Proposition 24

Christmas Time is Here

2007-12-06T19:50:00.001-05:00

DSC03202
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Yes it is and nothing says Christmas like a reindeer glass of milk and a plate of cookies. We brought all the holiday decorations out of the attic on the first weekend after Thanksgiving. Since then I've either unboxed or arranged two holiday items per night around the house. Like everything else since the arrival of Dottie, this broke the normal holiday routine. In the past, Dawn put up all the decorations on the first day of winter break from teaching. It's interesting to think that next year Dottie can help with the holiday decorating. That will be amazingly fun.

The Holiday Crush

2007-11-29T10:21:00.000-05:00

In our tiny house, space is a premium. With the arrival of our daughter, free space is becoming a scare commodity. The bookcase full of over-sized kitchen items has been replaced with a pack-n-play, a swing, and a stroller. In the past Christmas decorations, especially the tree, pushed each room in the house to it's functional limit. Dottie's bouncy seat, a magical device that calms her fussy moods, occupies the same spot that, in the past, is where the Christmas tree went. So Christmas tree, where do you go now?

Currently the top three places are 1) in the dining room since we never eat dinner at the table anymore 2) in the front corner of the living room supplanting the cat's favorite perch, one of the few comforts he has left after we kicked him out the baby's room/guest room and 3) back in the attic until we move to a bigger house. The problem is I hate all of these ideas - the tree looks terrible in the dining room; I'm loath to take away yet another comfort from out cat; and if we don't celebrate with a tree I'm sure I'll scar our daughter for years to come.

Honestly, removing the cat's favorite perch and sticking the tree there is the only real option. The reason I'm loath to do it is because it's exactly what every baby book said I would do: devalue a pet's once lofty place place in the family. Reading those books, I rallied against that idea, thinking "No way. I'm not going to do that". Yeah, well, too bad. It's time to Think Again.

We're Not Home Right Now: Thanksgiving Edition

2007-11-28T21:46:00.001-05:00

We traveled to Allentown PA for Thanksgiving. This was also Dottie's first interstate road trip. I thought we'd have to stop at every reststop along I95, however Dottie only need one stop. In fact on the way back we had to tickle her for 5 minutes just to get her awake. This baby loves car rides!
Thanksgiving itself was a great time. There were lots of family relations to play with Dottie giving mom and dad a chance to rest, sleep, show others how to play the Wii (yes, we brought it) and watch the Virginia Tech at Virginia game (okay, okay only dad did this). Dottie also went to her first restaurant outing in Bethlehem. The table next to us was disappointed that we did not put Dottie between their table and ours. They demanded that we show her to them. Once they saw her the entire table voted her "delicious".

We returned home Saturday night with enough time left in the evening to hang out with uncle Dan and aunt Monica.

The Office

2007-11-14T21:02:00.001-05:00

The Office
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

The other thing I've been doing aside from raising my baby daughter is working on freelance projects. I've taken over the kitchen table with this fancy set up. Click on the image and take a tour of my office desk.

It's like Three's Company

2007-11-07T21:00:00.000-05:00

I should have posted this here on Oct. 24 but we've been busy adjusting to our newest roommate, Dorothy Paige Hunter. For those that have already seen the hospital pictures here is a jump to the Halloween photos.

Happy Halloween

2007-10-31T15:32:00.001-04:00

DSC03032.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Here's a trick for the bloggers since we got our treat early.

If I Had a Hammer

2007-10-11T21:02:00.000-04:00

I'd hammer in the morning? No. I had a hammer on Monday though and I used it to hammer apart a giant "trweed". What's a trweed? It was the massive weed that conveyed with the house. and was already 1/3 of the way up the house. As of Monday the tree was almost to the soffit. That is until I took the claw-side of a hammer to it for 5 minutes and then tore it down. Rock!

WiiBirthday

2007-10-05T21:37:00.001-04:00

WiiBirthday
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

September brought many things - including Dawn's birthday! On this day, September brought a fancy dinner out on the town, a digitized CD collection, and Wii. Additionally I had the NFL move the Washington game to Monday night so as not to interfere with the birthday weekend. Not that I'm bragging or anything.

Nursery Complete!

2007-10-05T21:06:00.001-04:00

DSC02814.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

It's done! Well, almost done - it still needs a baby. I checked with the stork about that baby I ordered 8.5 months ago but was told it will still take another 14 days for delivery. Sigh. We are very happy how it turned out. It's ready and all we need is our baby.

We're back!

