Cav's Place

While this may well be one of the most rushed posts from this series, it’s one that really deserves the title, because the first band, Mystfall, is the only one that I didn’t stumble into this evening, but a couple of weeks ago, when the video for Silence was posted. So that’s my first pick and, while the vocals could definitely be better, it made me want to include them in such a post quickly. The problem is that most of their other songs include growls, and they tend to be particularly harsh and jarring, the real pity being that a couple of those other songs are otherwise better that Silence. The one that would have otherwise been my clear second pick is also completely destroyed, in my view, by what’s actually a single and brief moment of growls, so instead of sticking just to those that they already have videos for, I ended up listening to the others from their album as well, and that led to my second pick being Centuries. It could have been another song that doesn’t have growls, but instead of picking those two that are otherwise so different from the others in that way, I decided to go with one where the growls can be more or less acceptable, because they worked them into the song instead of making them blast it to pieces. So those who have a good tolerance for growls, not to mention those who actually like that sort of thing, may have an even better opinion, but I found things, and songs, to like even so.

Moving on, Symphonia is one of the bands that I stumbled into today, and it seems to be another one that just released some new material after a long hiatus… And after apparently changing most members. That new song is Legolas Song, and I’ll leave the spelling as it is, even if the lack of the apostrophe really bothers me. Even the female vocals are not something to write home about, and they should just do without the male ones, but I nevertheless found enough there to want to include them here… Even though I might be inclined to say that in some ways the older song that’s my second pick, Lamia, is better. That one does stand out among those older songs, however, the others “screaming” of being an early effort and insecurity, and the vocals are still weak. But it is interesting to see bands getting what seems to be a new start, so let’s see where they’ll go from here.

As for the third band, that’s Waldkauz and I didn’t just stumble into them this evening, but actually while writing this post, and it made me set aside the other new find that I initially wanted to include, but which had no new material. Admittedly, Pagans of Our Time isn’t true new material in their case either, but the English version of what seems to have been one of their first songs, but if it wouldn’t have been in English, it’d have never caught my attention, so it counts and it is my first pick. The problem is that few of their songs are in English in general, but out of the few that are and have also been posted officially, I’ll go with the lovely He Missed the Stars as the second pick. It seems to me that Pagan folk in English is rare in general, and if you also want to avoid both those who are all too traditional and/or ethnic and growls, the options are even more limited, so stumbling into them felt like a breath of fresh air and I just had to include them right away, even if I just quickly listened to the few English songs that are posted officially while writing the rest of this post. I had plenty of misgivings and caveats about the other two bands included here, but I can easily recommend Waldkauz.

On June 10, Liza woke me by meowing at 8:20 AM, and since dad had said that he won’t be able to go to Penny and get the second 150 RON voucher that I had won, from the same store, until at least three days later, so on the last day of the sale that included that special large pack of food for Liza, when the chances of still finding any would be low, I had decided to try to go in the morning, hoping to find different employees and not be recognized as a previous winner. Not that the regulations mentioned anything about not being allowed to win more than once, and I still had to give my name, so they could easily see that I was already on the list of winners from that store, but I’d feel less awkward about it… So I actually ate lunch, despite the fact that it was so early, and left just after 10:20 AM, taking the mask and the headphones but not wearing either. On the other hand, despite thinking about taking that large “shopping backpack”, since I had finally sewed that strap, or at least some sturdy bags, I decided against it… Which was an awful call.
After reaching the store, I grabbed a catalog and checked the machine, but the latest winning receipt number wasn’t listed, so I knew that I’ll have to point out that I had seen it on-line. Then I looked for those packs of cat food, but I didn’t see them, and when I checked the catalog I saw that it specified that they weren’t available in that location, nor in any of the others that I’d normally go to, except the one that’s next to that Kaufland. But I still had to get the voucher from there, so I looked for an employee and told her that I had seen on-line that I had won, and she took the receipt and said that she’ll get back to me, doing so after a little while and telling me to wait, which I did until the guy who I guess was the manager on that shift came, so I had managed to avoid talking to the same person. And he just told me to write my name on one of the forms and sign it, saying that I could just take the other one, unfilled, if I wanted to. So I did, and then he handed me the voucher and I said that I had seen that the validity had gotten extended, which he confirmed, and it obviously had to be done, since the date written on it was still June 1 but I had only received it then. And I walked out without buying anything, though I did check the expiring products, noticing that they had changed the discount from 30% to 40%. That didn’t last long, but it was in effect that day and I also noticed some roes among those expiring products, so I hid them, meaning to return if I won’t find something better elsewhere.
After putting on the headphones, I continued to the Penny that’s next to Auchan, finding plenty of those packs of cat food and taking five, which were too heavy for my flimsy bags even on their own, so I had to give in and use one of those large baskets with wheels. And then I found one last box of those caramelized walnuts, on top of the piles of walnuts with chili or Himalayan salt. I couldn’t find the price label at that point, however, so I went to a price checker, then saw the price label as well when I got back there, looking for more caramelized walnuts but not finding any. So I moved on, getting the other things I meant to get and taking my time to select some garlic, calculating how much to get in order to get to a total that was just over the required 160 RON, allowing for a small difference between the weight I saw when I checked and the one I’ll be charged for, since they weigh those products at checkout in Penny.
The problems started when I got to the checkout, since those walnuts didn’t scan, and the code wasn’t recognized when the cashier entered it manually either. So I said that they were recognized when I used the price checker and the cashier asked a coworker to bring her the price label, which she did after I told here where to find it, since at first she said that she didn’t know where to look. But that didn’t work either, so the cashier said that I couldn’t buy them, which meant that I was under the required total. But then the cashier saw the date listed on the voucher and said that she wasn’t sure that it was still valid anyway, so I told her that the period got extended but a total of 160 RON was required. However, she said that it said 150 RON on it, so it should work. But 150 RON was the value of the voucher, not the required amount, and it obviously didn’t work when she tried to use it, yet she said that it was because it had expired, so I again said that a total of 160 RON was required and she told me to find something costing 5 RON to add, since the listed total was just over 155 RON. But that wasn’t actually correct, since a discount only applied at the end, and it should have been obvious that more was needed, since those walnuts cost more than that, but my mind wasn’t really working anymore and I ended up rushing to grab another product that I had considered getting but had given up on. But, while that was more than 5 RON, it was less than those walnuts had been, so the voucher obviously still didn’t work, yet neither of us realized that the total was in fact still below 160 RON, so the cashier just repeated that the voucher was expired and I said that I needed to talk to someone about it.
What I meant was that I was going to send a message on-line, so I left the products there and stepped away, but the cashier called after me and asked if I didn’t want my bags back, and when I turned back and grabbed them, another employee came, and a guard was also called to do something to the canceled receipt, at which point I assumed that the employee who had just arrived was a manager and I asked him about the situation, he checked, then asked for the canceled receipt, and then stated the obvious, that the problem was that the total was under 160 RON, pointing that out to the cashier as well, who said that she hadn’t noticed. So he opened another checkout and tried again, and I said that I had calculated the total with those walnuts, but when he took them the cashier told him that they won’t scan, and they still didn’t, and I still didn’t think to ask whether they could just enter that amount manually, or scan some other product with the same or a very close price, and I later realized that something like that could have been achieved even with some of the other products that I was buying, but I obviously couldn’t think of that then. So he told me how much was still needed and I dashed back in to grab something else and finally get over that required amount, though I misunderstood the total, thinking that it was 0.10 RON less, and I even asked whether what I had given was right and he confirmed, so I only later noticed that I had paid that little bit less. But it was disappointing that, after using both of those vouchers that I had won almost entirely for purchases that weren’t for myself, I couldn’t get just the one thing that I had wanted to get as a “reward” for myself.
I tried to put some of the purchases in the backpack before walking away from that checkout, since it didn’t stay open, so I wasn’t holding anyone up, but I realized that I had no chance, so I dragged everything to the cabinets, arranged a little more in front of them, then moved aside to allow people to use the cabinets and continued until everything seemed sort of arranged. However, with one box of cat food in a really flimsy bag and two more of those boxes and a bottle of vinegar in one that was only somewhat sturdier, and with the corners of those boxes already tearing the bags, things didn’t look good. And yet, instead of just trying to make my way back with what I had, I decided to go to Auchan as well, since I was there… Only to end up walking away from Penny instead of turning around right away and entering that shopping center through the back entrance. And then I somehow walked right past the entrance to the parking lot as well, without realizing it, and found myself at the intersection. But I still wanted to go there, even if at that point it meant going around, because I was thinking that I might also get bread for dad, and possibly look for some other “reward” for myself, instead of those caramelized walnuts.
When I got there, the guard post from that entrance was unmanned, but there was a guard in that area, so I asked him if I could leave my things somewhere, but he looked at me oddly and told me to go in and talk to someone from the store, so I guess that he wasn’t one of Auchan’s guards. So I just went in with everything… And found that the price of that bread that I was getting for dad had increased slightly, returning to what it had been before they had reduced it slightly, to match what was the price of the similar bread from Carrefour Orhideea at that point. So I didn’t get bread, and didn’t find anything to “reward” myself with either. I ate one of the tiny pie samples that were there, since I still didn’t have the mask on at that point, but even that seemed quite dry. I finally put on the mask some time after that, as I was looking around, and also found a way to squeeze the bottle of vinegar in the backpack, since that was something that could have also been bought from Auchan. Then, since it was clear that I won’t find anything else, I took some of those corn puffs with powdered milk, plus four bottles of water for dad.
After using the self-checkout, I took quite some time to try to figure out how to carry everything, those bottles obviously making the problem much worse. I had nothing to put them in, so I tried to use their own packaging, but I had torn it in order to remove the other two from the pack, so it was difficult, but I figured something out… Or I sort of did, since just as I was at the gate, about to return to the street, I stopped to try to rearrange some things and eventually tied that packaging. But it was slipping and the bags were strained, it was clear that they won’t last, and when I picked them back up after setting them down for a moment when I was almost back at that other Penny, the one bag that was better tore. So I found a way to tie it, struggled to carry everything to the store and put what I could in a cabinet, then bought two of those expiring roes and walked away, without retrieving what I had in the cabinet at that point.
I wondered whether to get back here and then just return there or check Carrefour as well, and if so when, and decided to go to Carrefour first, putting the contents of the backpack and those roes in a cabinet when I got there. But I didn’t find anything to get, so I eventually just made my way back to that Penny, leaving my things in that cabinet and taking a pretty large paper bag from a restaurant that I found in a garbage bin on the way, since it looked undamaged and clean, with the exception of two chewing gums which I picked off with leaves. And when I returned to that Penny and retrieved what I had in the cabinet, the guard and another guy were there and talking, so I felt the need to explain that I had left those things there because two bags had torn, since one flimsy one was also quite torn. Then I put two packs of cat food in that paper bag and the last one and those corn puffs in the two flimsy bags, one inside the other, hoping that they’ll at least hold that much. And, as I was making my way back, at one point I stopped to try to pick some fruit, climbing to stand on a bench, but there were few left that were in easy reach and I didn’t try to get any of the others, so I just put those in a little bag and threw it in the paper bag, on top of the packs… Only to somehow lose it at some later point. And a little later I saw that the boxes were starting to cut through that paper bag, so I was careful to prevent further damage.
When I got back to Carrefour, I retrieved what I had in that cabinet as well and took my time to arrange everything. There would have been better ways to do it, putting more weight in the backpack, but I just did what I could think of at the time, and it was a real struggle to get back like that and I kept needing to stop. And the packaging of the water was also getting strained, so after a while I had to be careful with that as well, and when, at one point, I once again stopped to try to pick some fruit while giving my hands a bit of a rest, the water fell out of that packaging and one or two bottles got a little dirty, falling into fallen fruit. But I managed to get the bottles back in the packaging and continued, giving up on the fruit, also because a man was staring at me.
I was finally back just after 6 PM, with 26.5 kg, but needing to carry everything the way I did made things even worse than the weight itself. Still, I dumped the paper into that paper bag, cleaned the litter box, and went back out to throw what I had gathered from the litter box down the chute and then walk to the recycling bin and drop the paper in it. Then I put the other things in their place, but left the water and the cat food in the kitchen, took a bath, and managed to write that day’s post. I didn’t even munch on anything until after that, after 10 PM, when I ate those few little fruits picked the previous day, and later an entire bag of bagels. I also took a pill before starting to make dinner, just in case. And, after putting the cat food where dad had suggested, since he only took the water, I also looked through some things that he said that mother had asked me to look through, taking out some for him to take there. And I did a few other things as well, ending up eating dinner between 3:25 AM and 3:55 AM.

