Or, Why One Should Never Listen to Patrons:
Mr. OldGuy, a curmudgeon if I ever saw one, who is here on nearly a daily basis and passes gas that smells like he is already dead, says that the census exists only to find out where the minorities are. To give them money. Why didn’t I know about this? I’m all for any government conspiracy that actually benefits me, since those are few and far between.
So I just got home from Boston where, as usual, I had a blast. I think that my opinion of Boston is skewed because I’m always there expressly to have fun; what city could suck when one’s only goal is to be entertained? We stayed at The Back Bay Hotel (thank Jeebus for Priceline), which was awesome, but whose unlimited free wireless would have earned it my undying love even if it had been only half as good. The hotel was in a great location for us to walk whereever we wanted to go, which is great, since we walked everywhere the entire weekend. For somebody as lazy as I am, this is quite an accomplishment. Actually, I don’t usually consider walking as real exercise, as you can look around and talk while doing it without losing your breath, but I definitely haven’t walked that much since I was in Europe last year.
Newbury Street was really close to our hotel, which is great, since there are some incredible restaurants on it. We went to:
- La Voile – French, awesome. The pan-seared fois gras is pretty amazing and the portion is insanely generous.
- Stephanie’s on Newbury – Great brunch, smart casual.
- The Other Side Cafe – Another brunch spot, much more casual/vegan-friendly/inexpensive than Stephanie’s.
- Pazzo – Italian. Unassuming space, pretty tasty food.
- J. P. Licks – Great ice cream. Crazy flavors, too.
We really wanted burritos from Boloco this morning before we headed home, but they didn’t open until 10, and we were on the road by a little after 9. It was a great, relaxed and fun weekend, and even the rain that greeted us as we neared New Jersey didn’t ruin the good mood I’ve got going!
So I went to the post office yesterday to mail out the blanket and booties I had knit for my friend’s baby boy. Little Archer made his appearance today, but since the package was already in the mail, I’m going to consider myself on time with this one. Happy birthday, Archer! It’s going to be interesting to have a St. Patrick’s Day birthday. That kid’s 21st is going to be epic.
I put the items in a handy box, but didn’t seal it, because I couldn’t find my packing tape. I figured that I could just use the tape at the post office. I addressed a label to Joanna, but didn’t include her zip code, because I didn’t have it. I wasn’t worried, since I’ve always gotten them from the post office in the past.
I made it to the post office and spent a couple of minutes using the free tape to eliminate any possibility that the package would open in transit. I took it to the counter and asked the gentleman for the zip code I needed. He told me that they no longer did that, and I’d have to get it on my own. He wrote down a freaking 800 number, as if I would devote that much effort to it. I just looked it up on my phone in about the time it would have taken to dial the number.
So I went back up to the counter with my newly zip-coded package. He looked at it and told me that they couldn’t accept packages sealed with Scotch tape. So why do they provide it???? He suggested that I use the Priority tape, which was on another table. I went to the other table and covered every bit of Scotch tape with the Priority tape.
Once I was finished, I took it to the counter for a third time. Thankfully, there were no more holdups. The guy scanned the package and then told me that I owed $5 for the postage. $5??? For a package to South Jersey?? At first I was confused as to why it cost so much; the contents are small pieces of fabric and couldn’t possibly cost that much to send 100 miles away. And then I realized that with the Priority tape came the Priority price. Devious! I guess that’s why the post office has done away with the plain packing tape they used to carry.
Now that I know the post office is an agent of evil, I will adjust my dealings with it accordingly.
You try to look sexy in maternity undies.
So the only reasonable way she could have lost 10 pounds so quickly would be if she gave birth. Mazel tov, pregnant lady from the ad!
From the article:
A Massachusetts sporting club is donating $10,000 to children’s charities as part of a deal settling criminal charges in the death of an 8-year-old boy who accidentally shot himself in the head with an Uzi during a gun fair.
There were so many points of failure in this story (the organizers’, the former police chief’s, the gun club’s, the father’s, and the poor 15 year old boy who was supervising Christopher) that it’s hard to know where to begin casting the blame. Christopher Bizilj deserved so much better than what happened to him. Mistakes and lapses in judgment happen all the time, but I honestly don’t know how his mother, Suzanne Bizilj can stand the knowledge that when their child was handed a loaded Uzi, her husband was preparing to take pictures, rather than to help his son hold the firearm.
I think the idea of guerilla knitting/crocheting is pretty badass. If ever there were a victimless crime, this would be it. I support any sort of vandalism that beautifies the world, instead of assaulting the eyes.
Sorry, I couldn’t resist making a bad pun about the totally awesome news that MLB finally fired some not-so-great umpires. Of course, I’m sure that more went into this decision than their penchant for blowing calls, or else C. B. Bucknor and Angel Hernandez (who somehow wasn’t even mentioned in this article) would have been gone a long time ago. Still, I hope this makes umpires think twice and consult with one another before they start guessing at calls. It’s hard enough to defend baseball to those who think it’s a boring game that goes on for too long, without having to add a disclaimer that umpire errors are expected in baseball. At least, the commissioner thinks so.
Because I would read – and enjoy – a book entitled The Doctoral Candidate and the Ravishing Researcher.
Amusing, Facepalm | Nicole | 
March 23, 2010 6:22 pm | 
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