason why I do many other things: i was bored. i got at least half of the contents out of the paper bag, into a plastic bag, then into the trash. i don't recall doing this before on this vacuum, and i have had this hoover model for just over 20 years. it was mostly dust that found in it, but I also saw part of a coupon that expired in 2008 as well as a bent coin, a dime. 

i did a walk in the evening and found 37 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when amy tried to give back the 'bestie' painting to penny, and when christopher lloyd was a guest star. it was followed by one where there was a 'girl fight' as penny got a rival in the building. i also did a virtual open-mic. notable was getting out one of my california raisin figurines for the first time in a while. not typical of me to rely on props but it seemed like a good idea for the purposes of telling a better story. at work things flowed well, but it helps that this is usually a low volume day for check printing. i also listened in to one dial-in meeting, related to a big file from last week. hard to say what was learned, though there was mention of the approval process, and how the boss would like to reduce the amount of time involved with it. 

dude, where's my car movie

 this morning i watched a DVD rental, 'dude where's my car'. i recognized ashton kutcher and seann william scott in it. this is kin to another movie i had seen recently, 'harold and kumar', since both are about stoners. and as i recall, the two movies have the same director. it was a farce, about how the two had a great night but can't remember it. and as the title suggests, they don't know where the car is. the movie is about the 'odyssey' to find the car, and keep their girlfriends happy. one scene was annoying, but fit the characters well, when they showed off their tattoos. since it was in the spirit of the abbott and costello 'who's on first' routine. i recognized the kind of car in it, a renault le-car. there was 2 sets of aliens that wanted a device that the friends have. and there was a cult interested in it as well. guess this gave the movie a sense of urgency, having a 'world saving/destroying' device. as well as more ways for the friends to get into, and out of, a jam. it was all right, not the kind of movie i normally go for, but at least i have a good idea of this catchphrase and its origin. 

   in the afternoon i went on a walk and picked up 48 cents. had to move it up as i attended the st. paul saints baseball game in the evening. saints lost to sioux falls 3-2, they never led in it. sioux falls scored in the 1st inning. the game had a western theme, so plenty of (country and) western music was played. this included a version of  'louisiana saturday night' i hadn't heard before. i know the version by mel mcdaniel, but it wasn't that one. it was likely the one by don williams, as i found out don recorded it before mel did. mel's version was a hit, so it is better known. there was light rain at times during the game, but not enough to stop the game. in the afternoon i read the minneapolis paper, that i bought on friday, thankful i did. there was an article about how the fine arts exhibit at the minnesota state fairgrounds is still happening. so now i have a ticket for this event on labor day weekend. that weekend is shaping up to be busier than expected, as i will also be attending another saints game, but not on the same day. 

 

hard kill movie

this morning i watched  a DVD movie, a redbox rental, 'hard kill'. i recognized bruce willis in it. this was another thriller, and i like thrillers a lot. it did remind me of another bruce willis movie i had seen recently, 'trauma center', as most of it was indoors. 'hard kill' takes place at an abandoned warehouse, liked seeing the clock tower in some scenes when they wanted to show an overview of the complex. it was about a terrorist that wanted the artificial intelligence program that bruce's company had. a security team, or mercenaries, was hired to combat the terrorists. so of course there was a body count. there was mention of 'the canterbury tales' in it. a few scenes were predictable, but it kept me guessing until the end. closing credits had mention of the movie being filmed in cincinnati. 

this was a day of errand running. first stop the post office, but only one item to pick up, an amazon order, a CD. then it was on to drop off recycling. after that was done i decided to scrap one stop, to get baseball card sheets, since some of the orders have not arrived yet. and another stop was also scrapped, as the fedex office i normally go to for copies was closed. so i went home and ate a little. i checked the paper and noticed there was a baseball game on fox, so i watched it, cleveland at st. louis. i joined it early, when st. louis was trailing 1-0. i briefly left to go to the holiday gas station to return the movie, and get a  little godfather's pizza. st. louis lost 2-1 in 12 innings. i went online and found an alternate fedex office to visit, in another town, so the copies were acquired. this included tickets for two st. paul saints baseball games in the month of september. when i got home i went on a brief walk and picked up 7 cents. then i watched the news and got groceries. there was boxing on fox in the evening and i watched 3 matches. it surprised me a little with one of them, where a late replacement for a fight actually won his match. but we all know it is about who wants it more- and who wins the most rounds. another fight was a split decision draw.  

patriotic snoopy ornament

 i was at the hy-vee in eagan tonight and said 'we know how this is going to end' when i saw there was just one patriotic snoopy christmas ornament left in the greeting card aisle. so i bought it and it is on the tree with the others. i didn't have one just like it even though i already had some other snoopy ornaments. i think the one of charlie brown holding a tree is one i already had. so good thing i didn't buy that one. i think there were some disney characters to choose from in that aisle, as well as rudolph, but they don't appeal to me as much as charlie brown and snoopy. already have a rudolph as well. 

