gcvmom
Here we go again!
My day started off with a bad omen.
I'd bought tickets online last night for a whale watching cruise that was scheduled for this afternoon. Left the credit card I paid with on my desk. Should have put it away. I remember thinking last night that I should really put it away before I forget -- and I'd read something on the ticket website that I'd have to present a photo i.d. and the card I used for the purchase when I picked up the tickets at will call, so I really needed to put it away.
Well sure enough, this morning I could not. find. the. card. ANYWHERE. SO... I naturally panicked and ran around the house like a... chicken with her head cut off... muttering and swearing under my breath at my stupidity. Sigh. Never did find the card, but I know it's here somewhere.
So I grabbed my ticket confirmation printout, camera, telephoto lens, purse, jacket, hat, and joined the family in the car and we headed for the harbor to go whale watching.
As we pulled into the parking structure, it dawned on me that I'd left the memory card for my camera at home.
No problem. We've still got over an hour before the boat leaves. I figure we'll pick up our tickets and then I'll go find a camera shop or something.
So we go to the will call window, I show them my confirmation printout and no problem, we get our tickets. Then I head back to the car. On my way, I trip over a stupid electrical outlet that's sticking up out of the ground next to a light pole and create a huge bloody gouge in my shin that hurts like heck.
So I continue on my way, now limping and swearing not so quietly down the sidewalk. I don't see any camera shops in the area, so I duck into a hotel and ask the concierge for help. She hands me a map and draws me directions to a Walmart that's just a mile away. Awesome! I'm pretty sure they carry the type of memory card I need!
I finally make it to the parking structure, up four floors in an elevator crammed with three strollers, two crying toddlers, and five adults, plus me and my bloody leg. I find the car and try to LEAVE, but I can't seem to find my way out of this freakin' rat maze. After circling THREE TIMES, I find the ramp to get the heck out of there.
Just then, I realize that I'd given husband the parking ticket to see if he could get it validated. I pull up to the exit window and the gal says I'll have to pay the full rate of $24 because I don't have the ticket. After I stop choking, I hand her a credit card and she tells me they only take cash or checks.
She tells me to pull over to the side and that there's an ATM about a block away. So now I'm getting a little agitated, because I've now spent 20 minutes just trying to get out and now I CAN'T get out.
I decide to call husband. But SOMEONE had been messing with my phone and because I missed a keystroke entering my password, it LOCKED up on me for 5 minutes. That was the last straw. I just sat there and started to bawl my eyes out. Cars are driving by me and I'm blubbering like a little girl who just lost her dolly. I don't give a rip. I am so unbelieveably frustrated and in PAIN.
I try the phone again, and am so wound up I screw up the password AGAIN and this time I'm locked out of my phone for FIFTEEN MINUTES.
By now, I've resigned myself to the hike to the ATM, so I get out and start to look for it. Then my phone rings and it's husband. Boy, did he pick the wrong person to call! After giving him a peek at the level of my emotional distress (translation: he got it with both barrels), he offered to bring me the parking ticket. Fine. That's another 10 minutes. Fine. Whatever.
I get the ticket, pay my $3 to leave, and fly over to WallyWorld. Park, limp/jog into the store to the camera department and PTL! they have a CF card that works with my camera. I slap down my plastic and tell the electronics clerk how relieved I am to find this stupid thing and can she please just cut it out of the package for me because I'm using this baby NOW.
There are now 10 minutes left until the boat starts boarding and I pull into the long line for the parking structure. Fortunately, none of the people in front of me who were from out of town and driving like it could hear me screaming.
After an eternity, I manage to get the car parked and squeeze into another full elevator down to the ground level, race across the street to the dock and start to call husband. "Are you in line yet?" (referring to the 100+ person line that is snaking along the boardwalk where I told him we were supposed to start lining up 30 minutes ago). And of course, the family was not in line, they were waiting for me at some restaurant because they'd had lunch while I was gimping around and figured that I should eat too, and I might have found that touching and sweet and all if we weren't under a specific time constraint and if my entire day hadn't felt like it had gone to heck in a handbasket. But I remained calm. I told husband that I would get in line since the boat would be boarding any second and that they should probably come find me.
Sigh. They did find me. We did get on the boat (one of the last ones). And we did leave the harbor. And we did get to see lots of whales. And dolphins. And sea lions.
And I'll post that on another thread next.
But the REALLY fun part came after all that.
We decided to stop by my mom's on the way home. See, she's selling some of my dad's stuff on eBay and I'm helping her and I told her I'd come by to pick up his iPad and some other stuff.
