“I feel like I’ve been talking to Columbo”
That was what the GG said as we left FlaMan’s place this afternoon. I knew what he meant but not sure too many in the younger generations would. A side story about Columbo is that when I was much younger, I sometimes watched Columbo with my family and at some point, we realized that The Commander regularly wore a trench coat that matched Columbo’s. And she kind of looked like him, except for the fact that she was not an Italian(?) man. This was funny to her, believe it or not.
Anyway, we traveled down south today because on a Tuesday there are usually waaaaay fewer yay-hoos on the I75 SUV Speedway than on a Sunday. And that was true today with a couple notable exceptions, one being Gaylord, where we needed to stop at Meijer to get some supplies for FlaMan. Gaylord has always been a “cross-roads” and now, with the addition of lemme see… Meijer, Walmart, Menards, Lowes, and I can’t even think what else, it is CRAY-ZEE there, even on a Tuesday. Add to that the fact that I couldn’t exactly remember where Meijer was and the GG jumped out ahead of me at the freeway exit (we were driving two cars because we love to waste gasoline, of course). There was no way I could catch up with him and it felt like I was halfway to Elmira before I finally saw the Meijer sign. I’m thinking next time we need a Meijer stop on our way down the I75 SUV Speedway, we’ll try West Branch.
FlaMan’s place was hot and noisy. Gunsmoke reruns were on loud (this is per usual), and an oxygen musheen was also running. Also loud, which is probably why Gunsmoke was so loud. And then the O2 musheen started emitting a LOUD alarm. Think smoke/CO alarm. I was going absolutely nutso by that thing but of course “we” (aka the GG) had to stay to try to silence the alarm because it was ALSO driving FlaMan nutso. Given my recent dying smoke alarm experiences, I felt for FlaMan. But their conversations were also driving me nuts and I wanted to get home home home.
The last hour of the trip from FlaMan’s place to The Landfill was fine, since it wasn’t a Sunday, but it is ALWAYS busy on a weekday with lots of trucks and things.
The pic is from my lunch break yesterday. It was colder than blue blazes. But now we are back on the Planet Ann Arbor where it is supposed to heat up into the 90s over the next week or whatever. Part of me is wondering what the heck I am doing here but another part is whispering, “It’s shelling pea season.”
P.S. We have been home fewer/less than two hours and the GG has already been to the hardware store or wherever and is whaling away with some noisy tool in the backyard in order to fix the lawn mower. Or something. I hope he fixes the hole in my flower-watering hose too.
June 11th, 2024 at 6:00 pm
Never had that issue with Patt’s oxygen equipment. What was the problem? That’s quite a change from cold to 90s!
June 12th, 2024 at 7:26 am
Ah, Columbo. In March, Doug and I visited our daughter and fam in Brooklyn. At the end of the first day we chilled out with a little TV and I (!!!) controlled the remote. I found Columbo and we watched about half of one episode. When we got home I decided to watch ALL Columbos, all 69 of them. It’s not only been great fun but it’s cleared my head of a lot of political nightmares that I’m cursed to live with. I’ve discovered that there’s a big world of Columbo lovers out there, and about half of them have podcasts. Generally, the podcasts are hosted by men in their late 40s who saw their first early Columbo as children. I’m so sad that I’m on the last episode but I may start rewatching from the beginning and binge watch for the remainder of my life. I swear it’s good for my mental state. I watch on my phone, alone, in short bursts during the day. While fixing dinner, for example. Or drifting off to sleep. Watching Columbo is like eating a big bowl of mac and cheese. Not necessarily nutritious but very soothing.