at work there was a repairman that arrived in the afternoon to look at one of the check printers. he was there for over an hour but all he did was test it. and it left me behind on check printing so i had to stay past my normal leave time to get caught up. he didn't seem to be as knowledgeable as the one who had already looked at it. in the evening i went on a walk and found 13 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when howard bought a mini-wheelchair toy with steve hawking in it. this was followed by when the friends helped with making 'penny blossoms'. i have continued trading messages with the yemen native on facebook. it was nice that he asked how i was doing, few other comics have reached out since the pandemic began. he spoke of learning film-making, so i joked how the movie still might get made. there is a movie script i was emailed 7 years ago and still have it. i would like to return to performing in person but have hesitated as i don't want to get sick. i would want some assurances of precautions such as capped attendance at venues. i know the st. paul saints baseball team has this in force, and i have attended one of their games this season so far. 

post office display

 i made my first visit to the post office near my workplace at midday. i liked the display in a glass case near the front door. there was a poster about 'the huns' so it must have been about world war one. also some literature about postal money orders, and some old hand-held stamping equipment. the plate on the wall said the building was dedicated in 1963, of course listing kennedy as the president. always an option to go back and get another look since it is close, just need to allow myself enough time to look around. 

at work i saw a higher volume than expected but found a way to get caught up. one inter-office envelope was returned to my department's slot so i need to call about where to re-direct. i went by how i was advised by a trainer as to where to forward it. there was also a request to send a check via UPS overnight to bermuda. one doesn't see overnight packages sent to foreign countries that often. 

i moved up my walk in the evening as it was on TV how the twin cities put a curfew in effect at 8pm. i picked up 14 cents. i listened to the baseball game on the radio, st. paul saints beat sioux falls 14-2. the saints had an 11-run inning in the 4th, and i didn't listen to it much after that. only missed one run after that inning. 'big bang theory' reruns were when raj was too ashamed to admit he was dating a janitor. it was followed by when the friends took a train ride to san francisco. but sheldon needed help and had to call penny during the ride. 

route change

 near the end of the workday i heard the doorbell ring. it was the man who picks up the mail tubs. this surprised me a little as i am not used to seeing them this early. but i was told there was a route change and it sounds like they will be arriving an hour earlier than before. so i will have to adjust, but it shouldn't be too hard to do. i just had to get the zip ties on one more tub and it was ready to go. there was one file that dropped late in the day that was well over a thousand checks. the 'companion' file earlier in the day was only 15. so most of them did not go out. only one did, saw it on the top of the stack as one to be sent by UPS overnight. i also found 4 that say 'please do not mail' when going through it like a flip-it booklet. i had a visitor that said i hadn't called yet about those four, i said because the file was real big. it is likely that it won't take long to get caught up in the morning. all of them were printed by the end of the day, because i didn't want to start off the day behind on printing checks. i at least had enough time to print them, just not enough to run them through the envelope stuffer as i wanted to take out the ones for special handling. there was also somebody that sent an instant message asking me to pick up a box. then she finds me while i am at lunch and asked me to return it because it wasn't meant for me. so i said i was going to wait until after lunch to take care of it. wonder if she is familiar with the story of 'the boy who cried wolf' as i found this to be annoying. 

  the 'big bang theory' reruns were when penny re-decorates the apartment, and leonard doesn't like it. amy lies about her apartment still not being ready as she wanted to keep living with sheldon. it was followed by one where the friends play paintball and howard hooks up with lesley. i went on a walk in the evening and picked up 73 cents. i listened to a baseball game on the radio, the st. paul saints beat sioux falls 5-4. there was an email from the saints about the final 12 games of the season all being at home. looks like the first 2 are sold out, since they must cap attendance at 1,500. but i am not attending either of those games. seeing this does make it more likely that i will order early for the other 2 games i would like to see, already have one ordered for this weekend. i try not to order too far in advance, sometimes it is just a week before the event happens. 

little raisin boxes

 over the weekend i bought a pack of 6 little raisin boxes from aldi. it is a nice low-calorie snack. it does say 'california raisins' and this does remind me of the clay-mation characters that were popular in the 1980s. i still have some of those figurines, bought from a hardee's fast food outlet. they taste fine and i am putting them in my lunch, so a second snack along with the animal crackers. 

  the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon and amy have a brunch where they invite guests. it was followed by leonard and penny drinking together when leonard's mom visits. i went on a walk in the evening and picked up 29 cents. at work i didn't like how another file of checks to print was dropped late in the day, in the final 30 minutes. so i imported it but it will be printed the next day. there was the payroll file that was dropped off in person, that one doesn't bother me much. i just need to change the settings on the envelope stuffer for that file. 

waste toner bottle full

 this was the first time i had to call for service on the copier. there was a message saying 'waste toner bottle almost full'. the number given to call wasn't helpful, as i was eventually put on hold and decided i had waited long enough after 30 minutes. the recorded message while on hold was highlights from the world series. i like baseball, but it didn't put me in a better mood. so i called a different number from the copier, on the label. it was the copier company itself. i got through right away and a repairman was there later in the day. i showed him the number i called first and he said i shouldn't call that number again. a spare copier cartridge was ordered, and he put a replacement in after at first saying it was the wrong model. he also replaced the drum so there is no longer the problem with lines on the copies. it left me a little behind on my work, as i had questions to ask and answer. but i still gained from the experience. 