So we're heading down the coast and we're nearly at my mom's and I get a text from a friend in my town. "Hey is ur yard glowing and r things ok by you?"
WTH??? I call her back and she informs me that there's a brushfire in my neighborhood, emergency crews are up there and also a waterdropping helicopter!!! So instead of a "Hi mom, nice to see you!" my mom gets a "Turn on the news there's a fire by our house!"
Then the calls come pouring in... my nextdoor neighbor, this person, that person, are we o.k., do we need anything, are the pets ok? Now I'm really starting to freak out. A couple years ago we had a major firestorm blow through destroying a dozen or more homes. So you'll understand if we're still a little PSTD'd over the word brushfire in relation to our neighborhood.
My neighbor says they are packed and ready to go, but no word of evacuations yet. Great. He says he'll call the second they hear anything. Great.
So the visit with mom wasn't and we left abruptly and headed for home. My anxiety is about at its limit. I'm really surprised I haven't had a panic attack by now. husband is dealing with it in his own cute little way that kind grates on my nerves -- he cranks up the radio and starts being Mr. Comedian! Just what I need, a lot of loud noise and lame jokes to soothe my jangled nerves. All he manages to do is wind up the kids and give me a headache.
30 minutes later, we're nearly to our exit off the freeway and I see no flames, but lots of emergency lights up on top of our hill. More texts from friends and it looks like they got the fire under control -- only 10 acres and it's contained by the time we get to our neighborhood.
BUT... we aren't allowed up the hill to our street. By now, husband can no longer maintain his jolly facade and he blows because the Jr. cop tells him to go park on the next street over. Just what we need, a beligerent loud mouth to start griping at the cops. The kids and I just get out and start the 1/2 mile hike up the hill.
We get to the lower end of our street and there are a half dozen fire trucks, and equal number of police cars, a bull dozer, news vans with their giant satellite antennas and crowds of looky-lou's from other neighborhoods blocking the sidewalk. More squad cars further up towards our house. Helicopters overhead. A real circus.
So now it's nearly 11:30pm and they are finally allowing residents to bring their cars back up. My knee hurts from all the walking today. My shin has a goose-egg lump and huge scab. My husband is not talking to me. My kids are exhausted and finally in bed.
And tomorrow is another day...
I'd bought tickets online last night for a whale watching cruise that was scheduled for this afternoon. Left the credit card I paid with on my desk. Should have put it away. I remember thinking last night that I should really put it away before I forget -- and I'd read something on the ticket website that I'd have to present a photo i.d. and the card I used for the purchase when I picked up the tickets at will call, so I really needed to put it away.
Well sure enough, this morning I could not. find. the. card. ANYWHERE. SO... I naturally panicked and ran around the house like a... chicken with her head cut off... muttering and swearing under my breath at my stupidity. Sigh. Never did find the card, but I know it's here somewhere.
So I grabbed my ticket confirmation printout, camera, telephoto lens, purse, jacket, hat, and joined the family in the car and we headed for the harbor to go whale watching.
As we pulled into the parking structure, it dawned on me that I'd left the memory card for my camera at home.
No problem. We've still got over an hour before the boat leaves. I figure we'll pick up our tickets and then I'll go find a camera shop or something.
So we go to the will call window, I show them my confirmation printout and no problem, we get our tickets. Then I head back to the car. On my way, I trip over a stupid electrical outlet that's sticking up out of the ground next to a light pole and create a huge bloody gouge in my shin that hurts like heck.
So I continue on my way, now limping and swearing not so quietly down the sidewalk. I don't see any camera shops in the area, so I duck into a hotel and ask the concierge for help. She hands me a map and draws me directions to a Walmart that's just a mile away. Awesome! I'm pretty sure they carry the type of memory card I need!
I finally make it to the parking structure, up four floors in an elevator crammed with three strollers, two crying toddlers, and five adults, plus me and my bloody leg. I find the car and try to LEAVE, but I can't seem to find my way out of this freakin' rat maze. After circling THREE TIMES, I find the ramp to get the heck out of there.
Just then, I realize that I'd given husband the parking ticket to see if he could get it validated. I pull up to the exit window and the gal says I'll have to pay the full rate of $24 because I don't have the ticket. After I stop choking, I hand her a credit card and she tells me they only take cash or checks.
