Stopped by Flour Garden in Auburn (CA) and bought a coffee. Medium size cup of hot strong joe. That's what I needed for the English final (I thought) I was about to do.
It turned out to be nice day to walk around the campus like an idiot instead. The library was closed, which meant that I could not get into the Learning Center that is located 3 floors above the library.
Visions of retaking the class clouded by brain. That was when I just had to have a talk with God. "What is WRONG with me, God?" I asked. "Why am I like this?" "I don't TRY to be irresponsible. It just comes way too easily for me! Oh, God, please help me!!"
I don't know if it was God speaking or just a logical deduction. But I realized the answer right after I asked the question. Choices. My choices. The idiot decisions I make on a daily basis are ruining my life! Usually not massive, earth shattering stupid decisions (though those happen regularly enough), but small decisions I make, how I choose to spend my time, what I choose to amuse myself with, thoughts I entertain.
"WHAT?!! You mean, all my sadness is self induced??"
Well, yes, basically. At least, mostly. There are some forces at work that are beyond your control, but even with these, you can choose how to respond to these circumstances. You're not bound to reactions you have no control over. You have a good amount of say in how your life plays out.
Don't be an idiot.
Friday, July 09, 2004
Thursday, July 08, 2004
Coffee Bean Backslide
My coffee preferences have really changed in the past year. Not just changed, but there has been a real devolution in the practice of satisfying my coffee addiction.
I used to visit the coffee houses every single day. It not only satisfied my thirst for caffeine, and gave me a heat induced adrenaline rush, but it also filled the need for feeling like I was an artist. This was before S***B**** came into town. During this time one could feel somewhat, um, "esoteric" when you entered one of these places. Almost six years ago I made a major adjustment to my coffee habit. I was given a coffee grinder, an expresso maker and a bag of beans (coffee beans, "Texax Tea?" No. California Tea, I suppose.) When I realized that I could drink a whole more coffee for a whole lot less money, I was hooked. Eventually I ended up feeling pain anytime I stepped into a coffee house and dropped a buck-fifty for a medium sized cup of coffee. It just seemed wickedly stupid. Why should I help make some Mormon family richer by drinking their coffee? Now, I realize that S.B. is not the only coffee game in town, the others still exist, BUT NOT ON EVERY CORNER!! It's almost difficult to NOT get your coffee at S.B. if you're away from home and you really need a fix.
OK, so as I was saying... For about 5 years after getting married my wife would pick up coffee beans of various varieties for not a lot of money at the distant Save Mart or wherever, and that was REAL FINE. The place where I worked during those 5 years also served the best dang coffee in California. (I worked at a church's Christian school, teaching second grade. Did you know that many Christians refer to coffee as "Christian Crank"?)
A dramatic change occured just this year. About 4 months ago I started drinking COFFEE FROM THE CAN! (That sounds REALLY DISGUSTING! But I don't mean THE CAN.) You know- the big 3. Folgers, Maxwell House, Yuban. (They're probably ALL owned by Mormons.) That was a scary move. It's like driving Cadillacs for 10 years and then switching to a Ford Fiesta. Not good.
Today, I freaked me out even more. I'm turning into a frugal freak (my wife would differ on that opinion, pointing out the XBOX I just bought, the XBOX games I accidently kept buying, and the 80GB hard drive I so foolishly bought that makes some interesting chirping noises when you plug it in, noises which do not cease unless you smack the hard drive with a rubber mallet.
How stupid of me to buy a hard drive in an auction that states, "AS IS, NO RETURNS" (Just like that- all in capital letters.) WHAT AN IDIOT I CAN BE!!!
The friendly people at Circuitcitybestbuyreturns did a fantastic job of packing it with one layer of bubble wrap, in a small, thin box (a shoe box would have been stronger)and to add injury to insult they didn't pay all of the shipping costs and I had to pay the postal service to get a 80GB hd that will never be anything more than a $45 paperweight.
You think the good people at circuitcitybestbuyreturns would be understanding and refund my money. But no, being true to their word about "NO Refund" they could care less that they sold me a DOA hard drive.
Anyway- the coffee, the point of this whole thing is that I have really backslidden in the world of coffee drinking. Not only am I drinking this black liquid that came preground in a can, but this morning I saw that there was some coffee left over from last night and normally I would just dump it out, but can you guess what I did?
I'm so ashamed. But not half as ashamed as the sorry eBay sellers "circuitcitybestbuyreturns" ought to be.
