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.

Three months ago, I was expressing disappointment at the results obtained by CSM Bucuresti and Rapid in the Women’s Handball Champions’ League, especially since this may well be the last season when they have access to the funds that allow them to keep all those great players, and the transfers which have so far been announced seem to confirm this. However, while in CSM’s case the disappointments keep coming one after the other and they’re currently likely to end up fifth in that group that they were initially said to be unable to finish lower than third even if they tried, things are much more frustrating when it comes to Rapid.
Sure, the fact that they lost the three matches played since the start of the year is not a surprise and neither is their current position, the next match probably deciding whether they’ll manage to grab sixth place or not, downright shocking being their thrilling home win against Vipers from November. However, the manner in which they lost these matches is just heartbreaking. Maybe somewhat less so in case of the one against Metz, where the missing players forced them to use more or less the same team and it was expected that they’ll tire before the end, and that proved to be the case in the last ten minutes, while in the last five they pretty much collapsed and ended up losing by three goals, yet the fact remains that they played amazingly well. Or, as one commentator put it, “they played as never before and lost as always”. But heartbreaking really is the right way to describe losing the year’s first match, away against Krim, in the final seconds, after such a tight match that Rapid nevertheless led most of the time, Krim only leading twice, at 2-1 and right there when it mattered, at the very end.
And then there was today’s match, away against Ikast, which was pretty much the same… If not even worse. Ikast pulled away at first and led throughout the first half, but Rapid recovered, equalizing at the start of the second half, and the rest of the match was as tight as it could possibly be, neither team being more than one goal ahead at any point. It was 28-28 with four minutes to go, and no more goals were scored for the next three and a half minutes. Then Ikast made it 29-28, with 30 seconds to go. So Rapid played seven against six and rushed to equalize, to at least obtain one point, and they did score, with 11 seconds to go. But those seconds were enough for Ikast to put the ball into the empty net, the goalkeeper not managing to get back in time. And you can’t blame them for anything, they did nothing wrong, they didn’t squander a lead, actually fighting back during the first half, and at the end they did the only thing they could do in that situation, seeing as they needed to score, so they couldn’t keep the goalkeeper on or refuse that shot in order to keep the ball until the end. So the first part of that commentator’s statement, from the match against Metz, is starting to become less true, because they are playing really well, against teams that at the moment should be well above their level… But the second part remains just as true, because they still lose anyway, and at this point they may not even make it past the group stage…

Three months ago, I was somewhat relieved when the European Central Bank submitted an opinion in which it stressed the importance of the continued availability of cash payments and actually requested a ban on “no cash” policies, and of course also by the ECB’s page about the role of cash, which does a really good job of briefly and accurately explaining the benefits of sticking to cash. And, just earlier this week, the Bundesbank presented the results of a study about the future of cash use, which expresses alarm at the possibility that access to and acceptance of cash may not be fully guaranteed and stresses that measures need to be taken to ensure the preservation and widespread use of cash, allowing people to decide for themselves whether to pay in cash or not.
However, instead of indicating the direction that is to be taken, the Bundesbank’s release was actually meant to raise the alarm about the fact that things are moving in the opposite one, seeing as it came a day before the announcement that the European Union reached a provisional agreement on various measures that, under the guise of fighting against money laundering, include limiting cash payments to €10000 and more surveillance of transactions, including verifying those who just happen to occasionally pay at least €3000 in cash. The package still needs to be formally adopted and it includes other measures that seem reasonable, and plenty of member states already have limits on cash payments that are even lower than €10000, which will still be allowed under the new regulations, plus that €10000 is a high enough limit that it shouldn’t really affect regular people in their everyday lives, but setting such a limit at the level of the European Union sets a precedent and sends a dangerous message.
Even with this limit, anyone may at some point buy or sell real estate or motorized vehicles, for example, in which case they may well be forbidden from using or accepting cash, and that lower threshold of €3000 that may put people under scrutiny may be reached in far more scenarios and by far more individuals. But, again, the harder part is setting the first limit, as once that happens it’s likely to be far easier to change it, most likely in order to make it ever more restrictive in the future. And the very concept of including a limit above which cash payments are forbidden and one above which those who make cash transactions are to be verified as part of a package against money laundering that is to be implemented in the entire European Union sends the dangerous message that, despite all of the real benefits of sticking to, or at least preferring, cash, those who do so are to be seen as potential criminals, that using cash is somehow suspicious by default.