2007-10-05T20:27:00.000-04:00

Oh my! We're back and just shy of one month of being truant from the blogsphere. I've got fun news to share and normally I'd hold some of it back for the coming weeks. However, I sense that I'm going to be very busy very soon so we are going to run through a series of posts very fast.

Revenge is a dish best served with tomatoes

2007-09-12T21:22:00.001-04:00

DSC02790.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Mom Scattolini was here last weekend and she unleashed her fury on the ravenous tomato plants that overtook our front walk. She hacked them back to a manageable length, clearing away the dead loss as she plucked off the good tomatoes. Now the postman and us have a clear path to the door. Of course, the overgrowth was good for one thing - it hide our cracked and crumbling walk. Hopefully, in the spring '08 there will be a post here about how we've replaced it with a new shiny one.

In The Details

2007-08-29T21:38:00.001-04:00

DSC02784.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

We are still working on the nursery. We are hoping to finish up this weekend. Until then her are some detail shots of the sea life that were painted by Dawn.

Nursery Progress

2007-08-22T20:09:00.001-04:00

Next Wall
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

We continue to paint and decorate the nursery. We painted faces on the creatures occupying the first wall and add some more aquatic pals on the second wall. Dawn also framed the wet pets with white bubbles. The second wall contains my attempts at painting sea life. While Dawn praised my efforts, the true test is when the baby sees it. Will s/he be pleased with my interpretation of sea life? We'll find out in less than eight weeks.

The Guest Room is Closed

2007-08-16T22:00:00.001-04:00

Green Corner
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Dear Future Guests,

We are sorry for the inconvenience however our guest room is currently under renovation. We plan for renovations to be completed shortly. Once renovations are complete the guest room will be available again. However, no reservations will be accepted until 2025 as the room is currently booked by a distingushed guest through that date.

Thank you for your understanding.
Sincerely,
Mangement

Attack of the Tasty Tomatoes

2007-08-09T22:28:00.001-04:00

Overfed & Overgrown
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Early in the summer we planted four little tomato plants expecting the venture to be a colossal failure. Instead what we got was success beyond our wildest dreams...and lots of tomatoes. With this success has come a new culinary challenge: what to do with so many tomatoes? Dawn has posted some of the top recipes on her blog. We've given 10 bags away so far and our neighbors have permission to pick tomatoes whenever they want. Next summer we'll have to plant some cucumbers to go along with the tomatoes in the summer salad. That or we'll need to plant a pasta tree. They have such a thing, right?

Meet Me In the Bathroom

2007-08-01T22:37:00.001-04:00

DSC02660.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

What was once a closet is now a bathroom. Our long-time dream of having a bathroom in the basement is realized. No longer must we walk up two flights of stairs with urgency, no longer is there a line for relief. Now one person can go up, the other down, for there is now a bathroom for every person in this house (until October when the baby arrives).

Brand New Kitchens (or Renovations Pt II)

2007-07-25T18:36:00.001-04:00

DSC02579.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

The sadness brought by the end of vacation was tempered knowing that a brand new kitchen awaited. The suspense was dizzying. What kind of kitchen would it be? Would it be nice? Would the contractor remember to install the counter tops? Would there be a giant hole in the floor? All fears were allayed when we walked into the kitchen. Pristine white cabinets stretched high above us, a sleek stainless steel microwave beamed back at us, and best of all no one stole the fridge. I've hardly made a meal since we've been back. The happy new kitchen has re-energized Dawn and she's full of pep for making dinners and tasty treats. Money well spent, I say.

Kitchen Renovations (Part I)

2007-07-19T18:13:00.001-04:00

Kitchen
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

We're back! And we have lots of entries planned. Home renovations tales, vacation tales, invading critters and so on.

First up, part one of our kitchen renovation. In the past we had done some of the renovation ourselves (some cabinets, ceiling) however we had an opportunity to do it right and we took it. The only thing better than having a professional renovate our kitchen is having them do it while we were vacationing in Portugal.

Next week, we'll see the wonderful results of all this destruction.

The Leaking

2007-05-16T19:16:00.001-04:00

DSC02214.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. While not the flash flood that was last summer, we discovered that the shut-off valve for our outside faucet leaks when turned on. It leaks inside the house, of course. Dripping inside the wall and soaking into the plaster.

I wouldn't have know this if the Roto Rooter plumber had not insisted I pry off four wooden panels. Of course, once the panels were off, the plumber came to the conclusion that removing them wasn't necessary.

I shouldn't complain though. After the plumber tightened a single nut (which was accessible from the start) he told me, "I was smart. I could be a plumber too".

Thanks, dude.

What's Your Bench?

