“You retard!”
March 12, 2004, 2:14 AM
Yes, when I came back up to the Service Desk after my lunch break, before I could even say hello to anyone, I’m greeted with a familiar voice saying, “You retard!”
It was Sis.
And returning a printer cartridge that I bought two weeks ago. Seems I bought the wrong one. I just followed the list that Dad gave me. So it’s not my fault.
Still, it was amusing to see Sis and her friends (Matt and Ben, both of whom I also like) at the Service Desk as I came back. And amusing is what my coworker asked of Sis: “Is he as hyper at home as he is at work?” She answered, “Worse!” All in all, I was amused. Plus I got to find out about their trip to New York, which I couldn’t partake in due to work.
Plus this was the first time Sis got to see me in my vest, since the last time she was at our store while I was working, I was on lunch and carrying it in my hand as I was ringing up my food on the self-checkout.
Still, amusing.
Continue reading…The phone horn is back…
March 9, 2004, 4:51 PM
So I have nailed a new nail and hung the phone horn on it. And of course the first thing I did was call the house. Just to test it out and make sure that it’s going to run. And what do you know – it did.
And I didn’t put it in its old spot. Now, it’s above the VCR, next to the closet. About four feet away from where it used to be.
So on the decor, it’s so far, so good. I have the WMATA poster up over the couch, the bulletin board went over the head of the bed, the white board went behind the door, and my degree from JMU went up between the windows.
Next up: the little pictures.
Categories: Bedroom remodel
Today I got majorly confuzzelated.
March 7, 2004, 1:45 AM
Call it confused, confuzzled, or confuzzelated, but let me tell you… I was going in so many different directions today I probably couldn’t have told you which way was up.
New experience of the day: I got to spend an hour out in the parking lot doing carts. We have a machine that pushes, and is controlled remotely by the associate. Then the associate stands in front and steers. And it sure beats the heck out of pushing them by hand, which I also did some. It was also nice to spend some time outside, which was a nice change from the Service Desk, since we’re in what could almost be described as a well-lit cave.
And I learned that I can control a machine pushing a pile of carts that is about 50 feet long (at least) better than I can control one of the electric carts that people ride around the store. One time when I was greetering, I had to park one of those things after someone was done with it, and promptly backed into a wall. That, by the way, earned me the affectionate nickname “Crash”.
Categories: Television, Walmart
This is one day I was glad to have end…
March 5, 2004, 11:48 PM
Yeah, this was just one day that I was glad to see end and go onto the list of days completed. Today just seemed to drag, with the Service Desk just hopping at the same time. I don’t know what it was, but I just am glad that the day is over.
Meanwhile, I’m trying to figure out what to do. I need to get out on one of my days off for this coming up week. Don’t know where I want to go. I just know that I am taking one day and going AWAY for the day, and dragging Big Mavica, my tripod, and my cell phone with me.
And I really don’t know where I want to go. All I know is that I am craving some city. I want to see tall buildings, I want to see people enjoying manmade surroundings, and I want to see the streets light up at night.
You see, I think that despite having lived in the country for quite a while, I find that I am still an urban person at heart. Realize that my parents both grew up less than an hour away from New York City (my mother in Ridgewood, New Jersey, and my father from Asbury Park), and then they lived near Philadelphia for about sixteen years (in and around Glassboro, New Jersey).
Categories: DC trips
I have been to the JMU Bookstore for the last time ever, if all goes well.
March 4, 2004, 12:05 AM
I went up to Harrisonburg, and bought my diploma frame. Very nice thing, too. And it had better be for $200.
And let me reinforce the fact that I am now officially NEVER going back to the JMU Bookstore, EVER again. They just outdid themselves today when it came to poor customer service. I come in. I look at where the diploma frames are. I ask if one of the clerks, three of which were standing around behind the counter doing nothing, would come out and help me with the diploma frames. I consider this a reasonable request. Help the customer, and facilitate making a sale.
So they tell me that their frame people have already gone home for the day, and to come back tomorrow for assistance with the frames. No “sure, let me help you with that”, but instead, I was basically told go away and come back tomorrow. What kind of customer service is that?
I know that if I did something like that at Wal-Mart, my butt would be in some VERY hot water with management.
A milestone in my redecorating project – my WMATA poster is on the wall!
