Cav's Place

Since I still only have those notes about this year’s Dream Trek, I’ll also avoid a Sunday post for once and make use of some more old odds and ends that are already written but not posted, going back another month, so if the previous such post covered September of 2024, this one starts on August 2, 2024, when I did the day’s squats, cooked, had lunch, albeit without eating what I was cooking, since I just finished that right before leaving, and went out at 9:15 PM, going straight to Kaufland, washing my hands, and entering the store close to 9:45 PM. Then I got a few buns and some plain bread for dad, the evening discounts being of 51%, and scanned two other price labels, confirming that those products didn’t have evening discounts. Then I went to the fruits and vegetables and got a number of things, with great evening discounts, and also a deeply discounted pack of spoiling tomatoes. The labels printed by the scales listed much higher prices for everything that had those deep evening discounts, however, so I then went to a price checker and checked, and also calculated how much the price for each product should actually be. Then I got some yogurt as well, and I was just checking the receipt, to make sure that everything was correct, when the closing announcement came. But I then went to the spot meant for arranging purchases and took my time to do so, walking out when it was close to 11:10 PM. And on the way back I checked the non-stop Mega Image, putting just the bag with the cucumbers and tomatoes in a cabinet and entering with the one that hangs from my neck and the backpack, but seeing a full bakery area and no announcement about the evening discount, so I just walked out, retrieved that bag, and also picked up a recyclable.
I got back at 11:55 PM, but after cleaning the litter box I went to drop a bag of trash down the chute and picked up another recyclable from the garbage room. And when I checked my room I saw that the cup with the toothbrush, toothpaste and dental floss had fallen over, since I had left it on the heater before leaving, but at least it didn’t break, and I took it as my cue to finally change my toothbrush. Then I ate a few plums and something sweet, put most of the purchases in their place, rearranging things in the fridge in order to be able to do so, washed a few things that were in the kitchen, and finally went to shower at 2:05 AM. I was done a little after 2:40 AM, but then I also cut my toenails, took some time to look for the new toothbrush that I knew I had, put the remaining purchases in their place, washed the other things that were in the kitchen, most of them mine that time around, and it was past 3:30 AM when I even started working on the salad… And after slicing the vegetables I noticed that the fingers from my right hand felt weird, and when I looked I saw that they were covered in some greenish stuff, which I later realized came from the cucumbers, since I used the worst for that salad, and I used that hand to hold the vegetables while slicing them, so it was a problem. And spending quite a few minutes struggling to wash that crap off did get rid of most of it, but not all of it, so I had to make do with my hand like that. And I ate dinner between 4:55 AM and 5:25 AM and got in bed at 6:25 AM. And the following night, after slicing the four breads which I had bought for dad and using more of those cucumbers, I ate dinner between 3:30 AM and 4:05 AM and got in bed at 5:25 AM.

Late in the evening of August 15, I took another nap, which ended up being longer than I thought, so it was past 1:50 AM when I got up, which led to eating dinner between 3:55 AM and 4:35 AM. Then, after getting up, I did the day’s squats, had lunch, did a load of laundry, which included my sheets, so hanging those to dry took a while, and a little after 8:45 PM I went out, with the regular recyclables and those with the deposit symbol, including a few of those that weren’t accepted before, since I meant to try them in the machine from the nearby Mega Image.
Well, that machine wasn’t working, so I continued to Carrefour, picking up a couple more recyclables on the way and then using that machine, though the one that was free when I got there didn’t accept cans of the regular size, so I put in everything except those cans and the recyclables which weren’t being accepted, then waited for the person who used the other machine to be done and put the cans in that one, which accepted them, though it obviously still wouldn’t accept those other recyclables, which I entered the store with, getting a piece of bread that was among the expiring products, a handful of onions, and two beets, the beets being cheaper than they had been at Kaufland a few days earlier, so I shouldn’t have bought those then, but I couldn’t have known. Either way, I also cashed in the vouchers received for the recyclables, once again having to use a regular checkout, since in that location just the sign stating that one self-checkout also accepted cash remained, but the machine was just like the others, so it didn’t.
Then I arranged the purchases in the backpack and picked up a couple more recyclables on the way to Kaufland, and a truck that was spraying against bugs passed by me on the way and despite trying to avoid it I still felt a few droplets on my face. And the machine from Kaufland was out of order, and I once again saw cleaning equipment when I cracked the door to the men’s room, so I used the toilet for disabled people, to pee as well, then I entered the store, definitely with the remaining recyclables and I’m pretty sure also with those purchases, though I’m not absolutely certain anymore, since I only wrote the notes about this evening days later. So I’m not sure of the time either, but it was probably getting close to 10:30 PM, or around 10:20 PM at best. Either way, when I went to the bakery area I saw discounts of 75%, so I got a few buns and then decided to make a few packages to give to homeless people, since I kept meaning to do so when I found good discounts again. And then I got a few breads for dad as well, after which I grabbed some kohlrabies that had a pretty good evening discount and a bundle of green onions, even if it was small and the price was quite high, without being marked as including any sort of discount, though it was somewhat lower than what the regular price would be. And on my way to the self-checkout I also grabbed some nicer pretzels that were among the expiring products and discounted by 70%, but just because they were crushed, not expiring.
At the self-checkout I started with my buns and the machine didn’t accept them as the correct product, so I had to call an employee, and when he came to override the error I told him that I had many more bakery products, and as I entered the rest he came back and said something about bakery products and some scales, but I couldn’t understand him and he walked away immediately, so I’m not sure what he meant. But the other bakery products were accepted without problems… Yet the kohlrabies weren’t, so I had to call him again, and it took a while before he came to override that error as well. So I was there for a while, and the closing announcement had come right after that employee had cleared the first error, so I then walked right out and arranged my purchases on one of the tables that are in front of the grill area… And on the other table there was a bag of cans, so I had a look through them, but none of the ones that I checked had the deposit symbol.
Then I picked the route that I thought was going to make it easy to find some homeless people, and it’d probably also be the shortest one back from there, normally, but I just saw one man who was sleeping on a bench as I passed by the hospital, so I left one of the three bags next to him, though after walking away I realized that it had been left in a position that’d have made it easy for it to be knocked over, with the contents being likely to fall out in that case, but going back to rearrange it would have been just too weird, so that was that. And then I crossed the road, spotted another person who might have been homeless right away, but just kept him in mind and walked back to the intersection, without noticing others, so I then went back and just as I walked past him and stopped to take out a second bag he was settling down to sleep, which made it absolutely clear that he was homeless, yet when I approached him with the bag, he seemed to mutter “no”, so I asked if he didn’t want it, but he didn’t say anything else, so I just left it next to him and walked away. And I still had one bag, so I took a slightly longer route back, hoping to spot one more homeless person, but I didn’t, being left with that bag. And I also picked up one or two recyclables while I was wandering around.
I got back just after 12:10 AM, ate a peach and a sweet pastry that I already had, took the leaves off the kohlrabies, placing them separately, and then I cleaned the litter box and went to shove a bag of trash in the overfilled chute. Then, after putting a few of the purchases in their place, I went to the bathroom a few minutes before 1:30 AM, and I’m quite sure that it wasn’t just to shower, but I’m not absolutely certain of it. Either way, I was done a little after 2:05 AM, then I put the remaining purchases in their place, sliced one of dad’s breads, and ate dinner between 4:05 AM and 5:15 AM, since I also looked something up on-line for my parents during that time, mostly focusing on that as I was about to finish eating, and then going to the kitchen and getting the breadcrumbs off the plate, 5:15 AM being when I finished that. And I got in bed at 5:35 AM.

