Forced Charity

Well, there's good news and bad news on the laundromat front. And weird news.

Good news: The place I found was bigger, cleaner and MUCH cheaper than the one I've been going to. It's also quiet. The last place blared annoying radio stations which proved rather distracting while trying to read. Also, it's on street parking, but I think if you go during off times, you can find something right outside. Additionally, it's right next to a convenience store and a few sweet eateries, including The Urban Gourmet. If you live in Somerville, this is a must try. Quality grub, excellent service, hip little joint.

Bad News: From the middle of the street (driving by), it appeared that there was a television monitor suspended from the ceiling. Not so. It's actually a big, rectangular vent. I think there's a television in the back room, but there were children in there watching some sort of educational program. What kind of horrible person would I be to ask them to change it?

Weird News: So, I got there and started loading up a couple of washers, and I was feeling pretty happy despite the vent/TV mixup because it was only $1.25 to wash a load and the washers appeared to have greater capacity than my old laundromat. The next thing I knew, this older woman came shuffling over to me. Though she was wearing a pair of crappy slippers and a kind of frumpy skirt, she didn't appear to be disheveled or unkept. She made direct eye contact and without missing a beat, she said, "I need some money to finish" and bent her head in the direction of the dryers on the back wall. I took out my purse and she said, "Five dollars." Now, I consider myself to be a fairly charitable person, but come on! I hadn't even completed the loading of my washers and this lady dragged her slipper feet over to me and not only demanded money, but told me exactly how much I should have given her? I had a total of five bucks on me at the time and though I'm sure her situation wasn't good, I'd be damned if I had to run to the bank machine just to get my laundry started after forking over all the cash I had in hand to her. I agreed to give her 2 bucks so that I could at least start my wash before going out to get more money. Once my quarters were popped in, I settled down to read about "Denise Richards' Side of the Story." After a while, the slippers swished in my direction again. This time (get this) she said, "My clothes are still damp. Two dollars wasn't enough." So, on top of giving her money on demand, I was supposed to feel guilty? She didn't stop there, either. She went on and on about how unfortunate it was that she had to walk home with a bag of wet laundry. I was so mad, I just ignored her and let her walk out in a huff. By the way, I put a mere buck in each dryer and my clothes came out bone dry.

I missed the first 4 innings of the game. I got in the car just in time to hear Castiglione gushing over Damon's great defensive play, robbing The Big Ragu of an off-the-wall hit. My mom called me during my drying cycle to tell me about Matsui's wrist. Tough break for the Yanks if it's broken. I gathered from EEI and NESN commentary that the Sox squandered a lot and that, had it not been for some awesome defensive plays, Chacon would have been a little screwed tonight.

The weather seems to be holding out. And Wake is doing fine, as his bottom of the 5th was a 1-2-3.