He Shoots! He Scores!

Dad was to leave out some medications for me this morning for a cold I feel coming on. I drove over to his house and they were in between the screen door and his back door. I called him when I got home to thank him. He is at work today. It is a major feat for him to remember to put them out.

“When are you going to order your parts for January?” he asked me after all the pleasantries and thank yous. “We are halfway through the month.”

“I thought January and February are paying for Tracy’s Christmas watch,” I replied.

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” he replied. “I paid for Tracy’s watch. Email Matt what you want to get and I will see you in the morning at our usual time to take Maggie to the Vet.”

We got off the phone and I did a little air guitar and hollered a hearty YES! It startled Maggie. Sometimes my father’s generosity can catch me off guard and surprise me. I emailed Matt a full tower computer case I have been wanting for ages at $89.99. It comes Tom’s Hardware recommended just like my video card which got glowing reviews. It is the Rosewill Nighthawk 117 (link opens in a new window).

As Slow As Molasses…

Well, my father and Sir Matt finally got my Christmas ordered today. It was the last day for free shipping and they just squeaked by. I sighed a big sigh of relief. Why we can’t just order it on my father’s computer I do not know. It confounds and aggravates me the rigmarole it takes to get computer parts ordered around here. Dad also ordered a watch for himself from Amazon and got Sir Matt to handle that as well so it is not just me. He actually had the acumen to email Matt the watch he wanted which surprised me. Welcome to 2018 father!

I watched a little of Dr. Phil at Old Fuss and Feather’s house this morning. Just your usual and typical dysfunctional family type stuff – families torn apart by an abhorrent family member or broken families, divorces, etc. Dad cooked breakfast for him and I as well. We had fried eggs and bacon and some frozen biscuits warmed and toasted in the oven. I didn’t stay too long. It was getting close to time for me to take my medications and I didn’t bring them with me

“For god’s sake go take your medications,” my father told me with a laugh when I told him I had to go and the reason why. .

I came home and took off my glasses and my ballcap and was just going to lay down for an hour and rest. It was about 1 pm. I fell asleep and awoke tonight at 6:30 pm and the house was pitch black dark – very disorienting and disconcerting. I guess I needed the rest. It was amazing my phones didn’t ring in all that time nor did Maggie bark. It left me with little to write about today.

We should’ve went and got my Christmas tree, but dad and I both put it off until after the weekend. We're both supreme procrastinators. Why do today what you can put off until tomorrow type of stuff.

I’ll Take 4K For $400, Alex…

I just emailed the pharmacy the Newegg shopping cart with the ASUS 4K ultra high definition monitor I want to get. I then called the pharmacy to tell my father I sent Matt, the pharmacy computer guru, an email.

“We’ll get to it if we can,” Old Fuss and Feathers told me huffily. “We’ve been really busy today.”

Harumppff!!!

I wanted to tell him to do it after the store closes, but I would have been reprimanded.

“We all want to go home after working all day,” I can hear him tell me now in retribution. 

Dad is having to work today and tomorrow to make up for not working Monday and Tuesday due to his class reunion.

It sure is nice to be off today and not have to volunteer. I have done nothing but goof off today and I am still in my pajamas this late in the afternoon.

Volunteering has seemed to have lost some of its veneer and luster for me, but I am not going to give up. I am committed now. I will probably feel differently in the morning after I have rested up some. The first of the week sure was busy, though. I performed a full week’s work in three days. I am also still adjusting to volunteering on Fridays as well.

One of the big benefits of my medications is that I can think this way in a rational manner. I am also dependable. Off my medications, I am impulsive and flighty and would have quit willy nilly without a care of the consequences or how it would effect my friends. Dad’s amazed I’ve made it this far to put another spin on the matter. He has no confidence in me in such endeavors nor does he encourage them.   

Rather Interesting…

My father called me late this afternoon.

“Are you feeling better today?” he asked.

“I am feeling like my old self,” I replied.

“I left your Cokes and cigarettes on the chair outside the backdoor,” he told me. “I am in Auburn and will be home tonight.”

I drove over to get the goods and noticed my mother’s car wasn’t in the garage and the BMW was. The CR-V was parked in the driveway. Why did he go to Auburn in my mothers car was omnipresent on my mind. He said this week was the week he was getting my mother’s car in my name.

“Matt’s car has about had it,” he told me yesterday. “I know Matt will be glad to get your car soon.”

Matt drives a 1991 Nissan Pathfinder if you can believe it.

Could interesting things be afoot? Hmmm…It makes me wonder. Lord knows, I have waited long enough and had my hopes dashed a dozen times. I better not get too excited.

Good Tidings and Great Joy!

"Get everything out of your car you want to keep," my father said tonight during the smoke and Coke ritual. "I am going to give Matt your car next week. I want to get it cleaned up good as well for Matt -- get it washed and waxed."

I was flabbergasted and overjoyed.

"Are you serious?" I asked him astonished.

I had the look on my face like when Princess Leia told Han Solo that Luke was her brother.

"You love him don't you?" Han Solo asked the Princess. "I won't stand in the way."

"Yes Han, he's my brother," Leia replied.

Han was gobsmacked as they then kissed.

"Sure am," dad said to me when I asked him if he was serious. "I want to get down to one car for me and get rid of all this car insurance I am paying for."

Dad currently has three cars. I have been waiting for this moment for a full year when he first announced he was giving me my mother's car. I am still cautious, though. My father is a terrible procrastinator. 

Automobile Roulette...

I was sitting in my father's den this morning when he announced to me he was now giving my car to Matt the computer guy at the pharmacy.

