Just A Quick Hello....

Much to write about and I HAVE A NEW LAPTOP!!!!!

Will have a formal presentation soon.

Right now dealing with the bank again...even worse than before! And will be stranded come midnight 'cause my Conversion Van Of Wonders registration expires. So I will be camped by the PNC branch that worked before.

Thanks for reading and will be back in day or two.

The Good, The Bad, And The Meatloaf

A while ago I started a posting I was to call "One Of Those Days...", but wanted some distance from THAT day for perspective.

Well...many of "those" days have come and gone, and I just keep pushing it off.

Today is a major suck!

Bob The Van Eating Dog vomited some non-van material in the front.
My check has been all but vanquished by debts and bills. Keeps me stuck in more ways than one.
Both the auto insurance and registration are due soon.
The police presence has become an issue. Not a hassle, per se. But an issue on my mind.

Ok..you get an idea.

This past Saturday I pulled into a 24 gas station/food mart to use the facilities and look around, keeping warm. When I went back to The Conversion Van Of Wonders, there was a car full for young men being young men on a Saturday night. One was outside the vehicle, leaning on the door, when he pointed to the van and asked me about it.

Now, on a Saturday night, one generally expects a car full of young men to be rather, "lively"! I mean, I would have been at that age.

But this guy was asking me real questions. Thoughtful, pointed questions. I answered them as honestly as I could and after a while wished them a good evening, having been pleasantly surprised by the whole episode.

Next thing I know, he beckons me to the car and hands me some cash he and his friends put together to give me. Frankly came at a perfect time as the weather was getting really cold again and I need some gasoline or I could have froze to death.

Ok...maybe not to death, but certainly to shivering briskly.

Earlier I had some nice folks offer the same support at a different gas station when they could see I was stuck there, due to lack of petrol.

It was a welcome happening. I am surprised, thus far, that I have not run into those who would rather taunt or simply be rude. Maybe once I am really on my way out to where ever, that may happen. But thus far, not a single time.

One afternoon I was dozing in the van outside of my regular convenience store, when I was awoken by the knock of a man and his 2 sons on my window. Seems this man and his family had been touched by the story in the newspaper and wanted to know what I needed and offered assistance in trying to resurrect the laptop.

On top of that, an invitation to dinner!

I was unable to dine with them that evening, but we set a date for the following Sunday and the main course would be......

MEAT LOAF!!!!!

I LOVE meat loaf! A king amongst foods! Has to be nearly a year since I have had that delicacy, and the lady of the house made it to perfection!

It was beefy!
It was solid and pressed very nicely and firm!
And the flavor was wonderful!

Along with the corn and peas and from scratch mashed potatoes, it was terrific! Warming not just the belly but my heart. For these folks who knew me only from the news story to welcome me into their home for food, PC expertise, and company was a welcome respite for how things had, and have, been going.

She also sent me off with a nice amount of leftover's which I will be enjoying this very evening.

Top that off with random people just coming up to me with good wishes and offerings of support, it takes the edge off the more stressful and frustrating things I deal with.

So in closing, today sucked a lot! As did yesterday.

But these moments help make it a bit better.

Yesterday I sat in the SAME SPOT for over 13 hours due to lack of gasoline. What made it worse is that something in that building causes a horrible buzzing on A.M., so I couldn't even listen to my radio faves while stranded there.

I did, however, discover something about a fav American advertising icon and his never before known sibling. That's for a later posting.

Sidenote: I am noticing more and more hits from people's iPhones, Blackberry's, etc. I am guessing from having the website addy painted on the windows of The Conversion Van Of Wonders. If you have found me via that and see me on the road or in a lot somewhere, feel free to say hello. Bob likes the company!

Until Next Time...

My Favorite Candy Time Of Year: Easter AND Passover

I LOVE marshmallow and jelly candies. Both Passover and Easter bring forth a veritable cornucopia of sugary delights! The nice thing about jellies this time of year is, you don't have to deal with the "Chuckles" dilemma! You know if you are a fan of the candy....what to do with the black one. Fortunately, up until my mother was hit with Type II Diabetes, she liked the flavor, thus I avoided the guilt of being wasteful pitching that one away.

With choco covered jellies and jelly fruit slices, that isn't an issue. I love'em all! Especially that hard white stuff the makes up part of the "rind" of said slices. Back in the 60's/70's this company called JoyVah used to make this absolutely heavenly candy called "Jell Joys". It was rectangular and had orange jell on top, red jell on the bottom, and that hard white stuff separating the 2. There used to be a corner store on the corner of Broadway and something, same street as The Ed Sullivan Theater, where I would get those all the time. I was in the habit of buying 7 or 8 at a time, 'cause I lived in New Jersey and knew the importance of stocking up.

SIDETRACK: When I was a kid, I was working in commercials and such. Thus would travel to N.Y.C. on a regular basis. The parking lot mom preferred was in the same block as the aforementioned theater. Actually, Studio 51 which is a part of that same parking structure, was an old CBS studio where they would tape games shows. SO parking, acting, and Jell Joys went hand in hand in hand.

I tried reaching out to JoyVah to see if they made Jell Joys anymore, but never got a response. I would LOVE to get those again.

And marshmallows...delicious air filled lumps of sugar and gelatin. During Passover you get the best ones. Firm and tasty, like the old "Campfire" brand that came in boxes used to be. I guess another word for "Kosher" would be Marsh-O-Licious!

Enter WalMart, my fav store in the world. So far in the last 4 days I have eaten over 4 dozen choc covered marshmallow eggs! At $.98 per dozen they are cheaper than real eggs and have that chocolaty, marshmallowy goodness to boot! When I was a kid, candy makers would used all kinds of forms and food items to make into sugar coated marshmallow treats. I can remember marshmallow Hot Dogs, Turkeys, Circus Peanuts, Animals, and so much more. Some of those are still made today and CVS carries the hard candy coated and multi-colored Easter Eggs that are absolute fillings and caps magnets. But well worth the pain!

So as I make my way through another holiday I will avoid, I can not separate myself from the objects of my obsessions. This year the day after said holiday will be my shopping spree of those things Easter/Passover-ish of a jelly and marshmallow nature. Why in the midst of all the stuff going on with moi and the world, am I musing about said delights?

I need a break! Plus, blogging from the public library surrounded by, ummm,"interesting" types is a tad inhibiting regards topic selections. Once I am on my own, internet/laptop wise, I'll have some observations on the experience here.

CALL YOUR CONGRESSMEN AND SAY "VOTE NO" TO UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE!!!!

Not only does this bill invade our liberties in everything from health care to education funding, but under the behavior modifying aspects of it, my fave candies may disappear! I am hoping to maybe getting to D.C. this weekend for a "Storm The Bastile" type of protest. If I go, I promise lots-O-pictures.