On Laughter and My Present Lack

Because this was the first thing to make me laugh non-forcedly in the last week:

(This was in an email from my friend, Sayers, responding to my query about her first day at a big law firm. Her reply to my question was, essentially, "Fine." And then she continues:)

More interestingly, we found a mouse in our apartment. He was running around the counters in the kitchen. So it turns out that under pressure, I scream and run away from mice. The plan was that Mr. Sayers was going to move the fridge (the mouse had run under it) and I was going to put a pot on top of it to trap it. So Mr. Sayers moved the fridge, the mouse ran out and Mr. Sayers jumped back, fell into me, and meanwhile I've dropped the pot and am screaming and trying to run away from the mouse. I ended up with rug burns on both knees. The mouse ended up going through a hole in the wall under the stove that we promptly stuffed with a rag and taped shut. I feel pretty wimpy as a city-dweller at the moment.



Other thing that amused me today, although it can't rival the increasing self-knowledge a mouse can bring was from my phone conversation with a man about replacing the windshield on my car-to-be:

Man With a Strong Hick Accent: "That will be $276. When would you like us to replace the windshield."

Emily: "Oh, I won't be scheduling an appointment. That's higher than the other price quote I received."

MWSHA: "Well, we have a price matching guarantee. What price were you quoted?"

Emily: "$218, plus they were going to come to my apartment."

MWSHA: "Okay, our price is $238. I can send a mobile unit out as early as tomorrow. When would you like an appointment?"

Emily: "I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but how is that price matching?" (To which he mumbled something about "the lowest they can go" and a lifetime guarantee, and I think at that point he finally understood that I would not be requiring his services.)