I think I found my new home! [Archive] - Page 3

frau kaleun

05-14-13, 07:52 PM

Ta da!

http://imageshack.us/a/img7/6868/deskfinished1.jpg

Now for the cleanup and placement:

http://imageshack.us/a/img856/2153/deskfinished2.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img832/8634/deskfinished3.jpg

Subwoofer in the middle on the bottom, computer bottom right, printer on top of the drawer unit... originally I was going to put the lateral file where the drawer unit is now and the drawers and printer on the other side. But I just don't like that setup. So unless it looks and feels different once the rest of the room is in better order, it'll probably stay up against the wall just inside the door, basically to the right of where I was standing when I took the picture.

Not the chair I'll be using in there permanently, obviously, just the only one I have in the place at the moment. I'll have to put 3-4 chair pads on it just to make the seat high enough to use at the desk, lol. Sadly I can't get my desk chair in my car to take it over there and it's just about shot anyway - so I doubt it'll make even the final trip in the truck. I'll just have to make do until I decide on something new. Thankfully once my dinette chairs are there I can use one of those, which is far more suitable and stable.

Also not sure about the keyboard drawer, it blocks easy access to the little shelf behind it and I'm not crazy about that. One of those things I'll have to decide on once I start using the desk regularly. Fortunately removing it is no big deal and if I take it off you would never know it was ever there.

Eventually I want to put a TV and some kind of storage for CDs and DVDs along the wall to the left, where one of the bookcases is laying now. Bookshelves along the wall to the right and around the corner to where the file cabinet will probably stay. With the desk sitting where it is now, I'll have easy access to the back of my computer and other peripherals, and with decent cable management it shouldn't look too messy back there.

I do need to get some kind of blinds for those windows, because the curtains have got to go but the sun in the late afternoon and evening is murder. That's why I have the curtains pulled together on that one window, the sunlight is quite literally blinding at a certain time of day. I'll have to block it or I won't be able to sit at that desk and do anything. And if the desk was in the only available corner, I'd have it shining directly on the monitor which wouldn't be good either.

Speaking of which, I meant to measure those windows so I could start looking for something to put up there and I totally forgot. I can't imagine why, it's not like I've got about three million other things on my mind right now. This morning my brain was so addled that when I was getting dressed I sat down and put my socks and shoes on and tied my shoes and stood up and thought "well that's done" and then realized I didn't have my pants on yet. :rotfl2:

Home surprisingly early tonight, thank heavens. I'm gonna grab something to eat and see how much of my non-essential-for-the-moment office mess here in the apartment I can break down and pack up before bedtime. Won't get it loaded in the car so I'll have to come get it tomorrow after work and take it to the condo. Got to stop by there at least once tomorrow since I remembered to put the trash out for collection in the morning and I've got to have the trash can pulled back in before dark.

SO GLAD to have that job done.

Wolferz

05-14-13, 08:16 PM

SO GLAD to have that job done.

What took you so long?:03:

/ducks and runs.

Sailor Steve

05-14-13, 09:10 PM

frau kaleun

05-14-13, 09:49 PM

It's a little saddening that you went to all that trouble to get the right corner desk and now there isn't a corner to put it in.

My apartment is just the opposite of your new office. It faces east, so in any season but summer the morning sun is a problem. Lucky for me I do have blinds, even though blinds are all I have. My last little place had curtains so thick that the room was actually so dark when they were closed that you couldn't read. It was perfect for computer stuff. :sunny:

Honestly I'd already decided against putting the desk in the corner before I knew what the sunlight would be like from those windows, so that's not the issue. I didn't like the idea of having my back to the windows all the time since they're ground level, and if I put it there the entire back of it would be up against the wall and with bookshelves or other stuff on either side along each wall I'd have the same issues with access to cables and whatnot that I have now. I didn't want that.

I'm guessing I'll have to get some kind of room darkening or blackout window treatments in there, at least for the top portions of the windows. Fortunately I shouldn't have to cover the bottom portion just to keep sunlight out of my face and that's the part that opens so it won't be completely dark and airless. I'm used to an overhead light in the room where my computer is now, so some light coming in at knee level and below shouldn't be a bother.

In the meantime I'll just keep drawing the curtains... one of the upstairs bedrooms has what looks like a pair of blackout curtains on the window there, I can switch them out with the ones if the office if necessary until I figure out what I'm gonna do for a permanent solution.

Wolferz

05-14-13, 10:27 PM

After looking closely at the finished project, that desk seems most spacious through and through. A good buy that looks to bring years of faithful service. It was a load of fun following your adventure too.:up:

Sailor Steve

05-15-13, 08:01 AM

I didn't like the idea of having my back to the windows all the time since they're ground level.
Why would anybody have their office on ground level? :nope: :yep: :o :stare:
What other smileys can I use to show that I'm not really serious before I get seriously hurt?

This is why I wanted an upstairs apartment, and why if I can ever afford a place of my own the computer will be as far upstairs as it can get (a little tower would be nice). The point isn't that you don't want people watching you (well, that's important too), it's so you can look down on people! I can see cars go by and people walking along, but they are all beneath me! it helps that I'm at least one hundred feet from the road, but that's a side-issue. The important part is feeling superior. :D

frau kaleun

05-15-13, 09:33 AM

Why would anybody have their office on ground level? :nope: :yep: :o :stare:
What other smileys can I use to show that I'm not really serious before I get seriously hurt?

This is why I wanted an upstairs apartment, and why if I can ever afford a place of my own the computer will be as far upstairs as it can get (a little tower would be nice). The point isn't that you don't want people watching you (well, that's important too), it's so you can look down on people! I can see cars go by and people walking along, but they are all beneath me! it helps that I'm at least one hundred feet from the road, but that's a side-issue. The important part is feeling superior. :D

Well originally I was going to put the office in the second bedroom upstairs but then I realized how far I would be from the kitchen. So I would have a choice of either going up and down the stairs every time I wanted to refresh my drink or get a snack, or put a mini-fridge and pantry in there. :D

And that would've put my "workout" room in what's now the office on the ground floor. And I figured that anyone walking by might be more likely to stop and stare at someone doing karate moves than at someone sitting at a computer, since the latter is probably something they can see at home whereas the former is a bit more of a rarity. :O:

In reality, in all the time I've spent in that room working on stuff, I don't think I've ever seen anyone walk by those windows, even though there's a little sidewalk there. I do have the advantage of hedges blocking part of the windows and at least one tree or bush between the condo and the sidewalk.

And I always intended to put privacy blinds over those windows anyway. I just didn't know I'd need to find something so quickly due to the blinding sunlight issue, lol. I can draw the curtains that are already there for privacy but as you can see in some of the pictures the sunlight just cuts right through them.

Wolferz

05-15-13, 09:41 AM

What's the name of your apartments Steve?

