It didn't end perfectly, but it was a good day.

 Today, we went to gather up our wallpaper supplies from the new build and haul everything down to the renovation to put up the anaglypta (Thanks for that Andrew! I do so love a new word!)

I went down to feed the kittens. It was the first I've seen them in several days. We have been working on the renovation during the day, and then Tim feeds them when he goes down to bow hunt in the evening. We ran to Walmart to pick up a replacement phone for Tim. I also picked up canned cat food and a bag of kitty treats. I had been working on getting them used to hand feeding, and I wanted to get back to that. 

I got out of the car calling "Here kitty kitty," and they all kitty-kittied. By the time that I got the garage unlocked, they were meowing and swarming. I sat down and measured out their food and added the can of cat food and milk and stirred and stirred. I take my time stirring because I want them to come to me, and they did. They start eating while I am still stirring and talking to them. When I finished, I sat right there on cross legged on the floor, the pan still within easy reach and four purring cats lapping up milk as fast as they can lap. 

After a time, when they've eaten their fill, they step away from the bowl, licking their little smackers and cleaning their little faces. That's when I open the treats. They do love those treats and they recognize the crinkling that the bag makes. Sigh feeds readily from my hand, and Possum (the cat, not the marsupial) will come in for his share after watching Sigh for a while. Tiger is wary but will eventually get there. Minnie? She watches me like a hawk, and she wants the treats soooooo bad. Will she take the proffered treat from my fingers. No. No she will not. I always throw her a couple so she knows what's at stake, but although she is the largest of the kittens, she's also a cowardly custard. 

It was a nice little half hour with them, and then it was time to head out. We drove back into town and started the wallpapering. So far we are quite pleased with how it looks. If it holds up as nicely as it looks, we've found the perfect product. 

An interesting thing: There's a young man who is building shelters for feral cats. People have really stepped up. Donations of straw for bedding. I had a pile of styrofoam insulation sheets to donate. When I saw a woman was giving away an unused roll of mover's packing, I contacted her and explained about the young man's project. She has two formerly feral strays, so she was on board. She lives across the river from me, and so I told her I'd be right over to get it. 

When she sent me her address, I noted that her last name was a familiar one. When I got there, I discovered that my name was familiar to her, as well. She knew Tim's family. I said, "Well, then, I will ask you about yours. Many years ago, my Army recruiter was Wayne Shreve." She looked so delighted. "That's my husband's father." We laughed at the coincidence. I really liked Sgt Shreve. He was a dandy. He had a batch of kids and he was quite proud of his family. I was away in the army when my mom wrote me to say that his wife and three of his children had been killed when their car was hit by a train at an unmarked crossing. I sent him a letter of condolence. It was a shock just a few years back when I saw his obituary. I hadn't realized he was still alive and in the area. He had remarried and his picture showed a happy man. I was glad for that.

Anyways, she invited me to sit down and we had quite a chin wag in the warm sun. It was an unexpected delight. 

This evening, I began the process of activating Tim's phone. I got it hooked up to the WiFi but because the old phone did not work any longer, I needed to call customer service. I was on the phone for nearly an hour and a half, following the instructions. She had the new IMEI number. The new SIM. She had the old SIM, but to verify the account information on the new phone, I needed to put the old SIM in the new phone. I followed her instructions. It took forever to pry the back of the phone off. but I began to notice that she would tell me where to find the SIM card, and it wasn't there. She was telling me 'landmarks' to look for on the phone. They were not there either. She said, "It should be the same as your previous phone." I stopped aghast. "But they're not the same phone. We got a different model this time because my husband preferred my phone." 

Long pause. 

"They're not the same?" 

"Um...no..." 

Long story short? Our new phone is now broken. "No worries," she said. "It is under warranty, and they will send me a new phone.  Or they will, just as soon as I turn in the old phone. 

"No worries", she assured me yet again, "they will pay for shipping." (As they should....) 

The problem is that I'm still waiting for the UPS ticket to hit my inbox. She told me it would be just a few minutes. After 15 minutes, I tried to verify the e-mail address. She assured me it was correct without reading it back, and that I would just have to wait for it to arrive, and then I'd need to put the label on the box and drop it off with UPS. They should receive the phone within 3-5 business days, and then they will send it back and I can expect to receive it 3-5 business days after that. She reminded me that it all hinged on how quickly I got the phone sent back to her. 

"Well, I am glad to send it back quickly, but I still haven't gotten the ticket that I'm supposed to be receiving." 

"No worries," she assured me yet again. And she told me to write down a number. She said, "This is your ticket number. If you don't receive your e-mail, just give that to UPS and they can print the ticket for you." And she provided me with that number.

I said, "The problem is that I live in a small town. We do not have a local UPS. We take our shipments to a store, and they hold them. UPS picks up from there, but they don't have the ability to print out a shipping label or anything like that. They simply take the package. 

Long pause. "No worries," she said. "You will receive that e-mail." 

It's been over an hour and I still have not received that e-mail. No worries. Tim and I will drive across the state line and go directly to the UPS Store first thing tomorrow morning. Frustrating! 

Side note, after the portapotty disaster this summer, I too bought a different model phone. I too could not use my phone to transfer the information. I too had to call customer service. I had no problem making that switch. 

Did you hear the latest tRUMP craziness? That he went to Latrobe PA for a rally. 

This clip is just part of the 12 minute talk about Arnold's manhood. 

Arnold Palmer's family reacted.