Sunday, November 21, 2004

It is finished!05:28 PM CST (Link)
I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it!

At 1:35 p.m. today, I finished a 50,000-word, cohesive piece of fiction complete with a clear beginning, middle, and ending. I have written a novel. Thanks to Mel for suffering with me and providing encouragement, and NaNoWriMo, Bird by Bird, and No Plot! No Problem! for providing the motivation to make it possible. No thanks to the dog and the cats for wanting to be fed and let out at regular intervals. Thanks to my shower for providing soothing warmth to cramped writing muschles and meditative relief for writer's block.

FAQs
1. Will you ever submit it for publication?
I seriously doubt it. It's trite and silly and uses every space opera science fiction cliche and stereotype you can think of, but I loved writing it, just because I could use all those things and get away with it.

2. Can you read it?
No. Next question.

3. Please?
Well... no.

4. Will you write another that I can read?
Maybe. Let me sit without typing for a couple of days and see how I feel.

I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it!

Did I mention that I did it?

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Saturday, November 20, 2004

The Annual Little Shopping Trip of Horrors12:38 PM CST (Link)
Don't you love Thanksgiving?

The worst part for me is grocery shopping the weekend before Thanksgiving. The store is crowded, people are in a bad mood because loved ones are coming to town, and the weather sucks in one way or another.

This year, I decided to beat the crowds by going to HEB early. So did everybody else. With a little luck, I found a parking place fairly close to the entrance, but I made a side trip to the Tuesday Morning next door, to check out the LEGO that was on sale for 25 percent off marked prices. I just wanted to look. Really.

Once inside the grocery store, I found it slow going. Not having a list was a mistake. Usually, Mel and I sit down and hammer out what we want before I go, but last night, we were both really tired and forgot. So I zigzagged across the store picking up things as I thought about them or as I ran across them. At least I got today's walking requirements done.

Unfortunately, a package of sliced Black Forest brand ham fell off the top shelf of a refrigerated section near the deli. It landed on my head and bent my glasses. Now one side of my frames sits higher than the other and I look like the geek everyone accuses me of being. I'll fix them before I go out in public again, but there was nothing I could do at the moment.

One of the main draws for us was the free 8-12 lb. turkey free with purchase of an HEB spiral-sliced ham. The ham freezes well and, no doubt, we will have family or friends over for dinner sometime between now and Christmas. The turkey is already frozen, so it will keep a while yet, too, in our little garage freezer.

Considering what I went through to get it, though, I'm not sure the free turkey was worth the price. Next time, I'll just pay the $5.81, I think.

After weaving my way back and forth through a maze of carts and store employees stocking shelves, I found an open checker. He scanned everything and came up with a total. I asked if he had entered the turkey discount. He indicated that he was about to do so.

Oops. The coupon key needed to enter the free turkey wasn't working. He tried to call a manager to come help. His register didn't have a phone. He stepped out and waved to catch a manager's attention. Finally, someone noticed. The manager helped him save my order in the computer, because we had to go to another register to complete the discount.

I pushed my basket, now filled with checked out and bagged merchandise, two registers down. The manager had already started to bring up my saved order so that she could enter the discount. Oops. This register's coupon key didn't help. She had to call someone else to enter a code to save my order in the computer a second time because we had to go to a third register.

Finally, that register's coupon key worked. Total for everything: $48. 36. I pulled out my debit card and swiped it. I pushed Debit when requested, but instead of the usual "Is this amount OK?" the device asked if my card was one of the welfare assistance card in use in Texas. I canceled the transaction and tried it again. Same thing happened.

The manager switched card readers with a fourth register and asked me to try it again. Nope. Same thing. She asked if my card could act as a credit card. Yes. So we tried it as a credit card. Nope. She switched card readers again, so that we could try it as a credit transaction on that device. Nope. Fortunately, I had an old-fashioned paper check in my wallet, in case of emergency. Whew.

The manager apologized profusely as I pushed my buggy out the door. I told her I hoped they get the problem fixed before all the shoppers I knew were behind me rushed for the registers. Right as the doors opened, the clouds that had threatened all morning burst. I ran out to the car and started throwing the groceries in the trunk as fast as I could.

Unfortunately, the purchases I made at Tuesday Morning kind of filled the trunk already and I had to squeeze some things in. I swear I had planned only to look at the LEGO at Tuesday Morning, but there were a couple of things that were just too good to pass up, and Miata trunks are not noted for their spaciousness.

I got home, pulled into the garage, and started unloading stuff. Unfortunately, a starving mosquito picked this time to dive bomb my head and I tripped over the rug by the door going into the house. No real harm done. The bread survived. It's a bit squished, but it's still edible. At least the cats think so.

I can't wait till next year's Thanksgiving trip to the grocery store.

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