the 'big bang theory' reruns were when raj and stuart go to the hot-tub owned by howard and bernadette. it was followed by the one when sheldon lends money to penny. i went on a walk in the evening and found 3 cents. i did a virtual open-mic in the evening and the most reaction i got from my comedy set was the first one, mention of looking up french author robert merle after the flautist spoke of this author. i liked knowing some of his books have been translated into english, and some of them became movies as well. one of them has george c. scott in it. i also got people started talking about songs by phil collins as another performer said he had a hard time doing a judy collins voice. i asked about a collins i had heard of. he liked my GE shirt, i said i once worked for that company. and there was reference made to a proverb about confession being good for the soul. 

remember the titans movie

 i watched a DVD movie, a video store rental this morning, 'remember the titans'. i recognized denzel washington in it. i liked the scenes at the actual football games, but understood the integration story leading up to it was a story that needed to be told. when this is 'based on a true story' i can expect that some of the scenes and characters were invented for dramatic effect. this was a movie that was being shown at the saints baseball stadium last month, but i prefer watching movies at home. i watched the trailers before the movie, and do recall seeing 'disney's the kid' at theaters when living in suburban chicago. 

by the time the movie was done it was time for lunch, then i did get the last of the pack of baseball cards into binders. then it was time to do the laundry. after this was done i laid down for a while and fell asleep. in the evening i went on a walk and found 63 cents. i got a letter ready to go to st. louis, asking for some information. and the dishes got done as well. and an order was placed on amazon for 2 CDs. 

high note movie

 this morning i watched a DVD movie from redbox, 'high note'. i recognized ice cube in it. this was the story of a fictional singer named grace davis, mostly told from the point of view of her personal assistant. this assistant was trying to be a music producer on the side. i liked seeing her car, the classic chevy nova. i knew somebody in high school that had one of those cars. eddie izzard was also listed in the cast, i think he was the one that had a bit part in the sauna. i do like music movies, and i think i learned a few things from it. there was mention of the song 'when a man loves a woman', followed by the rivalry between christina aguilera and britney spears. also found out the song 'first cut is the deepest' was written by yusuf islam, then known as cat stevens. i mainly know the version by sheryl crow. this movie was classified as a romance story, and it kind if was one. but i think wasn't the best description of the story. 

  i stayed busy for most of the day, nothing wrong with that. after the movie was done i knew i needed to get started on errand running. first thing was going to the credit union, made it just minutes before they closed for the day. i deposited the pay from being a comic at various gigs, over a hundred dollars. i figured it was best dumped in a bank instead of laying in an envelope in my home. after all of the cleanup i had done in the past few months i was able to find all of it. then it was on to cheapo records, i was looking for greatest hits CDs for loretta lynn and hank williams. i found one for the latter, also decided to get a CD of college fight songs. on to fedex office to print things. one was the st.paul saints ticket for just over a week from now. the other was the wikipedia article about french writer robert merle, this was mentioned by the flautist at the most recent open-mic. at these two stops i witnessed some weird things. opened my car door and heard a loud sound. a girl hit it with her bicycle, no words were said, she just got back on and rode away. then it was somebody who was picking up copies and tried to make a joke about how i hadn't picked up mine yet. everybody thinks they're a comic. finally there was the post office, made it just minutes before closing. there were two things to pick up. i was pleased that one postcard order had a pack of baseball cards, unopened from 1991, included. the order was for a baseball postcard. then it was home to drop off things and to eat and drink a little. after that was done it was on to the holiday gas station to return the movie. and i wanted a little godfather's pizza but there wasn't any. i decided to get a nathan's pretzel dog instead. a little later on i went on a walk and picked up 48 cents. by then it was early evening, so it meant watching the 6pm news and i also watched the time-life infomercial after it. this week it was soft rock from the 70's and 80's. i recall when some of those songs were hits. after going to the grocery store i checked the paper and found out there was boxing on fox, so i went there. the first fight of the night had just wrapped up, but i watched two others. one of them was joey spencer, a fighter i had seen at the minneapolis armory 2 years ago. he won his fight, a 4th-round knockout, actually TKO. 

refund check inventory

 near the end of the workday there was two colleagues, that i met for the first time, in the check shop. they wanted to got through the refund check inventory. i showed them what i had and said some of those checks were there before i started in early june. i was given instructions about what to do with some of them, such as one is to be deposited at the branch on monday. and i was given some new file folders to be better organized. with the older checks it went from two folders to one. and i think i will do as many scans as possible on the glass instead of up top on the feeder even though it takes longer as it is more likely that each page gets scanned through. 

in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 1 cent. it was after i got back from my weekly visit to the hy-vee in eagan for some groceries. i listened to the st. paul saints baseball game on the radio and they beat the chicago dogs 6-3, a big 9th inning helped. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon and amy started living together. it was followed by when sheldon went rock climbing with barry. 

