Three for One

Having a birthday and a car in for service gave me very little to post about during the day on Friday, until all of the sudden lots happened!  First I had ordered a new lawn mower from Home Depot, and this is how it arrived.  Rather than initiate a return through the app, I wanted them to be aware of how it arrived -- because this is not the first time that we have gotten a damaged or opened box.  Getting the refund authorization took 40 minutes!  I will never order a big-ticket item to be delivered from them again and I suggest you don't either.  The package was a day late and the shipper told me it was because they got the box in this state and wanted to check it to be sure all the parts were there. They were, but I didn't want it.  I ordered new and in box -- not an opened or returned item.

 

I was home-bound on Friday because Tommy's car was being inspected.  That was OK, because I had to get the house ready for dinner guests. My besties were coming over to celebrate my birthday.  Tommy ordered a sushi platter and cake, but I needed to be sure the house was in order.  The car was ready at 3:45 PM -- later than expected because we needed two new tires to pass inspection.  Frankie got her walk in by tagging along so I could pick up the car.  Then I went out to get a Flashfood order. Remember I wanted whole chickens? Well, I found them on FF from Tops.  I got the cheesecake from the Dash Mart -- which was packed because there are always a lot of orders around dinner time.  While I was there, I showed five or six drivers the FF app, and they downloaded it.  It might mean less of a chance for me to find a deal, but these drivers need all the help they can get because they don't earn a lot. I did order Ramen for my bestie's daughter, but they credited me because it was damaged.

Filed under my strange life: on the way home, I was driving down a busy road, in a not-so-great section of the city. Some guy was sprawled on the pavement, with his bicycle in the other direction.  I didn't stop because of traffic volume, and because I couldn't figure out why he would be on the ground like that.  I drover further, but my conscience got the best of me, and I called 911.  Now I know dispatchers have set questions to ask, but the lady who took my call had hard time understanding I couldn't tell her if he was breathing, I did not know the house number (I was going 30 mph), etc.  I could only give an approximate location.  Then the ambulance people asked me these questions too.  I told them all I knew was that dude was on the ground. Drive on the street, look at the sidewalk, and he shouldn't be too hard to spot.

Once home I got a call from a blocked number. It was a cop.  He drove up and down the street and  dude was gone.  He told me I did everything right. I called it in. I didn't know the situation and if it would be a safe situation so I did not get out of my car.  We figured everyone won. Dude obviously wasn't dead or injured. Cop didn't have to do paperwork. Ambulance didn't have to waste time on a call. I didn't have to feel guilty.  What would you have done?

My birthday dinner was great. This is my bestie, her husband, and Frankie.  My bestie does not like dogs.  Frankie does not care. But she actually did behave herself pretty well.

I wore the thrifted Orvis linen cardigan I got for a buck a few weeks ago.  I love the silk brown checked blouse that I got for three and half bucks over the winter.  And now that it's warmer, I am wearing opals more.  They are not safe winter gemstones because there is water in them, and you don't want it to freeze. Ethiopian opals are a different stone entirely, and don't have the same issue.  Frankie is wearing a $1.49 thrifted pocket square which is the perfect size for her.

It was later in the day on Friday when I found out there was going to be a Tesla Takedown rally in Buffalo, which I have been waiting for!!! Not only do we have a dealership, but there is also a factory.  The factory has not lived up to the deal it made with the state and our county as far as the jobs provided, treatment of workers, etc.  As the stock price tanks, taxpayers here are going to take an even bigger loss. Aside from his government activities, taxpayers here are going to suffer. So I stayed up late painting signs.  I also put together an appropriate ensemble.  Black like Mr. M. wears.  A shirt that is from the Chautauqua Institution (which convenes seasonally to address critical issues of our time) -- very "woke." And of course, an anti=-M*G* hat.  The rally was Saturday, and it was great. I think around 300 people showed up.  The opposition made a pathetic showing of about six people.  Passing traffic overwhelmingly supported the protest.  A great day, and it was worth it to be a part of it as a bigger movement.

Today, I got dressed up to go to a Ukrainian Easter Egg Decorating workshop.  It was a fund raiser. I went with my friend Roxanne.  The first shot is the egg with all the wax on it.  The last three is how it looks with most of the wax removed.  This was my first time ever doing this and it was not easy! But not only did my admission go to support a worthy cause, I have links to make more donations -- which we want to do.  The community center started doing these events when the war started.  They have other events we plan to attend and programs we will support. A lady at our table mentioned she was looking for a new puppy and she loves Collies. Of course I gave her my contact card.  I was able to get her information on a number of good breeding resources once I got home. Crazy show dog people like me do this type of thing -- not strange to us at all!

I was finally able to make chicken stock!  It simmered overnight (which makes Frankie crazy). When I got home from the workshop, I made the discards into dog food (although not the onions, which I simmer as a separate step).  I used a bag of frozen rainbow slaw.  Half of the slaw went into a soup I made for dinner; the rest went into the dog food along with some oatmeal.  There was a half cup of buttermilk aging out in the refrigerator, which I used to make dumplings.  It was a delicious dinner!

My plan was to take it easy for my birthday weekend, but there is always stuff to get done.  Luckily, Tommy did all the dishes for our meals.  That included dinner with my sister on Saturday (roasted chicken, Bob Evans mashed potatoes, frozen peas, and cheesecake).  

Next weekend is the nation-wide "Hands Off" march, which I will do.  The Ukrainian Community Center has a social event on Friday, and my chiropractor is in the band, so we will be going there.  This all means I have a lot of laundry and housework to cram into the next five days!