Why Did I Think Cleaning The Condenser Unit Would Be Easy?

When it comes to maintaining the AC, I didn't think it would be hard.  I studied up on cleaning the condenser unit.  What I did not take into account is screwing back in the lid.  I should have, because screwing things back in is never as easy as unscrewing them.

This whole rigmarole surrounding cleaning the outdoor unit was a pain in the ass.  I had to first get the water system up and running.  I got everything set up in the backyard, but forgot that the gate valve in the basement had to be turned on, and when I did, I heard this scary as hell banging as the water started flowing.  And then I went outside and the pipe leading to the spigot (where I hooked up the hose I used to rinse the unit) was dripping water like crazy.  I thought there was a bad leak, but it stopped, so (shrug).

I then was able to unplug the condenser.  I was able to yank the, and I just learned this is what it was called yesterday on YouTube, the cartridge in the outdoor breaker, and then the cartridge in the main circuit breaker in the basement.  Unscrewing the cover to get inside the condenser was easy.  Applying the cleaner seemed fine, even though I though there would be a lot more froth.  And the hose worked in rinsing off the cleaner.  But goddammit, I kept lining up the lid, but the holes through which I had to screw the screws wouldn't line up for all five screws.  I was getting both frustrated and hot, and that's not a good combination, so I went back inside to eat the rest of my chicken wrap and cool off.  I tried again, got three screws in, then said screw it with the other two screws.  Everything works and I finally turned on the air conditioning for the first time this year.  But I have two screws extra.

My bedroom is right above the unit.  I don't think it's noisier than it would be if it had all five screws in.

Making My Schedule Based On Time, Money, Car Vibes, And Semen

Fitting my schedule to accommodate chores, outings, and time with my stripper girlfriends have just overwhelmed me.  I need to budget my time, I need to make sure I have enough money to do everything I want to do, I'm getting kind of freaked out over driving everywhere because of the obscene price of gasoline, and, most important of all, I need to make sure I'm able to cum on demand.

It's the stripper girlfriends where all of this comes to a head (in a manner of speaking).  I wanted to get with ****e for the longest time, and I thought last weekend was it, but she didn't answer my texts in a timely manner.  Finally, last weekend she said that this weekend was good.  After some back-and-forth, I am supposed to see her tomorrow/Sunday.  Then, ***e* blindsided me by telling me she was in town this weekend and wants to cum visit.  Not a great time, but I slotted her in for this/Saturday morning.  I don't know if my penis can perform back-to-back, but consider ***e* is only here this weekend and I already promised ****e, I kind of have to turn back the clock.

On top of all that, I've been going back-and-forth with my ATF regarding a massage.  I thought Monday would work, but when I texted her that I would be home Monday, my goddamn cellphone auto-corrected it to I would be gone Monday.  I caught it last/Friday night and said that I could be available after the weekend, and she apparently agreed.  Phew!  (By the way, if my ATF surprises me by doing something freaky, it won't matter that I shot the day before.  I know that, even in my advanced age, surprising trysts with women for the first time will have me ejaculating left and right!)

Now, beyond having fun (which seems kind of forced right now), I have things I need to do -- stuff like getting a shave, replenishing my alcohol, and seeing my junior prom date at the cemetery.  But before all that, I have stuff around the house I need to do -- stuff like getting my irrigation system up and running and, more importantly, cleaning my outdoor condenser unit.  Summer jumped me this week, and even though I partly am backing off on turning on the air conditioner because I don't want to spend money (being the primary caretaker of a house now turns you into a miser, believe me), I think it's high time I clean the outdoor condenser.  After all, my ATF should be giving me a rubdown on Monday, and I want her to be as comfortable as possible.  Running a fan won't be enough to cool her down, and besides, I want to close the windows in case she touches me to the point where I start screaming.

But I've never done it before.  I've looked through the YouTube videos, and I know I should clean out the debris that's inside it, then use a cleaner to clean the coils from the inside out, then use a hose to rinse it from the inside out.  But, they suggest I cut the power.  And even though I have turned off both the thermostat and the AC, I have no idea how to cut off power from the circuit breaker right next to the condenser unit.  I open up the cover and all I see is a metal loop.  What the hell is that?  Oh, well.  I think I am going to try and clean everything after I just turn off the AC and thermostat.