 

portable protein pack

 i went to walgreen at lunchtime and got a portable protein pack. i like trying a variety of food items. this one did not have crackers. it had chunks of turkey and monterey jack cheese, as well as almonds and yogurt covered blueberries. it tasted good but what i am learning is i need to buy a little more at aldi each week so i don't need to stop at walgreen on days i have the tuna salad and crackers. 

also at work there were some files that arrived late in the day, so my boss said they missed our cut-off time and i can let them wait until the next day. there was four files in all where this happened. i still imported them though, as the i.t. man said i needed to do this much. in the evening i went on a walk and found 30 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when the friends informed the colonel that their government project would not be completed on time. it was followed by the one about the robots fighting to the death. there was a virtual open-mic the resistable comic was doing but she spoke of needing to go to a convention so it was brief and i did not perform at it. next week stage time is more likely. also listened to the st. paul saints baseball game on the radio, saints won big against the chicago dogs 8-0. 

server issues

 there were server issues at work in the morning, it meant a delay on getting into the h.r. stamp-in time card system as well as email. but i was able to get caught up by the end of the day, as all but one of the typical files to print were available. two ways i stayed busy was going through incoming mail, as well as sweeping up the check shop floor. i got it done about halfway once the files were there again. guess there are no cleaners who make it into the check shop so i don't mind doing some cleanup in it. 

in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 31 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when the friends got to work on a government contract and had fun using the eye scan security function. it was followed by when leonard protested to penny about stephanie, saying 'we're not living together' despite the mounting evidence. i listened to some of the st. paul saints baseball game on the radio, saints beat the chicago dogs on a walk-off home run. 

elbow greeting

 at work the doorbell rang, i knew i had a visitor to the check shop. it was somebody dropping off checks dated before the work from home order, so march and earlier. she offered  a handshake, somebody i had met for the first time, but i did an elbow greeting instead, due to the times we live in. the checks were scanned right away. 17 scans in all but just 8 of them were actually checks. my boss showed up and claimed some of the health supplies, guess they are being re-deployed when more people return to working at the office. i liked how the envelope stuffer and printer were humming along for most of the day, makes it easier to get the work done on time. just some minor issues with both that were easily corrected. 

  in the evening i went on a walk and found 12 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when family showed up for a 'repeat wedding' of leonard and penny. leonard's dad takes a liking to sheldon's mom. it was followed by when sheldon decided to be part of leonard's date with stephanie.  also notable about the day was finding a big bottle of palmolive dish soap at walgreen, on sale due to using my loyalty card. so i like knowing it will last twice as long as the current bottle. it was either that or wait until the weekend, where i knew that aldi also has big bottles of soap. also listened to the st. paul saints baseball game on the radio, saints lost to the chicago dogs 10-3. there was an interview with the league's commissioner, who explained why some of the winnipeg games will have a change of venue. lack of fan support in the hub city of fargo, and the league has revenue sharing. but i won't mind, as it means 3 more home games for the saints on labor day weekend, and i plan on attending one of them. it sounds like any game that the winnipeg goldeyes isn't playing against fargo for the rest of the season was moved, as two series with milwaukee were moved as well. 

new jersey transit ticket

 last month when i was picking up my mail i saw a ticket from new jersey transit near the mailbox. it said, from top to bottom, 'nyp, one way, ewr'. so i take it as whoever had it was going to catch a flight at the newark airport and started at new york's penn station. i have been to both places, and i used NJ transit during my new york visit in 2016. i went down to trenton to see my college roommate. wonder how long this option was available, taking the train to newark. i recall being late for a flight one time because the bus taking us to newark broke down. ticket is dated 07/23/20 and the price was $15.25. so i think it wasn't too long after this trip happened that it ended up where i found it. i was doing the first run in a while on clearing the shred box and found it there. now it can be shredded as i have written about it. guess it serves as a reminder of how i would like to make another visit to new york city, but it must be when the time is right. and of course during a pandemic isn't the right time. but even when i responded to a survey on enterprise rent-a-car tonight after work, i said i like traveling but now i am noticing how much money i am saving by having to halt travel plans for now. i don't know what places and events are still open. 

at work one of the trainers arrived, she said her internet was cut at home by careless yard workers. just as well as i had to call a repairman, twice. sensors were stopping the machine. a part is to be ordered, but it is working fine for now. noticed some parts are taken off and behind the machine. in the evening i went on a walk and found 73 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when leonaard's mom visited and was upset about not being invited to leonard and penny's wedding. howard was practicing being interviewed about his time as an astronaut. it was followed by the one where howard got the mars rover stuck and it led to leonard meeting dr. stephanie barnett. i did a virtual open-mic and the story with the greatest reaction was the moderator saying my background looked like gandalf. i had done the research to know this was a 'lord of the rings' character. the flautist was back to playing the flute. and sent a private message during the show saying she was reading robert merle, a french writer. 

