I’m going to drive my mother’s spare Lexus LS400 while I save for a new one. Not sure what I want; can’t decide between a sports car, small SUV or sedan. I’m tired under powered 4 cylinders for sure. I need something with enough space to put my bike in the trunk. That would eliminate a true sports car like the Hyundai Genesis Coupe which I like a lot. I know there are trunk racks but I don’t like them. This is the time I buy the car I want, not just the car I can afford.

A European sports sedan would be ideal but many are still more than I want to spend. I’m trying to stay under $30,000 although I should be able to  put close to $7,500-10K down. I have a long list of options – Lexus IS 250, Ford Taurus Limited, Hyundai Genesis Coupe, GMC Terrain SUV, Nissan Maxima, Chrysler 300, etc.

She’s like that fairy tale where the princess can feel a pea under 15 mattresses stacked on top of each other. She just has no tolerance for any sort of discomfort whatsoever. As for me if I don’t like somebody I work with I just avoid them or keep my interaction with them efficient and as minimal as possible. She can’t do that. If she doesn’t like someone she has to tell somebody about it…and usually I’m the one she tells.

Now at her current job she’s been moved downstairs away from the other administrative dept people. She’s now sharing an office one other lady nobody can stand to be around, which is probably why she got moved down there to begin with. She’s now threatening to quit if they don’t move her somewhere else. That’s probably what they want. I call it being Office Spaced because in the movie Office Space that one fat guy kept getting his office moved until he was finally in a closet or something.

Aerotitis, aka “blocked ear,” is very painful and takes place when an ear does not adjust to the airplanes pressure changes. It is often experienced by passengers with colds and ear infections.

The following steam/heat remedy usually clears the blocked ear in seconds.

1. Place an airline paper cocktail napkin in the bottom of a small wax-coated drinking cup (found at galley and lavatory drinking water dispensers).

2. Add boiling water from a galley hot-water spigot covering the paper napkin. If you quickly pour off the water, the napkin will steam.

3. After you are sure you have drained off every drop of hot water, tip your head and place the little cup with hot steaming paper over your ear. Pain eases in moments as the steam reaches your eustachian tube.

I don’t get it. Are you supposed to tip your head so the cup is on top of your ear? It doesn’t seem like that would work since steam rises. If you’re going to hold the cup under your ear why bother to dump the water out? Help a brotha out.

Please send a card. It is FREE and it only takes a second. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the soldiers received a bunch of these? Whether you are for or against the war, our guys and gals over there need to know we are behind them.

It’s like Africa hot here and has been all weekend. Weather.com says it’s 85° and feels like 93°. Now understand something. I’m from Atlanta where it’s 85° or more everyday from April thru October. An 85° day isn’t even hot enough for an Atlantan to talk about…unless you don’t have A/C. Here in Los Angeles few homes near the water have A/C, much less apartments. Basically the heat comes in the apt and there’s no way to get it back out so it’s even hotter inside than it is outside. Fans, which we have in copious quantity only do their job when you’re directly in the line of fire. Everytime I got up to do anything I immediately burst into a sweat. I refuse to pay $600 for a portable air conditioner than I would only use 3-4 weeks a year. So I shall continue to suffer. Pretty sad to think I couldn’t wait to get back to work today just so I could be in an air conditioned room.
On a positive note we finally got a brief thunderstorm. Thunderstorms are the SoCal equivalent of snow; they only happen 2-3 times a year. It’s the closest thing to a change of season that we have. There is an old joke that the four seasons of California are Fire, Earthquake, Mudslide and Riot. In actuality they are Day, Night and Thunderstorm.