I walk into work at the bank today to find out that our currency counter is broken. Oh joy, my favorite way to start the week. Mondays are always so busy anyway – it’s like everyone has to rush up here early Monday morning to get their “bank fix” since they couldn’t come on Sunday. In between customers, I start trying to diagnose the problem with the counter. Every piece of money put in there gets sucked into some vortex which requires a little work to dislodge. This usually means that someone stuck a coin in there, and when I lightly shook the machine, yep, it rattled. Commence with the screwdriver!
I’m dismantling the machine in-between customers, which is a really gross job. It’s really easy to deny the idea that our money is so dirty. On one level, we know that money is germy, but it’s hard to realize exactly how gross it is until you can actually SEE the dirt. Anytime I have to take that machine apart, the level of dust and grime is just amazing. The money counter ruffles up all the dirt on the bills as it runs them through, and the dirt settles in the machine and around it. It’s so gross because the texture of the dirt is almost like a dark gray loose face powder, but also a powder that has gotten slightly damp somewhere along the way. So it’s all clumpy and it makes you feel dirty for the rest of the day.
Anyway, I dislodge the penny and re-assemble the machine, and then I start my usual routine of trying to find out who put the coin in the currency counter. As I’m doing this (and I have no idea why the thought came to me) I realize that getting the penny out reminded me of the very first episode of “Scrubs” when J.D. meets the Janitor for the first time. I really love that their relationship started out the way it did.
J.D.: I’m, uh, I’m waiting for someone.
Janitor: Door’s broke. Fifth time or so it won’t open.
J.D.: Maybe there’s a penny stuck in there.
Janitor: Why a penny?
J.D.: I don’t know…
Janitor: Did you stick a penny in there?
J.D.: No, no, I was just making small talk.
Janitor: If I find a penny in there… I’m taking you down.
I feel the same way!! hehehehehe
So, this weekend was the end of an era for Big Pines Lodge in Karnack. David and I went there a very long time ago. I remember writing about it on here, but it’s been forever ago now! This was the catfish place on Caddo Lake where supposedly at one point long ago you could eat catfish and buy a gun all in the same place. 
hehehe. It burned down over the weekend, which is pretty sad because it was so popular and well-loved.
This brings me to a point, which is: why does every catfish place on Caddo Lake burn down? It’s just a weird coincidence. There have been several restaurants there that I’ve known of, and before we even get a chance to go there, we find out that it’s burned down. That’s weird! I don’t get it. I am guessing now that they’re all gone. I think Big Pines outlasted them all.
Final random tidbit: I FINALLY finished my LOLcat website!
We’re not going to discuss how many hours I spent looking at funny cat pictures, hehehehe, but I enjoyed it, so that’s what matters!
