Dan Antion

M T W F T is Wrong Dan – #SoCS

The perfect lime wedge.

The weekend is here and it’s time to visit Cheryl at the bar and work our way around Linda G. Hill’s famous Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt:

“Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is ‘weigh/way/whey.’ Use one, use ’em all, bonus points if you do that last thing. Enjoy!”

Let’s have some fun.

If we were having a beer, you would be angry with me.

“There you are.”

“Um, yes, here I am. Am I in trouble? What did I do?”

“You messed up my schedule.”

“I’m not following this conversation. Maybe I should go out and come back in.”

“Maybe you should do things in order.”

“What are you talking about?”

“John Howell.”

“Oooh, drinking off the top shelf again. I like that.”

“Hi Cheryl. No, I wasn’t ordering bourbon, although that does sound nice, I was complaining about the way Dan messed up the order of things this week.”

“Dan? Messed up the order? Our own little OCDan? I doubt that.”

“It wasn’t my fault, Cheryl.”

“You mean it’s true?”

“Yes! It’s true. I read John’s Thursday post after his Friday post. But it’s Google’s fault.”

“It sounds like you need a beer, Dan.”

“I do, Cheryl. I really do.”

“I’ll be back. Explain it all to David.”

“Yes, explain to me how Google is involved. Did they have an accident with their gTime app and send you ahead a day?”

“No, they changed the way they classify emails.”

“Huh?”

“The tabs in gMail. I use ‘Primary,’ ‘Social,’ and ‘Updates’ – but they changed how those work.”

“I hate those tabs. I turned them off the minute they showed up.”

“You hate all tabs, David. Including the one I put this bourbon, this snifter of seltzer and this beer on.”

“Well, it’s Dan’s turn to pay.”

“OK, but I’m not paying extra for those cherries.”

“The cherries are free, Dan. It’s a silly thing, but David likes them.”

“And I like the lime. And, I must say, this might be the perfect lime wedge, Cheryl.”

“Thank you. I had the same thought.”

“Guys, it’s a hunk of lime. I don’t see what’s so special about it.”

“Dan, once again, you can explain. I have to go check the patio.”

“The lime is large, but not so large that it will squirt juice as I shove it in the bottle.”

“Why not just put it in a glass?”

“Corona is better in the bottle.”

“And Twiggy and Lucy are better on Thursdays, but you sent them out on Friday.”

“I didn’t send them out at all. It’s not my blog, it’s John’s.”

“I don’t follow blogs. I follow Twitter. So, I read the blog posts you mention on Twitter.”

“Then why don’t you just follow John Howell on Twitter.”

“I do, but he’s in an ‘Authors’ list, and I don’t always load that.”

“Oh, you use lists in Twitter, but you hate tabs in gMail.”

“Lists in Twitter work. Tabs in gMail are a cluster…”

“I almost forgot your glass of ice. Nice catch, David, this is a family bar.”

“Thanks Cheryl. I’m still trying to get to the bottom of Dan’s error.”

“Maybe you should concentrate on getting to the bottom of that glass. Dan’s explanations are always better after some bourbon.”

“Cheryl ???”

“I’m sorry, Dan, but you do go on.”

“This explanation is really simple. All of a sudden, Google started messing with what emails go in what tab. I’m guessing they’re using AI to figure out what’s an update versus what’s a new thing, and what new things are ‘social’ or not.”

“AI – artificial intelligence. I think they’re perfecting artificial stupidity.”

“I know how you feel about technology, David, but in this case, I might agree.”

“So, where did they put John’s email?”

“I don’t know. I never found it. The Wednesday and Friday notifications were in the ‘Social’ tab. The Thursday notification might have been in ‘Updates’ but I didn’t see it.”

“So, it was your fault.”

“Maybe not. Maybe they thought it was spam. I just empty that folder”

“Like you did with that beer, Dan. Can I get you another?”

“Yes please, Cheryl.”

“David?”

“I’ll have another splash of bourbon, Cheryl.”

“Here you go. Nothing artificial about this stuff.”

“You also messed up your post, Dan.”

“What now?”

“Wednesday. You mentioned the Haddam Neck Fair, but no fair-food and no animals.”

“It was late when I wrote that. Trust me, there was food.”

“I take it you paid a visit to Sausage One.”

“I did indeed.”

“And fries?”

“Oh yeah. A guy across from the firemen has the best fries.”

“Nothing healthy?”

“Some guy was selling protein shakes, whey-protein, it’s supposed to be good for you.”

“But not for you?”

“Whey protein versus Italian sausage…no contest.”

“Speaking of contests, anything at the fair worth watching?”

“We saw the horse pull.”