On June 12, I left at 3:25 PM, with 15 plastic bottles in the large “shopping backpack” and a bag of trash, dropping the bag in a bin after exiting the building. I had dad’s metro card, so I took the metro to Basarab, putting the bottles in the recycling machine from Kaufland, remembering to stop after each five, so I got three raffle tickets, and later I used them to enter under dad’s name. I didn’t think that there was any real chance of winning anything, and the prizes weren’t interesting anyway, but we had piles of bottles and dad kept using and leaving more… And we actually did end up winning something, though having the entry validated took some effort. But that’s a story for another time, so I’ll get back to that day and say that I then checked that confectionery and saw that they once again had that meringue cake, and the price was the same. But I left it for later and entered Kaufland, just getting the smallest package of the olives that were on sale from the area where those products that are already packaged are, though the quantity was still more than I’d have liked.
After throwing those olives in the “shopping backpack”, continuing to Carrefour and washing my hands, I entered the store with that backpack and got bread for myself and for dad, ending up getting too much because I eventually decided to also take a large one of another kind for myself, since it was on sale, on top of the one that I’d normally get from there. And then I stopped at a table from the food area and moved dad’s bread in another bag, leaving mine in the one that hangs from my neck, before making my way back to Kaufland and putting the bags in a cabinet, though I still entered with the backpack, even if those olives were in it.
I was looking for toilet paper, since we were almost out and I hadn’t wanted to carry it around, and I had meant to get back and buy one of those cakes anyway. However, the listed price for the packs of eight had increased, so I scanned one to make sure… And was surprised to see that they were actually discounted, even if that wasn’t listed anywhere! So what I still had allowed me to get two packs, plus an expiring nicer yogurt that I had spotted the first time around and which was still there, and still leave me with enough for the cake. But when I then went to the confectionery, nobody was there. So, after waiting a little, I tried to look, spotting someone through the door that’s on the side. She might have been on the phone, but what I clearly know is that she was leaning forward and definitely not looking in my direction, and I was running late. I should have at least retrieved my things from the cabinet at that point and put the toilet paper in the backpack, but my mind just got stuck on wondering how to get her attention. I eventually sort of tapped on the glass, and while it didn’t work right away, after a while she did look. I’m not sure that it was because she heard the tapping, but at least she finally walked over and I could buy the cake, though she didn’t give me a receipt. Then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet and arranged the purchases, the fact that I should have really done that instead of waiting becoming even more obvious when the metro was in the station when I got there, and in order to actually reach it I had to get to the stairs, go up and then back down on the other side, so I ended up waiting for the next one and losing eight minutes. And, while I had a mask with me, I never put it on, not even while I was on that crowded metro.
I got back just before 6:10 PM, ate the cake, put the few other purchases in their place, and left again at 7:35 PM, still having that mask and still not putting it on. I passed through the farmers’ market, but few sellers were left at that hour, and while I saw a handful of spoiling apples that had a price label, being really cheap, and another pile that was next to them, of apples that were small and didn’t look too good but didn’t seem to actually be spoiling, this second pile had no price label, there was nobody at that stand anymore, and I couldn’t get myself to ask anyone else about it. So I moved on, had a quick look in that Mega Image as well, then went to Supeco and just got three beets. The price had increased a little bit, to match what had happened at Carrefour the week before. but it was still much lower than at Mega Image and I hadn’t seen any in Kaufland or Auchan at all those days. Either way, I threw those beets in the large backpack, entered Carrefour with it, and just got two beers for dad, obviously without being asked for my ID, unlike that one time. And, after adding the beers in the backpack, I continued to that Kaufland that was newer at the time, though I also stopped at that Penny first, entering with the backpack and then just walking out, so I only wasted some time, and it was already late.
After taking the purchases out of the backpack, putting them in a cabinet, and going to the toilet, it was past 9:10 PM, maybe closer to 9:15 PM, when I entered Kaufland, and the bakery area was almost cleared, and a guy took the handful of regular buns that were left while I grabbed a bag, so I just took one of the two regular small baguettes that were left, to at least have something, the discount being 75%. But there was an evening discount for green onions that at least brought the price down to something reasonable, and while most of the bundles were small and had a good part of the tops cut off, there were also a handful of large bundles that were still intact, and I took the biggest one. And all of the bags of lemons were at half price, so I grabbed one of those as well, along with two small yogurts. But the self-checkout didn’t recognize the green onions as the correct product, so I had to call an employee to override the error, then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet and rushed out while I could still use the main doors. Then I placed the purchases on one of those tables and arranged them, walking away at 10 PM.
I then continued to Auchan as well, entering with everything and seeing that the 50% discount that applied to those pretty nice sweet things on Mondays if you used the store card still applied, so I took the lightest box out of the three small ones that were left, plus a pack of water for dad. While I was using the self-checkout, an employee closed the next one and when another customer asked for any that also accepted cash she said that there were no more of those there and he’ll have to use the manned ones, so I said that the one that I was using accepted cash, but she said that she was just waiting for me to finish in order to close that one as well. So I also used the amount that was already on the store card, then moved aside, retrieved a few coins that were on and around the other checkout, and meant to stay there and rearrange the purchases, to put the water in the large backpack and possibly use the checkout to get it back on, but that employee stared at me as I took those coins and told me to use that receipt before it expired or I won’t be able to leave. I said that I was trying to figure out how to carry the purchases, she said that there was a cart nearby, and I said that I was going to put them in the backpack after I walked out, so I just put the bag over the pack of water, lifted the whole thing and walked out of the checkout area like that. Then I set everything back down, rearranged the purchases, and walked away at 10:55 PM, though I still had to use the emergency exit, since the guard was just locking the door. And the backpack was digging into my lower back and tailbone on the way back, so at one point I stopped on a bench and tied the straps around my abdomen. That didn’t really help, and actually made one of my ribs hurt as well, but I managed…
It was past 11:40 PM when I got back, with 18.5 kg. And those straps were really hard to untie after I had tied them in a knot, but I eventually managed it, then just ate an orange, put some of the purchases in their place, exchanged a few words with dad, and went to the bathroom at 12:35 AM, just wasting time on the toilet before washing. I was done at 1:25 AM, then I washed and cleaned what was in the kitchen, and started eating lunch when it was past 2:10 AM, taking bites now and then. I also dealt with one of my breads and sliced one of dad’s, only finishing lunch at 3:15 AM, and I once again took a pill, just in case. I ate dinner between 4:10 AM and 4:45 AM, and got in bed at 5:30 AM.

