Pouting.

Well, pout. I was supposed to be getting my nifty new windows today. I did not get my nifty new windows today. I also went to the dentist and despite the fact the hygienist told me I am a very good brusher and my teeth are very clean, they found a tiny cavity between two teeth, so tiny they didn't even bother making an appointment to have it fixed but he did need to poke it so I would know it was there. OW. Dr. Prick, DDS.

The guys showed up ( my Dad drove two hours to come up here to supervise them) to install them and took a good look at my house and noped right out. I'm not sure how the salesman described the house to the folks back at the home office but apparently, he left some stuff out. Brick? Two stories? Metal Casement? Hmm, checked the contract, no, that's all there, emphasis on METAL CASEMENT.

Fuckers.

So either he gave them a load of soap or they sent out a couple of idiots who thought they were just going to pop in a couple of replacement windows and go on to the next job. It was pretty clear to the salesman when he was on the property that the job was going to be more than just popping in a few replacement windows. Hence, 3K for four windows, no extras, low end, no decoration.

I have a feeling they will be calling, which is good because I would love to chat with them about this. They came to be with word of mouth from a contractor who said how great the company was and what great work they did for him and on and on how cooperative and hard working they are. Apparently, when they show up on a commercial job site they do the job,  if you are a commercial client you don't hear the word No from these people. However, as a residential client they treat you a little differently. They are a little less cooperative, a little less hard working. It's too bad I have so many windows that still need replacing over time, I would have liked to get all the windows replaced, no matter how long the project eventually took, from the same vendor - however, with service like this, that may not be possible.

Dealing With It.

And how was your day?  Did you know that you shouldn't really spend your day being pissed about how someone else is living their life? Well, I did. I had a low grade anxiety all day, made the day so much nicer.

 I can not and should not spend my day stewing over what you do in your life if what you do in your life is not going to change what I do on my life. Its stupid. I guess it had to be done though, I needed to process.

I can worry, worry is good, but I can't do it indefinitely. I can worry about terrorism too, I don't though. I was horrified when Cheeto got into office, I was very depressed, almost paralyzed by sadness for weeks - but I learned to live in this new wrong world, and I will learn to live in this new, new wrong world. I blame Cheeto for this, somehow I know this is his fault.

 Some people make their really, really bad, life altering choices when they are 15, some people make their really, really bad life altering bad choices when they are 48. Its about timing.  I will get used to it, I will be Happy and I will stop bitching. I will remember it is not my life, it is her life.

Tuesday

I was afraid I overslept this morning. I got up at what I imagined was my regular time. I brushed my teeth, I washed my face I took my pills. I got dressed I took the animal downstairs. I turned on the coffee machine, I found the dog's leash and I took the dog out.

There were people other there. I saw people going about their daily work. At 5: 30 in the morning! I saw a guy taking his trash out, a woman putting stuff in her car... This is when I started to think that I somehow radically overslept. I never see people out doing chores at this hour.

It's not a traditional time to casually take out the household trash! He didn't appear to be sleepwalking either, he said good morning to me and everything. Like it was a reasonable time, daylight even! I started to really worry about what time it really was. The woman kind of scared me, she is new, just moved into a rent house and I'm not familiar with her schedule yet.

 I think its a new job for her, she wasn't up and moving around yesterday, but I think I remember there being a light on inside. A warm up for her first day, if she is smart. She appears to be a school car driver, one of those people employed by the district to pick kids up who are not on a bus route but need a ride to school -  so she may be an early person. I will have to make sure she is aware I am part of her morning routine so she doesn't accidentally run over me some morning. I think she leaves later though, she was busy loading her car  or something , but she was still in her bathrobe so she wasn't ready to leave quite yet but she seemed quite intent on her carloading duties. Too intent for that hour! If you having to rush at 5:30am you should have done this last night. Just saying.

