random thoughts – Day 1,303 – (Wednesday) – winning

Overgrown and blooming.

The ride to work was uneventful. The walk from the garage included a moment outside the little garden that sites between two buildings on John Street. It used to be neatly manicured and cared for, but lately that isn't the case. It's overgrown, and littered with beer bottles and other trash. Despite the lack of care, red roses are still blooming, winning despite the mess.

Wednesdays are usually fun with everyone being in the office. Today there were a couple of people out, but there was a basket of bagged pretzels and a bowl of miniature Almond Joys and Mounds. Copious candy consumption occurred during work hours. A bit of pretzel plus a bit of Mounds is a tasty treat of salty and sweet for the win. 

After work there was a dinner event in the next won over. The volume of cars leaving the garage was significantly heavier than usual, and I recognized several bankers flowing into the street traffic.

At the event, there was time to socialize, a delicious buffet dinner, and a bar with Aperol Spritzes, which three of us at our table enjoyed. The centerpieces featured fresh flowers. And there were raffles. So many raffles. Attendees were given a long strip of raffle tickets at check-in and there were two long tables loaded with the raffle items and buckets to receive the entries.

Ready to travel!

For a couple years, the entire fourth floor of our building was cursed with not winning anything in the various raffles throughout the year. Tonight was different. 

One person at our table won one of two Dyson vacuums, an item which had inspired a surprising number of exclaims of “Wow, that’s great vacuum!” at the ticket drops. Someone else from our team won an iPad, another won a camera, another won a fire pit, and I won Southwest Airline gift cards. The curse is broken. Hooray! 

Now I can do some of the traveling I been not doing for about a decade. And it’s time to pay closer attention to the weekly Southwest emails with the airfare specials. 

random thoughts – Day 1,302 – (Tuesday) – online shopping

The bonus Amazon Days promotion is going to be the end of me. I was almost late leaving for a board meeting because I saw an ad and ended up looking at toaster oven air fryer combo units after work. 

After the board meeting, it was velvet jackets and running the risk of totally revising the outfit for the wedding that takes place in about 12 days. It started when I turned on the laptop and saw an Amazon ad for long sequin dusters. Or maybe I just autopiloted and opened Amazon. Who can even say at this point. 

In any event, the sequin jackets are really pretty. Of course, I had to look. Two of them landed in the shopping cart. And somehow the results page for sequin jackets started displaying velvet jackets, so that was another rabbit hole to fall down.

Soon, there were a dozen jackets in the shopping cart. Two long sequin dusters, two thigh length velvet jackets, and eight long duster length velvet jackets. There were short and long velvets in mustardy yellow, darkish pink, rose red, and green, and long sequin ones in navy and dark green.

Then the review of the reviews began. Several buyers commented that the long velvet duster looks too much like a bathrobe. Ok, that was a strike against the long ones. The sequin dusters would require a major change of the entire outfit and possibly even the shoes, which began to feel complicated. The sequin dusters were “saved for later” because man, they are pretty. One by one, velvet jackets were deleted due to delivery dates beyond the date it's needed for, or saved for later, because, well, just in case.

Based on delivery dates and a trip to the closet to re-check the colors in the previously purchased pants, a rose red velvet thigh length jacket was ordered. That led to a reconsideration of the caramel-colored satin top already bought for the pants. A top in the same style in dusty pink was bought. The refund from the boots that were returned last weekend covered most of the cost, so that was nice. 

Goodbye beloved frames.

Next up – a search for glasses to replace the blue browline frames I stepped on Monday morning. Unfortunately, it’s not as easy as pushing a button and reordering the exact same frames because they are no longer carried. 

It's just my luck to step on my irreplaceable glasses instead of one of the many pairs that are still available and could be replaced in days. The mourning period has begun. A private service is being arranged.

random thoughts – Day 1,301 – (Monday) – holiday

The Monday holiday had no plans except for making sure the trash and yard waste were put before 7 a.m. because I neglected to set them out on Sunday. At 6:00 I woke up, still tired, and ran through the consequence of not going outside to deal with the trash. I rarely have a full bag, so volume in the trash bin is not an issue, but the yard waste bin was full and that pickup is only bi-weekly.

