Bonus Points

 A steady, drizzling rain began yesterday afternoon, the sort of thing we call a soaker, and it hasn't really stopped.  Temps dropped.  We're now in the mid 50s (F), and the weather forecasters say this is where we're going to hang for the rest of the day.  Good thing I didn't pack my sweatpants and shirts for the summer.  I'd just sit home and wait it out, but I'm running low on milk and bread, so later I'll be heading out to my local Giant supermarket.

Speaking of Giant, they did not bring back the super bonus point deals. That's a shame.  It means buying gas for the car is going to get pricier.  This is corporate greed.  The bonus points could not only be used to buy gas, but to buy groceries as well.  The few bonus points you provide, the more people have to spend.

Retail was slow yesterday as well, for the most part.  They are really pushing us to get leads and measure, for a lead, you sign up a customer to have someone go to their home and try and sell, them doors, or windows, or sign them up for a hot water heater installation.  Measures are when you sign them up to have a measure tech go to their homes and measure for carpet, or doors, windows.  Measures and leads are seen as guaranteed sales. They push measures and leads all the time, but mostly during the slow months of winter.  Not anymore.  If we make plan for the day, it's usually because some customer has purchased an installation.  People just aren't spending the money they used to spend. 

I made an appointment yesterday to have them pick up the dog sofa in 2 weeks.  Waste Management will do it for free, but it does need to be disassembled for them to do so.  This is what it looks like now.  Oh, and I'm also going to be getting rid of those ugly area rugs.  I bought them when they were on clearance, $29 each.  

Stormy testified again yesterday.  That woman is nobody's fool.  She has painted so many terrible pictures I don't want to think about, scared they'd stick in my brain for ever, like Donald Trump in silk pajamas, or even worse, in boxer shorts.  I probably shouldn't have written then, because now you'll think about them too, and those images will be stuck in your head for all of eternity.

Of course, people are also talking about the Orange Anus and his meeting with the CEOs of the Big Oil companies... and the promise he made them, to gut the EPA, all for the price of a measly billion dollars.  Reports say he said the money was to be used by his campaign, well, we know that's a lie.  He has legal bills that ought to be paid and he's already using campaign funding for that purpose.  And I say ought to be paid because he has a bad habit of not paying, if fact, I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't offer them bonus points in lieu of payment.

Shitzinpantz

 Well a good Friday morning to all of you out there in the world.  It's a nice day here in Central PA.  The outside temp is in the low 60s (F), though if the forecast is correct clouds will come rolling in later this afternoon.  That's okay.  We might warm up another 15 degrees if the weather forecasters are correct, that is not always the case.  Yesterday, on my ride home from the store, the temp was 92 (F) which should have broke a record, though that might have been the official temp.  Officially, temps in the air around my car are rarely taken into consideration.

My 2nd load of laundry is already in the washer.  I've taken to dry certain things, like T-shirts, and towels, and... well, just about everything except pants, outside on the drying rack, at least on warm days.  I'll use less electricity.  The dryer is nice for pants, that way there no need to iron out the wrinkles.  Iron?  Does anybody still iron anything?

I'll also be going to my neighborhood Giant supermarket later this morning.  They've gotten cheap with their bonus points, which is irritating.  You earn bonus points by spending $$$.  They would also run lots of specials where you could earn more points by buying, oh, say $35 in meat.  Beginning last week, those deals disappeared.  You can still earn bonus points, but the good deals are gone.  Now you can earn 30 points by buying 4 pounds of bananas.  That's a lot of bananas.

I thought this was cute.

I was going to post a picture of Von Shitzinpantz, but thought them all to be too crass, I do have my limitations.  For those who don't know, that was Michael Cohen's nickname for his boss, the Orange Anus himself, Donald Trump.  That came out yesterday at his election interference trial.  Now, I don't know about you, but it has been my experience that nicknames are usually based on some sort of fact, act, or occurrence, and while talking about bodily functions is the fodder of four year-old humor, it wouldn't surprise me in the least that Donald Trump shits in his pants... regularly, and is, no doubt, the reason he wears Depends.  Let's be honest here, we all know that Donald Trump is now, and has always been, full of shit.