It still freaked me out. First this new lady and a few houses later, a cheerful man taking his trash out  like it was 9:30 or something. Who takes out trash at 5:30am? I don't casually take out my trash at that hour and I'm always awake at that hour! Taking out the trash is a much later on job, a reasonable time in the day job. I don't go outside at stupid o'clock in the morning just the take out the trash!   And by the way, Tuesday is not their trash day, Wednesday is their trash to the curb day. I know these things.

I also know that the house at the end of my street is empty now and it has taken approximately four days for the beer cans and bottles to start to collect on their side yard. I also noted that no one bothered to take their trash container and recycling thing back to the house after the wind blew them over and they lay there in the street on their backs like dead turtles until I did it and that no one is going to pick up the cans and bottles until I pick up the cans and bottles and if I don't do it it is not going to get done. Take it to the bank.

People pay 300k to live here now but they don't pay for upkeep. God Forbid they pick up some trash now and then. They go and clean up the greenway because that makes them feel on good inside and aren't they good citizens and aren't they doing their part! but picking up their own neighborhood is not their job. Assholes.

January 20, 2017. The end of life as we know it.

It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I ( don't) Feel Fine),  from REM

That's great! It starts with an earthquake,
Birds and snakes, an aeroplane.
Lenny Bruce is not afraid.
Eye of a hurricane, listen to yourself churn.
World serves its own needs, dummy, serve your own needs.
Feed it off an aux speak, grunt, no strength.
The ladder starts to clatter with fear fight, down, height.
Wire in a fire, representing seven games
In a government for hire and a combat site.
Left of west and coming in a hurry
With the furies breathing down your neck
Team by team reporters baffled, trumped, tethered, cropped.
Look at that low playing! Fine, then.
Uh oh, overflow, population, common group
But it'll do. Save yourself, serve yourself.
World serves its own needs, listen to your heart bleed,
Dummy, with the rapture and the rev-'rent and the right, right.
You vitriolic, patriotic, slam, fight, bright light
Feeling pretty psyched.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it.
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I (don't) feel fine.
Six o'clock - TV hour.
Don't get caught in foreign towers.
Slash and burn, return.
Listen to yourself churn.
Locking in uniforming, book burning, bloodletting.
Every motive escalate, automotive incinerate.
Light a candle, light a motive.
Step down, step down.
Watch your heel crush, crushed.
Uh oh, this means no fear, cavalier.
Renegade steer clear!
A tournament, a tournament,
A tournament of lies.
Offer me solutions, offer me alternatives
And I decline.
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it (I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine (It's time I had some time alone)
I feel fine
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine (It's time I had some time alone)
The other night I dreamt of knives.
Continental drift divide.
Mountains sit in a line.
Leonard Bernstein, Leonid Brezhnev,
Lenny Bruce, and Lester Bangs
Birthday party, cheesecake, jelly beans, boom!
You symbiotic, patriotic, slam book neck, right? Right.
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it (It's time I had some time alone)
It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine (It's time I had some time alone)

Or if you are from a different generation,  from Bob Dylan

Come gather around people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone
And if your breath to you is worth saving
Then you better start swimming or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changing

Come writers and critics
Who prophesize with your pen
And keep your eyes wide
The chance won't come again
And don't speak too soon
For the wheel's still in spin
And there's no telling who that it's naming
For the loser now will be later to win
Cause the times they are a-changing

Come senators, congressmen
Please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway
Don't block up the hall
For he that gets hurt
Will be he who has stalled
There's the battle outside raging
It'll soon…

Buzzfeed dropped the report a couple of hours ago,  here it is . Read it, don't live it because you were raised better than that, learn it. Call you representatives both local and federal and demand action.

#Resist

Well, Happy New Year!  Last year was awful and 2017 isn't going to be better, it will not be worse. This year we have knowledge our our side, and we are done being surprised. No more mourning, it is time to resist.

Boots on the ground boys and girls! You know where you are supposed to be, go there. I suggest we put away our widows weeds and take up really good helmets and shoulder pads because we're all going to spend a lot of time running head first into a solid walls of shit over and over again until we break through to the other side, wear protective gear and don't be stupid.