The fluffy purple winter bathrobe was slipped on over the pajamas and I padded down the stairs in slippers to bag the trash, drop it in the bin, and roll it to the curb. The yard waste was set out, and it was back to bed, after noticing a beautiful dark blue sky with bright stars. The best thing about holidays is not having to get up for work, and it was 8:00 before I woke up again.

There was coffee and news and trying to wake up. When getting up to refill the coffee mug, my glasses, not needed for reading, slid to the floor and I stepped on them and broke the arm. Errrrr. Thank goodness I have a gajillion pairs so I don’t have to wear taped together glasses.

And suddenly the morning was nearly over.

The afternoon featured nearly all the laundry being done, plus the drapes from the dining room sliders. There was vacuuming and some dusting. There was the putting away of dance costumes and makeup and jewelry. Vegetable stock was started.

After looking online over a period of a couple months, a car was finally rented for the Vegas vacation. Interesting note about car rentals – the alleged discount offered seems to be irrelevant and the prices are the same. I’ve checked pricing through AAA, a work discount, credit card company discounts, through the airline, and straight to the rental company sites. The rates are pretty much the same, but going through the airline linked the pickup and drop off times to the flight info and will earn airfare points for each day of the rental. The airport shuttle tickets were bought.

Perfect cast iron crisp.

Drapes were taken down, washed, dried, and rehung. The original plan was new drapes, but when they arrived from Amazon it didn't quite work out. Dry clean only pants and silk scarves in the laundry basket for close to forever were cleaned with Dryel. 

Most of the day’s efforts were the invisible kind of work. Things that if I hadn’t done it myself, wouldn’t know had been done. I hate that kind of work.

And suddenly, the day was over. At suppertime, there was rifling through the freezer and cabinet before deciding on a grilled cheese on marble rye with caramelized onions and lightly grilled apple slices. The cast iron fry pan and I are getting along better, and the grilled crisp on the bread was perfect. That felt like more of an accomplishment than all the other tasks of the day and the best part was I could eat it. 

random thoughts – Day 1,300 – (Sunday) – haunted night

The Townsend Haunted Trail, originally scheduled for Saturday, was moved to tonight. That gave us time for an extra dress rehearsal this morning. When the date was changed, I was very glad Monday is a holiday.

Back at home after rehearsal, there was time for a couple costume tweaks. While looking for long johns to go under my skeleton leggings, I found a forgotten white turtleneck, which was swapped into the layering mix. It saved me worrying about putting makeup on my neck and helped with warmth. There was a tie-on bustle of black netting with red trim, and a Victorian style choker. Bracelets went over skeleton imprinted elbow length gloves. Driving to the event with white and gray face makeup and blacked out eyes had me feeling self-conscious, but thankfully it was sunny and sunglasses hid that. 

When a police cruiser pulled out behind me and stayed there for far too long on Route 113, I was imagining being pulled over and trying to explain why I didn't look like my license photo, but the skeleton tights, a waist cincher, and a tiny Victorian hat would help support the story. Luckily, the cruiser turned onto a side street after what felt like forever, during which I imagined the officer scrutinizing my every move for an excuse to pull me over on the road where the speed limit changes about a hundred times. Paranoia is stressful. 

Feeling ghostly.

At the Haunted Trail event, nine of us convened at our designated meeting spot dressed in costumes of our own choosing and ghostly, undead, zombiefied makeup. We danced to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” every 20 minutes or so, and it was fun. Kids were dancing along, and a couple told me I was their “favorite one.” Awwww, thanks kids. During one performance on a part where we walk forward and end up close to some of the audience, a girl said to her friend, “Oh she's looking right at us.” I locked eyes with her a bit longer. That was pretty fun.

During our third performance, a group of teenage girls jumped in and flash mobbed us, which was a blast. When we retired to our “spot” for between performances, as the DJ played other Halloween themed music, we received numerous requests for photos. 