2007-05-09T21:29:00.001-04:00

Bench
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

This is ours. It's new and replaces the vanity that was a magnet for junk mail, magazines, dust, and pens. Now all that stuff can go in the baskets under the bench. We thought our Bean would want to sit on it so we put his favorite blanket on top. However, he seems content sitting on the couch or in our laps.

This marks the last post I have planned. So unless I accomplish a loosely-related home improvement task before next Wednesday, there won't be a schedule post. To be notified of when I resume posting I recommend Google's Reader, which 'watches' website, like Blogspot, and notifies you when its updated.

Grosser Than Gross

2007-05-02T18:32:00.000-04:00

We cooked various meats throughout the winter. With the meat, came a lot of that troublesome grease. Not wanting to pour hot grease in the trash, nor down the drain I began collecting it in a plastic Super Bowl XL cup. During the winter months this worked perfectly - we could store the cup outside in the chilly temperatures and retrieve it when needed. Which was often. By the end of February we had a full cup of solidified grease. I thought of getting a wick and making a meat candle.
Then, like my thoughts, the seasons changed. I become occupied with spring cleaning while the solidified grease began to melt. This weekend we went to Philly and my Mom watched the cat. During her visit she must have carefully placed the grease cup (now liquid) in the recycling bin. I hadn't noticed this. If I had I certainly wouldn't have yanked the recycling bin with so much force. It wasn't just the grease that got over everything including me, the recycling bin, the deck floor that was the nasty part. It was that it smelled like rancid meat. Not just one kind of rancid meat. No, it was a vile bouquet of rancid meat smells.

I placed the foul recycling container on the curb for the morning pick-up. I had hoped that once the recycling folks dumped out the contents it wouldn't smell so bad. However after a day of baking in the sun a nasty, empty bin simply mocked me with it's stench when I came home. Defeated, I took it into the backyard and washed it out.

Memorial

2007-04-18T21:43:00.001-04:00

Virginia Tech Alumni Hall
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

My deepest sympathies for all those touched by Monday's terrible events.

I loved my four years at Virginia Tech and I was proud to document the wonderful place that is not just Virginia Tech, not just serene Blacksburg, but a true community.

To the current students, faculty, staff, and parents my thoughts are with you.

Wade in the Water

2007-04-11T21:17:00.001-04:00

Low Overhead
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

I would like one calendar year where I don't get the phone call "Come home, water is leaking from [somewhere] oh my god come home now!!!" On Monday I got that call for the second year in a row. Thankfully, it was only a fraction of the amount of water from last year. This time the new twist was water dripping from the ceiling. Our toilet overflowed and seeped through the space between the toilet and bathroom floor, down the pipes, and through the spaces we cut for the recessed lights.

We took the ceiling down to dry out and began to disinfect everything in the kitchen. On the upside, the kitchen is now the cleanest it's ever been. On the downside, toilet water, eww....

Blue Flower

2007-04-04T20:48:00.001-04:00

DSC02146.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

...and white, and yellow. Lots of yellow.

Now that the weather has turned warmer, we're focusing our efforts on improving the house's "curb appeal". Last year we planted the 'yellow things' which has bloomed nicely. I think we also planted the 'purple things' last year. True, I don't know the correct names; that doesn't restrict my enjoyment of them though.

We bought most of the flowers at a local nursery near our first apartment. However, some items in the pictures were recycled. One set of the yellow flowers are from a friend's wedding decoration; the pot featured in the picture was one of the four stands to our wedding huppah.

We also did some weeding and trimming. Since I know that you can imagine how amazing awesome fun that is, I knew posting pictures wasn't necessary.

Gone, Virtual Daddy, Gone

2007-03-28T22:03:00.000-04:00

Actually, I don't think I ever played a game like that...

They're gone. It took about a year but I sold all the unwanted video games and all but one DVD. During my experiment with selling used video games and DVDs online, I discovered Amazon.com totally kicks e-Bay's butt. I sold one thing on e-Bay and never got paid. I sold tons of games and DVDs at the Amazon Marketplace and got adequate cash. I even sold the instructions, the map, and the box to GTA3 - but not the game (I lost it)! Granted, I sold this item for $0.50; hell, I sold everything for less than what I paid for it. Still, I got it out of the house and got some extra cash too boot. This was such a successful experiment that Dawn is looking for other things to sell. Cha-ching!

In the Hanging Garden Washroom

2007-03-21T21:08:00.001-04:00

Hanging Stuff
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

This is the end result of painting the closet green. We moved the wire rack out so we could have room for this fancy cabinet. It holds a variety of cleaning products, as well as the persistent gift boxes that have been stacked on something since we moved in.

