If there wasn't a full moon on this Friday the thirteenth, there should have been. In fact, if this wasn't Friday the thirteenth, I'd like to speak to whoever made my calendar, because it felt that way to me.

For starters, last night was no better than the night before, sleep-wise, but I still made it out of the house this morning, even though I got a later start than I wanted to. I would like to have been back home by noon, but since I didn't leave until 11:30, it was inevitable that I would have to deal with midday traffic.

For once, I'm not going to complain about the interminable line at the bank. Being at the bank at noon on a Friday should have foreshadowed that ordeal for me anyway, and the fact that I got a brand new first-day trainee teller? I always feel it's my job to make it seem as if she's making me thrilled to be her customer, even if that's an exaggeration of how I really feel.

Then I got to the ATM, where I had no less than ten checks to deposit. Yes, I've been holding onto checks that long, to have accumulated so many. But that shouldn't have been a problem for the machine, because it tells you that you can deposit up to thirty items at a time! Without an envelope! And go ahead, mix cash and checks, it doesn't care!

But this spanking new machine had a problem with my checks, and so I had a problem with the machine. I fed the ten checks into the slot, and it started spitting them back at me, one by one. A message appeared on the screen that told me I shouldn't be using an envelope, and asking if I wanted to try again. Since I wasn't using an envelope, I punched the OK button and tried again. And the same thing happened. Since the checks didn't come back all at once, I had to count them to make sure I had all ten.

So I started feeding them in one at a time, while the line of people waiting behind me got longer. After three checks were deposited, I thought I could get away with more, so I fed the ATM the next three. And back they came. I ended up feeding all ten checks in one at a time, making ten separate deposits. Fortunately, I have the account set up not to print a receipt for each deposit, but to email the receipt to me instead.

Needless to say, I was frustrated on leaving the bank and stomped out to my car. But I wasn't so frustrated that I didn't check carefully behind me before I backed out. That's why it was so surprising when I heard a voice shouting at me and saw a woman pushing a shopping cart and waving just beyond my back bumper. I don't know where she came from, and she didn't look fast enough to have raced into that position, but I waved at her and pulled away. She waved back. At least I think it was a wave.

Instead of bagging my other errands and coming straight home, I stopped at Oliver's as planned. If anything, Oliver's parking lot is even more treacherous than the one at the bank, mostly because there are so many shops in that strip center that drivers are always on the alert for the next available space. But I found my space, did my shopping, and backed out without incident.

As I was pulling onto the street, however, something came diving at my windshield, hitting it with a thump and then disappearing. I couldn't make out what it was, but I think I hit a bird! I didn't have time to rescue it, if that's even what it was, because I was now in the midst of noon traffic. I was so rattled (again) that I think I ran a red light. That's the least of my problems on a day like this, especially since I was making a right turn at that light, which is legal in California (even if caught on camera).

Somehow I made it to the post office and all the way home without killing anyone or maiming any more wildlife, at least as far as I know. I spent the rest of the day recovering, but this is the kind of thing that keeps me up at night. As if I need one more thing to keep me up at night.

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It's not delivery.
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Inspired by Miss Rachel, I tried my hand at a homemade vegan pizza tonight. Unlike my mentor, I didn't make the crust from scratch, but everything else was fresh. Okay, the fake shredded mozzarella not so much, but at least the sauce I used was organic. Anyway, my pizza isn't as visually gorgeous as hers, but it still tasted good.