The next day I cleaned my room for the first time since late February, not counting that time from early May when I just partially vacuumed, and at night I also changed the sheets and turned over the mattress… And I also found out why I hadn’t used that sheet that had been unused for a very long time, and which I had washed a while back: It’s too short for this bed, so I still had to resort to the other one that I regularly used, but since I removed the blanket, I kept that one as well, to cover myself with it, and I also used one of the pillowcases from that set. It seemed rather stained on one side, but I put that side on the bottom.

In the early hours of June 19, after washing and cleaning in the kitchen after dad had cooked, I started eating dinner at 3:05 AM, but still finished at 3:40 AM. Then, when I flossed, something white and hard came out from the spot where work was done, and I did feel something on the side of that tooth ever since that work was done, and that was gone after that, but it probably wasn’t the actual filling, since that tooth would have been hurting since then in that case. Either way, I got in bed at 5:25 AM… And at some point someone started drilling, but I was so exhausted after the runs and wandering around that I probably continued to sleep for a while, obviously badly, since I remember the noise entering my dreams. It was probably around 12:30 PM, roughly, when I did wake up, though I only checked the time when I finally got up, after I gave up trying to get back to sleep, and it was 12:54 PM at that point.
After realizing that I didn’t have my cap on when I first walked out and returning for it, it was 3:15 PM when I actually left, with ten plastic bottles in the “shopping backpack”, plus a can that I threw in the recycling bin at the metro station, since I had dad’s card and used the metro to go to Obor. I once again just carried a mask around, without putting it on. And at the metro station I realized that I had forgotten the store cards, but only the one from Penny would have been required in order to get a discount on some bagels, and I wasn’t sure that I wanted to get a bag anyway, so that made things simpler.
I wanted to look for cat litter at that place from Obor Hall, but the Hall was once again closed for cleaning. Then I had a look at those places that are between the Hall and the farmers’ market and saw cutting boards that seemed to be like what dad had asked me to look for, but I didn’t get one at that point, continuing to the farmers’ market, looking all around, and only finding cabbage that still had the price that it had almost everywhere the previous time I had been there outside, at traders. However, a few of those who were selling inside had no price labels for it, so when I went back in I asked and one did say that it was at that price, so I made a gesture to indicate that I’ll return, finished looking around and then did so, getting two… And being given a bag even though I had mine in hand. I said that I didn’t need it, but the person who was there said that she’s too used to give them, so I then moved the cabbages into my bag and used that one for the apples, since I got more of those spoiling but cheap ones from the same person as the previous time, the others asking at least three times as much even for those that looked bad. And then, while I went back to the place where I had seen those cutting boards, I couldn’t buy any because it had started raining and that place is outside, so the person who was there had gathered everything made of wood and was rushing to also gather the rest, closing up and actually just telling someone that she was rushing to close because of the rain, even if it was only 4:10 PM and the place was supposed to be open until 5 PM.
After continuing to that mall and having a quick look in that bookstore, I put my things in a large cabinet, entered Carrefour, and got a few expiring products and the one bag of cucumbers that was among the spoiling products even though the cucumbers seemed just fine, with the exception of one that was snapped. I obviously didn’t charge myself for the bag at the self-checkout, but I also didn’t use the vouchers that I had, for previous purchases, only realizing that I had pulled them out but didn’t use them after paying with cash. Then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet, arranged everything, and found that it wasn’t raining anymore when I walked back out.
When I put those bottles in the recycling machine from Kaufland, I also explained to an old woman who was there how it worked and what the discount receipt was for, but my attempts to make the machine accept those beer bottles that usually cause problems met with no success, and when I eventually just threw one of them in, I just lost it, since the machine didn’t count it. So I just put in five of the other bottles, then looked around for two more, to have five more that would be accepted, but the area seemed to have been cleaned and the garbage cans emptied, so I put everything in a cabinet but then I walked out again and went to Penny, and while I didn’t find what I wanted for myself, I did find one last piece of something that I got for dad, even if it looked a little strange, plus the coffee for my mother and an expiring piece of cheese, since the price ended up being the same as that kind of cheese should have had at Kaufland starting two days later. And I also picked up two plastic bottles from that area, before returning to Kaufland, retrieving the backpack with the remaining bottles from the cabinet, putting the new purchases in that cabinet, and using the recycling machine again… And, after putting in those two found bottles and my remaining three “good” ones, I tried the remaining beer bottle once again… And it was immediately accepted and counted, though it was basically also wasted, being the sixth. Either way, another woman was there at the time and asking about glass, and I was uncertain about that, so I read what’s written on the machine and saw that glass bottles should be accepted, but she said that she had jars and I didn’t see anything that clearly specified whether those would be accepted or not, so I told her to just try, and while she initially said that she was worried about breaking the machine, she did seem to mean to try when I walked away.
After finally entering Kaufland, there didn’t seem to be anything interesting to get, but I heard an announcement about discounts of 50% for some products from the self-serve glass, and I had no idea what or where that was, so I looked around for a while… And ended up noticing that the cheese that was supposed to be on sale starting two days from then actually had an even lower price just then! So I shouldn’t have bought that expiring one from Penny, and I couldn’t get much more after buying that, but I couldn’t completely ignore that good price either, so I asked for the smallest piece. Then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet, arranged everything, and wondered which other Penny to go to, since I still wanted what I hadn’t found at that location.
The fact that I just missed the metro when I got back to the station helped with the decision, since I had no time to go to one of the farther locations, so I eventually decided to go to the one from Decebal, putting my things in a cabinet when I got there and grabbing what I wanted for myself and another one of those products for dad. But that location’s small, there’s little room to move, and an employee kept cleaning, driving around in that machine, so I had to keep moving aside for him and there were other people there as well, we couldn’t find room to squeeze around each other, and I was starting to panic. So I tried to block out the panic attack and push through by switching to anger, but my brain had pretty much disconnected, so I somehow miscalculated the total and when I went to the checkout I gave an amount of money that I thought would result in an amount of change that would be easier for the cashier to give, but what I gave also happened to be the full price of the products, both of which had a discount at the time, so the cashier probably thought that I meant to pay the full price at first and told me that there was a discount, I thought that the discounted prices were lower than they actually were and said that I knew about the discount and should be paying less, she asked how could the price be what I said when the system listed something else… Maybe she misunderstood, maybe I did, but I only knew anger and panic at that point and was determined to hold off the panic attack, so I got even angrier, said that I’ll show her what was listed at the shelf, grabbed my money back from her, left the products there, and rushed back… Only to see that she was right.
Well, that’s when things got really messed up, because I sheepishly made my way back to the checkout, couldn’t find my products there anymore, and a moment later they were handed to me by the woman who had been ahead in line but had allowed first the person who was ahead of me and then me ahead of her because she had called someone to ask what cigarettes to buy and didn’t seem to get a useful answer. And she said that she “got” those products when she handed them to me, so I assumed that she had picked them up from the counter, snatched them from her hand and meant to get back to the checkout, yet when I saw the line that had formed I rushed back in the store. I couldn’t say why I did that, but I probably looked absolutely furious… And when I got back to where those products were and had another look, I ended up standing right next to that woman, who had also returned in the store by then, and didn’t even acknowledge her… Which made it all the more embarrassing when I finally went back to the checkout, with the same products, told the cashier that she was right, got told that the products were already paid for, reminded her that I had taken my money back… And got told that the woman in question had paid for them, the cashier also pointing out that she had even told me that she “got” them when she handed them back to me. And then she kept repeating that it seemed that I couldn’t understand Romanian, and kept calling me “boy”…
When I finally realized what had happened, I just froze in shock, ending up just standing there while the cashier kept snapping at me. When I might have been able to move again, I wondered whether that woman was still there, to pay her back, and tried to have a look, but the cashier told me to not get back in with those products and I froze again, unable to say or do anything. When she realized that she was talking to nobody, she told the guard to not let me back in, again saying that it seemed that I didn’t understand Romanian, so I had a guard stand in front of me and the other next to me while I was just staring at nothing and choking on tears, until I eventually managed to somehow retrieve my things from the cabinet and shuffle out. One guard came after me, but I just froze again and he didn’t say or do anything, so both of us simply stood there until I somehow managed to shuffle away. I just had to keep telling myself that I had to get back in time to give dad his metro card back, somehow forcing myself to shuffle along, step after step. I was probably moving like a zombie, and still pretty much staring at nothing, and my mouth was probably open as well, and at some point I realized that I was drooling… And it took me 45 minutes to get back from there, though it should normally take 20 minutes. I might have stopped for a couple of minutes at some point, but I don’t really know.
It was a few minutes after 8:30 PM when I got back, with 12 kg and still in shock. Dad was getting ready to leave, so I wordlessly cleaned the litter box, putting what I scooped up in the bag of trash that he should have taken out, and then I noticed that he had moved something in the kitchen and that messed me up even more. He was still here when I sat down to take off my shoes and ended up freezing there and starting to whimper, but he just asked whether I was tired as he walked out, leaving without another word when I just shook my head. And he didn’t even take that bag, so I went to throw it down the chute after I recovered a little. Then I put the things that had to be refrigerated, with the exception of the eggs, in the fridge, tried to rearrange what dad had moved, and went to shower. Then I once again rearranged what he had moved, put more things in their place, and had lunch, with the rest of the bag of bagels opened two days earlier instead of bread. I initially couldn’t get myself to go back to the kitchen at night, eventually managing to do so at or maybe a little after 1:15 AM, at which point I put the remaining things in the fridge and also sliced the ends of dad’s bread and put it in the freezer, washed and cleaned what he had left in the kitchen, and had dinner between 3:15 AM and 3:50 AM. I got in bed at 5:40 AM, after quickly installing Matomo Analytics.

