Marvelous Monday Update 3/31/08

School
Ugh... “You have three weeks until the next test.” Couldn’t the B-Law II instructor let us savor our moments of relief in *just* completing our second test of the semester before telling us when the next one was? Last Tuesday, we had our second test. I had 16 pages of typewritten notes to study from. 16! The first test, I had 11. Who knows how many I’ll have for the third test. LOL I can’t say how well I did because I thought I did good the last time and ended up with a “C”. This is how I approach taking these horrendous tests -- and I’m NOT exaggerating when I say “horrendous” -- I literally have to concentrate on one question at a time and not look any farther otherwise I’d get overwhelmed and start panicking. If I panic, I’m done for.

I found out that I won’t be having “homework” per se in my Advanced Access class. Our homework is the class project of setting up a database with various requirements. Guess what I decided to do? I’m setting up one for Needlework! When I told the instructor that on the first day of class, her eyes lit up. She used to be a stitcher, but had to stop due to some problems with her hands. My project is way more than what is required for class, but I figured if I’m going to set one up I may as well set it up for what I think I could use it for, especially now that I have the Access program at home.

So far, I’m including details on charts, fibers, fabrics, beads, embellishments, WIPs, and needlework shops. If you have an ideas that would make this a comprehensive stash program, let me know.

The instructor seemed quite impressed with my idea.


Get Fit Program
This is the last week for the program sponsored by the local hospital and fitness centers. The team we put together at work is ranked at 54 out of 86 total, so we’re not doing too bad. In two weeks, we go to get our final screening (BP, BF, weight, cholesterol, etc) done so we can compare it to our beginning screening. This time around my focus was on getting into an exercise routine and sticking with it. I think I did a pretty good job, although the past two weeks I’ve been slacking... barely getting in 3 days/week of exercise. I haven’t done a very good job of maintaining the 5-a-Day fruits and vegetables.

"Measure success in more than pounds. Take pride in feeling better and being healthy and fit for life." How fitting! This came in our weekly Get Fit newsletter.

I’m still doing Leslie Sanstone’s Walking Away The Pounds 3-mile Fat Burning video. 45 minutes of cardio, half of which also incorporates weight/strength training. I really like this video. This week, I’ve managed to fit in 3 workouts.


Weather
In my part of the world, March is leaving like a lion. Around 3am, I woke to the sounds of loud thunder. I’d heard there was lightning, too. It’s pouring some major rain and forecasters say we might get hail and a tornado. I hope not! At least, Spring is FINALLY here.

What Is This 3/20/08 Answer

Rub-a-dub-dub
Three men in a tub...

I had a dilemma with the answers on the 3/20 What Is This contest. Several people had guesses that could've been right, but only a few named it for what it was. So I decided to put those names in a hat and choose a winner.

As I aimlessly wandered around the new SuperWalmart a few weeks ago, I came upon it. The answer to all my prayers! LOL, maybe not THE answer, but it sounded good, didn't it? I found a SOAP SAVER.

It's like a shower puff, but it opens up and you can put a full bar of soap, or lots of soap slivers in it. It lathers up really well, too! The only complaint I have about it is the little plastic closure thingy doesn't grip very well and sometimes soap falls out. I know I have better ones in my stash... if I EVER get it unpacked!

I'd been saving soap slivers for years, reusing them in various ways. Once I made liquid soap out of them. I'd thought about making shavings out of them and then melting it into a new bar of soap. With a soap saver, I can just shove those little pieces in there are use it at bath/shower time! For less than $2, re-use can get any easier. Can you tell I'm big on re-using, recycling, and reducing waste?

And now for the winner...

*drum roll*



CINDY in Illinois

Congratulations, Cindy!


Other winners of previous What Is This contests:
• Patty Smith in Canada
• Anita Sorrells in Illinois

Movie Monday 3/31/08

21
Kevin Spacey, Jim Sturgess, Kate Bosworth, Lawrence Fishburne. The true story of the brightest young minds in the country - and how they took Vegas for millions. Ben Campbell (Sturgess) is a shy, brilliant M.I.T. student who -- needing to pay school tuition -- finds the answers in the cards. He is recruited to join a group of the school's most gifted students that heads to Vegas every weekend armed with fake identities and the know-how to turn the odds at blackjack in their favor. With unorthodox math professor and stats genius Micky Rosa (Spacey) leading the way, they've cracked the code. By counting cards and employing an intricate system of signals, the team can beat the casinos big time. Seduced by the money, the Vegas lifestyle, and by his smart and sexy teammate, Jill Taylor (Bosworth), Ben begins to push the limits. Though counting cards isn't illegal, the stakes are high, and the challenge becomes not only keeping the numbers straight, but staying one step ahead of the casinos' menacing enforcer: Cole Williams (Fishburne).