Oh, wait ... I can't hose the unit down after I clean everything because I haven't connected the water yet.  And I can't do that until I screw the nut into the, um, thingy that was pulled out in the fall in order to winterize our irrigation system.  I tried screwing it by hand, but I can't screw it in tight, so some time this/Saturday afternoon I am going to get a wrench and twist it in.  Then, I can use the water, and then I can begin cleaning the condenser because I can then rinse it.  Will I get this all done in one afternoon?  Who knows?  I might screw up, or hesitate at a step and decide screw it, I'll just turn the whole AC on.  I'm keeping my options open.

How does driving fit into this?  Shaving involves me driving in one direction, shopping for alcohol and visiting my deceased prom date means I need to drive in the other.  I do not want to drive both directions this/Saturday afternoon, especially if I need to do this thing with the condenser and irrigation system.  Since I'm seeing a friend next week, I think I'll get my shave and do everything else next weekend.  I think.  I'm keeping my options open!

Yeah, I'm busy.  And I haven't even mentioned sleep.  I want to budget one day where I can sleep in.  But I have to get up at a certain time to make sure I go out to the bank to get money today/Saturday to pay ***e*, and then I have to wake up at a certain time tomorrow/Sunday to drive over to ****e's place because she asked me to.  I won't like being woken up by an alarm up to a dozen days in a row (through next Saturday, when I'm supposed to meet this long-lost friend for which I'm getting my face shaved).

Gosh, I'm dealing with a lot of moving pieces I need to fit over the next two weeks -- and that's just for now, who knows what else is coming down the pike.  I know it's not serious in the big picture, but right now it feels serious to me.

Wood Splinter Might Be The Death Of Me

I finally decided that we won't have cool days where the heat kicks in, so I removed all of the blocks and plastic tarp Father put on and around the outdoor condenser to protect it from the snow.  One of the things on top of the condenser was a large but thin piece of plywood.  Stupid me didn't put on gloves before doing this bit of yardwork, and when I grabbed this, I touched a shard of wood that pierced my skin.

I washed the area and, if I am right about where the puncture was, I put a bandage on it.  But if my hypochondria is justified, I am still feeling a bit ... oogy.  So, if I don't wake up in the morning, you'll know I died because of, uh, complications from this wood splinter.  Just an FYI.

We could get not one, not two, but three shots of winter weather this week ... and there are chances for ice in all of them, beginning tonight/Wednesday night?  Yeah, fuck winter, and fuck ice.  And oh yeah, fuck ICE, too.  I gotta go to bed.

Have I Still Got My Libido At 50?

So after our volunteering event we hung out at a nearby restaurant to watch our alma mater play in the tournament.  And swear to God, there were so many hot women there with bazoombas underneath tight shirts (with bras, boo) that you know were so big they would go "Blammo!" as soon as they were unleashed.  And it probably was the one-off 75-80-degree weather that day that encouraged these hotties to look their hottest.  Damn!

I think I touched myself three out of the last four days.  Probably the aftereffects of feeling hot and horny for the first time on Saturday.  But it also might be me trying to hang onto my youth by convincing myself I could still get it up and unleash my splooge by jerking off as much as I could.  That might also be the reason I am going to try and see ****e this weekend ... or, it might be that I really, truly want to fuck her.

Oh, and there was the hot young thing (but old enough to be legal, trust me!) at Culver's, where I decided to spend money yesterday/Wednesday when I planned on not spending money yesterday/Wednesday, thinking that it's probably the best way to spread out all the free food birthday offers that are about to expire.  Glad I changed my mind, because this blonde was well built, had a huge chest, and wore a tight wifebeater that still showed off her gorgeous belly.  I think I got hard.

Yep, I think I still have a libido at age 50!!!

My Gas And Electric Bills Seemingly Mirror Each Other

Just paid my electric and gas bills now online.  As I think I've said here before, my gas bill is mortifyingly high.  But, my electric bill is manageable.  And I know it's the exact opposite come the summer -- my electric bill is gargantuan but my gas bill is tame.  I don't think I get why those two bills are ships passing in the night, but I just came up with a possible explanation: My house uses natural gas to heat itself, but electricity to operate the central air conditioning.  Makes sense, right?

