Yesterday I ventured out for the first time since the olden days before this virus struck two weeks ago.
I'd planned three errands, one to the post office, two to libraries. I managed the post office, yay, gloves on their way, and the return of the puzzle which I never got to start, to one library then had to come home, too tired to drive safely any further.
The other library return has to wait a day.Also increasingly urgent alerts on the dash, now complete with beeps, about the low battery in the key fob, encouraged me not to push it.
So, once home and fuelled with tea, I finally had to change the keyfob battery. I had a battery in the house, the other one from the other fob that went down.
You have to remove the key, separate the parts of the shell and after that the actual replacement isn't so hard. What's hard is opening the shell if you don't have big burly hands like the nice man on YouTube who says just insert the key, rock, there!
You can do that till the cows come home and the thing is so tight fitting it won't give. Last time I used a screwdriver blade which opened it so fast that tiny parts flew all over and required endless reassembly. I hear this is a common problem. Inside that shell the parts, all the command functions, are just resting in shallow grooves, not fixed.
So this time I started with the screwdriver then inserted an xacto blade to open it further until it worked. Right way up, battery visible, tiny parts safely underneath.
Changed out the battery, then comes the other issue, shutting the shell again without exploding the parts. The burly handed man acknowledged that even he had to bring pressure, so I stood up, fob on hard surface, full court press with upper body, thumbs whining, till yay, it clicked into place.
I tested, it works, no further hysterical alerts on the dash. Quite proud of my success there. Boud 1, tech 0. For once.
However my less than two years old Fire tablet has gone to a quiet murmur when I use it for audiobooks, inaudible. Every workaround tried, it just wore out, I think.
It's my go-to for audiobooks, sigh, Hoopla installed, which won't install on my phone whose sound is much better, even using all the sneaky tricks I used to get Hoopla onto the Fire.
I notice other users with similar media sound issues, and I've already tried all the remedies they suggest. Everything except the media sound, all other sounds, all the video, work fine.
If you have any good ideas, and they're not on the btdt list, I'll be glad to hear.
Then Misfits arrived
with lovely spinach, sardines and wholewheat pita, some of which became supper, lovely fresh spinach leaves wrapped around sardines in best olive oil, inside a pita bread. So good , I could feel strength coming back!
Later Gary came over, with this
He had got it before Christmas hoping his daughter would make brownies. Too busy, didn't. Her mother likewise. He wondered, knowing my habits, if I would ever use a mix. I think he's dying for some brownies. So I accepted it and he'll get a share. I'll add in walnuts though, because they just arrived, and anyway I think you should.
He changed the lightbulb at the top of my stairs, expressed dismay that I'd tried errands, and I explained I think you have to try just to start getting well.
He's not convinced, but he's never known about managing chronic illness as I have. There's a psychological component to consider. If I didn't push a little I'd be on the sofa till spring.
Speaking of which here's a new puzzle
Once again, don't make it too hard! And if you solve it, don't post the answer, just try a funny clue.
Happy day everyone, may all your fobs, real and metaphorical, work, even if they need a little help.