Even though we replaced one item with another, this setup is much safer. Before, every time I wanted something from the shelves to the right I always bonked my head on the corner of the wire rack. Now there is enough clearance between the cabinet and shelves for you to stand (!) between then and leisurely select what you need. Amazing!

Everything is on Sale!

2007-03-14T22:19:00.001-04:00

Everything is on Sale!
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

While this does not constitute a direct home improvement, saving this kind of dough allows us to spend money on all the little projects around the house. Plus - the Harris Tetter brands are tasty! Salsa, lunch meats, and fish are always on sale. Add to that the yummy sugar cookies right inside the door. I thought after the grand opening last fall that this service would end. Yet to their credit the cookie stand is still there. Maybe that's why we shop there some much.

We Are Open for Business

2007-03-07T20:51:00.001-05:00

Shed_Tape
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

This past Wednesday I have two things in my favor - warm weather and comp time at work. So I used these two favors to accomplish two tasks that the cold weather prevented. Because I sure as hell ain't working outside unless its 55 degrees plus. Also, the grip tape for the shed ramp says it won't stick unless it's above freezing. That's all the endorsement I need!

Anymore interested in replacing a porch light should now it's rather simple. Since there is only one foot or so of wiring, the hardest part was doing the wiring with both hands and keeping the fixture aloft. Fortunately, I was able to attach the fixture to the nearby awning's support arm with a velco strap. I should have taken a picture of that - that was something to see.

The Duration

2007-02-28T21:42:00.000-05:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hunter/sets/72157594423703862/show/

Some time-lapse fun with the digital camera. I actually shoveled between 10:30 am and 11:30 am , however the only evidence of that is my footprints.

Cabin Fever

2007-02-21T18:36:00.000-05:00

The camera is MIA so this post will be a text-only affair. It's been cold - I've repeated that time and again this month. Since we were stuck inside for fear of losing a limb to frostbite we accomplished a handful of thing that lingered on the to-do list. First off - we bought a drill. Not just any drill - the drill of my wife's dreams - a DeWalt 14.4 volt. I took this bad boy for a spin by finally countersinking our kitchen ceiling. For the encore I hung up the dust buster's charging base in the laundry room. Once everything was hung accordingly, I relocated our Airport Express to the stereo so I we can listen to the previous day's Marketplace and fancy rock music in a wireless fashion.

Come to think of it, I wished I'd moved the stereo remote to this chair and brought with me my cup of tea. I don't think I'm getting up anytime soon on account of this guy.
(thank goodness for Photo Booth and iSight)

Trapped Under Ice

2007-02-15T20:24:00.002-05:00

The previously documented cold weather finally had something to show for it trouble this week - snow! ice! mayhem! On Wednesday they closed almost everything in the greater Washington metro area. Dawn's school was closed for the day so I stayed home from work too. The inclement weather had impeccable timing since I had come home with a sore throat the day before and needed a day's rest to get over it.

This morning I woke up renewed and refreshed, which was good since I had to push my car out of our driveway, which was encased in ice. The temperatures didn't get above freezing today so the driveway is still an ice rink. Hopefully, tomorrow morning will not be a double-header game of Honda Accord vs. Traction Be Damned.

Frozen

2007-02-08T22:10:00.001-05:00

I-C-E
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Yeah! Flickr is working! Pictures! Yea!

In This Home of Ice

2007-02-07T22:17:00.000-05:00

You may have heard how it's shockingly cold here in the D.C. metro area. We are now on our third day of below freezing temperatures and we don't get a break until this weekend. I wanted to show you just how cold it is, however Flickr is cranky tonight and not uploading my pictures. Therefore I am reduced to explaining how on Monday morning I noticed that there was ice on our front door windows - ice on the inside of the door. Now, I knew we had a drafty door, however I didn't know it sucked this much. So, I hear by pledge that I will at the least replace the weather stripping around the door. I may even go so far as replacing the whole door. First however, it needs to warm up a bit.

I'll attempt to post the pictures tomorrow.

Seeing Green

2007-01-31T22:17:00.001-05:00

Green!
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

With no football on the TV this weekend I decided it was time to paint one of our basement closets. This closet was repaired after the flood so a coat of paint was necessary to hid the new drywall. Green was chosen because 1) it contrasts nicely with the 70's brown wood paneling and 2) its leftover paint from the dining room. If you follow the Flickr link you'll see the wire rack that we moved in there. In addition to the wire rack we were able to move in everything we took out. Amazing!

