When I walked Olga along Mill Lane on Sunday I saw this little detail on the Mill Lane Bridge. Don't you love it? A fox on a skateboard! There were two other skateboarding foxes in the same painting, by a young artist named Kira Latini, age 9.
OK, all cuteness aside, I gotta tell you about yesterday. You know how some days you just shouldn't get out of bed? Well, for me, yesterday was one of them.
I didn't get a shower in the morning because Dave was in the bathroom for so long. (This happens occasionally.) So I was off to a bad start before I even left the house. We wound up going to work together, so I took the tube and found that my fare card had no more money on it -- so I used my debit card at the turnstiles.
Then, at work, I got a text message from the bank saying, "We're sorry, your payment has been declined, as the card you used has been replaced. Please use your new card. Not received it? Get in touch."
Oh, bloody hell.
So I called the bank and yes, of course, it turns out my old debit card has been cancelled after all. (Here's the first half of that story.) I got quite grumpy with the operator, explaining that I now had NO debit card (as I cut up the new one that arrived weeks late) and no way to buy groceries or run errands, and I asked her to re-activate the old card. She said she did, but when I tried to use it later on the tube it was still not working. I suspect I will simply have to order another card.
Meanwhile...
I had to come home at 10:30 a.m. to meet the engineer from the firm that's doing our kitchen and bathroom remodeling. He was scheduled to do reconnaissance and measurements, and had told me he'd be here between 11 a.m. and noon.
Well, 11:45 rolled around and I hadn't heard anything, so I called the company, and they assured me he was on his way and would be here within another hour. So I waited...and waited...
...and by 12:45 he still hadn't shown up, so I called and cancelled and went back to work. I'm just not putting up with that. If they want access to the house they can get keys from the landlords. I missed lunch at work and wound up having a measly peanut butter sandwich at home.
On the bright side, in the evening I had the first of my two meetings over challenged books, and although I can't give any details I can say it went well. I have a second meeting after Spring Break, which begins...
...tomorrrow! Thank GOD.
That second photo above, by the way, shows the Leucojums -- or spring snowdrops -- that are now blooming in our garden. At least while I was home in late morning I was able to clean, spend some time in the garden and take some pictures!
This morning I'm supposed to meet a drains engineer to get our downspout working again. We'll see if he shows up.
That second photo above, by the way, shows the Leucojums -- or spring snowdrops -- that are now blooming in our garden. At least while I was home in late morning I was able to clean, spend some time in the garden and take some pictures!
This morning I'm supposed to meet a drains engineer to get our downspout working again. We'll see if he shows up.
27 comments:
Why do people think it is ok to just not show up?
And don't get be started on banks and cards and our wonderful cashless society.
I am looking forward to hearing how the book saga ends up - sounding good so far.
At least you got to spend time in the garden and spring has arrived. Must look for the positives even though they are hard to find sometimes.
That fox painting is so cute.
Ask your bank if there is a branch that makes the cards on the spot. Our bank has one location that you can go to get a card if it is required immediately.
Never never cut up a new card until the old one is cancelled.
I hate tradespeople who don't show up on time, but there may have been difficulties at previous jobs that has them running late, so I usually set aside a whole day, even calling in sick if I need to. Not a problem these days when I'm retired and maintenance takes care of things here.
I think I mentioned it earlier but I have two credit cards and my debit card for just such an event. This way I never end up without a payment method in case one of them is being held up weeks by mail or other difficulties.
I understand both sides. Subcontractors that spend lots of idle time are not making money and go out of business. Overbooking however leads to upset customers. They try to find a compromise by giving you a range of time, but then what happens when they go to a house with a lot more complicated case than what they were expecting? Their schedule is shot for the rest of the day and customers are upset. I feel for both sides. My solution is to make my appointment the first one for the day, whatever day that might be. I tend to get on time arrivals.
It applies not only for subcontractors but for doctor offices as well.