the scout movie

 saw another DVD movie this morning, 'the scout'. it is a baseball movie that was released during the 1994 strike that canceled the world series. there are various baseball players that appear as themselves, including ozzie smith. i recognized albert brooks, and brendan fraser, in it. i have seen better baseball movies than this one. the special features included various TV spots in relation to the strike. and some ads for other movies starring brendan fraser. 

in the late afternoon i went on a walk and found 64 cents. called dad in the evening, got the answer i wanted about singers that my late grandfather liked. he said he had traveled to clarinda to see the glenn miller museum, and there was something in shenandoah about the everly brothers as well. 

in the morning i finished up the box if honey nut cheerios, so that was the last of the 3 boxes i had found unopened. i liked doing a mix of it with a tub of froot--loops from the holiday gas station. another notable thing about the day was going through a box of greeting cards. i think it was the last of the boxes to go through on the big cleanup project. some, but not many, were placed in the shred box. usually it was from former coworkers i am no longer friends with, or people i didn't recognize at all such as a secret santa. i made some nice finds, besides the main reason for wanting to go through them, to find photos. also found a loyalty card from the now-defunct borders book store chain, as well as a $20 bill that was birthday money from my dad in 2006. not sure why i left it in the envelope that long. oldest letter was likely from 1987, a classmate that i haven't heard from in a while. started off with saying 'sorry we didn't tell you we were moving'. 

2 minutes of fame movie

 this morning i watched a DVD movie, a redbox rental, '2 minutes of fame'. since i do stand-up comedy this one seemed like one i needed to see. there were some actors i recognized in it, but not a lot. sinbad had a cameo, as himself. and i had to look at the closing credits to find out it was darrell hammond who also had a cameo, as president trump. hammond was known for playing president clinton on SNL. guess i had seen a movie starring katt williams, called 'internet dating'. it was nice seeing more than one kind of comedy venue in it, and one of them was hosting a contest. this is realistic, as contests are a notable part of the comedy scene. although it was far-fetched to have a dramatic disqualification, but as the saying goes, they had to make a story out of it. also realistic to have a server at a venue also being a performer. it does capture the times we live in, where the movie title refers to the trend of those trying to become famous by having a video going viral. but in the end, i know i have seen better movies about stand-up comedy. although i don't mind that i had a discount code so i paid just over a dollar to see it. 

   this of course was an errand-running day. by the time the movie was done i knew i needed to go to the post office first, to pick up e-bay orders. all four were there. then it was dropping off recycle near the capitol. i had to park in a different place than typical, as there was plenty of cars and motorcycles in the way. always some activity at or near the capitol. so parked next to the drop-off bin and was really quick about it. then it was to fedex office to print some things. it included the announcement that a 3-game series for the st. paul saints was moved to their home field. i found it on their opponent's website, the winnipeg goldeyes, as it was one of three series moved. while there i bought two more posters, they were half-off. one was of paris in the 1930s, the other was superheroes at the new york world's fair in 1940. as we all know i do have plenty of world's fair postcards. finally there was returning the movie to the holiday gas station. it looks like it makes a difference as to when i go there, as i saw some godfather's pizza again. but i have been going there at the end instead of the first stop as i didn't want the candy bars to melt. so i got the pizza again, this time 3-meat instead of pepperoni. in the late afternoon i went on a walk and picked up 33 cents. in the evening it was nice watching a paid program for time-life music, love songs from the 1950s and 1960s. then it was off to the grocery store. after that i turned on fox and watched some of the baseball game, yankees beat the red sox 11-5. 

more than a paperweight

 the air cans at work i use as paperweights most of the time. but today i used them for their intended purpose a lot. there was jamming on the envelope stuffing machine, in the envelope tray area. it was a low volume day, but if it continues i will call for service on monday. speaking of that, i did call about one of the vending machines. it had all stars in the message area, and that didn't look right. so i wrote down the number on the label from the machine. a repairman arrived when i was at lunch, so i saw him work on it. he wasn't there for long, and i said i was the one that called it in. he said it may have been an electrical issue due to the recent storms, or somebody rocking it as he said it was all the way against the wall. i got a bag of chips out of it just minutes after he worked on it. since it was just 75 cents i had enough for it due to the findings from the walk last night. 

  i did walk some at lunchtime when going to stores, and picked up 2 cents. i went to the video store and to walgreen, where the cashier was the manager. the 'big bang theory' rerun was when penny got three strikes from sheldon. another part was raj and howard going to find a house where supermodels lived. in the evening i went to the hy-vee in eagan, and i spoke of 'the calm before the storm' as it was getting dark and windy as i was coming out of the store. shortly after this it started raining hard, and on the way home i had to go a little slower to match the speed of the rest of the traffic. same was true with standing water on some streets, meaning go slower to let the water part. i listened to some of the st. paul saints baseball game on the radio. the saints lost to milwaukee on a walk-off home run. i have been checking the schedule and for tickets periodically and will likely go to some more games this season, between 1-3. but i don't want to buy tickets too far ahead, and normally i don't anyway. looks like i can still get in with general admission to the games i would like to see. 

