Cav's Place

The previous day I stayed in bed until 3 PM but woke up countless times, so any sleep I got after the first few hours was made up of a string of short naps. Then, in the evening, I only got another half an hour or so, if that, but at least got just about ready and also went to the toilet. So, on the morning of March 26, I could actually get in bed by 4:20 AM and get up when the alarm rang, at 6:30 AM. Then I had an apple, a sweet pastry, and yogurt with cereals and almonds, finished getting ready, cleaned the litter box, brushed my teeth, put on the hoodie, since otherwise I was again going in the clothes I was wearing inside and hadn’t changed into pajamas when I went to bed, just so I won’t need to change again, and left when it was close to 7:55 AM.
With the meeting place being Victory Square, I had to go to the nearer metro station, getting there at 8 AM, after jogging again… And needing to wait for eight minutes for the next metro, after one just left as I entered the station. So that effort was wasted, but what made it slightly less frustrating was that I had reached the street just when the light turned green, so being just a little faster wouldn’t have helped. But we had been told to be at the meeting place by 8:25 AM and I was there at 8:20 AM, so it was fine… And that guy who ran after the bus a week earlier was on the same metro, and as we were gathered in front of the no less than six buses I told him it seemed he didn’t have to run again that day and he said he had only arrived a minute or so earlier, but went to the park, to pee, thinking he had time and not feeling comfortable getting on the bus without doing that first, then saw the buses leaving when he was across the road and had to run to catch one.
After leaving at 8:50 AM, it was a little after 9:45 AM when we got there and it seemed like we were rather late. We had been told that our group was in the second series, and many others had arrived in other ways, the organizers talking of over 1000 participants and six buses meaning just under 300 people even if they’d have been full, which wasn’t the case, about a third of the seats in the one I was in, including the one next to me, being empty for example, but seeing so many people already gathered gave a sense of urgency to filling and signing the papers I still had to sign after stepping off the bus, since they hadn’t reached me during the trip. And that feeling was proven correct, the speeches already starting by the time I could start picking up my kit, and adding the fact that I was rushing to being confused about how it should work in the first place meant that I don’t even know whether some sort of breakfast was available, and I also missed getting another hat. Gloves were on the first table and I was given a pair, in a closed bag, so I know that they were new, but after the way my hands ended up looking made me worry about having possibly caught some fungus or some other similar problem from the gloves used the week before, I had taken a pair of latex gloves as well and put those on first, before the gardening ones, and that actually protected my hands a fair bit better in general. But, returning to those first moments, the only other thing I wanted was another hat, yet after deciding to skip the other tables I saw, already having the items that were given there and not needing any more, I somehow completely missed that last one, where it seems that the hats were offered, in my rush to join the others when the group picture was announced.
The area I was assigned to was the last one that time around, so it took a while to walk there… And if at first I was trying to catch up to others, as those peeled off to their own assigned areas I eventually found myself alone and therefore the first to reach it. So I waited a little for everyone else to gather, then we were given the usual instructions and it was a little after 10:10 AM when we actually started working. We were told to work in pairs, but I didn’t even try to look for a potential teammate before picking a row and trying to see how the ground was, and after seeing that I could dig quite well I just kept working and nobody asked to join me either.
At first I meant to take a break after ten trees, but got to that point rather early and one of the students helping the organizers plan and manage the operation was there around that time as well, talking to one of the guys working next to me, and he seemed to know his field, of forestry and agriculture, well enough to offer some interesting information, so I also asked a couple of questions and that was another reason to not want to leave just then, so I set 15 trees as the new target and ended up taking my break at 11:55 AM, after planting that many.
After peeing, I went to take a tea and also grabbed two packs of biscuits, drinking the tea and then using the drinking fountain that was in that area to wash my hands better before eating one of the packs of biscuits. I also spotted the hats at that point, and went to that table to ask whether those were also supposed to be in the kit and say that I hadn’t gotten one, but those who were there pointed out that I had it on my head, and when I said that the one I had was from three years ago, or actually two and a half, they said those were the same and were clearly reluctant to give me one of the few that were left, probably still thinking that I had already taken one despite my explanation, so I gave up on the idea and walked away. Then, after hovering around the area a little longer, probably needing to recover a little after that interaction, I also had lunch, since it was already being served at that point, at first trying to use the wooden knife and fork for the meat but eventually needing to resort to my hands because the fork was breaking. Another problem was the wind, but I managed to keep everything from flying away… Unlike the woman who sat in front of me after a while, whose entire tray, with most of the food still on it, was blown away. Then I also ate the second pack of biscuits, and ended up having a second “tea” that I had to make with cold water, since they were out of hot water… And also of biscuits, those seeming to be the only thing that actually ran out, since more water was heated later, and crates upon crates of food were also left even at the end.
Back to that point, after lunch I was trying to work up the courage to ask someone about the schedule. Actually, after seeing Petruta stay in one place, I meant to ask her, but couldn’t get myself to do that, so I ended up hovering around again until another participant asked someone else and was told that we’ll stop at 2 PM at the latest. At that point I just asked in the general direction of the organizers who were gathered there whether I had heard correctly, 2 PM, and was told that I had, and the reason for leaving earlier was that we had been fast and should be done by then.
So I rushed back, finally getting back to work at 1:15 PM. At first I planted five more trees, to at least get to 20 again, but then I decided to keep going, trying to get to 25. I probably wouldn’t have managed that if I’d have continued on the row that the guy who saw me looking for other spots where I could plant pointed me to, saying that I could try that if I wanted a challenge, the ground being harder to dig, but after planting two there, I moved again, looking for spots where it’d be easier and rushing, since people were leaving, and I did manage to get to 25 and consider that I was done at 2:15 PM.
After peeing again, I wandered around, got and drank another tea, hot water being available again… And thought about asking for another serving of food, or whatever the person who was there would give me, to take with me, after seeing how much was left and that some were asking for and receiving at least buns, though a few were bold enough to actually get another entire serving to take home. But, of course, I ended up just hovering around for a while, not daring to ask, and eventually giving up, taking a few last pictures and slowly making my way to the buses… And finding that a seventh had appeared, though I’m not sure whether it also had to do with our group or not, especially since people seemed to be getting on it sooner, while those our group had arrived on remained empty for a while longer, those of us who were there standing around uncertainly until the first few finally climbed on and I followed. It was past 2:40 PM at that point, yet many were missing, having probably gone to check out the stalls from that park, so I hope that everyone made it back to a bus eventually, albeit probably not the same one they had arrived on. I mean, I doubt the buses would have left if that wouldn’t have been confirmed, but I got on the same bus and kept the same seat, and after counting 16 empty seats on the way there, I counted 20 on the way back, so while my count might have been off by one or two, I’m sure that there were at least a couple more empty seats on that bus. Either way, the first bus left just before 3 PM, the one I was in just before 3:05 PM, and we were dropped off back at Victory Square at 4 PM.

