What are you doing today? (besides shopping)

Cleaning out the car. Errands. Wishing for enough time to include a nap.

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

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Catching up on paperwork and baking an apple cake. I wish I didn't love to bake.

But I'm happy you do!

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

Today was work, homework, and house hunting.

When I was at the airport in Paris, I had 1 hour to go to my connecting flight. The plan was to go to the duty free shop and use my remaining euros on a bottle of wine to share with BFF. The line was out the door, and I had to get to my flight. I ended up buying the French wine from Total Wines in my county. We drank it tonight.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

Happy Wednesday! In my world, I am failing in my efforts to meet a goal of spending less than one hour per day online. It is just too much fun, or too gruesomely addictive, to follow along with the nutty professor and the rest of the gang. But please know that I will not blame anyone for my failure. It is always my responsibility to turn off the devices, to walk away from the devices, and to find something else to do, regardless of how bizarre the "news" is.

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

Mani/Pedi much needed and shopping today consists of my favorite healthy salad/wrap place, a new Franchise that opened in 6 locations with no waiting, been doing it monthly. and keeps m on my diet, lost 11pds, so, want to maintain. I agree, the forum/computer can be addictive, but when the subject is of concern, I'm there to add my two cents.

Live consciously....

Eager to try to find about Kavanaugh as judge. Have his decisions been upheld or overturned? This is a reasonable and timely consideration. Any relevant instances would be explained and detailed...

Good. Apparently, he is solid. He agrees, disagrees, or dissents. This is what judges are supposed to do, when given the opportunity or some reason to do so. The backlash comes from people who disagree so strongly that their agendas have become stuck in their craws-- but in the freedoms of this nation, this is a freely chosen thing.

Whoever initially suggested Judge Kavanaugh knew a good judge when they saw one. Now, we will wait and see about the Senators and their points of view...

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/04/2018 02:01PM by Shop-et-al.

Taking delivery of my new mattress. Taking pictures of the mountain bicycle that arrived so mysteriously a couple of months ago and preparing to sell it in its current, un-assembled, state. Already have 2 interested parties. Taking pictures of Sleep Number mattress set to post on Ebay. (Apparently there is an amazing resale market!) Catching up on tons of little projects that languished while I had an intense MS month last month. getting bids to remove dying tree from my tiny front yard so that front windows (35 years old) can be replace in November.

Tomorrow I will start my October MS duties in earnest. Garages, coffee, used car, banks, mostly.

Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel

Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.

I inked my shops for the month.

I had plans after work today to meet a friend in the city for dinner at a Belgian restaurant. I was going to walk there (an hour) after work. I forgot that I got off early due to the holiday on Monday. I now had two hours to kill before dinner. I went to the National Portrait Gallery and saw some amazing art. Dinner was great.

I saw four amazing displays at the National Portrait Gallery! The first were exhibits by Ken Gonzales-Day and Titus Kaphar. They were breathtaking and powerful.

The second was an exhibit of 1968 relics. The Gallery opened in 1968, and that was also the year I was born.

The third display was art work on American Justice. There were paintings, drawings and sculptures of some very notable people with a description of their struggles and contributions to society.

The fourth was the American Presidents and I saw the portrait of President Obama.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

I have not done a shop all week. I started the week off with a 15 hour day at work which was horrible. I continued to work hard all week despite being challenged at every step of the way while trying to help where I could. I then found out my company is "merging" with our closest competitor, but they are keeping their name, their CEO, and on and on....Sounds like a buyout to me, but whatever. Anyway, sorry, I found this thread and needed to vent. I am actually looking for shops to add for this month so I can keep my mind off my day job. So far I have 3 groceries on Monday and a TGIF takeout on Friday.

I hope everyone is having a better week then me.

Orlando - lightly shopping NC

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/06/2018 01:54AM by oteixeira.