On January 5, I got up after the alarm rang, at 1 PM, but after waking up the second time a little after 12:30 PM and deciding against going to pee again, I’m not sure if I managed to get back to sleep, and if I did, it was only for one or two very brief naps. Then I had the usual stuff, with the apple being a really tasty bio (organic) one and the sweet thing consisting of some nicer but expired biscuits, with added honey. On the other hand, after complaining that, on December 31, which should have been the last day of the campaign, I had attempted to take 50 RON in coins to Carrefour one more time but had been told, in two locations, that the campaign had already ended, I had received a message stating that they’ll be waiting for me at Obor in order to change those coins and also give me that gift card, so I asked for confirmation that what will happen was exactly what should have happened on December 31 and received it… But I also received a notification from Emsisoft, stating that my supposedly inactive device was going to be removed, since they had apparently introduced automatic removals of inactive devices, but that “inactive” device is actually my computer, since I’m managing to avoid connecting it to the “workspace”, so I asked them to not remove it, not knowing what would happen if it would be removed, and the initial reply tried to convince me that the “inactive” device was a different device and I must have another subscription for the active one. Things were sorted out a couple of days later, when they said that, following feedback, they disabled that “feature”, but at that point I was quite concerned. Still, I had to run that day, so I left at 3:45 PM, wearing the full running gear. The reported temperature was about 15°C, dropping by a few degrees by the time I finished.
The time was 48:09.82, with sector times of 4:10.41, 5:17 (5:16.63), 5:51.84, 4:33 (4:32.13), 5:03.22, 5:59 (5:58.84), 4:33.31, 5:05 (5:04.85), 5:47 (5:46.84) and 1:51.75, making for lap times of 15:18.88, 15:35 (15:34.19) and 15:25.00. I gave everything from the start, hoping for another really fast first sector, to knock all of those with 4:08 out of the top ten, and what I managed was very disappointing, and in fact even concerning. Admittedly, I did need to squeeze through two roadblocks, one of them on the long straight, but without those I’d have probably only managed yet another 4:08, if even that. Either way, I then expected to be slow on sector two, since I had to recover, but that time was a little worse than I thought it’d be and even staying on the pace for 48 minutes on that first lap seemed unlikely. In the end, I just managed it, but it was clear that I won’t keep that up, so I was hoping to at least stay under 48:30, yet when lap two seemed to pretty much ensure that, I even wondered whether I could really push on lap three and get under 48 minutes after all. But that was next to impossible to begin with, and sector one of lap three made it clear that I had no chance, yet I still did my best, pushing even harder on sector three of lap three and actually managing a good time on that sector, though I only saw that at the end, since I didn’t check the time at the end of the lap. So it was another poor time, but at least the least poor one since November.
It was crowded, so I had to weave and go the long way around quite a lot, and a number of times, including those two from the first sector, I slowed in order to squeeze through or even wait for an opening in a roadblock, but the one brief stop was on sector three of lap one and it was caused by a dog that was off the leash and got right in my way. And there seemed to be a few moments when my heart once again felt a little weird, but maybe I was paying too much attention to that, especially after pushing so hard on the first sector, and I didn’t actually feel irregular heartbeats. And that was pretty much it; I wouldn’t say that there were other problems and even the lane was more usable than it usually is. I guess that I might have just squeezed under 48 minutes if it wouldn’t have been crowded, but that’s no excuse.

After having lunch, I left again a little before 6:15 PM, to actually take the book back to the Library, which had to be open again, but also taking the coins and the used batteries. I had dad’s metro card, which still had to be shown everywhere, and I got to the Library in half and hour, handing that book to someone and then deciding to look for another one after all, even if it was close to closing time. However, the title that was in my mind was that of one that I already read, so that was what I told the other guy when he asked whether I was looking for something, and handed him the Library pass, and what I searched for and then took when I spotted it, while he was still searching on the computer. So I ended up borrowing the wrong book and only realized it days later.