Anyway, off to bed.

I woke up this morning at a normal hour -- 8:30-ish, when I could hear my sister leaving for something.  I spoke with my sis last night about monitoring Mother while she does her exercises this morning and, well, I figured my sister has done so much caring for My Mother, I think it is my turn to get out of bed and help out with Mother's PT while she takes several hours for herself.

After she got done exercising, I figured I had the time and the energy to clean out the gutters, something that needed to be done.  This was the perfect time; I was up, I don't have any other time to do it this weekend, and I don't know if it will be warm enough and/or not snowing for me to do it two weekends from now because I might not have time next weekend, either.  I thought there would be more leaves and detritus to clean out, but either there wasn't as much as I thought, or I didn't look closely enough, which is a possibility.

While sweeping away the leaves from the driveway, I looked up.  The skies are gloriously cloudy, and the trees on my street are still turning vivid shades of yellow, orange and red.  This weekend, this morning, would have been the perfect time to leaf-peep.  And I checked the temperature on my phone: 35 degrees, and it feels like 28.  But it doesn't feel like 28, or 35.  Maybe I'm hot from all the gutter-cleaning I was doing, but I felt quite warm and cozy for what I was wearing.  Anyway, this looked like perfect fall weather, and so I had to take a couple pictures of how I want the sky to look every day for the rest of my life.  No, really.

Maybe I Should've Switched Dates

I wanted to see ****e tomorrow/Sunday because I didn't have lunch yesterday/Friday and I wanted to have lunch at home with my family today/Saturday so I could skip lunch with them again tomorrow/Sunday.  But last/Friday night my sister and I decided to watch the leaves fall, like I said in my previous blog post.

The trip wasn't great.  It rained nearly our whole time there, which I think we shortened because of the rain.  At least we didn't leave after, like ten minutes, more like an hour, which was totally fine.  The leaves weren't falling.  Most of them hadn't even turned.  I think it would've been better to watch the leaves next weekend, when they probably would have turned and the weather possibly would have been better.  Still, this excursion was enough.

But I can't help but think that if I flipped dates, if I saw ****e today/Saturday and if we went to watch the leaves tomorrow/Sunday, when I think it wouldn't have rained and it possibly could've been sunny, things would have been perfect.  Would have been even better if I stayed home today, like I originally wanted to.  I would have one day this weekend where I'm woken up by an alarm, and the weather was so rainy/gloomy that it would have been the perfect day to just stay in bed.  Alas.

I have to note that it's been unseasonably hot around here this week.  It was in the low-to-mid eighties earlier this week, but this weekend will really bring the heat: We have and will reach 90.  Thank Buddha it isn't humid (or at least too humid), otherwise it would be completely oppressive.  I can't cool down without the fan, but we haven't turned on the air conditioning, and I don't think we will need to by the time the temperatures plummet some time Sunday.

In the meantime, I was strolling through the Friday Open Thread on online alternative weekly Racket.  This week's topic: What is your hot take when it comes to food?  There were a lot of comments, I read them all, and then I think I spent an hour spilling all of mine.  I spent so much time crafting my post that I missed the 2 a.m. cutoff for staying at Day 7/400% on Zynga Poker.  Back to square/Day 1.  Oh, well.

My God, It's Hot

Feels like summer right now.  Walking out in the Sun this afternoon and the rays have taken all the energy from me.  Don't want to do anything right now, and yet I have everything to do.

This would be hot enough for My Father to turn on the air conditioning.  That means he would have to come into my bedroom to close the window.  From there, he probably will pick up after me, like a goddamn loser.  And when I come home, he'll yell at me for not picking up after myself in the bedroom.  And then we will fight, and I won't have dinner for, like, the next week.  I should have closed the window before I left.  But then again, like I said in my previous blog post, why would that stop him?

Wow, My Fucking Father Is Being An Asshole Again

Lately he's been telling me to take a shower.  A couple weeks ago he told me ordered me to take one every night.

