Air and a Spare

Red Light has been bugging me for over a week to attend a speaker presentation she arranged for the Community Room — something about caregiver service and free offerings for seniors.

I never said I would attend, even though she’s persisted by next giving me a flyer promoting the session and then, while working out in the Pain Cave yesterday, a text message reminder about today’s event, 10AM.

It’s not that I’m all that worried about the atmosphere in the Community Room … I saw Head Maintenance Guy heading out with his family yesterday and he didn’t look ill to me.

While Assistant Manager and her husband are walking slow, heavy, skin yellowish, looking jaundiced, HMG looks hale and hearty. So I’m less worried about the Community Room and just don’t want to be part of Red Light’s latest venture.

Waking up this morning, my plan was to dip, make myself scarce. Heading out at 10AM is early for me, but I managed to complete my morning ritual and was out by 9:45.

Less than a block from the complex I heard a big BANG then a THUD, thought an object had hit the rear left side of the car and was being dragged.

Pulling over into the market parking lot, I checked, saw nothing wrong, drove around in the parking lot for a bit, heard nothing, so assuming the sound was something in the trunk tipping over, I continued on.

On the freeway, about five miles from the complex, I heard THUD CLANK THUD CLANK THUD CLANK and figured I’d better head for the Jeep Dealership, five or six miles further, because it might be something under the car having come loose.

I never made it.

The thudding and clanking got very loud, steering wheel felt funny, cars honked to let me know there was a problem, so I pulled off at the exit, parked by the side of the road and ………

Driver Side Rear Tire

Locking myself in the car, I tried calling my insurer’s roadside assistance.

That didn’t work. Their mobile system app wouldn’t accept my password.

After several tries, I attempted to change my password.

That didn’t work either.

I googled telephone numbers to contact a human voice for my insurer's roadside assistance.

That led to "cannot complete your call" and a random "let me tell you how to save money on your medical". So, after 30 minutes or so of frustration, I called the dealership, asked for a referral for roadside assistance in the area, made contact with a service, ETA 20 minutes.

While I was waiting, a Black guy hauling a flatbed drove by, stopped in traffic, backed up and said, "There’s a tire place just around that corner. If you pull up there, they can change that tire for you".

"Oh thanks, but I’m waiting for roadside assistance".

"Cancel ‘em. It will save you money. Just drive around that corner. Tire place is just on the left-hand side".

I really didn't think I could drive any further without damaging the rim, so I said "If roadside doesn't show soon, I’ll think about that. Thanks for the information".

"No problem. When I passed you, saw it was an old Black lady, I thought to back up, let you know".

WTF!!!!! SOAB!!!!!

Did he have to add "old"?

I don't see myself as old. I see myself as "a senior", but not old or elderly.

At any rate, roadside assistance showed up.

Then I was off to the tire shop to purchase a new spare — not the tire shop in that area, but the one I usually frequent for air checks.

Telling the kid on the air station that I needed an air check and to purchase a new spare, he asked what happened.

"It just blew up", said I.

He said the Jeep is a 2017, "tires are good for 5/6 years, so you probably need new tires or all will eventually blow".

I don’t drive enough to cause that kind of wear — only 164,000 16,412 thus far, so I didn’t buy it.

Tire guy inside the office said all my tires looked "brand new", so something had to have lodged in the tire, eventually caused the tire to blow.

I didn’t want to wait 2-1/2 to 3 hours for them to put on a new tire, return the spare back to the trunk (they were swamped and backed up), so I’ve a service appointment scheduled for my next free day, Thursday.

All in all, there are two ways I can look at this day.

Inasmuch as the BANG THUD began so close to the complex, perhaps it was a sign to stay put, go to Red Light’s thing.

On the other hand, the BANG THUD might have been something that was brewing and would eventually catch up with me anyway. At least it happened in an area where I was relatively safe, on a day I had the wherewithall to deal with it.

So, who knows the what/why of it, but all toll it was a good day and worth the expense.

Roadside Assistance: $105

New Tire: $183.77

Escaping Red Light’s function: Priceless.