 But if we all work together, we will get through those first walls of shit and we can  start on the next walls of shit and they are going to to be harder and taller than the first ones and they are probably going to be full of razor blades... Mazel Tov! But we have to get  through those too, we have no choice. The only way through it is to do it. Go Fight Win.

Do not stop being angry, no not give up. We did not lose. We will come out the other side and we will be victorious. One fight after another. We survived before, we will survive again.

We will be called to make a statement with our numbers, over and over ladies and gentleman, and you must answer these calls if you do nothing else, answer these calls and attend these rallies! Get comfortable shoes because we're going to be doing a lot of  marching. I suggest leaving the big signs at home, they make you look clever and you will get your picture taken, but they are a bitch to carry and become burdensome quickly. Bring water and food instead,  still, go to rallies, be seen, be heard!, there will be one near you, sooner or later.  Join a resistance group. Go Fight Win.

Lows. #loweshardwaresucks

Well that was a let down. I went to Lowes to buy my Brand New Washer and Dryer and came back with a head ache

It turns out if I wanted my BNWaD I would have to be willing to wait for a month to take delivery! I am not exactly ready to take possession right now, but I do not want to be running back and forth to the laundromat for a month. That is not okay.

They hadn't mentioned when I went window shopping that there was a chance that the model they showed me had availability problems. It was a great deal. It was too good a deal and I was roped in by it.

I came back on the last day of the sale and told the clerk that I wanted to buy this set. Ta da.

We went to a computer and he punched in the code and nada. Not a single Lowes in our area has it, Oh, sure I could drive an hour to go buy it in person - I don't have a real Lowes card yet, I used to, but I stopped carrying it after my purse got stolen and I decided to travel lighter and to stop casually carrying cards I rarely use, they now spend their time safely tucked away in my freezer until I need them; I so rarely used my Lowes card, they canceled it. So now I have a temporary card - not useable online, so no trip out of town for a washer and dryer.

I don't think I should have to travel for this anyway. Why can't the W&D come to me? That would be good customer service. You know what was bad customer service? Trying to upsell me on the next more expensive version.

No sale. I even tried to work with them.  I gave them choices : 1) "I would buy this other better model for the same price as the lesser model that you are making me wait on, because you made a bad faith mistake and you now owe me and you would do well to make me happy, 2) I will buy this available nicer model you are forcing on me, but at a discount because you care practicing bad customer service and there are laws againts bate and switch and that is what happened here. 3) Or I take my money and my good will and begin to draft my letter  of complaint to your corporate customer service department  before I clear the Lighting section

They should have called their manager and let he or she cut me a deal, because I'm sure it was within that person's authority to do that kind of thing.  They could have sold the product and kept the sale at their store and made a customer happy instead the floor staff decided that they didn't want any of these things and they let me and my money and my good will walk out the door.

Dear Sir or Madam...

God Damn It Again

This is what happens when you put the wolves in charge of the hen house. No one is safe. The NRA must be removed from the equation entirely because this is what happens when you let everyone have guns, an armed society is most certainly not a polite society - it is a dangerous society where there is no respect for life whatsoever. Everyone is a  potential victim and our lives have no value. May the Lord have mercy on our souls.

CVS is back on my list- my Bad Customer Service list

Remember when I wrote all those ugly  things about CVS? Well,they are making a come back. Those SOBs are trying to screw me again. When we last met, we had settled in $29- which was totally fine, I was willing to pay that moving forward.

And then I went in to refill  the script again. This time it was $81! This is not okay. How much does it cost? $220, $29 or $81? It can't be a multiple choice question! You can't budget for "it's complicated".

I called my old friends, I left polite yet strongly worded messages on FB and again, I'm  waiting to hear back.  Really disappointed in the sub par customer  service again.

Whine.

Five days into burst bursaland. I don't like it. I don't like that my elbow looks like a before picture. I don't like that it feels squishy. I don't like that it will take weeks for it to  gets its figure back. I don't like anything about it at all. I don't like sleeping in the sleeve. I do not like the compression sleeve and I don't like that there must be latex in the fabric because I'm getting a rash. I don't like anything right now. I am cranky. I have a burst bursa in my elbow and I want my elbow back.

