This was a great week because I finally finished my work at CASA. The job ended up being to issue new computers and take care of a few odds and ends. It wasn’t that big a deal. But the office manager is passive aggressive. She would demand unnecessary tests and meaningless information. When I did what she asked, she ignored the results. She refused to buy what we needed. For a week and a half, I stopped going in because there was nothing for me to do until she bought something we needed. (Of course, I told both the office manager and the executive director what I was doing and why). All together, the job ended up taking twice as long as it should have, which I found quite frustrating. But by Thursday I had done everything I could do. As usual, there was an issue. As usual, I told them. As usual, they denied me permission to solve it and did not solve it themselves. But this was for an upgrade for one PC that works perfectly fine without the upgrade. I told them they can call me if they need me, and that I need at least 2 to 4 hours of work to come in. (It takes me 2 hours work to pay for the trip.) I managed to leave the office without doing anything dramatic like shaking the dust off my feet.
It was just in time, because the weather Friday was perfect. It started out a little cool, warmed to 80, and was sunny all day. It was just the day to try my hilly metric century ride again. This time it went very well. I was tired at the end of the ride, but I had no pain in my arm, shoulder, or neck. The weather has been extremely unpredictable the last several days. I’ll look at the weather the night before and learn that I should be able to ride in the afternoon, but not in the morning. I’ll check the weather in the morning and see that I can ride in the morning, but not in the afternoon. By late morning or early afternoon, it becomes apparent that the thunderstorms that had a 95% chance of starting at Noon just couldn’t get started. And so it goes.
Last night we had a neighborhood “Chill and Grill”. The association provides hamburgers and hot dogs, buns, drinks, and plates / silverware / etc. Residents bring a side dish or desert. We had wonderful weather for the party. We sat inside, but the majority of residents were outside. After the party, one of the residents offered a movie. Just as we were walking in the house, a major thunderstorm started up. Lucky us!
Tomorrow is the last Symphony concert. This one is a little different. The orchestra will play music to accompany Charlie Chaplin’s “ModernTimes”. I’ve never actually seen the movie, although I have seen the famous takeout of Charlie working on the gears. It should be a lot of fun. If we go out to eat afterwards, it will be someplace low-scale. Trying to eat at a restaurant on Mother’s Day is not our idea of fun. We make it a point to have Sunday breakfast at Panera on Mother’s Day, because it’s even less crowded than normal. And Panera serves a perfectly fine breakfast.
Physical Therapy is going very well. Last Wednesday, the therapist got 100% motion in my arm. I’m thinking this will be the last week of PT. That will give me even more flexibility for training.
Ed and Lynne Schmaus’s son Pete was working as the grounds keeper at a Boy Scout camp on the Eastern Shore. Pete lost that job this week. The house they were living in was provided as part of the job, so they lost the right to live in the house as well. We’re not sure what happened, and it doesn’t really matter. Pete, Rebecca, and their two daughters are moving in with Ed and Lynne. Lynne has been teaching Kindergarten full time for the last several years. She is well connected with the Baltimore County schools. She was able to get the older grandchild placed immediately because they are technically homeless. (The younger girl is too young for school.)
That’s the news for this week. I hope this finds everybody doing well.