Superiority Complex?
:hmmm::03::O:

Sailor Steve

05-15-13, 09:45 AM

So I would have a choice of either going up and down the stairs...
Extra excercise. :sunny:

or put a mini-fridge and pantry in there. :D
I would consider that a necessity anyway. :yep: Not really, but I thought it was funny.

As for people looking in, that's what curtains are for.

I can draw the curtains that are already there for privacy but as you can see in some of the pictures the sunlight just cuts right through them.
Not a problem when you're working out. See, I'm full of good ideas. That's not all I'm full of, but I'll thank you not to go into that in public.

Aren't you grateful to have lame old busybodies telling you how to live your life?

Sailor Steve

05-15-13, 09:47 AM

What's the name of your apartments Steve?

Superiority Complex?
:hmmm::03::O:
:rotfl2:

Wait. How'd you know that? :stare:

frau kaleun

05-15-13, 09:50 AM

Aren't you grateful to have lame old busybodies telling you how to live your life?

Sorry, but I have a big sister... so that job's already taken. :O:

I still haven't broken the news about how the dining room is probably never gonna be a dining room. I don't think she's quite accepted the fact that there won't ever be fully furnished guest bedroom.

Sailor Steve

05-15-13, 09:56 AM

Sorry, but I have a big sister... so that job's already taken. :O:
It's okay. I only work temps anyway. :D

I still haven't broken the news about how the dining room is probably never gonna be a dining room. I don't think she's quite accepted the fact that there won't ever be fully furnished guest bedroom.
Don't ever tell her. Let her notice something's "wrong". When she asks, tell her "Later". "Someday". "Don't worry, I'll get around to it". :sunny:

frau kaleun

05-15-13, 10:01 AM

Don't ever tell her. Let her notice something's "wrong". When she asks, tell her "Later". "Someday". "Don't worry, I'll get around to it". :sunny:

I think if she shows up one day and there's a piano, guitar, stereo, and bookcases in there, she'll probably figure it out on her own. :hmmm:

Jimbuna

05-15-13, 04:05 PM

Hard line...better the warm family interaction :O:

frau kaleun

05-15-13, 06:13 PM

Woohoo, back by 7 PM tonight!

Of course all I did was come to the apt after work, load up the car, run over to the condo, unload the car, move about a dozen boxes of books from one side of the living room to the other, reposition a table and lamp and the stereo, do some spot cleaning on the living room carpet, and fix the grommets on my desk so they fit nice and snug in their little holes. Then I came home and loaded up the car again so I can take that stuff straight over there tomorrow and then come back here and start packing more stuff.

So I feel like I haven't gotten anything done today at all. :O:

But never fear, I've got some bookshelves to take apart and move before dinner and I've still got to talk to someone at the cable company about moving my service. If I can get that done, perhaps I'll go to bed with a feeling of accomplishment after all. :rotfl2:

Platapus

05-15-13, 06:38 PM

I don't think she's quite accepted the fact that there won't ever be fully furnished guest bedroom.

No home should have a guest room. It just encourages guests. :nope:

That's like building a house and calling one room a "Termite Room" :doh:

frau kaleun

05-15-13, 06:43 PM

No home should have a guest room. It just encourages guests. :nope:

Lol, that's exactly what I said.

"Aren't you going to have a guest room?"

"No, that just encourages people!"

Then I was told I *had* to have somewhere for guests to sleep. And I'm like... didn't you pass that Howard Johnson's right down the street on your way over here? :haha:

Edit: aaaaaaand the cable man is coming to the condo on 5/28, so that's done. Except I asked for a third setup in the master bedroom and I don't even have a tv for in there yet. I figured I might as well have the installation done while he's there setting up the rest of it, but now I realize that he's probably gonna need a TV to make sure the box works. Oops. I wonder if I can unhook one of the others and run it up the stairs to try it out on the third box? :88)

Actually I don't think I paid that much for the one that's probably going in the office... I should check Amazon and see if the same model is still available. Unlike the one in the living room it actually has good sound without a sound system set up for it, which is what I'm gonna want in the bedroom.

Wolferz

05-15-13, 09:17 PM

"Guests are like fish. After a few days they both begin to stink."

WernherVonTrapp

05-16-13, 05:21 AM

That's like building a house and calling one room a "Termite Room" :doh:Or like buying two dogs and telling the family not to pet the one dog because it's reserved for guests.
http://i1045.photobucket.com/albums/b456/archangel501/Smileys/ee529a80.gif

Jimbuna

05-16-13, 05:40 AM

No home should have a guest room. It just encourages guests. :nope:

That's like building a house and calling one room a "Termite Room" :doh:

First thing I did after the boy moved into his own home....took possession of the vacant area and created the 'man cave'.

AVGWarhawk

05-16-13, 08:35 AM

We have a guest room. It is my place for my computer and crap. It ain't Motel 6 and the light ain't on either. :stare:

Wolferz

05-16-13, 09:46 AM

The local motel has plenty of guest rooms.:03:

HW3

05-16-13, 11:50 AM

The guest room here is the living room couch.:yep:

:subsim:

frau kaleun

05-16-13, 03:30 PM

The guest room here is the living room couch.:yep:

:subsim:

That's what mine will be for a while, most likely. I might go as far as getting a daybed of some kind that folds out for guests to sleep more comfortably on... at some point... but no way I'm setting up one entire room just as an extra bedroom. :nope:

So anyway... I've got a car packed full of stuff to unload at the condo, and then more empty boxes here at the office to pick up after that and take back to the apartment, and I was seriously thinking about going home and packing up the rest of the computer stuff tonight real quick like and running it all back over to the condo.

AND OF COURSE IT JUST STARTED RAINING.

Really heavy cloud cover too, looks like a major thunderstorm brewing. GEE THANKS MOTHER NATURE. :stare:

Wolferz

05-16-13, 03:59 PM

Mother Nature isn't always the motherly type.

Day bed?
Torquemada would be proud.:yep::D

frau kaleun

05-17-13, 07:47 AM

Update: it stopped raining about an hour after it started.

So I got the car unloaded, picked up the boxes, and went back to the apt and packed up the remaining computer and office stuff and took it all to the condo as well. Yay!

Should be able to get over there and start unpacking it and setting it back up in the new office this evening.

On a related note - funny how I get so much more done in the apt now that the computer is in a box in another location. :haha:

Wolferz

05-17-13, 12:31 PM

On a related note - funny how I get so much more done in the apt now that the computer is in a box in another location. :haha:
__________________

Not at all.:sunny:
Idle hands and all that....:up:

soopaman2

05-17-13, 12:56 PM

On a related note - funny how I get so much more done in the apt now that the computer is in a box in another location. :haha:

Sounds like an unacceptable situation to me mylady.

I hope for the sake of your sanity, and us here at subsim you amend your situation.

Subsim is your home, chant after me........