“I love watching those. Beautiful animals.”

“And strong, David. The sled they were pulling weighed seventy-two-hundred pounds, and they pulled it without breaking a sweat. I think they could pull this bar off its foundation.”

“There are days I wouldn’t mind if they did.”

“Maybe we should come here more often, Cheryl.”

The teams are waiting their turn.
Back again.
“I think we can handle that.”
“Right, that doesn’t look that bad.”
“Show time! Dig in – GO!”
“Ten more feet, We got this.”
“Hee hee. Now they have to get a machine to pull it back.”
I got mine with the works.
A little ketchup in the space at the bottom left and a little mustard a few fries over, and we’re good.
Simply the best.
They drag it back for each team and then rake the path.
“Nom nom nom.”
“Can I help you?”
It’s late, and it’s about to start raining. I agreed to sit for about 30 minutes.”
Presented as evidence that MuMu gets scratched and brushed.”
“Take the picture, turn out the lights and be gone!”

68 comments

  2. When I was a child going to fairs with my grandfather, we always watched the horse pulling. Thanks for the memories. :-) I am so relieved to hear Gmail is on the fritz this week because then I can blame it for reading this before Thursdays Doors. I’m backed up, sorry. :-) Food looks delicious, and you can always eat healthy another day. I also like the hat with the sunshield properties. I think I need your source.

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    • You are free to share my excuse, Judy. The hat is from REI. I love it. It’s lightweight and I never feel like I have to take it off to stop sweating.

      We’ve seen all manner of tractor pulls at this fair, including garden-tractors, but the horses are the best. They are so beautiful. Fair food is the best!

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  3. I ignored the sausage and fries because it’s not yet 8 am and some restraint needs to be exercised.

    However the photo of MuMu’s bliss is delightful and gave me huge smile 😻

    So gmail’s messing around with my incoming notifications is not my imagination. I cannot, for the life of me, figure out where I’m going to find things. As quickly as I move emails into the folder I want them to be, gmail moves them back. I give up.

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    • I’m glad it’s too early to make you hungry – although I could eat those fries with some scrambled eggs right about now. Gmail is messing with those categories. They started earlier in the summer, but it’s getting much worse in my inbox. It used to be so reliable. Now it’s a mess.

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  4. Thank you for the mentions, Dan. I have Gmail and on my MAC I have it set up for just one tab. I like it so much better. It’s a ‘what you see is what you get’ kind of thing. That sausage grinder looked to die for and the fries the same. I enjoyed the photos of the fair and am glad you ran them. Who is that guy holding the grinder? He looks pretty laid back with the beard and all. Have a great weekend.

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    • That old guy? Just some random Pirates fan still hoping they can salvage a winning season out of the cluster they’re in. The tabs were working so well, John, it actually made life with email easier. Then, boom. There are days when I have mail from the same person in all three tabs. You were the best example, since you post daily and have such distinctive posts in your schedule.

      Once I retire, I’m going to install Outlook and hook it up to gMail. Then I can get rid of the stupid notifications (Item moved, 2 items deleted, etc). I’d do that now, but it’s connected to work and I don’t want to mix.

      Fair food is the best, and I love watching the horses. It takes four men and a big machine to load the sled, and they pull it like it’s cotton candy.

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  7. I’ve never had the pleasure of seeing a horse pull. My loss. They are such magnificent animals, no matter what they’re doing.

    I love that hat!! Good looking and functional.

    MuMu seems to be saying, “I’ll give you one hour to cut that out!” And MiMi….well her expressions are a bit more to the point! Lol.

    The food looks outstanding and it appears to have been perfect weather.

    Great job on the prompt!

    Maddie should get some deck time this weekend. Yaaayyyyy!!
    🐾Ginger 🐾

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    • Thanks Ginger. Maddie and I just got back from a long walk. She’s recuperating on her cot next to the Editor. From what I hear, I’ll be brushing MuMu shortly.

      I am seriously liking that hat. I word a different style hat last summer but it tended to blow off. This one has a chinstrap I can use on windy days.

      The horses are so much fun to watch, especially in the early rounds when they’re all pulling for the distance.

      We had great weather and I love fair food.

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  8. We would have loved that fair. The horses are magnificent looking. Those do look like perfect fries. These days I won’t bother to eat anything less than perfect potatoes. Every time I see an update for Gmail I cringe. It is hard enough getting used to some of the (inane) improvements they dole out but they do it way too much. It is very hard for hubby who is not using computer systems all day and likes things to remain familiar. I know exactly what you mean about the perfect lime. I hate giving myself a citrus bath, losing half the juice down the side of the bottle and spending thirty minutes getting the sticky off of my fingers. We won’t even talk about the dead dried up pieces I have been getting lately. How do you trust someone who can’t even see a shriveled piece of lime they are about to serve to you? 😳

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    • Thanks Cheryl. Gmail is becoming worse than Outlook (and that’s saying something). We can get good fries around here in a few places, but nothing like these. Limes are a crap shoot, and I’m usually rolling snake eyes.

