Time Wibble Wobble

So know how I was gone for a few weeks? In that time, the cafeteria in my building changed management. I knew it was happening. It wasn’t GOOD news when I heard, but for my one bagel a week, one serving of milk (for my Joe’s Os in the morning)… maybe twice through the salad bar to supplement the boring lettuce and dressing I bring from home… I mean how big a deal is it when I spend less than five bucks a week there?

The one cashier thought the new people would hire her… The cook I knew, too…

It’s all good. Aramark screwed up and we are getting new management. But there were no terrible repercussions for anybody I knew...


So I get back and it is like somebody has gone back in time and tweaked this LITTLE thing… and it has had all these ripple effects that in SMALL ways makes the whole scene just slightly OFF.

Poor sad cashier...

The shirts were gray instead of blue.

The cashier had glasses instead of contacts (and more importantly, seems very down, when she’s always been cheerful)

The bagels migrated to a new place.

The silverware moved and the condiment tower with 6ish choices is now just a ketchup and a mustard squirter.

And the prices have gone UP… my bagel with cream cheese used to be $1.16. Now it’s $1.40. That’s 20%, gringos. I mean $1.40 won’t break me. $.32 more a week won’t… though the milk is seven cents more, too, which has scared me, so I haven’t even tested the salad bar prices.

Changing history for the better, doesn't

It is just all a little OFF.

And that really was exactly what it reminded me of—the Pendragon books where Pendragon has gone back and saved the Hindenburg and comes back to the present and it's really nearly unnoticeably different (well, other than those hell dogs, but never mind)... but this new technology that SEEMS very cool at first is turning out to be very dangerous… you with me?

So now I’m afraid of the cafeteria.

Any of you ever experience that? Something that made you feel like you were in a Sci-Fi story?

Mumbling Strangers

I'm not sure if this happens to everyone, or if it's just me. Maybe I look friendly and approachable. Maybe it's my habit of eye contact, or the slight smile I generally wear. Maybe people look at me and see a kindred spirit... and by kindred, I mean 'nut like me'. But strangers talk to me fairly often. Not the strangers in acceptable situations—like when you are sharing a four hour plane ride... but people walking on the sidewalk near me. Or who see me standing somewhere...

They range from single comment-makers to people trying to engage in full-on conversation. And inevitably, most of what they say is mumbling.

And when they mumble, you are put in the very odd conundrum of deciding between the following options:

1) Ignoring them. (I think I am incapable of doing this.)
2) Agreeing with them to be agreeable.
3) Or asking for clarification about what they just said.

And see that choice between the latter two, because the first seems out of my grasp, causes great difficulties. The FORMER leads to risks like the infamous Seinfeld episode where Jerry agreed to wear the ridiculous shirt because Kramer's girlfriend was a 'quiet talker' and Jerry agreed without knowing...


But the LATTER requires a deeper level engagement—by asking clarification you have expressed INTEREST in knowing what they said... you are now OBLIGATED to listen... and what if they say something really BIZARRE—what do you DO? (or worse, what if you STILL don't understand them and now have to ALSO agree to something you didn't catch?


My two examples this week come in the form of two men.

Example ONE: Walking toward me on the sidewalk. I was editing and walking. This, for me, is not unusual, but when I see movement peripherally, I look up, He said something like:

“...you didn't see that bicycle coming...”

I smiled and agreed and kept going, but... There was no bicycle that I could see. The last one I'd passed, this man couldn't have possibly seen me pass—it was a block back... had it nearly run over HIM, so he was just conjecturing? Had he seen me another day when I nearly had to leap out of the way (this happens now and then) or when a bicycle rides into the grass to avoid me as I don't see them coming? (This happens too—I am an Oregonian who believes bikes belong in the road following road rules, but in Michigan, that is a good way for a cyclist to DIE since cars don't look for them even a little—but bikes come too fast for the attention I am giving the sidewalk). Whatever the case... at least my agreement didn't form any commitment...


Example TWO is Slim... On Wednesday, walking home, I got hit on. I think Slim has hit on me before, but I can't be sure, as last time the guy was missing several front teeth... so either two men look similar or Slim has had some dental work. Anyway... I was walking home, minding my own business and a man asks if he can walk with me. That was clear enough.