Your Roof, Your Roof, Your Roof Is On Fire

2007-01-24T21:10:00.000-05:00

I'm embarrassed to typed that we didn't get anything of note done since the last post. Our greatest accomplishment is that I vacuumed out the dryer vent. Not earth-shattering, but it apparently weighed on my mind. Upon finishing the task I said to Dawn, "The dryer vent is cleaned out like you wanted". Turns out I'd talked about doing this so much that I got it switched around. While the task was appreciated, it turns out that I was the one who kept talking about cleaning out the dryer vent.

This post must be the low point of this blog. Yes, cleaning out the dryer vent keeps potential house fires at bay, however a spotless dryer vent isn't going to rocket our house to the top of the real estate market. Of course a house on fire sells for even less than a non-fire house in our neighborhood.

A Game Of Cricket

2007-01-17T18:27:00.000-05:00

It's a game that I've played for a number of years. It started in a duplex in Falls Church. The game was to place a plastic cup over a cricket in the kitchen. Then wait a few days until the cricket dies and throw both the cup and the cricket away. As I changed locations, the nature of the game changed. When we moved to Alexandria, new rules were invented. Rules like "Let the cat eat them" and "Let's drop cookbooks on them". Then, the crickets struck back. They threw their hordes at our Dustbuster in such numbers that they choked its delicate machine parts.

Then we called in the heavy artillery - an exterminator. Mr. Exterminator sprayed their chemicals and in about a month the crickets were nowhere to be scene. Our glue traps still catch a few guerrilla fighters in the electrical closets however we feel that we've got the crickets on the run.

Cat Sratch Fever

2007-01-12T22:46:00.001-05:00

Give Up
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Add this to the list of reason why last year was the Year of the Basement. Shortly after we had our replacement carpet installed, our Bean developed allergies from the new carpet. This isn't a new thing - around the time he turned one year old he developed allergies to plastics. Unfortunately, he kept scratching at the inflammation, never allowing it to heal. Thus, the vet recommended the collar. Bean absolutely hated it. The first night he had it on he pulled it off three times. Eventually he got used to it and in two weeks time his face healed up and we all celebrated when the collared came off.

Three Times a Basement

2007-01-03T18:26:00.000-05:00

Looking back, 2006 was the Year of the Basement, for better of worse. As most of you know, it flooded earlier in the summer. In my mind, the basement is last year's focal point; we expended a lot of energy down there. I removed and/or relocated the contents of the basement three times: right after the flood, right before the carpet went in, and finally before the pest control people came to spray for crickets. What is most irksome is that a lot of this energy was wasted. There is little pride in saying, "Repositing the couch 2/3s of an inch from it's original position really sets up the room nicely." Especially since I thought the room looked fine in the first place.

We still have to prime the drywall the was replaced, at least that will be forward progress. To 2-0-0-7 and progress!

Blue Christmas

2006-12-28T17:31:00.001-05:00

DSC01875.JPG
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

While Christmas cheer was in full spirit, there were hard times for others. Homer, Marge, and Mr. & Mrs. Smore took a tumble off of the Christmas tree. This story does have a happy ending. All pieces have been reattached and each ornament is ready for next year's holiday season

Red Reindeer

2006-12-21T18:42:00.001-05:00

At the Door
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

I wanted to document our holiday decorations before Christmas passed by. We try to strike a balance between celebrating the holiday and going overboard with hundreds of decorations. Not think I think there is anything wrong with that. Sometimes, I wish these people would move to our neighborhood. Happy holidays!

Message in a (Tin) Bottle

2006-12-16T20:58:00.001-05:00

ThankYou01
Originally uploaded by jasonhunter.

Our Boston buds Adam and Jill sent us this "Message in a Can". We watered the can as per the instructions. In a few days out popped the above bud with its secret message (it reads "THANK YOU"). We've continued to care for the plant and it's now almost 2 feet tall.

Halloween

2006-12-08T20:51:00.000-05:00

Oh my it's been a while but that's for another post. For now enjoy some zany pictures from Halloween. Can you guess what we were for Halloween?

Pictures of You

2006-10-27T22:15:00.000-04:00

Once again I was truant in posting something. However, this time I have something tangible to show for it. I spent two weeks working on this for my sister's wedding. They showed it at the rehearsal dinner. There was much fuss - the good kind - made about it.

The wedding was excellent. The sister looked wonderful and it's nice to have Dan as an official member of the family now.

Shadows & Tall Trees

2006-10-11T22:42:00.000-04:00

My lucky (few) readers you are about to find out the answer to the age-old question: If a tree falls and no is around to hear it - does it annoy your neighboors? The answers is: Yes.