My eggplant

 Happy Fourth of July!

I don't work today, but I'm thinking of going to my local Giant Supermarket and buying enough ground beef to make a holiday meat loaf.  That's probably the only thing I'm going to do today, on my day off.  Most of my chores will wait until Tuesday, another day off.

Speaking of Tuesday, the temps here are forecasted to hit 100 (F).  That's very toasty, stay inside weather.

Last evening I watched The Tomorrow War on Amazon Prime.  Some of the action scenes in the future were well done, I found the storyline in the present rather weak.  There is a rollickingly big set-piece at the end, but...  (and this is not really a spoiler) but I kept wanting to see the intelligence of this alien species wiping out mankind.  They needed to prove they had the smarts to build a spacecraft capable of bringing them to earth... and that evidence was completely missing.

Since it's the Fourth, I thought I post a picture of my eggplant.  As you can see, it's getting bigger.

Tomorrow is the official day of celebration.  I work.  Not a big deal.  Many of you in America will have the day off work.  Enjoy!  Do something fun!  Burn a MAGA hat!

Gone

 Crap, I got up this morning to find I had a comment from the Russian Call Girls.  Gone now.

Yesterday was a lazy day.  I did nothing that was taxing or strenuous.  The dogs were walked and several loads of laundry done.  I wrote, I napped, I set up my dumbbell workout in my Gym Genius since I'm not longer going to the gym... until sometime probably in the Spring.  I played some Valhalla.  Four hours into it and I'm still in Norway.  Yikes, I'm still in the prologue.  The actual game doesn't start until I'm forced south to the British isles.

Did everybody see the clips of Giuliani sweating so much his hair dye ran down the sides of his face?  All of that sweating?  That's the sign of a liar.  For those who didn't, here it is:

Today is going to be chock full of business.  I'm going to my neighborhood Giant this morning.  Just because I'm going to be spending Thanksgiving with the dogs, doesn't mean I can't eat well.  Oyster Stuffing's on the menu.  Green Bean Casserole is not.  For years, I've been expected to make Green Bean Casserole.  This year?  Nada.

Temps here are supposed to be up in the mid 60's (F)  There is a bit of yard work that's needs to be done, as well as some painting.  And a ride on the bike.

And not too surprising, Georgia was called for Biden.  

And I saw where the investigations into the Idiot Jerk's finances are expanding.  It seems as if consulting fees were paid to Ivanka Danka by the organization she works for and then used as tax deductions.  Will she be joining Daddy in Moscow?  I wouldn't be surprised if some family compound was in the works.

Finally, the Idiot Jerk has invited 2 members of the the Michigan Legislature to visit today.  Stupid, aren't they?  He's going to demand they help him steal the election.  When they don't bow down and grovel before him, they will see his rage.  Republicans have always been overly consumed with their grasping need for power.  They have a really big problem.  If they cave into him, they will be seen as scumbags from Hell.  They have no idea how ugly this is going to be.  They will look bad.  And the next time they are up for election... they will be gone.

 

3 Cases Here

So, left work late yesterday afternoon to begin my 4 days off in a row and decided to stop in at my local Giant.  There were a lot bare shelves, no paper products what so ever, though there were canned goods and frozen foods available for purchase.  While walking to their wine aisles, I ran into one of our cashiers.  He told that there were now 3 cases of the virus in Cumberland County and that the school districts were shutting down.  I had no problem checking out.  Right after that the panic buyers arrived.  An hour later, with all registers open, there was a 45 minute wait.  Me?  I did not alter my schedule one iota, I came home, drank some wine and ate some Ramman Noodles.
This is not the time to panic.  This is not the end of the world.