Hating to be rude, but not wanting to encourage him, I said, it's a public sidewalk, he could walk by me if he wanted to. He proceeds to make suggestions that I THINK were related to my husband's ability to satisfy me... that perhaps he could help out if I wasn't happy... I am not sure enough of what he said to scold him, but I definitely don't want to encourage this. I said I was happily married. He suggested maybe marriages didn't stay happy and I told him you had to stick through the tough stuff or it wasn't a marriage. He suggested--mumbly again... maybe he could be my friend and said something to the effect of 'that's how it starts'...

I got on the bus. I normally walk home, but I didn't really want him to see my route and there was a bus going to the high school which is close to home, but also has enough connectors that I thought it was vague where I was headed. He doesn't scare me—I believe him to be harmless, but I HATE being in a position where the only option left on the table is rudeness... Especially when I'm not REALLY sure what he said...


Any of you get roped into anything through a mumbler? Had suggestions you weren't sure were suggestions?  Any nut magnets?

And just a teaser—I have exciting personal news for Monday (not publishing news and not HUGE, just fun)


Ih!  And Have a nice Autumnal Equinox!!!

Fire! Wait, no, that's just Magic Mike!

*cough*

So last Thursday I came home from work... a systematic combo of walking and bus ride, as when it is over 100 degrees, I am just NOT walking all the way. But I am reading Losing Beauty (which is very good, and you should read it too) so apparently when I got to MY street, I was so sucked into the reading and walking at the same time that I failed to OBSERVE that there was a whole bunch of excitement on my street.

To be fair, they really ought to shout a lot when there is excitement, don't you think? To make things more noticeable to those of us easily sucked into reading while we are walking...

I got inside and hubby pointed out that a tree fell on a car... *look out* Sure enough... Tree branch on car. CHECK. (it didn't actually do much damage, strangely, but why is it, out of a whole street, the tree branches always fall on the cars?)

Not the ACTUAL house and fire, but this is pretty close

And there was a fire.

Wait, what?

“Didn't you see the fire truck?”
“Erm...”
“Didn't you smell it?”
“Uh...”

I tell you. That is a FABULOUS book that I almost missed the bloody fire. It was maybe five houses down and it wasn't actually the HOUSE on fire. A power line had been knocked out in a big storm around noon (a different storm than stole the power from the people across the street from us—that was the 4:30 am storm...) and the line had started a fire in a garden. Not great... But worse (meaning the part that affected ME), they were going to have to cut the line at a higher point to cut off the spark supply so they could put the bloody fire out (which they did around 6pm)... 'probably no power until Saturday night'.

GADS!

Now ME... I can live a few days without power (call it an adventure. I'm a-okay). What I have trouble living with is my HUSBAND when he has to live a few days in SUMMER without power. True story. HWMNBMOTI is a big giant BABY about the heat.

Daughter bailed on us. Her boyfriend's house had power, so she came home at midnight and left again by about 9 the next day. Son and I swam next door and then played cribbage by candlelight, which was very enjoyable. Went to bed earlyish and woke up with no alarm (only about half hour late, so perfectly justifiable with no power—besides, no morning computer meant I was actually only about ten minutes late for work)


This really served as another reinforcer that I sure love my neighborhood... it is nice when things like this happen to see everyone sharing information and helping each other out. I love where I live, shoebox or no shoebox. I mean sure... if I could buy one of the houses at the OTHER end of the street with twice the square footage, I'd do it in a heartbeat, but I don't want to leave completely.

Power came back on Friday afternoon, more than a day early, so that was a bonus... and put back ON something I'd feared we'd have to call OFF.

You heard me...

Joe (#3) is my flavor...

Magic Mike with the Couch to Keg Team and our buddy Patti

Now as much as I'm a nudist and all for all that naked stuff... and I adore men... especially naked men... This is a movie I probably would have skipped without the accompanying 'Lady's Night'. Eye candy is well and good in passing, but experiential stuff requires some company to say 'oh yeah, baby' next to me... if that makes any sense.

