The Big DumpTruck

I need a cable to hook up a peripheral to my Mac, and so I went to Best Buy to look for one. (I bought one last year, according to Amazon which tells you on what date you ordered something even if it was a jillion years ago, but I couldn't tell you where it is to save my life.)

They had two. One was 52 bucks (uh, no thanks, I saw them for ten bucks on Amazon) and the other was 32. Junior told me to just get the $32 one (I had a $5 coupon, but still...) but the guy who found it for me pointed out that the reason it was so expensive was because it was fourteen feet long. Okay, picture a laptop, and picture something you want to connect to it, like, say, a camera. Do you have any need at all for a 14 foot cable? Because I don't.

So I don't have a cable yet, but I hear you can get one on Amazon for $10, and the only problem is that it disappears into the void at your house after a while.

Labels: shopping

I didn't have the $$ to renew my .Mac account (it expired yesterday) so the DumpCast link that used to be in the upper right hand corner has been removed. I don't know when or where it will re-surface, but I may just host it right here on BDT going forward. I'll make sure I let all the faithful fans know when it's available again.

I took yesterday and today off from work because Junior is on April vacation. Yesterday I combed the back yard for dog poop, and I was thinking to myself...hunting for crap is still better than going to work. I also did a little raking (after we picked up a new metal rake...way too much thatch to use a plastic rake) and we did get the little tabletop grill I was yearning for. Cooked up some shrimp and steak to break it in and welcome it to the family. I think there may be a problem with it (flame is too low) but by the time we figured that out, we'd already started cooking on it. So now I'm not sure what to do. I guess I'll contact the manufacturer, because I don't think Lowes wants me to take back a used grill. Or maybe they do, because the thing we noticed might be a safety issue. Will keep you informed

Labels: cooking, shopping, spring

I didn't realize you guys were bigdumptruck-less for a chunk of the weekend until I got my daily traffic report email and it said that my hits were about a third of what they normally are, making me think there was some sort of problem. Apparently, there was some sort of problem. Luckily, it appears the hosting company found their plunger and released my website, and it is now available again.

I just got paid four days ago and I'm already counting the minutes until next payday. For those of you keeping track, I only get paid once a month. It SUCKS OUT LOUD. I hate it. I'm no good with getting paid once a month. I had to set aside a chunk of change for getting the furnace fixed out of this one and there's just no cheese money left. I suppose I shouldn't be complaining about a lack of cheese money when some people can't buy groceries or pay rent, but dang it, I strongly dislike not being able to spend $10 on myself without feeling very guilty.

And on that topic, we were going to look for a nice rubbish container for the kitchen, and we were at Lowe's and the cheapest one was $79. The one we liked was $99. Hello?! A hundred bucks for a trash bin? And it isn't even one of the "survives a nuclear blast" kind that you want to buy for putting out at the curb. This is just a bin with a foot pedal for the kitchen. I could buy a grill for less money than the trash can!

Needless to say, we do not have a hundred dollar trash bin this morning.

Labels: money, shopping

Noticed an ad at the bottom of my page today for http://www.gardenstatueshop.com/ and I have a feeling I should just mail my paycheck to them.

I wonder if I can set up a wish list with them?

Labels: gnomes, shopping

Why am I not finished with my Christmas shopping? I do not understand - I am usually better than this. I have people I need to buy things for that I will not see after Friday, so I have to get my royal butt in gear right away.

I'm happy to hear we might see more snowflakes tonight. That's great news. My street is still completely covered with hard-packed snow so this will really help out in that department. Ye Olde Minivan has zero traction as it is, so I think this may put me in some sort of physics black hole with negative traction. If I was better at science I could explain to you how negative traction works, but I am not very good at science, or math for that matter. I can't wait until Junior gets to the point where I am no longer of service to him for math homework. I think I have another year before I hit that point.

Labels: holidays, shopping, weather

I will share the question of the day, as posed by Junior when I was talking about the little girl who was born with 4 extra limbs being able to go home.

"What if Britney Spears had a baby she named Spears Spears and it had two faces."

Well, that is is good question, isn't it? I'm not sure why we're discussing Britney, specifically. I'd be interested in discussing anyone who has a baby and gives it a double name and oh, by the way, the baby has two faces.

So there you go. There's your question of the day.

Here's my question of the day: Shaws was out of peppermint extract, which is needed for this ultra simple dessert I was going to make. I don't want to go to a different grocery store the Saturday before a nor'easter because I am not stupid. I went to Shaws before 9am for a reason. What other store do you think might carry peppermint extract?

