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Crabby

I woke up early to try and beat the pups before they got out, but I was still too late. I wandered around outside a bit and then saw them right outside the gate. The neighbor said they had been in their front yard all morning, so I shuffled them back inside. They were out of food, so I got dressed and went to the Neighborhood Market for some more. I picked up some breakfast sausage as well, and made myself some eggs and a bagel to go with it. Summer wasn’t ready to eat when she finally woke up, so I just took a shower and got ready to meet my parents for their trip to Fort Smith.

The first order of business was to drop off some mint at the Midland Market Oriental food store. Then we dropped Mom off for a nail appointment and then I went with Dad to the magic club meeting. They had a show-and-tell with their assorted magic wands and canes, and the disappearing cane stole the show. I ended up holding Larry’s phone so Patrick could see things in a video call. Mom finished up, and we were eventually the first ones to leave so we could get her.

Our next stop was Red Lobster where I could finally get the crab and lobster I had dreamed of all week long. The restaurant was pretty empty for being dinner time, but the food was great. It really makes me sad that they’re doing so poorly, because I’ve always loved eating there.

Afterward we went to a couple Oriental food stores, but Truong Son was closed and we ended up back at Midland for what we needed. It was a super short trip though, and then we headed home.

Eaddie and Eli were out front with the dogs, who all had bright, new collars of blue, red, and pink. I was pretty frustrated, because Summer and I had just talked about how we needed to have a family conversation about the dogs when I got back, and here they were making purchases without me. On top of that, I found that Muad’dib and Stilgar both had choke collars, which was absolutely not what I wanted for them. Chani’s was too big, and I later found her with her with the collar strapped between her jaw and the back of her teeth so she couldn’t close her mouth.

I made Eaddie clean her room and then tried cleaning up some random things myself. I finished up some of Allen’s wine as the girls wrapped up their evenings, and eventually got to bed.

Half thoughts and half naughts.

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Dreg Lobster

I woke up really early a few times this morning and saw the dogs were still outside, but the girls were fast asleep. I had hoped they would eventually wake up and take the dogs to the Liberty dog wash like they promised after not taking them last night, but it just never happened. The last time I woke up and was ready to stay awake, the girls still hadn’t budged and the dogs were gone. I made a quick circle around the block, and even ran back by the garage sale, but didn’t see them. I came back home because it started sprinkling and just fumed over half-finished tasks.

Summer wanted to come home from work on Friday and work in the yard, but the fence wasn’t repaired. The girls wanted to bathe the dogs outside and left the hose and a bunch of flea and tick shampoo sitting out on the ground in the sun. More soap and some rubber gloves were up on the deck, but the gloves had been torn up, along with the foam handle on the hose sprayer. If I hadn’t made Eaddie take care of it before she went to bed, she would have still had suitcases in her floor from her band trip. I was sick of it.

I sat on the porch until Summer finally came out, and I lit her up for it all. She took the Pathfinder around the block and ended up finding the dogs just as I took the Onewheel back out again between raindrops. She got them home but wanted to take them straight to the wash with Eaddie, so I loaded up and drove separately to meet them. She really wanted to get a leash so we could obey the rules of the wash, so I stopped by my parents’ house and got an old choke collar and some rope from Dad.

The wash would only start with a $10 payment for 10 minutes, but you could add five more minutes for $4. Since we only got one dog out of the car at a time, we just started three different sessions. Muad’dib was the first to go, and the most upset by the whole process. He also hated the leash, but would behave fine without it, so we eventually got him finished and back into the car. When we took Chani, someone had peed on the tarp, so we threw a towel in to soak it up before it got onto the upholstery. By the time we finally got Stilgar, someone had pooped as well, and it wasn’t at all solid.

We had occupied the only working bath out of the two in the room for just over thirty minutes while it rained outside. Another guy came in and talked to us while we worked, and then wanted to show off his giant dog as we left. Once we got the dogs back inside the fence, we cleaned up the car and the tarp, and made sure they had plenty of food. Nobody was permanently emotionally scarred by the bathing, and I pulled a few more ticks before we went inside to clean up ourselves.