It seems as if every time I come home late, My Fucking Father's in the kitchen eating something.  That fucking sucks because if he's up there, he has told me to take a shower.  And he did so tonight, after I came home from the concert.  And I don't know why it's this time what he said infuriated me.  Maybe this was the last straw, or maybe it was a follow-on from earlier in the day when he kept shoving apples in my face telling me to eat them.  But I tried escaping to the bathroom to avoid him saying it, and I don't know why I did that, because he blurted out, "OK, go take a shower and go to sleep."

Thing is ... I just took a shower.  I was kind of stinky today -- just a tad, but I helped My Fucking Father move chairs out of my parents' minivan, I walked from parking at one end of St. Paul to the X at the other, and on my way back I walked through a pretty heavy rainstorm.  I really, really wanted to disobey My Fucking Father and just go to bed ... but I feel pretty fresh now, to be honest.  No, it's Father asserting control again just because he wants to.  I can't let him have that, even if he got me this time -- and I have to admit, part of me showering just now is me giving to him.

I can't wait for them to leave.  Fuck it, I can't wait for My Fucking Father to die.  Controlling asshole.

My Quick Trip Over The Border Was Both Fun And Unnecessary

So I told you all about my plans on going to Wisconsin yesterday/Saturday.  Yeah, a lot of it didn't go as planned.

My phone woke me up at 11.  I was prepared then to across the border to begin my afternoon around that area.  But I checked my texts and saw that *****y, who on Friday wanted to push our session back two hours now wanted to see if I could come today/Sunday.  I have plans to work on donating my car and then going to the United FC Match.  Also, and more importantly, *****y has flaked on me like this in the past, and I was in no mood to accommodate her.  So, we cancelled.  Well, actually, we postponed, but I don't know when the hell I can see her again.  I just know that we agreed on yesterday/Saturday, and she initially sounded really excited about it.  But I didn't like her attitude.  First, she said wanted to delay because she was working like a dog and she wants to look good for me.  She's gorgeous, but frankly, I'm not going to see her because of her looks.  And then, when we decided to delay, she said, "That's too bad."  Huh?  She first begged me to change the appointment of our HJ (a second time, mind you), but to me, she now sounded like she was calling the shots when she definitely is not.  Finally, when she told me she is working out of town on weekends, and I asked her as what, she shut me down.  Excuse me?  Not a fan of small talk now that you blew me off?  Are you an assassin -- is that why you can't say what you do?

Again, she's done this before, but I've come back to her with my erection in my hands, so this will be no different.  But fuck her, I don't want to see her right now.  I'll stick to my women who can keep an appointed time, thank you very much.

---

*****y's blow-off was one of a few signs that convinced me to change my schedule.  It was raining outside, and while I don't think crossing a bridge over the St. Croix River is dangerous in that weather, I would rather not do so, especially in an area of the country I've never been to.  Finally, my boss texted asking if I could come in to work.  I was initially going to stick to my (altered) plans of going to Wisconsin in the afternoon, but I couldn't pass up making a bit more money, and besides, I could drive in the evening when it's drier.

So, I worked in the afternoon.  And even though I didn't at first want to go out in the evening, I did my beer-shopping/lottery ticket-getting then, setting Sun blasting glare everywhere notwithstanding.  So glad that I could buy individual bottles of Spotted Cow.  However, when I tried cashing in Father's winning Mega Millions ticket, the cashier at the Circle K said I couldn't because it was too old.  Father bought this ticket in October, and I thought you had a year before it expires.  But I just looked up the Wisconsin Lottery FAQ, and it says you have only 180 days.  In Minnesota it's a year, and I guess I assumed that year time period was universal when it's not.

Oh, well.  I still promised Father I would get Powerball tickets for him, and I promised the same for my sister, who wanted one once I told her I was going across the border.  Nonetheless, I have to face this fact: If I knew that I couldn't cash in this ticket, I wouldn't have gone across the river into Wisconsin, and I wouldn't have bought any beer.  This would have, and maybe should have, blown up all my big plans of making a daytrip out of Stillwater, Minn., and Houlton, Wisc.

