Saturday, July 30, 2011

Saturday Enui

Today is Saturday. I am blogging early because I haven't had the energy the last few evenings. I am especially upbeat today because I am actually able to dry my laundry from home again. Erika paid Anthony, the electrician who got our A/C going again, to replace the breaker to our dryer and now we are up and running. I have posted to this blog several times in the past from the public laundromat, but this post will signify the first home laundry session. The thing that was the hardest about public drying, besides waiting for clothes to finish tumbling, was having to gather up all the household's dirty skivvies and do them in one mass batch. It was always a major event. No more 'Laundry Day' around here.
I am also going to work on selling off some more junk to continue saving up for a car. Some Beatles figures and a re-post of my acoustic Ibanez. Perhaps later on I will take up a bike ride. The day is still young.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Texture Before Meatloaf

During the sale over the weekend I met a lady who needed a couple of walls re-textured in her guest bedroom. She and her husband removed some wallpaper from these two walls several days before. The walls were fairly smooth and I only needed to mix up three pans of hot mud to level out the tears and gouges. This was also enough mud to patch a light box hole over the master bathroom mirror. I completed the entire project, including knockdown texture and cleanup, in under three and a half hours.
I meant to take some before and after pictures but I forgot until I came home. This is why I never have enough photographs of my work. I always jump right in and start working without thinking about preservation of the moment. In all the jobs I have done in three years, I have only documented four projects. From now on I will take more pictures as a rule.
Now it is time for meatloaf. The room smells of Erika's home cooking, and the dogs are getting all lathered up. Time to go, as dinner is calling.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Isabella and the Macarena



I had to take a couple of days off from the blog because the real world was beginning to creep into my cyber-realm and I had no choice but to deal with it. There was a small affair on Friday which involved texturing a wall in Stan and Gina's home. This evolved into a trip down to the 420 Evaluation clinic which was something I had been nudging Stan to do for two years. We got that taken care of and then moseyed on down to the Reserve, a fine cannabis dispensing establishment on Fulton Avenue across from the Target.
I was glad to have had a good time that night because the next two days were Super Sale madness at the SW. I have learned not to stress too much about the Super Sales. Rarely do any managers from any of the stores schedule themselves in to work on those days because they know it is madness; so I figure why should I worry about it if they don't. If the stores are only staffed with two people when they know they won't have the capacity to help everyone, then it's not my concern if people leave pissed off because they have to wait an hour for help. It doesn't affect my bottom line.
On another note, I really enjoyed hanging with my niece, Isabella, on Saturday night. We had a sleep over and she stayed up till 3 a.m. Hey, even I can come into work on no sleep if I want to. It's not just for college kids anymore. She really wanted to play with my phone's camera and clown around. I told her I would post this clip on You Tube for her to watch from home.


Friday, July 22, 2011

A/C is Fixed

Erika found a guy who does electrical work on the side with his buddy. He is the son of the lady who runs the rescue where we picked up Rudy. Today his partner drove up from Stockton and popped out the old breaker and replaced it with one is more up to date. It worked and now the A/C is blowing cool freon. I just hope it doesn't send the SMUD out of control.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Beef Enchiladas Verde

I slow cooked a beef pot roast in the crock all day. About three hours in I bought some fresh peppers of all sorts to dice in, from the local La Superior market on Northgate Blvd. I got a great deal on some Oaxaca cheese which must have been expired or something because it was about 99 cents a brick. Cheese is always best a few days past it's prime. The stinkier the better too. I don't mean for this to become a food blog, but right now that is where my thrills lie so I must see it through.
Anyway, I wrapped the beef into little enchi-blankies (flour tortillas), after braising it into a pan to evaporate some moisture out of the beef while infusing the flavor of the peppers. Then I smothered them in green Las Palmas enchilada sauce and expired Mexican cheese. Bake for forty minutes at 350 and boom. The best enchiladas so far according to Erika.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

That's Not Cioppino, it's Linguini de Mare!

Erika's birthday continues. We have just returned from Anthony's and now we are feeling euphoric. I still think I can squeeze down  some chocolate ice cream, but maybe it would be a better idea to save it for tomorrow.

I do feel rather sheepish after making a huge to do about the Cioppino at Anthony's. Cioppino is an Italian medley of sea foods all souped together with a rich and intoxicating blend of unique textures and flavors. But this time, after glancing at the menu I refrained from the reflexive action of going with the tried and true dish, in lieu of the Linguini de Mare. This was a pasta dish with a scattering of clams, calamari, shrimp, and other delicious bits of the sea, all enveloped in a mild but tangy tomato sauce.