That's really pretty much all I am about right now.

Had a problem, the problem was corrected.

On Target Facebook page

I moved my prescriptions to Target after a bad experience with Walmart pharmacy. I was thrilled with the excellent customer service and prices at Target pharmacy, I was very pleased with how great the whole process was - at Walmart just picking up a prescription was a nightmare. Target Pharmacy and their terrific staff were a breath of fresh air. 

And then CVS took over. A med that last month cost $36 was this month $268. When I called CVS customer service they told me it would take three days to get even a phone call back. This is not good enough, I wasn't complaining about the cost of shampoo, this was a medication! Three days is too long to wait for a resolution.

I had to go through the hassle of moving my prescriptions to yet another pharmacy,a Target competitor. The ongoing labor problems were a red flag and now that corporate Target would partner with a group so clearly not interested and uninvested in maintaining the same high level customer service that Target embraces, is disappointing and tells me a lot about Target .

You will notice that I kept it positive,  and then segued seamlessly  to "disappointed" - completely skipping over "furious" and "outraged" while not involving any profanity! I am very proud of my communication skills. I did call them again today and I did make the operator cry, but that was then, I've grown, I've matured since then. And she deserved it.

The Target/CVS pharmacy competitor I went to, honored my GoodRX card and sold me my script for $47. When I told them that CVS wanted to charge me $268 fir the exact same script, the clerk was aghast.


From Targets Facebook response-bot:

Hi Diana - We cherish the feedback that you've taken the time to share with us. It sounds like you haven't been satisfied with our pharmacy recently. Because we're committed to improving, your comments on this have been shared with the appropriate teams for their review. We hope that you have a good night! - Mario

Problem solved.

It was raining as I left work. I was secretly happy that I wasn't going to have t walk the dog, we walked a lot of the weekend and now I am tried and I think the dog is too. A break would be welcome.

Instead of walking, I picked up the dog and we went to Target to pick up his meds. We had one day remaining and I really needed to get his refill, because  an adequately medicated Rocket is a happy Rocket. I like  a happy dog. I do not like a freaked out, miserable dog that destroys doors and eats futons and removes metal blinds. I do not like this kind of dog.

So off to Target we go! Wheee! Its raining but its okay! I walk into Target and immediately see a rabbit figurine that I need, it is $3, I do most certainly need this rabbit figurine. I go to the pharmacy, the lovely, well stocked, fully staffed, no line having pharmacy I was just thinking what  nice experience  it is to do business with them. I walk up to the counter, give the clerk my name and pull out my card. The clerk asks me how much I paid for the script last month... This is a bad question, if the pharmacy clerk ever asks you how much you paid last month as they are carefully sliding the bag towards you, brace yourself. Something bad is going to happen.

Something Bad Happened. Last month I paid somewhere between $28-$40, I don't remember. It was more than I paid for a few months at Wally. but Target pharmacy was supposed to be my new home for dogs meds and I was willing to pay the price difference to get the much higher level of customer service.

Did you know CVS bought out Target pharmacy? They run it now. Things are different now. My script today, if I had paid for it was $268! No level of customer service is worth that kind of price increase!

It was explained to me by the very embarrassed clerk that I had been buying it with the aid of a Target Customer Discount Card, but their new corporate Over Lords are not in favor or such frivolous customer centered nonsense! CVS won't let customers buying a certain class of much needed psych meds use the card because, I am assuming, The War On Drugs will be lost! Lost! If  all their clients they could continue to get the same level of sterling customer service. Some clients do not deserve service. Some clients money  and good will is not needed or wanted. I was shocked and the clerk was really looked liked she wanted to crawl under the counter in shame. I left the store without the dogs much needed med or the rabbit figurine, and got on the phone to the Vet School for help, they were helpful, concerned and equally horrified. The docs were gone for the day but the service took a detailed message and I trust they will be back to me Tuesday ASAP. Good folks them.