---

Oh, and to top it all off, Mother wanted me to go to Target to buy some miniature apples.  Well, at first, when I told my parents after dinner I was going, she asked me to where.  And I find that so fucking intrusive that I told her, "I'm going out, OK?" because I didn't want them to know my business ... even though I realized that they would know I crossed the border once I gave Father the Powerball tickets I bought for him.  Anyway, she asked because she wanted to know if I was going to Target because she heard these mini-apples were sweet and delicious.  I actually hit up a Target on my way back because I wanted to pick up some POM.  I tried them last night; they're ... OK.

---

No, it wasn't necessary to drive to Wisconsin and back, because of both my plans with *****y falling through and because of the expired lottery ticket.  But I want to note that me driving to the liquor store, and then to the gas station, and then to Target on the Minnesota side, took less than two hours.  I know that the Twin Cities lies relatively close to Wisconsin, but that trip is a tad longer than going out to see my brother and sister-in-law and niece at their home in Carver County.  The border is still fairly far away, and it's not a trip I think I should be doing regularly.  But still, two hours only?  And my car seems to be in good shape?  I have to admit that I had fun last/Saturday night driving by myself to these far-flung places, I really did.

My Schedule Couldn't Be Any Worse This Week

For the second time in two weeks, I am seeing a Wednesday night MNUFC Match on a day where I have to report early to work.  Because I now am expected to go into the lab an hour earlier than before, I have to get to work at 6:30, much earlier than I would than if I were in The Third or Fourth Department.  Furthermore, my days where I have to go into the lab is tied to my position as keyer, meaning there is virtually no chance I would stay beyond a shift in that position, which is around 3.  If I were in The Third or Fourth Department, not only would I be able to come into work at 8 (meaning I can get 90 more minutes of rest), I am virtually assured that the work that gets piled onto my desk would be enough to stay so that by the time I am done, it would be time to get to the Match.  (Actually, there's a greater chance that there would be so much work that I would have to leave some till the next day if I wanted to get to the Loons Match on time.)

But for the second time in three Wednesdays, I am facing a gap of 4 1/2 hours between the end of my workday and the Match for which I am a season ticket holder.  That's a hell of a long time to kill.  What could I do?  Sleep would be best, but in the middle of a broiling summer I doubt I will be able to take a good, long nap in my car.  Do I eat when I plan on eating and drinking at the Game?  I can go to the library and get on the Internet, I guess, but for 4 1/2 hours?  That would make me tired enough to go to my car and sleep.

See, two Wednesdays ago, this wasn't a problem.  The Women's EUROS was still going on, and the Copa America Feminina just started.  Once I realized I could watch women's continental soccer, I actually punched out early so that I could drive all the way down to the Black Hart, catch the Second Half of Italy-Norway, see Brazil immolate Bolivia, then still have 90 minutes to kill, so I went back to my car, changed out of my shirt to put on my MNUFC jersey, then try to nap for half an hour before concluding it was useless and just going to the stadium.  If I was tired, I don't remember.

I will not have soccer to watch Wednesday afternoon/evening.  And I do not want to have a drink at a bar for 4 1/2 hours.  This has gotten to be such a pain in the ass that I have decided I can ... no, need to get a massage in that time period.  In situations like this where I am desperate to fill time with something productive, I want to kill two birds with one stone.  I have needed a massage for a long time, and it looks as though this yawning gap Wednesday is the perfect time to do it.  I even am OK going to the one I have been to a couple times in downtown Minneapolis even though I would have to zip across the Twin Cities to do so, then cross back to get to the Match.  But apparently they have no time slots open then.  I just looked at a Reddit thread of best massage places and I saw a couple on the St. Paul side.  The first one I honed in on also appears to not have space this Wednesday (although they have time slots around that time of the day today/Tuesday and Thursday -- what's the deal with Wednesday?)

The other possibility is a massage school, one I have never heard of.  Like I said, I am so desperate to fill up my time that I think I'm going to do it ... even though there's a good chance that some dude who may not know what he's doing is going to rub me down.  Not a fan.  But hey, I need to kill off 4 1/2 hours ... massage away!

So I spent most of Saturday afternoon enjoying life -- having lunch downtown with someone I've been meaning to have lunch with since this summer, then going to see a music festival at a bar, wherein my friend, who I just had lunch with, decided to also come to the music fest, and brought her friend in tow.