Sunday afternoon the wife and I went to get the bikes out of the shed and discovered our neighbors pruning the branches off a massive tree limb. A limb the fell on Tuesday; that we were just finding out about on late Sunday. That was partially reasting in thier yeard. Sigh. We were shocked that a fallen limb sat in our backyard for 5 nights. More so, we were shocked that it missed both our fence and our shed. So shocked that I forget to take pictures of the intial mess. Instead, I give you the aftermath:

Hunter household performs "Back to the Apple"

2006-10-05T20:09:00.000-04:00

Now, the stunning conclusion to 'Traitorous Machines'....

We have resolution. Better yet, we have a new Macbook Pro. Apple decided that it was unacceptable that I wait until Oct. 11th for the replacement part to arrive at their repair facility. Finally! That's what I was saying all along guys!

To Apple's credit, they did right by me. This whole experience, with the crashed hard drive and misleading, contradictory customer service, was frustrating. The constant delays made the bad situation even worse. I just wanted my laptop back; but as my friend said to me, "If Apple wants to give you a Macbook Pro, you take it and run".

The return of a laptop in the house means a return to regular posts. I could have easily typed this up on our desktop computer but, eh - the laptop was so convenient; I can type this up while watching TV with the wife and cat. How ironic, then, that I'm posting this from the basement, using the same desk that the desktop is on.

The Sound of New Carpet

2006-09-21T23:27:00.000-04:00

What does it sound like? It sounds like no more walking on cold asbestos tiles anymore.

Our new carpet arrived last Friday. It is similar to our old carpet that, for those who've just joined us, was destroyed during the great June flood. For the months that we were without I didn't think carpet would make that big of a difference. Oh, how I was wrong! The basement looks like an functional room in the house, not just some place that we threw a bunch of furniture in. Also, once the insurance money came in, the new carpet cost us $24 dollars. Certainly the price is right, however what is most valuable is the solace I get from seeing our home rebuilt and refurbished to its pre-flood condition.

Traitorous Machines

2006-09-11T23:16:00.000-04:00

The last 30 days have given me a strong case of ludditism. First, the hardrive on the Powerbook died, taking with it photos, music, calendars and our ability to e-shop while watching Law & Order reruns. Then came various hi-jinks with data loss on the iPod, the last refuge for the data from the Powerbook. Today, I flip on the Dish Network DVR to find that it reset itself in the middle of the night. Where once was 65 Gigs of television, is now nothing. Its like someone stole our DVR and replaced it with one out of the box.

The farce of 'owning' things stored on computers has become apparent to me. I'm now scanning the Sunday advertisements for deals USB jump-drives and cases of DVDs. I'm also familiarizing myself with data back-up and recovery programs.

I want to battle robots; all colors, not just pink.

Alt.End

2006-08-30T21:59:00.000-04:00

Our beloved Powerbook crashed last night. Sealed up inside it's corrupted hard drive are all of our photos from this year, music, and lots of work in progress. I'll shop it around for data recovery but I'm not expecting much. I'll write a make-up post this weekend, when I'm feeling better about the whole thing.

Weekend Warrior

2006-08-16T21:34:00.000-04:00

With Dawn off in NYC helping with my sister's wedding shower, neighbor Tim and I ran some electrical and put up a kitchen ceiling. Most of the credit goes to Tim who did all the wiring and cut all the paneling for the ceiling. I stood around a lot and tried my best to be helpful.

The new recessed lighting is amazing. It's so bright! The first night with the new lights I kept turning off the lights thinking it would some how dim the lights, rather than simply turn them off (oh....that's how electricity works!). When Dawn came home from NYC on Sunday she was floored with how great everything looked.

The only advice I can give for anyone thinking of trying this is to have an electrician help you. Even with Tim's expertise it still took us 5 hours. If I had tried this by myself I'd either still be working on it or dead from electrocution.

Blog Note: Next week is a vacation week so there may not be an update. In fact, I'm almost positive there won't be one.

The Battle is Won, but the War Continues

2006-08-09T22:09:00.000-04:00

Saturday Morning 9am

Protective covering for last week's efforts

The glorious finished product.

It's done. We finished the upper cabinet renovation on Sunday. We accomplished the same amount of work in one less day than last week. Overall, the second phase went smoother than the first. There wasn't as much grease and grim on these cabinets which speed up the amount of prep time before sanding. We bought more expensive brushes this time which made a huge visual difference with the paint. It was totally worth the extra $1.76 at the register. We still had some difficulty with putting the doors back up it. We concluded that it was the difference between the new hinges & the old ones. The new hinges stood off the doors by a quarter of an inch. Double that and there goes all the space between the doors. The doors do close, however they are pressing against one another to the point where the paint is coming off. SO...if you do try this at home please consider the difference between your hardware.

