Gobble Gobble

Herb, the Dirty Old Man, is back.

Still making me laugh and still making things awkward.

Today’s Exploit:

I made pumpkin cookies today.  

They were supposed to be for dinner.  

I ended up with nearly 5 dozen.  

I might not have any left by the time dinner time actually comes.

These guys are gobbling them up.

Just Another Number

I made Balsamic Chicken Alfredo.

Yum.

Cream and butter and Parmesan and Balsamic vinegar.

Today’s Exploit:

I was fighting with my computer when Tony came into the box.

Ryan was sitting on the bench watching me alternate between sweet-talking and yelling at Betty-Sue.  He thought it was hilarious.

Tony:  I’m going up to slide.  Also, Hector wants your number.

Me:  Nope.  Come on, buddy.  You can do it.

Tony:  That’s it, huh?  Just nope.

Me:  Just nope.

Tony:  Ok, I’ll tell him.

Later he came back and told me that Hector was surprised when Tony said I declined to give him my number.  

Tony:  I think he was surprised I actually asked you. 

My thoughts:  At least it was a little better than asking him to deliver a note.  Still...

I am glad he didn’t ask me directly.  I have a hard time saying no to people.  

He Did Try to Keep Up

Debbie Downer went home.  Maybe everyone else will be a bit more cheerful now.  

Maybe cookies will help.  

Today’s Exploit:

One of the mud loggers claims he used to run a lot.  And he wants to get back into shape.  

So I told him I was always happy to have company on my runs.  

So he asked me to wait and went to change.  

I was a bit amazed.  Mostly the guys that say things like that are all talk and won’t actually go with me.

But Pat went with me.  In the wind and dust and, later, downpour.  

We ran .748 miles, and walked the rest of the 3 mile trip.  It was very soggy.

The next day he was ready before I got back to the trailer.  

So we took off again.  Pat said he wanted to make it at least a mile.  The last third he spent wheezing, hacking and choking.  But he made it a mile.  

I tried not to ask to often if he was ok, guys are goofy and get offended if you do that.  

I let him walk.

After half a mile told him that I was going to run some more.  I ran the rest of the 3.2 miles to the guard shack and turned around.  On the way back I caught him where we’d stopped running and I walked the last mile with him.  

He limped the whole way, and the rest of the night.

Later he told me he might have to start running every other day, until he was in a bit better shape.

I’ve run alone since.

Complaining is Contagious

I’m making Smashed Roasted Garlic Bread.  My fingers are going to smell like garlic for a week.

Today’s Exploit:

I believe I mentioned I’m living with 400 people right now?  We’re packed into that grimy trailer like sardines. 

Smells like a sardine tin also, but that’s beside the point.

One of the guys in the trailer is not happy about anything.

And he wants everyone within a 3.7 mile radius to know.  

Also, he knows everything.  

A know-it-all complainer.  A loud one.  That means that no one is aloud to sleep if he can think of anything to say.  And he can always think of something to say.  He doesn’t even need acknowledgement from another being.  As long as he knows there’s someone within almost-hearing distance he can go on and on and on.

After about a week of listening to this guy, no one being able to get a word in edgewise, I noticed it.  

Everyone else started in on the complaints.  

Mostly it was about the complainer, but it’s hard to withstand all that negativism.

I even caught myself complaining more than usual.  

So I made a seriously stellar effort to cut back on the random complaints, and tried to avoid everyone else that seemed in the complaining mood.  

Luckily I’ve got my box to retreat to. 

And Solitaire.

What I Learned Today

I went and bought a cheap travel mug last night.

I was tired of fighting for and/or cleaning mold out of the one mug in the trailer.  

Now I have one that’s “burnt orange” with the goofy lid and the rubber band around the middle (that’s supposed to look like a cardboard sleeve) to make it look like it came from a swanky coffee shop.  

Today’s Exploit:

Yesterday one of the guys in my trailer, the one who never has anything good or upbeat to say, walked by and said:

“Well, on the bright side, the trailer’s so old that the formaldehyde is probably gone.”