The next day, after shaving and finally, finally, adding the last part of the last post in what became the series about that summer’s Dream Trek, I went out again, at 6:15 PM, taking those recyclables with the deposit symbol which I had picked up on the way to Kaufland and back, the remaining bag of bakery products that I wanted give away, and a candle. That candle obviously wasn’t for myself, since I wanted to light it at a church, but I ended up coming back with it, after passing by three and finding the gates closed each time, which struck me as odd at the time but which I have since seen is quite normal. And, while the main reason for going out actually was to find someone to give that third bag of bakery products to before they hardened, I ended up coming back with those as well, after one attempt to give them to an old woman who admittedly had a few large bags around her and said that she had enough, several times when I was uncertain whether a person was homeless or otherwise very poor or just looked or acted in a way that made me wrongly assume that they might be, which led to moving on each time, not wanting to risk to offend, and two moments when I pointedly moved along, past a beggar who was near the entrance to Mega Mall and made quite a show out of being disabled and a guy who was quite clearly homeless but had obviously inhaled something and also seemed to have his hand in his pants.
But I’m skipping ahead, so let me get back to the chronological order of things and say that, after picking up two more recyclables on the way, I used the machine from Kaufland, then put those bakery products and the bag which I had carried the recyclables in, even though it was empty, in a cabinet, washed my hands, and had a look in the store, ending up getting a lettuce with root that was discounted by 90%, even if it didn’t look good… And picking up an empty plastic bottle with the deposit symbol which I happened to find in the store. That made the fact that I had left that bag in the cabinet relevant, and unfortunate, since I didn’t really want to put it in another one, but I didn’t want to see what happened if I tried to just pay for the lettuce and then walk out with that bottle in my hand, so I eventually did put it in another bag, and in the backpack, then paid for the lettuce and cashed in the voucher received for the recyclables.
After retrieving what I had in the cabinet and moving that bottle into that bag, I continued to Carrefour, putting everything except the backpack, in which I had the empty bags and the candle, back in a cabinet when I got there, then just getting some more onions, taking my time to try to find a handful of better ones even if I had to stay right in the path of a powerful current of air that clearly came from the air conditioning system, though I couldn’t spot the actual source. Then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet and wondered where to go next, since I still wanted to give away those bakery products.
At first I started to go straight back, but when I found the area around the stadium closed, I decided to make a much longer detour than I had to, during which I also had a look in the larger Mega Image from Mihai Bravu, putting the purchases and those bakery products in a cabinet and initially meaning to use the machine for the few recyclables which I had picked up on the way, but then giving up on that idea when I saw that I’d have had to wait in line and would have still been left with something, since I had a can and a note stated that the machine wasn’t accepting cans at that moment. And I didn’t find anything interesting among the expiring products either, so I only wasted some time before retrieving what I had in the cabinet and walking out, after which I once again took a longer route back, which proved to be yet another waste of time. So, as I already mentioned, I ended up coming back with those bakery products… But I also came back with more recyclables, since I entered the nearby Mega Image as well, found that the machine still wasn’t working, walked out right away, without even checking the expiring products, but then I saw several recyclables in the trash can that’s in front of the entrance and took them, and after I arranged them in that bag a guy who had been drinking a beer on a nearby bench handed me the bottle, saying that he had no use for it, so I took that as well.
I got back around 9:15 PM, though I didn’t check the time just then. And dad had also just returned, having brought plenty of things from his mother, so we talked for a little while, during which time I also asked whether he could take those bakery products the following day and see whether he’ll find someone to give them to, and he agreed… Only to then forget to take them, so they hardened even more. But he did take them the following morning, and while I had initially decided to only count half of the value as given away, since I hadn’t actually given them away myself, I decided to not count any of that amount as given away when he said that he had also given 10 RON to the beggar that he had given that bag to, so about twice as much as those products would have cost if bought from a regular pastry place in the city, without any discounts, and almost 12 times more than I had actually spent on them… So I was feeling awful that he had given money… And struggling to not count that amount as having been spent on my behalf… Not that he ever does what I ask him to.
But, to return to that evening, I then slowly worked out how to arrange everything dad had brought in the fridge, eating a few fresh figs, a few plums, and a few pancakes, with jam and honey, while doing so. Then I also wrote and posted the placeholder for that week’s first post, did the day’s squats, put the lettuce and the onions in their place, washed what was in the kitchen, and finally ate lunch between 1:15 AM and 1:35 AM. I only went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and shower, after that, being done at 2:20 AM. And I ate dinner between 3:45 AM and 4:15 AM and got in bed at 5:40 AM… And after some five hours of sleep I couldn’t fall asleep again, and it felt like something was in my chest as well, which was a concern. Either way, I eventually got up.