And this is how far I got before going to bed in the morning, the last paragraph above being added at night, after the part I managed to write and post before midnight stopped before it, and was a rushed job in order to even get that far. I only finished writing the rest Tuesday afternoon, so that was when I edited this post again in order to add what’s below.

Next, I got back on the metro and went to Obor, but only checked that Carrefour and didn’t buy anything, since I was mainly looking for cheap eggs again and didn’t find any, nor any interesting expiring products. If I would have found eggs, the plan was to then go to another part of the city and buy a plant, but while there is a Carrefour there as well, I decided leave that for the following week and stick to what I knew, going to Unirii next, and first stopping at that Mega Image and getting some more of that zacusca for dad. I didn’t take the time to dig out a bag inside the store, however, walking out with the three jars held in my hands and putting them down on the first step of the stairs. But I had been holding them rather awkwardly and therefore also didn’t set them down properly, so one rolled off that step and the lid popped, as if air had entered. That obviously made me worry that it had cracked, but I couldn’t spot any cracks, neither then nor later, and neither did dad. Either way, I then also went to that Carrefour, didn’t bother to put anything in a cabinet… And found not only a carton of ten expiring code one eggs, without any cracks, discounted by 75%, but also, at the bottom of the pile of spoiling fruits and vegetables, one of those bags of three kilograms of oranges that I had meant to buy anyway. Though it wasn’t torn, it weighed a little under 2.8 kg, but none of the oranges were moldy or squashed and most actually looked just fine, and it was discounted by 50%, so I also took that, as well as one of those breads, finally finding it unsliced again. Then, after spending quite some time arranging everything in bags, I got back to the metro.
After getting off at Dristor, I decided to go to that Kaufland first, since if I’d have first gone to Carrefour I’d have then wanted to wait for 9 PM in Kaufland, to see the evening discounts, and it’d have gotten too late. So I put my things in a cabinet, peed and washed my hands, then saw a discount for garlic, but decided to first have a look around, grabbed an expiring yogurt, and when I got back there three older women were digging through that crate, so I had to wait my turn. Then I also got a small cabbage, had no problems with the self-checkout, retrieved my things from the cabinet, put everything in one again after reaching the Carrefour from the park, only bought a small yogurt from there, since for some reason that kind is 0.90 RON in that location while in the others it’s 1.65 RON and I was curious about it, then I retrieved everything from the cabinet and finally made my way back here.
It was almost 8:45 PM when I got back, meaning that it was during Earth Hour and I therefore didn’t observe it, not turning the computer off and also not turning off the lights in other rooms, since dad was here and I had plenty of things to put away. And, since I mentioned dad, he had just made a small piece of what he considers to be homemade “pizza” and, even though it’s anything but, when he just pulled it out of the oven right in front of me, just after I got back, I found myself craving at least a taste and took a small piece of it. Then I also ate one of those oranges, washed, and then continued writing what I posted that day, just managing to get it done before midnight, only a part of the last paragraph being cleaned up just after. But I still had plenty of things to do, and I was tired, and the hour also went forward that night, so I ended up only starting to eat dinner at 4:15 AM. And I didn’t rush, so I finished at 5:20 AM, and then got in bed at 6:10 AM, so at least that’d have been a normal time according to the old hour.