Whatever happened to "the customer is always right"?
OK. I forgive them. Really, I do.
My coffee preferences have really changed in the past year. Not just changed, but there has been a real devolution in the practice of satisfying my coffee addiction.
I used to visit the coffee houses every single day. It not only satisfied my thirst for caffeine, and gave me a heat induced adrenaline rush, but it also filled the need for feeling like I was an artist. This was before S***B**** came into town. During this time one could feel somewhat, um, "esoteric" when you entered one of these places. Almost six years ago I made a major adjustment to my coffee habit. I was given a coffee grinder, an expresso maker and a bag of beans (coffee beans, "Texax Tea?" No. California Tea, I suppose.) When I realized that I could drink a whole more coffee for a whole lot less money, I was hooked. Eventually I ended up feeling pain anytime I stepped into a coffee house and dropped a buck-fifty for a medium sized cup of coffee. It just seemed wickedly stupid. Why should I help make some Mormon family richer by drinking their coffee? Now, I realize that S.B. is not the only coffee game in town, the others still exist, BUT NOT ON EVERY CORNER!! It's almost difficult to NOT get your coffee at S.B. if you're away from home and you really need a fix.
OK, so as I was saying... For about 5 years after getting married my wife would pick up coffee beans of various varieties for not a lot of money at the distant Save Mart or wherever, and that was REAL FINE. The place where I worked during those 5 years also served the best dang coffee in California. (I worked at a church's Christian school, teaching second grade. Did you know that many Christians refer to coffee as "Christian Crank"?)
A dramatic change occured just this year. About 4 months ago I started drinking COFFEE FROM THE CAN! (That sounds REALLY DISGUSTING! But I don't mean THE CAN.) You know- the big 3. Folgers, Maxwell House, Yuban. (They're probably ALL owned by Mormons.) That was a scary move. It's like driving Cadillacs for 10 years and then switching to a Ford Fiesta. Not good.
Today, I freaked me out even more. I'm turning into a frugal freak (my wife would differ on that opinion, pointing out the XBOX I just bought, the XBOX games I accidently kept buying, and the 80GB hard drive I so foolishly bought that makes some interesting chirping noises when you plug it in, noises which do not cease unless you smack the hard drive with a rubber mallet.
How stupid of me to buy a hard drive in an auction that states, "AS IS, NO RETURNS" (Just like that- all in capital letters.) WHAT AN IDIOT I CAN BE!!!
The friendly people at Circuitcitybestbuyreturns did a fantastic job of packing it with one layer of bubble wrap, in a small, thin box (a shoe box would have been stronger)and to add injury to insult they didn't pay all of the shipping costs and I had to pay the postal service to get a 80GB hd that will never be anything more than a $45 paperweight.
You think the good people at circuitcitybestbuyreturns would be understanding and refund my money. But no, being true to their word about "NO Refund" they could care less that they sold me a DOA hard drive.
Anyway- the coffee, the point of this whole thing is that I have really backslidden in the world of coffee drinking. Not only am I drinking this black liquid that came preground in a can, but this morning I saw that there was some coffee left over from last night and normally I would just dump it out, but can you guess what I did?
I'm so ashamed. But not half as ashamed as the sorry eBay sellers "circuitcitybestbuyreturns" ought to be.
Whatever happened to "the customer is always right"?
OK. I forgive them. Really, I do.
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
Oh Darn, I just gave my friend Perry this blog link. Now I can't talk about what a jerk (JUST KIDDING, PERRY!!!)... I mean, He is such a cool guy! But I don't want that knowledge to go to his head.
You really must be careful who you give your blog link to. That's why I have 2 blogs. One where my friends and family can come to and be amused by the highly intelligent, yet boring things I have to say, and another blog where I can say anything I want to. I can even cuss on my other blog. I can be really foul and talk about all sorts of sordid subjects. Things like dog poop, or baby poop (yuck) or memories of getting kissed on the cheek by my big fat aunt. But nothing like that will be found here. This is a family friendly blog.<
You really must be careful who you give your blog link to. That's why I have 2 blogs. One where my friends and family can come to and be amused by the highly intelligent, yet boring things I have to say, and another blog where I can say anything I want to. I can even cuss on my other blog. I can be really foul and talk about all sorts of sordid subjects. Things like dog poop, or baby poop (yuck) or memories of getting kissed on the cheek by my big fat aunt. But nothing like that will be found here. This is a family friendly blog.<
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