Share Your Current Situation

I shaved my head before hospital this week, so that's a 4.

My beard is getting towards a 7, now that I haven't been to the barbers for about 6 weeks

 

Me and my comb over had a “Come to Jesus Meeting” about 15 years ago. Since then I’ve been a #3 electric razor cut. For many years, my daughter cut my hair, then I went to Great Clips, but my last cut I went to a barbershop that was a Hispanic version of the film “Barbershop”. The barber spent at least 15 minutes on me: hot towel, straight razor for the back, some kind of after shave, the whole works. Now I’m back to home cuts.

As soon as I sat in the chair, the loud Salsa music stopped. I told the barber, “hey man, you don’t have to stop the tunes on my account.” Guess you had to be there, although I got a couple chuckles. Turns out it was just a long pause between songs.

 

I recently discovered the origin of the “Keep Calm” posters from Britain during WWII. Maybe a Keep Calm with a drawing of a mask would work.

 

I may grow mine out for a few weeks just so I can shave and have #8.

 

I've been going to a similar "Barbershop" version of the film but this one is owned and operated by Koreans. Really nice people and they have a price for seniors over 65 that is cheap by today's standards. By the way, they always charge me senior rate even though I'm not going to be 65 for 2 more years, lol!! (I always leave them a 50% tip)

They also do the whole traditional haircut experience. At the end they always put a super hot steam towel around your neck and do a killer neck and shoulder massage as the towel does it's magic.

I can't wait to patronize them again!!

 

Yes! They were first made in England in September 1939 and all featured the crown of King Henry the 6th. The Keep Calm was the last of the 3 in the series made, but was never released, as it was supposed to be saved for times of crisis or invasion. They mandated they be printed in a “handsome bold typeface” to prevent the enemy from easily counterfeiting them. Over 50 years later it was discovered in a box of books from auction at a bookstore called Barter Books in England. This bookstore was originally a Victorian Railway Station. They started printing and selling them at that time.

I’m going to be a Jeopardy champion by the time this homeschooling is over with! Hahaha

 

Speaking of Jeopardy..... This is what I've been doing to pass some of the time.

I found out that my brother in Brooklyn and a cousin in Pittsburgh have been calling each other to watch Jeopardy together each night and competing to see who gets the most right. Well Jeopardy comes on where I live in the afternoon. I've been supplying my brother with all the correct answers ahead of time for the last week. My cousin is just about crazy because he just has to be the smartest person in the room.

 

The grocery store here got smart finally as those of us that like to go in, get it, and get out are driven insane by walking the aisles looking and squinting and holding up the whole process.
At the end of every other aisle they have someone looking at you like “Can’t find it can you?” but they don’t say anything until you ask “Where’s the...?”
Makes everything go a lot faster. Especially when you say yeast or baking powder. “We’re out”.... and that makes it really fast.

 

Things are rather smooth here. Of course this is a small town. But we have a "big city" grocer, for the most part. I've settled into late morning on Thursdays.

 

Do you go to "A's" barber shop? Lots of good looking women cutting your hair. Which one do you go to and how much does it cost?


I usually cut my hair at about 10 - `12 weeks. Been about 14 weeks so I'm probably starting to look like #7, especially since I'm not shaving regularly. I don't expect to get a haircut for another 2 - 4 weeks so I'm starting to look a little grungy.

 

Now if someone mistakes you for Chewbacca....

 

The late 60’s and early 70’s hair and beard styles are coming back in fashion.

 

I have been in self quarantine since March 13th, 5 weeks now, since I am high risk. After my heart attack last year, my heart is working about half of what it used to be and kidneys about a 1/3rd. Luckily, I can work from home. I order curb side from Walmart and H-E-B, so I don’t have to go in any stores. Walmart is great, as I can get just about everything there, food and other stuff, plus you only have to order a couple of days ahead. H-E-B is about a week lead time. I have also been ordering off Amazon.

With no weekend trips to the casino , I have had plenty of time to cleanup the house. I think I have thrown away more stuff in the past few weeks than the past 15 years.

I can see myself doing this for months to come.

My treadmill seems like it kicked the bucket, but I had recently bought a recumbent bike to continue to get exercise.

My recovery from the heart attack prepared me for working from home. I have a pretty comfortable office, recliner with wireless keyboard and mouse with my 55 TV as a monitor. I can keep my legs elevated with that setup.

