...so did I, until I remembered it is NASCAR weekend at the Mile. The Craftsman Trucks ran their race Friday night - from my spot in the sewing room, it almost sounded as if it were thundering. Gosh, those things are louder than the Busch cars (whose race was run Saturday night, in between actual raindrops).
It is raining once more. Our "occasional storms" are in fact rolling through the area. I'm cozy - Stan Kenton on the CD player, homemade pulled bbq chicken simmering on the stove, a good book and time to read.
Not that I'm taking the weekend off, mind you. Thinking that it was going to get hot in the afternoon yesterday, I started cleaning and putzing around the house early in the morning, rather than heading out for my usual coffee house morning. The bedroom and bathroom got their toothbrush-level cleaning, while the kitchen got a lick and promise to finish up today. In between things, the borders and binding for a baby quilt were cut and pieced, I went to the library, then tooled off to Starbucks to read for a bit in the late afternoon.
Tomorrow holds necessary errands - Target, then a trip to get tickets for the Freeway Flyer. As of Tuesday, I'll be taking the bus to and from work. Our parking lot is being resurfaced and rearranged, with new retaining walls and other landscaping, so we are kicked out for the next six to seven weeks. We've been asked to park in the new parking structure, which, while nice, is half a mile away from our office. The flyer, on the other hand, stops right in front of our building.
I'm curious to see how much my gas usage goes down. My commute is very short - just over five miles. Based on the IRS standard mileage rate, which includes wear and tear as well as gas cost, twenty-three days (July actual work days) costs me roughly $124. The same number of days of bus tickets will cost me $101.20 - more, actually, since they can only be purchased in multiples of ten. And I still have to drive to the park and ride lot every day. My instinct tells me that I'm one of the few people for whom it is less expensive to drive to work than take the bus.
Well, until you factor in the exorbitant price we pay for the privilege of parking in the University lots. That cost has risen by 5% every year for at least the last eight years. It seems as if they are determined to match (or exceed) the cost of the public lots in downtown Milwaukee.
Bah. Anyway, I may also make a trip up to Trader Joe's. Not just for the food, but for the fun of driving through the new interchange. The Marquette Interchange project is in the final stages. It is actually possible to get most places again, without major headaches. Most of the time; there are exceptions.
I'm done babbling - the bbq needs stirring again.
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