As the night wore on, during our breaks the older young'uns got really busy on the dance area and made music requests of the DJ. They requested “Watch Me (Whip Nae Nae),” “Cotton Eye Joe,” and “Macarena.” We were right behind the DJ and could hear the kids “Please! we promise there are no swears!”

At our 8:30 and final performance, after doing “Thriller,” we added Justin Timberlake’s “Can’t Stop the Feeling” and we got to break the zombie ghoul character and smile and loosen up. The whole night was a really good time.

random thoughts – Day 1,299 – (Saturday) – more Jack

Kerouac Park

Another day, another outdoor walk, making four consecutive days of downtown walks. It’s almost like I’m on vacation or live downtown or something. It was another group walking tour, which is definitely more fun than walking around alone or on the treadmill at the gym. 

This morning’s walk was another Jack Kerouac weekend festival walk, departing from the Kerouac Commemorative Park. The park features tablets etched with passages from various Kerouac works, and was slated to host a ceremony this morning, but the forecast for rain pushed it to Sunday. 

It started out with a lot of talking, because the site of the Commemorative Park is near the sites of another of young Jack’s favorite movie theaters, his father’s other print shop location, and not far from various places he lived and a couple blocks from where he went to high school. 

Knowing the history and literary significance of various sites in town adds an interesting facet to things. Lowell was a hopping place in the 1930s with many movie theaters and an entertainment complex for dancing and shows that sounded really cool and unfortunately burned down. Other sites have been lost to progress. 

The historic clock in
Maggie Cassidy.

We learned about Jack's athletic skill in track, baseball, and football, his brief career stint as a sports reporter for a newspaper, and how it's a shame he isn't in the Lowell High Athletic Hall of Fame. We visited the clock mounted on the high school that is mentioned in Maggie Cassidy, and learned about the two real life people Jack knew and who are the basis for the character in the novel.

And there was recognition of the drinking, and some of the bad behavior that resulted from it. There multiple facets to Jack – the brilliant student who skipped two grades of school, the accomplished athlete, the prolific, introverted, handsome writer who loved his hometown and constantly referenced in his writing – and the alcoholic. Unfortunately, some people remember him most as Franco-American drunken bum.

There was also a bus tour the began at the same time as the walking tour that was going past various former residences of the Kerouac family and Jack’s birth home and burial site. I wished they hadn’t both been at the same time so I could have done both. Stupid space time continuum and activity packed weekends.

The leaders of the walks have shared amazing amounts of knowledge about Kerouac. The organizers of the festival planned a full weekend of activities with film screenings, lectures, poetry readings, and concerts, most of which I did not attend. Maybe next year.

After the walk, the group continued onward to see a film and I peeled off to go home for some lunch. I thought I might go back downtown for some of the other events, but that didn’t happen. It was raining. There was a nap. I like history and literature, but I also like naps.

Later, there was a trip to Kohl’s to return the amazing silver boots with the heel that was slightly higher than expected. They were really pretty and comfortable for the ten steps I walked in them in the house, but from a practical perspective, well, they weren’t. A different pair of boots with a lower heel that won't cause a knee blowout arrived a couple days ago.

The return was delivered to Kohl’s, so of course there was browsing. An armload of jeans was tried on. Some very practical but overpriced black boots were tried on. Jeans were bought, along with some socks on clearance, and a purse. I now have more jeans than I’ve ever owned at one time. I don’t know why. Sometimes things just happen. 

random thoughts – Day 1,298 – (Friday) – walk it off

Downtown sight.

The “I need to walk more” concept is gaining traction and this week had three consecutive days of outdoor walking. Being totally stressed out helped the walking mission greatly, especially on the in-office days when I just needed to get away from the desk. Of course, if we had a padded, soundproof room onsite I wouldn’t need to take to the streets to burn off stress, but then I wouldn't get to see the weird and cool sights that downtown Lowell offers.

The leisurely paced Kerouac walk on Thursday evening almost didn’t even happen. Crap was still going sideways and totally wrong at 5:00, but I managed to get out of the house and make it to the meeting point just in time for the 5:30 start.

Wonky app.