We are pleased with our efforts. The new cabinets make the kitchen much brighter. Dawn is already motivated with our fledgling efforts that I got served homemade quiche one night and ribs with corn on the cob another.

I'm running electrical and putting up the new ceiling this weekend. The next post will be about that. Unless I forget to turn off the power and both my hands are wrapped in gauze. Then the post will look something like this:
'fsf;lv,,erpo[pwq0pt39nmvdfop4twtjlksvdd;lka00iiifcxmaspl['qw[epoo'

Someone's in the Kitchen ...

2006-08-03T18:09:00.000-04:00

removing ceiling tiles...

...and painting the cabinets...

...a bright new happier color...

I should have taken a picture with the cabinet doors attached, which is what we did Sunday. If you've never tried it, re-attaching cabinet doors isn't as easy as one would think. I took us 4 attempts and a trip to home depot before we got it right. So now that we know the ropes of taking apart, sanding, priming, painting and re-hanging cabinets, we hope for the same success with the other side. I'll post pictures of the finished project.
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Halo, Sister-in-Law!
We were graced with an overnight stay by my sister-in-law, Lauren, last night. She was very excited that the XBOX was repaired. While I am very familiar with the single-player campaign I had no experience with the head-to-head mutli-player feature, of which she was familiar. It took me a while to get acquainted with the maps and the rules of the board. Once that occurred, there were frags a-flying. Frags to the face, frags to the back of the head, frags off of the ladders. With all the fragging going on, you might think there'd be no room for anything else. Oh, but there was amble room for trash talking. And later root beer floats.

Into the Flood

2006-07-27T19:40:00.000-04:00

Oh how the best laid plans get wrecked! In this case, by 5 inches of water. I had plans to update this blog weekly then our basement got wet. Five inches of water came up through the a drain in the utility room. Most of everything in the basement got wet. While lots of stuff got ruined, we didn't lose much of importance. Unfortunately, a box of pictures and items that belonged to Dawn's father was ruined. Sadly, our insurance doesn't cover memories. It does cover everything else. We've been told we will get money for almost everything that got ruined. Which is comforting.

Here are the highlights:
our pottery barn computer desk

Basement Walls

The drain

Furniture

the records and Christmas tree

Update

2006-06-23T08:01:00.000-04:00

The link should be working now. Sorry for the delay.

New Window Zodiac

2006-06-20T22:08:00.000-04:00

We've been very busy working on the house these last weeks. With a majority of the inside set, we've focused our attention on the outside of the house. Our flagship item is new windows. We had the old windows taken out and replaced with shiny new ones. The new windows are great - they keep things like dirt and the wind out of our house, which make us very happy.

Check it out for yourself .

Gnomes in the Yard

2006-03-22T18:01:00.000-05:00

It snowed for a majority of the day yesterday. This morning there was a healthy dusting on the cars. It reminded me of our only substantial snowfall this year which was back in February. During that snowfall I took this picture:

Aside from greeting guests on our stoop, our door gnome is also a handy snow measureing device. February snow fall = the height of a gnome's knee.

Weekend Roundup

2006-02-10T18:31:00.000-05:00

I am failing in my goal to update this every Wednesday. This is the second time that I've posted on a Friday. I must get better at this - or just switch the day to Friday.
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So it's the weekend. It's Friday. I've spent the last hour blasting Sleater-Kinney on the stereo and chasing my cat around the house. I'm sweaty and dusty and in a great mood. I'm feeling exceptionally good - the best I've felt all week. Now, I'm going to ruin this great mood by writing yet another letter explaining my continued dissatisfaction with the moving company ABS Moving & Storage. Once that issue is closed out I'm posting all correspondence between ABS Moving & Storage, the Better Business Bureau and myself.

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The weatherman says significant snowfall is in order for the Washington DC metropolitan area. Even though I've sworn off winter because of all the warm weather, I'm excited for the snow on Saturday. Winter, I take thee back.

It's All Backwards

2006-02-03T16:38:00.000-05:00

Apologies for posting this two days late. I'm aiming for posting every Wednesday. Today I got to leave work early and enjoy the very lovely weather we had. 70 degrees at the start of February. Who would have guessed! It was a great day for not being at work and instead, sitting on the deck doing some personal junks like this. It did seem strange editing and post picture of Christmas time while sitting on the porch in short-sleeves, but I'll take what mother nature is willing to give. At this point, I almost don't want it to snow ever this year.