The plan for August 20 was to go out again, since I hadn’t found that cheese the previous evening, but dad was going to mother and eventually also went to that Kaufland and found some, calling to let me know, so I still went out, after doing the day’s squats, but instead of a route that could have taken me to three Kaufland locations, I went to Obor, leaving at 5:10 PM and taking those things that I take to Kaufland and a few more recyclables with the deposit symbol, and picking up one more from the garbage room and a few more on the way. Then I looked for the machine from that mall, having never done so before, and when I found it the woman who was using the only one that was working, the other side being stopped, couldn’t get it to accept two plastic bottles with a small bar code, so after telling her what the problem was I asked whether she’d let me try it, and I got the machine to accept the first bottle, but when she couldn’t get the second one to work I didn’t offer again and she didn’t ask, just complaining about Carrefour’s recycling machines and saying that she’ll take the rest to Kaufland. Then I put in my recyclables, and as I was about to leave the parking lot I grabbed another one, but when I turned to look I saw that a line was forming at the machine, so I didn’t go back to put that in as well.
After washing my hands, I put the bag with that bottle and those other things that I was going to take to Kaufland in a cabinet and checked Carrefour, finding quite a number of nice sweets among the expiring products, but I obviously couldn’t get any, since dad had brought plenty the previous days, and I didn’t find anything else to get either, so I just cashed in those vouchers received for the recyclables, then retrieved the bag and picked up another recyclable just after walking out of that mall.
Since there was quite a line at Kaufland’s machines, I put those other things in what may be the appropriate bin, then entered the store with those two bottles and got a number of expiring products, all but some cheese for dad, and while the chicken parts were discounted by 50%, the other products had a 65% discount. And I was uncertain about that cheese still being good, so I had a look and then moved on, yet after an older man got one, I ended up deciding to get the other after all, even if it looked worse than that first one. Either way, I then struggled to put the bags of chicken parts into a small bag, since blood was seeping out, and after finally managing it and walking away, a woman chased after me, tapped me on the shoulder, and wanted to hand me a plastic bag from the store, saying that she had seen me struggling, but I told her that I had more in my backpack if I wanted to use them and moved on, and she just let that bag drop on the floor… And the hand scanner from the self-checkout machine that I used wasn’t working, which made scanning those products a little trickier, especially since I was trying to avoid letting blood from those chicken parts drip around there. But I managed, then took some time to arrange the purchases, leaving those chicken parts in a bag and putting everything else in the backpack, and then I washed my hands again.
I then continued to Penny, picking up another recyclable on the way and putting all three in the machine from there before putting the bag with the chicken parts in a cabinet, entering with the backpack, and getting something else for dad, using the voucher received for the recyclables when I paid. Then I retrieved that bag, added those new purchases in the backpack, and also went to Auchan, seeing no cabinets even though they used to have them at that location, entering with everything, and initially just meaning to look for water for dad, but then finding that their cheap sour cream was in stock and taking one, to mix with that cheese, the regular price remaining that surprisingly good one, and deciding to get some tea for myself as well, once again at the regular price. And I found the water as well, also using the small amount that was on the store card when I paid.
After struggling to put the pack of water and the chicken parts in the large backpack, which I had also taken with me, and put it on, with the small backpack worn in front, I made my way back, picking up some more recyclables and otherwise just pushing on even if it was a struggle to walk back from there like that, the problem being not just the weight, but also that the straps of the backpacks were digging into me, the pain becoming increasingly concerning, and when I got back I saw that I even had a couple of scrapes, probably where the straps of the large backpack, which are uncomfortable on their own, had pressed down on the rope straps of the other one, since I had put that one on so its straps would be under those other ones in order to prevent them from sliding off, as they otherwise tend to do.
I got back a little after 9:20 PM, with 20.5 kg. Then I put the purchases in their place and rearranged a lot in the fridge, in order to make room for everything and also leave a large enough spot for a plate, so dad would be able to put that cheese there when he’d get back. I also ate watermelon during that time, and wondered whether I should stick to the original plan of making mamaliga that evening or give up on it in order to shave my head before showering, eventually deciding to stick to the original plan after all, so I ate something sweet as well, got to work on that mamaliga, and also checked that cheese, finding what looked like a little mold on some parts of it, and others that didn’t look quite right either, so I removed those bits that seemed moldy, put much of what seemed otherwise questionable in the mamaliga, and microwaved the rest before mixing it with the sour cream and putting the mix in a jar. And if the plan would have been to wash after finishing the mamaliga, leaving the pot covered while I did so, I wasn’t even done with the salad by the time I finished it, so I left that pot covered while I finished making the salad and then ended up eating in the kitchen, to start eating directly, while I was still working on peeling off what was stuck on the pot, and manage to finish at 3:40 AM. Then, after sending dad an e-mail, I finally went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and wash, at 4 AM, being done just before 4:40 AM and getting in bed at 5:20 AM.

After all of that mamaliga eaten quickly, and all of the tea drank while working on it and the watermelon which I had also eaten in the evening, I had to keep getting up to pee, and when I got up, on top of pretty much every muscle aching, my left eye was red and itchy and watery, though at least the eye seemed to recover quickly. But at night the kitchen light bulb flickered badly again, after being quite fine for a couple of months… And when I got back to my room to eat dinner a deep pain appeared in my left ankle, and while it largely went away moments later, it was a concern, as was the fact that it once again felt like there was something in my chest. And, unrelated to this, after eating dinner my mood just crashed, I was just about whimpering, and I ended up getting in bed at 5:25 AM.