March 3, 2004, 12:53 AM
Yeah, take a look:
And let me state it one more time – this is not a reproduction or an enlargement. This is the real McCoy. That is an authentic Washington DC Metro (WMATA) system map hanging over my couch. Now all we need is to put a Breda around that map, and hear the voice of Metro saying “Doors Closing!” and the piece will be complete.
Categories: Bedroom remodel
All I ever needed to know about life, I learned on The Schumin Web
March 2, 2004, 12:32 AM
I could make a book with that as the slogan. A friend of mine mentioned it to me, and I think it would be pretty amusing, don’t you think? And you think about it – my site is loaded when it comes to information. I have all sorts of stuff, in the quotes, the journal, the photo areas, all that. Lots of observations about modern life.
Meanwhile, as my site approaches eight years old (no bull!), it would be interesting to have.
But yeah, March 23 is my site’s eighth birthday. Wow… eight years. I was fourteen years old when I started my site. Now I’m 22. I was a freshman in high school back then, with a zit or two here and there (I never had a completely-broken-out face full of zits during puberty). Now I am – say it with me – an adult, doing things that adults do, like going to work every day, paying bills, etc. etc. etc.
Still, eight years. Wow. Doesn’t feel like that long ago.
Categories: Schumin Web meta
The couch returns!
March 1, 2004, 11:00 AM
Yes, my couch has returned to my room, in a stunning morning feat before work. First of all, one of my new torchiere lamps was moved out of the way to make room to bring the couch back in. Then, the frame of the couch was slid, upended, into position, and then set down in its new location. Then I brought the mattress for the couch (my couch is a futon, by the way) back in, and set it down. And finally, we put the torchiere back in place, and we’re done.
And to think that now I have a place to sit when watching TV if I don’t want to use the computer, as well as a fantastic place to just plain old sit. Since I don’t like people to have to sit on the bed, since unless you’re sprawled out on it and ready to pass out, and then only if it’s really your own bed, do you really ever belong on the bed. So it’s off to the side and out of the way.
Meanwhile, we have some odd extra space behind the recliner. What to do with that is the next question. Perhaps we could quickly buy and assemble some shelves to fill the void, and also solve the video tape problem. Something to think about, as we move back into this room.
I will provide photos of the couch in place later, because right now, I need to get ready for work…
Categories: Bedroom remodel
Hands like Death Valley…
February 29, 2004, 1:41 AM
Really and truly, if you look at the back of my hands, you’ll see. There is no difference between the back of my hands, particularly my left hand, and Death Valley. I am so dried out on the back of my hands that they have cracked, and are painful.
And only the back of my hands, too. The palms of both hands are fine. Perfectly fine. Nothing wrong with them.
During December, I’d run into the hands-like-death-valley situation once, and then in January my hands started to recover, and get towards normal, as I started using lotion at night to help things out a little. Then I started redecorating in here, specifically the painting phase. That did it, and sent me back downhill again towards dry, cracked skin. Why? With all the painting I was doing, I was constantly washing my hands to get the paint off. And the constant hand-washing took its toll on my hands. And that undid all that progress.
Categories: Myself
I really can’t tell the difference between them!
February 28, 2004, 11:44 PM
I tell you… I cannot tell the difference between the name-brand fruit juices and the Sam’s Choice brand juice. Sam Walton chose well with the Sam’s Choice juices. They’re good. And they cost at least a dollar less than the other brands.
And those Welch’s commercials with the kid giving the lecture are only bankrolling the competition. I drink Sam’s Choice grape juice that is just too good to gulp. So I watch as it flatters my mouth with flavor (pardon – fwavor, as the kid says it), and feel it fill my cheeks.
And it costs a heck of a lot less, which is a major selling point.
And if you can’t tell already, I swear by my grape juice. Serves two purposes for me. For one, it’s just good. I like it. And secondly, it keeps me out of my father’s orange juice.
And before you ask, though, I cannot stand Sam’s Choice soda. There’s no store-branding when it comes to soda. I know my specific flavors too intimately to pass on them.
Categories: Shopping
The bookshelf is in place and loaded up!
February 28, 2004, 1:10 AM
Yes, the bookshelf is in its real place now, and also really surprised me: I put all the books in, and there’s a whole shelf left to fill! I’m surprised. Sure, I gave away a lot of old books, but still… I’m surprised to have that much extra space. It’s scary, that’s for sure. Still, I got three tubs’ worth of stuff unpacked, loaded onto that new bookshelf.