After I got off the phone with them, I got on the phone with CVS. I explained, keeping my tone positive and forgiving, that I was feeling miss used as a client and I really hoped that CVS could correct this error quickly, and I could get my meds. A super visor will get back to me IN THREE DAYS. I need the meds today.

CVS taking over Target Pharmacy is going to run Target pharmacy out of business, I would imagine that this was the point. The CVS takeover is a huge loss for Target customers.

Christmas Carols 2015

According to Google

The first recorded date of Christmas being celebrated on December 25th was in 336AD, during the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine (he was the first Christian Roman Emperor). A few years later, Pope Julius I officially declared that the birth of Jesus would be celebrated on the 25th December

Veni, redemptor genrium - O Come, Redemer of the Earth, a very early hymm, credited to St. Ambrose of Milan (340-397)  It is one of the first Christmas carols .

Thanks to the wonder of 24 hour Christmas Music and a desire to listen to three or four hours of pop versions of classics a day,  but being assaulted by drek for eight hours, I have hear the following piece between 34-45 times during the work day. I HATE this song. I hate it when Reba sings it, I hate it when Kenny Rogers sings it and I especially hate it when it is sung by Khristian pop groups.

Mary, did you know That your baby boy will one day walk on water? Mary, Did you know

That your baby boy will save our sons and daughters?

Did you know

That your baby boy has come to make you new?

This child that you've delivered

Will soon deliver you

Mary, did you know

That your baby boy will give sight to a blind man?

Mary, did you know

That your baby boy will calm a storm with His hand?

Did you know

That your baby boy has walked where angels trod?

And when you kiss your little baby

You've kissed the face of God

Mary, did you know?

The blind will see

The deaf will hear

And the dead will live again

The lame will leap

The dumb will speak

The praises of the Lamb

Mary, did you know

That your baby boy is Lord of all creation?

Mary, Did you know

That your baby boy will one day rule the nations?

Did you know

That your baby boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?

This sleeping child you're holding

Is the Great I am

Songwriters: LOWRY, MARK/GREENE, BUDDY

Mary, Did You Know? lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, 

Which the answer would be YES!, yes she knew!, this trash is being "sung" by Khristians to other Khristians, many of which take great pride in trivializing the bible and memorizing great swaths of it for fun and profit - So we don't really need to ask this question because even those of us that do not turn The Bible into a trivia game, we know she did, the Angel Gabriel came to her,as a Catholic I know it because The Church celebrates it as the   The Annunciation.

 If they had more taste they could just instead listen to any of the AOR versions of Gabriel's Message,  a Basque folk Christmas carol, and get the answer without a Cliffs Notes of the entire New Testament.

The angel Gabriel from heaven came
His wings as drifted snow
His eyes as flame
"All hail" said he "thou lowly maiden Mary
Most highly favored lady, " Gloria, Gloria

"For known a blessed mother thou shalt be
All generations laud and honor thee
Thy Son shall be Emanuel
By seers foretold
Most highly favored maid, " Gloria, Gloria

Then gentle Mary meekly bowed her head
"To me be as it pleaseth God, " she said,
"My soul shall laud and magnify His holy name."
Most highly favored lady, Gloria, Gloria

Joseph was visited and her Mother, Anne was visited by angels to let her know about her child being born without original sin, everyone knew.

Hate Wal-Mart Pharmacy, they suck, and lie and have bad service.

Rocket did a good job displaying his anxiety at the dog shrink. Which is good because going in and saying his behavior has changed and he seems different isn't really good enough. He did his job and was a nut.

The doctor  spent some time with him, examined him and even did a blood draw. The doctor said he has relapsed. So. More meds, different meds, more diary keeping and a change of med schedule.