On the morning of August 23, I got in bed at 5:20 AM. Then, after getting up, I did the day’s squats, ate lunch, installed and started Siege of Avalon, and left just before 8 PM, with the recyclables with the deposit symbol, including three that weren’t going to be accepted by machines. And I picked up a couple more, and just as I was reaching the Mega Image that’s next to Tei, two guys who were drinking beer there handed me their cans, and when I asked if they weren’t going to put them in themselves they said no, so I thanked them, then used the machine from that Mega Image, stopping at one point, in order to get two separate vouchers, but having the machine say that it was full when I just had one more left, not counting those three that weren’t going to be accepted. And two employees got there just then, but another person was with them and they seemed to be talking about a problem with a voucher, and I didn’t have time to wait, wanting to buy some things from Tei before it closed, so I walked away.
After putting the bags with what I had left in a cabinet, I grabbed what I wanted and didn’t need to ask for, that supplement for joints and some vitamin C, both of them being on sale and just one last one of that vitamin C being left, so I guess that I got there just in time, but even though the price labels did list the discounted price, I wanted to make sure and the fact that the full price showed up in both cases when I scanned the products made me wary, so I took pictures of those price labels and told the cashier that the products should be on sale, but the correct prices applied, so there was no problem… Unless you count the fact that I realized at that point, when she asked whether I had 0.50 RON, that I had forgotten to take any coins. But she could give me one as change, and then I moved on to the other side, the line being short, so I could quickly get the iron as well, once again not being asked for the prescription, and that 15% discount that always applied to it even if it’s not listed on-line still applied… Which would have once again required some coins, and when I told the cashier that I didn’t have small ones she said that she didn’t have many either, and just gave me another 0.50 RON one as change, even if it should have been less. And then, after putting those purchases in a bag and retrieving what I had in the cabinet, I managed to walk out just before the entrance was locked, stopping outside in order to put that bag in the backpack. Then I put that last bottle in the machine, which was working again at that point, and cashed in the vouchers at that Mega Image, entering with everything. And I also entered the Mega Image that’s next to the farmers’ market with everything, having a quick look before walking out.
Since I saw a guy throw a plastic bottle in a recycling bin from Mega Mall, I looked in it and took it, as well as two others, so I went to that machine as well, and as I was waiting in line a guy who was using it tried to put in a couple of those bottles with the small bar codes and then meant to give up on them, so I tried to teach him how to make them work and another guy, who had a full cart, also said something, but that guy said that he’ll just give me those bottles since he gets annoyed, so I meant to just step over and put them in for him, but as I was setting my recyclables down in order to do so, that other guy stepped in and did it, and since the person who was using the other machine was done at that point, I went around him and used it, which made him complain that I had cut in, but I said that I just had those three, put them in quickly and then walked away, going to the information desk, asking what to do about those three plastic bottles that weren’t being accepted and being given the money for them after showing that they had the symbol.
When I entered the store, with everything, I was mainly looking for cheap deodorants and shaving foam for dad and just one nice Gala apple for myself, but Carrefour does have a partnership with the bookstore that I had glanced in on August 5, looking for a book for mother, and when I got to that area I saw that there was a 20% discount on books by Romanian authors and actually found one last copy of that book, but the full price was higher than it was at that bookstore, where I had seen that previous time that the 20% discount applied if you had a store card, so I wondered whether it would still apply, in which case I had to decide whether I’ll make one, so I put that copy back and dashed to the location of that bookstore from that mall, but that book was no longer marked as having that discount there, so I returned to Carrefour and grabbed that copy again, along with the other things, including a full pack of deodorants that were shockingly cheap even at full price, and those days 30% of the value of deodorants became a voucher that could be used for future purchases. I still had to use a regular checkout, no self-checkout from that location accepting cash, but I could also use the voucher received for the recyclables and the one for the deodorants was printed on the receipt, so everything was fine.
The closing announcement came either while I was still being checked out or as soon as I stepped away, but I still took a little time to arrange the purchases, then picked up another recyclable on the way to Kaufland and put it in the machine from there, after which I put the bag in a cabinet, washed my hands, and entered the store, with the backpack, at 10:30 PM. However, I didn’t see any evening discounts for fruits and vegetables, so I just got some buns, including one nicer one, after using a price checker to check the ingredients. I also used that to scan the label for a kind of bread, but that had a regular discount those days and no additional evening discount applied, so I didn’t get any. And I didn’t find anything else to get either, so I eventually also used the voucher received for that recyclable when I paid, and found that some coins were already in the machine. And then I grabbed a catalog for the following week and had a quick look through it before retrieving the bag from the cabinet and arranging the purchases again, the closing announcement coming while I was doing that. And I picked up some more recyclables on the way back… And also a spiderweb, which made me flail around in what was probably a rather funny manner.
I got back a couple of minutes after 11:30 PM, put the purchases in their place, washed what was in the kitchen, ate watermelon and some small doughnuts, with added jam, and went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and wash, a couple of minutes after 1:30 AM… And I was on the toilet when I realized that my right index finger hurt a fair bit and I couldn’t figure out why. Either way, I was done a couple of minutes before 2:30 AM, but I then washed the other things that had appeared in the kitchen and cleaned a little, so it was past 3 AM when I even started working on the salad, and I ate dinner between 4:10 AM and 4:35 AM. I got in bed at 5:50 AM, by which point that finger was hurting even worse, and it continued to do so when I got up, and it was slightly swollen as well, so I did my best to spare it the following day and the pain gradually subsided, but I continued to feel it whenever I touched a certain spot for a long time.