But about two weeks ago my friend Patti suggested she'd love to come over and see it—she lives about 2 hours from me and her local friends seem to be the wholesome exercise sort instead of the... you know... naked cocktail sort... so she thought of ME. And I invited the couch to keg team... we started with sushi, which was fabulous (HWMNBMOTI won't eat it, so I'm glad to have friends to eat it with) and then we went for the HUMINA HUMINA experience that was Magic Mike.

As a movie plot, I was left a little frustrated with 'the kid' who for all intents and purposes was central, so I thought his storyline should have been tied up better, but Mike's story wasn't bad and the eye candy was FABULOUS. It's not like I expected a knock-dead plot. From an aesthetic perspective, Joe is most my type—I like some scruff better than clean-cut (Though Channing Tatum almost won me with his dexterity.... MAN, I love a bendy man, plus the flips and such—coordination is a good thing. I wonder if they did their own stuff...). I love Adam Rodriguez for his smile and dimples, but at 5'11” (me, I mean) I gotta give the big guys the edge. So yeah... Joe...

[he's in True Blood? Holy COW, there is my incentive to get back to THAT—I haven't made a point after the first season, but that can be changed!]

The huge win of it, though, was seeing it with my girlfriends—it was definitely a movie best seen in company with a little wine lube beforehand.

Little Lending Library

So normally when I go for a walk, I'm like WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH down the street at super speed, going so fast I barely notice ANYTHING (unless the fat squirrel is out—we always stop to feed the fat squirrel). But this week, since hubby has been home, I've been walking with him... at about 1/32nd my normal pace. You think I'm exaggerating, don't you? Well if he were walking his NORMAL pace, I only double him (seriously--I do--he meanders, I power walk). But he is low on blood and tires easily. I don't want him to fall down. So we've SLOWED down even from HIS poky pace. And I've noticed something a little bit precious on my block...

Two houses have these signs in front of their house... and then these BOXES of Books!(not just boxes--weatherproof havens)  Outside, right there to borrow on the honor system.

Now I've been part of workplaces before that had bookshelves for sharing. In fact I've found some of my FAVORITE EVER books that way (The Poisonwood Bible and The Red Tent come to mind)--books I may not have bought for their description, but that I ADORED when I read them. They were profound. So I love a system like this.

But I've never seen it somewhere BESIDES a workplace (if you don't count me pilfering books from my mother's house). What a BRILLIANT idea this is at a neighborhood level!

What I REALLY want to know is... is this some official bigger thing? Is this an Only In Ann Arbor thing? Is it regional? National? A website people can order from to implement wherever somebody gets the wild hair? Have any of YOU ever seen it? I suppose having a box of books sitting outside, unwatched, is something you'd need a crime-free neighborhood for--not just for theft, but vandals, too. But how cool is this!?

I can tell you MY plan. I have my eyes open for June (the woman in the house—she's been in our neighborhood... maybe from the start—a long time, anyway)—I want to ask permission to put a copy of my book in it. And as I finish my LARGE TBR pile, I am HAPPY to donate to it. I love the idea. I might even consider one at our house in the future, but not while we have the birdies in our mailbox. I wouldn't want all the extra activity just yet.

Who Your Friends Are

Man, there is nothing like a serious illness to bring people out of the woodwork. I'm feeling extremely blessed at the moment.

As most of you who hop in regularly know, HWMNBMOTI was in the hospital last week for a GI bleed. It was serious. VERY serious. He was actually there Sunday to Thursday, and you KNOW insurance dictates nobody stay any longer than absolutely necessary. I was worried and scared. And I was effectively a single mom all week on top of it, so only the very most basic things got done.

I shopped and cooked. I did a little laundry. I worked and visited my husband. But the NORMAL stuff that gets done in a week didn't get done.


But then the Help started flowing.

Jackie, my couch to keg buddy, brought by some soup and couscous salad, and then drank a glass of wine with me to let me worry and vent.

Neighbor after neighbor asked what we needed.

Caden mowed our front yard.

Jean mowed our back yard.

Last night he went for a walk and bit off more than he could chew, so Stephanie drove him home.

So to everyone who has helped--THANK YOU!  And thank you ALSO to all willing who haven't been called upon, yet.