The 3 cases in Cumberland County:  2 adults and one child.  2 of them were in a country where the virus was prevalent.  They did not provide information as to how long ago that was. One case is looking like it might be part of a Community Spread; they are researching to find out where that person might have come into contact with the virus.  That is not good news, though oddly enough I am not really concerned.  I have no problem staying home from work. Should they decide to quarantine the state essential services will continue:  neither the Giant nor the Weis Market will shutter down.
Not surprisingly, 84% of Republicans feel the Idiot Jerk is doing a fine job handling this crisis.    My money says they are the ones who will break quarantine because the Coronavirus is "just like the flu," and "you can go to work if you have it," and "it'll be gone soon."  They are the ones who will continue to spread the Virus.  Stay away from Republicans... and Evangelicals, they are unclean.
I have a funny feeling I'm going to get a lot of lawn work done in the next couple of...maybe weeks.

Vacation Entry #3

Ah, it's Friday, November 8.  For those of you who don't know, today's my birthday.  About 45 minutes ago I turned 67.  I find that number amazing.  Not because I've achieve it, rather, I have to admit I never really put much thought into getting old.  Now that it's happening it's kind of like... well... fuck.  I'd say "what do I do for an encore," but have chosen to save that line for when I turn 90.  A word of advice, if you have to get older, and most of us end up doing just that, it is a lot better to do so gracefully... and opinionated as hell.  I find a lot of joy in telling people what I think.
I rode 12.56 miles yesterday.  I was very pleased.  You see, the last time I rode that route it took a bit over 54 minutes.  Yesterday I did in just a tad over 48 minutes.  That's right, I knocked 6 minutes off my time.  The record is a bit over 24 minutes.  I will never hit that, but I would like to get my time down into the mid 30's.  We'll have to wait and see if I can knock another 11 or 12 minutes off my time.
And rather than buy a store bought cake from Giant like I usually do to celebrate a birthday, I baked one.  Most of us buy our cakes, and our cookies, and our pies; baking just takes too long.  Our palate has deteriorated to such a degree that when we taste store bought cake we say..."hhhmm, the icing is good."  While I did spread a light, peanut butter frosting on my cake, the real flavor buster was the cake itself.  Holy Crap!  I could not believe the flavor of that cake, all moist and deliciously golden.  Even the dogs liked it!
And yesterday, while I was letting the dogs out into the drizzle to do their business, I saw I had another rose.  On November, 7 my roses were still blooming!  I took a picture.

Now, wasn't that a pretty gift?
I saw where Michael Bloomberg is testing the waters for possible presidential run... without going debating one single person.  A word of advice to Michael: don't even think of sticking your toes into the water.  A run by you could well destroy the unity the Democrats have been building.  You're a businessman who thinks he can run the country the way he runs his business.  You're wrong.  We don't need another damn billionaire in the White House. 

Better Bits and PIeces

Key happy dance music!  It's Friday!  and I get to go back to work!  For 3 days!
Whew!  Glad I got that excitable bit out of my system I can move on to bigger and better bits and pieces!
For those of you interested my my Trek Cycling Challenge... I hit 40 miles yesterday.  I rode in Follonica, which is in Italy.  My route takes me past this port:

You can almost see me behind the railing, eh?

The only problem is whomever recorded the video did a pretty crappy job.

My new pedals arrived yesterday... and they're still in the box.

Last evening Eli and Max checked into the Lodge at Rattler's Den.

My local Weis Market has the 31.1 lb bags of Beneful, so yesterday I bought my dog food there.  Their Chobani yogurt and Folger's coffee is also less expensive than my neighborhood Giant... and Weis is less than a 1/4 mile from Giant.  Yesterday I save close to $4... This is how life is.

I've also decided I'm going to give Greek a try.  The language... I'm talking about the language.  I signed up for a 2 year course with Rosetta Stone.  We'll have to see how it goes.

And, of course, the Idiot Jerk caved on the Census question.  Billy Barr was standing behind him, scowling to beat the band as he made the announcement...  This was after the Idiot held some sort of Conspiracy Theory Summit.  He sure does love surrounding himself with liars.

There are more flower pictures coming.  More things are just beginning to bloom.

There are sunflowers coming and some sort of purply pointy things...

