mad dog and glory movie

 i watched a DVD movie, a recent purchase, this evening, 'mad dog and glory'. it is replacing the VHS copy. it had been a while since i had seen it. i recalled robert deniro as a cop and bill murray as a gangster, but not much else. and how the gangster owns the comedy club he performs at. i didn't recall at all how dave caruso was in it as deniro's cop friend. it takes place in chicago, which scores points with me. i had to pause one scene to know what commuter train stop the cop was at, it was roosevelt and state. it was an unsual story, the cop saving the life of a gangster. and then the thank you is getting a lady, played by uma thurman, for a week. the same one that spills coffee on him at the comedy club. i recognized one photo on the wall at the club, it was of andrew clay. 

the movie watching is usually in the morning, but i wanted to work on some other things before heading out to the meetup walk. so i added more stamps to a page, enough to finish it and get it in a binder with the other pages in my collection. i had lunch a little early, to allow enough time to walk to the park. except i didn't find the event coordinator. must have went to the wrong entrance. another hiker did the same thing, and he gave me ride to the other entrance but they had started without us. after a few minutes i went home. what added to the frustration was how my camera stopped working. i read the owners manual, which said call the manufacturer and not the place i bought it from. they told me the problem was with the memory card, i was using one with an adaptor, from walgreen. so i went to best buy, where i bought it from, and got one that didn't need an adaptor. and i got frustrated again, as it took me three tries with the scissors to get the package open. i even said to an employee that laughed how it wasn't funny. i am disappointed in myself how i can still get easily frustrated but i was thinking it was another defective camera, like the one i bought more than 5 years ago. i do better when i have solutions, and the memory card i bought seems to work fine. on my way back home i stopped at a gas station and got two more packs of the lady gaga oreos, they are down to one now in the discount bin. when i got home i called my college roommate to say how i would be more valuable if i was more tech-savvy like he is. we talked sports as well as the pandemic, and a little about our line of work. after watching 'the simpsons', about lisa going to detention, i put in the movie. and after the late news i went on another walk. the total i found today was 69 cents. 

kajillionaire movie

 i watched a DVD movie this morning, a redbox rental, 'kajillionaire'. i recognized evan rachel wood in it. the closing credits said debra winger played her mom. this sure was a weird movie. i had wanted to see it at theaters but didn't make it to the theater in time for the start, and only one theater was showing it in this area. watching it at home is fine with me, way cheaper. it is the story of a family of three that are con artists. but things change when they meet a lady on a plane ride that says she can help with their scams. it is kind of funny that they had cheap rent at a place called 'bubbles, inc.' and had to run buckets when the bubbles ran down the walls. the daughter starts to question things when being paid to go in place of somebody at a parenting class. i found that part to be relatable, as i started to question things when i spent more time away from controlling parents. the weirdest part had to be getting birthday presents for years 1-17, with an invitation to dinner to get the one for year 18. also memorable to me was going to a bar near the airport and then using a bathroom at the adjacent mobil gas station. the song 'mr. lonely' by bobby vinton was in it. 

part of the errand-running for the day was returning the movie to the gas station. then it was to the post office, one e-bay order was there. i used a pen at the window on an item to mark it 'return to sender' and the funny employee said he didn't know i was left-handed. then it was on to the capitol to drop off recycle, and back to the gas station to get lunch, a corn dog and some cheese. i got more from the discount bin, two reese's peanut butter as well as two lady gaga oreo packs. i slept for a while in the afternoon. in the evening it was off to aldi for my weekly grocery order. when i got back i turned on the TV as fox had boxing on. i checked the fight card online and there were 8 matches scheduled at the shrine auditorium, but just three of them were televised. the first two had early knockouts, in the first and third rounds. the main event went the distance, 12 rounds, and the reigning champion won a unanimous decision. it was the fight of two calebs. no surprise who won as plant was out-punching truax by 4-1 for most of the fight. joey spencer won the first-round knockout, a fighter i saw at the minneapolis armory in 2018. looks like fox will have another night of boxing in a month from now. i went on a walk after the late news and found 41 cents. i still have a meetup walk to look forward to this weekend. 

mary tyler moore-special magazine

 i bought the special life magazine about the 'mary tyler moore show' this week at walgreen, honoring its 50th anniversary. i read it tonight and i like having it. this is one of many that i've bought over the years, as i like having things to read especially about history. what prompted me to get it this week was the passing of cloris leachman, who played phyllis the landlady on the show. there was plenty about the cast in it, but no surprise there was the most about mary. and not just this show, but many of her other roles. i liked mention of when she was mary todd in 'gore vidal's lincoln' as i have this DVD. and they covered the spin-offs, 'rhoda', 'phyllis', and 'lou grant'. as a big bob newhart fan i liked mention of the shows produced by her production company as well, including 'bob newhart show'. i do have some of the 'MTM' episodes on DVD, season 1 and 2 I recall. it had been in syndicated reruns for a while in this area as well. when i moved to the twin cities in 2004 i recall my dad saying to me, 'say hi to mary for me'. and on one of his visits we found the mary statue. he would say at the end of the opening segment, 'throws her hat up in the air in downtown minneapolis, 10 degrees below outside'. or was it 12? that does bring me to another thing i liked seeing in this magazine. dad's visit was for a twins baseball game, they were still at the metrodome then, in 2009. there is mention of mary visiting the twin cities in 2002. i think this was when she also threw out the first ball at a twins game. i saw footage of this when she died in 2017. another walgreen also has a special magazine about archie bunker, or 'all in the family', so i guess that is next on my list. 

