Cav's Place

On November 14, the loud drilling and banging woke me at 7:30 AM. I initially got back in bed after going to pee, but there was no way to sleep with that noise, so at 8 AM I got up, also adding four more bottles that granted two products and the five that dad had blown into to what I was going to take. It is possible that he just blew into four, the fifth possibly being one that I held on to and then threw down, I recall being uncertain even at that time, and one of those five did need to be straightened better, so I did that before taking it, but since I wasn’t going to use them at Carrefour and, including that one, there were exactly five of them, I had decided to use them at Kaufland and get a small discount on some cheap soap, so they were going to be worth very little, but at least I was going to use them for something that dad would probably want and which was available right then. So I left just after 10 AM, with dad’s metro card and 42 bottles, meaning that there were 37 that I could use at Carrefour, including 12 granting two products and 17 straightened ones, including that one that wasn’t accepted the previous time, and by the time I got there I found one more of those bottles that granted two products. Otherwise, I also took 40 used batteries, to see whether I could get two rechargeable ones in exchange for them, since that was another one of their campaigns, and I had the old camera with me as well, with two nearly dead batteries in it, mainly to see whether the rechargeable ones would work, if I’ll get them and they’ll be already charged.
The campaign had moved to Carrefour Berceni that day, so I walked there after getting off the metro, but when I asked whether they had rechargeable batteries, I was told that they didn’t, but that they might get more by the end of the week. Then I saw that the one who was handing out the vegetables and apples was the same young guy who had been at Orhideea on the first and the last day, and I found myself greeting him rather too cheerfully before starting to put in the bottles. I had to stop after the first two, the machine stating that it was full, but I could continue after that was sorted out, putting in eight that granted two products, but the two medium ones of another brand of beer, which had been accepted when I had tried one at Colentina, plus a water bottle of a kind that was otherwise easily accepted but which was too misshapen at the bottom, wouldn’t be accepted. And the top of the urn fell into it before I could write my name and number, but that guy found my receipts among the others, so I could write the information and enter the raffle. And then he gave me more products that he should have, so I ended up with four for Bianca peppers, weighing 554 grams, four Red Delicious apples, weighing 564 grams, four onions, weighing 786 grams, nine potatoes, albeit small ones, weighing 1.076 kg, six tomatoes, albeit rather bad ones, weighing 746 grams, six cucumbers, weighing 432 grams, though it might be said that there were actually seven of those, since one was a “double” one, and five Kapia peppers, weighing 417 grams, and he even asked whether I preferred redder ones and when I said that I did he selected only those, even though most were quite green.
After taking my time to arrange everything, I checked the store, and while the area where the expiring products are placed in that location contained only a few uninteresting things when I found it, a crowd had gathered there when I looked again, after wandering around a little longer, and that was because many expiring products had just been brought, so I had a good look and got two things. Since I also saw eggs in some baskets and was uncertain whether all of them belonged to other shoppers who had grabbed all of the eggs right away or some might have been yet to be placed in the refrigerators by the employees, I stuck around until the area started to clear and just one woman was left standing next to those baskets, at which point I asked her whether they were hers and she said that they were some other customer’s. So I just bought those two products, using both of the vouchers obtained for previous purchases that I had at that point.
After just putting the purchases in the large bag where I had some remaining bottles, I continued to that Kaufland and put those five bottles that dad had blown into in their recycling machine, seeing that it also offered a voucher of 0.05 RON for each, on top of the one offering a 10% discount on one soap in exchange for five. Then I put that bag in a cabinet, entered with the backpack, and bought a cabbage, an expiring product, some pepper, and a cheap soap. At the self-checkout, it unsurprisingly didn’t register the fact that I had placed the 10% voucher on the scales, and when I called over an employee, she said that I shouldn’t have scanned that voucher because it wasn’t a product, then logged on and scanned it, so that small discount did apply, and then I also used the other voucher when I paid.