On the morning of August 26, I decided to poke around Siege of Avalon just a little more before getting ready for bed, but ended up doing so for some ten minutes longer than planned, so it was past 5:20 AM when I got in bed. Then, after getting up, I did the day’s squats, made pasta, ate lunch, took a supplement that I wanted to try, to see whether I’ll be able to use it for the long run, and left at 8:30 PM, taking the recyclables with the deposit symbol… And then I realized that I had left the pasta on the balcony to cool, and it couldn’t stay there until I’ll get back, so I turned around when I was getting to the building entrance and put it in the fridge, so I actually left a few minutes after 8:30 PM.
After picking up another recyclable on the way to Carrefour, I put all of them in the machine, just grabbed a piece of bread that was among the expiring products and, since I still had to use a regular checkout in that location, handed the cashier the 4.50 RON voucher received for the recyclables and 1 RON and told her to hold on to the 0.50 RON coin, for that piece of bread, so she should have just given me a 5 RON bill, but at first she ignored the voucher and the bill, trying to scan the bread, and when it didn’t work she tried to enter the bar code, and when that also didn’t work she peeled off the discount sticker, tried the regular bar code, told me that it worked, and asked if I didn’t want it at the full price! So I obviously told her to forget it and just give me the money for the voucher, but then she called for help, and when a coworker came she asked him how to do that, and after he told her, instead of taking my bill and handing me 5.50 RON, she handed me back my bill and 4.50 RON, and then didn’t know what to do with the voucher and the receipt either, so that coworker had to tell her to hold on to them. And then she told him about the bread as well, and I said again that, if it didn’t work, I’ll just leave it, but the guy managed to get it to work, at which point I told her that I had tried to make things simple but everything just got complicated and she said that she couldn’t have made them any simpler! And then I also asked why did that location no longer have self-checkouts that accept cash, but she said that she didn’t know… Not that I expected her to know anything.
After putting the bread in the backpack, I continued to Kaufland, peeing and washing my hands and entering the store, with the backpack, at 9:50 PM. The bakery discounts of 50% were already listed, but I wasn’t interested, so after a quick look I grabbed a few expiring products and started to look at the fruits and vegetables that had good evening discounts. However, when it was announced that bakery products were discounted by 75%, I went back there and, even though I had started digging through some vegetables and didn’t use gloves, I grabbed some more things that I meant to give to homeless people, splitting them into two bags, after scanning a couple of labels in order to confirm those discounts. And I hadn’t seen one of the products before, so I took a picture of the label, to be sure that I’ll remember what to look for at the self-checkout, before returning to the fruits and vegetables, to make use of a few great evening discounts.
Well, the first problem at the self-checkout was that it asked for an employee when I tried to scan one of the expiring products, so I gestured to the one who was next to me and told her that I won’t take it if it won’t work, so she took it away… And then I couldn’t find that new bakery product either, and when another employee tried to help she couldn’t find it while browsing the product categories either, though she kept insisting that it must be some other product in that case, though it didn’t look like it and I even showed her that picture. And when I asked whether there was a search function she said that there wasn’t, and that I couldn’t buy that product if it wasn’t listed. And then she just walked away, so I ended up talking to her back when I asked her to take it away in that case, so I’ll at least be able to buy the other product that was in that same bag. But it turned out that it was a good thing that she didn’t take it away, because I was sure that a search function for bakery products did exist, even if they don’t show up if you use the main search function, and I quickly found it and used it to find that product, letting her know as well… At which point she asked where had I found it and whether I had used the search… Which she had just told me didn’t exist… Either way, I did have to call her over again, since I had accidentally only entered that product even though I had that other one in that same bag, so she came over to add it, allowing me to place the bag on the scales. And I was at the self-checkout, probably searching for that product, when the closing announcement came.
After arranging the purchases, I walked out just after 11:10 PM and took a longer route back, in order to get to a homeless person which I had seen on the way there. And I ended up giving the second bag, which actually was that one with that new product, to that man, after leaving the first one next to another one who was sleeping on a bench. And, while I wasn’t sure of the exact amount which I still meant to give away when I grabbed those products, thinking that it was probably slightly higher than the total, when I got back I noticed that the total was exactly the remaining amount. Well, 0.01 RON more, but I seem to remember rounding down when I had set the initial amount, according to some poor run times, though I’m not absolutely certain which those were anymore. Either way, I also picked up a few more recyclables on the way back… And just after I passed by this nearby Mega Image, an older woman held out her hand, tried to block my way, asked me to give her something, and when I tried to just dodge around her she even tried to grab my arm and then my backpack! She did so weakly, so I only felt her hand while walking away, without having to actually pull away, but I found myself just furious with her, especially after I had given away those things, and did so just at a time when I had very little money left and didn’t quite know when I was going to get more from dad.
When I got back, a little after 11:50 PM, I was thinking that I should have turned around and asked her whether she thought that grabbing people would make anyone give her anything, other than perhaps a beating, but I calmed down soon enough and, after cleaning the litter box, I went to drop a bag of trash down the chute. Then I ate the few old plums that I had left and yogurt with some expired bagels, put the few other purchases in their place, leaving the Bianca peppers and that piece of bread out, and went to the bathroom a few minutes after 1 AM, to use the toilet and take a shower with water that was basically cold. I was done at 1:50 AM, but then I cut all of my nails, getting back in the kitchen when it was almost 2:10 AM, and then I put the peppers in their place as well, ending up eating dinner between 4 AM and 4:30 AM. And I did use that piece of bread, which was definitely sweet, even though the ingredients didn’t list any sugar or sweeteners and the nutritional information listed 0.25% sugars, so I wonder whether it even was what was written on that label, not that it’d be the first time when Carrefour “forgets” to list the sugar or sweeteners, and there were even times when the listed ingredients were completely wrong. Either way, there were no visits recorded that day… And dad had sent me an e-mail to say that he was likely to be back at 5:20 AM, so I waited for him, ending up getting in bed when it was almost 5:50 AM, since he actually got back at 5:35 AM and we talked a little.