 

van from illinois

 near the end of the workday, there was a doorbell ring and i was told a delivery was on the way. it was a van from illinois, and it was check stock, 75 boxes in all. it appeared to be a husband and wife team, did not recognize what language they spoke to each other but likely eastern europe. since i helped a little on getting it all in, i stayed a little later to get my normal duties caught up. and it meant getting another i.m. from the i.t. man asking how things were going. i was caught up after the re-print of the big file from the previous day by midday. it helped that a trainer arrived to help with the re-print, then he went back to working from home after it was done. 

  in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 79 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when stuart tried to ride a bicycle while wearing a cloak. it was followed by when sheldon got a free meal from ramona. and a barenaked ladies song played, about being my yoko ono. 

trash gathering, 3 bags

 much like when i saw the mattress near the road, i got tired of seeing trash so i did something about it. it meant using 3 plastic shopping bags to gather it up. it was mainly cans, especially beer. also some little bottles of liquor, and cigarette packs. it is 4 if you count what i did the previous day. at the time i said 'i got the lion's share' but when driving past i noticed there was even more farther down. i got a little wet when filling the first bag, although i waited out some of the rain in my car. i moved up the walk around the area and picked up 5 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon and amy played 'never have i ever'. it was followed by when the was an intervention because sheldon annoyed his friends when asking for rides everywhere. 

  it was a crazy day at work. i had to replace the toner cartridge in the printer, and the first replacement was a bad one. figured it meant re-printing 20 checks, but it never came to pass. i was wondering why it kept printing after the expected end of the run. it kept going and printed about 1200 more. i raised this issue and due to the evidence i had available it appears that the printer started over, went back to the beginning. so a colleague was called in and it was determined that it was too hard to just pull out what were likely duplicate checks. so this business line will be re-printed the next day. it meant i fell behind on most other things, including UPS labels. unsure what lesson is to be learned here, as how was i to know that it was going to be a bad cartridge. 

after innocence, brenda joyce

 on the way into work i saw a novel on top of a blue mailbox. it was 'after innocence' by brenda joyce. i read the page it was turned to and could tell it was a romance novel. odd how it was still on top of the mailbox at the end of the workday as well. i went on a walk in the evening and found 14 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon showed amy his storage locker, folowed by when raj was honored by people magazine. at work there was a low number of UPS labels to print, and despite a high volume of checks to print i still got out close to on time. payroll wanted something sent out and made it just in time. 

coming soon, starbucks

 i went out on a customary walk this evening and finally saw a 'coming soon' sign next to the construction site. it said it would be starbucks, but i don't go to coffee shops much. i found 32 cents on this walk. i did a virtual open-mic as well. the most reaction i got from the set was mention of seeing barges on the mississippi river. it led me to mention the johnny cash song 'big river' after my set was done. a performer i don't see that often played music. i think she was the one that once performed with a knife as a prop. that is hard to forget. the flautist performed, but not on the flute. but she sang, and it was a song where i recognized the bible verse in it. this was psalm 119-105, one i memorized for sunday school. there was mention by the moderator of tori amos, but i don't think i had heard the song much before. 

at work i liked how i got out of the workplace fairly close to my scheduled leave time. i must be getting better at time management and multi-tasking. it also meant things like picking up the incoming mail late in the day and letting some of it sit for the next morning. 

  the 'big bang theory' reruns were when raj spoke to claire about emily. it was followed by penny getting addicted to online gaming.

matinee movie, john goodman

 watched a DVD movie this morning, 'matinee'. recognized john goodman, as well as jesse white, who was maytag's old lonely. need to move on for now in case the power goes out again. it just did a few minutes ago, albeit briefly. and it did in the early evening, according to emails from the utility company, but i was at a baseball game then. 

all right, more about the movie. i liked how there were many sub-plots happening. since it is about going to see a movie, a scary movie in florida during the cuban missile crisis. in many ways this made it a 'movie within a movie' as there was a scene in the movie they were watching at a movie theater. i saw some social commentary in it, which i liked, as there was a scene where somebody didn't want people to go see the movie. nothing like controversy to get people more interested in it. this was also a farce, as there was chaos at the movie theater. also some blackmailing of family members. funny on some level was a woman in a nurse's outfit but wasn't a nurse. 

  went to the st. paul saints baseball game, they beat sioux falls 2-1. all runs were scored on solo home runs. sioux falls scored first, in the 5th. st. paul tied it in the 7th and went ahead in the 8th. i had a sandwich at the speedway near the stadium before the game, and got a nathan's pretzel dog at a holiday station after the game. also called my college roommate and spoke of being at the game, it was my first saints game of the season. i moved up my daily walk to the early afternoon and found 10 cents.

i still believe movie

 this morning i watched a DVD rental from redbox, 'i still believe'. i recognized gary sinise in it, and shania twain. they played the parents of the main character, but gary has way more lines than shania does. it is a christian movie, and there was a trailer for 'i can only imagine' on the disc, a movie i saw at the theater 2 years ago. it is about a musician and his love life with a young lady that gets sick. there is even a love triangle that exists as part of the story. one memorable scene in it is when she gets frustrated at being unable to open a pickle jar, and the jar shatters o the floor. the closing credits say the movie was filmed in mobile, alabama. also notable was seeing an AMC eagle car in it, which hasn't been made in over 30 years as the company was bought out by chrysler in 1987. the movie begins in lafayette, indiana, and there is a scene where one sees a souvenir purdue football helmet. i saw this as appropriate as purdue university is there, actually in west lafayette. 