it was a busy day at work, and i was pleased to get way more done with the special project for payroll. it was over 2,000 letters sent through the machine. although it was jamming a lot so some more had to be hand-stuffed. my  boss called and wanted samples of special handling from our larger files, i sent five. he wanted to see all four of the checks going to foreign countries, and i sent one example of checks that are sent inter-office. in the evening, after getting back from hy-vee in eagan, i went on a walk and found 37 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when leonard and howard went to a bar to pick up women, and it was raj who ended up hooking up at the end of the night. sheldon debates comic books with stuart as well. it was followed by the one where lucy meets amy and then breaks up with raj by text message. and leonard agrees to go to the north sea. 

special project- for payroll

 i got started on the special project for payroll this morning. i didn't get as far as i wanted, but the most important thing was getting started. i ran nearly 500 forms through the envelope stuffer, but there are thousands more to go. it meant trying the sample forms first, but i am pleased that it lined up fine through the window on the addresses. it means using the basic configuration instead of the one for payroll based on where the addresses are on the page, another thing that pleases me. i would like to think i can clear way more volume in the coming days as i likely won't have 30-minute meetings or refund  checks to handle. during the dial-in meeting i was asked to give a statement about the need for the expansion tray on the check printer, a brief statement seemed to be good enough. i had been emailed about giving a written proposal before then, so i would like to think verbalizing it when asked by my boss supersedes it. in the evening i went on a walk and found 1 dollar 47 cents. this included a dollar bill. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when penny got a rival in the apartment building, and howard restrained leonard as he didn't want anyone stopping the catfight. it was followed by the one where the friends play dungeons and dragons, and howard does impressions of famous people including nicolas cage and al pacino. raj left for a date with lucy, who bailed on him again. i never liked that character because she kept running away from him, but that is also on raj because he must have been desperate and still interested in her. 'young sheldon' was on in prime time and both were reruns. it was when sheldon got a cast when riding a bike, and it was followed by when sheldon goes to bible camp and has a rival, paige. 

expansion tray ordered

 i am now seeing things that i wasn't expecting to see at work. the technician working on the check printer said an expansion tray needs to be ordered, and the attachment was from 2016, showing the cost of the printer ordered then, as i recall 10k. then i see responses to it as i am copied on the questions. it says a written proposal is needed to order the equipment. well i guess this isn't ordered as often as, say, the envelopes or check stock that is ordered once a month. i haven't commented on it at all as it appears to be 'above my pay grade'. also at work the two boxes of the special project from payroll arrived, and there was a communication gap at first about what needed to be done. i said i hadn't sent windowless envelopes through the stuffer machine so i was wondering if there would be any manual stuffing. after i spoke with my boss i saw this payroll employee again, and found out the letters going out would be generic ones so this made more sense to me. less likely that things would go wrong, as most of what is sent out is checks. it made me think before of one thing i have said- don't like the answers, ask better questions. i haven't started it yet because i wanted to stay caught up on my normal duties, but thursday morning is likely as i have more time for these things in the morning when waiting for files to print. some sample forms are on top so i can test how these documents will go through the stuffer. 

in the evening i went on a walk and found 81 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when the friends were making 'penny blossoms'. it was followed by the one where bob newhart made his first guest appearance as professor proton. and raj has howard and bernadette babysit his dog, cinnamon. 'the conners' was on this week and it was about darlene's boyfriend, ben, starting a podcast. 

american revolutions-zoom lecture

 in the evening i watched a lecture on zoom about 'american revolutions', sponsored by the state historic society. i liked how it covered many things that weren't in the history books i had read when i was young. it went much farther than just saying there were 'dis-united states' under the articles of confederation. it said the northwest territory, along with compromises that allowed the constitution to happen, was what strengthened the fledgling democracy. i liked mention of dan boone moving to a place near st. louis as i have toured that home. this was part of mention of the newer states, or settlers moving into territories, deciding to make deals with the british or spanish governments on moving to their lands in case the united states collapsed. also liked mention of the importance of economic issues, especially control of the mississippi river by the spanish as it was important related to trade in new orleans. some good questions were asked, such as the role of women at the time, but others had nothing to do with this era, such as west virginia. i saw how it is part one in a series of four, and the fourth interests me as well, rural vs. urban. 

later on in the evening i went on a walk and found 50 cents. the 'big bang theory' rerun was when the friends went on a train ride to san francisco, and sheldon called penny when he needed something emailed. then the TV was shut off as the zoom lecture was starting. at work i managed to get the checks out the door but it was a challenge as one of the hoppers on the envelope stuffer was jamming in the afternoon. so it meant using the smaller one, and it stopped more often so i had to keep pressing a button to get it going again. so the plan is to call for service in the morning. before midday i had to change the fluid bottle. 

twin tow trucks

 i was out for a walk tonight and i noticed on more than one occasion there was two tow trucks almost in lock-step. it is not too often that one sees 'twin two trucks' like this. hard to say why, unless the snow emergency is still in effect. during this walk i found 82 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when penny shot a couch cushion, 'sheldon's spot'. it ended with the friends at a paintball game. it was followed by the one where sheldon is dressed as the 'doppler effect' at a halloween party where leonard wants to impress penny. i did a virtual open-mic this evening as well, and spoke of various topics. hard to say which one got the most reaction, likely the one about the lady gaga oreos. at work i was asked to send re-prints of a small check file, that i normally inter-office to that business line. i noticed half of them were post-dated by 11 months so i pointed it out in my email response. and i was asked to open a fedex package not addressed to me. i had seen it for a while but didn't touch it as i had no permission. found out it was a check from UPS, was asked to scan it like a refund check. i wanted to get caught up right away on doing the overnight labels so sorting and handling the incoming mail will be moved back a day. there is usually some time in the morning while waiting for more check files to complete special projects. i got a look at the chicago wolves minor-league hockey schedule once it was printed. looks like they will be playing teams only in their own division, and just four opponents listed, from february to may. there is mention of their games being on TV, but it might be requiring a subscription fee to watch the games on that channel, apparently the league's network. 