On the evening of August 31, I again saw suspicious comments when checking HonestGamers, and after sending the founder a message about it I closed the browser and meant to check running processes, only to see that the computer was sluggish and it was gathering information about an error, and then I realized that the error was that EAM had crashed! That’s the first time that ever happened, and while it restarted as soon as the system finished writing the dump file, that was a huge problem. So I rebooted, only then realizing that I should have checked startup tasks before…
Everything seemed fine when the system restarted, the one thing that caught my attention being that Comodo Firewall reported 4.7 MB downloaded from 34.104.35.123 by svchost.exe, but no idea whether that was normal or not. Otherwise, I checked the registry for startup entries, checked processes and services, looked through logs, also trying to match starting services with those from the previous reboot, also checked whether Comodo had noticed anything and not seeing anything there either, and no documents or other files appeared changed, and I also backed up the “safe” partition in that case, and also fully scanned the system, nothing being found. And I also sent a message to the HonestGamers Facebook page about those comments and was told that nothing seemed to be in them except what’s visible, while in case of EAM I sent an e-mail to support, asking whether they could investigate the crash and the site, but the reply just told me that Windows 7 was no longer supported and strongly advised me to upgrade, and said that if I had concerns about the system being compromised I should back up my important data and make a clean reinstall, so I described what I did to check that things were fine after the reboot and asked again what I should send them so they could investigate the crash, and they eventually did, or at least said so, and said that it was a memory access violation and there was no sign of anything malicious.
But that was later and, needless to say, I was quite freaked out at that point… And even though I had brought dinner to my room some minutes before 3 AM, I forgot to take a first bite, looking up some more things, so I actually started eating dinner right at 3 AM, and still looking things up almost made me fail to finish at 3:40 AM, but I realized it and did finish on time. But then I once again decided to play some more Siege of Avalon before going to bed and did so a little too long, ending up getting in bed at 5:20 AM.

It’s been five months since the previous post from this series, so it’s about time for another. And, while none of the included bands are new finds at all, it is the right time, or at least just about the last appropriate time, to include Against Myself in such a post, because I noticed that they announced back in March that they’re splitting up, but they have a last concert scheduled for August. And they even have a song released during the past year, Act II – Reflections, so I must list it as the first pick, even if there are some growls in there. And those growls are coming from their current vocalist, so I initially meant to go way back for the second pick, but I couldn’t do that when this vocalist just sounds so much better, at least when she doesn’t growl, and since I quickly found a song without growls, I’ll go with that one, The Tempest, for the second pick. So what I have to say is that they lacked a fair bit of strength in their earlier years, but they gained it with this vocalist, and they seemed to gain confidence, polish and complexity as well, the problem being that they also “gained” those growls.

The next band is Glasya and they actually have an album released within the last year, so my first pick, Hunt of the Haunted, is from it, while for the older song I’ll go with From Enemy to Hero. Their vocalist is really good, but they seem to regularly feature others alongside her, which is one thing that leads to plenty of variety between the songs, though not the only one. My problem with it is that some of those other vocalists add some growls, which also happens on Hunt of the Haunted, but on that one they’re brief and actually don’t bother me. And on From Enemy to Hero there are no growls and the pairing of voices works out really well.

On the other hand, I stretched things when it comes to Visionatica, because their most recent album was released over a year ago, though at least it was in 2025. But I’ll list the two picks the other way around, starting with their first song, She Wolf. From that album from 2025 I’ll go with Sympathy for the Devil, which seems all right, but something struck me as weird about the other songs that were officially posted, their vocalist seeming to have gotten worse and quite clearly wanting something different… And that probably wasn’t just an impression, since she decided to leave the band since then. But they do continue, with a new vocalist, so let’s see what the future will bring.

As I said last year, this is the last July 12 before the time spent suffering after Andra will be more than half of my life, so I guess it’s sort of a milestone. Of course, the day the relationship started is only an anniversary if you stay together, but memories are still mine to keep, so it counts. And this was part of the reason why I even went out today, despite having gone out last evening as well and getting in bed at 7:10 AM, because I wanted to get some kashkaval and make kashkaval pane, which I still associate with that trip we took together, which was the reason why we actually met. But I wanted to get that from Penny, where there were supposed to be packs of 300 grams at a good price, and I ended up not even going there anymore, so I don’t even have that. But it was my choice, and I had been worried that I might do a poor job of it, so finding some expiring vegan “schnitzel” in Carrefour solved the problem, offering something that may at least look somewhat similar, even if it has nothing in common inside, and sparing me the need to cook it and the risk of messing it up, especially on this day.
And now that I said that, I guess I might as well write about all of today here, even if it does seem wrong to put such odds and ends into these posts. So I’ll start with the fact that I slept well until just after noon, but after getting up to pee at that point, I just couldn’t get back to sleep and was even about to give up when, after a long time, it finally seemed that I might have a chance, and I caught two or three naps before getting up, at 2:40 PM, though I really couldn’t say how long they were. And I went out at 5 PM, after doing the day’s squats, taking the recyclables with the deposit symbol and grabbing some more, most of them from that mall, before putting them in the machine from Carrefour. And then I found that thing among the expiring products and also got two things for dad, one of them also expiring and at half price, and a cabbage and a watermelon, which is the first one I buy this year, though I already ate some, brought by my parents. And dad actually called while I was digging through the watermelons. Either way, I also used the voucher received for the recyclables, then struggled to get the cabbage and the watermelon in the backpack, washed my hands, and decided against going to Penny anymore, as I said. So I made my way back, grabbing a few more recyclables, plus one that didn’t have the symbol but was of the right size for a label that I still had, so I placed it on it. And I put all of them in the machine from the nearby Mega Image, seeing that I could open it myself and retrieve the voucher when it remained inside, and then I cashed it and the one I had been left with from yesterday.
I got back at 7:10 PM, with less than 12 kg but having struggled a fair bit with the watermelon pressing against my back and those rope straps digging into my shoulders. But, after cleaning the litter box and going to drop a small bag of trash down the chute, at least it was early enough to also be able to wash before the Supercup match, which started at 8:30 PM and which was why I didn’t stay out later or check Kaufland at all, because I wanted to be done with everything, including lunch, by the end of the match, to be able to focus on writing this after it. And I really don’t see how that could have happened if I’d have had to cook, even if kashkaval pane should be easy, in theory, and I did make some before, albeit for dad… Or mostly for him, since I said that I had bought those pieces of kashaval for him and kept my word, but that was last year and I can’t recall whether he actually ate all of them of left one for a few days and I ended up eating it after all. Either way, I also ate some of that watermelon and it does indeed seem to not be fully ripe yet, which was the impression I got for all of those that were there, but let’s see how the rest of it will be.