Labels: celebs, food, quiz, shopping

I need to get a better understanding of anatomy because I still don't understand how one side of your nose can be completely stuffy and icky for days at a time while the other side is free and clear. Does that make any sense? Aren't your nostrils just two tubes going into the same place? Like the in and out doors to the kitchen at Denny's, so to speak.

While sitting around and being lazy this morning I updated my Amazon "Be Like Jody" store. There you can find some of things you should buy if you want to be like me. I have a ton of things that I should add to it, but it's a good start. There were two items on the old version that I said I wanted, that I needed up update because eventually got upgraded versions of both of them.

So go ahead and be like me. And remember, if you use my link to get to Amazon, for whatever you are buying, I can make a few pennies and I will love you forever. And you want me to love you forever, don't you?

Labels: Amazon, me, shopping

Mr Dump and Junior are painting the downstairs bathroom right now. I wonder who will be alive at the end of the day?

The reason for the painting? Well, it's tied to the living room, if you can believe it. We bought a couch yesterday (what, you didn't spend black Friday looking for a couch?) and the color they are painting the bathroom is the test for the color we eventually want to paint the living room and this is sort of a test of the color. That room needed painting anyway (the whole house does) so this is a good test. It's a kind of almond color - I think this means I get to go shopping for new curtains, don't you think?

We got a couch because the old one is just beat to hell. The arm is broken, the cushions have lost their cush, and the whole thing is just starting to look ratty. It is 9 years old - we bought it when Junior turned one, and we decided to just get something relatively inexpensive given that a toddler would be destroying it. And it lived through Phantom's puppy years, too. I think we're lucky it lasted as long as it did, to be honest.

So anyway, we have not put up the tree yet because the guys deliver the couch on Tuesday and that will be one less thing they have to work around. In the meantime, we are trying to clean the hell out of the downstairs, which should take the rest of the weekend given my complete disinterest in cleaning right now. In fact, to avoid having to clean the downstairs, I actually was cleaning upstairs. I have two garbage bags full of clothes to donate the Ginny's, a garbage bag of clothes to throw away, and I put away all my shorts and summer pants. And that is just my stuff. I will maybe think about doing Junior's stuff in the next few days or weeks. It's not like his stuff will fit next summer anyway. I probably need to locate all the shoes he's outgrown too.

Oh, so as for Black Friday, I was very proud of myself. We did not leave the house until almost noon. We went and grabbed a bite to eat and then went to Target to buy stuff we needed. I got some new socks, replenished my vitamin collection, got mouthwash, and bought a big snowflake to hang on the front door (I need to figure out the best way to plug it in, and then I'll take a photo for you). I think the only impulse buy, other than the snowflake which wasn't completely an impulse buy) was a small sewing machine. I have never owned one. I don't know if that's because I don't need one, or if I think I don't need one because I don't own one. But this was one of those "hey, if you need to sew a quick hem, you can do it" kind of sewing machine, and it was on sale for $10. I think for ten dollars I will attempt to sew something with it. I am wearing a pair of my new socks right now and they are delightful. For the record, ladies, if you have trouble finding socks that don't cut off the circulation because your lower legs aren't stick thin, Target has a whole line of very cool socks that fit wonderfully. I will try to take a photo of those, too, so that you will know what kind of socks I'm talking about. I love them.

Labels: chores, house, shopping, socks

Okay, I'm all Christmassed up now. Junior bought two presents to give to his cousins (without any input from us) so we are officially shopping for Christmas, baby! We went to Cataldos on the way home from Burlington (Mr. Dump needed to go to the Apple Store for work purposes. Really.) And boy howdy if that doesn't make you feel Christmassy, nothing will. They are already selling trees so we got our first "whiff of the holidays".

I think it's time to have the annual viewing of Little Women.

And you?

Labels: christmas, shopping, Xmas

(You young people might not catch this reference. So I think maybe I could call this post "Am I Being Punked?")

Yesterday was one of those days. Mr. Dump had an appointment for a small surgical procedure, and I had an appointment with my doctor. I also had Junior (I have him again today...last two days before school starts so no more camp). I used up a tank of gas just driving around from appointment to appointment yesterday. Junior got an invite to his friend's house, but she lives in Gardner, so that was 20+ minutes each way. What was great, though, is that it meant someone was watching him while I was in my appointment.