I thought this was a good movie, although I figured out how the movie ended before it got there.


World Trade Center
Nicolas Cage, Michael Pena, Maggie Gyllenhaal. True story of Will Jimeno (Pena) and John McLoughlin (Cage), two Port Authority police officers who rushed into the burning World Trade Center on 9/11 to help rescue people, but became trapped themselves when the tower collapsed. A race against time ensued to free them before their air ran out.

Initially, I had difficulty when I started watching this movie. All those emotions from 9/11 surfaced back to the top. I could relate to some of the scenes that showed people in disbelief from all over the world. It all came back to me, like it was yesterday. It was an interesting movie, not as graphic as I thought it would be... which is a good thing, because I probably couldn’t have finished watching it.

Meeting with Auto Zone

The store manager of Auto Zone rolled the battery tester out to the parking lot to test the battery. Upon asking what the prognosis was, he said: "Well, I'm getting inconsistent readings. He said they'd replace the battery. Since I had an appointment, he suggested I return to the store afterwards. Great! I thought.

When I returned to AZ, the manager was out to lunch and the clerk who waited on me didn't have a clue as to what I was there for. He asked me to pull my car closer to the building so he didn't have to carry the battery as far (more on that later). When I went back into the store, he'd taken the opportunity to call the store manager. Hmmm. I don't think he counted on me coming back into the store as fast as I did. Suspicious. Why couldn't he call the manager when I was IN the store?

The clerk then proceeded to tell me that they'd prorate the cost of the battery because I was outside the "free" battery warranty period. What?! None of that was discussed when I talked to the manager. I was NOT a happy camper, and proceeded to tell the clerk that I'd had problems with the battery since it was exchanged in 2006. Then I received a response: "I'm just telling you what the manager said." I responded, "I understand it's not your problem...." and proceeded to tell him about the frustration and inconvience it's been for me. I wouldn't give in... not after two shops looked at the car and the number of times I've had to recharge the battery. He finally said he'd put the battery in and the manager could deal with the payment himself.

I found it odd that he'd stop every now and then and seemingly stared out into space while he was trying to change out the battery. Come to find out he had a 2nd pacemaker surgery in June. I felt bad then, because I'd seen my Dad stop and "rest" like that a few times. It also explained why he didn't want to carry the battery very far.

He made sure to tell me that they don't normally change the batteries in cars like mine because it's too difficult. (Yes, I know it's a PITA) I tried to tell him about all the times I've had to recharge the battery and the problems with it, but he acted indifferent. He gave me the vibe: She's a woman, what does she know.

The manager came back from lunch while the clerk was still trying to get the battery back in the car. I heard him tell the manager "She doesn't want to pay the bill." The manager finished putting the battery back in my car. He then said the positive battery connector was corroded and that probably was the problem. That it probably wouldn't allow the battery to be charged properly and couldn't understand why 3 different people who'd looked at my car didn't check that. How would I know the answer to that?! He told me to have a nice day and went into the store while the clerk finished putting the bracket back on my car. He had me start it and also told me to have a good day.

All these "things" that "might've" caused the battery not to be charged, or there "might've" been a bad cell in the battery. Yikes... And what IF the other mechanics DID check the connectors andfro they were fine? I don't know. All I know IS I've had several people tell me they don't buy stuff from AZ anymore because their stuff it "junk".

Auto Zone Called Me!

Earlier this week, I sent a long letter to Auto Zone detailing out all the problems I've had with my battery since I got it from them in the Fall of 2005, which included 3 different mechanics checking my alternator, starter, etc. and replacement of one battery by AZ already. This was after receiving a code on my battery charger last week that the battery is bad! I sent this letter via the AZ website. I never dreamed I'd actually get a response, but I did.

Three days ago, I received a short email stating: "We apologize for any lack of satisfaction you received from your recent AutoZone experience. Your comments have been forwarded to the regional management team in your area, for review." The part about "recent" made me think it was a form letter response, so I gave it no further thought.

Today, I received a telephone call from the manager at the AZ store where I got the battery. Unbelievable! He went on to tell me that he didn't understand why I was having these problems because the Duralast batteries are the best on the market. (I certainly wouldn't know!) I have a meeting with him tomorrow at 9am for him to look over the car. I'm betting he's going to check the alternator, starter, and battery. I feel like telling him to give me my money back, but after 2 years they'll prorate it, more than likely. Then I'll have to find someone who's able to put a new battery in. I could do it, but after watching my brother do it twice and seeing what a PITA it is... I'd rather not. LOL

Of course, this all transpired before I found out the serpenting belt keeps the battery charged. I'm still trying to figure out how that is...