Ohmmmmmmmmmm

The Enigma

05-17-13, 01:40 PM

:haha:

Jimbuna

05-17-13, 01:44 PM

Madox58

05-17-13, 03:06 PM

I may have a 6 week job in Dayton soon.
Gotta room for rent?
:D

frau kaleun

05-17-13, 03:16 PM

I may have a 6 week job in Dayton soon.
Gotta room for rent?
:D

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Castello-di-Amorosa-torture-chamber.jpg

:O:

Wolferz

05-17-13, 03:23 PM

See? I told you she likes to make Torquemada proud.:huh:

Or is that a room full of chiropractic equipment?:hmmm:

I'm no interior decorator named Bruce but, the room needs an iron maiden.

Jimbuna

05-17-13, 03:37 PM

You'd fit in well there :hmmm:

Madox58

05-17-13, 04:01 PM

I'll wear the codpiece if that gets the room.
:D

Tell you what.........
If I get the contract I'll tell you where it's at and when I work.
Then you can stop by for a hello, nice to meet you, but your weird thing.
That way your exact location is still secret. (Until I plant the GPS Unit. Not that I would do that mind you.)

Then you can come back here and describe in detail how creepy I really am. (Should you decide I'm creepy which I don't think you will decide that cause I'm not!)

Wolferz

05-17-13, 04:54 PM

That spoon bait won't catch you a thing, Privateer.:03:
Try a spinner.:D

Sailor Steve

05-17-13, 05:04 PM

Now that's what I call a guest room!

Sticks and stones may break my bones but whips and chains excite me. :D

Madox58

05-17-13, 05:38 PM

That spoon bait won't catch you a thing, Privateer.:03:
Try a spinner.:D

Hey! I'm married and DON'T fool around!
I gots respects for the woman that would kick my behind ifin's I did that!

It's an innocent offer to meet face to face and say hello, shake hands, and nothing more.

Not that you can really trust them? But I call on Jim, Steve, Neal, and.. and... and...?

Well that will have to do since Grant is a convict by proxy.
:haha:

Sailor Steve

05-17-13, 05:42 PM

I gots respects for the woman that would kick my behind ifin's I did that!
"Oh, if only I weren't married to a woman who can kill me with her pinky."
-Wash (Alan Tudyk) to Saffron (Christina Hendricks) after she tries to seduce him in the Firefly episode 'Our Mrs. Reynolds'.

Madox58

05-17-13, 05:50 PM

Ya. I forgot Steve as a reference.
Gotta have a Grammer Nazi on the list don't ya know!
:yeah:

Wolferz

05-17-13, 06:08 PM

"Oh, if only I weren't married to a woman who can kill me with her pinky."
-Wash (Alan Tudyk) to Saffron (Christina Hendricks) after she tries to seduce him in the Firefly episode 'Our Mrs. Reynolds'.

:haha:

I just watched that episode today.:up:

Sailor Steve

05-17-13, 08:26 PM

Gotta have a Grammer Nazi on the list don't ya know!
:yeah:
Wouldn't that make me a "know-it-all" rather than any kind of nazi?

Just askin'.

Oh, and you misspelled "grammar". :O:

I know, I know - I say spelling doesn't bother me. Well, it doesn't, but in this case I just couldn't resist.

Jimbuna

05-18-13, 09:08 AM

Hey! I'm married and DON'T fool around!
I gots respects for the woman that would kick my behind ifin's I did that!

It's an innocent offer to meet face to face and say hello, shake hands, and nothing more.

Not that you can really trust them? But I call on Jim, Steve, Neal, and.. and... and...?

Well that will have to do since Grant is a convict by proxy.
:haha:

Well having met Jeffs wife (Nancy) in person I certainly believe his sincerity :cool:

Mind you...there was that package you sent a year or so ago :hmmm:

:03:

frau kaleun

05-18-13, 03:48 PM

I've heard enough stories (most of them from Jeff) about his wife's utter kickassedness not to worry about him behaving himself under any all circumstances. :haha:

But look:

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/6863/ihazinternetz.jpg

That's right, FK's new office is up and online! Of course it's still an unholy mess and I don't know where half my stuff is or where it's gonna go, but everything that has to be plugged is plugged in and working. :yeah:

Sailor Steve

05-18-13, 03:50 PM

WOOHOO! :rock:

I see you have your priorities straight. Now you can move in for real. :sunny:

Jimbuna

05-18-13, 03:52 PM

Your electricity has been switched on http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/2822/yawnbigji2wt7.gif

:03:

The Enigma

05-18-13, 03:59 PM

Let the magic begin :rock:

frau kaleun

05-18-13, 04:07 PM

Let the magic begin :rock:

If by "magic" you mean "cleaning a bathroom and carting a carload of crap across town tomorrow so I can finally start sleeping here"... well, yeah. :O:

The Enigma

05-18-13, 04:16 PM

That can be magic as well, a good night sleep that is. :salute:

Wolferz

05-18-13, 06:38 PM

Your first overnight stay will probably seem utterly strange but, that'll pass.:up:

The mattress cover get dry yet?

Your desktop looks like icons-r-us:cool:

frau kaleun

05-18-13, 08:09 PM

Your first overnight stay will probably seem utterly strange but, that'll pass.:up:

I dunno, I had a nap a couple weekends ago and didn't have any trouble feeling comfortable. And it's certainly a lot more peaceful here than in my old neighborhood.

The mattress cover get dry yet?

Yep. A friend came over today for a couple hours and I took advantage of that to get done a couple things that I knew would be far easier with two people. Getting the cover back on the mattress was one of them. :yep:

Already got the pad and the fitted sheet and one pillow on there, just need to add the cover sheet and a bankie and a couple more pillows and bring my comforter over in case it turns cold again.

Your desktop looks like icons-r-us:cool:

Lol, it's usually not that bad. I had to download a lot of docs in the course of buying the condo and I just saved them all to my desktop for easy access. I'll have to go through them later and "file" them all in a proper folder. A lot of the other stuff is mods I've downloaded for Skyrim but haven't looked at yet, so once again they're stowed on the desktop so I don't forget that I still need to check them out before possibly adding them to the mix. If and when I ever get back to playing.

OH SKYRIM I MISS YOU SO MUCH. :wah:

Wolferz

05-19-13, 05:18 AM

:haha: Gotta love a Skrim junkie.:up:

frau kaleun

05-19-13, 10:30 PM

OY WHAT A DAY.

In anticipation of my first night staying over in the new place, I packed and transported two carloads of stuff starting about 9 AM this morning. It was all made even more fun by the fact that I woke up about 3 AM and couldn't get back to sleep for a couple hours, so I'm already tired when I get started. But pretty much everything is out of my bedroom except for some holiday stuff in the closet and, you know, furniture that I can't move until we have the truck. So not too shabby.

