Oh…That’s What She Said

It happened again, see March 25th’s post, I got a ten-dollar haircut. It might have been the same stylist for all I know, but I never seem to get the same one. Of course because the haircut is every four weeks between visits and if I don’t get someone that is memorable for some reason it might be someone who has cut it before. I mean March was 5 months ago.

Today I got in the chair and the stylist said something, something, a great beard trim. And I replied, “Thanks I did it last night.” My normal buzz cut takes all of 5 minutes and I’m out of the chair. When I checked out she said, “That’ll be $10.” I tipped her five bucks because that is what she’d have gotten for the $21 Senior Haircut.

As I walked out to the car I looked down at the receipt and saw that it said: BEARD TRIM – $10. The stylist had probably said, “If any one asks, you got a great beard trim today.”

Interstates Suck Part Two

Interstates Suck Bumper Sticker

Yesterday’s post I lamented the situation of having to drive on the Interstate around here and said I should go ahead and buy an apt bumper sticker that I created on CafePress. It wasn’t until today that I remembered that I already had one in a drawer…

Interstates Suck

After yesterday’s hour-and-forty-five-minute Uber ride back from PDX Wraps and today’s hour-and-fifteen-minute trip back, I think it is time to pony up the $5.24 on this bumper sticker. This is also why, on the way home from picking up Bucky in Sherwood, I didn’t take one home. It probably took me a little more than the 1.25 hours to get back home, but it was worth it just not to have to creep along in three lanes of traffic. Either way, I think the results were worth that hassle.

New Side Stripes

Yesterday I mentioned I was a belt and suspenders guy with the backup house key options. What would be a way to add a third option to that saying? Asking because I went to Lowes today and bought a digital deadbolt that I’ll install tomorrow.

Several Senior Key Moments All In A Row

Not my proudest moments. When I left the house to head off to the DMV for my scheduled appointment, I locked the door behind me. Only when I got to the car did I realize the keys weren’t in my pocket. Crap. I was so worried about having all my paperwork in hand that I forgot to grab them off the hook by the door. Not a big deal, I have a Hide-A-Key outside just for such an event. I retrieved the key and slid it into the lock; it would not turn. Huh? I must have put the wrong key in my Hide-A-Key thing. It could have been the old Klamath Falls key, or a relative’s house key, or, hell, maybe even an old key from Aiken days.

Being a belt and suspenders kind of guy, my neighbor across the street has a copy as a contingency plan. I texted her, “Are you home?” No reply. Now, I’m starting to think I’m going to miss my appointment. Thirty seconds later I hear a beep and watch her car go by; she was on her way home from the store. I walk over and get her backup key. I open my door, grab the keys for Bucky, lock up, and return the backup key to her. I still had plenty of time to make it to the DMV on time.

After doing all the paperwork to get Bucky street legal, I drove the short distance to PDX Wraps to drop him off for the side stripe and dark windshield banner. After we ironed out the size and placement details, it was time to order up an Uber for the ride home. As I left the shop to go outside and wait for my ride, I realized I still had the car keys in my pocket, so I went back in and said, “Oh, you might need these.”

The 45-minute Uber ride was going to end up taking about an hour and 45 minutes because of some sort of traffic snafu. In the 2 years I’ve lived here and in all the times I’ve dealt with I-5 and I-84, it has never been that backed up. About halfway home creeping along, I realized that those car keys also held the house key. DOH!

So, I texted my neighbor again, admitting that I’m brain-dead and I’ll be needing that key again. This time the no response was a lot longer; I didn’t hear from her even after I was dropped off in front of my locked house. I walked over, and her car was there, but she didn’t answer the knock. Okay, now what? I called a locksmith. He said, “I’m finishing up a job, and then I’m 45 minutes away. Hang tight.”

About 20 minutes later I got a text; my neighbor was back, so I went over and got my spare key again. After unlocking the house door, I returned them across the street again because obviously I’m going to need her to keep them. I called the locksmith back, hoping he wasn’t already on the way because then I’d be out a couple hundred bucks. At last something went my way; he hadn’t finished up that job yet, so I dodged a monetary bullet.