On June 27, I woke up with a start when someone was at the door, apparently to offer a new contract from the power company, and my back started hurting after that. Fortunately, it didn’t last, and I did mean to try to go out, so I even did the day’s squats and left at 4:50 PM, going to Mega Mall, without a mask. I first checked that sports store, but I didn’t ask about anything even though I probably should have. Then I entered Carrefour, finding something to get and also seeing that garlic had a discount if you used their app, so I weighed some and added a little more in the bag after printing the label, calculating the weight so I’ll end up paying very close to what I’d have paid if I’d have used the app. And I finally remembered to use the vouchers that I had at the self-checkout. Then, after having a quick look at something in another store, I continued to Kaufland, put the purchases in a cabinet, and found two expiring breads that I could get for dad, though I only bought one, since I knew that there’d have been no room for more in the freezer. I also took a box of expiring quail eggs, plus a small red cabbage for myself. Then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet, and before getting back I also had a quick look in the nearby Mega Image, putting my things in a cabinet even though it didn’t lock and then just retrieving them and walking away, getting back just after 7:05 PM… Only to leave again about ten minutes later, after dropping off the purchases, putting the eggs in the fridge, and rushing back in for a moment to check what matches were on at the time after initially walking out without having done so.
I went straight to the other Kaufland and saw that the red cabbage looked better there, but I already had that small one and didn’t get more. What I did get was a bag of potatoes, since those already had an evening discount. It’s possible that the discount would have increased later, but I couldn’t wait. And I also took a bag of heavily discounted lemons that were not really moldy, though it’d be more accurate to say that I put together such a bag, since it was torn and lemons were scattered in the crate, so I put those in it and then checked the weight, seeing that it was actually still a little under what it should have been. Then, on the way back, after having a very quick look in another store and then also checking the Mega Image that’s next to the farmers’ market, entering with everything in both cases, I also entered Supeco, once again with everything, and bought some beets and some cornmeal that I happened to see there. I had prepared the exact amount when I got to the checkout, but then I couldn’t hold everything, and when I tried I dropped all but one coin, so I set everything down, probably to the amusement of the cashiers, put the beets in a small bag and recovered the fallen coins, with the probable exception of one, but that was just a 0.01 RON one. And it was a little before 9:20 PM when I got back, though I then cleaned the litter box and went to throw a bag of trash down the chute.

Since I had to post the week’s first post today and wouldn’t have been able to finish this before midnight, I included the part about June 27, since it’s much shorter, in the initial form of the post, but left out the part about June 19, which would be the main reason why I ended up writing these odds and ends posts after all, so I edited the post in order to also add that part Tuesday evening. So at least I finally posted the reason why I ended up wanting to spend a certain amount, a little more than what that woman had paid for my purchases, on products that I then gave to homeless people, only finally completing that “process” at the end of the year, on December 28, since I only looked for certain products when they were deeply discounted, to stretch that amount as much as possible, and also tried to give to different homeless people.

