Commuting from South Orem to Sandy every day is a pain in the butt.
It takes about 35-45 minutes each way, (longer if I don't leave at the perfect time or get behind rows of semi's) and it's just a little too congested to use Cruise Control for more than a couple miles at a time. Not to mention that we have to get gas every 6-7 days, racking up another $55+ per week in bills.
But the WORST driving problem of the commute has been all the traffic jams due to the new IKEA store (ironically, right near the prison). I could not understand why there was all this fuss over a stupid Home Furnishings store. They even had signs at said "Event Access, next exit," etc. and there were police cars out on side roads. The IKEA parking lot, nearly the same size as Disneyland's (OK, not really, but close) was TOTALLY FULL.
I just kept asking myself, "Why would so many Utahns care about a stupid IKEA store?" Then I went to IKEA's website, and it all made sense.
IKEA specializes in CHEAP. If you want low-prices home furnishings, that's the place to go. Additionally, they have a free babysitting/kids play area. AND they have a restaurant with cheap food, like a 99-cent breakfast. Oh, and of course they were giving away free stuff for the grand opening. Those 4 factors instantly answered my question.
Thankfully, the thrill has died down, and now I just have the stretch of "construction area" traffic to deal with--oh, and the rubberneckers who like to slow down my southbound traffic to look at an accident in the northbound lane--2 days in a row!!!!!!!
Work is good. I've been doing a lot of sound recording (since my computer is the one next to the sound booth) and I've been doing some video graphics. I do get confused going between my Windows PC at home and the Mac at work. I hate Macs. I can never find anything on them.
Maddy's done with school, and will now be bored (and probably whiny) all summer long.
Pirates of the Caribbean 3 mini-review: (it's a mini-review to make up for the movie's 3-hour length) Not as fun as the first 2. Like me, the movie needed to slim down its mid-section. I loved the last hour or so, and there were occasional moments of greatness, like the frozen toe and the upside-down boat. I wish that Davy Jones' Locker had been even more bizarre, but I bet "normal" people wouldn't have "gotten it." (You should do "finger quotes" when you read quotes in my blog, by the way)
However, I've been slightly disappointed with each of the Pirates movies my first time through, but then they grow on me when I re-watch them. And I'm even hankering to see this one again.
Well, hope you enjoyed my Pirates 3-sized blog.
Now, mostly for Libby, here's a blast from the past: "Today's Special."
4 comments:
Thank you, Andy! I was reminded why I loved Today's Special as a kid. I always liked those stories about being somewhere like a store or a museum at night when everyone else is gone. This video clip also reminded me why I should've become an MDT major--so I could end up with a job working at Lagoon or Disneyland or a kids' show. Okay, I never really wanted that. I actually feel sorry for those people because they probably would rather be on Broadway.
Ethan and I are really excited for IKEA for the whole cheap thing. They seem to have nice stuff for really cheap. It's also about time RC Willey has some good competition. I think the IKEA is going to do extremely well in Utah. We're planning on going up there one of the first things when we get back.
I feel really bad for you having to commute. I hate commuting, even a ten-minute drive to school. I seriously want to always live right across the street from wherever I work with a good grocery store also within a 5-minute walk.
I also feel bad for Maddy because I remember summers being SO boring when I was a kid. And hot. Really hot. At least she has something fun like her birthday to look forward to. She should've done really badly in school so she could go to summer school.
I didn't like Pirates #2 at all, so I told Ethan I'd only go see #3 with him if I can get a big thing of popcorn so I have something to do during the movie. Otherwise I'll get really bored. Unless there isn't much fighting in it. Fighting is the boring stuff for me.
Did Today's Special come out before or after the movie Mannequin?
I'm surprised it has taken so long to get an Ikea here. Even the one in Burbank was ALWAYS packed. We probably saw more gay couples than you'll see at the Draper Ikea, but hey, those meatballs!
Hey, Andy, enjoyed your blog. It's about time you added something! We haven't been to IKEA--Will somebody take me with them when you go? David would NEVER go and I don't want to go myself. I'm not in the market for cheap furniture--or ANY furniture--but I want "the experience." :)
I am sorry you have to commute. It does really suck. But now maybe you kids can have some understanding of how I hated to commute 45 mins each way when we lived in Tucson!
I must have missed the whole "Today's Special" thing, as I had no idea to what that referred. So there was a TV show?
Oh, well, I had a deprived motherhood.
I would love to take Maddy (and Joel?) some places during the summer. We'll have to talk!...
Yeah... I had to have a Special Pass to get to and From work during the whole IKEA Mess...
I haven't been over there yet, but our Web Team went for lunch and compared it to Airplane food. They also tried to go off the map and take some shortcuts and started to get lost...
We'll go sometime after the majority of the hype is done. I work so close, Carrie and the kids could come up and meet me and we could swing over...Maybe Judy could tag along with that...
Yeah, I am lucky with that commute... first my carpool is early enough that we are usually ahead of the bad traffic. Also since I exit at 123000 I get out of traffic right as the Freeway gets REALLY Slow and crowded...
If it wasn't so freaking expensive to live up there in Draper, I would want to... but rent is like double...
And we certainly don't want to move during the Summer--the pool just opened and we have been going twice a day... well once a day for me...
already the kids are super blond again and we are all getting tan.
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