With that wrong book in the backpack, I returned to the metro station, actually going to the booth where I thought cards could be replaced and saying that it wasn’t being read anymore, but without actually asking for a replacement, and the person who was there didn’t mention the possibility, just telling me to go to the other booth, and when I did, that guy just opened the gate. So I continued with that card, getting off at Obor, going to that Carrefour and telling the people from the information desk what I was there for, and one of them, who was actually the same one I had talked to on December 31, called someone and said that the person with the complaint had arrived, and then she sent me to that central checkout. I also asked whether they had rechargeable batteries that day, but shrugged it off when I was told that they still didn’t and went in, finding someone waiting for me, and I handed over the coins and received the bill and the gift card and signed when I was asked to do so. Then I looked around the store and bought two cabbages, struggling to make them fit in the backpack, along with the book.
The initial plan was to then go straight to Penny, to use one of those discount vouchers, and I was pressed for time, needing to give the metro card back to dad before he’ll go to work, but I wanted to compare prices, so I decided to also check Kaufland, entering with the backpack and spotting deeply discounted bags of oranges that seemed to have had one removed from them, but the remaining ones looked good, so I grabbed three, and then I also saw two employees coming with some yogurts and placing additional discount labels on them. They did give the impression that they might have been discounting them in order to buy them themselves, but an old man started talking to them, and while they seemed to know him, I also had a look and saw that the discount was 85%, so even though those yogurts expired the next day, I took two. And then bakery discounts of 65% were announced, surprisingly early, and while the buns didn’t have discount labels yet, I took the regular labels, searched for a working price checker, since the one from the bakery area wasn’t working, and found that the discount applied to them as well. I hadn’t washed my hands and didn’t immediately spot gloves, but I just went for it and took some buns, with my hands as they were, after dropping the oranges and yogurts and the Penny catalog, where dad had marked and I had written what to look for… And then I apparently forgot to pick that catalog back up, but I remembered everything, and it no longer mattered just then anyway, since it was already clear that I’ll need to rush right back, so after also getting some beer for dad I looked around a little more.
At the self-checkout, at first the machine said that the buns weren’t the correct product, so I called over an employee and he checked and then logged on to override the error, but then the first bag of oranges gave the same error, so I called him over again and told him that it’ll probably give that error for each of the bags, since they’re not complete, and he logged back on and entered all of them, and also noticed and cleared the purchase of beer while he was there, so I didn’t have to call him over a third time after I was done. But as I was rushing to grab my purchases and let the next person use the machine, I threw everything into one bag and one of the handles tore when I picked it up, so I just freed the machine and then found a way to carry that bag out of that area, then put it on the cabinets that are before the exit, took the oranges out of it, since I could carry those bags separately, and tied that handle. And I was approaching the metro station when dad called to say that he was leaving, but I reached the station just in time, the metro arriving when I showed the card, so I was about to walk out of this station when dad called again, and I didn’t answer at first, thinking that he wanted to let me know that he was there. But he wasn’t, so I waited for him to call again and he said that he was still on the way, so I went a little farther, meeting him next to the church, giving him the metro card and quickly exchanging a few more words.
It was close to 8:55 PM when I got back here, with just about 17 kg, and I still had to go to Penny, so I dropped everything off and less than ten minutes later I was out again, rushing to Penny Titan and checking whether they had that cat food that dad keeps giving Liza, and buying for her regardless of the price if I don’t look for discounts, even though she still has plenty of the other kind that I used the vouchers I won last year for. Since it was also discounted those days, that was going to make up much or even most of the amount required in order to use that discount voucher, so if it’d have been sold out in that location, I’d have had to rush to the next one, but that was fortunately not the case, so I then started looking for the other products and trying to calculate how to exceed the required amount by as little as possible… Which took way too long, because I got confused and kept recalculating and making small changes even though I basically ended up replacing one product with two others that cost only a little less, and the previous total had exceeded that minimum amount by more than the difference, so it should have been clear, but I was getting ever more stressed as closing time was approaching and my brain wasn’t working anymore. But it was still a few minutes before 10 PM when I was finally convinced that everything was right and rushed to the checkout.
