As soon as I awoke this morning, I checked my phone for any messages, hoping to hear from Cleveland Clinic about my appointment date. Initially, I was thrilled to see a message from the doctor’s assistant but frustrated when I read the message stating they hadn’t received my package from UPS, which I sent on April 1.
Immediately, I found the receipt for the shipment and tracked the result, which clearly stated it had been received on April 2. Tina, the doctor’s assistant, couldn’t find the package. This is very problematic. Every day lost is one more day that I am walking around with a time bomb in my chest.
I have been communicating back and forth with Tina and hope I’ll soon discover she’s located the packet. If not, I must start the process again, returning to day zero. This is beyond stressful and frustrating. Some of the documents required my signature. They don’t do online document signing.
So, I must go to another UPS store, sign the papers and ship them overnight. It would have been easier if I had emailed them, but they insisted on a shipment. I sent Tina the actual receipt that it was received on April 2 at the correct address and the name of the person receiving the package. What more can I do?
Now, I wait for Tina to notify me that she’s found the package. I am not happy about the stress of this situation, but as I wrote a few days ago, patience must prevail, and I am working to stay calm and maintain an even keel. It’s situations like this that are most stressful for one’s health.
At the moment, Tom is researching rental cars for when we depart here on May 1, and he was able to book a car to get us to Minneapolis, returning the vehicle on May 30 in Minneapolis at the airport. We are checking to see what might be available on May 30, depending on the schedule for Cleveland Clinic, since that will be the beginning of the long Memorial Day weekend.
Everything we are booking now is up in the air since we know nothing about where we’ll be any time over the next few months. But having cars and hotels booked gives us peace of mind as long as they are cancellable. No longer do we book anything that doesn’t offer a free cancellation.
Since COVID-19 has settled down, more venues offer free cancellations. This is particularly helpful for us right now.
On another note, yesterday, we went to the Apache Junction VFW for “Taco Tuesday” on Monday. Both Tom and I ordered taco salads without beans. He ordered his salad with the taco shell; mine was plain. The portions were very small, but the food was fresh and tasty.
Soon, Colleen will pick me up for the “girl’s lunch” they had previously planned with neighbors, asking me if I wanted to join them. I happily agreed. It had been a while since I attended a girl’s lunch, and it sounded like a fun idea. Tom will stay in our unit while I’m gone. Most likely, later in the day, we’ll play Buck Euchre again. We played yesterday afternoon, but I gave up my seat to Colleen at about 7:30 pm.
Tom drove me to our park model and returned to Margie’s to play cards while I spent the remainder of the evening streaming mindless drivel while playing with my phone. It was a relaxing and easy evening.
Be well.
Photo from ten years ago today, April 9, 2014:
Oscar Mayer is looking for someone who would relish the opportunity to get behind the wheel of one of America’s most iconic vehicles.
The processed meat giant has launched a nationwide search for its next crew of Hotdoggers — paid spokespeople who drive the brand’s famous hot dog-shaped Wienermobiles around the country.
The company is hiring 12 drivers to get behind the wheel of the 27-foot-long vehicle, which is equivalent in length to 54 wieners laid end to end.
The Hotdoggers’ main responsibility is to represent Oscar Mayer daily as they drive the 87-year-old Wienermobile around America between June 2024 and June 2025.
“It’s like they’re running a PR firm on wheels,” says Ed Roland, who runs the Wienermobile program. “They’re key content contributors to all of our social media channels. It’s some of the highest performing content for all of [parent company] Kraft Heinz.”
Oscar Mayer has a fleet of six Wienermobiles. Hotdoggers will travel in pairs and be expected to host over 200 pop-up events over the course of the year. They will be responsible for “pitching and appearing on local television, radio or newspaper media,” according to the job listing.
If you want the gig, be ready to present your driving record. The average driver travels 20,000 miles each year, Oscar Mayer says, visiting at least 40 cities.
“It’s a lot like an RV,” Roland says. ”[Applicants] do not need a CDL or any special driver’s license.”
The role will require Hotdoggers to work on major holidays and spend the majority of their year away from home.
The listing says that the one-year assignment will pay a base salary of $35,600, with an additional weekly allowance of $150 for meals and personal travel. Hotdoggers will receive health benefits and 18 days of paid time off, and their hotel expenses will be covered.
In a typical year, the Wienermobile program receives between 1,000 and 1,500 applications for the 12 open slots but has gotten as many as 7,000 in a single year.
Oscar Mayer will accept applications through the end of January and says that bilingual candidates, in particular, are encouraged to apply.
You can apply for the role here.”
This might be a fun experience for retirees who want to supplement their income, although the pay isn’t much, and see the US at the same time. However, it was quite a task to set everything up to cook the hotdogs, prepare the toppings at every stop, and clean up after the event ended, only to get back on the road again to the following location.
Enjoy our Weinermobile photos, which bring back memories from our youth.
Be well.