Why do there tend to be so many more downs than ups? Sigh. Although, I’m peering out the window at a beautiful sunny day and the water is calm and gently lapping on the beach. Chilly, though. (But not freezing!) And beautiful! So that’s an “up.”
We just learned that Sandra has tested positive with Covid, likely catching it from Quinn (who never has exhibited symptoms). However, Sandra says she feels like she has a cold so she’s symptomatic. The plan was that we were going to head up there tomorrow and spend the night and watch Quinn Monday while Sandra was at work (his quarantine ends Monday but daycare doesn’t re-open until Tuesday). Sandra had a vital need to be at work Monday and none of her local support were available to watch Quinn. But now she’s in quarantine, and she’ll have Quinn continue to stay home with her just in case. On top of having Nate gone on deployment, life’s been quite crappy for them.
And speaking of Nate’s deployment, you would not believe the ordeal with sending him a deployment box. The post office requires a completed Customs form which they DO NOT provide online, not even to just print off, so you have to fill it out at the post office. I remembered that from a previous deployment, and that you needed to itemize the contents. Back then, it was kind of irritating to lose your place in line to fill out the form, but ultimately not that big of deal. So I wrote out a list for John (he was the go-to-the-post-office guy) and he planned to mail it at the post office in Allyn on his way to the Hydro Museum. The box was packed with a whole slew of various snacks, including nuts, chips, beef jerkey, power bars of different brands and types; a bag full of an assortment of hot sauces (which Nate loves); assorted candies; playing cards and cribbage board; coffee, creamer and a portable coffee press; and a zipper bag of toiletries (like about 20+ different guy toiletry things—shampoo, conditioner, shaving lotion, deodorant, nail clippers, Q-tips, toothpaste, toothbrush, etc.). The woman at the post office demanded to know each and every item, brand, weight, and cost. For EACH AND EVERY ITEM. (Keep in mind the box is solidly taped up with strapping tape).
Post Office Nazi Woman: “You list snacks. I need to know what snacks.”
John: “Well, snacks. Chips, nuts, candy.”
PONW: “What kind of snacks? What brand? How many potato chips? How many corn chips? What candy? How many of each?”
John: **Blink**
PONW: “And what is the value of each?”
John: “What?!”
PONW: “And the weight of each.”
PONW: “And what specific toiletries? Plus weight and cost per item?”
PONW: “And keep in mind that the weight for each item must add up to the total weight of the box.”
John: “Are you kidding me?”
PONW: “No, I’m not.”
So, John picked up the box and walked out. When he told me about this, I blew a gasket. W.T.F.!!!!
John decided that since there were only four lines for contents provided on the form, he would just complete the four lines. (Screw listing the cribbage board and toiletries). He knew the box weighed 7 lbs. so he made sure the 4 lines totaled 7 lbs. Came up with arbitrary “costs.” Then on Friday he took the box to the Shelton post office and everything was a piece of cake. The guy at the counter just accepted it, was kind, and then said, “Thank you for supporting our overseas military members!” 
Then, John received an invoice from the (lame) attorney handling his mother’s estate. He has complained throughout to me that the attorney is not all that bright, and her “assistant” (likely a niece) is an absolute box of rocks who has screwed up several appointments and has called numerous times for information that John had already provided. Lots of incompetence. And here’s this invoice for which the box-of-rocks “assistant” is billing at $150/hour meaning that 15-second voice mails asking for information (that John has already provided) are charged at $15 because the minimum is 1/10th of an hour. And there are a lot of them. Of which she already HAD THE INFORMATION.
And that’s just a fraction of all the imbecility. The whole thing is sure dragging out, as John had to replace the flooring in the mobile home and deal with some damaged siding+painting. He also needs to find someone to come out and do some basic landscape cleanup. THEN, he can put it on the market. Jeebus.
We’ve been watching some really good TV lately (so there’s another “up”). Oh my God, have you seen “Line of Duty?” We just completed Season 4 and it is gobsmacking. The writing!!! I swear it’s up there with “West Wing” as far as amazing dialogue and incredible story lines with twists that knock you out of your chair. It is SO GOOD. We also recently completed “Station Eleven.” I’d read the book a while ago, and John had JUST finished it the day before we started watching the series, so it couldn’t be fresher in his mind! While the series follows the general arc of the story, it was actually quite different from the book, which I know disturbed John quite a lot, especially at first. Lots of big and little differences, and I always wonder WHY? But when it was said it done, we both felt that the changes mostly made sense (it did get quite “dreamy” at times), and the ending was honestly much better than the book’s! (It was a very good ending). Ultimately, it was well done and well-acted. We’d come to know the main character (Mackenzie Davis who plays Kirsten) from a series we watched a while ago called “Halt and Catch Fire” and we loved her! It was good to see her in this, and she was perfectly cast for it.
For the first time in a while, we had a pretty nice sunset a couple of nights ago:

Enjoying the Olympics, although I haven’t been watching it balls to the walls like I have in the past. Mostly late night.
“If your personal beliefs deny what’s objectively true about the world, then they’re more accurately called personal delusions.” -Neil Degrasse Tyson