Shocking Results

2006-01-25T22:07:00.000-05:00

Just before new year's I took up the task of replacing the light switches in the house. It's not that difficult once you turn the power off. The whole event was going well until I turned the power back on to test everything out. With the power back on I discovered that 6 lights no longer worked. After a few adjustments, now one switch controlled all 6 lights. A few more adjustments and the switch finally controlled the correct light and the other 5 lights also worked properly.

Even though it took me 6 hours to complete the job and the poor wife had to sit in the dark most of the night I'm still calling it a success because in the end all that matters is whether you got electrocuted or not. And I did not!

Duna-na-na-na-na

2006-01-18T19:55:00.000-05:00

Sam, you were right. Best.card.ever. I put it in the window so the whole neighborhood can see. Thanks for the birthday wishes.

Tonnage

2005-12-15T21:03:00.000-05:00

We bought these fancy bed-lifters from Bed Bath and Beyond. They're cool. They let you store all kinds of crazy things under your bed. Plus it makes your bed really tall, so that you have to climb up rather than flop down. But, jumping, oh no. Don't jump onto your bed. Or if you plan on jumping up onto the bed make sure you have some extra lifters around the house. Otherwise when one of them shatters into tiny pieces you'll have to go to the store and get more. On a Sunday. During the game. Otherwise the bed's going to be so lopsided that even the cat won't sleep on it.

A Civilized Houshold

2005-12-05T21:11:00.000-05:00

It's back- and now in three rooms with two DVRs! Television!
We finally got tv service - DISH network - installed on Saturday. Once the satellite guys left, we spent about an hour watching tv in different parts of the house. The 1st thing I watched: Raising Arizona. Classic. Other omens were mixed - I got to watch the Hokies lose, but the Redskins win.

We most likely would have held out on the tv service until after the holidays, however we are hosting Christmas at our place this year. My mom, currently overseas, prefers watching Pittsburgh games in the afternoon, instead of at 3am. Also, my sister needs tv to fall asleep. While her exhausting job has lessened this dependency she prefers to unwind in front of the tv before bed.

The Inverse Law of Installation

2005-11-21T21:30:00.000-05:00

A conversation I had today at the Giant:
Me: 'I always get motivated during the holidays, right when I am at my busiest."
Berry: 'That's when you can get your best ideas. You just gotta act, you know?"

True.

Especially with the house. We have undertaken many projects, both large and small these last weeks. It is from that experience that I propose the 'Inverse Law of Installation'. If, for example, you buy a modestly priced item, say a shelf from IKEA, it will take you almost 3 hours to install the item. However, if you buy two fancy curtain rods at Crate & Barrel, totaling $100, you will have them installed in less than 60 minutes.

Aside from curtain rods and shelves, the other tasks that have kept me from posting were:
Organizing the shed
Hanging up pictures
Shifting through and unpacking 6 boxes of junk
Clearing out and arranging the basement furniture

The List

2005-11-03T17:20:00.000-05:00

A list of what we've personally repaired/replaced at our new home:

1) new coat of paint in the bathroom, both bedrooms, living and dining rooms
2) cleaned (bleached) all 11 blinds in the windows
3) replaced washer/dryer
4) replaced front and back door locks
5) cleaned out gutters *
6) replaced cold water facet *
7) replaced garbage disposal
8)....

* denotes item was repaired/replaced by a service provider, i.e. not us.

Come a'haunting

2005-10-31T21:36:00.000-05:00

Well so much for the below post where I claimed that I'd keep separate blogs.

Halloween in the new house was a smash. Lots of little ones came a'haunting. We went through 5 bags of candy, although someone left an almond joy on our trash can. We didn't decorate, but we did put out jack-o-lanterns. We took pictures but since we are now down to my Nikon 8008 (non-digital camera) I can't share until we finish the roll and get it developed. Developing film instead of uploading - now that's scary!

Happy Halloween.

I pay the Homer tax

2005-10-27T18:19:00.000-04:00

A new blog - the alter ego to my other one. I think it will be fun to have a separate blog about our experiences as homeowners. With this blog I hope to accomplish the following things:
1) create a record of all the work we've put into the house
2) allow our friends - whether far or near flung - to keep up with our 'goings ons'
3) encourage others to consider homeownership and/or the d.i.y. approach to home repair/improvement

Even if no. 3 isn't immediately relevant to most my readership, one day it will be.