ISDS courts are known as an unfortunately particularly effective way for rich and powerful corporations to force states to allow them to exploit anything and everything for profit, without any care for the consequences, and drastically punish those who “dare” to try to protect the environment, human or workers’ rights, or anything else. So when the company behind the Rosia Montana mining project used such a court to sue Romania for blocking it, it was generally expected that we’ll end up paying billions. And our authorities didn’t just make no secret of that, but they actually kept stressing that likely outcome over the years, trying to blame their opponents for it, and the fact that Rosia Montana was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List kept being mentioned as the main reason why the case will be lost, even if, taken logically, such a recognition of the value of the site should count as a particularly strong argument in favor of banning such exploitation.
Such statements became particularly frequent at the start of February, the leaders of the large parties and much of the media once again making a priority of the matter, saying that the decision was supposed to come on February 10 and that Romania was likely to be sentenced to pay two billion dollars, so they were supposedly looking into negotiating a payment plan, while of course continuing to blame their opponents for the situation even if these parties are the ones that actually created it. What was strange was that the date of February 10 was actually incorrect, the real date being March 8, and that could apparently be quite easily verified, but most of the media didn’t bother to do so, which led to the topic just sort of dying down a little once that date passed, only to obviously return when the real date of the decision approached, at which point the possibility of Romania being forced to allow the project to continue, or even that this might be something that Romania could offer the company instead of the payment, also started being mentioned by politicians and the media, the Prime Minister also stating that he’d want a referendum on the matter. So the fact that the decision was going to be against Romania seemed to be a sure thing, those who’d have been supposed to fight for a different outcome seeming to have never believed that it was possible and only a few of the activists from the “old guard” even daring to ask to wait and see what will actually happen.
Understandably, these discussions pretty much flooded the media yesterday, while waiting for the decision. And in the vast majority of cases they continued along the same lines, with the fact that we were going to need to pay billions being taken as a sure thing, the possibility that we might either be forced or offer to allow the project to continue also being openly discussed, the fact that the site was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List being presented as a terrible mistake at best and probably even something done with evil intent instead of the great thing that it actually is, and accusations and blame being thrown at the opponents of those who are currently in power, and occasionally also at the activists and protesters who fought to save the area.
As such, it came as a complete shock when, just a little before midnight, the news broke that the ruling was actually in Romania’s favor! I don’t think that even the most fervent activists, those who fought for Rosia Montana for so many years, still hoped for such an outcome, and the politicians and the media were quite clearly taken completely by surprise, the initial reactions making it pretty clear that they hadn’t prepared for this, and I even noticed discussions continuing along the lines of what if we would have had to pay or allow the project to continue! Of course, it’s much better to prepare for the worst and be pleasantly surprised to be wrong than the other way around, but while that might have been the case for the activists, it quite clearly wasn’t for the politicians and the media, who had clearly seemed to want the case to be lost, and I can think of many reasons why.
So this should be a time of celebration, but the threat is far from over. For one, the decision was two to one, and while that seems pretty normal in such cases, since the investor appoints one of the three members and the state another, so those would be expected to rule in favor of their side, it does mean that one opinion, one person, could change everything, and the possibility for appeal does exist, and the company stated that it’s considering it. And when the license for the project is actually still valid, until June, and those who are in power here, along with that large majority of the media that does their bidding, seem to want the decision to have gone the other way and are quite inconvenienced by the victory, which takes away what they quite obviously intended to be an important weapon against their opponents in this “super-electoral” year and also a good excuse for the hard times that will come, there are good reasons to withhold those celebrations, at least for a while, and still prepare to fight back in case things will take a turn for the worse after all. But the victory remains such a pleasant shock, and offers reasons to hope that good things may still happen even in this world, which definitely should give all those who do, want to, or used to fight for something better strength to continue, start, or restart, as the case may be.

When Simona Halep received the original sentence, being banned for four years after having been suspended without trial for almost one, I was saying that I expected it to be the end of her career, since I didn’t think that the appeal would do more than halve one part of the sentence and therefore reduce the ban by just one year. But I did say that it’d be nice to be proven wrong, and also that my assumption held unless another group of experts would reverse the “strong opinion” expressed about the cause of those “irregularities” by the ones who took part in the original trial.
Well, that was exactly what happened today, when the appeal resulted in that part of the charges being overturned completely and the ban for the other part being reduced by more than half, to a mere nine months, the court ruling that her anti-doping rule violations were not intentional and she could only be accused of not exercising sufficient care, not of any significant fault or negligence. And yes, that means that the final ban was shorter than the period she spent suspended without trial, so she should have been allowed to play again even before the first court finally got around to passing a sentence!
Of course, what matters most at this point is that she can return immediately, and I’m sure that it won’t be any problem to receive the invitations required by a player who doesn’t appear in the rankings, having obtained no points in the past year, in order to take part in any notable tournament, but I wonder if anybody’s going to pay for that. I mean, a ruling can be appealed and possibly overturned, and the original one was based on expert opinions that were now contradicted, so the fact that the ban was reduced so much is far less of a problem than the fact that she was suspended without trial for longer than, as it turns out, she should have been banned, and in fact exactly long enough to ensure that she was going to drop out of the rankings before having even any theoretical chance to play again. That feels like malice, and somebody should answer for it.