Anyhoo - got everything carried in and where it needed to go temporarily, at least mostly, and ordered my first LaRosa's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LaRosa's_Pizzeria) delivery at my new address since I was starving. Had a hoagie for lunch and got a salad for later which I never ate and will have for dinner tomorrow I guess. Finished eating and got started on laundry and getting the master bath cleaned and set up so I could start actually living here.

Yikes, that took... WAY longer than expected. Doesn't it always? It was complicated by the fact that I spent about an hour and a half trying to hook up my showerhead, only to have it leak/spray water all over me and my nice mostly clean bathroom every single time no matter what I did. And I hooked it up right, but either something got busted in transit or I'm missing a washer somewhere. Took apart the showerhead left by the last owner and pulled washers out of that to see if they would help but nothing worked. Maybe whatever I needed is still in the bathroom back at the apt, I wonder if a washer got stuck up in the pipe or something and I didn't get it out.

Anyway that was getting really frustrating, here I was *this* close to being done, just needed to hook the showerhead up, and looking forward to having a nice shower and getting all the grime and sweat off... it's REALLY hot here today, even with AC running and ceiling fans there's just no way NOT to be hot and sweaty when you're working in a small upstairs room. Another reason I really, really hate cleaning bathrooms. I couldn't get my Waterpik to work and there was no way I was using the one that was in there when I arrived, it was really icky. Fortunately I remembered there was also another showerhead in the guest bath and checked that out and it looked relatively new and was a snap to clean up. Why it wasn't in the master bath to begin with is anybody's guess. :hmmm:

So, that was my day, and I didn't get done near what I'd hoped I would, but at least I accomplished something. And I did take a few pics.

Frau Kaleun has books!

http://imageshack.us/a/img96/4068/54636280.jpg

Most of what's stacked along that wall is just... books. And there are still more boxes of them in my apt. :dead:

Laundry done?

http://imageshack.us/a/img801/9393/79856055.jpg

CHECK.

Bathroom acceptably clean and functional?

http://imageshack.us/a/img203/811/27938686.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img259/1627/45184197.jpg

CHECK.

And what about sleepy time?

http://imageshack.us/a/img856/4334/74794148.jpg

Bed is ready, repeat, bed is ready. Makeshift nightstand reports Monday morning alarm is set. Pillow fort enabled. Comforter and extra bankie on standby. WE ARE GO FOR BEDDIE-BYE!

:rock:

It'll be interesting to see how screwy my morning is, I'm not a morning person so I have a routine and have had for many years, I know exactly where everything is that I need, which hand to use to reach for it and when, what drawer to open, what order to do things in to get ready in the shortest amount of time possible so I can sleep as late as possible.

Tomorrow, nothing will be where my addled early morning brain will expect it to be. I've got stuff laid out and handy but I'm sure it will still be interesting. :haha:

Jimbuna

05-20-13, 06:19 AM

Your getting there :cool:

Wolferz

05-20-13, 06:51 AM

Almost home.:up:

Sailor Steve

05-20-13, 08:28 AM

Congratulations on a good start. A couple of objections, though:

and ordered my first LaRosa's delivery
That link is to a Wiki article, and since everybody knows that Wikipedia gets everything wrong and can't be trusted for anything, how do we know this place even exists?

Also, how does anyone order a sandwich from a pizza place? Sandwiches are great, but pizza is the food of the gods. Are you sure you're really a valkyrie?

Anyway that was getting really frustrating...
Yeah, you have to hate it when things decide they aren't going to cooperate no matter how hard you try. Maybe it's asking for a shower massage head or something.

Frau Kaleun has books!

Most of what's stacked along that wall is just... books. And there are still more boxes of them in my apt. :dead:
I like the staircase. I only see a few boxes, though. How many more do you have? I hope it's a lot; I need competition in the book department.

Here's hoping your first night HOME went well. :sunny:

frau kaleun

05-20-13, 08:58 AM

That link is to a Wiki article, and since everybody knows that Wikipedia gets everything wrong and can't be trusted for anything, how do we know this place even exists?

http://www.larosas.com/

Also, how does anyone order a sandwich from a pizza place? Sandwiches are great, but pizza is the food of the gods. Are you sure you're really a valkyrie?

I'm too tired to be sure of anything right now. :dead:

Altho I risk being drummed out of the SW Ohio club for saying so, I really don't care for their pizza. It's the sauce, I think - it's just not to my taste. So if I'm gonna get pizza, I get it somewhere else.

They do have really good hoagies, though, also I like their salads and pasta dishes. And the calzones, yum. Sometimes I'll get a focaccia style pizza, which has a different type of sauce on it.

I also don't like Cincinnati chili. So sue me. :O: Skyline and Gold Star are the two biggies around here, I think they've also expanded into other parts of the country as well... usually those that see a large influx of Midwesterners at certain times of year or as retirees. But Cincinnati chili uses spices like cinnamon, allspice, stuff like that. AND THOSE THINGS DON'T BELONG IN CHILI. :nope:

Yeah, you have to hate it when things decide they aren't going to cooperate no matter how hard you try. Maybe it's asking for a shower massage head or something.

That's what I had, also what the previous owner had on there. I dunno, I think a washer or something fell out and I just don't have it. At this point I think mine is probably busted from dropping it so many times in the tub while I was trying to hook it up and getting sprayed in the face over and over again. :O:

Well, there's a reason I got all those gift cards, lol. I'll find another I like and put that in my bathroom and put that decent spare back in the guest bath. At least now I know it's nice enough to leave in there and will save me replacing it whenever I get around to fixing up that shower for the many guests I will never have due to the lack of a furnished guest room. :haha:

I like the staircase. I only see a few boxes, though. How many more do you have? I hope it's a lot; I need competition in the book department.

I think there are four boxes left in the apartment. I don't know how many in the condo, they're stacked 3-4 boxes high and two rows deep along most of that wall. There might be one box in the office already.

It's still probably not nearly as many books as it felt like when I was loading and unloading them to get them moved over. :O:

Here's hoping your first night HOME went well. :sunny:

Well, the bed is comfortable enough and it's quiet enough but I still didn't get to sleep until about 1 AM and I woke up a lot earlier than I needed to. Too much to think about and probably too worried that the alarm wouldn't go off or I wouldn't hear it or whatever. I'm dead tired, right down to the bone. And I have to go back to the apt probably every night this week to keep taking things apart, throwing things out, and packing up stuff there. At least I'm getting to the point where very little needs to be moved over by me, I think most of what's left can be packed to go on the truck.

And I've got the holiday next Monday plus I'm taking the rest of that week off as vacation time. I need to go down to Florence KY to order my bedroom furniture on Sunday or Monday, since they're having a big Memorial Day sale of which I can take advantage. Lowe's is having a sale on major appliances through the holiday but so far the fridge I want hasn't shown up on their website with any sale price, it seems to be only selected models... so I may not need to worry about ordering that over the holiday weekend after all. My discount card is good til July so there's no rush if it's not on sale. I will have to move the current fridge first to verify measurements on the space and clean up that alcove, and I'm not sure I'll be up to that this week. Maybe. I don't know.