Have some legal stuff going on and finally see an end to it. My Atty. the Judge and Atty., for Ronald Reagan who lives in my town and is friends with a friend was recommended and was amazing, what an honorable man. Case is dismissed, I can breathe again.....time to treat myself to a nice dinner, and want to go to the water, maybe tomorrow. Weather cool, fall is here. Homeowners removed a tree in front of my house that always dropped leaves, this fall will be clean, also provides more light into house and I can see the view. The Reagan library is fairly close to me, maybe I'm due for a view....the grounds are amazing, acre's, will check it out, easy drive.

Live consciously....

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/06/2018 01:56AM by Irene_L.A..

Errands and an interesting thing: The New Yorker has a piece about Ruth Bader Ginsberg. She is so smart and so practical.

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

@HonnyBrown wrote:

I saw four amazing displays at the National Portrait Gallery!

Honny, that sounds like a WONDERFUL way to spend some extra time!! Glad you were able to do that!

I'm making a trip to the hated Wal Mart as I need a new mop and a non stick skillet. Then I"m taking stuff that has stacked up in the hallway upstairs into the attic. I hate that as I am paranoid about spiders but it has to be done. I did some yesterday and the attic, while dusty, doesn't seem to be spider infested so I"m grateful for that. Then general cleaning and starting some beef stew in the crock pot.

@CoffeeQueen wrote:

I'm making a trip to the hated Wal Mart as I need a new mop and a non stick skillet. Then I"m taking stuff that has stacked up in the hallway upstairs into the attic. I hate that as I am paranoid about spiders but it has to be done. I did some yesterday and the attic, while dusty, doesn't seem to be spider infested so I"m grateful for that. Then general cleaning and starting some beef stew in the crock pot.

lol. I do not hate WalMart. In fact, the other day I found a tiny, non-stick pan/spatula there. This is good for portion control. If I am not cooking for the freezer, I do not need to use the larger cooking doodads. Seeing small, cooking small, dressing small... maybe this will work. Seven bucks. Amazing. Anyway, in WalMart's defense, they sell the real apple cider vinegar with the mother and the real Martinelli's apple juice.

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

guys, I'm glad too! When I had two hours to kill, the plan was to go to Nordstrom Rack. Two hours in that store would have done some serious damage to my debit card. The portrait gallery was free and it touched me!

@guysmom wrote:

@HonnyBrown wrote:

I saw four amazing displays at the National Portrait Gallery!
Honny, that sounds like a WONDERFUL way to spend some extra time!! Glad you were able to do that!

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

I can give you reasons to hate Wal-Mart. They truly destroy small businesses.

I used to be an engineer at a Hormel plant in Los Angeles. Being a Fortune 500 company, Hormel had a lot of capital and resources to meet the requests and demands for Wal-Mart's $.03/pound hams, A small business, however, does not.

Wal-Mart will grant the small business the widget contract for 5 years if they make certain process improvements. The small business takes out a 10 year loan to make these improvements. At the end of 5 years when the contract is over, Wal-Mart wants to buy the product at a lower price. With the looking loan, the small business can't afford to do that. They are now stuck with a loan and no customer. They go out of business.

This is not an isolated incident.

@Shop-et-al wrote:

lol. I do not hate WalMart.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

@HonnyBrown wrote:

I can give you reasons to hate Wal-Mart. They truly destroy small businesses.

I used to be an engineer at a Hormel plant in Los Angeles. Being a Fortune 500 company, Hormel had a lot of capital and resources to meet the requests and demands for Wal-Mart's $.03/pound hams, A small business, however, does not.

Wal-Mart will grant the small business the widget contract for 5 years if they make certain process improvements. The small business takes out a 10 year loan to make these improvements. At the end of 5 years when the contract is over, Wal-Mart wants to buy the product at a lower price. With the looking loan, the small business can't afford to do that. They are now stuck with a loan and no customer. They go out of business.

This is not an isolated incident.

@Shop-et-al wrote:

lol. I do not hate WalMart.