bumblebee flies anyway movie

 this morning i watched a DVD movie, a recent purchase to replace a VHS, 'bumblebee flies anyway'. i recognized janeane garofalo, roger rees, and rachael leigh cook in it. i hadn't seen it in a while so i didn't recall much of the storyline, just that it took place in a hospital. the part about amnesia to treat cancer is likely problematic for some. but what makes the story is the main character's interactions with the other patients that are young and terminally ill. i liked seeing them make a car from parts taken from a nearby junkyard. i knew one of them was a hood from an old VW beetle. though the most important relationship is the one with the twin sister of one of the patients, as she helps him with creating new memories. this also became a day of errand running, going to get shoes at jc penney and a CD at target, both in roseville. i went to 2 different stores because i had a jc penney gift card, as i am aware that target has shoes as well. the first football playoff game of the day had started by the time i was making my way back home, this was bucs-packers, and i was able to find it on the radio. when i got home it was time for lunch, and i watched the rest of the game on TV. the two games today were won by tampa, and kansas city, so now we have a super bowl matchup for two weeks from now. i also went on a walk in the evening and found 28 cents. i did some more copying of notes onto another page, as i prefer to consolidate after a while especially after crossing things off of a list after they have been ordered. 

jungleland movie

 watched a DVD movie this afternoon, a redbox rental, 'jungleland'. i was able to see it in full on the second attempt. the disc i rented the night before had a ding on it and it didn't play for long, about three scenes and then it just froze. so i went back to redbox and rented another disc of the same movie, but made sure the rental was done before the return so i wouldn't get the same disc. i did not recognize any of the actors in it but not a big deal to me as i just wanted to see a good story. i saw it as a boxing movie, but it is more about bare-knuckle brawling, and a road movie. and as we all know, i like a good road movie. it starts in massachusetts and ends in california. despite some issues along the way, such as the SUV they were in being towed as it was apparently stolen, the two brothers still make it to the big fight in the chinatown section of san francisco. it wouldn't be a good story if they failed to get there. another compelling part of the story was having to transport a young lady to reno, and stopping along the way in indiana to meet her parents. the movie's title is taken from the name of the fighting event. i liked the song choice when the fight is happening in san francisco, 'dream baby dream' by bruce springsteen. the closing credits said a song by dvorak is in it as well. i have seen the dvorak museum in spillville, iowa, in the same building as the hand-carved clocks. what was odd was having a whippet dog as part of the travels, as having a pet can make it harder to travel. even more odd was how often it was inside with the three, that the owners of the establishments they were in would allow it. 

this was an errand running day. when i went to get the second disc i also got some socks and some charlie brown candies at a nearby walgreen, and went to a copy store to print some things. two of them were coupons or gift cards. both e-bay orders were at the post office, and i got lunch as usual at the holiday gas station. i returned the movie just as the snow was starting to fall, and later on i went to aldi for my weekly grocery order. when i got back from the grocery store i turned on the TV and found another hockey game, same channel and matchup as the day before. st. cloud state was leading, 5-2, against miami of ohio at the end of the 2nd, and went on to win 8-2. i also went on a walk and found 25 cents. i had some weird dreams. this morning it was about being on a bus that arrived in new york, and later on it was asking somebody to turn off the TV during an interview. when i got back from the walk, i saw a neighbor on their phone looking at ultimate fighting. 

overseas container forms

 it was a weird day with instant messaging. i got one from somebody i didn't know, about a fedex package that was sent inter-office to where i am at. i recalled scanning it to customer service when it arrived, as there was no mention of the bank i work for on it. so i had the fedex label on top, with the bank's name  on it. this was a bill of lading about overseas containers. so i was called about it, at first the dude said to overnight it somewhere, but that changed and was told to have it ready for somebody to pick up. the lady called me and had trouble finding the facility, and entered through the branch. i let the branch manager know that somebody was arriving. it was picked up a little after midday, then i went to lunch, and i was given a business card by who picked it up. i was informed that i had saved the company thousands of dollars, and figured this meant i would get points for a gift card, but at this point just an e-card. the other visitors of the day were about the check printer, installing the maintenance kit. still waiting for the fix on the other one, it needs an expansion tray. the technician that did it was from nebraska, and a little odd that his colleague showed up during the installation, the dude who had worked on it before. some confusion about who was assigned the ticket. but i didn't care who did it. when i was driving home there was a talk-radio show on and they spoke of baseball player hank aaron. my first guess was that he had died, and i was correct. he had just been in the news being shown getting a covid vaccine this month. the 'big bang theory' rerun was when howard had sheldon clean his closet and a letter from his dad was found. i went on a walk in the evening and found 1 cent. there was a hockey game on after watching the news, st. cloud state vs. miami of ohio. it was about to start as i was heading to the hy-vee in eagan for my weekly grocery order. when i got back it was midway through the 2nd period and st. cloud was trailing 2-1. but st. cloud got a goal near the end of the 2nd, and early in the 3rd, to win it 3-2. 

yellow lysol packs

 at lunchtime a colleague found me and said there were four yellow lysol packs of wipes for the check shop. i said it was fine to put it in the department's slot in the mail room, and i would take care of it when i was done with lunch. and i dumped them in the check shop before i went to get lunchables and an ice cream candy bar at walgreen. thankfully it was a lower volume day on check printing, just over half as much as the previous day. sounds like the technician will arrive next morning for the maintenance kit. but still no word about when the other printer will be running again, emails say replacement of the expansion tray is needed. in the evening i went on a walk and found 2 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when the dudes tried to collect money from penny's ex. it was followed by the one where the friends went on separate 'field trips'. the dudes went to speak at a school, and the ladies went to disneyland. i liked how 'young sheldon' was a new episode, including a story about pastor jeff. there are many good stories that can be told about the preacher. 

