Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas! I worked all day - from 6:30 am to 7:30 pm! I only like working all day on paid holidays because you get paid time and a half, so ka ching! (It’d be even nicer if it were double pay!) I was originally scheduled from 11:30-7:30, but I texted Emily, who was scheduled from 6:30-11:30, and told her I would pick up that shift for her. I figured she wouldn’t mind since I know she likes to sleep in and would probably want to stay home for Christmas and she was more than happy to let me take it! I had a crapload of sugar today - 2 bottles of pop (Mike gave me one from his stash that Barb gave him and Nolan brought me some Dr. Pepper when he returned from break), fudge (Ellen made some so we were all snacking on those), 2 chocolate and peanut clusters that Barb brought (her friend made those and they were really good!), and cookies (dessert for lunch). I was actually craving some carrot sticks!
Amanda, who gives tours, came in with her boyfriend and they served hot chocolate to the residents in the coffee shop after lunch. They had brought their two dogs - his was a greyhound (VERY skinny!) and she has a mutt, part lab and part something else, I don't remember. She said they had to bring the dogs or otherwise they would get in their cookies and other goodies they had at home! That reminded me of the time that Maggie once ate a chocolate Santa when at my parents' house when we were all out and I told her about that. She told me that both dogs were rescue dogs and she had actually stolen her dog (Nicki is her name) from an abusive owner eleven years ago. I said that was a rare case when stealing is acceptable. She was such a sweet dog and enjoyed when I petted her.
It was a bit of a sad Christmas because Carl died last night! He was a resident who had been living at HP since 2008. He was always sitting out in the lobby with his dog, Muffy, and everyone knew him. His wife used to live there too, but she died a few years ago. He would usually sit at the same table as Ernie, who died about a month ago. They were both Italian. Ernie’s wife also used to live there and also died before he did. Her name was Eva and Carl’s wife was Wallie! And they were all here in 2008, when Wall-E came out! It’s not the biggest surprise Carl had died. He had cancer and it seemed to be getting worse in the last few months. He had lost his appetite and went to the hospital a few days ago. I’ll miss him saying goodbye to everyone as he did every night when we all went to clock out and had to pass the lobby where he was usually sitting in the evening.
It snowed yesterday, ugh! And it was a bitch to drive in. I think we got six inches. I had to be at work by ten, but left around 9:20 and got there probably just five minutes shy of ten! It was coming down really fast and really thick. The roads were super slick. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get out of my neighborhood. Whenever it snows like that and the roads haven’t been plowed, I have to drive sporadically in order to get up the hill. There was only one car I passed and of course I cursed it and was thinking, “Why are you out driving on Christmas Eve?” But by that point I was on my side of the road and had already gotten up the small hill. There were actually more cars out than I thought there would be on a Christmas Eve afternoon in the bad weather. Luckily there were no cars coming when I had to turn right on 150th street! Lucky because I couldn't stop! Usually I stop and look for traffic, but when I did that, my breaks made a noise but the car didn’t effing stop! That was scary. So I’m like, shit, I hope there are no cars coming and I quickly looked but didn’t see any so I just slipped onto 150th street. I drove V---E----R----Y slowly to the lights that would take me on to Dodge and very slowly on Dodge. OMG, this HUGE ASS Wal-Mart semi truck passed me, and I swear to God, he was going the posted speed limit (which is 65) while everyone else was going at least half that. (I was probably going half of half that!) WTF? What an idiot. The electric sign said that weather conditions were bad and to slow down. No shit, but I guess idiots like that truck driver need reminding.
It was really cold and rainy on Christmas Eve Eve so I went through the drive-thru at Starbucks and got a small vanilla latte. When I went to give the money to the barista, she said the car in front of me had already paid for it and I’m like, Oh? Really? Thanks!” Now that I think about it, she never told me how much I owed when I ordered and they always do that, but I didn't pay any mind since I knew how much they cost. It was really nice of them, but it was also a little bit awkward because I’ve never been in one of those situations. Am I suppose to pay for the car behind me? But what if the person behind me ordered a large drink and a snack? And what if they had a passenger who also ordered the same thing? That’s almost $30! I should mention the person in front of me was driving a Lexus SUV and had an iPhone (I saw it because she was holding it up to the window to use the Starbucks app). Obviously, their life is fine! They’re doing pretty well. I assumed they did it because it was near christmas. It was very nice of them.