We left for Little Rock about three hours later than I wanted, so we’d be late for lunch. Eaddie was feeling sick from lack of food, so we stopped at the Morrilton Drive Inn, which had new owners and was now called Nooner’s Diner. We had some fried pickles and mushrooms, which didn’t seem like a good idea for an upset stomach, but it got us on the road again. It wasn’t anywhere near a typical meal time by the time we got to Red Lobster, so I wasn’t completely confident we would actually get to go back for a second meal, but I still ordered something other than what I really wanted. I figured the crab pasta would be filling enough to get us through some shopping. I hated it. At least the girls liked their food.

I expressed some pretty strong feelings when Eaddie said Autumn had texted her asking to trade vehicles so she could have the Pathfinder, so Summer held a grudge against me for most of the rest of the day. I just can’t abide terrible people, and that whole family is rotten in spite of any good deeds in the past. There’s no one-time-saves-all in my Book.

After we ate, the girls wanted to stop at Ross, but then didn’t want to actually shop for anything, so we left and went to Shoe Carnival. They didn’t have a whole lot that interested me, and what they did have was too expensive. I finally found a pair on clearance that I thought would suit my needs, and after coupons I only paid $10.

Next up was Old Navy, where Eaddie actually got excited to try on some clothes. I was feeling so parched that I couldn’t wait to find a fountain, so I bought a $3.50 Dasani, but I would have let myself die of thirst if I had known the price before I cracked the top.

I took us to Kohl’s after that, and it seemed like about half the store was a clearance section for the ladies, so Eaddie looked everywhere and tried on a bunch of things again. At least they had a bottle filler, and I drank several more full bottles while I waited.

Finally, I took us to Baskin-Robbins for some ice cream. I was pretty disappointed in the portions for the price, but it was tasty. I couldn’t convince the girls to go to Red Lobster again, so we headed home where the puppies were all still waiting for us. Eaddie and I played with them for a bit, and all of their fur felt way better after their bath in the morning. Hopefully the ticks fall away and everyone will be happy. The girls went to bed pretty quickly, but of course I still had chores.

Maybe we just need a morning walk.

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Secondhand Dogs

By the time I got out of bed this morning, the dogs had disappeared from the back yard. I came back in to get dressed, and then rode around the neighborhood on the Onewheel to see if I could find them. I talked to over a half dozen groups of people because so many were outside either on a day off, or working on utility lines all through the neighborhood. I figured it wouldn’t be a terrible thing if we never saw them again, but I wanted to be sure they weren’t just wandering around. My last stop was a garage sale just a block in the wealthier direction, and just as the question left my lips, I glanced down and saw Chani laying on the floor of their garage. Then I saw the other two laying just behind them. She said they fed them some Blue Buffalo and called Animal Control, but that they probably weren’t coming.

I ran home to get the Pathfinder, and one of the ladies gave me a pair of shoes that one of them had been chewing on. I didn’t really want to encourage chewing on shoes though, so I ended up throwing them out. One of the ladies said Stilgar had rolled onto a “MAKE OFFER” sticker from their sale, which I thought was really funny. I got them home and fed them some more, and then Dad came over with some flea and tick shampoo from the old house.

Eaddie had a hiking trip with some friends and left, so I got a roast going in the slow cooker before Summer got home from work. Julie invited us out to the airport where they were grilling burgers, so I took a shower and ended up going out there. Eaddie brought Eli back and they stayed home with Summer.

I took the Onewheel with me, but didn’t really have much use for it. They just had a bunch of friends out in camp chairs, and we had simple burgers and stuff. I left when Dad did, and stopped by the old house to feed the fish before going home. Then I got the dogs out of the back and took them for a walk around the block. They did pretty well for the first stretch, staying right by me. Then they got distracted by a toddler with a diaper, and took off after some sort of critter. They didn’t get super far, and would periodically lag behind or run ahead of me before circling back. We made it back home though, and everyone came in without too much fuss.

The others were sat inside watching a movie, so I cleaned up in the kitchen and then wound down for the night.

