8-Track Mind

This follows after the events on What I Saw Today...

When I got home from work Wednesday night, there was a message from Samiksha, the lady from a week ago that promised to phone Monday. She said she's try again later. As of now she hasn't.

BUT. We got home from work Thursday to find a Purolater Courier sticker on the door saying they had tried to drop off a couple boxes and we could go get them at the Purolater office. So the guy did what he said when he said he would try to rush it. A new hard drive in only one working day. Nice!

And you remember how I wanted a new Dell Resource CD? Well when I mentioned it to the last guy (Darpak) I spoke to, he had me list off all the CDs that I did have. Turns out I was missing two CDs, and he sent both of them.

See, that's the kind of service I want.

Didn't have a chance to install it last night and we're working a community bingo tonight so I won't get to play until tomorrow. But then we have some fun. I don't know if the CD is pre-installed (it's not marked as such) and I'm kind of hoping it's not, so I can tweak it to my pleasure.

Woo!

Posted by Shuffledog at 09:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

While there weren't as many people there as I would have liked, I did have a good time this past weekend at my birthday barbeque.

Part of me would have liked a bigger turnout, but frankly the patio was filled and there were lots of laughs and chatter so I was happy.

And I can't really be angry at most of the folks who weren't able to make it. It's like the quality of excuses has gone up in recent years. No longer is it, 'I forgot' or 'I had a previous engagement', but instead it's things like, 'I'm collecting bugs in the wilderness for two weeks as work towards my degree' or 'A distraught friend phoned and I needed to comfort them' or 'I just had a chemo treatment'. Not a single excuse you can waggle your finger at and make a crack about priorities.

Next time I have a gathering I'll be sure to give more than a week and a half notice.

Posted by Shuffledog at 09:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Apparently the city is paving on the bridge which gives access to Shawnessy Blvd. from Macleod Trail, and access to our place may get a bit tricky.

But there's a few alternate routes available. Call me or send a note if you need extra help finding the place.

Posted by Shuffledog at 09:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ooh! Anyone coming to the BBQ tomorrow, bring along a deck chair. We don't have that many.

Posted by Shuffledog at 10:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Lacy is planning on bringing by her inflatable hot tub, so if you are coming this Saturday, bring by your bathing suit, should you be so inclined.

Also: we do have a number of pets, so be sure to be prepared if you Are the sort who has allergies.

Posted by Shuffledog at 02:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Well, in 11 days it is, anyway. Back in the old days, when I lived at the folks' place with the big backyard and everything, I used to have these great birthday parties where I'd invite a ton of people and we'd all go crazy-nuts for an evening. I swore that once I had a place of my own I'd revive the event, and now that I do, I'ma gonna havea party!

When: Saturday, August 6, 3:00pm until I kick y'all out.
Where: Our house!
Who: You a friend of mine? Then you are invited! Basically anyone who knows where the house is, or knows me well enough to know how to contact me and ask for the address, most likely you're a friend.
What: BYOEverything. Hey, Lisa's on strike, so we can provide the BBQ and the party space, but that's about it. Food for the BBQ, whatever you like to drink, haul it on in.

I know it's short notice and all (We decided on a date a couple weeks back, and my only job was to actually tell folks. Hope you all can make it!

Posted by Shuffledog at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Okau, so we own three fans, that we've had for over a year each.

One is a floor fan, the standard tall-pole-with-fan-on-top thing. It's currently in the possession of Touque and his lovely wife, who are using it to dry up the last vestiges of their flooded basement.

The second is a window-fan, a double bladed deal that you stick into your window to get some inwards (or outwards) draft. We've had it for a couple years. It was only working sort of. It wouldn't work until it had been on for a few minutes then slowly it would creak to life. In the last week it had started making an odd squeeking noise and two nights ago it finally just stopped.

The third is an air-recirculating fan, a nice floor-level guy that really gets the air moving. When the window fan died, we propped the recirculating fan in front of our bedroom window -- in the top level of our house it seems to get awfully hot and I can't sleep when it's really hot.

Last night it started making an odd noise and while I was fussing with it in the dark, I noticed that it made visibly bright sparks when the settings were changed and even sparked once when I wasn't touching it. Gee, sounds like a fire hazard to me, so we shut it off. Thankfully it was cool enough to live through.

So now we have no fans until Touque is done with it (and I don't want it back until you are, Touque! You guys have it worse than us right now). Every window in the house is covered and the furnace fan is blowing, so I hope it'll be cool enough to live tonight.

Yuck.

Posted by Shuffledog at 02:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So we've lucked out. While Touque and the Foxman/Lunar Vixen/Shenshen (among many, many others I know at work) are still busy pumping the water out of their basements following the floods of the past two weeks, we've managed to come through with minimal damage.

Friday night Lisa did find a leak in the foundation wall in the basement and a pool of water about a foot across at the base of it. We mopped it up and packed towels around ti, hoping that it remained as a slow elak and we'd just have to keep the dryer running to provide dry towels, but after an hour the trickle stopped and we remained dry all weekend.

I think I left the drainspout in the up position after I had mowed last week, so water was pooling beside the house instead of running off. If so, either the wind knocked it back into the down position of my neighbors noticed and did it themselves.

So that was our big flood. So minor I didn't even think to snap a picture for posterity.

Whew.

Posted by Shuffledog at 10:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So I went out to do lawn work this morning. My first time! Whee!

Tried to water the lawn, but couldn't find the spinkler we bought in the winter, so had to do it by hand. Discovered that the reel of garden hose had to way to attack it to the tap, so had to take it off the reel and pile it up on a concrete block.

Not entirely certain what is growing in the flower bed out front -- it's green at least. The bushes all have buds and new leaves! Yay!

This is too domestic. Gotta go.

Posted by Shuffledog at 11:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's done.

We're home.

Posted by Shuffledog at 08:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In one hour and fifty-one minutes, I can walk out the door and head to my New Home!

Damn kettle. Boil already!

Argh!

Posted by Shuffledog at 02:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We get our keys today! The house is ours!

ohgodohgodohgod

Posted by Shuffledog at 08:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Just got the word! WE GOT IT!

The house is OURS!

WOOOOOOOO!!!!!

Posted by Shuffledog at 03:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I hugged our new house last night. Lisa made a snow angel in the front yard. I hope it doesn't snow too much so it'll still be there when we take possession on the 27th.

Posted by Shuffledog at 11:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's no surprise to anyone who knows us personally that we've been looking for a house. We've wanted one for years -- sick and tired of living in apartments.

Well things are moving fast. We put in an offer last week, they countered, with exactly what we wanted, and we went ahead with it.

The house inspection was today, and the following three things were found wrong with it:

1. Some caulking on one window needs to be redone.
2. The furnace filter needs to be replaced.
3. Some crazy person installed a paper towel dispenser over the stove.

Woo hoo!

Posted by Shuffledog at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)