On February 17, I set the alarm to ring at 8:50 AM, to watch ski jumping, during which time I didn’t just have breakfast, but eventually decided to also eat the expired walnuts with Himalayan salt that I still had, so I got almost 850 calories just from those, but I was going to need them. That part came later, however, since after leaving, at 11:20 AM, with dad’s metro card, and picking up a plastic bottle with the deposit paid which I spotted on the way to the station, which I put in a bag and then in the backpack while waiting for the metro, I took it to Victory Square, washing my hands before leaving the station and then going to pick up The Lost Metal, which I had ordered from that small bookstore. I also had a quick look through the store after picking up the book, but there were several other customers there at that point and we hardly had room to stand, much less move around, so I put the book in another bag and then in the backpack after walking out. And then I also took the metro to the Library, to finally pick up The Great Divide, after mixing it up at the start of the year. It wasn’t on the shelf, but the guy got it from storage. Then I put it in that same bag and in the backpack and returned to the metro station. And I’ll also mention here that I read the book, such as it is, between February 21 and March 2, when I also posted the quick review, in both languages for the versions on The StoryGraph and Goodreads.
To return to February 17, I then went to Obor and had a look all around the market, so in and around the Hall and then through the farmers’ market, getting apples from two places. As I started picking from the first one, the woman asked what was I doing, referring to the fact that I was picking, when the price was so low, and said that she’ll be scolded by the boss, which I guess was the guy behind her, and when I told her to give me two kilograms in that case, even though I’d have just wanted one, and she put the apples on the scales, in my bag, that guy did ask what was she doing and she then told me that she did get scolded on my account. And when I used the verification scales, since I couldn’t see what hers listed, I was amazed to see that she had given me exactly two kilograms, not one gram more or less, and had done so on first try, not adding or removing anything after weighing. Either way, I then went to the other place and was allowed to pick from some other apples that were even cheaper. On the other hand, as I was walking out I witnessed a seller, who was actually a trader, not a producer, scold and yell at an elderly couple for quite a while over them trying to pick potatoes themselves instead of just taking what he gave them. I wanted to step in and say something, but ended up just standing there and then only muttering that the guy was an asshole when the old man walked past me. And then it took me quite a while to manage to untie the first bag, which I had for some reason tied with a knot, and put all of the apples in another.
I then continued to that mall, buying something from that pharmacy, throwing those products in that same bag and putting it in a cabinet before depositing enough money for what I planned to buy next, since I had taken the card with me as well and meant to use it for some of the purchases. Then I looked for the recycling machine, finding it in the parking lot, but it was full, so that bottle was still in my backpack when I entered Carrefour, after using the toilet. And my mother had asked for three kinds of cat food, one box of each, those vouchers being offered for pet products those days, but I only found three cans of the third kind, so I took a box of each of the other two and an expiring product… And then I found a bag of spoiling Golden apples and decided to make up for the machine giving me less change two days earlier, albeit in a different location, so I untied that bag, checked the apples, then went to where the supposedly good ones were placed, saw that those weren’t exactly good either, and picked some, actually starting with one that was visibly spoiling, since it was large and seemed good with the exception of those rotting spots, and ending up with about two thirds of the weight of those from that bag. Then I walked away again, replaced some of the apples from the bag with those, then went back and made another replacement, to get the weight closer to what was listed, albeit still a little over. What I was doing might have been quite obvious, but nobody said anything, and some visibly spoiling apples were still in that bag and easy to see if anyone looked, so it was my way of making up for what happened without actually stealing anything. Either way, I then split the purchases, initially just scanning one box of cat food and using the card to make a partial payment, to leave 5 RON and also use the second gift card received for coins, after which I used cash for the other purchases.
The initial plan had been to then go to the Kaufland and Penny from that area and also get new headphones, which are just the current, updated version of the model that I already had, from that Altex, since they were discounted those days and I could also purchase extended warranty and know that I’ll be able to stick to this model for the next several years, especially since I’m also keeping the old ones as a spare. However, since I didn’t find that last box of cat food and needed to go to another Carrefour anyway, I decided to take the metro back and drop everything off first, so I gave up on the idea of checking that Kaufland and Penny… And completely forgot about the headphones. And I also decided against checking that Auchan, though I could have bought some water for dad. Or I could have bought the cat litter from that Carrefour, since I meant to get two of those bags as well and they might have been a little easier to carry in that case, since I was taking the metro, but I didn’t do that either, so I was only carrying about 15 kg when I got back, just before 4:15 PM. Then I quickly dropped everything off, put that expiring product in the fridge, and left again a little after 4:20 PM, also taking a plastic bottle with the deposit paid that dad had emptied.
After getting to Mega Mall, I went straight to that Media Galaxy, that location seeming to be one of the two from Bucharest that for some reason kept that name, and bought the headphones. I initially wanted to try them out first and then purchase the extended warranty after I’ll be sure that I’ll keep them, so when I asked about the maximum extended warranty, I specified that I was just asking, but after being told that I could add up to four years, getting the total to six, even though if you order on-line you can only select up to two additional years, I was also told that I had to get it right away. Of course, I had initially been told the same thing when I got the new camera, and I mentioned that in that case I was able to get the extended warranty the next day, but the guy said that I must have had an invoice that it could be associated with, which was indeed the case, and I won’t get one for the headphones. And I was pretty sure that I will keep them, since the changes should only be internal and, if anything, a clear improvement, so I agreed to add the extended warranty right away, and once again used the card to pay. Indeed, I only received a regular receipt. And then I put the headphones in the backpack.
After searching through that parking lot for the recycling machine and using it for those two bottles, I entered Carrefour, with the backpack, and could get a box of that third kind of cat food and the two bags of cat litter, and among the expiring products I found some bio (organic) mozzarella, a sweet pastry that I could get and some bread that I could get for dad. There was more of that bread, but I only got two, knowing that there was no room in the freezer for more. Then I calculated how much to pay with the card in order to be able to easily withdraw the remaining amount and once again split the purchases, at first scanning the cat food and making that partial payment with the card before also using the voucher received for the bottles and then cash for what was left. However, the second total was 35.01 RON and when the guy who was next in line got too close my mind pretty much disconnected again and I put in a 0.01 RON coin before selecting to pay with cash, then made the selection and tried again, several times, but the machine kept spitting the coin back out, so I eventually had enough and fed it a 50 RON bill, so it had to give me 14.99 RON as change. And that guy was still there and I was less and less aware of what I was doing, only realizing as I meant to rush away, after having moved aside a little and bagged my purchases, that I had forgotten the second receipt, so I asked that guy whether I had taken it and grabbed it after he said that I hadn’t… But I also left the Kaufland card there, along with the used gift card, and only noticed it after leaving the checkout area and checking everything, so I had to ask the employee whether it had been forgotten there and she asked me for a receipt, to see where I had been, then sent the guard there and she found and returned both, though I hadn’t mentioned that emptied gift card.
After continuing to Kaufland and putting the purchases in a cabinet, I found that the employee from that area was just placing the spoiling fruits and vegetables into crates and people were gathering there, but she for some reason kept trying to stack the crates, so people were obviously moving them right away, in order to be able to look, so I eventually took some initiative, spreading out the crates and also moving some products as some of the crates were emptying, so there will be fewer to look through. And I took some lemons and mushrooms. I also saw some discounted germinated wheat, but the employee was still looking through that area and I wondered whether she’ll increase the discount, so I initially walked away and got some other things before returning and taking one of those as well, even though the discount hadn’t changed. Then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet and took my time to arrange the purchases before deciding to come straight back. I had been wondering whether to make myself a pizza that night and finding that expiring mozzarella had settled things, so I was wondering about getting another pizza dough, since it was discounted at Penny and those vouchers were also offered for all frozen products at Carrefour, but we still had some in the freezer and I was carrying a lot, so I decided against it.
I got back at 7:25 PM, with 23.5 kg. Then I put most of the purchases in their place, even did the day’s squats, and washed. After that, I ate an apple and the sweet pastry and also put the apples in their place. Later, I quickly wrote what I posted that evening, and then I made pizza, taking my time and also cleaning what dad was using, since I was going to stay up and watch ski jumping anyway. But I made the pizza in two pieces, and I wanted to take a first bite of the first one just before 3 AM, but then I only ate about half of that piece, if even that, before moving to my room, at 4:30 AM, and watching ski jumping and writing some notes about the day meant that I wasn’t done when the ski jumping finished, only finishing eating at 6:10 AM, and getting in bed at 6:50 AM. The new headphones were still in their box at that point, but I found myself forced to get up over an hour earlier than I meant to because I had to take a crap, which ended up clogging the toilet again, so I later had to unclog it as well, but after that I did try the headphones, and I must say that I’m really pleased with this new model. They probably didn’t do anything about those weaker highs, but the bass is even better, a clear improvement over the old model, the soundproofing also seems better, and they also felt comfortable right away, while I needed quite a lot of time to break in the old model.

In the early hours of February 19, I managed to finish eating dinner at 3:40 AM despite starting at 3:15 AM. And after getting up I meant to clean my room, having last done so on November 1, but dad said that he wanted to cook and, while I already dreaded what that meant, thinking that I’ll have the glass baking tray to wash, eventually, and some mess to clean in the kitchen, the result was far worse. I took care of the mushrooms, then left him to it and eventually did clean my room, and also changed the sheets, but what I then found in the kitchen was well beyond what I feared… Pots, pans, bowls, plus knives, forks and so on, everything greasy, burned stuff, various other things were moved, it was just insane! And at the time I didn’t yet know how burned the oven was and that it’ll also need to be thoroughly cleaned before being used again, which is yet to happen. Either way, I started washing and cleaning, having a late lunch while doing so, and also doing the day’s squats, then went to the toilet and to wash, then continued to wash and clean, ending up only having dinner between 4:20 AM and 4:55 AM, and going to bed at 6:20 AM. Also, after putting off brushing my teeth all day, I ended up only doing it once, before going to bed. It seems that I last did that in October.

On the morning of February 22, I went to bed at 5:20 AM, and that day I ordered a new mouse, after asking this nearby store about the warranty, since they listed it as having just one year, and they corrected it to two. Then, after reading a little more in the evening, I had another nap and woke up just after midnight, but couldn’t really get up, ending up only doing so around 1:05 AM and going to the kitchen when it was almost 1:15 AM. And I again had no green onions, so the salad included a small onion which had sprouted, and I boiled a few small carrots, and also shaved, so I ended up eating dinner between 3:20 AM and 3:50 AM.
Sleeping was a problem, however. I woke up when dad got back, then as he was making noise, went to pee at some point, then woke up again when he went to bed, and again when drilling and hammering started. I went to pee once more at that point, and it was hard to sleep at all after that, just waking up again soon after drifting off. I went to pee one more time, just in case, after a weird dream woke me yet again, and then there was noise from outside as well, some people cleaning behind the building and also using a leaf blower. And I woke up again when dad got up, and yet again when he left. I was wondering about just getting up at that point, but I was so exhausted, and at least I did manage to catch another nap, but when I woke up one more time I checked the time and saw 1:43 PM, at which point I did decide to turn off the alarm, which was set to ring at 2 PM, and get up, at least feeling a little less exhausted. Then I had the usual stuff, the yogurt being a “creamy” one with 4.6% protein and 5% fat and the almonds being split, four raw ones and six of those baked ones with Himalayan salt. The sweet thing was the last slice of the old panettone, with added honey. And it was 4:05 PM when I left, wearing the full running gear. The reported temperature was 17-18°C, and 17°C when I finished.
The time was 47:54.38, with sector times of 4:12.26, 5:06.03, 5:56.16, 4:30.28, 5:05.25, 5:58 (5:57.09), 4:29.75, 5:03.06, 5:47.10 and 1:48 (1:47.40), making for lap times of 15:14.45, 15:33 (15:32.62) and 15:19.91. I did push a fair bit from the start, but the main goal was to stay under 48 minutes and I didn’t want to exhaust myself right away, especially since it was too crowded to have a chance to obtain a truly great time on sector one, so the first sector’s time was all right, but the next two sectors were just a little worse than I thought they’d be, so I was a little worried at the end of the lap. And after lap two things looked pretty bad, since I needed to be under 15:20 on lap three to have a chance and that didn’t seem likely. Still, I pushed from the start of the lap and the first two sectors left me with pretty much everything to do on the third, but it wasn’t impossible, so I gave it everything and just made it, squeezing under that target time by the slimmest margin. That was only enough to give me a chance, still needing a decent final sector when I was already exhausted, but I kept pushing and actually managed a very good time on that final sector. So I had to give everything in order to just obtain a normal time, but at least I managed that.
There was work being done, with many ditches around the path, so I was worried that some areas were going to be blocked, but that wasn’t the case. A ditch had apparently been dug under the path just after what for me is the start, but the wooden boards that were placed over it were sturdy and balanced well enough to not be a problem to use. There were some other damaged parts of the lane, including one that created a serious risk of tripping, but I just avoided them. And there were some gusts of wind as well, but the locations slipped my mind, and they weren’t that bad anyway. As for physical issues, a pain had appeared around my right kidney before leaving and it was a concern, but it was quite fine while running. On the other hand, there were some warnings from my left ankle early on, but those faded, yet later there were further warnings from several other places, seeming like all the joints from my right leg were taking turns, and I think that a muscle from there also joined in. And a slight pressing need appeared from the start of lap three, being joined by some abdominal pain from sector two of lap three. And my nose was once again really irritated after the run.
However, the bigger problem was how crowded it was, so I had to keep weaving and going the long way around, and find ways to squeeze through, which quickly made me give up on any ideas about a great first sector. And things only seemed to get worse, so there might not have been particularly notable problems on the first lap, but on the long straight of sector one of lap two I had to go on the grass and around a garbage can, and then I believe that the other notable problems were on lap three. It’s possible that one was on lap two, but in that case I have no idea which one, so I think that it was on sector one of lap three when I slowed because of roadblocks but managed to squeeze through, on sector two of lap three when I slowed and might have briefly stopped because of other roadblocks, and on sector three of lap three when a woman with a stroller moved onto the lane right in front of me and I again went on the grass and around a garbage can, but also had to be careful and slow down, because that part was sloped towards the lake.

