When the lockdown started, I distinctly remember stories of people losing their jobs, not being able to shop, and having to get creative with their meals by eating all the things in their house that they hadn’t eaten. Despite the sadness that surrounded it, I thought this was great in a way.
I can’t speak for any of my readers, but I know that many of my family members have food in the freezer and food in their pantries that they aren’t using. It could be that they bought something on sale and didn’t like it that much. It could also be that they bought a bunch of them because it was a deal conditional on quantity. It could be that they had every intention of eating whatever they bought, but completely forgot about it. It could also be that someone gave them things that they expected they would like, but probably don’t.
This is no less true for me than any of my family members. My freezer has a lot of stuff that I should eat before I buy any more. My pantry is a little better. I no longer have 8 boxes of cereal waiting to be eaten. However, there are some things my neighbour gave me–sample products from her food company which don’t really appeal to me, but I feel bad about throwing away without trying–but most things are relatively recent purchases and are not gathering dust….yet.
I didn’t put it down in my resolutions, but getting rid of stuff I will never eat and eating stuff that is already paid for so the freezer and pantry will be empty are goals for this year. I didn’t put it down because except for empty space and a slightly fuller wallet, I don’t know how I could measure that.
In the past couple of days, I did managed to make a few decent meals out of the stuff I had on hand. I have saved a couple of bucks, and created some room in the fridge and freezer. I consider this a big win and more importantly, Today’s Perfect Moment. If I can delay shopping by even one day, that is a win.
Armed with gift cards from my 50th birthday, I headed to Mountain Equipment Co-op to get some hiking boots. Part of my next adventure is a four day hike and I didn’t think it was wise to tackle it in sandals–regardless of how much I like them.
Going to the store is both wonderful and horrible at the same time. There is so much stuff that I want, that I believe I need , that I believe I deserve…you see where this is going don’t you? It wouldn’t take much of an effort to spend this month’s mortgage payment on equipment and stuff for my next two trips and cycling adventures.
I decided to get the boots today because I should break them in a bit before I leave. I have enough lead time that this is possible and shouldn’t present a problem. These are not winter boots, but they are waterproof so I don’t suppose a few laps around the block will hurt them unless I come upon a big salt pile.
In addition to buying the boots and some expensive socks, I spent time talking to the sales associates. Though this is a retail store, the people who work there have all swallowed the kool-aid for the outdoor lifestyle. They’ve got practical experience to help me and also have given me some questions I had better find answers to before I leave–mostly about the climate conditions of where I am going and how we will be transported. Having the right clothing on the hike could make a difference in my comfort and enjoyment level.
I managed to leave the store without breaking the bank. I did spend a bit of time lusting over some bike parts, though. I also lingered a bit too long at the Go Pro counter. There is just too much to look at and dream about at that particular store.
Is there a store which makes you want to spend every dollar you have? Is there something you really want, but can’t justify the price?
So, a couple of days ago, I got this email that said something to the effect that I owed my cell phone provider some money and that they would be turning this over to a collection agency and my cell phone service would be cut off. This was the first I heard of this, and I wondered why they hadn’t sent any mail before this. I also wondered why a collection agency would work for such small potatoes.
I tried to tackle the problem when I first got the email, but my carrier doesn’t use traditional customer service reps. They would rather I fumble around with a touch tone menu and then text chat with a computer. These things are hard enough on a normal day, but when you have to go back and forth to things that are stored on the phone…..frustration is not too strong a word.
I did manage to access my account balance and in a raspy computer generated voice, they informed me that I had paid this month’s bill. So, I forgot about it until today when someone reminded me that I still hadn’t dealt with the issue. I could let you guess who that someone is, but obviously it was my girlfriend “looking out for” me.
I searched for an office for the carrier and found one located quite close to my work. I went in and after a few buttons pushed, it appears that my account was fine. They then arranged for a customer service rep to contact me. This was a novel idea that I took full advantage of.
So, somewhere between work and home, between the crossword and the Sudoku, I got the call. The bus was kind of noisy and not really the place to do any serious calls, but I didn’t want to get a call late in the night. So, with the rain coming down in sheets, the bus hopping all over the place, and with my stop approaching, I took the call.
After much discussion, the previous information was confirmed. I didn’t owe anything.
My next thoughts were of obvious mistakes to espionage. Was someone trying to get my credit card information? Was someone looking to steal my identity or my friends? In time these thoughts faded. Accidents happen and computers sometimes make mistakes. That these “mistakes” happen so often in the telephone (land line or cellular) industry is not really a surprise to me either.