I was a bit stunned.  My first thought was science class and pickled animals floating in green tinted fluid in jars.  And that smell...

I thought maybe he was talking about asbestos, but that didn’t seem right either.

So I had to look it up.  

I never knew formaldehyde was used in particle board, or drapes, or paint.

I just imagined it would smell too terrible to use in a home.  

So.  That was my new thing learned for today.  What’s up for tomorrow?

He’s Gonna Wreck That Thing

I might take over the company man’s kitchen.  Because mine is gross and over-crowded.  

Today’s Exploit:

Yesterday I was outside a lot.  We received tools from three different sites all at the same time.

While Rick was busy telling the forklift driver where to put things and the truck drivers what they’d be hauling back, I decided to be useful and strap the tools we’d just gotten.

So I found a tape measure and a marker.

I was busy measuring the pieces and noting the lengths on each end for easy reference when Rick came over to me.

Rick:  One of those truck drivers told me Joe’s going to wreck that thing.

Me:  What?  The forklift?

Rick:  Yeah.  He told me, “He’s gonna wreck that thing.”  And I asked what he meant.  He told me, “He’s gonna wreck that thing if he don’t stop watching the girl and start watching where he’s going”.  

Me:  Oh.  That makes me self conscious.  I think I need some more inconspicuous clothes.

Rick:  You don’t think they’d still be wondering, “Wonder what she looks like under those coveralls?”

Me:  I don’t want to know that!  I was happy floating in my little bubble of oblivion.  

Rick:  Haha!

They Just Sit There, Mocking Me

I need a coffee/tea mug.  This trailer I’m in only has 2.  And I‘m the only one who does dishes. 

That means any time I want tea I have to wash the cup before I can use it.  Usually that means getting the scrubber and clorox out because it has stage III green-and-black mold growing in it.  

I’m learning to keep anything I want to use hoarded away in my food box, otherwise it will disappear and/or culture the newest species of mold.

Also, I’m living with 6 guys, in a 3 bedroom/2 bathroom trailer.  One of the bathrooms is in a bedroom = EVERYONE uses the bathroom I use.  Stock up on the Clorox wipes.  And spray.  And Lysol.  

I might be cleaner if I sleep in my car and not shower for the next month.

Today’s Exploit:

I’m still working on unpacking.  

I’ve got everything organized except for the kitchen.  

I still have 5.7 large boxes of stuff to fit into my kitchen.  It will be trying.  

I can’t throw anything away because I use it all.  Amazingly enough.

It might take me until my lease is up to figure out what to do with this stuff.  

In the mean time, I don’t have hardware to put my table together.  So my boxes are residing in my dining area, quite content to mock my attempts to re-organize everything yet again.

I Think That’s What He Said

Cupcake is doing P90x!  She’s made it through one month already!  

It’s to get into shape so that we can run a marathon next spring.  

Not really, it’s only a half-marathon.

Today’s Exploit:

Larry is the night company man.

He’s funny.

I can only understand about half of what he says.

I think he’s from Louisiana.  I still have a hard time with that accent.  

They say things like:  We-onna-ig-uh-ih-a-it.  (We’re going to rig up in a bit)

Or maybe:  Yr-ool-edy-oo-oo?  (Your tool ready to go?)

Mostly I smile and make non-committal noises because I don’t really know what he said.  

He seems to be ok with that.  

So long as I’m ready to go when they need me.

I Blame the Bulls, Okay?

I found some new measuring cups that I need.

And they come in the non-traditional/odd sizes as well.  And they’re actually not orange, for once.  

Also, Happy October.

Today’s Exploit:

The other day I ran 6.6 miles.  

Ok, I only actually ran 6.1 of those miles, but still.

It only took me 75 minutes from start to finish.  

And 6.6 miles is a long way, I normally only run 4.2.

And I spent a longer time walking where the bulls were right next to the road.  

I’ve never been that close to them, and I’ve heard stories about how they can be mean.

I talked to them.

I told them to go on with their business and ignore me.  They did a better job of that on my way back.  

I think I like cows better, they tend to run away from me.  That means that I have more room, and it’s less smelly.  Mostly.