The Week That Was

It’s my last day of summer.  Tomorrow starts my final year of school, maybe forever, maybe just for a time.  Either way, classes are beginning anew and I’m not ready for it.  I had many other things I would have liked to accomplish this summer but as always, the to-do list was longer than the time available. But such is life and I am looking forward to my classes.  But enough about all that…

Music That I Am Listening To and Enjoying – New Mute Math did indeed come out and I’ve given it a fair listen (6 complete listens…).  It is good, but not transcendent.  You can read more about it here.  I’ve also been listening to a lot of Phoenix and M. Ward.  You cannot go wrong with either one of them.  I also got some new music from The Avett Brothers (acoustic melodic rock), Hill Country Review (Alt-Country Rock), Umphrey’s McGee (Alternative), and Yonder Mountain String Band (Folksy Alt-Country Rock similar to the Gourds).  Expanding my horizons…

Customer Service Moment of the Week – I had an overweight man silently dump the final two sugar packets from the condiment bar on the counter as his way of informing me that we needed to refill it.  I almost remarked that he was fortunate since it did not look like he needed any more, but decided that whatever problems Starbucks and it’s customers might have (which are many…), it was not worth getting fired over.  So I just gave him some more.  Is it really that hard to just ask if we have more sugar though?  My compatriot Ira pulled off my favorite more of the week when he took a cup of coffee that a guy wanted more cream in and just walked back to me, switched cups, and handed it back for a perfect rating by the customer.  The Placebo effect is alive and well friends.

Sports Moment of the Week – The Track and Field World Championships made for great T.V., even if you hate Usain Bolt and his arrogant antics.  You cannot argue with how fast he is though.  Nothing really spectacular this week though.  Baseball is winding down but I think I speak for everyone here when I say that I’m ready for football season to start back up.  The weather here this weekend was perfect autumn weather that just served to whet the appetite that much more…

Books and Movies of the Week – I’ve been reading Hunting Eichmann, which is a fascinating look at the escape and subsequent hunt of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann by various people and organizations.  Truth really is better than fiction.

Video of the Week – This is fantastic.  I wonder how many times he had to do it though…

5 Things I Think I Think

1. I think that I got more opinions and comments on my recent facebook posting about cell phone carrier than anything in recent memory.  Verizon seems to have the anecdotal better coverage, but AT&T has better phones, the iPhone (even though I cannot afford one and I am not getting one…), and more of my main numbers called, thereby saving me minutes.  It’s a tough choice for sure…thoughts?

2. I think that this picture and the accompanying caption is hilarious.  I looked for the rest of the story but there were no more details.  Cash for Clunkers was a good deal for this guy though…
A 1995 Ford Aerostar caught fire last week after its owner took it to a Toyota dealership in El Monte, Calif., to take part in the cash-for-clunkers program. No one was hurt, and the owner drove away in a 2010 Prius. 
3. I think that the release of the Lockerbie bomber on compassionate grounds is ridiculous.  He may have 3 months left to live because of cancer, but he took 270 lives and was then celebrated as a hero on his return to Libya.  Add that to the fact that he only served 7 years of a life sentence with a court-mandated 27-year minimum and the whole thing is just a huge and ridiculous mess.  I’m all for forgiving and moving on, but there are consequences for actions and if you want to bomb a plane out of the air, you ought to be prepared to spend life in prison, however long or short that might be.
4. I think that I’ve worked my last double in a while (hopefully).  My own double consists of opening at J.Crew and then closing at Starbucks.  Those are long days that usually result in an aching back and sore feet by the end.  So I’m trying to focus my work times on the week days at Starbucks and just Saturday mornings at J.Crew.  We’ll see how it goes.
5. I think that I really only have 4 things today.  Need to get out more…
Love and Sweatpants.