unwanted visitors

Maybe it's something about me that attracts bugs.

After a visit to the dermatologist, and a stronger medication, my feet and ankles have finally stopped that awful itching. They still look dreadful — gigantic red dots all over my legs, feet and toes — but hopefully that too will subside in time.

But that's only one of my bug problems.

In February of 2020, a big water bug landed in my hair while I was in my apartment. It's not hard to imagine how awful that was.

Since then, I've had the exterminator to my apartment more times than I can count. The wonderful Paul, owner of the exterminator company, even gives me his cell number (with my building's approval) so I can contact him directly.

                

He's tried everything.

Glue traps.

Granular poison of some kind.

Little rubber circular things that do something lethal to the bugs.

We've sealed every possible point of entry. 

Even pulled out my stove and dishwasher to make sure these buggers aren't getting in that way.

Every vent. Every crack. Every drain. Every everything has been hermetically sealed.

And still, they find a way in.

Mostly when I see one of these giant, hideous creatures they are dead. Bad, but not as bad as when my friend Linda was over and one of these motherfu....s raced across my living room carpet, scaring us both. And, if alive, they are not easy to catch.

Paul is here again today. After getting back from the Cape, I find two dead bugs and one alive one. And, they were all in different parts of my apartment. 

Paul thoroughly treats my apartment and the basement below me. 

If only we could figure out how they are getting in.

It's baffling and upsetting. These bugs just don't want to leave.

But at least it's not as bad as what my friend M found in her beautiful Massachuttes home.

The other night, late, she notices a brown mound sitting on her hallway carpet. Her first thought is that Gus, her adorable dog, is responsible. But as she gets closer, she notices movement in the dark mound. 

Turns out it's a dying bat.

Perhaps I should be grateful for having just a bug problem!

from abyssmal to incredible

BAD customer service

My friend Q orders a dress online from Saks on July 4; it's for a wedding in early August.

It never arrives. 

She tries calling. She tries writing. She gets nowhere.

So one quiet night, with little to do but watch TV, Q calls.

She patiently waits online for over two hours (great Customer Service, that Saks), and finally reaches a nice woman who is working from Colombia. 

Q explains her frustration. The woman listens patiently. Then she asks Q what she'd like to do.

"Cancel the order," Q says. 

The CS rep does. 

And then Q asks, "For this major inconvenience, which includes having to wait on hold for over two hours, is there anything you can do?"

"I can send you a coupon for 20% off your next purchase," the rep offers.

"Fine," Q says.

The rep promises she'll have it within a few minutes.

Q hangs up and as promised, the coupon arrives a few minutes later.

From: Saks Fifth Avenue Customer Service <service@saks.com>
Date: July 13, 2021 at 10:37:20 PM EDT
Subject: Saks Case #0854251 Order #285875160   

 We hope this email finds you well and safe, we have received your request . We do apologize for the inconvenience you have experience with us about requesting the hold for pick up for your order , Here is a 20% promo code that you can use on your next purchase.  Excludes some designer 

collections. valid at Saks.com only. Offer not valid on pre-order items. Offer cannot be redeemed more than once. Limit five promo codes per order.

Cannot be combined with any other dollar off or percentage off promotions. Offer not valid on merchandise shipped directly from vendors. No adjustments to prior purchases. 

Offer valid through 07/13/21 at 11:59 pm ET.

Just brilliant!

VS GOOD customer service

In 2015 I wrote about the bad CS I received from Louis Vuitton. Well, they've redeemed themselves.

Before leaving for the Cape, I bring my falling-apart Neverfull MM tote into Louis Vuitton to be repaired. The leather around the top is torn and ragged-looking. Also, one of the side straps has ripped. I haven't used the bag in a while 'cause it looks so bad.

Anyway, I go to the store and a very nice person named Rachel helps me. She tells me it's $60 to repair the leather around the top (a bargain, I think) and $60 for one side strap replacement. 

The shoulder straps are also in desperate need of fixing but those cost $240 to repair, so I skip that.

Rachel asks if I want both side straps replaced because the colors now won't match. New leather is light orange and takes a while to turn to the more tan color.

I decline.

She also says, "If they find that the vinyl is ripped when they remove the leather around the top, they won't be able to repair it or even put the damaged leather back."

I accept the risk.

A few weeks later, while on the Cape, Rachel calls to tell me my tote is ready.

She emails me an invoice for $120. 

I pay it and she says she'll send the bag to my house.

When I receive it, I open it up and see this:

It looks like new. 

They fixed the two pieces I paid for and didn't charge me for the two other pieces they chose to repair. 

I was charged $120 for a $420 repair.

Maybe LV doesn't want someone walking around NY with a tote that doesn't meet their quality standards.

Whatever the reason, I am happy with my new bag.

cape souvenirs

It takes Zelia and me five-and-a half hours to get home, about an hour longer than it should.

To pass the time on the way back, we listen to a few podcasts called PARK PREDATORS. Doubt I'll be camping any time soon. Then again, I never camp.