I am also keeping in mind that just because they said the problem was resolved, that it might not be. There’s a flaw in the system somewhere and it may come back to h aunt me again.
After reading this lengthy description, you are probably wondering what Today’s Perfect Moment is. Obviously, it is solving a problem and resolving a crisis. It feels good to win one once in a while.
I was nominated for a Liebster Award.by BionicOldGuy, who is doing a great job of “Aging Gracefully by Staying Active”. I appreciate his blog because it manages to both educate and entertain me. It also gives me a bit of inspiration as I try to become better on the bike. Please take a look at it if you have time.
I was going to pass on this, as my success rate in getting other people to respond is pretty abysmal. However, I appreciate his blog too much to merely dismiss it. Also, he did a fantastic job of taking down the “grammar police” for me in one of my blogs that I think I owe him one. Since I don’t think I’ll ever have the chance to let him draft behind me, this will have to do.
Like all of these awards, there are some questions. Since I am sitting here on a Sunday night drinking a Guinness, it seems like something I can get done.
The Questions
What motivated you to start a blog?
It came down to two things. The first was that I want to write. I want to write novels, short stories, comic books, screenplays, commercials, ESL textbooks….basically anything. I spouted that a lot without actually writing. I knew that writing was hard work. People just didn’t write a novel in a couple of days. Just writing a short story took days to write the first draft and then the editing took…well it took longer than I put into it obviously.
So, blogging became a kind of practice. You’ve got to exercise those writing muscles. Currently, I hope that in each blog post I write there is at least one good phrase or sentence, or even paragraph that is good. Oddly enough, a friend and I were discussing it over tacos the other day and he said that he felt there were many good phrases and ideas. I was so happy I bought him a beer.
I hope he wasn’t just saying that to get a free beer.
The thing was that I got the sense that people were making money from blogging. That sounded awesome. I certainly hoped to get paid to write novels or anything from the list above, so blogging fit that category. It hasn’t turned out that way, but I am still hopeful that I will get to do some free biking trips or adventure trips as a result of this blog. If you know anybody with this kind of marketing pull, please send them my way.
What is the number one piece of advice or motivation you’d like people to take away from your blog?
Your day can be hard, or crappy. You can hurt. You can feel like you are alone and that nobody understands or sympathizes with you. Though time will reveal this last one to be completely false, in the short term, you can find one thing every day that makes you smile. It doesn’t have to be earthshattering. It doesn’t need to be so obviously special. It just needs to give you something to smile about before you go to sleep.
Most of my Perfect Moments aren’t perfect, but rather I choose to see them that way because with a subtle shift in perspective, they are. Seeing a fellow commuter wearing what look like fuzzy slippers (but were probably high fashion sandals) makes me smile. Seeing a guy drinking two cups of coffee on the bus simultaneously makes me wonder if one is black and the other is with milk and sugar (what we call the Double Double up here north of the 49th). Sometimes the moments are profound and at other times childish. Sometimes they are introspective and at other times just a bit off the wall. The thing is, writing about them and thinking about them makes my dreary days seem much better. I hope they do that for you too.
Who is your most inspirational figure?
I’ve got lots of these, so I had better break them down into categories. I am going to forget lots, but these should prove to be a representative list.
Historical figures: Louis Riel, Thomas a Becket, Sakamoto Ryouma, Viola Desmond, Terry Fox….
Writers: Harlan Ellison, Graham Swift, John Irving, Mordecai Richler, Kurt Vonnegut, Harper Lee….
Unsung heroes: people who wake up sleeping commuters at the last stop, people who hold open doors, people who let customers with a single item in front of them in the line…..
What is your favourite food?
I love pizza and pizza loves me. If I had to pick a cuisine, I would have to say I love Japanese food. If I could go back to Japan for a year, I would forgo the temples in favour of eating.
What is your favorite physical activity (PG rated, please)?
Currently, cycling is my number one thing. I look forward to it all winter long and most of my vacations (Vietnam and Cambodia) were cycling vacations. I am considering either going to Chile, Prague or Laos by bicycle later this year. I woudln’t say I am great on the bike. I need to drop about twenty pounds and take my training more seriously to be better. However, even the limited training I have done this year has yielded results. This gives me great hope.
What do your do for stress relief?
Blogging is stress relief. Cycling is stress relief. Doing stupid childish things with the girlfriend–like racing up the stairs from the subway to see who is first–is stress relief. Sadly, eating junk food is also stress relief. Hopefully I do more of the former and less of the latter going forward.
