Taxes Are Too Complicated

Going off-line for a week.  I have to do the extension tax filings by October 15 and things are so botched up I have to start from scratch and make corrections...  And sort out the 3 versions I thought were correct at various times but aren't.  

I'll be back when I am back.  Damned stupid complicated taxes!  The 'Minimum Required Distribution" of my Government Savings Thrift Plan has ruined my ability to deal with it on the tax forms.    

  .....

Well, Darn I have to change my post.  I did spend a few hours sorting out the various tax forms (without a lot of success), but when things like that get troublesome, you have to turn your attention to something else.

So I decided to tackle another problem that has been bothering me for several years.  No point in solving a simple problem, LOL!

Some people listen to music on their phones, some on a small boom box.  But I'm a stereo rack guy.  Old habit...  And I haven't been able to play CDs for 3 years.  So, "fix that".  I was sure it was "bad cable hook-ups".  I've looked at it a couple times and just gave up seeing all the wires in the back again.  And I even had a new CD player in the box, but was sure it was the cable connections.

I'm an idiot!

But to start, I had to roll out the stereo rack.  It's on a wheeled tool platform (love those things).  

Then I looked at the cables.

I could not find anything wrong.  But they were all tangled so I undid them all.  Even unplugged all the power cords

to have a clean untangled start.

So with most of the equipment unplugged, I attached the CD player directly to the speakers.  Nothing, nada, nope.  I should have known the CD player itself was the problem...

But I had a replacement in the house (for 3 years).  So yeah, at least once I suspected the player was the problem.  

So I re-connected all the non-CD cords neatly (to keep them out of the way) and put the power cords off to one untangled side.

Checked all the "ins and outs" cables carefully...  Plugged everything back into the surge box...  Turned the tuner selection dial to "CD".  And tried it.

Ah bliss!  'Pictures At An Exhibition' came right up...

I really needed a success...  

Grocery Store Pickup Results

 Well, the pickup process was actually a bit confusing.  I had set a pickup time for 2PM and I expected that meant I should just arrive there at that time.  No, not quite!  I received an email the evening before that said my order would be ready between 2-7 PM.  What?!

I would receive a "notification" when it was ready.  But they didn't tell me what form the notification would be in.  They had my phone number and email address, and I had unchecked mobile phone text.  Searching their site and even talking to a chatbot didn't reveal anything.  

So in the morning, I called an 877 number to a centralized location.  The agent there couldn't answer my question, but did give me a number to the store customer service desk (CSD).  Amazingly, the CSD couldn't tell me how I would be "notified" either, lacking a smartphone app.

However, some good news!  No sooner had I hung up with the CSD than I got a call from a store shopper saying my order was ready to be picked up.  She even said the shallots were rather soft, did I still want them". (no).  I explained I had some mobility problems but would be there in 15 minutes.  So she said she would keep watch for my arrival (green Subaru SUV).

I got there and got out of the car and someone came out with a cart of bags.  Wrong person, LOL!  But she went back inside and found the right person.  That person came right out, loaded the bags into my car.  Even refused a tip.  She said she was paid to do pickup orders.

It was a wonderful experience and I will do it again.

There were 2 minor problems.  I had clicked on "no substitutions" for every item.  I ordered minced horseradish and got "creamy".  OK, I can live with that.  The other seems to have been my fault.  I wanted Breyer's chocolate chip ice cream and got regular chocolate.  I don't like regular chocolate.  But after reviewing my original order, it appears I clicked the wrong one.

Well, my good neighbors across the street are taking care of 3 grandchildren.  I bet some of them like regular chocolate ice cream.  It will be a gift; they have certainly done more than enough for me!

I haven't tested it yet, but I bet the items I ordered this time will be close to the top the next time.  The Safeway digital loyalty card section notices my routine preferences, so I expect the online ordering one will also do that.