Now that I got that out of the way, I’m looking at last year’s post again and see that I was saying that I had two incomplete posts, the one about that year’s half marathon still being basically just a placeholder and the one about that year’s Dream Trek skipping over the actual run… And the sad thing is that, while the one about the Dream Trek was finally finished in January, the one about the half marathon remains untouched even now, and I may need to admit that I’ll never write it, and perhaps just drop the quick notes that I have in there as they are, to at least have that. But at least earlier this week I did manage to finish the post about this year’s half marathon. The one about the Dream Trek doesn’t exist at all, however, though I did expand the few things I scribbled on a piece of paper into a page and a half of notes, so I have plenty to base that post on when I’ll finally get around to it… The question being when that will be, especially since I don’t write about runs out of order, so I’m stuck at that point and can’t add the rest even if it’s already written. But I will mention that this week’s run was the first decent one in a long time, since I got back to 10 km after the Dream Trek and the time was 47:42.60, making it the first one below 48 minutes since November and the best since October. Admittedly, I didn’t run 10 km between the end of January and the morning run done on the week of the half marathon, but that was because I was awfully slow and decided to at least be slow on longer distances.

Back on what really should be this post’s topic, I didn’t really find anything new this year either, still only professional stuff and only a couple more mentions even from that point of view, plus the confirmation that she’s still there. So I’ll once again say that maybe no news, or at least no significant news, is good news, but that’s one big “maybe” and what’d matter for me won’t be noticeable in those things. And, otherwise, I do still wonder if she may at least sometimes remember. Not the date, I guess, especially since she wasn’t remembering such things even back then, but the time together, what we had, and in a good way, not with hate or just the negative aspects. Probably not… But it can happen in my mind. What else do I have, after all this time? I mean, this September 27 will mark 21 years since she left, and the point when I’d have spent more than half my life suffering after her will come earlier that month. Unless a miracle will happen by then, of course, or unless I’ll die first, with the latter prospect being more and more disappointing as time passes. But that’s how it was all along, and I’ll keep saying that if I could go back and do or say something after she left, or right after she got back and I was being kicked out, when I was going through ways to end it, it’d be to grow a pair and do it, or just push myself directly if I could, because that was when it made some sense and when the raw pain which hadn’t scabbed over might have just been enough to overpower my cowardice. Because, as I saw it said once, he who thinks of suicide proves that he’s a coward, he who committed suicide proved that he was brave. And things only got worse ever since, and the only thing that could make it worth it would be getting back together and things actually working wonderfully between us, with me as I am… Which would be impossible even if we somehow would get back together…

I just learned that this is apparently the Week of Visibility for Non-Monogamy, and in a way it’s rather fitting, from a personal point of view, that this year it ends on July 12. But July 12 is a topic for July 12, so let me move on and say that the event seems to have existed in this form since 2024, after launching as a single day in 2023, and in a way it is an answer with a wider scope to Polyamory Day, which was apparently launched back in 2017 and is on November 23 each year, not that I knew of that either until now. Or at least I think I didn’t, though I guess there is a small chance that I have seen something about it at some point but forgot by now, not that it matters either way. And there does also seem to be a Polyamory Pride Day that’s supposed to be part of Pride Month, on June 11 it would seem, though I’m not finding sources that I’d consider to be “official” that confirm the exact date… And I can’t say that I ever noticed polyamory, or non-monogamy in general, being included in Pride events, though it really should be.
Then again, it’s not even illegal, not to mention socially unacceptable or even questionable, to discriminate based on relationship model, so the need for such efforts is greater than that for efforts in support of non-heterosexuality, at least in the more or less developed world, but at the same time it comes with risks that may understandably make those who did gain a fair degree of legal protection and social acceptance wary of the association. Plus that there is the argument that one’s relationship model is a choice, or at least more of a choice than their sexual orientation, which is fair to some extent, though negating what is right for you in such a crucial part of life is terribly difficult and, in my view, just as wrong regardless of the specific aspect in question.
Either way, my personal interest, if you want to use that term for what I think and feel is right, is being open to polyamory. Not specifically seeking multiple partners but being open to and prepared for the fact that you may fall in love with someone else while already in a romantic relationship and that this doesn’t in any way mean that you stop loving your current partner(s), much less that you need to leave them or choose between them and the new love, so you can end up having romantic relationships with up to a few different people at the same time, and perhaps be open to romantic or sexual activities with close friends as well, as long as all those involved know about it and agree and arrangements are made that everyone can be content with. And this relationship model is probably one that’s much more likely to be seen as potentially acceptable by those willing to at least consider the notion than other kinds of non-monogamy, which may lead to the same kind of wariness to associate with the larger umbrella of non-monogamy as that probably experienced by non-heterosexuals when it comes to non-monogamy, and I admit that I’d personally find it difficult to argue in favor of some of those other models, but that’s not the correct attitude and complete personal agreement isn’t necessary, what needs to be stressed being that, as long as all those involved know the specifics and give their informed consent for it all, different relationship models are exactly that, different, not good or bad, not better or worse.
Now that I check, I see that the last time I even mentioned the term “polyamory” was back in July of 2011, the last time I mentioned it in a post that wasn’t entirely personal was in 2009, and the last time I wrote specifically about this was in 2007… And that post states that I planned to continue at a later time, and in fact the post that should have continued that series has been in my drafts all this time… But all it contains is the title and a link to the previous ones. And while there are a few more recent posts if I also look for “polyamorous”, from 2019, 2016, 2012, or in October of 2011, those are just passing mentions. More on topic is the quick review for Sex at Dawn, also from 2019, where I mentioned the criticism of serial monogamy and enforced exclusivity. But I do find myself surprised by how the topic seems to have just vanished off my radar for so long despite how strongly I feel about it… But, then again, my last post specifically about relationships is also from October of 2011, so this should at least count for something, even if it’s not much. And I guess it proves that the event actually worked as intended in my case, making the topic “visible” again in my own mind.