   it was a busy day for errand running, but thankful i got to everything on my list. this included going to the post office for e-bay orders. the 3 baseball hall of fame postcards were there. and i went to fedex office to print 3 items, one of those was the revised iowa hawkeye football schedule. they are only playing conference opponents this season, so the game with iowa state is out. there was mention on the news of how the prospects for a season at all look grim, as one conference, mid-american, has canceled all fall sports. at this time, there is a 10-game schedule. i went to cheapo on a fact-finding mission, and i was unable to find any charlie brown TV specials there. i was wondering if they had one in particular. this DVD is available at amazon, but i was wondering if there was a cheaper copy available anywhere. in the late afternoon i went on a walk and found 2 cents. it was shortened as there was some rain. in the evening i watched some boxing on fox. it included a minneapolis fighter in the main event, jamal james, saw a boxing match he was in at the armory 2 years ago. he won by unanimous decision. i also liked finding a little godfather's pizza at the holiday gas station when i returned the movie. i know i can find them at bobby and steve's, but this holiday station is much closer.

ralston corn biscuit cereal

 for the better part of the past 2 weeks, i have been eating ralston corn biscuit cereal for breakfast. it got me curious about the top cereal making companies. one database listed companies by the number of brands they held, and the top ten had at least 30 brands. they are: general mills, kellogg, malt o meal, nabisco, nature's path, post, quaker, kashi, ralston, and barb's bakery. many of these i have heard of, and the easiest to name were the first two as 'big G' and kellogg dominate the market. it didn't occur to me how 'ralston' went back to the ralston- purina company of st. louis. there was mention of the 'ralstonism' movement of the late 19th and early 20th century, and the acronym standing for 'regime, activity, light, strength, temperation, oxygen, and nature'. it was hard to keep up with the company history, after mention of it creating the chex and cookie crisp brands, and how the company was once owned by general mills. a website called 'mr. breakfast' showed various brands of cereal, one of them being 'WWF superstars'. i guess this does fit with some cereals based on entertainment products, especially movies, as i also saw a cereal based on the movie 'bill and ted'. there was also mention of how this company once owned wonder- bread and hostess snack cakes. the purina part merged with nestle. the ralston part was eventually acquired by treehouse brands, based on oak brook, illinois, and is known for making private label cereals. so i understand this to mean 'store brands' where the grocery store name is usually featured and not the ralston name. when looking at images online i guess this is not the first time i have had one of their cereals, as i recognized their version of rice krispies with a bird singing on the box. as for 'corn biscuits', it is a gluten-free cereal, one of three mentioned on the box. the other two are crispy hexagons and rice biscuits. and there are recipes on the back of the box, for raspberry dessert bars and cherry pistachio chocolate clusters. looks like there is one day left of breakfast in this box, and then it is on to the cheerios box. usually i have oatmeal but when i find free cereal i will eat it. 

   at work there were two repairmen that arrived in the afternoon and worked on the printer, installing the maintenance kit. the two biggest files of any day to print were late, but once they arrived i got them printed right away and i was caught up by the time i went to lunch. the cleaning lady in the breakroom spoke of some former jobs, including working as a nurse's aide. i was also asked to re-route an overnight envelope, changing its destination from california to michigan. in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 4 cents. i also made it to hy-vee in eagan. while at the grocery store i liked hearing the song 'don't get me wrong' by the pretenders. and i listened to some of the st, paul saints baseball game on the radio, saints beat sioux falls 3-1. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon panicked when there was a birthday party in his honor, and batman's adam west showed up. it was followed by the one where the friends got to the renaissance fair and sheldon dresses up as spock from 'star trek'. 

the cheesewich

 i went to walgreen after lunch looking for a snack, and decided to try the 'cheesewich'. it is 2 slices of colby jack cheese and 1 slice of hard salami. it tasted fine. the company name and product is super- imposed on a spotted cow. the package also states the factory is in hodgkins, IL. it has 'proudly wisconsin cheese' as well. one of the trainers was in the check shop for a little while, and helped me with getting the supply order in. i understand this is done once a month, near the first of the month. there was more than 30 UPS labels to do as there was one batch that was all checks to be overnighted. sounds like my niece's graduation party/reception has been called off, and no plans to reschedule. i saw mention of it on facebook. in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 9 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when the friends sing karaoke after bernadette announces she is pregnant, followed by one that made me laugh a lot. because the friends say 'tag, you're it'. this was the one where sheldon is passed around the friends when he was asked to keep a secret that penny didn't finish college. 

why i got voicemail

sometimes i have to call about checks i receive, and when i did today i got voicemail. found out it was due to the recipient being next door in the file room. she asked me after i had finished the call so i sent her the check. but i did not see her again for the rest of the day so i guess the check did not go out same-day. i also had my performance evaluation with my boss just before midday. 