Trickle Down Failure

The challenge starts today.  My goal is to ride at least 100 miles, albeit inside on my Cyclops trainer, i the next 30 days.  For a while I was getting up early in order to get my rides in before I went to work.  Well, that didn't work.  While I'm a morning person and get a lot accomplished before I head to the store, riding a bike or cardio are 2 things I find myself putting off.  They fit in better later in the afternoon, after the work day is finished.
I find it amazing how China and the US agree to begin trade talks again and the Stock Market goes up.  Your average MAGA head dances around singing Yippee Skippy... while quietly, in the background, prices continue to rise because in America corporations can never make enough money.  Saturday I had customers come up to me, they wanted to buy 3 cases of vinyl planks but wanted to pay the store price, not the online prices.  No problem.  That happens now and then, the Internet price is a bit more.  That wasn't the case.  Our store price was wrong... by 20 cents a square foot.  And these prices increases are National... and the product is manufactured in... China.  Not every price went up, but a number of them did so we had to pull price stickers off our displays.  Even if a deal is struck, those prices are never going to go back down.
And it's not just flooring, and it's not just the retail corporation I work for, it's everywhere.  My dogs are fed both dry and moist dog foods purchased at my local Giant Food Store.  For a dry food, they like Beneful and I buy big bags of it.  The price has always been $29.77.  Four weeks ago I noticed the price had dropped a dollar a bag and I thought, my, isn't that nice...  Until I checked into it.  The price had dropped, but so did the poundage per bag.  $29.77 used to get me 31.1 pounds.  Now, $28.77 gets me 28 pounds.  It used to cost 96 cents a pound, now it costs $1.02 a pound.  Oh, and it appears as though the 31.1 lb bag is out of stock... even at chewy.com , so I'd say this is probably a Purina decision.  And it's not just dog food, it's everything.  For those who are naive enough to believe in Trickle Down Economics, this is how it really works.  And don't forget, these are the same corporations that got a really nice tax break, thanks to the Republican Party.  So on this Fourth of July, while the Idiot Jerk is giving his shitty little rally speech, and all those little MAGA heads are dancing around his feet, remember, this is what he truly given us: higher prices so corporations can make more money.  It's why we have these tariff wars, not so our prices can go down, rather it's so corporations can make more money which is never, ever going to Trickle Down.

The Family Blonde

Well, I hope everybody is having a good Wednesday morning - so far mine hasn't been that bad, and I've been up since 5.  Lots of little thing happened yesterday.  I moved my computer - now all my electronics are along one wall and in the process eliminated the use of 2 extension cords.  112 years ago, when my house was built, they didn't have electricity, and when Edison's magic came to town they didn't exactly plan the outlets wisely.  When I remodeled the bathroom, I had an extra line put in which is why the computer room has three outlets.
Also, a representative from Giant called, the result of my complaint.  She apologized and said that if I buy Beneful they might be able to make arrangements to keep a bag in stock just for me.  That was nice.  The real problem is that they only have one facing and can only keep 2 bags in stock at a time and, as she, herself said, if those 2 bags sell it's going to take them 3 days to replenish...  this is not a good thing.  Especially when you consider that their competitor Weis Markets, just across the road, has 2 facings of Beneful, and they now give bonus points for every dollar spent... and they accumulate.  In fact, I checked out the Weis yesterday, too, and their pricing is sometimes a couple of cents more, sometimes a couple of cents less on the products that I normally buy.  It's take them a year but I supposed they've finally realized they need to be more competitive.
And of course yesterday Dianne Feinstein released the transcript Chuck Grassley's been trying to keep secret and, I suspect, a number of Republicans did 'the nasty' in their pants.  Oh, and evidently the Idiot Jerk's attorneys are ramping up their lawsuit agenda.  This has always been his favorite method of attack, his crooked attorneys suing the hell out of people just to shut them up.  Except it's not working this time.  He has too much bad publicity.
A funny thing from this morning was that I say the Idiot Jerk's approval rating shot up to a whopping 39% - of course that was for the week ending December 31, before "The Book" came out.  I'm sure it will drop. 
And finally, my nephew's wife is blonde (probably dyed) and she's a nice woman.  Being smart, however is not on her resume.  Here's an example:  at Thanksgiving she brought custard pies and whipped cream... however, she was going to whip the cream herself, so she poured the heavy cream into a bowl and started stirring it around.  I smiled and told her she was going to need to beat if faster than that if she wanted whipped cream.  She didn't understand.  Yesterday she started complaining on Facebook that she and my nephew owe on their Income Tax.  A lot of people gave her advice, some very good.  This morning she posted the comment "I don't see why people get a deduction for having kids, that's their fault or choice."   Do I need to tell you she supports the Idiot Jerk in the White House?