Amanda, who gives tours, came in with her boyfriend and they served hot chocolate to the residents in the coffee shop after lunch. They had brought their two dogs - his was a greyhound (VERY skinny!) and she has a mutt, part lab and part something else, I don't remember. She said they had to bring the dogs or otherwise they would get in their cookies and other goodies they had at home! That reminded me of the time that Maggie once ate a chocolate Santa when at my parents' house when we were all out and I told her about that. She told me that both dogs were rescue dogs and she had actually stolen her dog (Nicki is her name) from an abusive owner eleven years ago. I said that was a rare case when stealing is acceptable. She was such a sweet dog and enjoyed when I petted her.
It was a bit of a sad Christmas because Carl died last night! He was a resident who had been living at HP since 2008. He was always sitting out in the lobby with his dog, Muffy, and everyone knew him. His wife used to live there too, but she died a few years ago. He would usually sit at the same table as Ernie, who died about a month ago. They were both Italian. Ernie’s wife also used to live there and also died before he did. Her name was Eva and Carl’s wife was Wallie! And they were all here in 2008, when Wall-E came out! It’s not the biggest surprise Carl had died. He had cancer and it seemed to be getting worse in the last few months. He had lost his appetite and went to the hospital a few days ago. I’ll miss him saying goodbye to everyone as he did every night when we all went to clock out and had to pass the lobby where he was usually sitting in the evening.
It snowed yesterday, ugh! And it was a bitch to drive in. I think we got six inches. I had to be at work by ten, but left around 9:20 and got there probably just five minutes shy of ten! It was coming down really fast and really thick. The roads were super slick. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get out of my neighborhood. Whenever it snows like that and the roads haven’t been plowed, I have to drive sporadically in order to get up the hill. There was only one car I passed and of course I cursed it and was thinking, “Why are you out driving on Christmas Eve?” But by that point I was on my side of the road and had already gotten up the small hill. There were actually more cars out than I thought there would be on a Christmas Eve afternoon in the bad weather. Luckily there were no cars coming when I had to turn right on 150th street! Lucky because I couldn't stop! Usually I stop and look for traffic, but when I did that, my breaks made a noise but the car didn’t effing stop! That was scary. So I’m like, shit, I hope there are no cars coming and I quickly looked but didn’t see any so I just slipped onto 150th street. I drove V---E----R----Y slowly to the lights that would take me on to Dodge and very slowly on Dodge. OMG, this HUGE ASS Wal-Mart semi truck passed me, and I swear to God, he was going the posted speed limit (which is 65) while everyone else was going at least half that. (I was probably going half of half that!) WTF? What an idiot. The electric sign said that weather conditions were bad and to slow down. No shit, but I guess idiots like that truck driver need reminding.
It was really cold and rainy on Christmas Eve Eve so I went through the drive-thru at Starbucks and got a small vanilla latte. When I went to give the money to the barista, she said the car in front of me had already paid for it and I’m like, Oh? Really? Thanks!” Now that I think about it, she never told me how much I owed when I ordered and they always do that, but I didn't pay any mind since I knew how much they cost. It was really nice of them, but it was also a little bit awkward because I’ve never been in one of those situations. Am I suppose to pay for the car behind me? But what if the person behind me ordered a large drink and a snack? And what if they had a passenger who also ordered the same thing? That’s almost $30! I should mention the person in front of me was driving a Lexus SUV and had an iPhone (I saw it because she was holding it up to the window to use the Starbucks app). Obviously, their life is fine! They’re doing pretty well. I assumed they did it because it was near christmas. It was very nice of them.