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today was a big day, the day my roommate would be leaving. the anticipation began early in the morning, when i noticed she had already cleared out her things from the bathroom (toothpaste, toothbrush, facial cleanser, shampoo/conditioner). 

around 12:30, my roommate's posse came to pick her up, including her friend, her uncle, and the friend of the uncle who was actually doing the driving. i seem to remember she only had a single piece of luggage but left with 2 suitcases and an assortment of shopping bags. she had so much stuff that they almost couldn't fit everything into the trunk.

roommates always leave something behind but she left nothing. not even the trash. the blankets were nicely folded, you wouldn't have even been able to tell somebody lived in the guest bedroom. as a matter of fact, she almost took something with her: i had to ask her for my door key back. 

it's been almost a week since i was last on the bike. i wanted to run some errands but there's special consideration when i'm bicycling. for one thing, if i need to buy or pick up anything, that has to be my final destination before returning home since i just can't leave all that stuff in my basket to run any additional errands. after a series of complicated internal decisions to finally figure out where i wanted to go, i rode to market basket first to pick up some groceries. i then came back home briefly, dropped off the food, and went down to the cafe. although i didn't plan to, i had some lunch there (turkey soup with rice noodles).

the linksys WVC54GCA wireless webcam my father ordered sunday night arrived today (newegg, $91 including shipping). he'd been thinking about upgrading the old B&W analog security camera at the cafe and finally got around to doing it. the wireless webcam solution is perfect because it doesn't need any additional wiring besides a power plug. the streaming live video has a maximum resolution of 640x480 and includes audio. it's actually pretty easy to set up, and the program (PC only) that comes with it allows for a total of 9 cameras to be monitored. now we're trying to configure the router so we can see the video from anywhere, not just within the cafe's local network. right now it's good for when my parents are in the back office and they need to check if somebody's come in.

around 3:30 i made my way back home. passing through the harvard observatory campus, i admired a purple "grand touring" bicycle. not sure who the manufacturer is (motobecane?) but it had a cool-looking chainguard and an interesting metal rear wheel guard. i stopped by the rite aid on the corner of mass ave and linnaean street to pick up some valentine chocolates on sale (i know, kind of early, right?). seeing all the cigarettes for sale behind the counter, i asked the cashier if they also sold lighter fluid (for when i eventually get my metal hand warmer). they sold containers of ronsonol brand lighter fluid for less than $5 a bottle.

i made myself a reuben sandwich for dinner, washing it all down with some grape soda.