Full disclosure: I received this book through a giveaway on The StoryGraph. This has in no way influenced the opinions expressed in this review.

I must say that The Ordinary Bruja is a book of very different parts, so if I’m to start with the good I must skip well ahead, the parts where it shines being those that take place under the hill. There are some more good moments here and there and the writing shows promise all along, but that’s where it actually delivers. One reason is probably that the fantasy elements can run loose there, no longer being confined in any way by the contemporary setting, but the differences go well beyond what may be explained by that, so it may also be a matter of more attention being paid to those chapters, and maybe of the author feeling more comfortable depicting a powerful, collected, determined Marisol who’s fighting back and fulfilling the mission thrust upon her.

It takes a while to get there, however, and the earlier parts may be somewhat difficult to get through. The fact that it’s a pretty light read overall helps with that, and being a coming of age story that’s very well anchored in the present times, including characters glued to their smartphones and the way in which social networks are currently used, or misused, may make it work better for a teen or young adult audience. But it may hit too close to home for some, perhaps most notably in the parts about bullying, and I was starting to feel awkward wondering when, or whether, all of that will be over and done with, modern settings being something that I’d much rather stay away from in general.
Admittedly, that may be a matter of preference, and perhaps of having some years, or maybe even a decade or two, too many, but I don’t think that can also explain the issues I have with Marisol’s denial phase. True, I remember taking issue with how strongly some characters denied the supernatural elements despite the evidence the few other times I read urban fantasy, but here the denial of magic is mixed with the denial of feelings and both are just overdone, drag on too long, are emphasized too much… The later lasts even longer but nevertheless lacks the impact it should have, and then makes for such a missed opportunity for emotionally charged moments that was simply ignored, while in case of the former an additional issue is the overblown persistence of the magic against it, when something like this should probably develop more gradually and subtly.
Then again, there’s simply too much magic and it’s too visible, too obviously powerful, for such a contemporary, realistic setting. Considering the quality of the parts where it can truly be unfettered, it makes some sense, but it requires a strange kind of suspension of disbelief, especially when the few minor characters that happen to be mentioned and the general public that you have to assume exists don’t seem to take note. That may be explained to some extent by the fact that what’s meant to be a series spanning generations begins with the end of the story, which is actually specified in the afterword, but when you just read this book, which is the only one that currently exists anyway, it’s quite jarring.
Actually, speaking of the fact that the following books in the planned series are apparently supposed to go back and depict what happened before, how things got to this point, it strikes me as the sort of thing to do when readers are already sufficiently invested to desire the details, to want to know just how things happened when they already know what happened and the final outcome. And, to put it bluntly, I’m not. And I don’t see how many could be after a single book, and a relatively light one at that, at least if we’re talking about being interested in the story and the action in itself and not of any mental links one may make.
On that note, I recognize that the use of Spanglish makes sense in that setting and for those characters, and most probably also for the primary target audience, who’ll find many more aspects to relate to as well, but for someone who doesn’t directly relate to the main character for personal and quite specific reasons, it just makes some things incomprehensible because of one crucial flaw: There are no translations. Or, all right, sometimes the translation appears right after the bit that’s in Spanish, but often it doesn’t, and sometimes it may even be difficult to tell, so I quickly gave up. I could have probably figured out most of it if I tried, and anything else would have just required copying the word or phrase into a translator, but the reasonable thing to do, if the author cared for readers who are outside that target niche, would have been to add footnotes to translate each of those bits. So, if she doesn’t care, I decided that I won’t either.
And, to finish with some odds and ends, it was rather strange to see that “playlist” at the end, but I did look up all of the songs, finding a few that were pretty nice, but plenty that I couldn’t even get myself to listen to for more than a matter of seconds, so I guess it’s another matter of different tastes. And seeing one listed out of position and another appearing before the chapter number and title instead of after makes me think that the section was added in a hurry, since the editing is otherwise very good… Or nearly so, which actually made it stand out when I spotted something, like using “condensation” instead of condescension, a “Kiar” instead of Kia, and maybe a spot where a “them” may probably indicate changing the idea mid-sentence.

Now, I focus on the negatives, so it may not look like it after all of the complaints listed above, but the truth is that The Ordinary Bruja shows promise and has some parts that can really pull you in. But it’s quite obviously mainly meant for a specific target audience, for people who can directly relate to the main character, though a wider range of teens and young adults may possibly also get more from it, even if certain issues that are brought up may hit too close to home. For the rest of us, it can be read relatively easily, in a detached manner, with a focus on the parts that take place under the hill and a few other better moments, though small changes like the addition of footnotes for the Spanglish would be needed. The contrasting issues of the overdone denial phase and the magic that is too obvious for a contemporary setting would be harder to fix, however, and that also goes for the lack of emotional impact of the romance.

Rating: 3/5