The weekend, or how I lost my pants at poker and found the last gas below $2/gallon.

Saturday started out as one of those average weekend days for me. I got up around 10 am and wondered if I should go back to bed since there wasn't much to do until later that afternoon, when Jen came over. There was a decent auction going on near the 'ol homestead and I, being the auction nut that I am, decided that would be worth going to. Of course I was also noticing that my back was aching at a higher level than it usually does but I was not going to let a little case of "90 year-old man-itis" stop me from collecting more junk. So I went over and hobbled around and did my auction thing, which was to add to my junk.

I got a couple of good items, though. There was a kerosene heater that looked almost new for $5; a hoover vacuum for $5; three coolers, one of which is a metal Coleman for $6; and two old-fashioned scythes (for a friend of Sandy's who wants to put them in her garden) for $17; and a sleeping bag, the old fashioned canvas kind, for $1. I was in the bidding for a Ranger pickup until it hit $1000. It finally went for $1300 which was a pretty good deal. It was a '91 but it looked to be in great shape. Would have been a nice spare vehicle. So, anyhow, I got out of there for about $35 And everything I got (except the scythes, which I'm not keeping) is usable. I consider that a good auction experience. Plus, Braun and Helmer just are fun to go see in action. When I was little my dad used to take me to auctions and theirs were the ones I loved to go to most because Jerry Helmer is a stitch.

So after the auction I went home and unloaded my stuff and got my book (Ordinary Men -- review is coming up) and went to have some Chinese at the buffet next door. I try to make this my Saturday habit. I get up at 9 or 10, then shower and relax a little, then go over to the buffet with my book and eat and read for an hour or two. I enjoy just sitting there snacking and reading and drinking nice warm tea for a while. Some of the waitstaff seem to recognize me now, as they seat me in a booth and bring me the tea without asking. Makes a guy feel special. Cheers in a Chinese buffet setting. Kind of.

After such a rigorous day I felt I needed a nap. It was three in the afternoon, after all, and I'd been up for nearly five hours. I couldn't be expected to function with this kind of stress. So I set the alarm for 4:00 and figured I'd have time to get up and start functioning before Jen got there. Except I wasn't planning on hitting the snooze button continuously until 4:40 when she did arrive. Jen took it in stride; she's seen my underwear before, as I've answered the door when she comes down in it before. It ain't sexual or anything, I wear boxer briefs and they're about as revealing as a swimsuit. Besides... it's Jen, for God's sake. She's resisted my manly wiles for these many years already. Boxer briefs aren't gonna get me any further. But I digress.

I worked on her computer some, which wasn't going on at all. She'd been having this problem since a power outage at her parents' place a couple of weeks ago. I figured it was either the memory or the motherboard. When I looked further into it, I realized I didn't have the same memory as the system took, so I needed her to call Dell on it. She did and they thought it was the memory, too, after having her do a couple of things like taking the video card out and such. Long story short, she got new memory and now is humming right along. Hopefully she'll get the surge protector I've been after her to get for more than a year now.

Then I lost my pants at poker. Good thing I was wearing the boxer briefs. Well, not literally "lost my pants". Rather, I didn't do well. It was Heather's birthday and we all went over to Kim's place and had dinner then settled in for a friendly game of Texas Hold-'em. Which is where the pantsing began. To be perfectly honest, I had crap the entire night. Twice I had a pair in-hand. Beyond that, it was usually seven-four off suit or something equally crappy. But Jen seemed to get the hang of it, in spite of having to consult the cheat sheet outlining the ranks of the hands. She really cleaned up, taking home pure profit. Of course, since I provided her buy-in money, she'd been running on pure profit since the first hand. It broke up around 1am, by which time I was on my third Jameson's and Coke, breaking my promise to myself to keep it to one plus beers. Three J&Cs and one beer. It should have been the reverse -- maybe I'd have done better. Not that I would have. The very mild inebriation I was experiencing wouldn't have prevented me from seeing the crap that was on the table, card-wise.

Sunday was spent doing nothing but relaxing and getting gas for the car. I decided to take a drive around and relax. Sandy came back from Ohio early and decided to tag along. We stopped for dinner at Hometown Buffet, formerly the Old Country Buffet, and had a very filling dinner. Two people can eat well for $20. Not a bad deal. After dinner began The Great Search for Gas Below $2.00 per Gallon. Not quite as easy as you might think. We drove about fourty miles to find gas under this "magical" price. Given that the national average for a gallon of gas went past $2 today, I'm happy I managed to find it. Three places were at $1.999 per gallon, all on Michigan Avenue. I stopped at a Citgo at Michigan in the Inkster area. I don't remember the cross-street but it doesn't matter as I'd bet they're up above $2 per gallon now. Gas prices seem to be rising nearly daily now as opposed to weekly like they were a few months ago. Sandy managed to get it for $1.939 in Ohio on her way home. Yes, I realize fully I burned far more in gas than I saved by looking for cheap gas. But I did it for other reasons: the thrill of the hunt, for one. I like to find the cheapest gas around. It gives me a sense of accomplishment. For another, I wanted to drive out to St. Hedwig's Cemetery over near Telegraph, between Ford Rd. and Joy. It's a cool cemetery on the Joy Rd. side with lots of sculpture and such and I want to photograph it, maybe next week. Also, it was just a really nice afternoon and evening and it was a good night for a drive. Sunny, cool, and the traffic was light. Yeah, so I spent a few dollars' worth of gas. It beat just sitting home alone in my boxer briefs, mourning the loss of my pants.