An Accident

Monday, the primary mail carrier on Montpelier Rural Route 2 fell and fractured her left wrist. As I'm her primary substitute, I got the call that I'll be covering her route for her for 4 days every week while she is out. I would work 6 days a week but, the Post Office doesn't like paying overtime. There is another sub who knows the route and, she'll cover the route the other 2 days. For me, it guarantees I'll hit 40 hours every week. That's nice but, I wish there was some other way I could get my 40 hours. The primary carrier is a really nice lady. I was very saddened when I heard about the accident. Next week, she's supposed to have surgery on the wrist. I hope it goes well and she heals up quickly. I plan to keep her in my prayers.

Dead Battery

I got to use my Sprint Roadside Rescue service for the first time today. My car battery had acted up a little a couple times recently when it got cold but my car still started. This morning when I turned the ignition key, all I heard was a buzzing sound. The battery was big time dead.

As I'd never used Sprint's Roadside Rescue, I didn't know how to reach them. I had to log-on the Internet and find out. It turned out to be simple enough. You dial #road on your cell phone. This puts you through to a person who confirms you're signed up for the service. Then, they tell the addresses of road service providers close to you. I chose one on Maryland 198. After that, they contact the provider giving them your address and phone number. They have up to 90 minutes to show up. To my relief, the road service provider showed up in 30 minutes. To my surprise, the provider was from the Automobile Association of America (AAA). AAA has a good reputation and they showed they were worthy of it. Their rep was very professional and quick. He confirmed that the problem was the car battery. He promptly hooked up some kind of mobile starting box to the car. When I turned the ignition, the car started right up.

I found out from the AAA rep that a car's battery is normally only good for 3 to 5 years. The one I had lasted for over 7 years. It was definitely due for replacement. I found out that AAA offers a great warranty on their batteries. If anything goes wrong with it for 3 years, they'll replace for free. Also, if you have problems with the battery, you can call them and they'll come out and find out what the problem is. I decided to buy one of their batteries. With tax, it cost $117 which I thought was decent.

In a way, I'm lucky the battery died when it did. We haven't had a really cold weather yet. This way, the car will start when things really start to get bad weather wise. Plus, I know I can count on Sprint's roadside rescue if I ever have problems with my car.

A Mystery

It's possible thieves broke into various mailboxes where I live. Today, when I returned home from various errands, I noticed that all the mailboxes for the apartment building I live in were unlocked. I thought this very strange and called my friend Clinton who happens to be the mail carrier where I live. When Clinton arrived at the complex where I live, he found more mail boxes unlocked. As far as we can tell, someone between last night and this afternoon pried open the boxes. The apartment complex where I live has had several break-ins. Apparently, the thieves decided to go through and steal people's mail. There are any number of things they could steal through the mail like people's credit card numbers and social security checks. One annoying thing about the matter is that the apartment manager's office apparently didn't bother to call the Post Office so they could send someone to re-lock the boxes. My friend Clinton is going to hold on to any important mail for me. I don't want anything stolen like my retirement check or credit card bills.

Diving in Puerto Rico

I called Karen Vega at Caribe Aquatic Adventures in San Juan, Puerto Rico today. I wanted to pay in advance for the two refresher dives I need to do before I go on my Southern Caribbean cruise. By paying in advance, I'll have fewer charge card bills when I get back from the cruise. I haven't forgotten my Globus Australia tour where I was paying for it 3 months after the tour. If you can pay for various things in advance on a cruise or tour, I'd recommend you do the same. It really does things nicer when you get back from your trip.

The diving part of the cruise will be interesting it that it'll be the first time I'll take my diving equipment on a trip. Also, I've never dived in the Caribbean. I remember diving out of Destin, Florida. We'd get people who had dived in the Caribbean. They would whine about our 20 foot visibility. It seems in the Caribbean, it isn't uncommon to have 60 foot plus visibility. I can only guess that the waters there don't get stirred up like they do in the Gulf of Mexico.