After jogging back, I just ate a cake brought by dad, did the day’s squats, changed, and left again at 7:35 PM, with two recyclables with the deposit paid, going to what used to be the closest Penny, though I also checked that Mega Image on the way. Then I put those recyclables in the machine from Penny and also used the voucher when I paid for what I wanted to get, after which I put the purchases in the backpack and went to Carrefour, once again entering through the parking lot. I didn’t bother to use a cabinet and didn’t find anything to get, so I then continued to Kaufland, entering the store when it was almost 8:55 PM, after washing my hands and once again with the backpack. Bakery discounts of 50% were already listed and I took some products, then wandered around, waiting to see whether any bigger discounts would appear. They didn’t, but I did spot an unannounced discount for pepper and got some. Then I arranged the purchases, walked out a couple of minutes before 10 PM, and also went to that Mega Image, putting the bag that hangs from my neck in a cabinet and yet again entering with the backpack. I saw an employee scanning the bakery products, which already had 50% discounts, and then she got a label for a 90% discount from another employee who was applying them to the packaged bread, so I put back the bread and apple pastry which I had initially grabbed, thinking that they’ll increase the discount for those as well. But they didn’t, not even at 10:30 PM, so after grabbing three packaged breads for dad and some fresh basil, all of which had the 90% discount, I eventually only took the apple pastry again, even though the bread was also still there. Then I retrieved what I had in the cabinet, moved the apple pastry into the bag that hangs from my neck, leaving the other purchases in a regular bag, and after walking out I stopped to count my coins, to make sure that I didn’t lose any.
I got back close to 11:10 PM, just dropped off the purchases, cleaned the litter box, went to drop a bag of trash down the chute, then rushed to shower. I only put the products that should be refrigerated in the fridge after I was done, and then I did something else that I had to do, after which I ate an apple, put the other purchases in their place, and washed and cleaned what was in the kitchen. I started to eat lunch at 2:15 AM and it was past 2:50 AM, maybe closer to 2:55 AM, when I finished, eating on and off while finishing washing and cleaning and slicing a few more things to add to a salad brought by dad. I ate dinner between 3:35 AM and 4:25 AM.

There were no visits recorded on February 27, nor on February 29 or, for that matter, today, but what’s actually relevant happened on the morning of February 27, when after getting up to pee, also quickly picking up after dad, and then getting back in bed, I felt something give on the right side of my back. The pain wasn’t bad, and it somehow actually felt somewhat refreshing at the time, so I rocked myself, which made it worse, though not by much. At least I came to my senses within seconds and stopped moving, then felt around and noticed that the muscle was really hard, after which I tried to find a good position in bed, and then I was careful all day. The fact that my right leg was also getting rather numb and a very dull pain was also reflected in my abdomen made me think that the cause is my spine, since that’s how that feels when it happens, and I continue to think that, since the situation is more or less the same, with the exception of that muscle, which loosened up pretty quickly. It’s obviously a problem, and quite concerning, even more so since the way my abdomen feels is starting to make me question that initial assumption, but the pain remains at a low level, in fact low enough to be inclined to say that it just constantly bothers me, not that it actually hurts.
However, I’m not letting that change my running schedule, at least not yet, and February 28 marked the real start of the preparations for this year’s half marathon, being the first time I ran more than ten kilometers since last year’s marathon. And I once again had no green onions for the salad, and while I had spotted another regular one that was just starting to sprout, I could use little more than its core, finding that it was mostly rotten otherwise. And I started eating dinner at 3:05 AM, but still finished at 3:40 AM, and that was when I also finally finished the old peanut butter, putting it on all of the slices of bread. However, despite having been sleepy all day, only having a brief nap late in the evening and actually intending to get in bed just a little earlier, I got in bed at 5:20 AM. Then I got up after the alarm rang, at 2 PM, and had the usual stuff, with the yogurt being another one of those “creamy” ones with 4.6% protein and 5% fat, and the almonds being the last of the raw ones. For the sweet thing, I added honey on another one of those things taken after last year’s Dream Trek, which had recently expired. Then I left at 4:10 PM, wearing the full running gear, with the slip of paper with the emergency information in the pocket of my tights, just in case. The reported temperature was about 13°C, maybe dropping to 12°C by the time I finished.
The time was 1:18:23, with sector times of 4:22, 5:16, 5:58, 4:27, 5:06, 5:55, 4:30, 5:11, 5:59, 4:35, 5:16, 6:02, 4:32, 5:09 and 6:05, making for lap times of 15:36, 15:28, 15:40, 15:53 and 15:46. I wondered whether I could stay under 1:18, but the realistic target seemed to be to just stay under 1:20, and I was prepared to even get closer to 1:21. But the first sector’s time was better than I expected, since I was controlling my pace, so I then controlled it even more, which led to slowing down a little too much on sector two. I still thought that getting under that 15:36 that’s the target lap time if I’m to stay under 1:18 shouldn’t be a problem at least on that first lap, but sector three was just a little worse than I thought it’d be and I failed, albeit by mere tenths. That made me question even staying under 1:20 even more, but lap two was actually better, so I then wondered whether I could stay under 16 minutes on each lap, which should have also meant staying under 1:19. But I also wondered whether I could keep the average lap time under that 15:36 over the first three laps, and possibly even stay under that time on lap three as well. And I did manage to maintain that average, and also to just stay under six minutes on sector three of lap three. That made me think that I really was likely to stay under 1:19, if no serious problems will appear, 1:18:30 actually seeming likely if I’ll manage to stay under 16 minutes on lap four as well. And I did, even if the sector times started to be a little concerning. So I then just pushed on lap five and after the first two sectors I thought that I was safely under 1:18:30 and might even end up closer to 1:18:10, which would be frustratingly close. But sector three of lap five being the slowest sector three even though I really gave everything I had left showed that I was more exhausted than I thought I was.
Other than some weaving and going the long way around, plus squeezing through a few times, there was a brief stop on sector three of lap one because of a kid on a scooter who turned right in front of me, and a similar moment on sector two of, if I remember correctly, lap five, when a little dog off the leash ran right towards me. And there were still some damaged spots on the lane, including that one that creates a serious risk of tripping, but they seemed to have finished the work in that spot that’s right after what for me is the start. Otherwise, that pain did make itself known, mainly in my abdomen, but faintly, and after I warmed up enough I didn’t really notice it anymore while running. And the same was true for that relative numbness of my legs, which I was aware of at first but then seemed to go away. And the warnings that both of my knees gave over the first two laps also faded after that. My body did seem to want to, shall we say, get rid of any excess weight from the start of lap four, but it wasn’t a serious problem and that feeling also gradually faded after that. And, while it felt chilly at first, by lap two the temperature was no longer a problem either.