Well, everything was fine with the products and using that voucher, but I gave the cashier the bills and told him to wait because I had the coins as well, yet I had just given one and was digging the others out of my pocket when he closed the register, so I placed those remaining coins on the counter and took a 0.01 RON one that was already there, since I had rounded up, what I gave being 0.02 RON more than the actual total… But I ended up actually paying less, because the cashier left those coins on the counter, gave me the receipt, and then just put on his coat and walked out, leaving me alone in the store. I looked around and didn’t see anyone, not even a guard… So I retrieved those coins, then stopped at the cabinets for just a moment, only to arrange the purchases just enough to be able to carry them out, and when I walked out I saw the guard and that cashier chatting outside. Then I stopped a few steps away and arranged everything in the backpack. Since I had taken that cat food in a box, in order to make it easier to carry, I didn’t want to just throw that box in a garbage bin or, worse, simply leave it there, and I also didn’t want to turn back and use one of the recycling bins from Penny, so I took that with me as well, holding it in one hand and meaning to look for another recycling bin.
Moments later, I did end up leaving that box on a garbage bin, but only temporarily, because I decided to check that Mega Image as well, entering with the backpack. And I found some sausages that were discounted by 90% and took one box for dad, and an employee stared hard at me when I went towards that area, then walked away when I started looking, and then I saw her with other products, also discounted by 90%, at the checkout, and I hadn’t seen any of those products among the discounted ones, so I initially thought that I had missed something and rushed back, looking in another place as well and then just going back to the checkout when I still didn’t spot anything else. But when I saw the cashier put all of those products which had been purchased by her coworker in a basket and under the counter and then, as I added the sausages in the backpack, another employee, whom I had seen checking shelves with one of those machines that I think are used to generate those discount vouchers, came to the checkout with more deeply discounted products which I hadn’t seen, I got the distinct impression that I was bothering them while they were discounting products that were about to expire in order to buy them themselves, only those that they weren’t interested in being placed in that area. Either way, I then retrieved that box as well, putting it in a recycling bin quite some time later, when I finally reached one, even if that meant waiting for the next green light. And I also very quickly checked the nearby Mega Image, just entering with everything and then leaving again.
I was back for good at 10:45 PM, then I finished the fruit salad from my mother and also ate the last slice of that cake made by that friend of hers, did the day’s squats, in the kitchen, put some of the purchases in their place… And noticed that, before leaving, quite clearly when I grabbed my headphones, I had knocked down the miniature clay jug that Andra bought for me when she dragged me to a fair at one point. Fortunately, it didn’t break, though I’m not entirely certain that the rough spot on the bottom was there all along, so it’s possible that a tiny shard came off from that spot. But I had placed the first toenail lost because of running and the first white hairs I noticed on my head in it, and those were no longer there, and while I recovered the nail, the hairs must have gotten lost. Either way, it was 12:05 AM when I went to the toilet and to wash, being done a couple of minutes before 1 AM. Then I had a quick look on-line before going back to the kitchen, putting the remaining purchases in their place, eating a good part of some walnuts with pepper that I already had and putting the rest in the salad, so I got 850 calories just from those, and also washing what I had to wash. I started eating dinner at 3:10 AM, but still finished at 3:40 AM. And I’ll also mention here that the following night, so in the early hours of December 7, I received and redeemed Contraption Maker, along with its Wonderstructs and Battling Cards DLCs, though the message had been sent during the evening. They were given by that same guy who donates so much, after his Doc’s Intergalactic Clown School event.

In the early hours of January 12, I started eating dinner at 3:10 AM, but still finished at 3:40 AM, and had some more of the old peanut butter on some of the slices of bread. The alarm was set to ring at 1 PM, but I woke up when I think it was a little before 10:15 AM, though it might have been up to ten minutes later, since I checked the time twice and instantly forgot what I saw both times, and I doubt that I managed to get any more sleep after that. I didn’t hear noise just then, but something had probably woken me, because drilling started before I got back to my room, after peeing and having a quick look at what dad had brought in the morning, and while there weren’t only periods when there was just dull hammering but even a couple of quiet periods, and I tried to get back to sleep, I don’t think that I did. Or, if I managed it at all, I must have woken up again mere moments later. So, when I heard dad getting ready to leave, I checked the time again, saw that it was 12:45 PM, turned off the alarm and went to exchange a few words with him… And what was annoying was that the noise stopped not long after that, and didn’t restart until I left. Either way, I then had the usual stuff, with the sweet thing being a slice of cozonac from my mother, with added honey, and left a little after 3:35 PM, wearing the running gear, an undershirt, another t-shirt, the shirt from the old training suit that I wear inside, the gloves, and that thing on my neck, pulled up on the way to the park, when I obviously also wore the jacket, keeping it tied around my waist as I ran. The reported temperature was about 1°C, dropping to 0°C when I finished.