I've heard the sea life is supposedly spectacular. I plan to take the cheap underwater camera I bought in Australia so I can try to take some underwater photos. We'll see how that works out. If they turn out nice, I'll post a few here.

Trader Joe's Gouda Cheese

I'm not a big cheese fan but ever since a trip to the Netherlands where I got to try some yellow wax gouda cheese, I've liked the stuff. Yellow wax gouda tends to be younger and thereby mellower gouda cheese. On my first shopping trip to the new Trader Joe's in Columbia, Maryland, I noticed they had a double cream gouda cheese imported from the Netherlands/Holland. When I went back this past Sunday, I decided to try it.

The cheese is a yellow wax gouda so it has a mellow taste to it. The double cream in it causes it to have a creamier flavor though the cheese itself is solid enough to where you can use a regular cheese cutter to slice it. The cheese comes in pre-sliced portions. Trader Joe's sells it for $7.99 a pound which isn't cheap but, it is imported. My sister Ellie tells me that Trader Joe's offers some good deals on cheese so this might be a pretty good price. I don't know if this cheese is a regular all the stores carry or it it was a one off buy that the Columbia store will offer until its sold out.

Overall, I found Trader Joe's Double Cream Gouda Cheese to be very good. It has a nice mellow creamy taste to it. It would be great for snacking or as serving as an hors d'oeuvre. It isn't cheap but, you wouldn't expect a cheese imported from Holland to be cheap. If there is a Trader Joe's close to where you live and you like cheese, this is one you should try. Bon Appetit!

Blog Correction

I found out I made a mistake concerning the Maryland Primary elections. It turned out they won't be held until February 12, 2008. I don't remember where I got the erroneous information. My apologies if I caused you to go to your polling station only to find out they weren't open. The only good thing that came out of this mistake is I definitely know where I'll vote on February 12th.

Vote!

Tomorrow, Maryland will hold its Democratic and Republican primaries. Voting is our one chance to tell the politicians what we think of how they're doing. If you don't vote, you can't complain of what they do because you didn't try to change it. Also, as I understand it, if you are listed as a Democrat or Republican, you must vote tomorrow if you want to vote in the General election next year. That election will be even more important as it'll decide who will become President and what direction this country will take for the next 4 years. So, make sure you get out and vote.

Toby's Dinner Theater

I decided to subscribe to Toby's 2008 season. It's the first time I've ever done so. They have some nice shows. Sound of Music will play till February 15th. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will play from February 21st to June 8th. All Shook Up which I've never seen will play from June 12th to August 24th. The Producers will play from August 28th to November 23rd. Forever Plaid will play from November 27th to December 31st. The 2008 season finishes with Mid-Life - The Crisis Musical.

The Sound of Music was the first show I ever saw in London. I remember Petula Clark starred in it. I think it helped hook me on live theater. I couldn't get over that the people were really up there on the stage vice a movie screen. I saw Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in London too. I was really impressed with it. It has some great jokes and some very nice songs. The Producers was the first show I ever saw on Broadway. I had some qualms about making jokes about the Nazis. To my, the Nazis and what they did was nothing to joke about. It remains one of the sorriest periods in world history in my opinion.

The price of the ticket also includes a buffet dinner. I've been to Toby's twice and I was impressed with the food. It is good and they give you plenty of chances to get your fill.

I look forward to going to Toby's. If the subscription works out well, I may make a regular thing.

Daylight Savings Time

Just a reminder, Daylight Savings Time ends tonight. At 2 a.m. tomorrow morning, all clocks in the U.S. (European countries set theirs back on October 28th) will go back 1 hour. To make it easier on yourself, you might want to set your clocks back before you go to bed.

Trader Joe's in Columbia

The new Trader Joe's in Columbia, Maryland opened today. I checked it out and found it jumping with people. I suspect it'll do well in Columbia as it would appeal to people who live there. I bought different items to try. I had one of their sushi packs for dinner. I found it really good. I would definitely recommend their sushi.

Hours wise, the store will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day. I think their hours are great. It'll make it really easy to shop there. I was also impressed with the people they hired. I found them very courteous. I look forward to shopping at the Columbia store again.