After Mr. Dump was out of recovery and I settled him back in at home, I went back to Gardner to get Junior. We decided to stop at the Hannaford at Twin City Mall on the way home to get something for dinner. While standing with my cart trying to think of the other things I wanted to buy (iced tea and potato rolls) a guy was standing about 6 feet to my right. I catch some activity out of the corner of my eye and see...a copy handcuffing him. Nothing was being said, it was all very quiet. I quickly made sure Junior was still standing behind me (and wasn't planning to scoot around the cart over to where this was happening. I could feel my blood pressure go up 20 points. I made eye contact with a couple of people standing in the 12 items or less line (which is what we were standing near) and we all had this "Are you kidding me?" look on our faces.

I can honestly say I have never stood that close to someone being arrested. I mean, to the point that I felt like I was assisting the cop...that's how close they were to me. Junior kind of took the whole thing in stride, like this stuff happens all the time. Maybe I should ask more questions about what goes on a summer camp!

Labels: errands, junior, odd, shopping

When we saw it raining with the sun out last night, Junior and I hopped in the van and rushed up to to a high, clear spot - in our neighborhood, that's the Orchard Hills Park parking lot. Sure enough, God wanted us to shop at Best Buy so badly he gave us a double rainbow leading us there.

Labels: photos, rain, rainbow, shopping

Yesterday was laundry day around Casa Des DumpTrucks. I think I personally did 375 loads of laundry. I know that there were parts of the floor I hadn't seen in months that are now part of the family again.

We celebrated laundry day by, um, doing laundry. We also took in a showing of The Simpsons (only a couple of iffy words, I was more concerned about the content of the preview for Good Luck Chuck, or whatever it's called, which seemed to me to be more R than PG-13, given that the entire thing was about sex) and got some shampoo at Target. (Pantene, I got the one that has shampoo and conditioner combined because I'm so damned lazy that I cannot be bothered to do them both if it involves flipping the cap on two different bottles. I haven't done a 2-in-1 shampoo since Pert was first introduced in the Middle Ages and I hated how greasy it made my hair.)

Oh, okay, we also celebrated laundry day by playing a round of Travel Blokus (tip 'o the hat to utterwonder.com for bringing Blokus to my attention) and Mario Party 8 on the Wii. And then I ended laundry day by pretending I had enough money to buy a wide angle lens for my camera. (Anyone have an opinion on the Sigma 10-20mm? Is it too slow to use indoors?)

Okay, so I added a script to the page that will automatically turn key terms into Amazon.com links. Let's see how much of the above ends up sending you all on shopping sprees...

Labels: camera, chores, fun, shopping, Sunday

UPS is bringing me that book that I promise I won't talk about for at least the next 5 days. Okay, fair enough? I will not talk about it, and I would ask you to do the same with your comments. Nothing until, let's say, Wednesday t 3pm. Is that long enough? It should be, even if you didn't pre-order a copy or haven't gone out to get one yet. And when I do talk about it, I won't put it in the post title or the first paragraph, so you kids with RSS readers or what have you won't have to drop me from your feed. Aren't I nice?
Mine is coming, but I need to go to Target and you KNOW there will be a display of them. Will I have the self-control to not buy a copy?

Labels: books, potter, shopping

I was at Target tonight, you know, because that's where I live, looking at some fans for the house. We need one for our spare bedroom (which is not so spare when my step kids are visiting) so I was checking prices on some. A woman who was browsing with a male companion approached me and said "excuse me, do you have any box fans?"

Me: "I'm sorry?"

Her: "Do you have any box fans?"

Me: "Me personally? No. I, uh, don't work here."

Her: "Oh my gosh, I'm sorry!"

My shirt wasn't even really red, more brick-ish. Sheesh.

So now I'm thinking I should get a real red shirt, have a nametag made up, and wander the aisles or Target giving bad advice.

Labels: fun, shopping, Target

We were having a little discussion on Universal Hub about how the past 2 years people (read: those who look for things to complain about everywhere and anywhere) there have people people who throw fits when anyone mentions Christmas, and there are people who throw fits when people say "Happy Holidays." You know, the same people who don't give money to the poor and destitute, cut lines to get what they want first, and think the world owes them something. Obviously, anyone who says "Happy Holidays" is trying to get Christmas removed from the calendar. (I looked up Christmas on Wikipedia. VERY fascinating stuff. Did you know celebrating Christmas was against the law in Boston from 1659 to 1681?)