After retrieving that large bag, I initially just added the purchases in it, but then I stopped a few times while walking away, to split them and try to balance the weight. Then, as I was about to enter that Mega Image, on the way back to the metro station, a woman dropped a 0.50 RON coin, so I let her know, but she just kept walking, albeit while also checking her pockets, and it felt wrong to grab it right behind her, so I took it and went after her… Only to accidentally drop it in front of her as I tried to hand it over, so I picked it back up and actually managed to give it to her on the second attempt, at which point she thanked me but said that she had been checking to make sure that the rest weren’t also going to fall, and that one didn’t really matter… Either way, I then entered the store and put the bag in a cabinet, after noticing that the lock of the first one that I tried was broken and waiting for a kid to open and empty the one that was under the next one that I tried. And I found some lemons among the spoiling products, but they wouldn’t scan, so the cashier eventually walked away in order to print another discount label, which did work. He might have meant to also charge me for the bag that they were in, but I gave him the exact amount listed on the label and he said that it was fine, then he just threw away the receipt and walked away again. And I didn’t try to dig out that receipt, just retrieving the bag, adding the lemons in it and getting back to the metro station. And I actually switched twice, to get to this station and reduce the walking distance even more, and I also took off my jacket as I got on this last metro, holding it on the way back.
It was almost 3:10 PM when I got back, with 14 kg. And, after having pressed into it with my tongue on the way back, at one point even thinking that it had burst and spitting into my mask, I tried to burst that large blister that was under my tongue, but that only resulted in some blood, the blister otherwise seeming to have remained intact. So I asked dad to have a look and he also took a picture and sent it to the family doctor, asking her for advice. She didn’t reply, but he apparently also asked a coworker when he went to work that evening, and she told him of a few things that I could use, and he sent me an e-mail about those that night, but I told him to not buy any. But, to return to what happened after I got back, I put the purchases in their place, weighed what I received and also put those things in their place, had the machine do a load of laundry while I washed, then grated two apples, adding jam, and ate those before hanging the laundry, and then I got some two and a half hours of sleep. I was awake at 10 PM, and while I got back in bed after peeing and stayed there until a little after 11:10 PM, I couldn’t get back to sleep. Then I even did the day’s squats, straightened some more bottles and, after calming down to some extent, since I had been getting increasingly worried about that blister, I made pizza, just eating a little of the toppings before 3 AM, since it was too hot to quickly move from the glass baking tray to a plate, then managing to take it to my room and actually start to eat at 3:05 AM. It was past 4:30 AM when I finished, however, and I felt awfully stuffed. I got in bed at 5:20 AM.

On November 15, the drilling woke me at 8:30 AM and I had written dad at night to say that if they’ll wake me early again it wouldn’t be impossible to get back in time to hand him back the metro card, since he said that he’ll leave at 1 PM, and therefore not walk all the way that day either. So I quickly decided to get up, straightened a few more bottles, and left at 10 AM, with 33 bottles, including eight that granted two products and 17 straightened ones, which included those that the machine didn’t accept the previous day. It had started raining before I left, so I decided to take the metro from this station and stuck to that decision even if, by the time I actually walked out, it was barely drizzling. So I switched at Dristor and then again at Unirii… And when I got off it was raining again, albeit not badly.
That same guy was handing out the products, and this time around I actually had to pick, seeing as eight bottles that granted two products meant seven categories and I’d have wanted at least an eighth one, for some Golden apples that looked really nice, and I could have even gone up to ten categories, adding potatoes and regular onions, if I’d have had taken 20 of those bottles. As it was, however, I made a mental selection and started putting in the bottles, beginning with those that granted two products, as the guy who seemed to be in charge told me to. I then also tried those three which hadn’t been accepted the previous day, but they still didn’t work. And the machine was full after 15 bottles, so I continued with the last five after it was emptied. Also, I heard that guy who was in charge tell the young one something about Kapia peppers and tomatoes and, while I didn’t really get what was said, I assumed that it was a reminder to not give people more of those, seeing as they were the most expensive products out of what was available at that point. However, when a Kapia pepper fell over when that guy was getting the Bianca peppers for me, he still dropped it in my bag instead of putting it back, so I received five Kapia peppers, weighing 508 grams, four Bianca peppers, which just happened to also weigh 508 grams, four beets, weighing 769 grams, four tomatoes, weighing 667 grams, four chili peppers, weighing 176 grams, four red onions, weighing 221 grams, and nine cucumbers, those being the last thing that I asked for and small, so he once again added more, and they weighed 398 grams. I think it was when I was entering the raffle when the guy who was in charge commented that he found himself drawn to the chili peppers and I also said that it was the only time when I saw any, but the young guy said that it wasn’t the first time they had some, so I must have always missed them otherwise.
After arranging what I had in the backpack, I checked the expiring products, seeing people gathered around that area but that it was mostly cleared, so I probably just missed the good moment that day. However, some of those nice mini cakes were left and I got a box, after which I also got some bread for dad and one more thing. Then, as I was in line at a self-checkout that accepted cash, an employee walked past and said that there were free regular checkouts, even specifically pointing one out, but I obviously stayed where I was.
