two dolla

all growed up

When I used to work at Taco Bell over ten years ago, making something like $5.75 an hour, I used to get absolutely livid that I’d have to work for three whole hours just to fill up the gas tank on my 1991 Honda Civic CRX. But that’s how I got myself through the dreaded 11a.m – 2p.m. shift on Sundays when families just leaving church would stop by for “a six pack of hard tacos with no lettuce and four waters, please”.

It’s not so easy when you get older. Granted you might not get paid on an hourly basis, and you have things like car payments and rent to pay instead of a new pair of pleated Z Cavaricci pants. My point is, though, that the amount I spent at Wal-Mart tonight equals five hours of my pay. And I get paid quite well!

I’m going to start allowing myself one shopping trip a week and it’s going to be timed to under 30 minutes. This constant shopping is going to break the Bank of Wendy, and then I won’t be able to afford to smuggle back gallons of the finest Puerto Rican rum this coming March on The Best Cruise in the World™.

the update from my medical team

My attempts at obtaining a doctor’s note forbidding me to go to my company’s annual sales conference has been thwarted. I’ll make another meager attempt with the chiropractor tonight, but I have a feeling he may just laugh at me. And he can laugh at me, just as long as he does his regularly amazing work on my back.

I returned to my doctor today with concerns about my shoulder not improving, like I mentioned last week. She tried the same strength tests she tried on me three weeks ago, and I just as I did then, I made her wince in pain with the Herculean strength in my left arm. We did a shoulder x-ray, which will show nothing if my experience in the radiology department counts for anything, and then we’ll be back where we started three weeks ago.

But in my visit to the chiropractor last week, he let me know it would be his pleasure to refer me to an orthopedic surgeon if my other doctor hesitated at all. Another month of physical therapy sounds like hesitation to me, so I’ll gladly take him up on his offer tonight.

And then I’ll go home and pack for Phoenix, where it’s currently a beautiful 73 degrees. Considering it’s a sweltering 34 degrees here right now, I’m looking forward to the change in climate, even if it means I’ll be sitting inside for meetings for 3.5 full days.