AND I've got to clean and do whatever repairs are necessary in the apartment. And I still haven't heard anything from the building manager about what to do with the keys but they had almost three weeks to call me before the phone was disconnected, and I gave them my cell in the letter... so I guess I'll call them when I get around to it if they can't be bothered to follow up on their end.

Sailor Steve

05-20-13, 09:34 AM

http://www.larosas.com/
Oops. I really should have put a :O: in there to show my intent. :oops:

I'm too tired to be sure of anything right now. :dead:
Lol. I know that feeling.

Altho I risk being drummed out of the SW Ohio club for saying so, I really don't care for their pizza. It's the sauce, I think - it's just not to my taste. So if I'm gonna get pizza, I get it somewhere else.
That's too bad. Still...
They do have really good hoagies, though, also I like their salads and pasta dishes. And the calzones, yum. Sometimes I'll get a focaccia style pizza, which has a different type of sauce on it.
Sounds like a place I'd like. Hoagies and salads are important food groups, just like pizza.

AND THOSE THINGS DON'T BELONG IN CHILI. :nope:
Chili is also an important food group, but in this case I think I agree...yuck! I tend to by the canned stuff and then dump in what I like. I've only made my own from scratch once, but it was pretty good.

It's still probably not nearly as many books as it felt like when I was loading and unloading them to get them moved over. :O:
I was just stealing an opportunity to brag about the 60+ boxes I still have left over from when I worked at the book warehouse fifteen years ago. I'll never read them all. At the rate I'm going I'll never read any of them, especially since I keep buying the ones I actually want to read.

If you have the books you want then you have all you need. On the other hand there's the old musicians' saying: "How many guitars is enough? Just one more!"

Sorry about the lack of sleep, but as I said that's a feeling I know well. In my case it's just not sleeping well anymore. I end up dozing in front of my computer a lot.

Good luck with the furniture sale. Get plenty of rest and take care of the heavy stuff when you're ready, and not before.

AND I've got to clean and do whatever repairs are necessary in the apartment. And I still haven't heard anything from the building manager about what to do with the keys but they had almost three weeks to call me before the phone was disconnected, and I gave them my cell in the letter... so I guess I'll call them when I get around to it if they can't be bothered to follow up on their end.
You have to love it when people can't bother to be bothered. My management is very professional in that department, always checking on the details and following up. I'm sure your people will try to blame you for everything. :dead:

frau kaleun

05-20-13, 10:52 AM

Oops. I really should have put a :O: in there to show my intent. :oops:

Oh, I knew you were mostly teasing. I don't know why I didn't use that link in the first place.

Sounds like a place I'd like. Hoagies and salads are important food groups, just like pizza.

It's definitely a local institution. In fact it's funny, where I grew up - way north of Cinci proper - we didn't have any of their places at all until the last 10-15 years. I had never eaten their food, ever, until I started working where I work now. One winter we had a day with really bad weather and only a few of us made it in to the office; I was one of them. The doctor who was here that day said that it was a good day to order lunch and he would buy LaRosa's for all of us who were brave enough to venture out and show up for work that day. I asked if we had a menu and you could've heard a pin drop. Nobody could believe that I'd never been to LaRosa's. The doctor even joked that anyone who needed to see a LaRosa's menu probably didn't deserve to eat there. :O:

But that was my introduction to the franchise; when I moved to my apartment there was actually a place right down the street. I ate there sometimes but reallly indulged after they put online payment on the website, which allowed me to place a delivery order through the site instead of calling them which had been the norm previously.

Nevertheless I can still sing their phone number - if you read the wiki article, it mentions the fact that years ago they consolidated all of their phone ordering under one number which was featured prominently in their radio and tv ads. BOY WAS IT EVER. I doubt there's anyone who's lived around here for long who can't sing the LaRosa's phone number. Very clever, setting it to music like that - it became unforgettable, kind of like those old bits from Schoolhouse Rock.

Chili is also an important food group, but in this case I think I agree...yuck! I tend to by the canned stuff and then dump in what I like. I've only made my own from scratch once, but it was pretty good.

I've never made it completely from scratch, but there's a mix that I like - dry spices and whatnot in a pouch kinda thing - altho it's been hard to find except for one or two stores. Huh, whaddya know, they sell it on Amazon!

http://www.amazon.com/Tempo-Chili-2-Ounce-Packets-Pack/dp/B000H25YHK

So I guess what I like would fall under the category of Southwestern style.

I just follow the instructions which call for ground beef and a can of tomatoes, but I add a can of beans too plus a little Tabasco. Cincinnati style would be to ladle it over a plate of spaghetti or a hot dog, but usually I'll do chili macaroni instead. Chili over macaroni topped with some shredded Cheddar Jack and sliced fresh green onion: OM NOM NOM. Really nice on those cold winter days.

I was just stealing an opportunity to brag about the 60+ boxes I still have left over from when I worked at the book warehouse fifteen years ago. I'll never read them all. At the rate I'm going I'll never read any of them, especially since I keep buying the ones I actually want to read.

I'll probably end up having fewer books than I think I have, lol, because a lot of my bookcase space ended up being used for storage of other items that just wouldn't go anywhere else. It will be interesting to get all my bookcases in place and start unpacking them, just to see how much shelf space they take up when they're put together in one place. I may even have room for more!

I did the measuring and I should have room for 5 cases, each about 31" wide and 80" high - six shelves each. And mabye one matching 15" one in the corner where the two rows will meet. All in one room! That's probably as much shelf space or more than I had scattered around my apartment - and most of it can actually be for books this time. I'll have to see once I start unpacking that stuff, but I may have storage space on the other wall for DVDs/CDs plus extraneous office stuff.

You have to love it when people can't bother to be bothered. My management is very professional in that department, always checking on the details and following up. I'm sure your people will try to blame you for everything. :dead:

The property manager is rather scatterbrained - but I knew that when I moved there, as my sister used to work for her. She had another person who was actually responsible for managing that building then though. I figure I'll call them this weekend, if nothing else they need to know that the electricity will be shut off on the 31st unless they call to make the necessary arrangements to avoid that. You'd think they would assume that needed to be done anyway, but I'm not counting on it. :haha:

Wolferz

05-20-13, 11:20 AM

frau kaleun

05-20-13, 11:32 AM

Well, you definitely need the landlord there with you for the exit inspection of your apartment. Otherwise, they could claim all manner of damages and forfeit your deposit. Then you hand them the keys after all documents are signed off on. I would think that they would be chomping at the bit to turn the place over and get it rented to a new tenant ASAP.:doh:

Well, that's what I assumed - that they'd want to know exactly when I'll be out so they can do a walkthrough as is stated in the lease. But they haven't called.