Returning to the complex, I saw Head Maintenance Guy. He's back to work and wearing a mask.

I haven't seen the other office personnel, but I'm assuming they're all back, all wearing masks now.

Labor Day? It’s Still Monday

Just another Monday for me, which means my regular routine — a workout this morning and a stop by the market after.

Of course, complex management has the day off, which isn't saying much because the office has been closed since the day after Carnival, with only Assistant Maintenance Guy doing whatever it is he's been doing — probably enjoying the others being gone.

I wonder if Corporate knows no one has been in the office because, in past days when there was an absence, Corporate would send someone down to cover.

The fact that Corporate has not done so is a puzzle piece telling me Corporate is either being kept in the dark OR Corporate knows the something us residents have not been allowed to know and are not risking another team member to come down, work in that building for the time being.

On Friday, one would have thought Red Light was manager because, at bingo, as people would enter the building looking for someone in the office to speak to for whatever reason — probably inquire about applying for a unit here, Red Light would leave the Community Room, go out to the Lobby, greet the person(s), speak with them, tell them whatever it was she told them about why no one was available, the person(s) would leave, Red Light would return to the Community Room looking even more full of herself than she usually does.

Not sure how it happened, not even sure when it happened, but Red Light has become the Big Beoch on campus — strutting around like she’s in charge, knows everything going on, telling those she can control what to do, even taking on parts of Activity Director’s job … making arrangements for speakers to come in.

Makes me curious, though I'm not comfortable asking, what her background is, what line of work she was in before she ended up here, on the county welfare roll.

Must have been a high mucky muck job because her large and in charge attitude reminds me of how Next-Door Neighbor, previously a State Commissioner before she too ended up here via the county welfare roll, used to be ... that is until her treating others as though they were her employees got her impeached as president of the then Residents' Activity Committee.

Thus far, Red Light has not, to my knowledge, pissed anyone off.

I, and the Usual Suspects as well, are quite content to let her take the lead role, with us as supporting cast — otherwise there would be no bingo and other resident sponsored events; but she did slip one day, when she was spilling the tea, and say, "Don’t tell anyone what I just told you. I have to be careful because they're after me".

She need not have worried. I'm not that person who goes around tipping over teacups. I save what tea I get for the blog; but I assumed the "they" she was speaking of is the current Complex Manager and the conflict being both are vying for the title of HBIC.

Thus far, it’s a tie.

Speaking of previous lines of work, this Labor Day marks my 13th year of sliding the chute, or close enough as I officially retired on September 7.

Time flies when one is not having to deal, on a daily basis, with functionally insane employers, various forms of racism and abuse of authority.

Remembering all I had to tolerate to remain employed, make it to retirement, puts the way management treats us seniors into perspective — mere child’s play ... annoying, but we've all survived worse.

Quiet as a Church Mouse

So I made it through the week without losing my religion. Even made it through bingo without screaming at everyone to wake the frack up and smell the coffee.

The secret of maintaining was to be quiet as a church mouse — say nothing, just listen, don’t try to point out the obvious. Just let the Usual Suspects continue in their inability to put the pieces together.

One of the pieces to the puzzle is that Assistant Manager’s husband is back home from the hospital.

I’ve seen him and whatever it was that he had has taken a toll.

Another piece is that his wife, Assistant Manager, though never hospitalized, is still also not feeling well. She looks it and says so.

I’m told she’s not been working in the office, but did put in some time at Tuesday’s Carnival.

She’s now saying her husband had pneumonia.

Interesting, because she told me that the doctors didn’t know what she and her husband were suffering from, and I would think pneumonia would be something the doctors could readily diagnose. Also, as far as I know (correct me if I'm wrong), pneumonia is not a communicable disease. He could not have passed it on to her, made her also ill.

What is she hiding?

What is management telling her to keep on the down low?

If something is going around, would it not be incumbent upon them to notify us residents for reasons or safety?

More pieces of the puzzle are that Complex Manager is out sick and has been since the day after Carnival. Head Maintenance guy is also out sick and has been since the day after Carnival.