scream hotline

 i recall seeing something on the news about a 'scream hotline', so i made a note of it and looked it up. found out there really was one, with a 561 area code, so in florida. it sounded like it is going to be archived soon, so i made the call tonight. it felt good to call, in the evening. i went into another room while the 'movies!' channel was showing 'as good as it gets', starring jack nicholson. it was a movie i had seen at the theater. at work it was a high-volume day, over seven thousand checks. my boss called me near the end of the day, asking me to send an email for him about the process of overnighting for a business line. also tried taking lunch in the check shop, the little-used room, to get caught up on running checks through the envelope stuffer. but then somebody was in the file room, that had given me recognition by email for having their checks ready, so i talked to them some. after i got home i saw on the news the highlights of the inauguration, including the singers such as the national anthem by lady gaga, and 'amazing grace' by garth brooks. sounds like jenny lopez sang as well, so i will want to search for that on youtube. the 'big bang theory' rerun was when penny was in 'streetcar named desire'. at first it was disappointing that 'the conners' wasn't on so i switched it to fox, and i liked watching 'name that tune'. i recall how there was an earlier version of this game show decades ago. i recognized some of the songs on it, in one case i knew it was 'in the navy' by the village people and the contestant didn't. 

followed by a no-show

 i performed at the comedy club tonight, just the second time in-person since the pandemic began. notable to me was how the comic slated to follow me was a no-show. this no longer surprises me, as i have witnessed this often enough. i only recognized two people there, and one of them was the MC, who was cleaning the microphone and the stand after each performer. he did a joke about a colleague calling him a 'tall drink of water'. the other comic i recognized was blake, who will headline the club wednesday. i spoke about my life during the pandemic, including my new job, and ended with the one about doing laundry. a lady comic i didn't know said i was funny, i said i find it easiest to do sets about my own life. i had one beer, a grain belt, and was reminded of how food and drink can be expensive at the clubs. i did a walk after the show and noticed how most of the nearby businesses were deserted. after the late news i went on a walk and picked up 9 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when the friends were challenged to a robot fight by kripke. it was followed by the one where amy offered to be sheldon's roommate after leonard said he'd had enough. at work there was a check file that arrived late in the day, so only two checks went out same-day. the one going to canada, and the one to be overnighted. there were over a hundred checks in the file, and in the email request for the UPS check the requestor apologized. in the morning i was asked to send seven checks to the branch for deposit. these were checks i had scanned to another department. and somebody from utah was asking about a check they had received that according to UPS was delivered over a month ago. so of course some oddities were encountered. 

4 stops, 11 items

 it was a day off from work and i decided to stay productive. so it meant going to pick up some things. target express, where i got aim toothpaste, socks, and a box of rice krispies. the cereal was from the discount shelf. then pick up an order from fedex, two chicago wolves hockey keychains that went onto my christmas tree. cheapo records, where i got 2 DVD movies and a postcard. i was able to replace 2 more VHS tapes by finding the DVD equivalent movie, and briefly spoke with someone who greeted me. then walgreen, for lunch. burger in a box, pineapple juice, and charlie brown valentines. i watched a DVD movie, 'cedar rapids', bought it a while back, not one of those bought today. also went on a walk and found 3 cents. 'big bang theory' reruns were when leonard said 'we're not living together' about dating dr. stephanie. it was followed by the one where howard and raj get action figures from a 3-d printer. i did a virtual open-mic, where i spoke of fogged up glasses while wearing masks and the moderator spoke of how to avoid that. 

brokedown palace movie

 this morning i watched a DVD movie, 'brokedown palace'. i bought it a while back and it may have been the first time watching it. i recognized claire danes, and lou diamond phillips, in it. closing credits said the movie was filmed in the philippines, although the setting was thailand. it was called a 'thriller' on the DVD case, but it is also a cautionary tale about being careful with who you trust. foreigners are usually treated more harshly by the justice system, and these two girls were charged with drug smuggling. naturally there were things that made a story out of it, besides just going to thailand. one of those was sneaking into a hotel that they were not registered at, and ordering drinks they did not pay for. after the movie was done i watched a college basketball game on TV, the iowa hawkeyes were playing at northwestern. it was close in the first half, but iowa pulled away in the second half and won 96-73. notable about watching a game during the pandemic is hearing sounds one doesn't hear, in this case it was the clank off of the rim when a shot doesn't go in. because of the 'fan ban' at venues. then i had lunch and went to do laundry. i knew well enough to get started before watching any of the pregame show for one of the pro football playoff games. kansas city and tampa won the two games today. i was proud of getting some other things done. one of the e-bay orders that arrived this weekend was 'simpsons' trading cards, and i got them into sheet protectors. at first i was short 3 sheets, needing 10 in all, but i decided to look at a binder with business cards and pocket schedules in it. i found a way to free up 3 more sheets, by doubling up business cards, and a few were taken out and will be destroyed. i didn't feel like buying more sheets at this time. in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 89 cents. this included an alabama coin from the 'state quarters' series, the last one i needed to complete the collection. a little surprised to see it this early, but i am pleased that i won't need to order it. i also did some research on DVD movies i would like to order in the near future, including some iowa-filmed movies. i know that i usually order media from amazon, but i wanted to comparison shop and found out both were available on e-bay as well. in some cases they are cheaper on the latter site, and i liked confirming from the pictures given that they are good copies i can use and not a worthless foreign knockoff. i don't order from amazon much, about once a month, and usually only when i have gift card money to use and there isn't any right now. 