The time was 48:56.07, with sector times of 4:20.48, 5:13.09, 6:08.37, 4:36 (4:35.79), 5:10 (5:09.28), 6:01.37, 4:37.13, 5:08 (5:07.87), 5:56 (5:55.72) and 1:47 (1:46.97), making for lap times of 15:41.94, 15:47 (15:46.44) and 15:41 (15:40.72). Considering the cold, I was thinking that just staying under 50 minutes might just be acceptable, and I’ll be quite content with beating that 49:41 from December 4, yet after the first two sectors I was quite certain that I’ll cover the first lap in less than 15:30 and perhaps just give myself a chance to stay under 49 minutes. However, despite thinking that I had been pushing on sector three of lap one, that poor time made me think that even beating that 49:41 will be a struggle, so I pushed more on lap two and was somewhat relieved at the end of it, when it seemed like getting under 49:30 was pretty much certain. But that made me wonder whether I could do better after all, and while I briefly wondered about getting under 49 minutes once again, I quickly discarded that idea as impossible and meant to at least try to be no more than a minute slower than last week. And the first two sectors of lap three seemed to give me a pretty good chance, so I pushed on sector three of lap three, hoping to be more or less safe at the end of the lap. But when I saw that I had managed that, I wondered whether I still had enough in me for a really good final sector and somehow just squeeze under 49 minutes after all, so I pushed like crazy and actually made it with a few seconds to spare. Not that this is not, in itself, a bad time, but I’m quite content with it, considering the circumstances, and that good final sector, plus the fact that the only decent sector three of the day was on lap three, showed that I could have pushed harder.
The fact that the lane was rather frozen actually made it more usable, and there were just a handful of small patches of ice, but I did slip twice, slightly, on sector three of lap two and sector two of lap three. A light snowfall started at the end of sector two of lap one and it bothered me for the next few minutes, getting in my eyes, but on lap two it got even lighter and was no longer a problem. It picked up a little on lap three, once again bothering me a little, but not as much as on sector three of lap one, and the dark cloud it came with wasn’t quite dark enough to make me need to slow significantly in order to see the times, though I probably lost a little bit of time in order to do that, and I likely also lost a little time whenever I took off the glove in order to press the button and then put it back on, since I only kept it off on the final sector. But the relatively few people caused no notable problems and just occasional weaving and going the long way around, and physically I felt better than I expected, considering the cold. I did feel rather stiff at first and my lungs were starting to hurt before they got used to that cold air, but those problems went away quickly, and while my nostrils were tightening a little, it wasn’t a notable problem except on the final straight, when I pushed so hard, and I managed to get enough air even then.

Since I once again heard drilling when I got back to the building, I went up the stairs until I identified the source, on the sixth floor, also seeing the nice decorations on the fifth floor in the process. Then I ate a banana and lunch, changed my pants and left again when it was past 6:20 PM, dad just getting back to leave the metro card, which I still had to show everywhere, a few minutes earlier, before leaving again, saying that he was going to a neighbor for a drink. But I couldn’t have left earlier anyway, and dad had called to ask whether I needed him to get back a little sooner, so he had nothing to do with the fact that I left rather late.