I then rushed back, briefly trying to jog but giving up after mere seconds, since I was overheating even without jogging. Still, I should have at least rushed to cross the road when I was about to reach that metro station, even if the light was red, since when I got there it wasn’t yet green for cars and, in fact, none could have gotten there because a driver who seemed to want to turn and then change his mind blocked the way for the next few seconds. And I might have had a chance even so, if I’d have managed to catch the elevator after I did finally cross, but the doors closed before I got there, so I had to go a little farther and use the stairs, and when I got to the top of the stairs leading to the actual platform, I just watched the metro close the doors and leave, then waited eight or nine minutes for the next one. And I could have really used those minutes, since I had received the SMS to let me know that I could pick up some tea which I had ordered for dad from a pharmacy that I could get to on the way back, if I got off at Dristor and made a small detour. But I still wanted to make that detour, even if dad called just as I was getting off, so I told him that, asked him to call me when he’ll walk out and said that I’ll catch up. And I didn’t even need to catch up, since I picked up the order, being asked whether I needed an invoice and not even given a receipt when I said that I didn’t, and I was just walking past the nearby Mega Image when dad called to say that he was outside, so I told him that I was seconds away, then met him in front of the building and gave him the metro card.
I got back at 1:10 PM… And noticed that the strap that closes that “shopping backpack” had torn off at some point. And it was strange, tearing just on a day when I hadn’t overstuffed it after holding all of the previous times, when I had really forced it. Either way, I then washed what was in the kitchen, ate a bag of peanuts, so I got 950 calories just from that, and two of those mini cakes, putting the remaining ones in the fridge. I also did the day’s squats before washing, then I had lunch and spread out what I received and the remaining purchases, initially meaning to leave them there, but in the end I did weigh what I received and put those things in their place, even if that took another half an hour. Seeing how different the tomatoes and Kapia peppers looked compared to those received the previous day and knowing that Carrefour sold, in both cases, both Romanian and Turkish ones, and that the Turkish ones were cheaper, I wondered whether that guy who was in charge might have actually said that they were, in fact, Turkish, even if only Romanian products should have been given away in that campaign, but I tried to check the following day and it seemed that they were Romanian after all.
Dealing with what I received meant getting back in bed later, but I still got two and a half hours of sleep, since dad had said that he’ll be back at 9 PM but only got back a little after 10:30 PM. So I got up at that point, then sewed that strap, but left the handle, which had been torn for a while, as it was, having no time for that as well… And that handle’s still torn even now. Either way, I didn’t straighten as many bottles as I wanted that evening and, after talking to dad for quite a while, looking through some things which he had brought, finding some other things for him, and also slicing most of one of his breads, since he had used part of it as it was, I only finally ate dinner between 4 AM and 4:40 AM. I had meant to bake the remaining half of a pumpkin that evening, but I obviously had no time to do that as well, so I just ate another apple as I started working on dinner. And I got in bed at 5:20 AM.

Even though there was no more drilling on the morning of November 16, I nevertheless woke up at 9:55 AM, when Liza went to the litter box, and decided to get up after all. Then I straightened a few more bottles, which took a while, since I picked hard ones, and left at 11:55 AM, with 36 bottles, including 13 that granted two products, since one had no label and I wasn’t sure that it’ll be recognized, and 15 straightened ones, including the water bottle which hadn’t been accepted before, but not those two beer bottles, which I didn’t take again. I also once again took the 40 used batteries, as well as the old camera, with those two drained batteries in it. And I also had a small bag of trash, which I threw down the chute, and the paper, which I dropped in a recycling bin, after grabbing one more of those bottles that granted two products on the way. I could yet again use the metro card, and took the metro from Dristor.