No leash; No problem

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Bad Spartacus

I got to work a little early today and was greeted in the parking lot by three puppies. One had bright blue eyes, save for one little pie slice of brown, so obviously he was Muad’dib. Chani was smaller and darker. Stilgar, though; Stilgar was scruffy. Someone mentioned that they were likely dumped there at the school, which was upsetting. They would occasionally try to come into the building, so they hung around the back doors all day.

I went in and cleaned up a little more. Then I took screenshots of the configuration for one of the switches I haven’t been able to reach in preparation for Ben’s visit. I had a plan. He arrived a little late for lunch, so we immediately left for the Junction Cafe where we had a couple burgers. His with brisket looked way better than mine with shrimp. It was odd. Not bad, but less than half the size of his.

After we ate, we headed back to the office and got his little computer to put on our network. He never got it fully working, but then as I was trying to configure switches, the second core switch restarted and then broke everything downstream. Hours later, we came to the conclusion that they were basically all screaming that they had the same IP address, and were unable to reach DHCP. Due to the arrangement of the core switch and those leading to the servers that hosted DHCP, they wouldn’t talk again until I finally pulled every last fiber connection out of the aggregation switches and left nothing but the core and a link from it to the servers.

We brought everything back online and then left. The dogs were still outside, and I was torn. I love the idea of having a well-trained dog for a pet, but I just don’t want animals around holding us back. On the other hand, people were leaving, and the dogs hadn’t moved all day. I sent one last picture to Summer, and she said (perhaps jokingly) to bring them home. I couldn’t ever get more than two into the Model Y at once just because they kept jumping out, so I decided not to risk any damage to her car.

I drove home, ate a couple slices of pizza, and changed before taking the Pathfinder back to the school. I had to stop at Casey’s for some gas, and then made it without incident. They weren’t there. I walked around the back dock area where they had been all day, and they weren’t anywhere to be seen. Then I figured I should check by the fieldhouse just to make sure they hadn’t followed where people were gathered. That was when I saw one of them out in the grass. Usul. Then another. Stilgar. I struggled to get them into the trunk where I had laid out a tarp. Chani was nowhere to be found. I called for her, but nothing. I finally gave up and drove back to the building to wash my hands for the drive home. That was when she came running up to the car, from who-knows where. She resisted, but we finally got everyone loaded up.

The drive home was reasonably quiet. They were super active at first, but they settled down within just a couple miles, and by the time we got through Ola, they were all laying down in the back. Someone did something to cause a couple yelps, but otherwise they were completely silent. I got home and pulled into the driveway right behind Summer as she got home from work. Eaddie and Eli were inside already. As Summer approached, I opened the hatch for the big reveal. Everyone hopped down gently on their own, and then followed me obediently into the back yard. Maybe it was thirst or hunger, but they really were perfectly behaved.

I took the kids to Walmart while Summer played with the dogs on the porch. They needed some lunch supplies, and we got some dog food and treats. I decided to pick up a few groceries as well, and then we headed home. The dogs got really physically rowdy when the food came out, so that was a challenge. I ended up just making three piles on the ground for them to eat. Then they each gently took a treat and I left them to entertain the kids so I could go inside, cool off, and dry out.

Twice today, I asked myself how I got into this mess. I guess it could be messier.

Good dog.

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Ground Beef Week

I was super groggy again this morning after taking nighttime medicine. I knew better, but I just felt so gross last night. I did manage to make it to work on time, since the traffic hasn’t been bad now that school is out. It was another quiet day all to myself, and I spent nearly all of it cleaning the office. I figured out a stupid imaging problem I had, because I had disabled a step in the task sequence that was causing trouble previously. That allowed me to set up a “guest” workstation for new teacher setup and the like.

The cafeteria has been on a hamburger meat kick, with burritos on Monday, tacos on Tuesday, and Frito chili pies today. I doubt we’re having actual hamburgers tomorrow, because I’ll bet that’s too much work for the small number of people they’re feeding.