It is important for a man to have his down spout in full working order but normally correction is carried out by a qualified surgeon in a hospital environment and not by a drains engineer.
Could they be foxes on the run?
Maybe if the drain engineer to clear your downspout clear is female, things may work better.
Unlike in the past, most booked tradespeople we have used over the last year or so have been pretty good at punctuality and service. This is such a change in Australia.
In the 90s when we had one bathroom for a time, we planned our bathroom usage if we thought they would clash.
When British banks write and say a new card is being issued and the old one is not to be used anymore they mean it even if there is a delay in the pipeline for one reason or another. Sorry but I could see this was going to happen.
A Murphy's Law kind of day. Gosh I loathe those.
Glad your meeting on the challenged books went well; hopefully saner minds prevail.
Kira Latini is already a fine and talented artist.
WTF with debit cards? I went through a similar thing last fall, I think it was and ended up crying in a bank manager's office.
May the gods of banned books, drain clearers, and spring break be with you today.
What a day. At least there was a fox on a skateboard to balance it. So the debit card saga continues, arghghgh.
Enjoy your spring break. I expect you're ready for it.
Sorry about all of your troubles. Enjoy your Spring break! Thanks for the cute fox painting!
I love the skateboarding fox! Take photos of the others in her painting, please.
I hope things are going better for you today.
Well I made the mistake of cutting up a new debit card and when we realized the old one was out of date, we had to go to the bank yesterday to work that out. They did make a new one right there. So, maybe you could do that there.
I hope the drain engineer shows up. If not, there's probably more garden work to tend to while you wait.
Love that fox on the skateboard painting.
There re some days when everything falls apart. It's hard not to let it get to you. Sometimes very simple things can become totally off the rails.
The snowdrops are breathtaking and I love that fox art. Contractors who don't show up (well, anyone who doesn’t show up) tick me off. I'm glad you drew a line.
Glad to hear the first meeting concerning challenged books went well!
Wishing you, Dave & Olga a quiet, relaxing Spring Break.
Oh my, what a horrible day. I agree, it would have been a day to stay in bed. I was afraid you would have trouble over that bank card. Being a former banker, I know once a card is canceled, it's canceled. Good luck with that. I won't even get started on service people who don't show up when they say they will. That is a so frustrating.
Enjoy the break!
Ugh - VERY ANNOYING! I remember the days of one bathroom. We lived that way for almost 20 years - it's surprising that our marriage survived (I was the bathroom hogger - my poor husband). Enjoy your break!
life has to throw in a challenge now and then- little niggling ones just to keep you on your Buddhist path, Exercise! To see if you have learned anything maybe...that is what I think when days like yours occur, and they do, very frequently. When things a smooth I get suspicious!
I love the fox! You've been caught up in banking misery. Why does Dave take so long in the bathroom? That's the real question. Is he vain and loves to look at himself in the mirror? Does he love a long shower? Is he accident prone and cuts himself shaving and while he searches for something to stop the bleeding stubs his toe on the side of the tub and spends an hour wailing in pain? Inquiring minds want to know.
Love,
Janie
Days like that are hard on the head. I seem to have more of them since my husband died, and what makes it worse is that now there is no one to commiserate with. Just another "character-building" challenge I guess. Hope you can get the debit card replaced and get into a zen mindset for the repair work because that will, in tbe end, be the easiest way to deal with it.
What a day! I could have predicted the debit card fiasco because similar sh*t has happened to me. No shower always starts the day off poorly; although people can't tell, I feel grubby.
You definitely had an Alexander day. I'm amazed you didn't pack up and move to Australia after that one. The card thing seems the worst because you did all the right things... UGH.
I don't know that I've ever seen snowdrops with the green tint on the petals. Those are stunning.
That fox is a total gem.
I’d love that fox on my wall anyday
Hey that engineer was there ringing the bell and knocking while you were out in the garden. When he didn't get any answer he left. (That's Microsoft's Reality Creator.)
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