Recommendations
One of the great things about these awards is that they help gain an audience for the bloggers. The award asks me to recommend five of them. What I would like to do is expose you, my readers, to some bloggers who don’t have nearly as much traffic as they deserve. Please take a look at their blogs
The Intrepid Arkansawyer. Changing your life to look after your mother is no easy task. Moving from LA to Arkansas, well, that is something else.
Yakkablog. When someone else is riding around beautiful places and taking great pictures, you should let everyone know about it.
The Grin Girls. They seem to be on an amazing trip. The photos are amazing and the story is great. Every time I read a post, I want to pack my bags.
An Old Man in Lycra. There are so many great cycling blogs out there. I just think a lot of people will enjoy this one.
And while I was only suppose to include 5, I wanted to throw in a bonus one as Rootchopper is taking his annual cross country cycling trip. You should take it with him.
Should any of them want to answer the questions (and if you want to, let me know and I will link your blog to this one) here they are. I don’t know if these are great questions, but if I put too much heart into them (as I have done countless times) and nobody answers, I am just devastated. If they are fluff, so be it.
What is your favourite blogging moment?
Who is your favourite author?/Which novel can you read multiple times?
What song always makes you smile or sing out loud when it is played on the radio?
What is something that makes you grumpy/frustrated/angry but doesn’t affect anyone else in your circle?
Today, I visited two different shops on errands. These were a bit of a way from my house, but I managed to make the journey on secondary roads. It was rather peaceful.
First I went to the Pacific Mall to find some stationery goods. Luckily I came upon the Japanese Dollar store (where everything that would be 100 yen in Japan was 2 dollars in Canada. Not exactly a fair deal, but not horrible either. It was in the sub basement of the mall and I wouldn’t have found it if not for the urging of one of the saleswomen on the main floor. I had seen the store while I was looking for the washroom (restroom for my US readers WC for others) but didn’t realize that it had a basement. I thought I was already in the basement.
So, below, illuminated by fluorescent lights, they had all those things you would find at a Japanese 100 yen store. I felt so cool that I could read some of the product descriptions. I didn’t think I was back in Japan or anything–it was a little too disorganized for that–but it was a nice way to while away some time.
The second visit was to a hobby store. This one had rocket kits, model kits (cars, military, and gundam) RC planes, RC cars, and even RC boats. The store was a bit cramped, but I vaguely remember being there years before when the store occupied two units. I am pretty sure they had to work hard getting everything back into one unit.
I wandered the three or four aisles they had thinking about my hobbies and my hobby aspirations. If you’ve read my other blog, you’ll know that I am involved in a whole host of money devouring hobbies and pastimes. It was fun to think how I could blow more money.
In the end, I did not spend a lot. I was happy for the distraction.
Yesterday, I went to the cycle store to pick up my new bib. If you are following this blog, you might remember that my cycling bib died a horrible death. I don’t know whether it was shock, weather, or research that kept me from taking care of this earlier. I am not done yet, either. I now know that having only one set really invited disaster. Thanks to lots of readers, I have some good leads on some other pairs I would like to purchase.
Before you go thinking that buying the bib shorts was Yesterday’s Perfect Moment, you’d be wrong. I was going to make a purchase either way. There are several shops in my immediate area and one of them was going to get my patronage and others still might. No, spending money will never be big on the list of Perfect Moments. Shopping rarely excites me.
Instead, it was just that idea of taking really steps to getting back out on the bike again. It was only a couple of months ago that I was in Vietnam cycling around and really enjoying myself. I want that again. Most of the people from the trip got back to climates which were more favourable for riding and barely missed a step. For me, it has been a long wait, albeit shorter than it normally would have been.
I enjoyed walking around the bike shop, wondering if I needed to upgrade any of my stuff. There were so many new and exciting things.I briefly considered a new helmet. I wondered if I should get myself a Garmin with cadence sensors and a heart monitor. Even briefer, a new mostly carbon bike came to mind. Alas, a new roof on the house and dreams of either Chile or Sri Lanka Exodus trip put that dream to rest.
When I got home, I quickly renewed my membership to my local bike club. The paperwork was a bit tedious, but it is another step forward instead of the dull holding pattern I had found myself in. Now, I have to start stretching….and I had better check the tire pressure.
So, a couple of days ago, I got this email that said something to the effect that I owed my cell phone provider some money and that they would be turning this over to a collection agency and my cell phone service would be cut off. This was the first I heard of this, and I wondered why they hadn’t sent any mail before this. I also wondered why a collection agency would work for such small potatoes.
An Archive of Perfect Moments 