mighty oak movie

 this morning i watched a DVD movie, a redbox rental, 'mighty oak'. it was about a music group that broke up after the death of their frontman in a car wreck. then the band gets back together 10 years later after a kid is given the frontman's guitar, and he proves to be really good, a prodigy. the sister, also the band's manager, believes he is the reincarnation of her late brother. levi dylan, bob's grandson, plays the first frontman. raven-symone is in it, i think she was the magazine writer that wrote about the band. the movie was filmed in san diego. i knew the story was reaching its logical ending when there was a scene at the same venue as at the beginning, where the prodigy is in the dressing room before the show begins. another thing i noticed was a food outlet with an ancient vending machine for snacks. at the start of the movie the prices were 50 cents, then 10 years later it was 90 cents. i say 'ancient' because i hadn't seen one like it aside from at the motown records museum in detroit, so it must have been something from the 1960s. where the product is ejected upwards from separate compartments for lack of a better term, instead of what is seen now where one sees all items through the glass and they are placed in coils. 

this of course was an errand running day. first thing was going to the gas station to get fuel and return the movie. then there was the post office, where two orders were picked up. third was the capitol complex, where i dropped off recycle. i was wondering what streets would be closed since the news said some streets around the capitol were closed. it was just the inner ring of streets. i parked in the same place i normally do and then walk a little to get there. this time it meant walking past a humvee, where i noticed the uniformed man had an 'mp' patch on, as well as a state trooper car. i was in an out in a short time, and finished that errand without saying a word to anyone. then it was back to the gas station to pick up lunch. it was a corn dog and some cheese, along with two candy items from the discount bin. there were two pro football playoff games today, green bay and buffalo won. i watched a little of the first game, rams-packers, but not a lot. in the evening i went to aldi for my weekly grocery store order. after the late news i went on a walk and found 83 cents. so i have reached my goal of five dollars of beer money for the super bowl, 3 weeks early. 

almond nog

nearly a week ago i decided to get a quart of almond nog from aldi, and i drank some of it tonight. it didn't taste that good to me, seemed to be watered down. i learned a while back that i didn't like the taste of soy milk egg nog either. but i bought more than i should have then, a half gallon, so i have less this time. i will finish this quart carton and i guess next season it will definitely be just cow milk egg nog like it normally is. i passed on it for a while as i was finding at other stores what i knew for sure i would like. more than half of it was drank tonight so not all that much is left. i went to hy-vee in eagan in the evening, and for the third time, the system didn't recognize the little tub if strawberry ice cream so i needed help with getting it scanned. no problem with any of the other items. i got another box of the holiday-themed rice krispies, my third of the season. i am ready to start the second box this weekend. there were still about 16 boxes for sale next to marshmallows, as there is a coupon on the box for marshmallows. i some people like baking, but i just eat the cereal. after the news i went on a walk and found 31 cents. the 'big bang theory' rerun was when the friends tried going to a comic-book convention and their car was stolen when trying to take a photo while they were in 'star trek' costumes. at work there were two gray mail tubs that arrived, full of inter-office envelopes. i decided to get them moved into cardboard boxes and the tubs were put out with the mail at the end of the day. i had enough time to peel the stickers off of one of them. this time i also saw some northwest airlines stickers, instead of just delta, so these tubs must have been around for a while, and used at the airport. the man who brought the mail in the morning wanted a cart, which is rare since there isn't much mail in most days. then i found out why, i was surprised with how many envelopes were sent but thankfully it will be a while before i need to ask for more. 

found another rudolph

 when i went to walgreen around midday i found out there was still some christmas candy available, at 80 percent off. so i bought four more items, in addition to a lunchable and some juice. one of them was a 'rudolph the red-nosed reindeer'- themed chocolate. actually this one looks like santa, but the red box it came in says 'rudolph' at the top and has four characters from the TV special depicted there. i still haven't eaten the first one, which does look like rudolph, but eventually all of the candy in the bag will be eaten. i have at least another week's worth in the bag, holding true to what i predicted when i said i would be eating this candy for a month. it has been a steady diet of one or two pieces a day. at work there were three boxes picked up near the end of the day, one of them was the maintenance kit for the check printer. the others were a toner cartridge and UPS envelopes. it remains to be seen when somebody will do the installation though. my boss had trouble calling me in the morning, twice i said 'end call, no response' as i couldn't hear anything. he said he had to re-boot the phone, and eventually i was being called about a special project from payroll. in the evening i went on a walk and found 2 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when leonard meets dr. stephanie, because howard got the mars rover stuck. it was followed by when sheldon wants advice about leonard being hit on my alex, sheldon's assistant. i kept laughing because he tried to change the names, and one of them was 'shilly-shally'. 

are the good times really over, merle haggard

 recently i heard a song on my car radio and the lyrics i wrote down were about how long a ford and chevy car should last. found out it was 'are the good times really over' by merle haggard. the video i watched on youtube showed footage of it being performed live, as well as images of norman rockwell paintings. it would be considered a nostalgia song, wanting to return to a simpler time. vietnam and watergate, as well as elvis presley, the beatles and microwave ovens, are mentioned. not sure what radio station i heard it on, but good chance it is the one from new prague as they do play plenty of country music. i am more familiar with other songs by merle haggard, such as 'okie from muskogee' and 'mama tried'. 

at work the team huddle finally happened, and there seemed to be more clarity about something i had scanned as it was mentioned there. it technically was sent to the right place, since i sent it to two destinations, but going forward i am told one of the two destinations will be different. there were more supplies to pick up on a different floor, two boxes of standard envelopes and one box from UPS. i was called a 'hero' due to intercepting a duplicate check. i was advised about it before the file was ready to be printed. hopefully it means more points that can be converted into another amazon gift card. in the evening i went on a walk and found 1 cent. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon and penny fought after penny got 3 strikes. it was followed by the one where amy was spanked for lying to sheldon after she was sick, because she liked being taken care of by sheldon. 'the conners' was back on this week, but a little disappointed that john goodman was only briefly seen, at the end of the episode. it was likely due to having a guest star, candice bergen. after watching the news i shut off the TV and then realized this show was likely on, and confirmed it by checking the listings online with ABC. so the TV was off for only about a minute, then it was off again after the show was done as i wanted to take a walk. 