I am sorry but a smart small business would have made sure the contract covered more then enough to offset the cost of the process improvements, and would have also aligned the loan to the length of the contract with WalMart.

Orlando - lightly shopping NC

They did, hence the problem!

@oteixeira wrote:

I am sorry but a smart small business would have made sure the contract covered more then enough to offset the cost of the process improvements, and would have also aligned the loan to the length of the contract with WalMart.

"I told myself to quit you; but I don't listen to drunks." -Chris Stapleton

Happy Monday! I updated my winter things (because we have snow now) and looked at a bit of news. I especially love the ones who still want to protest against Brett Kavanaugh. They are such a treat! He expressed irritation during a hearing and now some protestors are all atip and atwitter. It is as if they believe that they are the only people who have a right to respond when hassled, beleaguered,and attacked. Their motto might we 'Don't attack us. We'll attack you'. Was he in that moment like David, roaring 'rua', and toppling a Goliath? More important: are the protestors being paid overtime for protesting after the fact?

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/08/2018 01:06PM by Shop-et-al.

Back on the subject....today am straightening house waiting for my plumber to fix overflowing kitchen sink between noon and two. Calling cleaning crew for (hopefully) Friday. My hand Arthritis has kicked in, so,
kitchen cleaning and vacuming has become difficult. Weather great, mid 70"s, loving it. Try and read my
magazines on patio later, nothing special, just spending a fortune for cleaning these pipes....can't get ahead these days.

Live consciously....

Routine medical appointment, grocery shopping, laundry, kitchen tidying.

Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel

Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.

One post office shop to mail a can of pork and beans to college son, mall walking (because of the weather) and dentist appointment to have crown cemented on tooth.

Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product. Eleanor Roosevelt

I have a stay-cation night at a hotel near where I I have a lot of shops today and tomorrow. This was a use-it-or-lose-it free hotel night that was about to expire. So, I will use it to make the most of my trip into the city. Will I remember not to take pictures of the bedroom and bathroom? Time will tell.

Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel

Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.

Rainy day but fortunately I don't have anything due today so I will just work on household stuff, dusting vacuuming, laundry, changing sheets. And I do have a bunch of paperwork but that's okay too.

Quiet day here. Think sweaters and boots arrive today or tomorrow. Don't care enough to check the online receipt. Lovelovelove the light snowfall. It comes. it goes. It makes me happy. I noticed that a shop is bonused to an acceptable level. The shop is conveniently located on the way to mil and pays enough to cover gas and coffee. To shop or not to shop...

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

Lowe's to buy a garbage disposal for the plumber Friday, then the library to print out instructions for Timeshare job this weekend and Sprouts for dinner stuff, pickup eye drops, lots to do today.

Live consciously....

It finally feels like fall. Went into a thrift shop to look for a new pair of jeans. Struck out there, but lucked into an almost-new winter parka to replace my shabby-looking one for only $10. I had already priced coats in retail stores, and something that met my requirements cost about $100, so my 10 minutes in the store was time well spent.

Happiness is not a goal; it is a by-product. Eleanor Roosevelt

Lovelovelove thrift stores for all kinds of things. Must stick with specific brands/stores for some items, Anyway, today is perfect for a little road trip. It is overcast, cold, and demanding.. This day demands, "Sweater!"

Bach is not noise, Madam. (Robert, in Two's Company)

I always grab the parking garage shop that is one block from a thrift shop in a very upscale area. Over the past 18 months I have scored some very high end enameled cast iron cookware (2 pieces that appeared to be brand new), a pricey coffee maker, brand new pillow cases, a cooler with picnic set and wine bottle compartment (also new), and a mahogany end table, all at between 10 and 20 percent of retail prices. That cooler is now my constant road trip companion. Love, love love the cookware, which includes the best braising pan in the world IMHO. That shop has very little room for clothing, but I find great tees and sweaters at other thrift shops.

Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel

Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.

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