It was hot.  Like, ridiculously hot.  Wasn't pleasant to listen to music outside, so even though they just got there, they were ready to leave when I said I planned to leave, too.

I say all of this to bury my main point of this blog post, which is to say that I saw a lot of hot women showing off their skin because it was hot on this day.  My body is breaking down, but I am glad my libido still works!

Outdoor Baseball? Mmm, Sorry

I was invited out to a Saints Game that took place last/Thursday night by alumni groups that we are trying to build relationships with.  As much as I wanted to go, I didn't think I could because work would probably make me late for First Pitch, and as a general rule, I don't want to go to a Game when I know I can't get to its very beginning.

I had other reasons I didn't want to go.  Another of my principles is that I will not pay for parking if I can help it, and St. Paul extends their street parking well into the evening.  That meant that I would have to park out of the downtown zone and then ride the light rail in, and that means I would have to figure out, build in, and get out of work at a fairly early time (as it is nowadays) to factor in public transportation and to make First Pitch.  Also, yesterday was a humid day, and I was not feeling hanging out in outdoor stands getting sweaty (and possibly with the sun beating down on me) trying to get to know people in order to organize more alumni events.

So I decided on Wednesday that I probably couldn't attend, and I let the lead organizer know.  And then the damndest thing happened.  I don't know what was up at work, but the heavy workload that I anticipated, and that has reliably been overwhelming ... wasn't there.  As many forms came into the building as it usually has, but apparently nearly all of them had the complete and correct information.

So, did I decide to go to the Game then?  Nope.  I realized that while I couldn't make it to the Saints Game if I got out of work too late, I didn't want to go to the Saints Game if I got out of work too early.  I had no interest yesterday to think of something to do for 90 minutes to two hours before I made my way to St. Paul.  And there was still the weather, which, admittedly, was not as sweat-inducing as I thought it would be, but was in no way comfortable for me to hang out for a 2 1/2-hour baseball Game.

So I went home.  And ate dinner (alone; I thought that since I got home at a not-insane time, my parents and I would eat dinner together, but alas).  And then I fell asleep for about an hour.

I hope these organizations have another shindig I can get to.  I really do want to try and attend one.

I Rule My Bedroom

What I've noticed -- and I don't think I've blog posted this before -- is that when my parents are here after they come home, I retreat into my bedroom.  If they were not home today -- and again, they shouldn't be -- I would be running around the house, maybe doing chores and stuff.  (Certainly I wouldn't be outside; it is about to become 4 p.m. here, and that is when the heat index is supposed to get to 107, the highest it'll get today [apparently it reached 109 yesterday/Saturday].)  But since they are home, and again I'm glad they're alive, I cede the house to them and just rule my bedroom.

I just woke up from a nap.  With nothing to do in my bedroom -- well, I could clean up, but why? -- I have been napping a lot since my folks have come home.  That probably will be how it is.

Summer Is Finally Here

We've had some hot days, but only a few.  It actually has felt like spring for many weeks and, in fact, early spring (maybe even in a late winter?) where there were nights, not too long ago, when the central heat kicked in.

I think those days are over, because yesterday/Friday was the first time in 2025 where it not only felt hot but also humid.  This is one of those days where I want Father to finally cave in and turn on the air conditioner.  We haven't done that yet, and I am OK with that because I am now paying for the AC and it'll get pretty damn expensive.  But as hot and humid as it is right now, it'll get even worse over the weekend.  We have an Extreme Heat Warning starting noon today/Saturday and ending, supposedly, 9 tomorrow/Sunday night.  I think Father, and I, will cave at some point.

Doomscroll Addiction Got Me Again

It was a combination of things again.  The big thing, of course, was the political assassinations of former Speaker of the Minnesota House Melissa Hortman and her husband by that Republican terrorist (and goddammit, we have to start describing them as they are: Republican terrorists) who's still fucking running loose.  My parents coming home has got me down.  The weather was extremely cold (well, temperatures in the fifties and sixties, which isn't too bad in and of itself, but it was drizzling off and on, and it totally matched the mood set by the devastating murders overnight).

