Archive for the 'Journal' Category
Fry’s price matching works!
I’m genuinely surprised in a happy way.
Fry’s has a price matching policy. It’s not plastered all over the store, but I found it on the good ol’ Interweb after a short search:
If within 30 days of purchasing an item from Fry’s you see a lower in-stock price at a local competitor with a low price guarantee, Fry’s will cheerfully refund 110% of the amount of the competitor’s low price guarantee.
I am officially old.
There were things I did in my younger, crazier years that would probably kill me if I attempted them now. And if they didn’t kill me, I’d probably want to be dead. It’s no secret that I like my spicy food really hot, usually as hot as or hotter than a restaurant can make it.
Read first. Apply second.
The lovely Mrs. Vargas called me yesterday and suggested that we go out for a sushi dinner. I liked the idea.
Wanna sell me something? Think carefully about how you do it…
ARRGH! An insistent little person just rang my doorbell trying to get me to use her carpet cleaning service. Um … no … I don’t think so. I told her nicely that there is no solicitation in this neighborhood and she should probably leave.
Telemarketing scum: Wizard Carpet Cleaners of Las Vegas
I loathe telemarketing calls. That’s why our home phone is on the National Do Not Call Registry. When a telemarketer calls, I alert them to this fact and ask them to remove our number from their list.
Why Can’t Rain Happen Before I wash the Car?
I live in a desert. We have VERY little rain. I understand this.
A Few Good Books
James Lileks is one of the funniest writers around. His sense of humor is a bit weird, but he’s always got a great take on the mundane as well as the ridiculous. His daily Bleat blog (www.
This is NOT the Party to Whom You’re Speaking!
OK, Las Vegas … what gives? Since we moved here, we have received more wrong number calls in three months than we did in a decade anywhere else.
Apparently we got the phone number that people named Vince and Gayle [Last Name] used to have. How do we know this? They get more phone calls than we do, and the callers ask for them by name.
Wallets: I Duct the Issue
I wanted to wait until after the holidays were over to avoid anyone who saw this and had gift ideas.
Never give a man a wallet as a gift. Just don’t do it.
OK, so I took a week off…
I love writing this site. And I appreciate the feedback from my friends and family who visit. I kind of wish more people would visit and leave comments, but I’ll get to that in a minute.
Happy New Year!
2005 was a year of change in the Vargas household. Most of it was good, and we’re better off at the end of the year than when it started. We hope the same is true for you.
Feeling Testy? Try Doing What I Did
If you are a member of my family (this means you, Special K) you might want to stop reading right now. This is the follow-up story to Analyze this: a test you can’t study for. If you continue reading, you have been warned.
An open letter to the Lexus drivers of the world
Dear Fellow Driver:
Hi there! I’m another driver on the road. Just like you, I’m using the paved conduit to get form point A to point B. I know this may surprise you, since when you paid twice the going price of a Toyota for a Toyota with a badge that looks like a rip-off of the Mercedes-Benz logo, you thought you bought the road as well.
Confessions of a Newly-Minted Starbucks Decaf Regular
Coffee is one of those things that has always perplexed me. I remember trying it as a kid, the bitterness was unpleasant and it burned my tongue. Why would anyone drink that stuff when there is soda in the world? I’d rather have a Coke.
One More Goal For My Life
It’s not often that I’m caught off guard, but today I was.
Mrs. Vargas and I decided on a whim to go visit the Auto Collections at the Imperial Palace on the Las Vegas Strip today.
Check Your Stats, You Might Be Missing Something
The say that Google page rank is everything on the Internet these days, and that getting it is somewhat of a black science. I don’t write these pages with any particular page ranking in mind. Since “Lars Vargas” is a fairly uncommon name, I tend to rank pretty high (usually at the top) when searched in Google.
Whirlpool Customer Service: A Basket Case
Our new home in Las Vegas came with new appliances. The builder made a big deal out of only supplying Whirlpool appliances. Whirlpool is a name I have always associated with quality, and the appliances in our home attest to that.
Drinking Scotch Can Save Your Marriage
I was recently reminded of a party I attended last year. Some friends had invited Mrs. Vargas and I to their home, along with several of their other friends and neighbors.
Persian Rugs and Traffic Jams
We went to visit Mrs. Vargas’s parents for the holiday weekend. We stayed at their house in Camarillo, CA.
Analyze this: a test you can’t study for
A while back Mrs. Vargas and I were trying to conceive a little Vargas. We were not immediately successful in this endeavor.
Wacky from Waxing
Las Vegas is a great place to live. We moved here for a variety of reasons. One was the weather.
Another Average Day
Yesterday was one of those average days where you know you got something done, but you simply cannot put your finger on any specifics. I was awake for around seventeen hours, but there is very little concrete I can point to that I did.
I already posted about having Luella sing for my mom on her birthday.
Moving to Vegas: Day 4, the second half
We were now in New Mexico, a place Dad and I had never been before. We both grew up and have mainly existed on the East Coast. Sure, we’ve been to other places, but we never drove cross-country through them.
Moving to Vegas: Day 4, the first half
Well as nice as Texas had been, it was nice to see another state. Hello New Mexico! I felt like we had now made real progress. So far the journey was going extremely well, especially since we had tow alpha-males in the truck.
Moving to Vegas: Day 3, the second half
On the road and hungry, Dad and I, adhering to the “local flavor if possible” rule of the road, had stopped at the only place for miles around. It was surprisingly bright and clean, but the owner serving us was a bit relaxed in her approach to service. OK, she was slow.
Moving to Vegas: Day 3, the first half
It was day 2 on the road from Orlando to Las Vegas. We had made excellent time on day one despite some rain. Day 2 looked like it was going to turn into another fine day of driving with Dad.
Moving to Vegas: Day 2, the second half
Day one is nearly over, but we’ve still got miles to go before we rest. We’re in the midst of trying to find a hotel, but the truck needed fuel in the meantime, so we have stopped at a gas station to fuel up both truck and man.
It was at this gas station that I discovered one really huge annoyance of $2.
Moving to Vegas: Day 2, the first half
I started the day by checking my cell phone voice mail and was relieved that Mrs. Vargas and Luella had arrived safely in Las Vegas and were already settled in the new house.
Remember how Luella had received half a pill of Kitty Valium for the flight? Apparently Luella had actually spit out her relaxation pill, but didn’t need it.
Moving to Vegas: Day 1, the second half
It was moving day. So far the mover had hit on my wife, left without us really having everything packed, and time was running out to get Mrs. Vargas and Luella the cat to the airport for their flight to our new home in Vegas.
Moving to Vegas: Day 1, the first half
The day started out OK, and everything was going well until the mover showed up. He seemed chipper enough until he toured the house and proclaimed that I had lied to him about what had to be moved. Now if you want to get my attention in a hurry, call me a liar.