OTOH I've been in there for 18 years - it's pretty much a given that the carpet will have to be replaced and it will have to be repainted. The lease even says that we're NOT allowed to paint ourselves, so I wouldn't have been able to do that even if I wanted to. I will spackle holes in the walls and clean up as best I can, and if they don't arrange a walkthrough I guess I'll just take pictures.

There is some damage to the wall under one corner of the air conditioner but that's from water running down behind the wall where the units are placed, it's eaten away at the drywall there and if you pressed on it you could put your hand right through it. They knew there was a problem with that (and not just in my apartment) years ago and were supposed to have fixed it. In fact they already came out once and "repaired" the wall once but last summer it was obvious that it was being eroded again. As I've been moving stuff and cleaning I've noticed what looks like indications of water running down behind the drywall in several other places too, there's faint discoloration up near the ceiling. Not just the exterior walls either. I'm not gonna take responsibility for anything caused by that stuff.

Sailor Steve

05-20-13, 11:42 AM

But that was my introduction to the franchise; when I moved to my apartment there was actually a place right down the street. I ate there sometimes but reallly indulged after they put online payment on the website, which allowed me to place a delivery order through the site instead of calling them which had been the norm previously.
We have a pizza place by the University of Utah called The Pie. Best pizza in Salt Lake since forever.
http://www.thepie.com/

I doubt there's anyone who's lived around here for long who can't sing the LaRosa's phone number.
I shudder to think of all the commercial jingles and TV theme songs I remember from childhood. :doh:

I've never made it completely from scratch, but there's a mix that I like
My first thought was "Yikes! Sixteen bucks for two 1-oz packages?!" Then I looked again and it was "Oh, it's twelve 2-oz packages." That's only a little over a buck a pack. Not bad at all.

I had a roommate once who was a master chef, but he hated recipes and did everything by guess and by golly, so it was always different. He insisted that I could do it, so we made a huge pot of chili, me making and him advising. We cooked up a bunch of pinto and black beans that were just waiting for a project, added fresh tomatoes we cut up ourselves, about three pounds of beef if I remember correctly, some other veggies and whole bottles of spices. After it cooked for about a day we decided it was ready. He really liked the extra spice mix and asked what I had added. When I told him I had dumped a whole small can of plain black pepper in, he said that it was all too easy to forget that the common stuff can sometimes make all the difference. It lasted us at least a week.

Chili over macaroni topped with some shredded Cheddar Jack and sliced fresh green onion: OM NOM NOM. Really nice on those cold winter days.
Sometimes when I'm feeling lazy I pull out one of my old favorites, mixing together a can of chili and a can of spaghetti. A six-cheese Italian blend from the store and it's ready.

I did the measuring and I should have room for 5 cases, each about 31" wide and 80" high - six shelves each.[/quote]
I currently have three - one I bought (the second one didn't survive the move), one that was given to me and the third is made out of several box-style shelves stacked on top of each other. I was going to buy two more as soon as I had a car, but I don't want to assemble and load them up when I'll have to take them down again because of this remodelling that's coming up. My original plan was to read all the books I got from the warehouse and then give them away. I'll never get there.

Sailor Steve

05-20-13, 11:49 AM

I'm not gonna take responsibility for anything caused by that stuff.
My small family lived for a year in a very nice split-level duplex. When we moved in the owners pointed out that one of the downward steps had a piece broken out and the carpet was soft there. We lived there for a year and when we moved out the new owners tried to stick us with repairs for the stair I had broken. It seems the old owners hadn't mentioned it in writing anywhere. When I told the new owner about it, he pointed out that I could say they had told me that but there was no proof. I worried about it for a minute, then thought to ask him where the broken piece was. He asked what I meant, and I did my own pointing out. The stairs were carpeted. If I had broken the step then the piece would still be there under the carpet. If the piece was there, then he had a point. If not, then it had to have been thrown away before the carpet was laid. They pulled the carpet up and sure enough, no piece.

I'm surprised the old owners didn't repair it when they put the new carpet in, but who knows what people are thinking at any given time.

WernherVonTrapp

05-20-13, 01:04 PM

Frau kaleun, is the water coming out from the area where the shower-head screws onto the pipe threads? If so, you may simply need to wrap about 6" of Teflon tape around the threads before screwing the shower-head on. I used to be a plumber (a Tiler and a Landscaper too), but I can't see the showerhead or pipe coming out of the wall.

frau kaleun

05-20-13, 01:11 PM

Frau kaleun, is the water coming out from the area where the shower-head screws onto the pipe threads? If so, you may simply need to wrap about 6" of Teflon tape around the threads before screwing the shower-head on. I used to be a plumber, but I can't see the showerhead or pipe coming out of the wall.

Yes, it's coming from that general direction... but I tried the tape thing and rubbed soap around the threads as well since I know I've done that before when attaching such things and neither worked. Well, even when it looked like it wasn't coming from where it screws onto the pipe, it still leaked from somewhere, the part that screws onto the pipe actually screws into the rest of the unit and it might have been coming from there. I don't know, and I'm done fooling with it for now, I've got one clean working showerhead and that's good enough until I have far fewer fish to fry. :)

WernherVonTrapp

05-20-13, 03:21 PM

:up:

Wolferz

05-20-13, 05:02 PM

Sounds like that shower head might be cracked. Adding Teflon tape will only widen the break.
There's always the bird bath choice.:yep:

frau kaleun

05-20-13, 09:34 PM

Sounds like that shower head might be cracked. Adding Teflon tape will only widen the break.

That's what I think too, between taking it down in one place and trying to put it up in another when I was tired and bleary-eyed and wet-handed on both occasions, you can imagine how many times I dropped the showerhead (it's a handheld with the hose kinda deal) and had one or the other end ofit swing into the side of the shower or bang into the tub. It's probably shot and I'll just get a new one. I've got to go to Lowe's tomorrow because the ugly fluorescent light bulb in the fixture in my walk-in closet burned out and I've got to replace it. I was hoping the stupid thing would last until I could replace the entire fixture with something better (read: NOT UGLY) but wouldn't you know it. :/\\!!

I'll probably just pick up another showerhead at Lowe's while I'm there. I've still got a gift card left to use and IIRC they have something similar to what I was using, and I really liked that one.

Speaking of ugly fluorescent tube lights, I can't just throw this dead bulb away, can I? Don't they have to be disposed of in some special way? I mean, is it okay for me to just stick it in the trash can and let them deal with it? They do take recyclables but I don't know about this stupid bulb.

Anyway - went straight to the apt after work and took apart two fullsize bookcases, a smaller shelf unit that used to be part of my desk, and the desk itself. Everything I could carry went to the dumpster, the larger bits of the desk will have to wait until I've got some extra muscle. I tried and tried and couldn't break down the hutch, it's probably mostly wooden dowels glued in that's holding it together, not hardware that I can actually remove. It's a shame because in pieces I could've easily carried it out and been done with it.

