Saturday, October 28, 2023

5th one's the charm

 I got 30 things ready to list - which took some time - but in the end, before I knew it, it was 4AM and I decided to get to bed. 

I woke up in time to get going to Japantown. There's about a half-hour, maybe an hour if I'm early, window, once per week, to visit the ukulele store. I left a bit after 4 and figured if I was quick, I'd have a whole half-hour to look at their music books. Maybe even to pick up a flyer or two about any sort of groups getting together. But  I got there and it was closed this weekend for some reason. 

Next on my list was to go to Walmart for my autumn covid booster, so I rode down there hoping the pharmacy closes at 6 and not 5. I got there and it was actually relatively busy, with a few people getting vaccinations and such things. I got my shot and it was still free, so I guess Medi-Cal is still picking up the bill for these. 

I did some shopping around, buying things, because it's the Weekly Wal. I even ventured down to the other end of the store, where I found they have some of the nicer cheeses and things like they have at Whole Food but of course a fair amount cheaper. 

I paid for my stuff "Nice to get out of here for less than a $20 spot!" I enthused. 

I walked back to my bike and there was a guy with a bike by the curb, messing around with a tire and tube and pump and things. I was ready to offer the use of my pump but saw that he already had one. It wasn't working, though, and after watching him struggle for a while, I decided to help. He'd just bought the pump in Big-5 and it wasn't working. 

My pump worked, and while he messed around getting his tube and tire back together, pumped up, then on the bike and pumped some more, I tried his pump out - it worked. He said he'd been so frustrated at it not working he was about to freak out to the store employees in Big-5, and I said I hadn't seen where he was doing anything wrong. I showed him how I did it and then it worked for him. 

I had to conclude that I don't know what I did, but I'm glad I was able to get things working for him. By this time it was starting to get dark so he got out a brand new Cateye light set, the same set I use, that apparently Big-5 sells now and for a very good price. One of the batteries that came with it was corroded though and the guy insisted on trying to make it work. I kept saying it won't, and he'll need to go back in and get some batteries, but he insisted on trying to get the light to work with the bad battery, then decided to take the batteries out of another light he had, then was puzzled when the other light, a different brand, wouldn't work with the Cateye handlebar mount... At this point I said I was going to get going, had put my own lights on my bike, and rode off. 

I stopped at Nijiya for various things, mainly "snacky" sort of things as I'm generally a bit sick after a covid shot and am prepared to stay in tonight and tomorrow. 


No comments:

Post a Comment

Saturday night

 I got decent sleep, at least. Actually I was awakened after an hour's sleep by some of the yahoos going to the prostitution operation, ...