Erika did go with the tried and true, but being that it is her birthday who's to say what she should have. She is in love with their Veal Parmesan. They throw two large slabs on the plate so she always ends up having left overs for lunch. Tomorrow will be no different. Now look at this plate of cheesy bliss.

It's Erika's Birthday

Today is Erika's birthday and we are planning on going out to dinner. I won't tell you how old she is, suffice to say that she still isn't younger than me. We will probably be going to Anthony's which is a quaint little diner by Bel Air on West El Camino. It's about the size of  a walk-in  closet, but the food is very good and on the cheap side. They have one waitress who isn't all that attentive, and the guy cooking in the kitchen is named Anthony, just like the the sign says. Try the Cioppino if you ever have the chance.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

The Holographic Universe

Today did not seem to be very eventful at the store, yet when it was all done and said there was over nine hundred in sales with fourteen transactions. For a normal day that would be piss-poor pathetic, but as far as Sundays go that is a good day. Beth had called in sick that morning so I rolled through the whole day flying solo.
After work it was some frozen lasagna and chocolate ice cream. Most of the night was spent reading a great book that Kellie gave me for my birthday. It is called 'The Holographic Universe' by Michael Talbot, and it dips into some very heavy concepts about the constructs of reality and how we decode it. It builds upon the works of psychologists and neurophysiscists to postulate that perhaps the entire universe and our own consciousness is interconnected as a whole, and that the world we see is only a collective holographic projection of reality that we have the power change. That doesn't sound too far out for me to grab onto when I consider that everything is ultimately made up of atoms, and atoms themselves are over 99% empty space with the remainder being high frequency energy routes. This book goes so far as to suggest that consciousness is actually held within the atom and that everything has a level of consciousness attached to it, whether low frequency or high.
Well, there is much farther to go so I will check out. It's going to be a crazy day at work tomorrow since there will only be two of us in the store, as usual. I'm sure I will probably be driving around all day gathering product while my poor boss will be doing all the work herself.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Trails End

So this is what you see if you ride far enough north past Del Paso rd. It doesn't look bike friendly. Time to turn back.
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Friday, July 15, 2011

Rudy Gets Medieval on a Blanket

It's always fun to get Rudy riled up. He's very tightly wound most of the time.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

The Day After That

It is the day after, 'the day after', and it's hot again. Probably another night of short bursts of sleep mixed with sweats. On the brighter side, I chatted with Bella today via Facebook and she wants me to play Farmville with her. Normally I ignore such requests but I decided for her I would do it. You see, she's really cute and I am virtually powerless against her. It's outdated, but this picture sums it up.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

The Day After Boom Boom Boom

It is the fifth day of July in 2011, and we are all doing our very best to keep the house cool and dark. The dogs are wiped out from all of last nights explosive drama. I feel as though I too may be hearing less sharply than day before yesterday.The heat is on, and it is more difficult than ever to rise from the couch. But what the hell should I feel guilty for? I worked on the holiday. While others were quein' and drinking, I was shaking and serving, so what? Not that there is anything wrong with that. I am simply justifying my malaise, and my lack of motivation for finding the remedy.
I have so far today watched a couple of internet movies and eaten through a few left overs from the fridge. We let entirely too much food go to waste in my opinion;  but it is difficult to always keep current on remainder food. I got a call from my boss today and we talked for a short while about things that are going on in  the company, and about me coming back to Rocklin. This Sunday is business as usual and then Monday I will be officially back. I feel that the large weight of uncertainty has been lifted, and soon there will be a better sense of normalcy. Once we re-solidify we will be a more competitive store in the district. Arden we are not, but we can tackle the rest if we try.

Monday, July 4, 2011

4th of July

I don't mean to be unpatriotic or a killjoy, but the Fourth of July really doesn't do much for me. It seems with each passing year I find it more annoying and unsettling. My dogs definitely don't care for it. This is actually the third night in a row since people in our neighborhood like to get started early. Most of the fireworks they don't mind, but when one is close enough or thunderous enough the dogs will light up with a flurry of barks. Phoebe's bark is intense and Rudy's is nerve racking. On top of all the racket is the heat which seems to always be the worst during the first week of July. I admit, I am no fan of summer.