Next up: video tapes. There’s no more video tape wall. So where on earth am I going to put all these tapes? I know that the cabinets next to the desk are insufficiently sized (and we knew that going in), so we’ll see what happens. I’ll figure out where it goes in the end, I’m sure, but right now, we’ll see.
I also moved most of the pictures for the walls back in here. Not necessarily to put them up right away, but just to get behind them. They were the last things I put in.
Still, video tapes… I need to think about them.
Categories: Bedroom remodel
We had a slight change to my Wal-Mart appearance today…
February 27, 2004, 11:53 PM
I got a new vest! Finally, one that fits properly. It’s BIG. I can button it up and still have room to spare.
It’s also technically a women’s vest, since it’s a little bit longer than the men’s vests. This works out well for me, since now my vest’s pockets are actually at a level where I can actually make good use of them. They were too high on the other vest. Only weird thing is that it buttons the other way. But that’s women’s fashions for you, I guess.
And the bit of humor I injected into it is my comment about why I have the women’s vest: “Hey, I’m a big girl.”
Meanwhile, the latest adventure of “Fools With Tools” was putting together that bookshelf. I managed to scrape against a half-assembled shelf, and cut the top of my foot for an inch’s length. It doesn’t hurt too much, and didn’t bleed too much, either. So there you go.
Now tonight we put the shelf in its right place and then start loading it. And I got the right size shelf for the printer.
Categories: Bedroom remodel, Walmart
There’s a reason I’m not a carpenter…
February 27, 2004, 3:17 AM
…and that bookshelf is reason enough. No, I didn’t manage to screw it up. It actually stands up, and it actually looks half decent. It is currently standing in the middle of the room, but that will hopefully only be the case until tomorrow after work, when I move all my clothes out of the way and then get that shelf settled into place against the side wall.
And then let the firestorm begin. All my stuff comes back. All remaining books return. All my video tapes return. And whatever other miscellaneous stuff I have comes back. And then once I can reach it, the couch shall return in its new home. And then the wall décor goes up.
Things will change, though. My load of books will be much lighter now, with my having gotten rid of a LOT of books I’ve outgrown. A lot will go to Mom’s sixth grade classroom, much to her delight. I believe Mom’s also giving a lot of my old books to our church. As you can see, I’ve entrusted the distribution of my discard books to Mom. She’s good at this and will do well in finding them new homes. Meanwhile, a dilemma… since I got rid of the video tape wall, and spackled and painted over the remains after the hardware was removed, the question remains… where in the heck am I going to put all my videos?!? True, I have those two new cabinets that are next to the computer, but I know they’ll be full.
Categories: Bedroom remodel, Walmart
Bought my new bookshelf. Talk about heavy…
February 27, 2004, 12:27 AM
I carried the bookshelf into the house and up the stairs myself. Let me tell you… that thing was a major b—- to carry. Now realize that I brought this on myself by buying it. But man… carrying the box from the car (which I parked as close to the house as I could) to the house, up four steps to the front door, and then up another fourteen steps to my room is a serious climb with a bookshelf taller than me.
But I made it, and now I just have to assemble it and put it in its right spot.
Meanwhile, I finally got the permanent light bulbs for my torchieres. I had previously had 100-watt bulbs in there. They gave off an unpleasant yellowish glow, inherent to normal incandescent bulbs. I like a more whitish light, and so for the real bulbs (I knew I was replacing them anyway since these are three-way lamps), I got GE “Reveal” bulbs, which is “the bulb that uncovers pure, true light”. Basically they have a blue tint on them that counters the normal yellow tint, to give that white color that I like.
Categories: Bedroom remodel
If I wanted a mullet, this would be a good time to start.
February 26, 2004, 10:20 AM
But I don’t, so I need to get a haircut already, since a mullet is the one hairdo I just simply can’t stand. If you can believe it, the last time I got a haircut was on January 5. So I think you’ll agree, with it getting close to two months since I last got a trim, that it’s time.
I figure I’m probably going to go to SmartStyle this time, which is in my own Waynesboro Wal-Mart. I figure that way I can just do it after work, plus Wal-Mart associates get 20% off at SmartStyle.
All the more reason I’m glad I work in a Supercenter, and not a regular Wal-Mart. Regular Wal-Marts don’t have haircut places, among other things. Though not all Supercenter hair places are SmartStyle, mind you. When I lived in Arkansas, the Wal-Mart Supercenters in Springdale and Bentonville (the latter being laid out just like Staunton) had a place called “Fantastic Sam’s” as the in-store barber shop.