I have plenty of Netflix and Amazon Prime to watch. I have cooked more as well, without getting takeout every night. That has been helpful for my low sodium diet. So far so good with handling this situation.

 

I have been working at home since November, and I've been quite busy, and my wife has for years. my kids have been doing remote learning but the school district here had not done that before and it has been very seat-of-pants and they haven't had much work to do.

Meanwhile we are planning to move. My new employer agreed to let me stay in place and work remotely until the kids were done with the school year but at that point we will move to my new job location in Utah. Of course, most people there are working from home now also due to the Corona, so the timing doesn't really matter now.

The upside of a lockdown is that it gives us fewer distractions from packing. On the other hand, we would like to donate about 30% of the stuff in our house including some pretty decent furniture, in addition to a complete household of stuff from one of my wife's clients, but the Salvation Army is only accepting donations of small items and the other places are closed.

I'm showering less frequently.

 

I am in supply chain management and my company is considered essential as we manufacture commercial refrigerators and freezers for grocery stores and the like, so I am still going in 5 days a week. Business is slowing as customers postpone new construction or remodels so just found out last Thursday we get no merit increases this year, no company match to the 401K starting June 1 and probably a 3% salary reduction starting next month.

I think the 3% will only be in effect for a few months but that remains to be seen.

 

Oooh, where's "A's" Barbershop, lol!!

Just kidding....I go to a Barbershop in Mililani. Called Mililani Barbershop, lol!! It is owned by Koreans, and they have a mix of men and women barbers. I've been going for over 15 years now and I actually don't have a favorite one. I don't make appointments nor ask for any particular barber although you certainly can do so.

Reason why is they have a chart of hair styles and they have a ton of military patrons. So ever since I've went there I would ask them for a #11 which is one of several types of military accepted standard haircuts. All of them can do it so for me it doesn't matter who I go to. They certainly can do the more fashionable cuts and that's where lots of people ask for certain favorite barbers. Lots of parents bring their children to get their hair cut there.

Really nice, friendly people in an old style barber shop setting. Lots of old farts like me and young military types patronize the place.

Their prices start from $19.00 for adult cuts. Seniors 65+ are charged $17.00.

I'm 63 and they started charging me senior prices since I was 60, lol!

 

My company received the full PPP funding last week, so I went back to work last Tuesday. I was no sooner settled in my office when word came down that the PPP was out of money.

My wife is now on Week 6 on working from home. While going for groceries today, we drove past her company and she said how she was longing for the "mundane" of "trudging" to the office every day.

 

My wife and most of her staff are still going in daily, though she's pushing remote and allowing scheduling flexibility. Bi-weekly council meetings have mostly been moved to vid. Meetings are closed but phone-in allowed for the public. The state actually had to grant emergency allowances within the Brown Act (open-meeting law) as a result of the COVID measures.

I had one publication step back to the plate over the weekend, asking me to proceed on several pieces that were dead. I guess a new higher up on the editorial chain was overruled and some special features are returning, at least sporadically. As my editor wrote, laughing: "________ is a Millennial. The idea of print sometimes is lost on him/her."

 

I took a 5 day sabbatical/quarantine from work -- not so much really. Got to visit my Grandson who I haven't seen in about a month. I've tackled my backportch/mudroom/laundry room that I am quite proud of. Now I just need my utility shelf I ordered to come in. I went today to Home Depot to get some storage bins. Racked up a mile on my step counter. I parked by the gardening section - thought I'd pick up some plants. But you can't enter there - Go to the entrance in the middle of the store. As I walk in the person counter says it is an entrance only and exit at lumber or gardening. Fine for me I parked at Gardening. The bins are at the back of the store on the right - took forever to get someone to help get something on a higher shelf. I walk around the plants pick up some flowers. The line was soooo long and only one cash register. So I schlep back to the other side of the store and check out in the lumber area. Then I have to walk to the other side of the parking lot by the plants where I parked. Get in my car. I always check my phone because my husband sometimes will text me to pick up something. Even when the last thing I ask before I leave is Do you need anything while I am out?? Of course he says I can't think of anything. Well I check my phone before I drive off a message Get 2 big things of CLR while you are there. So I drag my butt out of the vehicle and repeat enter here on the other side of the store and leave here hike across the entire parking lot. Home Depot requires a trip to a neighboring town more than 20 miles away. It is a bit of a drive just to get there.