CAESAR'S BAY RECOVERS

Today, for my almost-daily walk for Charity Miles, I went to Best Buy in Caesar's Bay to drop off a broken DVD player for recycling.  Best Buy staff are well-trained for receiving recycling materials.  Walking in the door, you need to tell the door person that you want to recycle the equipment and get a Recycle sticker, otherwise he may think you bring the thing in for return and there would be a different sticker.  You would then bring the old junk over to the service desk, which can be long sometimes but you can just leave your junk on some counter or the floor and alert a staff member.  That's it!  The old equipment will be properly recycled, somehow.  Got to trust someone somewhere, you know, you won't get anything done if you are skeptical about everyone and everything.  The trick is to walk straight out and not wander around, to avoid buying things you may end up regretting later.

Last time I visited Caesar's Bay (http://www.qaptainqwerty.com/2012/11/caesars-bay-and-waterfront-after.html) , Kohl's, Babies 'R Us, and Toys 'R Us were not open for business yet.  Today, I saw that Toys 'R Us had taken over the store near Best Buy to sell bikes, video games, etc.  The place was once a Strauss auto supply store, then became a seasonal store, like Halloween costumes in September or thereabout.  The main building for Toys 'R Us was still not open, but right in front of it, in the parking lot, they have built a large tent to be a temporary store.  A security guard told me that the tent was supposed to be open at 3 PM or 4 PM, definitely tomorrow.  It's the holiday season, the business needs to make a few quick bucks!  I know, it's all wrong the way people think of shopping when it comes to most holidays, but if the local business is alive, hopefully the locals can have employment, too.

Interestingly, on my way out of the parking lot to get home, I bumped into the Spanish interpreter I met on Election Day.  Actually, she recognized me and greeted me first, addressing me as a Mr. Lee, her usual way of talking, perhaps because she worked in a school before.  She lives not far from the Toy 'R Us on Flatbush Avenue near Kings Plaza but came to Caesar's Bay, with her mother, only to discover that Toys 'R Us here was closed.  The Flatbush store is right on the waterfront of Mill Basin so I wouldn't be surprised if it was damaged in the hurricane.  She made my day on Election Day by asking me, shortly after we first chatted, if I know who Chow Yun-Fat is.  Sure I know who he is, as I can be his stun double.  If you are seeing this, drop a note to say hello, Ms. Arias.

At the side of Best Buy, temporary brick-and-mortar store sells bikes, video games, etc. 

The main building is still not functional, but now there's a big tent in front of the store that will definitely be open for business on Wednesday, November 21.