As I was talking to the vet - for an hour and a half! I started to notice hat there were a lot of signs things have been not great for a while. He hasn't slept well in months, his anxiety levels have risen, slowly, but they are more than they were. Lately however, it has gotten out of hand. He spent an entire night freaking out, he seems very unhappy when I put him in his room in the morning and he was always fine with that, he will not stay in his room during the day, after months and months of no problems, he peed the floor twice in the last month, when he gets out of the room he is destructive and this is dangerous and unacceptable. I also noticed just today that he needs to be veryclose to me, and this has not been the case.

I noticed this morning that he was in the kitchen doorway while I ate breakfast, normally, he goes back to sleep on the couch while I eat with kitty. Now its different, now he's back to being rightwithme.

I don't know what has happened and why he is sick again and I wish I had been paying attention before he was this unhappy. But, thankfully, I had the vet school and the behaviorist on speed dial and it was time for his yearly and hopefully, we can get him back to where he was.

And now Wal-Mart Pharmacy  needs to practice good customer service... Yeah, of course they dicked me over, its Wal-Mart! what did I expect! The pharmacy manager "kindly" said he would fill them this month, but after this, I'm going to have to go somewhere else and pay more because all of a sudden after months, my discount pharmacy card doesn't work anymore to buy meds for an animal. I have complained, but I am going to complain more and higher up. And then I am going to strip all my scripts from them and go elsewhere. Bastards.

Phone Sex

My phone is not feeling well. It is feeling weak and frail and its has a really hard time following conversations. It gets tired really fast. I plug it in and instead of charging it actually discharges! Is there a cream for phone discharge?

What I want from my cell phone provider is to get a new phone. I have gotten replacements in the past for much less annoying problems and now that I have a problem thats making me very annoyed, I get nada. I have gone to two different stores, the first was grossly unhelpful and the second was unhelpful in a less gross manner.Neither wanted to do anything about my phone problem.

I went to a new store today, a nicer store. They made an attempt to help me but not really. My chief complaint is that my phone will not take a charge from a charger. Any charger, well, except for the bent one at work, that one it will make sweet, sweet phone loving with. No other charger on the planet. It is its soul mate. Both are damaged but they find perfection in each other. Its very romantic

The charger at the store worked. It must also be bent. They have a whole drawer of variously bent chargers and the Dom they hire to work the desk just knew that my model of phone likes it very bent. They knew how to scratch its itch! The store told me to go buy a new, uptight charger and that would solve this problem. Chargers do not come out of the box with the right degree of bentness that my phone requires to find real satisifaction with a charger. My phone is too kinky for Target and the phone store knew it.

Perverts.

I left the store and did what they wanted and brought the uptight charger home to perform for my phone -  when my phone was left unsatisfied, I  called customer service. I got off the phone with them before I ended up on some training video about how to deal with The Difficult Caller. I also don't want to waste good, sharp sarcasm on  dull people who only want to stick to a script! I wanted to tell them We are off book here! This is the world of Improv! I'm going to take you to the river!  You can get saved, or you can get drowned.

I'm going to call back...

VOTE VOTE VOTE LIKE YOUR COUNTRY DEPENDS ON IT

IF YOU ARE A WOMAN, VOTE BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO, IF YOU ARE A MINORITY, VOTE BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO, IF YOU ARE A STUDENT, VOTE BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO, IF YOU ARE A WHITE MALE, VOTE LIKE THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO.
VOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTE
VOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTE
VOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTE
VOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTE
VOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTEVOTE
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Customer Service This

I had a meeting after work so I had Rocket in daycare. I decided that after the meeting instead of picking up the dog immediately and then going to Sams to pick up a couple of things and put gas in the car, that I would leave dog at daycare and go to Sams by myself, to save the dog from having to wait in the kind of warm car.

So. Went to Sams, wandered around more than usual as there was no dog waiting in the car.  I found a couple of items and went to the pharmacy to get my prescription. Yay.

The woman waved her wand over my stuff, I have to swiped my card TWICE! ALWAYS TWICE! AND IT ASKS IF I WANT CASH BACK TWICE! IF I SAID NO THE FIRST TIME I MEANT I DO NOT WANT CASH BACK DAMN IT! THE STAFF WORK FOR SAMS THE CARD SWIPER IS A WALMART EMPLOYEE!

