The Life of Riley is a weekly post that details my activities since I ended a thirteen year career as a corporate drone. These posts are usually long, personal, and geared more for my own memory than the reader’s entertainment.

Sunday (Day 189): Sketchup Will Not Die

Worked with Google Sketchup to revise our house plans and researched architects in our area. I then did a lot of writing for the week while #1GF! did things to ensure our survival like food shopping and cleaning.

Monday (Day 190): The Gift Guide

Called a bunch of architects and then spent almost the entire day researching my Holiday Gift Guide.

Tuesday (Day 191): Bad Priorities

I wrote for about twelve hours and spent only an hour away from the PC. I found a week-old burrito in the fridge, which I consumed while standing over the sink. I actually smelled it and shrugged before eating it. I was rolling the dice because I didn’t feel like there was enough time to get all the words out that I wanted to. Choosing words over your health is a slightly screwed up priority set.

I also analyzed Netflix and found that they don’t actually list all the titles available on-demand in their list of on-demand movies. Some, like “Beef”, seem to be available, but not included in the master list. I don’t understand why.

At night we met with an architect who really seemed to know what he was doing. He had some interesting ideas, but was in the group that said that what we wanted to do was out of our budget.

Wednesday (Day 192): The Arteest

I spent nearly the whole day on the FineTune Friday monthly poster. I am not an artist, and I don’t get paid for them, so I’m starting to wonder why I bother. It’s a lot of effort for something that only about 5 people seem to care about.

Thursday (Day 193): The Senile Crack Head

Went out in the morning to get a haircut and got to sit with all the old guys at the barber shop. Hell, I think I am one of the old guys. I don’t know enough about baseball to get involved in a lot of the conversation, but it’s still pretty cool. Guys come in and out. They run next door and ask if anyone wants coffee. They let other people go ahead of them and no one seems to care if when they get in the chair. On the way out, I got a hug and a merry xmas from the barber. He’s Sicilian, so that’s pretty normal. As I walked out the door, I said “Happy holidays, fellas,” and got a general din of greetings and nods. As I walked away I wondered, “Who the hell says ‘fellas’ anymore? Where did that come from? When did I turn 400?”

I called my parents and told them I’d be stopping by, and on the way over, I left messages for a few friends. I normally only leave the house on weekends, so I sort of forgot that I was calling them on a weekday morning. Most people work during that time, so I probably sounded like I was as connected with the world as a crack head with Alzheimer’s. During one of the calls I can remember saying, “Well, you’re probably working or something. It’s uh… Oh shit. What day is it? Well, I’m not sure what day it is, and it’s not listed on my phone, so whatever. I don’t think it’s the weekend. Anyway. Call me back.” I think I’m turning into some sort of digital hobo.

When I got to my parents’ house, I picked their brains for xmas ideas. They were only slightly helpful with exciting suggestions like “socks”. They had stuff to do, so I did some food shopping while listening to Jimmy Smith on my walkman phone. Because it was starting to snow, the place was a zoo.

Boston is not Antarctica, folks. In the blizzard of ’78, I can remember my parents dragging me and my sister on a Flexible Flyer across the city to my grandparents house. That was one of the worst storms in recent history, and not one pack of Yetis or fast moving glacier cut off the food supply, so there is no need to raid the friggin’ stores in a panic every time a few flakes hit the ground. This is New England. Snow and taxes should be expected.

Once I got home, I started my xmas shopping with some online research. I’m not a shopper, and I find it’s easier to bang out the gift buying if I know where I’m going and what I’m getting ahead of time. I was up to my eyeballs in websites when #1GF! called and told me that people were spending 8 hours in traffic because of the snow. She stayed a little later than normal, but it only took her an hour to get home safely.

Friday (Day 194): We Uncovered A Neighborhood

We started the day by visiting our new house to shovel out. We met three of the neighbors and helped them shovel out. It was the first time in about 25 years that I felt like we were in a neighborhood. I met more people in an hour than I have in the three years I’ve been living in my apartment.

After shoveling, we went out shopping. #1GF! likes to browse and actually shop. I like to minimize shopping time by researching and going into the stores with a list of what I need. This meant that a portion of the time I felt like I was pointlessly wandering behind #1GF!, and the other half she was being dragged behind me at breakneck speed. It’s a good thing that we like each other, or things might not have turned out well.

We broke up the day by heading over to the house to meet with another architect. Afterward, we went out for more shopping. #1GF! got some things done, and I failed miserably. Every item that I was looking for was out of stock and required stops into numerous stores before forcing me to give up. The only thing keeping the day from being a total failure for me was ordering a bunch of gifts off of the interweb after we got home. We were junk by the end of the day, so we got some take out and sat in front of the TV.

Saturday (Day 195): Xmas Party

Started the day off by waiting around our house for an architect who didn’t show up. We still don’t know why he didn’t show up or what happened because he never responded to our calls. Any work that requires building professionals usually becomes an involved process, but I never knew that it was such a process just to hire someone. We’ve been stood up a couple of times, had multiple contractors ignore us, and after 2 weeks, have gotten only a single bid on the job. It almost makes us want to move in and do the renovations at some point over the next 25 years.

After leaving the house, we picked up my parents and went to my cousins house for a xmas open house. Even though I never play video games anymore, I could appreciate that one of my cousins has bought every version of guitar hero for himself. He’s a little older than me, and I really had no idea that he was into games.

My aunt gave me a giant can of tomatoes for me to make sauce with. They’re supposed to be the best tomatoes out there, so I’m running out of excuses for why I haven’t made a batch of sauce in six months. After the party, we went out and did some more xmas shopping and ran into one of my former coworkers at the grocery store. I was so exhausted that I ended the day by falling asleep on the couch.

What I learned

• Netflix doesn’t seem to list all the movies that are available on demand if you list them by title. I’m not sure why some titles are available but not listed.
• A week old burrito is still edible, and is proof that I have screwed up priorities.
• I spend a lot of time on things that no one seems to care about.
• I’m getting to the point where 6 posts a week is starting to wear on me a bit. It’s not a big deal, but sometimes it feels like there is no way to take a break.
• I’m pretty understanding, but one thing I don’t tolerate is when people treat my time like it has no value. Time is a person’s most valuable asset because it’s the only thing that they can never get more of.
• There are actual neighborhoods left in America.
• I have completely lost track of the concept of a five day, 9-5 work week. I work six days a week, for 10+ hours a day, and I forget how normal people work.
• People are not always who you think they are. I thought my cousin was a pretty straight businessman, but he’s a closet gamer and virtual rockstar. Long live Mustachio.
• Membership sites that target kids for membership are a huge money maker. Parents are more likely to pay the membership fee if it seems like they are buying a stuffed animal that comes with a membership than if they have to put a credit card into a membership site. That’s the genius of Webkinz.
• The one good thing about working for someone, is you can get paid a lot of money to eat lunch. Working for yourself means eating over the sink and scrapping for every dollar.
• The good thing about working for yourself is that at the end of the day, you are the only person responsible for your success. Working for someone means that your success belongs to whoever has the authority to claim it on your behalf.

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