Friday I was busy (as usual) unpacking boxes and using power tools. Installed shelves, organized stuff, cleaned, did laundry (need I say that? It’s almost a given!). I went to bed early because Saturday was Praxis test morning.

So Saturday. . .got up at 5AM to head out to Mercer County Vo-Tech. Just a note for those of you thinking of registering for any kind of ETS test online – be ready to spend a few hours. The website is almost as counterintuitive and user-unfriendly as the Verizon Customer Service 800 line. Getting through the registration process is relatively painless, but finding a test site is Monty Python-esque. You get a list of locations. You get a list of dates. So, you pick the date you want, and the test center that’s closest to you. The website says it’s not available. It does not tell you where or when the test you want >is< available, so you have to go back to the beginning, pick the same date and a different location (or a different date and the same location) and try again. BZZZZT!!!! MUHAHAHA!!! NO SELECTIONS RETURNED! TRY AGAIN, SUCKER!! Over and over and over until you’ve finally found the magic combination of test, location, and date. Hence, getting up at 5 and driving an hour and a half to take the Praxis 2. Part two is that they tell you to re-print your registration ticket a few days before to make sure they didn’t change their minds and move it or canncel it on you. Of course, you can’t put your registration ticket URL in – it’s expired. And on the website, there’s no “login” or “my account” or anything sensible like that. If you go through what looks like a sensible route to where your ticket should be, it brings you to a place where you can change your address. No, what you need to do is try to register for a new test. After you put in the information about the test you want to take, >then< you get to log in with your name and password and get your ticket. Well, the test itself was no big deal. Except for a couple of geography questions, it was a piece of cake. In fact, I think that the test itself is just a ruse. They >really< want to see how well you negotiate your way through bureaucracy,as shown by the online registration test.

After that, I was going to Mom and Dad’s house to take them (and myself) out shopping. At IKEA. In Philadelphia. (I think this store should give me some kind of customer appreciation award.) I had told them I’d call when I was on the road. My treo shows four bars, the little flashing green light that says I have service, and “Verizon Wireless” inthe upper left corner of the screen. I speed dial. It says it’s dialing, then cuts off with “No Service” in the upper left corner. The entire length of 295 from Trenton to Barrington. I’m getting more and more pissed, sent a text to hubby after I stopped with choice words for Verizon. (Note: I apologize to Verizon, because now it looks like the treo battery is at fault. But yesterday, all I could think of was how I wanted to telekineticaly fry Verizon.) So I started off with an attitude. The directions to IKEA were faulty by omissions. Philadelphia drivers are horrible. I’m used to North Jersey driving. Dad, legally blind and hard of hearing, sat in the back seat, blissfully oblivious. Mom, on the other hand, left permanent fingernail impressions in the door handle. Ditto on the way home – bad directions, nasty selfish drivers, and me with all the confidence in the world. I think Mom just needs to relax. Heh.

Today I’m hoping to see some more progress in the house. I want it to happen magically while I’m making wheat balls and soup and washing sheets. Of course, it won’t, so hubby and I will be putting up a display shelf in Daughter #1’s room later, and I will follow that by putting the craft supplies away in labeled boxes and sewing curtains. Or I might take a nap. We shall see.