Ben called at the end of the day to check in and confirm he’d be coming to visit tomorrow. We chatted for a little bit as I packed up to head home. The girls were hungry, so I picked up some Domino’s after I fed the fish. Just as we sat down to eat, someone knocked on the door wanting to sell us a security system. Summer struggled to turn him away, and now I’ll be worried he’ll rob us.

After dinner, Eaddie and I watched an episode of Better Call Saul before bed. She was struggling with a head cold as well, so I guess it’s just going around.

S’all good, man.

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Summer School Burnout

It was only the second day of summer school, and I was over it. I think we only had under a dozen kids in for the summer, so the motion-sensing lights are off in the hallways for most of the day. I did manage to get some lunch this time since Becky prompted me around 11:30. That helped, but the afternoon still dragged on.

I was reasonably accomplished with some tasks of lesser importance. I took out some trash and just tinkered all day. There’s really a long list of apps I need to compile to comply with new laws, but that just doesn’t sound fun.

I ended up staying late so I could take Friday off. There’s no way they’ll need me then anyway, so there’s no sense in working five days. The drive home was pretty quiet, and southbound traffic was backed up once again. I couldn’t imagine having to wait that long to get back into Dardanelle, but there’s just no better way.

After feeding the fish, I was going to go see Summer, but there was a wreck blocking my intersection and I just went home instead. I rode the Onewheel to my parents’ house and ate some leftovers with them. Then I ran home to get a little jar of cat food to give to Dad. On the way back to their house, a couple kids stopped to ask about the Onewheel, and I let one of them try it. He didn’t stay on long at all before jumping off.

Once Summer got off, we dropped the Model Y off at the high school for Eaddie. She wouldn’t be home until super late, so rather than wake up and bring her home, we figured she’ll have her phone and can get home herself. Once we got back home, I doped up to try and sleep through my congestion, and it was off to bed.

They don’t know what they’ve got.

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unPlugins

I must have been determined to have a bad day today. I woke up groggy, but at least I didn’t keep trying to fall back asleep. I still ran behind though, and traffic over the Dardanelle bridge was down to one lane, so I was about 10 minutes late. Nobody noticed, because even the principals were there in basketball shorts. That’s just what we’re working with out there in the county.

I stumbled upon a strange issue with accessing my virtual machines, which led me to believe there was a networking issue somewhere. I spent a while in the core closet, then gave up for a while and came back to the office where I had a cup of cereal. After I cleaned my cup, I accidentally tapped the edge of my watch against the bottom of the mug, so now there’s a tiny little chip, and though it’s not terribly noticeable, I’ll know it’s there forever.

I missed lunch because it looked like only three kids were there. Surely there were more, but I just heard no noise anywhere. I ended up having a bowl of ramen with some frozen peppers. Later in the afternoon I discovered my server problem was two loose power cables in the back of the management switch. Half of the switch was just not powered on at all.

At the end of the day, I decided to call Optimum to try and cancel service. They immediately offered service for $40 per month. One hold session later, I was also offered three months free. Finally I was put on hold to be transferred to an employee that could actually cancel my plan, and the call was dropped.

I headed home and found southbound traffic backed up from the 2nd Street light in Dardanelle, over the bridge, and all the way up past Atwood’s in Russellville. Lucky for me, I commute the stupid direction and live in the more expensive area. I fed the fish and then headed home where Summer was making a meatloaf for dinner.

I called Optimum again, waited on hold for half an hour, and finally got someone to cancel my service. The meatloaf had to go back in for some additional time, but we eventually had dinner. Then we watched Everything Everywhere All at Once. Summer seemed entertained, but it was weird. I really enjoyed it, but then it was time to rush to bed.

I would have really liked just doing laundry and taxes with you.

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Boys Club Movies

Summer still had to go to Conway to pick up stuff for work, so we decided to rush there to catch a movie as well. I got tickets for IF, as well as a couple coupons for Kohl’s and Shoe Carnival, and we were off. I let her drive so I could plot the most efficient course along the way, and we ended up at Kohl’s first. They didn’t have anything that I really wanted, so I picked up another bath mat instead.