Assistant Maintenance Guy is back from his honeymoon with a shiny new ring on his finger and he is wearing a mask .... a sure sign he knows something and wants no part of it.

I too am wearing a mask, and I was the only one in bingo to do so.

No one had better not ask me to sign a get well soon card for any member of management.

I’ve lost track, but as best I recall, our current manager is No. 10, maybe 11, and she is running the place with an iron fist, just like that mean Nurse Ratched manager we suffered through.

Community Room Refrigerator Door

Not only had this Nurse Ratched wannabe taken the Community Room refrigerator away from us but, to add insult to injury, she put a lock on it.

Not just one padlock, but TWO, just in case we ever thought of utilizing the freezer section, even though they don't keep their precious lunches, or anything else there.

I absolutely will not be signing any get-well cards, which some well-meaning member of the Usual Suspects will be stupid enough to pass around; and I won't be attending management's frigging Christmas Party.

Sorry, not sorry they’re not feeling well.

Whatever is in the air must have had an impact on one of our regulars, Di. She came to bingo, began writing a check for the rent, looked up and asked, "What year is this?"

It's a good thing I was being quiet as a church mouse, because bad Shirley was telling me to say "1999". Fortunately, someone spoke up, said "2023", before bad Shirley could take over.

Shopping Cart Cam, Episode 2

The friendly hugger wasn’t guarding the store last two time I popped in.

I was ready though, video rolling, using the cart as a barrier because I just knew the moment I let my guard down, he’d reappear, possibly leave his station, give me a friendly hug.

It's difficult to pull the cart by the side, so when I saw he was not manning the station on those days, that a store employee or no one was on guard, I turned off the video, pushed the cart as normal.

Realizing I’d not be able to shop tomorrow, after working out, because I have to rush back to bingo, I popped in today, but on guard just in case.

Seeing him, a somewhat annoyed look formed on my face. A look that probably scared him off as much as he scared me when he moved from behind his station. But I think he’d only moved to remove the cart I stumbled into. A cart left by an inconsiderate customer inside the door, in front of the entrance.

Who does that?

Who leaves their cart blocking the entrance?

So, anyway, I got the normal "Have a nice day" when I exited, so I think I’ll be feeling less annoyed at the sight of him next time, less feeling I have to be protective of myself now that things are back to normal.

Running into Shadow, I was asked why I didn’t show up for Tuesday’s Carnival.

Done with the not pepper spray incident, I just said I won’t be attending any management events, that "I’m not very happy with management right now".

Shadow replied, "No one is". (Meaning happy with management).

He also said, it was announced at Carnival that management would be hosting a Christmas party.

I guess management is well pleased with themselves that residents showed up for that piddly little Carnival they threw to calm the ill will over the rent increase, even though attendance didn't represent the number of residents we have in the complex.

It’s all about the free food.

If you feed them, some will come.

Mistreat them, disrespect and yell at them (as I'm told the new manager does), don’t repair their refrigerator, their dish washer, ovens, but toss them a bone of free food and they’ll come, feed your ego, make you feel good about yourselves that you’re doing something FOR them, even though you take away more than you give, and still they will come.

I'm already planning to not attend management's Christmas Party, telling Shadow that "I’ll only be participating in bingo and events hosted by residents".

That is .... if management doesn't host a Halloween Costume Party. I'm not too fed up with anyone to pass up an opportunity to cosplay.

How Soon We Forget

Needing time away from the Usual Suspects, I did not mask up to check out the piddly event management hosted for residents yesterday — Carnival. Instead, I worked on that needlepoint project, caught up on recorded TV programs.

Having seen no one to ask how it went — what was served, what games were played, how many attended, did anyone get sick, did anyone die, I’ve nothing to report.

Everything must have been copacetic because, looking at what Red Light posted to FB last night, she’s already planning a Halloween Party in the room.

My plan was to avoid the others for another two weeks — until the next bingo game, which would have given me sufficient time to detox from my frustration with them. Not to mention long enough for infected others, if indeed there were infected others, to mutate into zombies. However, looking at the calendar, the next bingo game is this Friday, September 1.

Too soon, but inasmuch as I take photos for the website, I’ll mask up and participate.