      I hope you have a great weekend!

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  11. I have the three tabs and I’m okay with that. I don’t like having the social and promotional spam in between the emails I really want to read. My live.com email (where the junk and most of the blogging notifications go) does something similar, although I’m rarely able to sift through it all. I probably should take a look at the hundreds of emails that I haven’t read in days…

    Love the photos from the fair and those fries are making me hungry for breakfast. PS: I would have put mayo and mustard in that little spot in the corner. So much better!

    Nice job winding the prompt, Google and the fair together with a drink in hand. Happy Saturday!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Thanks Mary. I might have added a little mayo, but they don’t offer it. The mess that gmail has become is slowing me down, and I think I’m missing some notifications.

      The fries are making me hungry. I always forget that’s going to happen. I’ll be looking at a bowl of Special K in s fes minutes. Not quite the same.

      I hope you have a great weekend.

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  12. Dan – the family friendly term is fluster cluck. Just don’t try to say it five times fast after cinco Coronas. Now about that perfecting artificial stupidity. Another round says they already have perfected it. Now they are trying to improve it. As for LookOut email everyone is entitled to their own wrong choices. I had to use it for work. I still don’t miss it a bit or a binary. Then again that would cover most ms products. Happy weekend !

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  14. I have amazingly low standards when it comes to how any email system works. I’ve got gmail and I’ve noticed a few things lately, but hadn’t bothered to figure out what was going on figuring it was not worth the mental effort. On a different note I’m seeing that photo of the fries right about lunchtime here, and am powerful sad that I won’t be having them for my meal.

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  17. Your sense of humor in this got me roaring today, Dan. I best start checking my tabs in gmail. It has seemed to be slow of late. Hmmmmm ….. You can be absolutely hysterical. Loved the horses, with everything on it …. boy do you look happy in that picture. LOVE the hat, glasses, and beard. Ya got something going there! But my most fav pic of all is of MuMu. My heart melted ALL over the place. I know that feeling and I know that complete contentment. I just took a pic of Rusty sleeping today and just like MuMu it is a heart-grabber. Thank YOU for the laugh!!!

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  19. I loved this, Dan! The fair, the food, and the great horse pull. Great pics! You used all the challenge words, and they fit perfectly. Best of all was the bar banter, of course. Don’t get me started on Google. I think I’m somewhere between you and David on technology, but much closer to you (sorry, David!). Last year teachers were encouraged to set up a Google account to communicate with parents. More professional, you know. What a nightmare!! Google makes me feel like I’m a criminal, as I have to sign in to so many layers in order to email families. And it was difficult for them, too. There was a wall between us. So, goodbye Google. I don’t care if my email isn’t professional for parent correspondence. I just need to write to parents, and they feel the same way. Yikes, that was a long banter, Dan. Sorry! Just giving you anti-Google fodder. 🙂 Super post!

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  20. I didn’t know you could get rid of the tabs. Gmail is my secondary email and I have neglected it because it’s way more complicated than it needs to be. On a brighter note, you look so relaxed in that photo. I especially like the hat.

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  22. That meal…with fries…and a Corona with a lime…and a hint of a story on how you manage your mastery of following, reading, posting, etc., are all very impressive to me! The horse photos are grand too! Cheers to you Dan!

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    • Aw, don’t pick on him too much, Marian, he is subject to a little creative license. I’d give him a break from being the bad guy, but managing three characters is hard enough for me.

      But those horses? No contest.

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  25. Late reading but I’m here. I finally bugged out of Google and tried duckduckgo and am happy with it 95% of the time. So all this was Greek to me! I am tired of the way computer companies mess with what already works, and rarely think it is for the better. Conspiracy, put on your aluminum hats: I think geeks break stuff so they have jobs. I’m with you on the food and the horses…. xo

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    • Thanks Kate. The tech companies have sold themselves on the notion that constant “small” change is better than upgrades from one version to another. I have mixed feelings, especially when they do it with no or limited input.

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  28. The pictures are great! Horses are so majestic. Gosh, they’re about the neatest giant thing — giraffes are the neatest.
    M T W R F S U for me. Always has been.
    Anyway, I hate the changes to gmail. I do not like how it does it and I want it to do it as I want it and there is not a way to.

    Liked by 1 person

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