Well, possibly we'll just load that stuff at the very back of the truck and then pull the truck down to the dumpster and unload it there. That would be funny, loading up the truck at the door and then backing it around to the dumpster and unloading half of what we just loaded. :haha:

Tomorrow I'll run by Lowe's and then come back to the condo and work on cleaning the rest of the living room carpet and finding a place to sit the TV I just got, so I can unpack it and take the box and packing materials back to the apt and use it to transport a TV that's still in there. I guess while I'm at Lowe's I should ask if the fridge I want is part of their holiday sale, web site doesn't have a sale price listed. If it's not I think I'll actually be relieved since I won't feel any pressure to buy it now to get a better deal... I really do NOT have time to fool with moving the current fridge to rip out wall base and verify the space I've got without it. And it's not like they won't have another sale for the 4th of July. :O:

Sailor Steve

05-20-13, 09:38 PM

That would be funny, loading up the truck at the door and then backing it around to the dumpster and unloading half of what we just loaded. :haha:
Or you can carry everything around to the dumpster one piece at a time. That might be even funnier. :dead:

TarJak

05-20-13, 09:49 PM

Or you could carry the dumpster to your door and then tilt your apt to empty the trash into the dumpster. IMHO, they funniest way you could do it.:O:

frau kaleun

05-20-13, 10:11 PM

magic452

05-21-13, 01:08 AM

Wolferz

05-21-13, 06:25 AM

The other tenants are going to be wondering why all their dishes are in the floor and their furniture is up against a wall.

Tilt the building indeed.:haha:

AVGWarhawk

05-21-13, 07:32 AM

I really do NOT have time to fool with moving the current fridge to rip out wall base and verify the space I've got without it. And it's not like they won't have another sale for the 4th of July.

Buy it at the sale price today and HD will hold it as long as you want. They held my washer/dryer for 2 months. :03:

frau kaleun

05-21-13, 07:35 AM

When you measure the opening for the fridge make sure that the opening is square. If it's a tight fit and things aren't square the fridge still might not fit without a little work. That's what happened to me and I had to shave a little off some of the cabinets to get it in.

Yep, that's why I want to get the current fridge out of there so I can verify the width from front to back and top to bottom. What I *can* measure with the fridge in place gives me a 36" space, assuming I take off the wall base, but the model I want is an LG and their units for that amount of space are 35.75" wide because they only require 1/8" clearance on either side. So there is absolutely no margin for error, unlike with some units where you are allowing a couple inches on either side to meet their specs.

vienna

05-21-13, 12:28 PM

Or we put the dumpster below my poor excuse for a deck and dump things over into it from the second floor. Better yet, we rig a slide or chute of some kind with a trap door at the top and then we can take turns pulling the lever and sending stuff down. :woot:

Did the dumpster under the deck bit a few years back when I moved from one unit in my complex to another. The owners were renovating all the units as they beacme empty; I had lived in my former unit for a couple of decades and was under rent control. I was fearful I would lose the rent control protection if I moved, so I held out until they put it in writing they would extend the protection to the new unit into which I would move. When I finally did move, I also took advantage of the situation to clear out some of the stuff I had no use for any longer. I had a dumpster moved from the trash area to just below the deck of my unit and just dumped whatever I didn't want over the railing. There was somehow a bit of a feeling of satisfaction to hear the loud thump when something hit the dumpster...

<O>

frau kaleun

05-21-13, 10:13 PM

There was somehow a bit of a feeling of satisfaction to hear the loud thump when something hit the dumpster...
<O>

I know the feeling, altho it's somewhat less satisfying when you just had to carry your purged possessions half the length of a football field to earn it. :O:

I think I have solved the showerhead issue, used my last Lowe's gift card to pick up this after work tonight:

http://imageshack.us/a/img708/1333/showerheadp.jpg

They didn't have the Waterpik similar to what I was used to, but this is a Delta with dual showerheads and was about the same price. It was recommended by the dude working that section of the store as he said it's what he uses at home. I still had issues with leakage at the pipe arm at first, even using the plumber's tape that was included in the box - :stare: - but I used a thin strip of some emergency leak sealing tape that I had handy around the very end of the pipe and then soaped everything up for good measure and it didn't leak when I turned it on again, so here's hoping that holds up.

I'm a little unsure about this model right now as I'm not convinced the handheld showerhead snaps into the contraption tightly enough, it fell off and bonked me in the head a couple times during the installation. This might have been because the hose had been coiled up in the packaging and was a little unwieldy at first which made getting it set up a real chore. Now that I've got it straightened out a bit, and after it has some time to adjust to its new position, it might be a lot more stable. My old one probably was the same when first unboxed and I just don't remember.

But on to the category of Small Moments Of Triumph And Joy:

http://imageshack.us/a/img842/3271/scrubbie.jpg

I FOUND MY SCRUBBIE! :woot: :woot: :woot:

I had to take TWO showers without my scrubbie AND while using someone else's left-behind showerhead. Honestly, I don't know how I survived.

In other news, after looking at various TV stands for the office I ended up getting this instead:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/images/products/malm--drawer-chest__74485_PE191628_S4.jpg

I really wanted more general drawer space in there, not just a couple shallow drawers sized for DVD storage... plus all the TV stands I looked at that were not, like, four feet wide were just two low. Those of you who wear bifocals like I do will understand what a PITA it is to try and watch a TV that is placed too high or too low for where you are sitting given that you have to look out of a certain limited portion of your specs in order to see it clearly.

Technically this is part of one of their bedroom groups, but it looks like it will put the TV at just about the right spot for when I am sitting at my desk, without me having to crane my neck up and down trying to refocus every time I turn to look at it. Also, nice big deep drawers. Plus it matches the finish of my bookcases and other stuff in there from Ikea. :yeah:

Now I just need to remember to bring my toolbox back from the apartment tomorrow so I can put it together. :haha:

magic452

05-22-13, 01:28 AM

Yep, that's why I want to get the current fridge out of there so I can verify the width from front to back and top to bottom. What I *can* measure with the fridge in place gives me a 36" space, assuming I take off the wall base, but the model I want is an LG and their units for that amount of space are 35.75" wide because they only require 1/8" clearance on either side. So there is absolutely no margin for error, unlike with some units where you are allowing a couple inches on either side to meet their specs.

With that little clearance there is a good chance your fridge won't fit.
To make sure take a string and tie some small weight on it (a plumb bob) and hang the string from each top corner and make sure that the cabinets are perfectly straight up and down and the opening is a full 36" all the way top to bottom as per the string line. They really don't get things all that straight when they put cabinets in.

If they are not you won't get it in without some work. Also check the depth of the space, that big of a fridge may stick out into the kitchen too far.