This is how far I got before midnight, so I edited the post before going to bed in order to add the part about the rest of February 28, and I did so one more time Tuesday afternoon, because I also wanted to include March 1, for the part about the new mouse.

I had a quick look in the nearby Mega Image on the way back, without a mask, and kept some interesting expiring biscuits in mind, even if they were imported and contained quite a lot of sugar. Then I ate an orange and lunch, in the form of some slices of pizza brought by dad quite some days before, changed, and left again at 8:10 PM, with five plastic bottles with the deposit paid, including one that I had picked up two days earlier. I went to the new Penny and, while the recycling machine was full when I got there, someone else was just walking away and she probably told someone, because an employee came out right away and emptied it, so I could use it. Then I bought what I wanted, also using that voucher when I paid. Then I put the purchases in the backpack and continued to Kaufland, washed my hands, didn’t bother to use a cabinet, and saw that bakery discounts of 50% were already listed. And two of those breads with sunflower seeds were left, so I grabbed them, and then also took some pretzels for my mother. And grapes and carrots had nice evening discounts, so I took my time to pick, even if the grapes were from Moldova, and after also taking a cabbage I returned to the grapes and added some more, staying there until it was almost closing time, so I was using the self-checkout when the closing announcement came. Then I arranged the purchases, and when I got back here I checked the nearby Mega Image again, leaving the bags with the carrots and the grapes in front of the cabinets while I grabbed the last remaining bag of those expiring biscuits.
I got back a couple of minutes after 10:40 PM, with almost 14 kg. Then I spread out the purchases, washed what was to wash and cleaned a little in the kitchen, ate those biscuits, even did the day’s squats, and it was a couple of minutes before midnight when I went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and wash. I was done a couple of minutes after 1 AM, then I put the purchases in their place, and arranging them took quite some time, and I also dealt with my bread, and fitting it in the freezer took yet more time, so I finally ate dinner between 4:05 AM and 4:50 AM. It was past 5:40 AM when I got in bed.

On the morning of March 1, I got in bed at 5:35 AM, and after getting up a little after 9:30 AM to pee, I tossed and turned, eventually giving up after about an hour and reading for some 40 minutes before trying to sleep again and eventually managing to get a little more sleep, but at noon I received the SMS announcing that I could pick up the mouse, and by 1:30 PM I was awake yet again and eventually got up, deciding to make two trips that day, to also pick up the mouse before that store closed. So I did the day’s squats, backed up the system, just in case something will go wrong when I’ll uninstall and reinstall Swarm, had lunch, and left at 4:40 PM, without a mask. On the way to that store, I spotted a bottle with the deposit paid, but a woman had just stopped to let her dog do its business a few steps from it, so I kept going, picked up the mouse, coming back with it in my hand, and grabbed that bottle on the way back. However, the guy who was supposed to read the heating meters was just going to the next apartment when I got here and I didn’t want him to see that someone was just getting home, so I just kept going up the stairs, having another look at how the fifth floor looked before coming back down, so it was a little after 5:10 PM when I actually got back. And then I set up the new mouse, albeit in a hurry, the strange thing being that Windows asked for a reboot after I plugged it in, so I eventually rebooted as well, after eating something sweet.
I left again at 8:10 PM, that time with a mask, and with that found bottle and one that we already had, but I went straight to Carrefour and entered the store with them. I had to use the remaining vouchers obtained for that cat food and the cat litter, so after grabbing a sweet pastry that I spotted among the discounted products, I checked that the cheese that was on sale was still available. Then, after seeing that it was and there was no risk of it running out right away either, I looked around for a while, but I didn’t find anything else to get, so I eventually asked for about 1.8 kg of the cheese, which was what I needed in order to use those vouchers. However, I was told that a pack had two kilograms, so I agreed to take a whole one, even if it was then weighed, shown to have almost 2.1 kg, and priced accordingly. I had only taken a little cash with me and I mainly meant to use it at Kaufland, if I’ll find evening discounts, but I could afford that difference and an unopened pack was also going to keep longer, if we’ll only open it when we’ll actually need to. And what also helped was that, after trying to sit in line at three self-checkouts that accepted cash, the one I settled on and got to use proved to be a good choice because a pile of coins had been left in the change tray… And I actually came back with less than what I found.
Either way, I then continued to Kaufland, with the purchases in one hand, putting them in a cabinet after putting the bottles in the recycling machine. Then, after going to the toilet, I entered the store when it was almost 9:25 PM, so I expected the bakery area to be quite empty. However, that wasn’t the case, and the mixed discounts were probably the reason why, some products still having labels that only listed discounts of 30%, and I scanned one of those labels and confirmed that lower discount. I still grabbed two sweet pastries, but one had that lower discount and it was also the last one left, so when an employee came out moments later and started scanning the labels, I assumed that she was going to increase the discounts for what was left, so I put back that pastry and slowly made my way to the self-checkouts, where I used one just to check the prices for that pastry and some buns. They still showed up as only being discounted by 30%, but that pastry did have a good enough price even so, and it was something that my mother likes, so I went back and took it again anyway, deciding to tell dad to take it to her. Maybe I should have waited a little longer, since I eventually scanned the label for those buns one more time and found that the discount had increased to 50%, even if the price label hadn’t been changed, but someone else might have taken it by then. Either way, I then took two of those buns as well, and I also saw some large potatoes, and since dad always only wants large ones, I checked how much I had left and took just two of them, even if they were at the regular price. And I just finished using the self-checkout, where I also used the voucher from the recycling machine, when the closing announcement came, after which I arranged the purchases and got back.
I was back a couple of minutes after 10:30 PM… And when I rinsed my mouth, I saw blood, then checked and saw that it came from a tooth on the lower left, but the bleeding soon stopped, even if it was quite significant at first. Then I ate an apple and the sweet pastry from Carrefour, put the few other purchases in their place, and went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and wash, at 11:40 PM… But I somehow forgot the towel, so when I was done I had to grab it from my room, and then I also rinsed the worst of the dirt from the mop and bucket and used a rag to wipe the water from the floor, so that took a while as well, and I was finally done a few minutes before 1 AM. Then I washed a part of the glass baking tray and a large pot, and ate dinner between 3:20 AM and 4 AM. Before going to bed, I made sure to floss thoroughly in that place that bled, which obviously led to more bleeding, but it again stopped quickly and I didn’t notice anything obviously wrong there. It did cause me to get in bed at 5:20 AM, however. And the following night I lost way too much time talking to dad and ended up starting to eat dinner at 3:05 AM, but at least I still finished at 3:40 AM, though I then once again got in bed at 5:20 AM.
As for the mouse, I’m generally pleased with it, I could quickly put the additional buttons to use, and having replacement feet included is also nice if you mean to use a mouse for years to come. And Swarm also seems to have improved, at least in the sense that it doesn’t constantly use processing power while running, or at least I didn’t notice it while making the settings, but I don’t really care to keep it running anyway, even if it would allow me to access a few better options, so I didn’t even try to see what happens if I don’t shut it down for a while. On the other hand, I definitely don’t like the fact that the mouse is smaller and lighter than my old one and I really wish they’ll make the weight customizable again, like it was for the XTD, which had weights. I’ll also need some time to get used to the changes in the button layout, and while I will do so, at the moment having two rows of two buttons on the side does make me accidentally press the wrong one at times, and accessing the secondary function of those from the bottom row is particularly difficult. I do like having those additional buttons next to the left button, but I’d have really wanted them to keep the side buttons and those below the wheel as they were and add back the one that was above the wheel in the older models. But, besides all of that, what really matters is how reliable it’ll be, which remains to be seen… Especially since this store that I bought it from doesn’t just not offer the option to purchase extended warranty but, as I already mentioned, I even had to point out to them that the manufacturer offers two years of warranty for them to do the same, because it was listed as having just one year, which I doubt is even legal in the EU. Either way, I’ll also keep the old one as a spare, since it remains reasonably usable despite being over six years old.