Motorcycle non-work, Petsmart visit, TV

Alas, this evening wasn't as productive as I'd hoped. I went to Manassas to continue work on my bike, wherein the next step is removing six links from the chain, before reattaching the wheel, tensioning the chain, etc. However, in order to do this, I need a chain breaker. My neighbor, consummate mechanic and handyman, said Monday that he could borrow one for me by Tuesday afternoon; unfortunately, he was at work all day, then at work late, and was unable to come through.

So, knowing that both the shop I got the chain from in Woodbridge and the bike shop in Manassas closed at 7, I started calling around some of the general parts/hardware stores--Advance, AutoZone, Sears--and no one carries them. The guy at Sears seems incompetent, so I go to Sears (which closes at 9) anyway, look through it all, no dice. They recommend Pep Boys, who I call--a free call to 411 from my cell, and a free automatic dialing of the number, to my surprise--and they didn't have it either, but recommended, *drum roll*, Coleman Power Sports and Manassas Honda Kawasaki. Well and good, but they're closed. Thus, all I got accomplished on the bike tonight was applying the state and county registration stickers. (You may be saying, "But Scott, couldn't you just order one from the company you linked to?" Yes, but I'm trying to get the bike fixed and inspected before this weekend, so I can't wait a few days for a delivery.

At that point, it was 8:40pm, and I decided to drop by my old Petsmart. I ran into Chelsea, Ray--returned from his higher-pay-but-boring job at Betty's Azalea Ranch--and another guy whose name escapes me at the moment. I interacted with the umbrella cockatiel, a conure, and a young blue & gold macaw, checked out all the little lizards--in their new two-level display, in newly-partitioned and newly-bedded cages (using supplies we never used previously.) Learned about the fate of some of the store lizards, as well as some of Chelsea's--an unfortunate number of deaths, all told--and also ran into Cliff, the guy I got my lizards from, who did get the ferrets, and was buying another cockatiel and cage. Silly, silly man.

I also learned a more disturbing bit of news... Michelle was one of the managers when I worked there, in the State Line Tack section. Very bright, friendly, occasionally bossy (as a manager, y'know), pretty, 23, planning to transfer to a store in PA for a better position and to be closer to her boyfriend/fiancé. She had, in fact, transferred to PA already, just a few weeks ago.. and a few weeks ago, in her sleep, she had an aneurysm and died. So young, so totally unexpected..

After the store closed, I chatted with Chelsea a bit more, went over to Shoppers, picked out a beer I'd never had--Leinenkugel's Red lager--and headed home. Mom was home by then, and would've called ahead to bring us subs, but she'd left her cell at the dentist this morning. Instead, I checked for leftovers, passed on the scary chicken okra gumbo--eww, okra--and buckwheat pasta in favor of two cheeseburger Hot Pockets, and watched Good Morning, Miami with my parents, watched Law & Order: SVU with my dad along with the beer (tasty, smooth), before heading back home, where I watched an episode of The West Wing on Bravo before returning to my computer. (I missed Nip/Tuck in the process of all this, which I'm told had some remarkable plot twists, which were explained to me.)

I should probably stop doing this "stay in Manassas until after 11, drive half an hour home, and stay up for another couple hours" thing.. :P