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Category Archives: driving
Weather. It’s Hot.
For the last two days it’s been 100F (that’s about 38c) where we live. Today, it’s in the upper 80′s. I cannot tell the difference. All I can say is, “Thank goodness for air conditioning”. If we lived in the UK right now, or many other places, I would probably be dead by now. From the heat.
According to the weather service, it’s been AGES since it’s been 100F in June.
I wonder what July and August will be like, really.
I was just out at the pool with Brit, and our neighbor said that her neighbor on the first level got a bill for $220 some-odd for air conditioning this month. I’m not sure how she managed that. We have our thermostat set around 74F, and ours was in the mid-70′s.
I was a bit worried about what the bill would be. We’re on the top floor with no insulating apartments around us.. sun beating down all day. Of course, in July when it’s probably going to be 425F, it may be a bit more. 
Ok, maybe just 110F.
Winter Wonderland
We’re being buried in around a foot of snow. Schools were called off last night in anticipation of a blizzard. Today, some banks are even closed. How often does that happen? (not often)
Nebraska normally doesn’t stop very long for things like this. We have loads of snow plows to clear the streets, and our drivers are pretty much used to this stuff.
TLK’s been outside, all bundled up, playing in the snow with her sled and her friends. It’s not good sledding weather, though, despite the snow. The snow isn’t packed down yet, so she’ll need to give it a day or two.
Tomorrow and Thursday are going to be frigid. The low one day will be in the negatives. I always say that after the temps hit a certain low, you don’t really feel the difference if it gets colder.
Welcome to winter!
I remember when I thought 81F was hot.
Welcome to Nebraska, land of the 110F heat factor, after adjusting the actual temperature, due to humidity, to describe the temperature it “feels like”.
Since we have air conditioning here, wearing glasses in high humidity heat can be interesting. Due to the extreme temperature difference between inside and out, glasses need a few moments to become foggy and clear up before becoming that appliance that’s supposed to be helping you see.
Interestingly enough, the College World Series is happening this week; the hottest week of the year, so far. The news reports that everday, one or two people are carried out on stretchers due to heat exhaustion. You have to admire that sort of dedication to baseball.
I happened to catch on the news that the CWS represents $60 some-odd million in revenue for the city. We’ve hosted the CWS for years and years. We’re even considering building a new stadium, although I don’t see what is so wrong with the old one.
We’re in for another toasty day!
Odd Dream
I had a dream that I was in some airport, catching a flight with my daughter to see Ian. I forgot to print off my boarding pass, so at the last minute, I went to the counter to have it printed. In the back of my head, I was thinking “I hope the seats aren’t all assigned already!”
Starting to panic, I attempted to speak to the counter girl. She decided it was humour day and I just wasn’t getting it. She finally saw that I was humour-free and actually had a mission to complete in a very short amount of time, so she shifted me off to a counter across the room. Everyone seemed busy helping other customers. It was finally my turn to speak to someone.
He thought he was funny, too. I indicated that my flight was about to leave and I needed a boarding pass, and one to board my flight in Chicago, too. As he handed me a boarding pass for the flight to Chicago, he wrote down the name of some car rental company and handed it to me (it’s because dreams don’t need to make sense, I guess) as a resource for getting my boarding passes onward from Chicago.
I looked forever for my black luggage so I could wheel it to the gate (because who needs baggage check-in, eh?) I finally found the luggage, which I remembered putting in a particular spot as I was speaking to my grandfather (who passed on years ago, but was seeing me off at the airport).
So, collected my bags, corralled my daughter and proceeded to the gate.
Oh crap! I forgot to get her boarding pass. I’ll just plead totally daft at the gate…. where they ended up just letting her on the plane without question.
I’m sure this all means something. LOL
Happy Easter, people!
Bumper Cars
Friday, I left work for a late lunch, so I could go to TLK’s Halloween parade at school. I got into an accident, through no fault of my own, and never made it to the parade. Plus, my car was towed to a collision repair shop.
It was a mess. An elderly man ran a red light. He hardly spoke any English. A woman in another car he hit went to the hospital with heart issues.
The fire brigade washed away the radiator fluid leaking from the man’s car. The tow truck man got into my car and ducked away from the steering wheel, fearing the airbag would deploy (I suspect the airbag is not working).
The police officers were professional and knew what they were doing. They suffered through my silly questions and general shakiness over having been hit.
So here is this:
My car is the gray one without the bumper. Also, one of my tires is ruined, and God knows what else.
I’m not sure what the mph at impact was. I believe this road is 40 mph, and the man in the brown car ran a red light. His impact with me was somewhat reduced by that white car, which was actually not even travelling in that direction at the point of impact.
The good thing is that this was not my fault. There were 15 witnesses who all stopped and talked with the police. I wasn’t injured, and TLK wasn’t in the car, of course (she was at the parade. ) Also, I have car rental, courtesy of the elderly man’s insurance.
I was walking to the collision shop talking to Ian when the tow truck driver stopped by to pick me up. Frankly, I was ready to walk instead of drive at that point, but it would’ve been a longer walk than I thought.
It’s a good idea to stop at yellow lights.