Crank this

Well, here it is Tuesday.  I called off today.  Said I had the stomach virus that seems to be going around.  I did have a bit of a cranky belly when I woke up... kind of... if you know what I mean.  As I lay in bed I thought to myself, gee... I wonder if I'm getting that bug?  Then I got up and ate breakfast and most of the crankiness went away.
I was cranky yesterday, however.  I went to my neighborhood Giant specifically to pick up a big (29 pound +) bag of Beneful... and they were out.  The girl at their Service Desk informed me that if there was none on the shelf then... they were out of stock.  So I told her that this was the 2nd time in 6 weeks that I'd made a specific trip for dog food only to discover that they were... out of stock.  For the same customer to have the same problem twice is terrible customer service.  When I got home I used the receipt info to give them a bad review.  I also went to their corporate website and filed a complaint.  This is what you do when you have a legitimate complaint.  No entitlement here.  I just expect outstanding customer service - that means the products I want 'in stock' and on the shelf.  I work for a major home retailer and that is one of our most important customer service goals.
Evidently the Idiot Jerk in the White House wants to send home lots and lots of Salvadoreans.  My money says he wants to use their lives as a bargaining chip in effort to get his wall built.  While most people with an IQ understand how this shits on humanity, he and his supporters view these people only as numbers.  Do these self-centered haters care that a majority of Americans don't want a wall?  Absolutely not.  Do they care that lives are in the balance?  Absolutely not.  Will these losers even notice they are making more and more Americans cranky?  Hell no.

Finally, I did a short ride on the trainer yesterday... up a hill.  You see, this trainer I have increases pressure on the tire to simulate going up hills and when I hit 6.6% incline it was like Holy Shit!  I need to work on strengthening my legs, which means like weighted squats and lunges, and that means they're going to get real Cranky!!  I'll just have to keep reminding myself that having great looking glutes is not necessarily a bad thing.

We fought the Civil War to free the immigrants & other stuff

And, of course, Ben Carson has now revealed the truth about the Civil War, we freed the immigrants in order for them to find wealth and prosperity.  While everybody was being distracted by Carson, the Republicans rolled out their replacement for the Affordable Care Act.  Now we know why he's in DT's cabinet: he's there to serve as Dr. Distracto, super dumb ass.  Nah, that's not why he's in the cabinet.  He's there because DT wanted a non-threatening, Crazy Christian Black Guy who would appeal to the Evangelicals., being Dr. Distracto is only his part-time gig.
I am off work today, and it's going to be, for the most part, one of those throw-a-ways.  Some bike time this afternoon, a nap or two with the dogs, and a little Gears of War 4.
First thing this AM I was at the Optometrist's office, the pressure in my eyes is good so the drops are working.  He gave me a 90 day prescription, which can be refilled 3 times, so I'm pretty much good for the year.  The nice thing about the script is that I can hand it over to the VA and pay a lot less. - $24 rather than $60.

I stopped by my local Giant Supermarket on the way home and the parking lot was very, very empty.  The new Weis Market opens tomorrow, and might actually spell the end of the Giant.  Because Weis Markets had already owned the land, the New Giant was built on the wrong side of the road.  In PA we have right turn on red lights, and the new Weis is on the right side.  Given a choice, would you rather sit at the red light to turn left into Giant, or scoot right into Weis?  The old Giant building has been split in half, one has been converted into a Planet Fitness, which I will be joining shortly since I don't own a treadmill.  This is how life is.