I walk into my apartment and and see two, very ugly, dead gigantic water bugs, plus one that I think is dead but scoots away when I try to grab him. This has been a problem for almost a year and a half. The building and exterminating company have been trying...but these big, ugly bugs don't want to move out.

I have 27 messages. Strange, because most people I know have my cell number. But then every single one of them turns out to be some kind of spam call.

I start to unpack, but don't get far. I am too uncomfortable.

On Wednesday, I had spent about four hours at the beach — my feet in the water, my Kindle in my hand. And now I'm paying the price.

I have 68 bug bites (sand fleas, I think) on my right leg, most on my foot: top, sides and back. My left foot and leg only show 41. (Yes, I actually counted). 

I am not exaggerating when I say my feet and lower legs look like I have chicken pox.

I am trying everything.

I go into a store and feel like an addict looking for my next fix.

I get:

• Benadryl tablets (I was able to sleep last night).
• A CVS generic spray which helps little.
• Cortisone-10 which isn't all that effective.
• Ice, which feels good temporarily.
• Benadryl itch-cooling spray, which I still have to try (a friend I bump into today highly recommends it).
• Aveeno Oatmeal Soothing Bath Treatment (will try tonight).

While on the Cape, I typically walk between 7 and 9 miles/day. Today I can't even walk to my shoe repair place, only seven blocks away. I am too uncomfortable and just want to go home and scratch.

The itchiness is unrelenting. And, I can't really concentrate. I even leave my bank card in the ATM machine.

But as awful as this is, it's not all that awful.  It won't kill me and it will improve. 

I'm hoping that today is the worst.

Sadly, I now need to re-think my days of idly sitting at the ocean's edge.

lonely? not this lady!

I'm talking to a friend a few weeks ago and I happen to mention that my mom calls me every day. Occasionally twice a day. "She must be lonely," my friend says.

"No, that she isn't," I respond.

And now that I'm staying with her, I am even more sure that my answer was correct.

My mom's phones (both landline and cell) ring much more than mine does. And I am only counting her friends and family calls.

She has many many good friends. Most much younger than she is. 

She is always being invited places.

She has regularly scheduled games of bridge and canasta.

There are lots of adjectives that can be used to describe my mom. 

Fun. Likable. Beautiful. Talkative. Active. Stylish. Warm. Loving. Positve. 

The word lonely is not among them.

a few cape oddities

My guess is that July and August represent the majority of revenue for most Cape businesses. 

Yesterday I suggest dinner at Crabapple's. A small nondescript restaurant with inexpensive, good food. "They're closed for dinner on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights," my mother tells me.

And then there's the cheese shop near my mom's. There's been an upside-down sign in front for years. It was put up that way by accident (I was once told) and never corrected. They are closed on Sunday and Monday.

And my favorite French Bakery, Maison Villatte. There's always a long line to get served. Everything there is great, especially their cranberry walnut bread. They are closed Mondays.

One of the best local restaurants, C-Salt, is closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Same as Dana's Kitchen, a great little breakfast/lunch place.

Oh, and forget the weather apps. It may say clouds in North Falmouth but I only see sun. Or it's raining at the beach (an 8-minute walk) and it's clear skies at my mom's.

Another oddity? The total lack of street lighting, making driving at night difficult. 

And then there's this. 

Most places no longer require masks. 

Walk along the beaches of Falmouth. Go into its stores. Stroll along Main Street. Or visit Mashpee Commons. You'll see very few, if any, masked people.

But you will find them at Cape Cod Bagel (whose bagels rival New York's).

What makes this odd (ridiculous would be a better descriptor), is that there is only outdoor service. 

a few cape highlights

So I've been on the Cape for almost two weeks. 

The weather has been miserable, but I don't mind all that much. I still get to enjoy the Cape's laid-back attitude and ocean views.

Since arriving on July 5, there have been few days of sitting on the beach. My dermatologist would be happy.

Every morning I open the front door and it looks (and feels) like this. Gray and humid.

A heavy fog sits over the water. And most days this July it doesn't lift.

I make amends with Dean. Remember him? Last summer we had an argument and I thought I'd never go in to his small market again. Well, this summer I change my mind. It's so much easier and less stressful to let anger go. I think, too, in retrospect, I was wrong. I see him in his store  and say, "Hey, I'm really sorry about last summer." He responds, "Why? What happened last summer?" I have no idea if he even gave it a second thought, or if he is being kind. Either way, we're good again.

My mom and I have been having fun together. Laughing at her non-tech skills, playing Canasta, and just doing a lot of nothing. At almost 92, she still walks most days, and is totally independent. Plus, with her new natural hair color, she looks amazing.

Zelia comes for a few days (and will be back today).  She's earned the status of best guest ever. My mom no longer considers her a guest, but more like family. 

I spend time at Jean and Jim's gorgeous, just-built house on the pond (not lake as my sister reminds me). The other night I bring in dinner from C-Salt. We sit outside in her picture-perfect backyard. We talk for hours, and laugh at her high-tech new stove that should require some kind of advanced course to learn. 

And finally, there are those long morning walks along deserted beaches. 

Fog or no fog, it's still pretty great.