One of the TV programs I caught up on was Worst Cooks in America.

In last week’s episode, Chefs Anne and Jeff showed the contestants how to make sushi.

I’ve not made sushi since I began cutting down on carbs and sodium in an effort to lower the very bad numbers that popped up in my last blood test.

No idea how I’m doing with those numbers, because the doctor won’t authorize another blood test until nearer end of year; but I’m down 25 pounds, which can’t hurt.

After seeing that sushi episode, a burning desire for sushi took hold, and irregardless of knowing full well sushi would push me over the top on both carbs and sodium, I just had to have it so, after this morning’s workout, I made few rolls.

How soon we forget because, though the rolls eventually came out looking and tasting great, I’d evidently been away from sushi making too long because, when I set out to load ingredients in the first roll, something didn’t seem quite right.

This is a test.

Can you tell me where I went amiss ...... What’s wrong with this picture?

I realized pretty quick that I needed to pivot.

That's More Like It

All’s well that ends well.

Lone Voice in the Wilderness

Just once I’d like to get up in the morning and not see strawberry blonde Inmate No. P01135809 on the news. Not see his face, not hear his name mentioned.

Is that too much to hope for?

Asking for a friend.

Going to be a rough week around here what with the inmate and his insane clown posse popping up 24/7, in addition to continuing extreme heat warnings. It was 104 yesterday, expected to be 107 today.

The natives are already restless, angry at being kicked out of bingo — even though it was for their own safety, so I’m expecting some drama.

Hopefully not from me, but I can’t be certain because, after their not understanding the significance of the folding chair video, the cluelessness, stupidity, gullibility, naivety of the Usual Suspects is beginning to grate on my nerves.

The new rent increase goes into effect on Friday.

As previously mentioned in the blog, management tossed us a bone with a Summer Social out by the pool to lessen the blow of last year’s rent increase.

This year it’s a 2-hour Carnival — lunch and fun games tomorrow, Tuesday, in the Community Room — the room I suspect of causing Assistant Manager and her husband to become ill, and causing us residents to cough, choke, gag at Friday’s bingo.

Red Light tells me a woman I’d seen seated in the Lobby, filling out paperwork with her husband to get a unit here, when whatever it was in the air caused problems, also later began coughing/gagging.

That woman wasn’t even seated in the room. She was in the Lobby area. Still the pepper spray theory goes unchallenged by everyone but me.

It was on Saturday when I heard Red Light on the walkway underneath my patio window explaining to two residents what had occurred in the Community Room.

Evidently, word is spreading something happened, so the two ladies were asking Red Light for the 411.

I heard the word "pepper spray" and, against my better judgment, walked out onto the patio and said it wasn’t, and that Assistant Manager is ill, her husband hospitalized, and though she said it wasn’t Covid, no one knows what it is.

With an authoritative voice, Red Light corrected me, that Assistant Manager was not ill. "She’s on vacation. I saw her Monday and she said she’d be on vacation this week".

"I saw her Friday as she was coming back from the hospital", said I.

Red Light dismissed me with an "Oh well" like I didn’t know what the hell I was talking about and went back to her pepper spray conversation.

Nobody puts baby in the corner, so I could have gone downstairs, pressed my point, but why bother. I just went back to what I was doing and thought about why do I even bother with the Usual Suspects, that this is why I mostly observe and blog about then, rather than hang with any of them outside of bingo, why I keep quiet and have turned down group lunch invitations and group other invitations. I don’t want to say it’s because they are all so stupid, and I can’t stand stupid people. Let’s just say they are all so limited in their ability to see what to me seems obvious, all so gullible, naive, clueless which makes them somewhat boring as foick to interact with, other than bingo and the occasional Community Room event.

So, anyway, will be interesting to see how things go in the room tomorrow OR, if management wakes up and shuts down Tuesday’s event and everything else until the room is investigated.

Thing is, management is kind of between a rock and a hard place in that the residents themselves want to continue on as usual, are they themselves ignoring the signs something is wrong in the room and will lose their sh!t if yet another event gets shut down.

So, we shall see what we shall see.