IKEA

Today I visited our local IKEA in Frisco, TX. From where I live, this means driving on a toll portion of TX 121 (now called Sam Rayburn Tollway, consistent with the North Texas tradition of naming expressways) to where it meets the Dallas North Tollway in Frisco. The picture below is from the relatively new stretch of tollway 121 as it approaches Stemmons Freeway (I-35E) in Lewisville. Good thing I have a tolltag!

Anyway, I bought a few trinkets at IKEA. I got a placemat for Cici's food and water dishes, along with two bud vases and a new lampshade for a IKEA lamp in my bedroom. The total damage was only about $24. Not bad!


Something causes otherwise healthy people to become retarded when they shop at IKEA. For those prone to this problem, here are a few guidelines to make all of us enjoy the experience more.

1. IKEA is a one-way street in the main aisle. No exceptions. Ever.
2. If you are from another culture where strangers are regarded as something inferior to dog meat, remember that you are no longer in that culture, and you need to adapt, or get on a big shiny airplane home. Have a nice day!
3. Shopping alone at IKEA is a bad idea, but it can be done. There are lockers near the loading area where you can store your purchases for *FREE* while you go to pick up your car. No need for struggling with all those things, trying to get the cart over the barriers, etc. (Yes, I have seen this happen.)
4. Know where the shortcuts are. If you know what you want, you can often skip the upstairs area and go directly to the "marketplace" section downstairs. Remeber the one-way street commandment.
5. Stopping dead in the main aisle to gawk, talk, or scratch your ass is unacceptable.
6. When you reach the checkouts, head left for shorter lines in the full-service option. A new self-service option is available and it works pretty well. Note that bags are not available anymore in the self-serve area. That is, unless you want to pay $.59 for a floppy, mildewy reusable bag.

Hope this helps!

What's New

I haven't posted much lately - I've been much more engaged with Facebook. It's easy, social, fun. Blogging seems so.....2005. But it's better for telling stories in a different way. I've been working quite a bit. Our business is doing quite well but isn't immune from the larger economy. The past few weeks have been softer than we'd like.

I decided to opt out of a rugby trip to play a tournament in Seattle. It was a tough choice but I'd have had to travel on business to Puerto Rico, then to Seattle to play rugby all weekend over Memorial Day, and then back to Virginia to work all week. I realized a couple of months ago when I got some form of flu or something - that when I get myself all worn out, my health deteriorates. Then I'm no good to anyone. I can't do everything, including driving 50 miles one way to practice twice a week at 6:45pm when I don't get out of work until 6pm. So, I had to make choices. I'll be back in the fall because I do enjoy the game and the team work. My focus is to learn more about the game, which hopefully will be easier when I am starting from the beginning of the season instead of in mid-season.

I've been worried about myself "not coping" with Dad's death. It is odd that it hasn't really hit me yet. Over the past three years there was a lot of time to prepare for the moment when he was gone. But, when does all the grief hit me? I am still waiting.

The BF and I are enjoying our time together. The past weekend was a lot of fun, and also productive. What a relief to have a new ceiling fan in the bedroom! No more constant squeaking sounds from overhead! The new fan is silent, moves more air, and looks better too.

The new spring landscaping is (mostly) installed in the front yard. Once everything is established, it's going to look great. More color and more perennials.

I'm really enjoying my new car, a 2009 Cadillac STS. I managed to find a pre-owned one with about 12k miles on it, for a great discount versus new.