"I was worried it might offend him or hurt his feelings by suggesting it," my father told me as he ate his grape jelly and buttered toast for breakfast. "But I asked him anyway and he said he would love to have your car."

I went along with the idea although I thought giving it to J.W. was a better idea. J.W. would appreciate it more. He's been my father's yardman for years. J.W. did so much to help me keep my 1972 Chevelle running as smooth as a top when I was in high school. He also named his firstborn child after me.

"Matt's car is a 1991 Nissan Pathfinder with over 300,000 miles on the clock," my father then told me. "Your car will be like getting a new car to him."

Mark my words that this means that something will get done about my car and my mother's car rather quickly now. My father is very, very fond of Matt and will not want to let him down or let him linger in hope.

Bleary Eyed But Fortified...

I finally fell asleep at 4 am this morning. Yes, I am cycling again to a nocturnal existence. It might be one week or two weeks of late nights and sleeping in the day before I am back to a diurnal existence again. The shrill ring of the phone woke me up at 8:30 am.

"Chuck? You up and at em?" my father asked cheerily.

"I am now," I replied with a moan. "Glad you called. I will see you at the pharmacy at nine."

I hastily dressed and put on lots of deodorant as I didn't have time for a shower.

The warm lobby at Kamath Medical felt absolutely wonderful. I basked in its heat as I waited for my nurse to call me back -- warmth was just returning to my toes. As usual, I didn't have to wait long.

My injection burned something terrible this morning, but I grinned and bared it. This was after a lengthy conversation with my nurse about what we got for Christmas.

"I wish I had a hobby like you do with computers," Rebecca told me.

When I got back to the pharmacy, I talked to Matt, the computer guy extraordinaire.

"They were out of stock on that sound card you wanted for Christmas," Matt told me. "I am going to reorder it today when I get some spare time."

I thanked Matt profusely and made my way back up through the Valley to home.

Uncannily Quiet...

It was foreboding when I saw a new receptionist manning the lobby window this morning. I moaned under my breath -- malfunction junction most likely. I had to wait quite a little bit longer this morning than usual. It really is a sight for sore eyes when Rebecca steps out into the lobby and calls me back.

"Are you okay?" I asked my nurse Rebecca on this beautiful Thursday morning.

Rebecca was not her usual chipper and talkative self as I took a seat in the examining room.

"I am not very chatty today, am I?" she asked with a weak smile as she assembled my injection.

"I am the king of social gaffes and thought that maybe I said something wrong," I replied. "I also internalize other people's problems. It is just part of being me."

"My littlest one didn't want to go to preschool today and it is tugging on my heart. She cried and cried," Rebecca said. "I wish we could afford for me to stay home and take care of the kids."

The injection burned something fierce this morning, but I am a big boy and I can take the pain.

Computer Heaven...

"I got your email this morning," Matt, the pharmacy computer guru, told me when I walked into the drug store. "You must be having storage issues."

I was so glad to see Matt!

"I am about out of space on both the C and D drives in my main gaming computer," I replied.

"Well, your parts are on the way," Matt told me with an accomplished and smug grin.

I thanked him profusely and then took my leave of the pharmacy after handing my father my next appointment card. Matt further said he emailed me the tracking numbers for my order.

Aggressive Negotiations...

My father and I are going through what I call "aggressive negotiations" at the moment. It is over some computer parts I need and Johnny Otis is cheap as dirt. Matt, the pharmacy computer guru, is caught in the middle.

I am trying to upgrade the audio components of my three main computers. I want to upgrade to high fidelity sound cards and 200-watt speakers. I am also ordering 12 Terabytes of hard drive storage as well. Just general PC upgrades as my computers need freshening up a bit.

"Let me borrow the money from mom's money," I told him very trepidatiously and with great caution. "I will pay it back by not getting my Cokes for awhile."

"Now, you and I both know you will be dying for those Cokes in just a week," my father said scolding me. "Try to knock off a few more hundred dollars and I may consider ordering your list."

Sigh, back to the drawing board I go. There goes that 32 inch $352 dollar computer LCD monitor I had my heart set upon.

Happy as a Clam in its Shell...

I sheepishly asked my father for some more computer parts last night and he agreed. He balked at first asking me just how many computers would make me happy.

"You've been doing so well lately that I am going to treat you," he said last night. "Email the parts to Matt at the pharmacy."

He told me tonight that the parts were ordered and Matt also sent me an email with the tracking numbers.

It wasn't anything outrageously expensive. I ordered a $19.99 DVD rewritable drive and another motherboard which cost about $149 dollars (half price open box special). My only other item was a $49.99 "Challenger" computer case to put it all in. I own one of these Rosewill cases and they are a steal at $49.99. Highly functional.

The motherboard has integrated graphics, wireless and Ethernet internet connections, and integrated sound which will defray the cost of having to buy all those extra parts.

Little does my father know, but I am building this computer for him. He was complaining of how slow his Dell was last night as he often does. He is going to be stunned and shocked at the speed of this new budget build.

The processor is going to be a Core i5 3.2 GHz with Intel 4600 graphics and 16 megabytes of Corsair 1600 MHz RAM I both had on hand.

Taking the High Road...

I just got a welcomed email from Matt, the pharmacy computer guru, to email him what exact keyboards I want to get. I got so excited. Maybe this is not going to be as arduous as I expected it to be. The price of $34.99 and free shipping was just too enticing for my father to pass up. Can you get excited about a lowly two keyboards? I sure can. Bring it on!

Every now and then, NewEgg will throw a freebie in with your order. The last time Matt ordered some parts for me, I got a free SD card reader. Let's hope they send me something really neat with this order as well.