Some Things Don't Change

I looked at my first post after returning from our last leave and I almost wrote the exact same words today.

"...If I am being honest I will admit that enjoyed being able to say yes, I had been out of the country in the last twelve months."

Other nice things about being back

Skyspace

old friends

my favorite mug

laundry that dries quickly

I haven't decided how often I will post because I enjoyed the break the last month, but here is something for today.

One in a Continuing Series

 At least I got a blog post out of it!

I went back to the Red Cross to donate platelets and passed the iron test. I thought I would watch a documentary but the streaming site was not working.

I chose this movie because everyone had told me I should
see it and enjoy all the great Philadelphia scenes.

After the movie ended I asked about the one scene I have seen online, the one where Rocky is running with the whole neighborhood of kids. Turns out that was in Rocky II, but not only was that not this movie, this was not the first one!! Oh no! It has Rocky in the title and no number (like Rocky II, III, and IV, AND V), 

from the first Rocky trailer

it has him in black and white on the museum steps, but I watched the whole movie and it was the wrong one. As I watched it I thought it was odd to see that some restaurant opened in 1995 because I thought the first Rocky movie was older than that, but I figured time is strange and I never can tell how long ago things really happened. Do I have to go back and watch the first one and see yet another fight scene? Ugh. 

At least I got a blog post out of it.

A New Route

I have always driven to the Red Cross building near Cal Poly Pomona. It is not my favorite drive but there are a lot worse ones. Today the car had to be taken in to have a part replaced.

The tape hanging underneath the car shows why.

It turns out the repair conflicted with my appointment and I couldn't easily change it. I decided I would ride there and if I failed the iron test I would ride home and if I passed then I could get picked up.

It took only 35 minutes, but there was one hill that I was
sailing down, thinking, "I hope I pass the test! I hope I pass the test!"

Ta da! My beautiful platelets!

Unfortunately, it took the people an hour to tell D. that they did not have the part!! On the plus side, they did a nice job of re-taping it.

Some days are like that

The plan was to donate platelets, but my iron levels were too low despite eating liverwurst, cream of wheat, and grapenuts for the past 48 hours. Sigh. I am especially annoyed because I last donated on 8/8 and today is 9/9, which would be the start of a nice pattern. May this be my biggest problem!

Love is in the Air

I had a bit of time before a meeting so I stopped by the library (which was closed or it would have taken me more than a bit of time) to return a book and the post office to buy some stamps. Lines have been short and I had exact change so I thought it would be quick.

There was a short line that moved quickly but the first slowdown was choosing which love stamp I wanted. In the end I decided I liked the top one, which is last year's design.

The next slowdown was when the postal worker told me the exact change I had was incorrect because the rates had gone up recently. I was shocked because I had not read about it in any newspaper (you would think they would publish it there since I would guess people who read the newspaper on paper are the kind of people who go to the post office to buy stamps). Also I was amazed because my mom had not mentioned it. Even more amazing was when I called my mom she said she did not know, either. I have to say that scooping my mom on any news is worth the penny more per stamp!

We chatted a bit more and I learned that my mom had given blood that day and is only a pint away from sixteen gallons! I had an appointment to donate that afternoon and had just been debating whether to buy liver and onions at a diner. I have been rejected for low iron so many times I have become desperate. Instead I had iron-fortified cereal, oranges, and an iron pill for breakfast and lunch. Ta da! Now I am five pints away from ten gallons. I wonder if I will get to sixteen before they invent an effective blood substitute.

Here we go again

Another convocation, another first day of school, and back to the blog. I haven't quite decided if there will be a theme or just a collection of random pictures and comments.

I am not great at selfies, but I was excited to be able to donate my 73rd pint of blood. And if I am being honest I will admit that enjoyed being able to say yes, I had been out of the country in the last twelve months.

Back to the start

My first pint of blood was donated in my high school gym (which I think still exists, but I can't quite remember, even after watching this video clip of the remodeling project).  Today I donated blood in the high school gym where everyone else in the family went or will go to high school.

I thought this was the old gym but the principal thought it was the same age as the other.
Maybe it was built as a practice gym or for j.v. games.

Only one more pint and I will have reached nine gallons.