Well, this time around it was too late, seeing as I wanted to return that book which I had borrowed by accident and get the correct one instead, but I reached that location of the Library around 6:50 PM and found that it was dark. The gate was still open, however, so I tried the door, but it was locked. I saw some activity at a side door and a girl who walked through the gate at that point went straight there, so I don’t know whether she worked there and had things to do after closing time or just knew what to do when you get there just before closing time, but one of the guys came to close the gate when I was just turning away from the door, so I rushed to him, asked to be allowed to leave and muttered, repeatedly, that I wanted to return a book but it seemed that they closed early. He said that it was five minutes before closing time, I said that I was at the door at 6:51 PM, and then he said that if I just wanted to return a book, I could give it to him, so I did that, without mentioning that I’d have liked to borrow one as well, since that quite clearly seemed to be out of the question. Then he took the book away, asking me to wait for him to confirm that it was returned, so I did that and a little later he came with a receipt.
Then I took the metro to Obor and first went to Auchan, getting the toothpaste for dad and some walnuts with pepper that were among the expiring products. But when I used the self-checkout, there was a message that I needed assistance, so I called over the employee and he sorted it out. However, those walnuts were of their own brand and 5% of the value should have therefore been placed on the store card, which didn’t happen, probably because they were expiring products and what showed up on the receipt was something generic, so the real discount was lower, but I didn’t comment, just putting the purchases in the backpack and continuing to that mall.
After quickly checking that bookstore, I entered Carrefour, with the backpack, and took two expiring products out of that huge pile, the roes actually being in the full cart that was next to the refrigerator, but I didn’t think that it was going to be a problem, and it wasn’t. Then I saw what seemed to be a wrong price for garlic, as if the first digit had fallen away, but I checked on the scales and confirmed that the listed price was correct, the reason for it becoming obvious when I actually looked at the garlic and saw how bad it was. But I had some time, so I stayed there for a while, selecting some that was still good enough, and since the employees had started making the bakery discounts a little earlier, that also meant that the bread that I get from there was discounted by the time I was done, so I got two. But those vouchers with 20% of the value applied to salty snacks again those days, so I wanted to get some more of those small bagels, and possibly also some corn puffs, but the bagels were not in the area where the signs were, so I asked an employee whether they were included and she didn’t know, telling me to see at the checkout, when it was going to be too late. So, before going to the self-checkout, with all of those and a few other products, plus some sweet pastries for my mother which had also been discounted by then, I asked the employees who were at that desk that’s in that area, and one checked on his phone and confirmed that they were included. I still paid for them separately, however, to make really sure. But the problem appeared later, when I scanned the corn puffs and saw a price that was higher than the listed one, so after scanning everything else I called over an employee and asked him to remove them and take them away, not bothering to say why I didn’t want them or asking for a price check, since I didn’t want them that much anyway.
Since I had the purchases from Carrefour in two bags, I just put those bags in a cabinet when I reached Kaufland, then washed my hands and entered the store with the backpack, at 9:35 PM. There weren’t many bakery products left, but there were only a few labels with discounted prices and the employee who was there was asking for another one to give her the new ones, since other customers were asking, so I scanned a couple of labels and also checked on those sheets of paper when they were brought, and since one more interesting product didn’t have a discount, I just took two regular buns, then got yogurt, some spoiling mushrooms, and some beer for dad, since it was heavily discounted those days. This probably wasn’t exactly a good idea, but before getting to the reason why I’ll also mention that the closing announcement came when I was either waiting in line at the self-checkout or even already using it, and I obviously needed to call employee to authorize the sale of beer. And then I had to try several times before the cabinet unlocked, but it eventually did and I arranged the purchases, walking out a little before 10:10 PM, though I then stopped one more time, to move two things which had been left in a bag into the backpack.
I got back at 10:45 PM, with a little over 13.5 kg, and saw that dad was taking a bath and the bathroom door was ajar, but I dropped the bags and backpack and took off my jacket and shoes before greeting him, and then going there and even knocking on the door when he didn’t reply. When he still didn’t reply, I entered… And found him sleeping in a bathtub that was almost completely full, with the water still running! So I woke him, at which point he turned off the water… And splashed some of it on the floor, but dismissed it when I pointed it out, and when I told him to release some of the water he told me to leave him alone because it was fine. And he sounded drunk, and this time around I could pick up on it, unlike that first time, when I was panicking and also had never seen him drunk before, or at least couldn’t remember any such occasion, so I didn’t even consider the possibility until after the fact. At least I arrived just in time to prevent him from flooding the place again. He later insisted that he had set an alarm and I had arrived just before it was supposed to ring, but that bathtub was moments away from overflowing and I didn’t hear any alarm just then.
