Frustration

A world of things to do, but I ended up several hours getting the new alley gates operational and lockable. I heard an odd noise in the alley, I could tell it was someone sitting outside the loading dock doing something with an electric tool, went out to investigate. It was Tim, wonderful guy, large, in bibs, grinding a piece of the gate, one of the down rods, that had been, in fact, too tight. He finally gave me the keys (the two gates are not keyed the same, which is a pain in the ass) so Pegi and I officially opened the gates and walked through. I needed four locks that were keyed the same, for the down rods that secure the four side panels (unlock them, lift the down rods, and the entire gate swings out of the way for the very few times a year that we have to use the loading dock) so that the person gate, in the middle, can be opened separately. Precise language, sometimes, can be like pulling teeth. Went to the hardware store, for the first time, for four locks keyed the same, they had them, but when I got back I found the shanks were too short; back to the hardware store, for four other locks, but the shanks were still to short, so I pounded the metal flanges until the pieces fit better. Then the locks worked. Back to the hardware store to get keys made for all the parties that needed them. Felt like I was in a comedy routine. A guy goes into a hardware store. This Kings "SPICEY" Kimchi that Howard brought down is the best commercial brand I've ever had; a Korean acquaintance, in Memphis, made the best I've ever eaten, but this is very good. It's wonderful with eggs, or with a sandwich, or with anything else; I'm going to have to start making it, because I just went through a pint in less than a week. Fermented cabbage, how hard can that be? A head of Napa Cabbage, a head of garlic, a teaspoon of New Mexican ground red peppers, eight pints maybe, total yield, and I could start a second batch right away, let it age longer, then a third batch, and so on. Vintage Kimchi. Need a food-grade non-metallic vessel, a pickle bucket from the pub would be perfect. Need to search online for some recipes, a little kosher salt, a touch of sugar. Can probably forgo the ceramic pots buried in the ground. Charlotte tells me that Mark eschews the use of tape, that when he's painting a wall, he cuts all the edges freehand. Cutting Edges is a good title. I hope to do my laundry tomorrow, maybe stop by the library for some fiction, but I'm in a non-fiction mode, right now, reading Lucretius: he's so impossibly modern. Atoms indeed.