I got in the other Miata and headed to Lowe’s to get the correct key to stash in my Hide-A-Key. Belt and suspenders.

Bucky’s Big Day Out

I’m finally going to get him registered and get the title in my name versus the Bring-A-Trailer seller. Hard to believe, but I won the auction for the car nearly 7 months ago. I’ve even decided to try and get a personalized plate. You get six letters, so I’ve asked for BUC KEY or BUC KIE with the state’s base license plate that features a tree in the center. Odds are probably kind of slim though; the mascot of Oregon State University is a beaver…the only saving grace is the mascot’s name is Bennie.

After the DMV I’m dropping him off at my friend’s at PDX Wraps to have some side stripes put on like I mocked up back in July. Here is the proof they sent me today. We’ll see when I get there. When I mocked up my stripe on it sat a little higher; theirs shows it lower, and I’m wondering how well the thinness of the stripe at the back end of the door will hold up.

Side Stripe Design Proof

I’m also going to get them to put a 4″ or so dark black tint along the top of the windshield. Even though I spent money on the old-school folding visors from the first-gen cars, I might be able to eliminate them altogether with that tint.

And there is one last modification (or so I’m telling myself) to be done: a set of custom gauges from Revlimiter. We are ironing out all the details as we speak; it is based on a combination of his Spyder faces and something I’ve had sitting in my Miata folder for a couple decades.

Custom Gauges Go Here


 

Alligator Man

Yesterday I drove up to Long Beach, Washington to visit brother-in-law Scott and the two nieces. Nephew James had other obligations and mom Beth enjoyed a quiet, hopefully relaxing weekend at home. Maddy, Susan and dad were spending time with his in-law’s family at their beach house. Beth’s younger sister, her husband were there with their 2 kids, Luke and Eli. The kid cousins were having a great time together. There were about a dozen other older relatives, from my age and up, who I was introduced to. By the end of the day I had mastered everyone’s names, but their relation to each other never totally gelled.

I left home at 7:30 AM and returned home at 8:30 PM. Its a 2-1/2 hour ride up and the same on the way home, so I spent around 8 hours up there. I had lunch, which was leftover Mexican from Friday night and dinner was burgers and salmon on the grill, along with a half dozen picnic salad staples. Before lunch a lot of us went to the next small town over, Ilwaco’s “Farmers” market. After lunch was a trip into town to visit Marsh’s Free Museum and giant souvenir shop to see the Alligator Man and buy some trinkets. I bought a couple post cards and a sticker for the trunk of the Miata.

Alligator Man


 
Right across the street from Marsh’s was the Chamber of Commerce with the World’s Largest Frying Pan, so, you just know I needed a photo of that. I was then tipped off to an arch a 1/4 mile away proclaiming “World’s Longest Beach”, so I walked over to photograph it too.

When I got home I looked these two “World’s Largest” thing to see if they were listed on Roadside America, and they were. Trouble is the frying pan may have been the largest when it was forged back in 1941, but it is no longer the largest. Rose Hill, NC has one that is 15′ in diameter, 5-1/2 feet greater in diameter than Long Beach’s. The arch’s claim is dubious as well, the beach it is a state park and is 28 miles in length. It doesn’t make onto Wikipedia’s list of the world’s longest beach.

Street Number Upgrade

My house number has always been this plain faded black metal number 1 ever since moving in and I always planned to upgrade it somehow, but never did. I thought it might be funny to tack one of those giant foam fingers that say “WE’RE #1” on the post, but Donna wouldn’t let me.

Today when I went grocery shopping this morning I added a can of white spray paint to the cart. My plan was to paint an oval around the 1. I already had a can of black (and now for the life of me can’t remember what I needed it for) to touch up that number 1. When I got done I used a giant black sharpie to out line the oval.

This is the before, hover over the image to see the after.

Wasn’t until I was through that I noticed a bunch of over spray, it was a bit breezy this afternoon. Don’t know I’m going to do about it because I don’t have any of that gray paint left over anywhere. You know one of those giant foam fingers would cover that all up…