When I once again asked about the rechargeable batteries, the person from the information desk said that they still didn’t have any, just regular ones, and seemed surprised that I had been told that they’ll get some by the end of the week. Then I saw, if I remembered correctly, 17 different product categories that could be received in exchange for recyclables, so I used 12 bottles that granted two products, including the one without a label, and after I wrote my name and number on the ticket, that guy told me that he could give me eight products from one category, so as it was in previous years, but I told him to stick to four, so I’ll be able to pick eight categories. However, after seven categories he said that I was done, but we eventually sorted it out and I could also ask for tomatoes, and he gave me six instead of four, apologizing and saying that the tiredness had caught up to him. So I received four squashes, weighing 1.03 kg, four Golden apples, weighing 706 grams, four red onions, weighing 190 grams, four eggplants, weighing 865 grams, four heads of garlic, weighing 387 grams, four Kapia peppers, weighing 462 grams, four beets, weighing 1.233 kg, and six tomatoes, weighing 712 grams. And I also told that guy that if I’ll get to Vulcan, which was the last location of the campaign in Bucharest, on Saturday, it’ll be after planting trees and I’ll really look like someone bringing trash, in old house clothes and probably muddy from head to toe, considering the forecast, and he said that it will be no problem, and also that he thought that I had been at every location, so I told him that I had been at all of them with the exception of the one from Bucurestii Noi, since that was at the same time as Colentina, which was easier for me to reach those days, and I had never been at that other location anyway.
After arranging everything, I found piles of expiring products and got some, but I took too long, getting confused about the time and thinking that I had to leave at 3 PM instead of 2 PM, so I even wanted to check Kaufland, to get yogurt, until a bottle of kefir that I’m pretty sure hadn’t been there before appeared among the expiring products, so I grabbed it in order to sort of cover that need. And then I saw that it was past 2 PM and finally realized that I had to hurry… Only for the full price to scan for one of the products, since the discount sticker was placed next to the normal bar code instead of over it, so I had to wait a little for an employee to come and sort it out.
I hurried away as much as I could, and dad called just after I reached the metro station, when I knew that I was going to be a little late, since he had said that he should be at Dristor at 2:50 PM. However, he said that it was fine, and I was there at 2:55 PM, by which time he had called again and said that he’ll take a little longer. So I started on my way back, meaning to meet him on the way, and soon after that he called yet again and said that he was at a store from that area. So I continued towards that store, looking carefully… Only to reach it and stand around the door, wondering whether he was still inside… Until he called one more time, to ask where I was and say that he was at the metro station! That put me in damage limitation mode and I started running back, and kept running even if seconds later he called yet again to tell me to slow down and where to meet him. But at least we did meet in that spot, which was actually exactly where I was when he had called to tell me that he was at that store, and I gave him the metro card back…
I still find it rather hard to believe that we “managed” to miss each other, since I tried to follow the route he usually takes and looked really carefully when I was at that playground, which was the only spot where we could have gone on different sides, and he said that he had done the same, but we must have just missed each other, with him reaching it just after I checked the other side and started walking past it, and going past it just before I went around and could once again look on the other side, and somehow being in blind spots just at the wrong times, so we didn’t spot each other while looking across it either. That would have required such perfect timing that I highly doubt we’d have managed it even if we tried, yet we apparently did “manage” it entirely by accident.
Either way, I took it easy after that, also checking the location of that newest Penny yet again and seeing the emergency door open and people inside, and products on the shelves, but also many boxes, and the people seemed to be entering something on the registers. And I also checked the nearby Mega Image when I got here, putting the bags next to the cabinets, and bought an expiring product for dad, the employee initially asking for the full price before I pointed out the obvious discount label and he accepted what I had given him, even if I had rounded down a little. And I also grabbed a catalog and stopped at a bench, after walking out, to look through it.
I got back a little before 4 PM, with 11.5 kg. Then I put the products that should stay refrigerated in the fridge and ate two more of those mini cakes, but after not making it in the morning, I didn’t make tea then either, since I had bought a deeply discounted orange juice, so that was what I drank that day. I ate lunch after washing, with the discounted bag of snacks which I had bought instead of bread, and then I once again got some two and a half hours of sleep, after which I finally baked the other half of that pumpkin, weighed what I had received and put those things in their place, and ate dinner between 3:30 AM and 4 AM. I got in bed at 5:20 AM… Which was apparently just a minute before dad replied to an e-mail I had sent him, which included links to some dehumidifiers, and he said that he’d never pay that much for something like that… And I had ended up looking into those after my mother had pointed me to a dryer that she wanted to get for us that was far more expensive, and after I firmly rejected the idea she lashed out, saying that I reject everything and we supposedly “needed” it, so I looked for something that would actually be useful, and also much cheaper, but that obviously went nowhere, with dad rejecting it and mother saying that she didn’t know much about dehumidifiers and can’t get herself to look into them. Either way, dad brought some things when he got back from work that morning, and I got up and found room for them in the fridge.