2/26-  I am really looking forward to trying out the new Kellogg’s Raisin Bran WITH CRANBERRIES!  My wife picked a box up for me this afternoon.  I told her to be sure and get the box WITH CRANBERRIES and she came through.  Sometimes she screws things up on her trips to the supermarket, especially the weekly one.  Once a week.  Like clockwork.  Well almost like clockwork.  She usually goes on Thursdays, but every once in awhile something comes up and she has to go on Wednesday.  Sometimes Friday.  She really hates to go on Saturday.  She says that’s the day it’s a complete shit-storm at that place.  She is pretty good at listing items on her grocery list.  That list is part of my routine too.  We go over it together every morning the day before she actually makes the trip.  We both figure that’s a good idea.  Then maybe if we fuck up and leave something off the list, it gives us a whole day to add it to the original.  But I worry sometimes she’s not paying attention to details, like she might write down just Raisin Bran and skip the WITH CRANBERRIES part.   I don’t like to look over peoples shoulders.  That used to really bother me when I was working.  So I make it a point not to do that with my wife.  And as I mentioned, since I now have a box of Raisin Bran WITH CRANBERRIES in my kitchen cabinet ,  this was a needless concern this time.  Sometimes I just want to give my wife a big hug.

2/27-  Well shit!  I hate to be the one to break the news, but Kellogg’s Raisin Bran with cranberries is a HUGE disappointment.  Not only did I find the product sorely lacking in cranberries, but I think those jokers over at Kellogg’s actually cut back on the raisins.  They probably figured since they were throwing in the cranberries, they could sneak one by us and leave out some raisins.  I think that really sucks.

2/28-  Once again my wife brought back our 1997 Tercel from the Toyota dealership unwashed.  The car needed service again, so as we have done since we have owned it, we drove it to the dealership to get fixed. The car is 18 years old, so as you can see we are nothing if not loyal.  I know we are probably suckers to keep using a dealership for service work, but both my wife and I have trust issues.  We bought the car from these people, and we feel their service department might have a leg up on keeping up with service needs of this car.  Plus, come on.  The car’s approaching the quarter century mark. It’s a two day wait for parts to arrive before repairs can even get started.   I am guessing a dealership has much faster access to parts than anyone doing independent service.

But the dirty car thing is starting to get on my nerves.  For years it was never a problem.  That’s because for years this dealership never had an automated car wash.  Our car was always returned to us with exactly the same amount of dirt on it as when we brought it in.  Then the dealership moved.  You know why they moved?  We were told by the service people there that it was because they didn’t have an automated car wash.  Didn’t have room.  The current facility was too small.  They needed more space.  So they moved, and they moved to a location that is at least a multiple of four distances from what was already an inconvenient drive for us.  I mean it is way in the fuck out there.  It’s over a half hour drive, and that’s if you happen to get lucky and take the expressway when its not jammed with rush hour traffic.  And my wife refuses to take the expressway anyway.  Makes her all nervous-like.  Her route takes a solid 45 minutes,  and thats on a good day without construction detours.  Our Toyota dealership has been at its new location for four years now, and we have had the Tercel serviced there five times.  You know how many times the car has come back clean?  Once.  Their automated car wash has a batting average of .200.  In baseball you get sent back to the minors for that lack of production.  Is that nuts or what?  You know what I would do if I was in charge and told people we had to move because it was imperative we have an automated car wash and then the automated car wash turned out to be a piece of shit?  I’d have the lowest guy on the service department totem pole get out there with a garden hose and bucket of suds and start scrubbing.  I don’t give a shit if it’s snowing.  My reputation is at stake.  That’s what I’d do.