  i went on a walk in the evening and picked up 28 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when there was a valentines day edition of 'fun with flags' and it was followed by the one where sheldon tried to learn how to speak mandarin, related to chinese food orders.

bear naked almond bar

i went to walgreen for some snacks around midday and one of the things bought was a bear naked almond bar. it was chocolate chip banana. it tasted fine, and i noticed how a bear silhouette is part of the barcode on the wrapper. it is nut butter and bananas in the bar. work flowed better than expected, it is nice when all of the machines are working well. or i might just be better at realizing when i have the time to get caught up on things, using my time better for something like a UPS label. many times i just did them all at once. i got confused about two acronyms that were almost the same, on the business lines that are to be printed. and my boss called to explain a part of the check that had a long number on it. this was in reference to being asked to find a check that had already been stuffed as they wanted it sent interoffice. 

   in the evening i went on a short walk and found 12 cents. it was short because i fell asleep listening to the saints baseball game on the radio, a comeback win of 3-2 over fargo moorhead. finally they played a home game in st. paul instead of the hub city, sioux falls. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon's grandma visits, followed by when howard goes to the hospital as part of leonard's birthday party. 

weigh station

i passed by a dumpster tonight and saw two bathroom weight scales. so i weighed myself on both, and it is hard to know for sure how much weight i have lost since i started walking way more in march, but it is likely to be 30 pounds. hopefully i can keep it off. during the walk i found 30 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon went on an apology tour, followed by when sheldon's sister visits. 

   work was a weird day, kind of slow for a while. i called about when a part might arrive for the printer and the repairman spoke for quite a while, until the call was disconnected, not sure how it was though. but i really needed to get back to work so i didn't mind too much. 

   i did a virtual open-mic tonight, many things were covered as usual. one of those was about drive-up windows. the flautist was absent from this edition, but there still were some other musicians. 

barton fink movie

i watched a DVD movie near midday, 'barton fink'. it is a coen brothers vehicle. i recognized john goodman, steve buscemi, john mahoney, and tony shaloub in it. john goodman does not play barton fink, but his neighbor in the hotel. he is listed second in the closing credits. it is about a rookie hollywood writer. he suffers from writer's block for a while. notable was seeing fast talking hollywood executives in it, and i don't think there were many scenes showing people driving cars. most scenes took place indoors. also weird seeing people leave their shoes in the hall for shoe shining. the ending was anticlimactic. i know i have said this before, but sometimes it is true. 

  there was not much to get done today, the main thing was laundry, which i did after the movie was done and after having lunch. then it was on a walk to find a little free library. during the walk i picked up 26 cents. i wanted to find it because it had a charlie brown theme, it was snoopy and woodstock playing hockey. i found 2 books inside of it that were of interest to me and claimed them. one was top ten lists from the letterman show, the other was cartoons by tom tomorrow, the 'this modern world' series. so of course i had to say 'worth it!' in the evening i watched a DVD i had bought this weekend, 'super bowl shuffle'. i recall having it on LP record, so i am thankful i have it again. it is a short video, 30 minutes in all. then of course i did the dishes. 

survive the night movie

i watched a DVD movie, a redbox rental, this morning, 'survive the night'. i recognized bruce willis in it. although the posters promoting it are misleading as bruce never wears a police uniform in this movie. he is an ex-cop, specifically a retired sheriff. he plays the father of the main character in it, a physician that was hit with a malpractice lawsuit. then he is asked to perform surgery on a criminal with a gunshot wound. i liked seeing bruce driving a classic car in it, a dodge challenger. i knew somebody in high school that had one. i kept rooting for bruce to do something about the situation and get out of the predicament, but as my old man would say, it is all about what is in the script. one of the ads on this disc was for a movie i had already seen, 'trauma center'. i do have some more ideas for the next redbox rental, it helped to look at the display next to the kiosk. and go online to see what is at this gas station as well. one of them is a bio-pic with shania twain, called 'i still believe'. i do like biographies. 

    this was a busy day with errand running. i had 6 stops on my list and i liked how i got to everything on my list. there was going to the post office to pick up e-bay and amazon orders, and i heard from the loopy employee even though i never went to the window. don't know how he could tell it was me. when i returned the movie to the gas station, i also picked up some snacks such as cheese, and candy bars. one was eaten right away, and i knew the other would melt some so it was put in the freezer when i got home. there was dropping off recycle, finding a DVD and some CDs at cheapo, printing some things as fedex office, and finding plastic spoons for work at walgreen. in the evening it was to get groceries at aldi. and i watched some of the baseball game on fox, red sox-yankees, but the yanks were already up 5-2 when i started watching and this score held up. i went on a walk and found 61 cents. i placed more orders for postcards on e-bay, after picking up some today. i was worried about running out of space in the photo albums, but i moved some around to other albums and tossed some as well. a few were just space fillers, often free cards used for advertising, so some of those didn't appeal to me as much as ones i had bought.