Seriously, though—I have lost track of how many people have offered to help us out. It is humbling and heartwarming. I love where we live. My husband gets the credit for establishing most of these relationships—he is out and about, walking the dog. He meets people. He keeps an eye out for the comings and goings and is early to notice if something big happens—when the man down the street passed after YEARS of illness—when someone has a new puppy or is pregnant. I joke that he is Mrs. Kravitz, but people appreciate that someone knows what time it is on the street.

I'm the geek writing in the basement most of the time, but I'm trying to walk with him now, as he is still pretty wobbly. Apparently blood loss is something very slow to recover from. If it had been down to me, none of these people ever would have even noticed. But he is good. He knows everyone.

And that investment is coming back in spades.

So this summer, as you scrap for your writing time, don't forget that investment in real life people. Spending some time to make and maintain friendships might be something you really need one day, and you will be glad you've put in the effort.

soon, we hope, though we haven't looked for eggs

On a Side Note

Our birdies are still happily nested in the mailbox. The female is sort of used to us. She will fly off if you stop and stare, but when we come and go, she is fine and I can see her in there, nested in her little hidey hole. There is a white line at her neck when she is hunched down, so I can tell if she is there or not pretty quickly. But so long as I keep moving, I can move slowly, now and she puts up with me. She really is so cute! Hopefully we will have babies one day soon.

Unblog

So I've been SWAMPED at work and have a couple HUGE editing projects I want to try to finish this month, so I have been TERRIBLE getting around to buddy blogs, new blogs... any blogs, really. So I am going to take a few days off here. I mean I won't be completely absent. I have the following planned:


On Friday I have a guest post coming. I need to find it in my email. Erm... cold request, but I thought the blurb sounded good and agreed... That is as far as my short term memory has gotten me at the moment.

And on Sunday, I will try to pull together something Mother's Day-ey...

And then DON'T forget Monday's First Loves Blogfest! (see my 'you're doing what?' for the link)

And there are two Newses...

Leigh gave me my first blog book review from my friend circuit! She was really nice to me! You should go read it.


And I finally spotted our bird friend (from Friday's post) face to face... four times... every time I came in or out our front door today, in fact--I wonder why they don't freeze like deer--she bailed from her nest each time I passed--I may start using the back door just so I don't bother her... though, I DID mention my short term memory, yes? She is very cute, but decidedly NOT a wren like I had the other day, but I looked up the traits and she is more like this Bewick's Wren (though the map says this is unlikely—it is a SW US bird...) still, it LOOKS just like this... pretty sure this is what she is--at least a near relative.

She's cute, yeah?

So my apology again for my absence the next few days. I will try to catch up a little with people who've stopped by, but I will be a little scarce.

Our Squatters

You'd think in a wealthy, suburban, college town we wouldn't have this problem. But there it is. A young couple has taken up residence at OUR HOUSE. We've tried tossing their things out, but they keep putting them back...

The quick view, walking by

*sigh *

You wanna know more?

See, about a month and a half ago, I noticed our mailbox was full of leaves and yard debris. I thought one of my son's friends was playing a prank on us—it really seemed that way. I removed all the stuff from the mailbox and tossed if off the side of the porch (admittedly, only about a six inch drop)... It has been back since then. My husband cleared it out. Then I did. Then my husband accused our son of being a prankster, but in spite of Loki-like tendencies, he denied it and we believed him...

Closer: Can you see the little tunnel in there?

Then this week, hubby spots them... BIRDS. These persistent little birds have built a nest in our mailbox and are intent on staying.

Hubby spoke with the mailman who agreed to bundle the mail and put it inside the screen door for the time being. Hubby and son are talking of building a birdhouse and trying to coax them in there instead, because if it's a real house, maybe they will pay some rent like they are suppose to...

Hubby described them--says they are small like a finch, brown, but with a black stripe on the back of their head and two white stripes to either side.  Looking it up, I think it must be a wren--the wren and the wren nest, both fit what I know so far, though so far I haven't seen them...

Wren:  I will have to ask if this is right, but the description fits.

I'm thinking something like this for what they build...

Happy Friday!!!