Anyway. I took my goods and headed for the door. The troll at the door asked where my "other" receipt was, I answered I don't have '\"another" receipt, I have these three things on one receipt. Brunhilda tells me my raspberries were not paid for. I TELL BRUNHILDA TO USE HER BITCHCRAFT CAREFULLY, MY BROOM USES JET FUEL AND SHE'S THROWING MATCHES.

I did not use the raspberries to give Brunhilda an object lesson about the TONE SHE CHOOSE TO USE WITH THE CUSTOMER . I went BACK to the pharmacy and had the girl wave her wand over my berries AGAIN AND AGAIN HAD TO SWIPE MY CARD TWICE AND ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS TWICE. DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I HAVE TO SWIPE MY CARD AT HARRIS TEETER? ONE TIME! I now felt they were "mine", I had spent time with them and really developed a bond with them, having wandered around the store with them for an extended period.

I went back to Brunhilda and she held me there while she ever so slowly filled out a form so she could tattle on the pharmacy tech. AND THEN SAM-SPLAINED TO ME WHY SHE WAS DOING THIS AS TO SHAME AND EMBARRASS THE PHARMACY TECH FROM DOING IT AGAIN BECAUSE THE MALFUNCTIONIN SCANNER IS SOMETHING SHE CAN CONTROL AT WILL. BRUNHILDA DOES NOT APPROVE OF POWERFUL, EDUCATED, UPPITY WOMEN. BRUNHILDAS' BROOMSTICK IS FLACCID.

 I told her I did not care to wait for this and she NEEDED TO LET THE CUSTOMER LEAVE THE STORE RIGHT NOW, BECAUSE THE CUSTOMER DOES NOT HAVE TIME FOR THIS SHIT AND THE CUSTOMER DOES NOT CARE ABOUT YOUR FORMS AND SHOULD NOT BE ASKED TO WAIT FOR YOU TO FILL THEM OUT AS THE CUSTOMER DID NOTHING WRONG IN THIS SCENARIO. DIE BITCH DIE

And then I went and picked up my dog and made dinner for us both. Then I went to Walmart because at least the lousy costumer service and constant insults do not bring on  a caps-lock rage.

Eating Out

I went to Burger King for lunch on Tuesday. Snuff with your rage, I needed an original BK chicken sandwich and onion rings. I didn't even remember the messed up my order and are  treasonous corporate tax cheats until after I refilled my drink and was headed out the door.

Why was I distracted from thoughts of appropriate punishment of treasonous corporate tax cheats and serial order foulers?

I ordered my food, which they got wrong, is it so hard to not put mayonnaise on everything? Did I ask for salad in addition to my chicken? I did not. I asked for a #8 plain and dry. It was not plain, it was not dry. I had to sacrifice one of my onion rings to scrape everything off it. Fortunately, the batter they use on the rings render them excellent mayonnaise scrapers. They stay firm and they stand up to  the oily wetness

I was not thinking about that either. I try not to think about how often  these places get my order wrong, if I were to spend time thinking about this, I would think about little else.  I eat at these places so rarely anymore, it would be great if they could not fuck up my order ever. single. time.

Instead of  serial poor customer service and treasonous corporate tax cheats, I was thinking how a staffer came out to my table, I was eating outside to escape the constant bleating and dinging and buzzing endemic to fast food restaurants and was finding the sound of bus farts,  jabber from packs of wandering under grads and  truck exhaust soothing in comparison. The staffer bussed my table, gave me a book of coupons and a handful of after dinner mints.

I was shocked. So shocked I didn't think to complain about my botched order or her employer's status as treasonous tax cheats. She bussed my table and gave me mints!  While I was eating outside! She took my trash away so I didn't have to.

She treated me like an actual real person dining at an actual real restaurant and I forgave Burger King for fucking up my order and being treasonous corporate tax cheats. One staffer doing the right thing. Who knew? I walked out of there with positive thoughts about them despite the fact I should be boycotting them for being tax cheats and the fact they inevitably fuck up my order.

