Friday Night Random, the Saturday Edition, with BONUS Work Gripe!

I don't want to start any blasphemous rumors
but I think that God's got a sick sense of humor...

~Depeche Mode

Each of the people in my group has to be available for late-night work as needed, and being new I got Friday nights, which frankly sucks but what are you going to do? It never makes me happy to have to delay the start of the weekend, but I don't have to do it every week, and it isn't always very late, and, well, having a job is a good thing.

Last night, though, it seemed like an especially cruel joke to have to stay later than I've ever had to. I was so tired, in spite of going to bed early every night this week, and I just wanted to leave, go home, be a vegetable, but no, there's something that needs to get to a certain stage before you can go. And not even that it was going anywhere, just that it had to be done and ready for the next person for Monday morning.

Urgh.

And uh-oh, and oops, and now all the bullets are gone, and... one thing after another went wrong, and instead of leaving at five as usual, it was after NINE FUCKING THIRTY before my boss mercifully let me go. (And she and the other person were still there when I left, trying to fix something.)

I went directly to Outback (bonus: no traffic!) and had a steak. Apparently the guideline for late work is that if you're there after 7, you can order dinner delivered, but not knowing how much longer it would be, we kept not ordering. Snack here, nibble there, but I didn't realize just how hungry I was until I wasn't again.

Some of the things I would otherwise have been writing about last night:
The Bruins game Thursday ended up being great! Fun! Satisfying! Not only did the Bruins win, they did practically everything right. I am very interested to see if they can do it again tonight.

I have continued to be plagued by allergies, coughing, runny nose, and basically such congestion that my seat belt bothers me in the car. No matter how I adjust it, it feels like it's compressing my chest. I loosen it and start coughing at once. In related news, I would normally be pleased that there isn't a forecast for below-freezing weather, but now I'm wishing for it. Just a night or two of freezing! Then it can go back to this* and I'd be perfectly happy with it. Just kill off whatever this is, please. Two weeks this has been bugging me, and I am ready to be done with it.

*It's been 50s-60s, and in the 40s at night. Perfectly nice fall weather, when it isn't raining, but oh I need a freeze please.

Went to buy cold meds and here is what I faced:

A fine selection of medications, behind the post. Good luck choosing the best for you!

The fire alarm went off at work the other day, and we were outside for half an hour before it stopped. The weather was actually very nice, but I had one problem fully enjoying the time: no knitting! I'd left my sock on the couch after Tuesday's game. Lesson learned: always have it with me. (I'm just past the heel of the second sock, as of today. Moving right along!)

Over heard at work recently: "I've never been out of the US, well, other than Canada." First thought was that Canada does count; second was wow, really? Intellectually I know that not everyone has traveled much, but it still surprises me to encounter it. Like the guy I met in college who had never been on a plane. Whoa. It shouldn't surprise me, but it does.

There's a parking lot at work, with reserved spaces, but not enough for everyone, so I've been parking on the street since I started. No problems, no complaints. A woman in my department just got a spot last month, a year after she started, so I was expecting to wait. This week, though, I got the call. What's creepy is that I got a spot because of the recent layoffs. I'm glad enough to have one, but still, I have very mixed feelings about it. I expect when there's snow on the ground, I'll be more simply happy about it.

Gas prices have been dropping most places lately, which is nice for a change, but what surprises me is that some places are still so much higher. I recently filled up, not at the place near work that charges $3.69, but at the (cash-only) place on the way home that is $3.27. Hell of a difference right there!

I wore my Olympic knitting project vest to work one day last week, and one of my coworkers asked if I'd made it myself. It turns out that her sister knits and crochets, so her what-you-might-call HCA* is pretty high. Nice to have it noticed.

*HCA=hand-craft awareness

A few things I've seen on the road lately (two that make me happy, one puzzle):

?

Can you explain that to me?

I feel like I just read a story, on a blog maybe, about someone who saw a person walking a dog who scooped and bagged, then hung the bag on the back of a nearby SUV, but now I can't find the story to link to. That's what I thought of when I saw this. Then I thought well, it's orange, maybe it's supposed to be a Halloween decoration?

I'm stumped. You?