More real life

Was chatting with my mom via IM tonight.
She told me that my lovely friend Tami sent her a card.

The envelope was all beautifully decorated, and the card was really really nice, Mom said. She was very touched by the gesture.

I've said it before. It bears repeating. Tami is a sweet person. A light in a world full of craziness. I am so glad she is my friend.

Mom is having her shoulder replaced on the 14th. She is getting a reverse shoulder replacement, something I'd never heard of until now. I looked it up and found out more about it. It doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun, but right now she has no motion, or almost none in her left shoulder and isn't managing her regular life because of it.

So it needs to be done, but I worry. Because that's what I do.
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I got a few things done on my day 'off'.
Took our cans and bottles to the bottle drop. In the state of Oregon, one pays a nickel for every bottle and can when they're purchased. When you return them, you get your nickel back.

The bottle drop is a relatively new way of doing that, in the past there have been machines (always either full or broken so you can't use them when you need to) or a guy who hand counts the bottles and cans.

It's just a pain in the ass all around.

Now they're piloting a program that's eventually supposed to go state wide. I get green bags with a sticker that has my account number on them. I go to a little electronic window, hold up the label, and the door magically unlocks. Toss the bag in, and after they're counted (takes 24 to 48 hours) it goes in your account. When you go to the grocery store, you wave your little card at a machine, which prints you a ticket. You can either deduct that from your groceries or get it in cash. It's still a little cumbersome, I think, but I don't have to touch the beer bottles or the residue on the machines left behind by the last person.

Oh. And the SMELL. The return stations always just reeked. Not to mention they attracted wasps and yellow jackets.

So I dropped off some bottles today, and picked up 10 new bags to fill. Even water bottles have that five cent deposit on them.
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Stopped at Verizon to get a new bluetooth thing. The store was pretty empty, there were four or five sales staff and one other customer. An Asian woman (yes, that's relevant) with her two sons. I walked in as the sales guy was shamelessly huckstering her, trying to get her to buy this warranty and that plan and one of these and one of those. She kept saying, "No, thank you. I just want the phone."

After several repetitions, he seemed to finally get the point. Moron.

She left with her new phone while I was checking out at another terminal.

I overheard the sales guys talking to each other. The head guy (you could tell he was in charge because of the way the other guys deferred to him) clapped the moron on the back and said loudly, "Where'd ya drop the ball, Buddy?"
"I didn't!" he said, defensively. "She was just stupid. Asian people are stupid."

Oh yes, he really did say it. And yes, I have sent an email to corporate HQ... although I'm sure the guys will all back each other up as they deny it was ever said.

Now I definitely have a problem with racism.
I prefer to hate people on an individual basis... but they have to earn it. They don't get a free hate from me due to skin color.

I really have a problem with sales quotas, too. That high pressure crap is why I almost never go into a Verizon store. I am not interested in the latest and greatest phone. That shit means nothing to me. But one of my former assistants used to sell cell phones. And they had quotas, and if they didn't make it, they were yelled at. They were called into the back office and the 'manager' ripped them a new asshole.

That kind of shit should not exist in retail, although sadly, it does.

By the way, she hated her job there and eventually just walked out on them.

Assholes.

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Paid some bills, opened some mail, called my attorney.

Went to the grocery store for bread. I bought root beer, hamburger, some chicken strips for Lyssa, some milk, a maple bar (also for Lyssa, maple is a headacher thing for me) picked up a prescription.... and I got all the way home before I realized I had not picked up a loaf of bread. Shit. Oh well, it gives me something to do tomorrow after work, right? Besides take a nap, I mean.
I did laundry. Two loads. Did the dishes. Cooked dinner.
Felt a small sense of accomplishment until I realized I will never catch up.

Anyway, Grumpy is calling me. Threatening to lock me out of the bedroom. I guess that means it's time to hit publish and head that way.