Another Week - Gone

And what did I accomplish?

Monday, of course, is my 'lost' day. I work retail from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. During that time several things occurred. The first was irritating. I arrived at work to find that most of the filling of stock that should have been done on Sunday evening hadn't been done. Luckily, I had arrived quite early giving me time to get the majority filled up before customers arrived. Still, I had plenty to keep me busy for over an hour. The last of it being worked in between sales. I don't think it's asking too much to get most of the candy filled and the shop neatened up before closing in the evening. Really, should I have to be picking up trash from the floor when the evening guy was supposed to sweep? This led to the second thing that happened. I wrote a short, polite note to Sunday's crew and taped it to the back counter. Then I proceeded with the day's selling. About noontime I decided against the note and threw it away. I'm only there one day and don't want to be the only complainer. Felt good to write it, though. Yeah, still bugs me and tomorrow is quickly approaching. Monday was also the day that my latest order from the piano parts supplier arrived. I had called in the order last week and, once again, explained about the defective parts. I made a point to emphasize that ALL defective parts were in boxes labeled: Operator JR Shift 2. I told them that I had 13 defective 'D's and 13 defective 'E's (I decided to skip the part about the overly scratched ones - one battle at a time) I was assured that it would be taken care of.

Which brings me to Tuesday, when I unpacked and inspected the shipment. ALL the key top boxes were labeled Operator JR Shift 2! What a screw up. Thankfully they all seem okay. Oh, and they sent me 14 'D's and 12 'E's. sigh. My patience is wearing thin. Tuesday afternoon 'A' and I made a trip to the mall so that she could buy new shoes for work. She ended up with new boots, two pairs of pants, a shirt, and the shoes. I bought nothing.

Wednesday morning I was up bright and early to head for the Cabot Street Theater in Beverly to take a look at a player piano that had quit functioning. When they had called they couldn't remember the make of the piano so I had no idea what I would be getting in to. I hate leaving the house early, especially on a windswept rainy day. Rte. 128 was flooded in parts and I thought that I would need the extra time that I had allotted for the trip. I arrived 25 minutes early so I sat in the truck in front of the theater and waited. Once the doors were unlocked, I fed the meter and went to take a look. A Wurlitzer. Too much electrical stuff for me! I recommended another tech. The skies had cleared for my trip home. Wednesday afternoon my mom wanted me to drive her to L.L. Bean. Oh yuck. I hate that drive. Especially the drive back during rush hour. She bought a new winter coat, a sweater, and a jersey. I bought nothing.

I declared that Thursday would be MY DAY. In the morning I finished off the reed organ article and selected the photos that would accompany the article. At noon, 'A' and I headed for the Moseley Estates (Maudslay State Park). I wanted to take a look for the Kettle Hole. Supposedly a kettle hole forms when trapped glacial ice melts. We live in a terminal moraine area, where the last glacial age left enormous hunks of rock (granite) deposited at it's southern most reach. It also left broken off pieces of ice that got buried under a layer of earth. When those giant pieces of ice eventually melted, the earth collapsed forming large hollows named kettle holes. Well, we found it and...it was sure disappointing! So we hiked around some more through the woods and saw two deer cross the path just ahead of us. As it got later in the day, Newburyport's cross country running team had a meet at the park and it got bothersome trying to avoid them on the trails. We left for home stopping at the new Marshall's on the way back.

Funny thing (or maybe not), I don't even remember Friday. I'm sure something happened! Oh yeah, I submitted the reed organ article (sans photos). The editor emailed asking that I send the photos to him after the first of November, when he'll be back home in CA. (photos need to be sent hard copy) So, fingers crossed that it's a go for publication at some point!

Saturday morning was devoted to errands. The bank, buying a newspaper, and a trip to the library. I finished reading "Await Your Reply". A very strange novel of intricately woven characters, lives, and identity theft. Anyway, I bought three 'dollar books', "The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency", "The Piano Teacher" (I've already read it), and "Singers and the Song". Just as I was paying for the books, another librarian told me that a book that I had requested was in - the new Nicholas Spark's novel, "The Last Song". And I've still got the next Music Book Group book sitting here to read - " The Inextinguishable Symphony"! After lunch 'A' and I went to Halibut Point State Park, here in Rockport. It was cold and windy, but we had a good hike around the quarry and down to the shore. The pictures interspersed in this post are from Halibut Point.

Yay, I remember more about Friday! I spent Friday morning tuning 3 pianos at the high school. Now I wait...to get paid...first the tuning last month at the church school in Beverly (the job with the near parking fine), then a local church, then the high school.