APC's visit: Saturday, 4/11 + Other Notes

APC and I picked up meds from the Naval Hospital.

For our next Fun Stop, APC did the Von's pre-Easter shop while the baby and I circled the lot until finally locating a spot and watching others drive in circles. Lucy found that occupation quite entrancing. She is truly the World's Easiest Baby.

Later we drove Jack to his French horn lesson. APC and I had a grudge-match of "spite & malice" in the van. (Sadly, no photos were taken of the various yoga-contortions needed to play cards with cup holders balancing various stacks).

I made delicious burgers for dinner and then APC laid siege to the kitchen (say it with me, "galley kitchen"). She prepped and planned and staged for Easter meals. Always happy to be in touch with my inner-Eater of Other's Efforts, I guarded the perimeter. Nothing if not a "helper".

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I may have neglected to report fully that during one of our earlier Target runs (with APC), several shoppers approached APC to remark on LLGA's cute-ness. One of these shoppers stated (and a proud Auntie quoted to a gullible, out-of-earshot Mommy), "That is THE cutest baby I've seen in my entire life...and I have a one-year-old of my own!"

Only including this note to jog my memory for the Some Year Baby Book Project and because Combat Crab should know.

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The Parking Saga continued last weekend.
I have a perfectly lovely-I'm-sure neighbor who, alas, met me for the first time with Tim going a bit ape-sand about his teeny-tiny off-the-leash, trying-to-come-in-our-house, white puff of a pup when I was last-trimester with LLGA. His later encounters with me have been mostly auditory -- as in him in his backyard overhearing me going ape-sand at one or another J-crab's malfeasances (there's plenty to choose from, so I'm going to stick to generalities). Suffice it to say, there may have been multiple sandy words invoked. By the CQ. I haven't exactly been much of a social being the last year so I've had minimal opportunity to undo the impression of the Familia Crab as imperfect and challenged.
Fast-forward to this winter, when the 'hood had a rash of break-ins. Said neighbor took this entree to approach me (without the pup) to gesticulate about the number of vehicles that park at my quarters. "Who is that? Whose car is that?" I tried to explain that we have hot-and-cold running interventionists/respite providers/et cetera. Frankly, he was unmoved. "I do not want them parking in front of MY house." [CQ note: Because the teenagers breaking in to steal Wii systems always park their non-vehicles in FRONT of the very house they are hitting?!]
To be fair, he has a fire hydrant that limits the number of spaces in his driveway and front of house to a mere FOUR. But he has three vehicles. And with regularity, a large motor home. So he also specified he didn't want the vehicles of Unknown-to-Him Drivers on the side of the street facing his driveway either. I tried to be a good neighbor and told all the people as I saw them and remembered to try to avoid his home (and him).
Fast-forward to a couple weekends ago, when a new respite provider broke this Rule (because he was new and this Parking Rule was far from top-of-my-mind) and parked behind the Neighbor's vehicle, in a DMZ of sorts between "my frontage" and "his frontage". As I backed the Odyssey out of my driveway, I spotted the Neighbor with a very grumpy countenance gesturing at the vehicle and marching down to my house. Ever not seeking conflict (esp. with menacing Marines) and already late to LL game, I did not pause but did call the respite provider and instructed him to please immediately relocate his vehicle to avoid an ugly scene.
I did contact the Housing Office to verify whether the Neighbor was being a jerk. And more importantly, whether the CQ was breaking some sort of Housing rule. He is, I'm not. Officially. I was invited to write a letter about the problem; however, I really do not wish to escalate. You read it here first: I just want to get along and wave good-bye to his moving van someday with no further discourse in the interim. I was also informed that he is not, as a service member, supposed to approach a spouse...that there is an expectation that interactions will be conducted professionally between service members. I pointed out he's not seen my deployed service member (and that might have normally created a bit of sympathy rather than gritty territorialism). Anyway, I am ready to recite that "You are free to contact Housing to complain about my visitors parking in accordance with City of San Diego parking regulations."
Combat Crab is so much handier with putting the Face to good use.