water shutoff

 there was a water shutoff at the office for a little while in the morning. it didn't affect me much, but i knew well enough to go to the bathroom early if i needed to. the branch manager was standing outside the check shop door when i came back from the bathroom and said there was a delivery arriving. it was check stock, 25 boxes. a little less than what i ordered, but not a big deal. i still had to supply a cart because the delivery man didn't have one in his van. we spoke a little about current events, like the others he was from suburban chicago. it meant something to me as i spoke of living there for a while, he said he is in schiller park so in the o'hare airport area like i was. the team huddle was moved back a day. i stayed a little late to get caught up on overnight packages. i was behind for much of the day due to the largest check files being ready for printing 2 hours late. so i decided to adjust by taking lunch in the check shop, in the room that is rarely used. i wanted to monitor the machines- the printer and envelope stuffer- to keep them running in hopes that i would get caught up more quickly. in the evening i went on a walk and found 3 cents. the 'big bang theory' rerun was when sheldon and howard were fighting over a parking space. it led to their ladies deciding to fight as well. i also had a weird dream. i was paranoid about being ill, due to being near a group of people while walking near my home. it took a while but i realized it was just a dream. 

unanswered and assumed

 i had an oil change done on my car tonight, but i didn't like who checked me in. a question went unanswered when i was asking about the cost of a headlight bulb, then assumed i didn't want it done, i was helped by somebody different when it was done, who said it was due to labor costs. i will have to put it in my review or survey, as i know they send them. in the evening i went on a walk and found 26 cents. the 'bi bang theory' reruns were when sheldon got his learner's permit. it was followed by the one where sheldon does hackey-sack every day. it was also where his assistant is hitting on leonard. i did a virtual open-mic and used the term 'zeitgeist' when referring to electronic signs on the road. at work i was slowed down by special handling on one file, over 200 checks to be sent inter-office and for whatever reason i didn't see all of them the first time around. but i lucked out on flipping through the stack before they went in the envelope stuffer and found most of them there. but i had to check that i didn't miss any of them, so it chewed up some valuable time. 

gaslight movie (1944)

 i watched a DVD copy of the movie 'gaslight' this morning, an amazon order. i recognized angela lansbury in it, who was one of the servants. i had heard of the term 'gaslighting' for a while so now i understand the origins of it better. i saw some parallels in the story to my own life, as i have had people who were gaslighting me and i eventually saw the light and wised up and parted ways with them. after the movie was done i went on a long walk and found 43 cents. the walk was moved up as there was two sporting events of interest to me. the first was a college basketball game, the iowa hawkeyes were playing the minnesota gophers and iowa won this time. after it was one of the pro football playoff games, the bears were playing the saints in new orleans and the saints won. baltimore and cleveland won the other two games of the day. 'the simpsons' was a rerun, the one where a british lady is interested in homer. then eventually i did the dishes and the recycle. 

grand isle movie

 this morning i watched a DVD movie, a redbox rental, 'grand isle'. i recognize nicolas cage, and kelsey grammer, in it. the latter was the cop investigating a murder. this was filmed in louisiana. the backdrop of the story was a hurricane, and nicolas cage's character wanting a fence fixed up before it. this movie held my attention, and it lived up to being considered a thriller as there were some unexpected things that happened in it. naturally there were some things that made a story out of it, such as the man who took the fence job really needing the money to support his family. and even after the cops get a search warrant, it is not over by a long shot. also part of the disc was a preview for 'crown vic', a cop movie that has been at redbox for a while. so i will put it on my list of movies that interest me, although i have been doing just one per week for a while. 

of course it is the weekend, and that means time for errand running. i made it to the credit union just minutes before closing time, as they close at 12noon on a saturday. i deposited the change that was counted in the machine into savings, just over 11 dollars. also inquired about changing the way i am investing to get a better return, but in order to have enough for a certificate of deposit i would likely need to close my other savings account and move that amount over to the credit union. and i made it to the post office, three orders to pick up including a DVD movie from amazon. then i returned the movie to the gas station, where i picked up lunch. i got some chipotle chicken street tacos, along with a little godfather's pizza. of course the pizza became the evening meal. i watched some of the pro football playoff games, parts of two of the three games scheduled. buffalo, the rams, and tampa won. in the evening i went to the grocery store, and later on i did a walk and found 32 cents. so i have already started on the next deposit of small change. 

elf on the shelf

 i started a box of cereal this morning, 'elf on a shelf'. it is made by kellogg. i had to research the brand though, as i hadn't heard of it. i bought it because i like trying these seasonal, special cereals. i found out this is a children's book. i looked at the wikipedia article and it also said it was parodied on an episode of 'the simpsons'. after it was a book in 2004-2005, it has been many other things. an animated TV special, and appearing at the macy's thanksgiving day parade. also mention of a jewish counterpart, 'mensch on a bench', as the mascot for team israel at the world baseball classic. during the holiday season i also saw some little skillets with this brand name on it, but didn't buy any. only have bought the cereal, and it tastes fine. there is probably plenty of other products with this name on it. 