One employee being nice. Instead of obsessing over my fucked up order and their status as treasonous corporate tax cheats I walked out of there thinking positive thoughts about them. The order fucking up, treasounce corportate tax cheats. Clearly, the good thoughts were for a limited time only... But I walked out of there and did not burn the store down. I  still see that as a win for customer service and sadly, for the treasonous corporate tax cheats and serial order fucker uppers.

Magic Tricks

I took Rocket to the vet today to have what remained of his stitches removed. He had three two weeks ago, but today he had just one. The first he deemed redundant almost immediately, the second he decided was irrelevant just yesterday and the third, the most important stitch, the one holding the whole thing together, he allowed the vet to remove. I tried to explain to the vet that Rocket is really, really in touch with his body and that is why he took them out - the areas had healed and the stitches were no longer needed.

She was not happy with me or the dog. She thought he was even more anxious than when she met him almost a year ago and she thinks he's on too many too strong anti-anxiety meds. She believes they are making him more anxious. He had just spent the whole day napping, he had not had his evening walk or his dinner meds but he had a neato trip in the car to a place he enjoys being to see people he likes  Of course he was excited! I was becoming unexcited about coming to a place I was quickly not enjoying while getting the riot act read to me by a person I was rapidly liking less and less.

I said that since he picked up med number two he is barking markedly less, he hasn't destroyed anything and he seems a lot more calm when I come home now and he is calmer over all. I also added that he is a remarkably calm weim and that others have mentioned it to me because the breed can be unmanageable nut-balls. She said its because he's drugged and without the drugs he would be a completely different dog.

I'm sure he would be. A completely freaked out, terrified mess.

She suggested that I teach him tricks to keep his mind busy - a busy mind being a tired mind. She said it was like if I wasn't interested in world history and I read a world history book it would make me really tired... I told her that he is in agility - she pishposhed agility  as it only makes him physically tired and  that he should be mentally tired as well. Perhaps I will find him a thirty years out of date book on Canine Contributions to World History I could bore him into good behavior.

So if I followed her advice and stopped the meds and taught him tricks as per her suggestion, such as "to turn on and off the lights"  that he would magically be cured and drug free. Bitch.

Litter

Rocket and I took out first long-form walk today. We left at 4:20 and we didn't get home until 5:40. Its been a long time since we  got our walk on and it was nice to be back. We took a couple of walks when he came home from vacation but it was too warm and it wouldn't stop raining and so our walks were abbreviated or not at all. Sad really.

He didn't want to eat when we came home. I had been thinking about food for the last hour but he his mind must have been elsewhere - the hormones will take awhile to leave his system. I fed myself and put his bowl down but he wouldn't eat it. I had to go to the store and I left him with his food and hoped for the best.  Still not interested. By the time I returned from the store it was after 8pm and I was concerned.

Apparently, his internal clock wants him to eat at 8:15 at night.

I got a letter from the Church, they want me to give them money and as a to butter me up for this, they included a Pope Francis holy card. Thanks Church! He's  kind of cool, ya'll could learn from him. I'm keeping the card and throwing away the letter.

 I might have been a little more likely to help them out, because I actually do like this new Pope, but two weeks in a row the new priest reminded the congregants that we really, really hate gay marriage and that birth control is sinful. The priest also said that Jesus didn't love or even tolerate all people and that tolerance is bad and hating is good and being on the wrong side of history is a good place to be! Our hate makes us strong!  And when  those evil tolerance pushers are out there being tolerant of others they are being intolerant of hateful people and this is intolerable! We demand to be hateful! And you should respect our hate and adopt it because hate is great!  Everyone should hate people who aren't like us.  And we are all like us! Because we say so!

The priest is an ass and the Church is still not getting any of my money. The priest also bragged that when he came to the parish in Greenville that  some of the congregants left the parish because they didn't like him and found him pushy and judgmental. He was proud of this. Ass.

Didn't give them money then, ain't gonna give them my money now. Thanks new priest for keeping me strong.