Saturday, Sept. 24

Last night, a TV meteorologist in the capital city predicted "Clear skies with a low in the 50s. Very slight chance for an isolated satellite." Scientists think the thing landed somewhere in the Pacific ocean early this morning. Thankfully, it didn't land on anyone's head. The chance that anyone would be hit by debris from the satellite was so remote that I lost no sleep worrying about it.

Slept late, until around 8 a.m. Then after breakfast, Hubbie and I went bike riding. Nice day for a ride, though there was just enough wind to create resistance going uphill. I wore my goggles today, but nothing blew into my face this time.

The calves in the cow pasture were far afield, so they were unconcerned about us, and the cows grazing near the fence barely took notice. Horses...a palomino, a pinto, and an Appaloosa, seemed interested, though.

The last couple of times we've ridden, we've admired a sizable turnip patch. Hubbie mentioned wanting to talk to the folks raising it, and today the owners were out in their yard, so Hubbie rode up their driveway to chat with them.

I rode back and forth in front of the home while he talked to the folks. Soon, he returned to say he'd asked if we can buy turnips from the couple. The old gentleman said no, but we can have all we want when they are ready in a few weeks, and he'll let us know when that is. He raises the turnips to give away anyway, he said. I guess he just grows them for the pleasure of growing them.

Hubbie has tried numerous times to grow turnips, to no avail, and this lowly vegetable is expensive to buy in stores. So we'll be glad to have enough of them to put in the freezer.

Back home, once I was showered and dressed, we did this and that for the rest of the morning. After lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands...first to the store that has a sale every weekend to use a $10 coupon. I thought I'd lucked out in finding a long-sleeved shirt for Mother in a petite size. But when I brought it home later, and she tried it on, it didn't fit right. So I took it back for a refund.

The only refund they would agree to make was to our store credit card, and by doing that I could not get the $10 coupon refunded. The only way I could get that $10 was to buy something of equal value to the shirt I returned. So I picked up a couple of on-sale long-sleeve tee shirts for myself.

In the dressing room, as I tried on the tee shirts, I overheard a mother with her young son in the adjoining room. The boy was trying on blue jeans, all of which were apparently too small.

"I hate the way I look," the boy said. "I'm so fat. I'm never going to eat again."

"We need to go to the men's shop downtown," his mother said, "so we can buy husky jeans for you. They don't have husky sizes here"

"I don't want husky jeans. I want to wear normal jeans. I hate myself."

I felt so sorry for this boy. I didn't see him, so I don't know how overweight he is. But I wonder if he's dissatisfied enough with himself to curb his appetite. I doubt it. He'd need a lot of self control, and his mother would have to help him by preparing healthier meals. For all I know, she might be obese, as well, and not willing to change.

I'd used the remainder of a gift card given to Mother for the shirt I picked up for her, and with that and the $10 coupon the shirt was free. The same deal applied to the shirts I got for myself, so the whole transaction still resulted in no money out- of-pocket.

Mother refused to let me give her the $8 remaining on her gift card, since she insisted she owed for our outing to the coffee shop this week. Oh well, I'll figure out some other way to pay her what I owe, because the coffee shop outing was my treat.

From the store, Hubbie and I went to the greeting card shop, where we picked up four 99-cent birthday cards for Hubbie's great-grandkids, using buy-one-get-one-free coupons. Then we stopped by a pharmacy store to check on gallon jugs of water for which I had a coupon, but the price was too high. We also checked the price of hair color for which I had a $2 off coupon on one carton, and a $3 off coupon on another carton. The cost of the color at this store was too high.

So we went to a bank, and then on to the WDCS, where I picked up the cartons of hair color and several other items for ourselves and for Mother.

In the checkout line of this store, an older woman ahead of us exited the motorized wheelchair she was using and asked the clerk to have someone drive it back to the door greeter. Well, no one was available to do that, so I drove it to the greeter.

"Just go ahead and drive it out to the foyer," she said.

"This isn't my chair," I said, "I'm only moving it out of the way of the checkout line. But I'll go ahead and drive it out, if you'd like."

"No, no, I can do that," she said.

Back at the checkout line, I was about to load our purchases into our cart, when I saw a bag with a jar of preserves and a jar of honey in it. "Whose are these?" I asked the clerk.

"Oh! Those belong to that lady in the white shirt going that way," she pointed. "Can you take them to her?"

The lady was already nearly to the door at the other end of the store, but yes, I'd take her purchase to her. She was walking slowly, but I practically had to sprint to catch up with her.

After delivering the bag, I quickly walked back to the register. On the way out of the store, Hubbie commented that the clerk had tried to give the guy in line right in front of us change for $20, when all he'd handed her was a $5 bill. Fortunately, he was an honest man, and he corrected her. I'm thinking this clerk is a real ditz who won't keep her job long.

After my return trip to the store with the blouse, I decided I wanted to visit the farmer's market, and I asked if Mother would like to ride along. She did. At the market, I bought tomatoes grown in a town near us, and locally grown new potatoes, as well as a jar of homemade pepper jelly.

It was 4 p.m. by the time Mother and I got back from the market, so Hubbie and I began watching our favorite college football team as they played to a very disappointing loss. I'd recorded the game on DVR.

Mother had prepared a pot of split pea soup while Hubbie and I were running errands, and we set up TV tables for a supper that included the remaining three yeast rolls.

I accompanied Mother to her house afterward (she seemed a little wobbly tonight), and then Hubbie and I continued watching the game.

When the game ended, we watched a couple of one-hour shows I'd recorded, while we waited for another football game to record, between Hubbie's Alma mater and the college I attended in another town many years ago. Naturally, Hubbie and I rooted for opposite teams, but his won by a wide, wide margin.