The Specialist

So, yesterday was busy.  I had the day off and filled with all sorts of fun stuff, starting off with a visit to my Orthopedic Specialist at 0730.  Arthritis, you know, but just a check up, no problems.  It is odd when he says the word "degenerative' though.  That means some day everything is going to fall apart.
And then I went to my local Giant grocery shopping.  And after that I drove across Shady Hill Road to interview at my soon to be local Weis Market.  I had applied to be a fish monger but they have other ideas.  The HR Specialist did a little oohing and ahhing when I told him I managed 29 cashiers in the winter but that the number increased to 44 during the spring and summer
While I was bragging about myself, my phone started vibrating with an incoming call.  It was my Store Manager calling to tell me how much money I'd lose when I step down from my management position.  Better than I thought.  I'll get a fixed shift, either 9 - 6 or 10 - 7, both would work well for me.  So, sitting in the parking lot of my soon to be local Weis Market, I said yes.  This means I probably won't take the job at Weis if they make an offer.  And financially my "take home" pay is not going to change.  Right now I have a high percentage going to my 401K, so all I needed to do was drop that deduction by 12%.  And what am I going to be?  A Specialist.

That's right.  I'm going to specialize in flooring... and blinds... and tile.  This means I'm also going to have to learn to drive a forklift.... be afraid.... be very, very much afraid.

Anyway, I had a long conversation with my friend Betsy last evening about the approaching Trumpageddon.  She doesn't understand that starting next Friday things are going to being unraveling for the GOP, or that DT is surrounding himself with people will very shortly be at each other's throats.  You know?  Like Kushner and Bannon, the almost orthodox Jew and the Anti-Semite.  Lot's of harmony there.  

Well, I'm off to work.  Need to study up on my hard woods.

My kind of Chai

Several years ago I began drinking chai tea.  For me it's coffee in the morning (3 large mugs) and chai in the evening (1 large mug).  After trying several brands, I settled on Tazo Chai, Original and everything was find and dandy, until a month and a half ago when I noticed my chai was no longer on the shelf at my local Giant supermarket.  So I sent them an email saying "hey, what's up with that?"  One of the things I pointed out in this email was that a new Weis (pronounced wise among us Dutchies) was opening right across the street from Giant.  I also pointed out that even though Weis might not carry the Tazo tea I enjoyed, if Giant didn't carry it, well, that was one less reason for me to sit at a red light and wait to turn in to Giant (it's right turn on red in PA).  Though I said they didn't need to contact me, one of their managers did, left me a nice voice mail in which he said "no, we're not going to carry" that product anymore.  Pissed me off, of course.
So, what did I do, went on line and looked for a recipe on how to make Chai Tea.  There lots and lots of variations, all of them including several specific spices.  I now have a nice spice collection.

And what's really nice is that I can purchase these spices just about anywhere, even at my 'soon to be open' local Weis supermarket.  It's the little things, you know?  And though my chai doesn't exactly taste the same as Tazo's I think it's better.  The ingredients are fresher.  So now, in the evenings, I find myself settling down with my kind of chai.

Avoiding gift card hell

I have off today and, of course, it's supposed to rain.  That seems to have become the norm for me.  What I have is about a 2 hour window before it starts which is when I'm going to do my running around.  It's Christmas, remember, and there's a lot of crazy traffic out there on the roads.  People rushing from store to store in search of that perfect gift.  Hey, everybody on my list gets candy and that pretty much means 'one stop' shopping.  And nobody complains!  I used to give a lot of gift cards, but then little activation fees started being attached.  My local Giant sells a vast variety.  Hey, we even sell them at the store.  Another problem with gift cards is that they begin to lose value after a certain point in time.  The $50 gift card you buy today may only be worth $40 six months from now.

Why would anybody want to spend $55 for something that's going to lose value?