We had some time left on the Shoe Carnival coupon, but not so much time before the movie, so I got us to Splash first. Summer ran in to do her thing, and then we got to the theater with plenty of time for snacks. I got irritated by the lady that jumped ahead of us in line so she could order for her seven hundred million people, and then found them in the same auditorium as us, but fortunately their kids were quiet.

The trailers didn’t really give away any important plot details, so the first part of the movie was a bit of fresh story, and I wasn’t really sure where it was going. I found the reveals to be predictable, but otherwise it was a fun, sweet, feel-good movie. We really enjoyed it.

Dad started grilling pork chops as we were driving home, and we made it to their house just in time to set the table. Julie and Kevin came over a little later, but just visited and then took food to go. Julie misread my response to her vacation offer the other day, so we won’t be going to the beach on Labor Day, but I also didn’t get the new job I was anticipating, so it’s just as well.

Summer really wanted to get home to finish up some yard work, so we got home with a little bit of daylight left. I got some more laundry done, and before I knew it, I was two hours late to bed.

Oh, to be a star.

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Pint of Alements

I woke up feeling pretty rough, with a worse throat and somehow a dry tongue. Summer wasn’t feeling well either, but we were both hungry, so I got up and made some eggs with bagels for breakfast. Afterward, Summer said the bedroom fan was being super noisy, so I looked again and saw that it had walked across the ceiling a bit. I climbed up onto the bed and found that one of the two mounting screws had come out. There were two holes that were both completely stripped out.

Around that time, Dad wanted to borrow my pick set to extract a gasket. He rode a bicycle over and got them, and then I rode the Onewheel over to their house to find a larger screw from his jars of screws. That made quick work of the fan, but the other side didn’t look to be in great shape either. It’ll probably be a good idea to replace that screw too.

Summer had been thinking about going to Conway for the day since she had to get some work stuff from there before Monday. By the time I had a shower and was ready to do anything, she had become aimless, which frustrated me. I ended up taking her to the old house to pick up some more stuff in the Pathfinder. We took three trips, but never at capacity. We had room on the porch for the outdoor chairs though, and also picked up a couple UPS batteries. On our last trip, I replaced the thermostat so I could ship the old one back in exchange for the replacement I got.

We were hungry for an early dinner by then, so we went to Stoby’s for one of the worst meals we’d ever had there. My burger was dry to the point that it was burnt, and so incredibly salty and dry that it was just hard to choke down. Summer’s pasta was watered down and lacked its usual creaminess. I kind of wanted some possum pie, but I was afraid to try it after that meal.

We were both feeling pretty rough by the time we got home. I still had a massive headache, which I figured was likely from blood pressure. I took some medicine for that, started some laundry, and came out to watch a movie. Unfortunately X-Men: Days of Future Past was no longer on Disney+, so I ended up playing The King’s Man since I loved the first two in the series and had never seen this one. I didn’t think it was nearly as good as the other two, but it had some really good moments.

I guess I’ll try to get up and be the motivator tomorrow.

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The Hunt Continues

It was pouring down rain this morning, and I really struggled to wake up. I just didn’t get nearly enough sleep, and I rolled into work a bit late. Still, nobody should have cared, and I had my timecard for the week filled up. Denice showed up for a little while, and I left the office to rewire the library cart that was an absolute wreck. I left work around lunch time, and there were only a couple other cars left.

I fed the fish and then stopped by the wash to see Summer. She took her car and I took the Pathfinder home and got Eaddie so we could go to New China for lunch. I got a call from Joel at Bitec letting me know that they went with one of their other candidates, so now I have no prospects for the time being.

After we ate, we came back home and Summer and I both got super sleepy. She napped for a while, and I dozed off watching some YouTube, so I gave up and snoozed a bit on the couch. I slowly felt more and more sick in the throat from either sinus drainage or possibly from snoring, though I don’t remember falling asleep that hard.

Eventually Eaddie got to a point where she wanted to watch Better Call Saul, so we watched one episode before she had to finish packing for her band trip. Summer helped her with that, and then we all went to get Eli and drop them off at the high school.

Once we got home for the night, Summer went to bed. I applied for a remote job that looked pretty good, and was ready to pass out myself.

A sense of humor, you say?