Yesterday, Lauren and I went to Toby's Dinner Theatre for her birthday and saw Happy Days, the musical. I was never a big fan of the series but had seen enough of it to get the inside jokes and references to the old sitcom. A few of the groaners included not seeing Chuck for a few years now, the Fonz not being the same since he jumped the shark and Richie commenting on his usual ability to solve problems in just one-half hour. Lauren was enchanted. She was watching for our server, Elena, in the ensemble numbers (she was actually pretty good singing and dancing with enthusiasm). Lauren had her birthday announced before the show and got souvenir etched glasses with the name of the show.

Today was a mixed bag. The good news - I believe we've got a buyer for our house that was willing to pay our asking price. We've also got a prospect on a new house although it's a probable short sale, meaning the asking price is below the existing mortgage which requires the mortgage company's approval of the sale price. The not so good news - shopping day at the Safeway. I was thrilled to see no register manned by UOAS. The only cashier was a very pretty young woman who was not so prettily chewing gum with her mouth open. I had one interaction with her before purchasing my groceries that went like this:

Me: Can you tell me where the ant spray is?
Pretty But Brainless (PBB): I think it's right over there (pointing vaguely and then exasperatedly leading me there.)
PBB (yelling at the bag boy): Hey Charles! Is this stuff good for ants?
Me: No, I'm pretty sure it kills them (can clearly labeled "Ant Spray" with a dead ant lying on its back with its feet sticking up in the air lying next to a cartoon tombstone).

We'll see if this young lady becomes my new tormentor.


Two Replies to Odds & Ends

Scott Hardie | June 1, 2011
Good luck with the house. It's been an ordeal.

Happy Days is still a thing? Eating at Cheeburger Cheeburger last week, I wondered how much longer 1950s nostalgia would last, as generational shifts slowly take their toll on our collective memory. But then, it's been almost seventy years since the Holocaust, and joking about it is still career poison no matter how much of a reputation you have for outrageous statements, so apparently the strong connotations carried by these topics aren't going to start fading from our shared memory any time soon.

Jackie Mason | June 11, 2011
[hidden by author request]


Web Junkie

Steve West scours the Web searching for interest or absurdity and then shakes his head ruefully when he finds it. Read more »

I'm Like Tyson Without a Face Tattoo

Recent conversation with Brenda: Brenda: Where did you get that scar? me: Which one? Brenda: The one between your eyes. Go »

Such As It Is...

Best stuff I found this week. Christmas stuff you either can't afford or shouldn't buy anyway. Spectacular pieces of sculpture made from the incredible, edible egg. Go »

Good News, Bad News, Good News...

Good News: Brenda got a job. Bad News: The pay sucks! Good News: Potential new career track. Go »

A Story Without Words

I can't imagine being disfigured as an adult. I've read articles and seen pictorials of veterans wounded in the war and losing a limb or being disfigured by fire. And then those soldiers coming home to their fiancĂ©es to be married. Go »

We Were That Close

Brenda and I looked at a house a few days ago and were very charmed by it. It was a ranch style home with four bedrooms, a large fenced yard and was selling at a reasonable price. Brenda was a little unsure of the size of the bedrooms but agreed to go back and specifically measure them with a tape measure and if they met her minimum standards, she would agree to make an offer for the house. Go »

The Anniversary Gift

My 10th anniversary of marriage to my lovely child-bride, Brenda will be on November 7th. I read the following story on Amyoops.com but it was not credited. Go »