Either way, I then put most of the purchases in their place, ate something sweet and those walnuts with pepper, so there were once again 850 calories just from those walnuts, cleaned a little in the kitchen, keeping myself busy for as long as possible, and it was past 12:10 AM, maybe closer to 12:15 AM, when I asked dad whether he was going to stay there any longer… And he said that he was and even asked why, though when I said that I’d like to wash as well he did get moving, finally coming out after a while… And just walking past the kitchen a couple of times, rather sheepishly, then saying bye and wanting to go to bed. At that point I asked whether he had too much to drink and he said “not exactly”, but I disagreed and reminded him that we should have talked about the next day, and also about money, as hard and annoying as that is, so he said that he’ll stay for another hour, but I wanted to wash, plus that a serious conversation with him seemed rather improbable at that point, so I just asked when did he plan to leave and, after he told me, whether he could do so later, so we’ll have time to talk before that. And he agreed to that, then fell asleep pretty much the moment he got in bed.
It was 12:30 AM when I went to the bathroom, to use the toilet and wash, and then I mopped up some more water and moved a few things, walking out of the bathroom at 1:40 AM. Then I gathered my clothes which were hung to dry, cleaned a little after dad in the living room as well, and put the remaining purchases in their place, finally being done with those things at 2:30 AM, and then also dealing with one of my breads, so it wasn’t bad that I ate dinner between 3:30 AM and 4:05 AM. On the other hand, while working on dinner, I heard two cracks that seemed to come from the freezer and sounded like plastic breaking, the first one being fainter and the second one being quite loud. I didn’t notice what it could have been, neither then nor later, but it made me worry about the fridge once again. Either way, I got in bed at 5:40 AM, and it took me a while to fall asleep, and after waking up to pee at 9:50 AM I couldn’t get back to sleep at all, even though there was only faint noise coming from that neighbor and dad only got up at noon, so I finally gave up and got up as well soon after that. But at least I got some more sleep in the evening.

After only starting to write in the evening and really struggling with it and taking breaks, just posting the parts about the two actual runs before midnight was all that I could do, leaving the parts about the rest of these two days for some other time. And it was only in the early hours of Thursday that I managed to post the part about the rest of January 12, since I had meant to write that directly and therefore didn’t have many notes, so I wanted to write it first. As for the part about the rest of January 5, I only managed to add it Sunday evening.

This was initially just meant to be a very quick post about the next Artemis missions getting delayed, pretty much limited to yet again pointing out that we, even as a species, still can’t seem to manage to do something that we could do 55 years ago, and that even the country that did it back then, when the will and the determination to do it existed, still can’t even repeat that achievement. However, my mind then continued down that path and, seeing as the competition between the two superpowers and the fact that each felt terribly threatened if the other would get up there first led to the Space Race and therefore to that achievement, I wanted to ask why don’t we also have a Climate or Decarbonization Race, or something similar to protect biodiversity, greatly reduce inequality, eliminate poverty, eradicate preventable diseases and so on. After all, the most powerful countries could compete on those fields as well, and environmental and social problems are serious threats and whoever would solve them first would definitely be a winner on the world stage.
Well, to answer my own question, it seems to me that humanity needs losers more than winners, this determination to do whatever it takes in order to achieve something extraordinary on a large scale being driven by the desire to be able to use it against others and the fear of how others could use it against you, the fear probably being the more powerful of the two. And the problem with solving those major environmental or social problems is that everybody’d win, because at this point it’s no longer a technological problem, we know what to do, what’s missing being the will to do it, which would be proven once a major power would actually do it, at which point all the others would just follow suit and there would be no losers left. Of course, there’s also the fact that it’s not a single, specific, achievement, one moment that we can mark on the calendar and set down in history, but I do believe that the lack of losers, the fact that such an achievement won’t be something to hold over others but rather a model, a guide, that would help them quickly follow suit, is an important aspect of what holds us back. And that, once again, proves that “the chief obstacle to the progress of the human race is the human race“.