Plus, I had to work a Game this/Saturday afternoon before going to the United FC Match in the evening.  I thought I would have time to get in a solid nap, but my best friend and his wife were in town.  Downtown Minneapolis, in fact, so it was too easy to just walk from Target Center to their hotel to chat with them for 75 minutes.  It's been about a decade since I've seen them, so yeah, I skipped a nap, which I desperately needed, to talk.  And then, once I got home, diarrhea attacked me.  I think my bowels were just stuck in me and the breakfast I ate before the Game was just the thing to loosen my stool.  Unfortunately I couldn't get as much sleep in as I wanted because I had to go back to the bathroom.  (Still, I think I got, maybe, ten minutes.  But it was a hard sleep; the alarm woke me up and I was all, "What?  What happened?"  That's a sure sign that you were out like a busted light.)

Anyway, I got to the MNUFC Match, which featured two of the weirdest Goals you'll ever see: A backpass which got past the Goalkeeper for a Loons lead, and a golazo from halfway that tied the Match.  It was a good Game, even after San Diego FC tied it up early in the Second Half at 2.  So why did I get the urge to start scrolling through my social media feeds again?  Well, the above excuses, and again, there was a dead spot during the soccer Game where, like, someone was hurt, and I took the opportunity to pick up my phone.  From there, I got sucked into looking at all the posts over the Hortman assassinations and the No Kings rallies going on in the afternoon.

And while I was down that rabbit hole, I heard an audible gasp around the stadium.  I looked up and saw the backup Loons Goalkeeper lying on his side and SDFC celebrating.  They took the lead, and they would eventually score another one to seal a 4-2 Win.  Now, missing the opponent scoring isn't the worse thing in the world, but I did buy a ticket to a sport where Goals aren't something you see all the time.  It was the Game-winning Goal, so it was important.  But I skipped watching because I am a goddamn addict for my phone.  Beyond the excuses, and I can't do anything about it now, I gotta fucking pay attention to the reality I see before me, especially if I am paying a pretty penny for it.

Operation Stay In House In Full Effect

It was a good day for the most part -- there was a pretty intense storm that was short-lived but came through a couple hours ago -- but while it was warm and sunny outside, I didn't care, because I didn't have to do a darn thing today and, well, I didn't.  My main goal today was to not open the front door for any reason, and while that's easy to do, I still consider that accomplishment (even though the day of course is not over yet).

I do think I could do more today.  I woke up at around noon and, after deciding I should eat and not just watch the WNBA on CBS/Channel 4, I ate spaghetti -- and I didn't need to make the pasta sauce because Mother left several containers of them.  Wish the containers were bigger -- the pasta/sauce ratio is out of whack -- and I wish there weren't so many darn mushrooms, but whatever.  Still, there was a lot to do in order to prepare, and I have a lot to clean, which will also take time.  I think I need to clean other dishes -- my drinkware mostly -- and I should get around to doing some laundry.  And, I should go through my stuff.  But I don't know if I will have the time if I need to wash dishes.  Cooking for yourself is a lot of work.  That's something I am reminded of today.

Belt Broke

It's been really wearing for some time.  Naturally, I use only one notch.  It's not as if the size of my belly fluctuates wildly, even though I often think it does.  But because it does, I've been really using up that notch.  The area around that hole has gotten really, really torn up.

Still, I didn't think anything drastic would happen like it did at work yesterday/Friday.  I was using the bathroom on my lunch break, I was undoing my belt, and as I was pulling the end of the belt away from the, er, notching thingy, the end tore off.  I was holding the end of it in my hands.  Damn.

I made it through the end of the day, which included eating and drinking at Sociable and walking to Art-A-Whirl, both while in a steady downpour.  I just kept wearing the part of the belt that still was in the loops.  It sure as heck wasn't holding anything up.  Moreover, I'm wearing khakis whose button popped off because I'm so fat.  But the pants held up without any assistance.  I am very lucky.  But now I need to ... well, first I need to find new pants that have a button, but then I need to buy a new belt.  But where can I buy one that won't break off like this one does?  Belts are meant to be cinched, and cinching creates tears in the belt.  At some point it's going to tear, won't it?  Well, then again, I had this belt for barely two years, I think.  I need to find one that will last at least a little bit longer.