at work one of the supply orders arrived, the boxes of envelopes. it was fewer boxes than what was ordered, but i know it can be changed by who actually places the order for me. i also found the time to call the dealer and schedule an oil change appointment for early next week. in the evening i went on a walk and found 11 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when howard and bernadette found out they will be having a baby. it was followed by the one where penny ruined valentines day by being jealous of an ex. i was pleased with what i found at the hy-vee in eagan, as they had some small pumpkin pies so i bought one. it was called 'gourmet' and they are five dollars, according to the calorie content on the label it would be two servings. i was trying to find an 'affordable' punpkin pie during the holiday season and i finally did- two weeks late. even longer if you count thanksgiving. there was still a problem at the self-checkout with wanting a single serving tub of ice cream though, so an employee had to ring it up for me. i said i get it, not many people want ice cream during winter. in fact it wasn't my first choice, but i can tell they haven't ordered any in this section for a while. and most of the time i am fine with going what is available. i am getting haagen dazs strawberry, since vanilla edy's is not available. same has been true at walgreen, as i have been getting an ice cream candy bar- a twix or a snickers- instead of the drumstick cone since they are out of the latter. 

silica packet, toner cartridge

 i have replaced toner cartridges before at work, on the check printer machines. today was the first time i did so on the copier. it is a smaller one. at first i was wondering why it didn't fit, then i noticed that there still was a silica packet taped to it. once this was removed it fit perfectly. it said 'do not eat', much like the ones found in other kinds of packages such as shoe boxes. speaking of the check printer, a technician arrived to look at it, and i was informed that it means another technician will be in contact about it. no paper jams were found. the UPS package that was sent by my employer was picked up at the end of my workday at a retail location. although it is hard to say how helpful it will be. there is a water bottle inside, as well as some hand sanitizer, and a door opener. but i have been opening doors without it for a while and haven't been sick. i think i will still try the item out of curiosity to see how well it works, at some point. in the evening i went on a walk and found 74 cents. so i have added some more to the set-aside amount for beer on super bowl sunday, and still a month until the game to reach my goal. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when seeing the 'star wars' movie was compared to sheldon and amy being intimate. of course i like this one because bob newhart is a guest star. it was followed by the one where amy gets a tiara from sheldon. i laughed a lot when watching this one. amy's voice also appears, albeit briefly, at the end of the prime time episode of 'young sheldon'. and i liked it because sheldon spoke from the heart when he does a speech as valedictorian of his high school. 

check your paystub

 i saw an email at work that said to check your paystub on the company's intranet. everything looked to be in order, as i recall it was due to the new year. social security wasn't called 'FICA' but a different acronym. my 401-k and other benefit deductions such as health insurance, and the taxes, were there. when i got home i saw an email saying a UPS package would be arriving soon, i told myself i hadn't ordered anything. i did some research with what information i had and i think this is in relation to another email at work, as the item description is a 'c19 safety kit'. the website i went to, based on the company name sending it, is in suburban kansas city. and i did see the bank's name in an image while searching the site. i would expect it to get dumped at a retail location as i don't want it delivered to my home when i am not home. so it likely means picking it up after work. sounds like the technician will be back to look at the check printer that kept jamming, in the morning. 

there was a change in prime time programming this evening, as there was special reports about the capitol building in washington, dc, being overrun with protesters. so 'the conners' wasn't on ABC when i switched over to that network after my customary watching of local news on fox-plus. i still watched 'big bang theory' reruns when i got home. they were about the friends doing a 'make-up prom'. and there was all of the drama of a real prom. it was followed by the one where stuart goes on a date with amy, and sheldon is forced to draw up a new relationship agreement. i know this one was on fairly recently. i also went on a walk in the evening and picked up 4 cents. looks like the credit union branches will be open to the public this week so i can turn in what i have at the coin counter soon. 

hockey team opt-out

 i had been looking for more information about the start of the professional hockey season, since i was interested in hearing about the minor-league chicago wolves. i found an article that said the american hockey league season will begin on february 5. not all teams in the league will be playing this year, but 28 of the 31 will be. the three that opted out are in charlotte, NC,  milwaukee, WI, and springfield, MA. it looks like the parent club for one of them, the st. louis blues, has already lined up plans on where to send their players- to Utica, NY, instead of springfield. there are some venue changes as well, likely due to the 'fan ban' in place at their games. the wolves will not be playing at the big arena in rosemont, but at their practice facility in hoffman estates. and four teams were given 'provisional' relocations for the season. i think i drove past the wolves facility in my most recent visit to the metro area in 2019. it was likely on my way to finding a karaoke bar to sing at for the night. there will be five divisions for the league, as there is a newly created canadian division with four teams in it. i looked at a previous article i put in a binder and it said the season was slated to begin in early december, of course this didn't happen. this article was mostly about the wolves signing on with a new parent club, the carolina hurricanes. when it appears that there will be a 'fan ban' for a while at games, the visit to chicago will have to wait and may not happen this season. all the more reason to consider placing an order sooner rather than later for two wolves ornaments for the tree. actually key chains, but i have already re-purposed plenty of key chains this way. in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 73 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when sheldon kissed amy after meeting a weirdo on a train that likes trains as much as sheldon did. it was followed by the one where penny drives sheldon on a date with amy. it is also the one where howard goes to the hospital because of a robot arm. at work the UPS volume went up a little, but i tried harder to get the labels done earlier even though it is hard to do when having to 'babysit' the envelope stuffer at times. and it can get loud which makes it harder to concentrate on other tasks. this was why i left it off when doing a dial-in meeting just before midday. 