She tells me to pull over to the side and that there's an ATM about a block away. So now I'm getting a little agitated, because I've now spent 20 minutes just trying to get out and now I CAN'T get out.I decide to call husband. But SOMEONE had been messing with my phone and because I missed a keystroke entering my password, it LOCKED up on me for 5 minutes. That was the last straw. I just sat there and started to bawl my eyes out. Cars are driving by me and I'm blubbering like a little girl who just lost her dolly. I don't give a rip. I am so unbelieveably frustrated and in PAIN.
I try the phone again, and am so wound up I screw up the password AGAIN and this time I'm locked out of my phone for FIFTEEN MINUTES.
By now, I've resigned myself to the hike to the ATM, so I get out and start to look for it. Then my phone rings and it's husband. Boy, did he pick the wrong person to call! After giving him a peek at the level of my emotional distress (translation: he got it with both barrels), he offered to bring me the parking ticket. Fine. That's another 10 minutes. Fine. Whatever. I get the ticket, pay my $3 to leave, and fly over to WallyWorld. Park, limp/jog into the store to the camera department and PTL! they have a CF card that works with my camera. I slap down my plastic and tell the electronics clerk how relieved I am to find this stupid thing and can she please just cut it out of the package for me because I'm using this baby NOW.
There are now 10 minutes left until the boat starts boarding and I pull into the long line for the parking structure. Fortunately, none of the people in front of me who were from out of town and driving like it could hear me screaming.
After an eternity, I manage to get the car parked and squeeze into another full elevator down to the ground level, race across the street to the dock and start to call husband. "Are you in line yet?" (referring to the 100+ person line that is snaking along the boardwalk where I told him we were supposed to start lining up 30 minutes ago). And of course, the family was not in line, they were waiting for me at some restaurant because they'd had lunch while I was gimping around and figured that I should eat too, and I might have found that touching and sweet and all if we weren't under a specific time constraint and if my entire day hadn't felt like it had gone to heck in a handbasket. But I remained calm. I told husband that I would get in line since the boat would be boarding any second and that they should probably come find me.
Sigh. They did find me. We did get on the boat (one of the last ones). And we did leave the harbor. And we did get to see lots of whales. And dolphins. And sea lions.
And I'll post that on another thread next.
But the REALLY fun part came after all that.
We decided to stop by my mom's on the way home. See, she's selling some of my dad's stuff on eBay and I'm helping her and I told her I'd come by to pick up his iPad and some other stuff.
So we're heading down the coast and we're nearly at my mom's and I get a text from a friend in my town. "Hey is ur yard glowing and r things ok by you?"
WTH??? I call her back and she informs me that there's a brushfire in my neighborhood, emergency crews are up there and also a waterdropping helicopter!!! So instead of a "Hi mom, nice to see you!" my mom gets a "Turn on the news there's a fire by our house!"
Then the calls come pouring in... my nextdoor neighbor, this person, that person, are we o.k., do we need anything, are the pets ok? Now I'm really starting to freak out. A couple years ago we had a major firestorm blow through destroying a dozen or more homes. So you'll understand if we're still a little PSTD'd over the word brushfire in relation to our neighborhood.
My neighbor says they are packed and ready to go, but no word of evacuations yet. Great. He says he'll call the second they hear anything. Great.
So the visit with mom wasn't and we left abruptly and headed for home. My anxiety is about at its limit. I'm really surprised I haven't had a panic attack by now. husband is dealing with it in his own cute little way that kind grates on my nerves -- he cranks up the radio and starts being Mr. Comedian! Just what I need, a lot of loud noise and lame jokes to soothe my jangled nerves. All he manages to do is wind up the kids and give me a headache.
30 minutes later, we're nearly to our exit off the freeway and I see no flames, but lots of emergency lights up on top of our hill. More texts from friends and it looks like they got the fire under control -- only 10 acres and it's contained by the time we get to our neighborhood.
BUT... we aren't allowed up the hill to our street. By now, husband can no longer maintain his jolly facade and he blows because the Jr. cop tells him to go park on the next street over. Just what we need, a beligerent loud mouth to start griping at the cops. The kids and I just get out and start the 1/2 mile hike up the hill.
We get to the lower end of our street and there are a half dozen fire trucks, and equal number of police cars, a bull dozer, news vans with their giant satellite antennas and crowds of looky-lou's from other neighborhoods blocking the sidewalk. More squad cars further up towards our house. Helicopters overhead. A real circus.
So now it's nearly 11:30pm and they are finally allowing residents to bring their cars back up. My knee hurts from all the walking today. My shin has a goose-egg lump and huge scab. My husband is not talking to me. My kids are exhausted and finally in bed.
And tomorrow is another day...