Retail stores love for you to give gift cards because those people who get them tend to spend more then the face value of the card.  That $50 dollar gift card quite will probably end up netting a retailer $85, or more, in sales.  There is this rationalization among those who get gift cards where-in it's good to use it for the discounting of a more expensive purchase.  What ever happened to giving a gift that was just a gift?  When did the dollar value become more important then that?  I just don't understand that at all.  So, even though it's going to rain today, I will run out and purchase the rest of the candy.  And I will bring it home and wrap it, and tie it up with cute purple ribbons.  Isn't that much nicer then giving someone an envelope with a gift card tucked inside?

The Price of Babies

On an average day we get to see quite a few people at the paint desk and while some may pass us by, quite a few order paint.  Over the past couple of weeks I've noticed what seems to be a trend.  Since one person's trend my by normal to others, I started asking my associates.  "Is it me, or are we seeing a lot of pregnant women"  Everyone agreed with me.  We're a high volume store so it's not unusual to see one or two expectant mothers daily, but some days we're seeing as many as 8 or 9.  Yesterday I counted 12.  And there's nothing mysterious about these numbers.  We had a nasty, little winter, lots of freezing rain and ice.  Couples stayed home and tried to "keep warm," and in the process made a baby.  We are a very prolific species so making a baby is not that difficult.  Of course, babies mean change, and I'm not just talking about on the personal level.

Twenty years ago, when I bought my house, this was a small suburb with a population of around 6000.  Today we are the fastest growing community in the region and the population has ballooned to nearly 28,000.  That's a big jump in 20 years.  That's a lot of new housing, and a hell of a lot more traffic.  I went out this morning and took a couple of pictures.

This is the new West Shore Hospital.  Actually, these are the physician's offices and, being that it's Sunday, the parking lots are empty.  The Hospital proper is on the other side.  It's big.  Twenty years ago this was all forest. 

This is the new Giant Supermarket they are building.  It's 2.5 miles from the Giant Supermarket I use and that supermarket is 4 miles from the Camp Hill Giant.  Three years ago this, too, was all forest.

This is the construction site for the new Weis Market they are building, which just happens to be across the road from the new Giant they are building.  That's right, we're going to have two massive supermarkets separated by the macadam of a 3 lane road.

Traffic is already so bad I felt the need to order a Road ID just in case some moronic driver sends me flying into the gutter.  I should probably look on the bright side, the new West Shore Hospital is only a hop, skip and a jump away.  This is the price of babies.

    

The great Fabian Cancellara wins the Paris-Roubaix

For those who missed the NBC Sports coverage, Fabian Cancellara won the Paris-Roubaix on Sunday.  Because I have an interest I have several cycling apps on my tablet which give me updates so I found out late Sunday afternoon, EST.  To my amazement, NBC Sports aired the race... at 11 PM EST, about  8 hours after the race had been concluded and the winner announced.  They then re-telecast the entire race yesterday starting at 5PM, EST.  As a cyclist, I know how nice it is to be even vaguely considered by NBC Sports.  We have American cyclist and American teams racing and NBC Sports has no problem in handing them the shitty end of the telecast stick because... well, let's be honest, it's just cycling.  They don't care because they don't see any viable ad revenue.  I had to laugh at what advertising they did air:  Evenrude outboard motors, 2 cycle vs 4 cycle.  If you own a Cervello, or a Cannondale, or a Trek, I would say there is a good possibility you might not be interested purchasing an outboard motor, or a boat for that matter.  There was no advertising about gears, or chains, or saddles, or helmits, or riding kits.  Of course, these are the things cyclists are interested in, not motorboats.  With all of the great bicycle manufacturers out there, not one name was mentioned.  There were, however, a number of Gatorade spots, but none of the featured a cyclist.  But then, by would you expect something like that from Gatorade.

Congrats to Fabian Cancellara!  I'd like to see one of our great, steroid giant baseball or football stars race for 5 hours and 45 minutes, a lot of that time over cobblestones, and survive.  Hell, I be interested in how many could even survive an hour.