spreadsheet instruction

 i was sent a skype that said some checks were sent inter-office, and it was on my day off last week. it was from a business line in st. louis. the procedure changed in october, where now they are sent regular mail to the listed recipient and not returned to the business line. i said i would forward it on to my cohort who was filling in for me that day. i also said i was unsure of how to update the spreadsheet instruction as it is listed there. i liked being able to talk about more than just work in my response, saying i recognized the return address. it reminded me of light rail stops when i was doing annual visits for baseball games, as one of the stops is on the same street. i was invited to visit this office once the pandemic ends. as expected, i am told it is a 'ghost town' much like the one i am in as most are working from home. but there are days when people must make it into the office and get caught up on things that can't be done at home. there was nine checks for one colleague to pick up by the end of the day, as two files printed with 6 more to pick up in the first and 2 in the second. then later on this colleague was on the other side of the fence looking at the records kept there as i was finishing my workday. in the evening i went on a walk and picked up 11 cents. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when the friends went on a scavenger hunt organized by raj. it was a fun one as it ended with one of the teams, howard and amy, singing 'cherry cherry' by neil diamond at a karaoke bar. enjoying the music of neil diamond was one thing they found out they had in common, at the outset it appeared they had nothing in common. it was followed by the one where sheldon is blackmailed with a dirty sock into meeting amy. it had a funny line when it ended as howard said 'good god what we we done?' since they seemed to be made for each other. 

radio station search

 i wanted to listen to a football game on the radio this afternoon and it was hard to know where to find it. this was the bears-packers game. for a while i was listening on a station out of river falls, wi, but the reception wasn't all that good and eventually it faded out. i tried again in the second half and found the game on another AM radio station, WBBM out of chicago. bears lost 35-16 but still made the playoffs. i tuned into the game after getting back from a walk around the neighborhood, where i found 39 cents. in the morning i watched a DVD movie, my copy of 'walk the line', the bio-pic about johnny cash and his wife, june. i saw this one at the theater. after it was done i had lunch and started watching the first football game of the day, vikings-lions, but left at the end of the third quarter to start the long walk. in the evening i watched 'the simpsons', it was about comic book guy and his family, who were all collectors. i liked how they got baseball into it as an autographed sandy koufax ball was a part of the storyline. before then i watched a series premiere of a mayim bialik sitcom, about running a cat cafe, but it doesn't do much for me as she comes across as a klutz. i liked her better as amy on 'big bang theory'. sounds like its regular time slot will be on another night on fox, thursday. i like 'young sheldon' so there is no question what i will be watching if the two are on at the same time. 

official sarcasm dictionary

 this morning i did some errand running, starting with sending a letter at the post office. no orders were there to pick up. then it was on to the barnes and noble in eagan, where i got my charlie brown calendar for half-off. it was the last one. but i decided to get more than just the calendar. i also found a book that was of interest to me, the sticker on the front said 'book annex'. it was 'the official dictionary of sarcasm'. i have already read through some of it, as a comic i figure there likely is some joke material in it. and it may help with understanding people on some level as well. on the back it says 'tolerate ignorance? really? so not necessary'. there are illustrations throughout it. at the top of each page it says 'words you should know'. the author, james napoli, is the executive VP of the national sarcasm society. i recall a worksheet we had to do in sixth grade that was about understanding sarcasm but i think even by that age most knew about it. 

i got started on errand running early as i wanted to be back in time for the start of the outback bowl on ABC. of course i had attended this bowl 12 years ago, when iowa beat south carolina. in this edition, mississippi beat indiana 26-20. my last stop before i made it home was the holiday gas station to get a nathan's pretzel dog, and it was eaten at halftime along with string cheese. after the game i laid down and fell asleep for a while. i watched the 6pm news and then went to aldi for my weekly grocery order. when i got back i had dinner, some pizza, and then searched for something to watch on TV. i found a college hockey game on 'fox 9-plus', or as i call it 'channel 9-2'. it was st. cloud state vs. minnesota-duluth. but it was boring when i started to watch it as it was during the second intermission. st. cloud was leading 3-2 when i first tuned in, but duluth got a goal in the third to tie it, and this sent it into overtime. duluth won 4-3 with a goal that was two minutes into overtime. after this i switched to the 'movies!' channel, and some spencer tracy-kate hepburn movies were on. i went on a walk after watching the late news and found 62 cents. as usual, there is not much planned for sunday. 

grinch movie (2018)

 i watched a DVD movie this morning, a redbox rental, 'the grinch'. it was the 2018 version, when it was recommended by mason city in a facebook posting i figured i should act quick to see it while it is still 'in season' as it would be easier to find. i recognized rashida jones voicing donna, cindy lou's mom. i liked it more than the one from 2000 starring jim carrey, as one could tell the script was padded to get it up to movie length from the first adaptation- the TV special from 1966. cindy lou was always bothering the grinch in that version, she is more likable in this one. a few new characters were introduced, such as the reindeer known as fred, which looked more like an ox because it was so big. in the music part of the closing credits i noticed how run-dmc was credited multiple times, as was stray cats frontman brian setzer. the coffee-making contraption was fun, and a few times i said 'hyperbole' such as when the grinch and his dog max sit at opposite ends of a big dinner table. 

in the evening i went on a walk and found 60 cents. due to the quarters i found recently i already have a decent amount of beer money for the next big event, the super bowl. but i want to keep going on saving up for it. the 'big bang theory' reruns were when raj went to a photo shoot for people magazine. it was followed by the one where sheldon has two guest stars on 'fun with flags'- wil wheaton and levar burton- and amy annoys both by being a demanding director. since it was new year's day i wanted to watch a college football bowl game, although the only one not on espn was the citrus bowl, on abc. northwestern beat auburn 35-19. before then i went out to do some errand running. first was returning the movie, then stopping at two grocery stores- hy-vee and cub. i bought more items at hy-vee, just two at cub- some rolls, and egg nog. plenty of nog left, as i recall 45 quart bottles and 23 half gallon jugs. but when it is expiring in a week i figured getting just one more was enough. for whatever reason, it reminds me of what i saw on my walk. i was going past a bus stop and i sometimes toss trash into a bin. in this case, upon further inspection, i noticed it was some payday candy bars inside a little green metal bucket. hated to see it going to waste, but when it is winter i figured it had been outside in the cold for too long and wouldn't be edible. i know there is more to do on saturday, already made a list of things i want to get done.