The Map My Walk app was started to record the route, and it went wonky at The Grotto, the halfway point in the walk. The distance, showing as just over a mile, disappeared and the duration and calories went totally nutso with unrealistic numbers, showing 23:37:27 duration and 58,356,912 calories burned. 

The app reset itself, and after the walk, back at the car, it showed 1.10 miles, :15 duration, 32.8k calories, and 17954694… steps. Wow. Then it wouldn’t save the walk statistics or turn off. 

Back at home, the phone was restarted and the app reset. On the morning walk from the garage to the office, it recorded the correct distance expected pace and step counts.

The early afternoon walk under cloudy skies was 1.32 miles. There was technology involved in the form of the Map My Walk app, plus, the recently located misplaced watch which was found in my dance bag, of all places.

Dome work.

A series of right turns took me down Merrimack Street, over a canal, then along a canal. At the birthplace of James McNeil Whistler, which is now a museum, the sculpture of Whistler overlooked the garden. Beyond the Hellenic American Academy, the golden dome on the Greek church was being worked on by workers in a bucket truck. 

It was 27 refreshing minutes of fresh air and a needed mental break from the nonsense that the day and the entire workweek delivered. 

It was a week full of vendor screwups, missed delivery dates, excuses, apologies, and undelivered assurances. Then there was all the other stuff heaped on top, like short notice ad requests and ongoing delays in department reviews. Basically, it was more of the same, but amplified and all piled on at once. 

The prize for survival was a pizza delivery for supper. And the stressed power-walking is healthier than stress eating a bunch of junk at the desk, so there was a silver lining.

random thoughts – Day 1,297 – (Thursday) – Jack at Night

Behind
 the watermelon.

In On the Road, Jack Kerouac said, “Everybody goes home in October.” On the first weekend of October the Lowell Celebrates Kerouac organization hosts a festival in Jack's hometown with poetry, music, and other events. Tonight there was a “Jack at Night Walking Tour.”

The walk started and ended at The Worthen House Café, which, according to its website, was “established in 1898 and serving as a tavern ever since,” with notable patrons including Edgar Allan Poe and Jack Kerouac. Notable characters on our walk included a man from Belgium and one from Wales, both in town for the Kerouac festivities, and a watermelon quarter (a whole one was not available). 

About a dozen of us gathered for the walk, which went up Merrimack Street to the University Bridge, then over to The Grotto. Initially, the watermelon was held aloft like a tour guide's flag. 

We paused across the street from the library where Jack Kerouac hung out when he skipped school, outside the building that was one of his favorite movie theaters, and across from the church that was the site of his funeral mass.

At the site of the former
Watermelon Man Bridge.

We paused at the river where the old Moody Street Bridge once stood, known as the “Watermelon Man Bridge,” and site of a scene in the novel Doctor Sax where a man carrying a watermelon fell and died on the bridge. The bridge was torn down when the University Bridge was built, and there were some very strong opinions expressed about that as we stood there. 

In honor of “the Watermelon Man,” now believed to be William F. Mulgrave, documented in the Lowell Sun as falling and dying on the bridge in July 1932, the walking tour had the watermelon. It was lobbed into the river from the center of the University Bridge, in honor of the Watermelon Man and Jack Kerouac and Doctor Sax.

The Stations of the Cross, The Grotto.

From the bridge, we headed to the Grotto, with the Stations of the Cross and a giant crucifix next to the Merrimack River and behind the former Franco-American School. The Grotto also figures into Doctor Sax, and is where the characters were returning home from when they came upon the Watermelon Man. 

It was a spontaneous event for me, having read about it just today, and I've wanted to go to The Grotto for a long time. It took only about a second of mental debate to choose a real life walk on a beautiful evening over the treadmill at the gym. One of the women from Book club was there, and it was great to see a familiar face. It’s the second time I’ve bumped into her in a week outside book club. I met another Tammy, which was fun.

This spontaneous going out thing can be fun once in a while. And there are other Kerouac related events all weekend. I’m just bummed I missed the memoir writing workshop on Monday night which I could have attended had I known about it before today. Danggit.