This bothers me. I think too many people think they should be able to control what others do and say. If a shop owner wants to put an ad in the paper about a "Christmas Sale" why should they be attacked by picketers and the like? And if another chooses to say Happy Holidays, for whatever reason, the same holds true. The link above, to the Hub, is about a customer losing her mind when someone wishes her Happy Holidays. I would have hit her with a shovel. You know what? Just because you are Christian and celebrate Christmas, doesn't mean everyone does, you selfish, egostistical shrew. Hanukkah starts today. Shouldn't I wish everyone I see a Happy Hanukkah today? Why not? What would the Christmas Army have to say to that? But it would be appropriate, would it not? When I worked as a cashier in a grocery store a million years ago, I used to wish folks happy holidays, because I never assumed every customer of mine celebrated Christmas. Everyone was fine with that, nobody corrected me. Happy Holidays also covers New Years, people.

Should I go back in time and apologize for all the Christmas Cards I have sent that had the phrase "Happy Holidays" in them?

Should the Christmas Army work to ban the Irving Berlin song "Happy Holiday" from the radio and record departments of the world? Obviously he's part of the war on Christmas, anticipating what would happen in December 2006 way back in 1941 when he wrote the song for the moving Holiday Inn.

So if you want to take up a cause, people, why not try to take one up that will actually help someone. Not something that will make you look nuttier than a jar of Jif.

Labels: christmas, shopping

Okay, I cleaned up some of the code in the right-hand column. I need to do more, but I'm tired. I just love being sick! Junior, who will be 9 in 3 weeks, is watching Toddler Television. So far he's watched Elmo's World, Bob the Builder and Thomas the Tank Engine. I'm not complaining, because other than Elmo, the voices and music are not jarring. I can completely tune it out, which I can't do if he's watching something more frantic like Pokemon.

I went onto Amazon to browse through some stuff - it's just as much fun as going to the mall, and for some reason, I'm less likely to spend money. I put stuff in my cart and on my wishlist, and that makes me happy.

I have decided that I want to start collecting the North Pole Series of the Department 56 Christmas houses. I am really mad at myself for not starting that series a couple of years ago, when there were a couple of houses that I'm still obsessing about the Lego factory and the Play-doh factory are two of them. I just added a bunch of houses to my "If you loved me" wishlist, which I link to over on the right. You don't have to buy me anything, but feel free to go look at how cute these houses are! The two I liked the most are out of stock anyway. One I couldn't even add if I wanted to. The other was already on my list before it ran out, which is why it's still there.

You guys need to promise me that if you have any of these houses and you decide to liquidate your collection, you will give me first shot at them, okay? Thank you, you are good people.

Labels: junior, shopping

I just want to thank everyone who at least attempted to stay off the roads while I shopped this weekend. Friday night we hit Eastern Boarder and there were enough people staffing the store that we did not have to wait to talk to anyone, a huge plus. Saturday we did less shopping than intended, but even though Target was busy, the lines were very very manageable. So thanks for that. We even only had a 15 minute wait for lunch at TGI Fridays. As an aside, have any of you ever tried their "Mac and Cheese for Grownups?" Holy crap is that stuff good. It's got mushrooms and bacon (but not so much that it overpowers - just a few pieces sprinkled throughout) and some grilled chicken with peppers and onions on top. Even the chicken was delish. That is my Big DumpTruck Pick of the Week, for those of you who are hungry and near a TGI Fridays. I couldn't finish mine, so I shared it with my step-son so I don't know how it reheats. I think you could easily make two meals out of it, though.

We had tremendous luck with hitting the mall (Pheasant Lane in Nashua) early yesterday. I think because it was Sunday, people did not think it would be open as early as it was, but we got a primo parking spot, and in a couple of stores, we were literally the only customers. I believe I am 95% done my shopping now, so I will step back and let you all have free run of the roads and malls. Only two more weeks until people can stop obsessing about shopping. I do love when that happens.

I love shopping as much as the next 15 people. In fact, my Nano Novel was about a shopaholic this year. But I prefer to shop when I don't have a deadline hanging over my head and a ton of people clogging the aisles. We ran into one couple yesterday who much have purchased about $400 worth of gift items at the Lindt Chocolate store. But I'll bet they had not a single person left to buy for by the time they left. And now I'm hungry for chocolate, which apparently means I need some potassium, if something odd I read on the internet is to be believed.

Anyway, happy Monday everyone.

Labels: shopping, Xmas

I am going out Christmas shopping tomorrow, so I am going to need all of you to stay home so that I am not inconvenienced by traffic or lines at the registers. I think you all understand how important this is for me, and will be happy to comply. I suggest grabbing a box of Swiss Miss (with mini marshmallows, of course) and hunkering down with a few copies of A Christmas Carol. If you don't have the Muppet version (HEATHEN!) there is time today to run out and have a copy ready for tomorrow.

So remember, stay off the roads and out of the malls. I appreciate it.

Labels: shopping, Xmas