Call Me

In case you don't know too much about me, I'm what you could consider a night owl.  I love nights and hate mornings.  In fact, please don't tell me "Good Morning!" because I will probably tell you there isn't anything good about mornings.  But given the fact that you will likely never have the opportunity to even greet me at all in the morning, rest assured, you should have no fears of the repercussions associated with such a folly.

So, it really doesn't bother me too much to have someone call me late-ish at night when I'm aware that they are going to call.  You know, like we've made plans to talk later, or we've been texting or emailing and need to talk in person.  But I'm not real good with unplanned late-night phone calls.  Unless I'm not planning on it.  Because, let's face it, no one calls after 10 pm with good news.

So, last night at 10:30 when my home phone rang (and yes, I still have a land line.  I've been debating disconnecting the thing for years and can't let go of the kitschiness of it all), I was more than a little disturbed.

And then I saw that one of my parents was calling, and became even more concerned.

Darrell likes the idea of late-night phone calls even less than me and had followed me to the home office where one of the land line phones was.

I cautiously answered.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Steph!" said my mom, sounding very much like her normal self.  "I was on Pinterest and checking out my boards.  It will only show 9 pins per board and I am wondering how to see the other pins I have on those boards."

I gave Darrell a thumb's up to let him know all was well and asked my mom if she realized it was 10:30.


She started laughing and said, "I've been on the computer all evening and thought it was only 8:00!  I'm so sorry!  Is Darrell ok?  Let him know that we are all okay.  I'm so sorry!  Oh, that's so funny!"


"Yeah, Mom, it's funny now, but 45 seconds ago, it was a little unsettling!  So, here's how to see all the pins on each board...."


So, although it wasn't a matter of life or death, I'm glad I was able to help my mom with her Pinterest emergency.  Because there's nothing worse than being unable to figure out one of the most addictive websites in the middle of the night!

File this under "No Thank You"

Darrell and I were on our sorta-weekly Costco date night this evening.  We tend to go just to "check things out" since we don't really have a need for 439 pounds of cheese or a 95-pack of socks.

We tend to go up and down most of the aisles to see what is available...just in case.  One never knows when a need for 6 gallons of pickles will come in handy.

We were strolling the home-upgrade aisle...you know the one...it has the fancy-schmancy chandelier, the ceiling fan that looks like it was made for a Fijian mansion, and the faux fireplace so you can have a mantle.  Well, this aisle also has the practical upgrades.  Like the brushed nickel kitchen faucets, the bamboo flooring, and the rain simulating shower head.

And then I saw this.  The item no home is complete without.  The toilet seat that combines the convenience of a hands-free flush with an automatic open and close lid.  Yes, you heard right.  The toilet seat opens as you approach the toilet and closes as you leave.  And flushes.On.Its.Own.

But wait!  There's more!

Because if you buy the model available at Costco, you also get:

A heated seat.  For those cold mornings when you just wish the toilet seat was warmer.
Gentle aerated warm water.  For front and rear cleaning.  Although I think it's pretty much all rear cleaning.
Massage feature.  Just gross!
Warm drying feature.  With three-temperature drying.
Automatic air purifier.  Thank goodness.  Because with all the other things going on, if you can't have purified air, it just isn't worth it.
A convenient remote control.  With large LCD panel for easy use.

I thought about adding it to my Christmas wish list.

But decided I'd wait for the portable unit.