I know mine did and I ended up cutting a hole in the wall so the fridge would fit flush with the cabinets. Of course I had to re-due the wall on the other side. Made a book case there. I'm pretty sure you don't want to go to all that much work.

Magic

frau kaleun

05-22-13, 07:30 AM

To make sure take a string and tie some small weight on it (a plumb bob) and hang the string from each top corner and make sure that the cabinets are perfectly straight up and down and the opening is a full 36" all the way top to bottom as per the string line.

Great idea, thanks!

Also check the depth of the space, that big of a fridge may stick out into the kitchen too far.

I've already got the current fridge moved out 3-4" to simulate the depth of the newer models I've been looking at, so I could get used to it and/or see if it presented a problem. So far, so good. :up:

CaptainHaplo

05-22-13, 07:36 AM

I just made an offer on a place. It needs work so I took the estimated cost off my bid. Its supposedly a backup bid from what my realtor is telling me - so I don't have high hopes. Still, I have seen more than one deal fall through.

I also am going to look at modular models today. May just go that route if this one doesn't come through.

Sailor Steve

05-22-13, 07:48 AM

I FOUND MY SCRUBBIE! :woot: :woot: :woot:
Finding favorite stuff is one of the most important parts of "quality-of-life". After working on tiny models with sandpaper wrapped around paintbrush handles I finally found my long-lost rat-tailed file yesterday. Of course it was in the same box with the other stuff. I just forgot about it.

In other news, after looking at various TV stands for the office I ended up getting this instead:
Same thing. For years I used a small set of drawers similar to that for my TV stand. It gives you a place to store the Playstation and all the extra cables you collect over time. I don't have a TV anymore so I gave mine to a neighbor in need.

Those of you who wear bifocals like I do...
I do, but I don't anymore because I got so tired of that very problem. I keep a pair of glasses that are focused somewhere in-between. They are perfect for the computer, good for across-the-room and not too bad for long-distance viewing. For reading and close-in work I just take them off. My natural focal length now is less than one foot.

Now I just need to remember to bring my toolbox back from the apartment tomorrow so I can put it together. :haha:
I keep telling you that you should buy another one, just so after you're all moved in you have something else to complain about. "Why did I do that?"

frau kaleun

05-22-13, 08:18 AM

I keep telling you that you should buy another one, just so after you're all moved in you have something else to complain about. "Why did I do that?"

What I need to do is just have one set of screwdrivers (yes I have two - so far) permanently Velcro'd to my body somewhere. :haha:

Wolferz

05-22-13, 10:07 AM

Any tool that you need will always be elsewhere.

Mine tend to grow a pair of legs and walk away, forgetting where they came from.:down:

Returning a borrowed item to its place of residence is a concept that is foreign to my family members.
Along with the concept of clean as you go.:hmmm:

magic452

05-23-13, 01:58 AM

Wolferz

05-23-13, 02:43 AM

Sounds like you know my son. :o

Magic

Like I always say...
Dang kids! You can't have nothin!
:/\\!!

magic452

05-23-13, 02:45 AM

frau kaleun

05-23-13, 10:59 AM

frau, another little tip. You said that you have to pull the base boards.
Lowes carries a vinyl base board that fits flush with the wall, you no doubt have some under your kitchen cabinets. A little silicone caulk will stick it to the wall, nice and clean and gives a finished look. It cuts with a pair of scissors.

Magic

I have looked at what they have, as I'll probably just replace all of the kitchen wall base at some point... it looks like it was slapped on pretty haphazardly in places. If I take it off around the fridge alcove I'll have to remove everything on that side of the kitchen anyway, which fortunately isn't much. Whether I replace any in the alcove itself will depend on how things go after taking it out, if for some reason I need or decide to get a smaller fridge that will allow for it then I'll have to do it sooner rather than later. If I get a larger model it probably won't be worth putting any back there as the fridge would not allow it to be visible anyway... in which case I'll just paint down to the floor so it what you can see at least looks clean and not unfinished. The advantage there is that I can then pick out something at my leisure and do the whole kitchen at one time since I won't have to worry about going behind the fridge.

AVGWarhawk

05-23-13, 12:02 PM

Salt your meats and hang from the pipes. Drink powdered milk. Hang your fruits and vegetables from the same pipes as the meats. Fill the head with as much hardtack and canned goods as you can. Should carry you for months. No refrigerated needed. :up:

We can talk about saving on water at a later time. :up:

We are talking u-boats right :06:

vienna

05-23-13, 12:19 PM

Your "Scrubbie" picture brought to mind loofa sponges. I once went to Central America and spent a bit of time in the mountains where I got to see the loofa vines growing down from the trees in the jungles. They are apparently a parasitical plant of sorts and latch onto the trees and thrive. It is sometimes rather interesting to sree the source of something one uses and really never gives much thought about...

<O>

Jimbuna

05-23-13, 06:03 PM

Sailor Steve

05-23-13, 06:45 PM

We are talking u-boats right :06:
I don't think she talks about u-boats much anymore. What's the fridge situation in Skyrim?

Wolferz

05-23-13, 06:57 PM

I don't think she talks about u-boats much anymore. What's the fridge situation in Skyrim?

Most of Skyrim is a frozen wasteland. Natural refrigeration.:D

frau kaleun

05-23-13, 08:29 PM

I don't think she talks about u-boats much anymore. What's the fridge situation in Skyrim?

I need to watch Das Boot to get back in the mood for it. And unpack all my u-boat books. And hang up the matted and framed screenshot I took of my beautiful Type VII dashing through the untamed waters of the Atlantic. But of course... I have no idea where it is. :wah:

Most of Skyrim is a frozen wasteland. Natural refrigeration.:D

Lol, not to mention the fact that if you learn a few of the right spells, you can freeze or grill anything you like at a moment's notice. :O:

OMG YOU GUYS I AM SO TIRED.

Was at the apt until almost 10 PM last night moving stuff around and packing and breaking down stuff I want to throw out... no more room in the dumpster so I couldn't carry much of it out there. Thankfully the trash pickup was today so there should be plenty of room for what I still need to dump.

Went back over there tonight after picking up some more boxes at Lowe's, but sadly they had no small ones and only seven of the medium size. A whole buttload of the large ones but for what I have left I can't really use those. So now I am running out of boxes to put things in, and I've already cleared out pretty much everything at the office. A couple of really small ones left there, I guess I'll take them, if I only get two dishes in each of them at least that's something. Forgot to take my tools over there so I couldn't do anything about stuff that was still attached to the walls, of which there is a ton in the way of hooks and storage things in the utility closet. That will have to wait until tomorrow night or even next week when I'm doing the final cleanup if I can't get to it til then.

Tomorrow I've got to go straight from work to my sister's house so my BiL can sign the paperwork for the moving truck, because my agent has to work her other job on Saturday and has to go in at 5 AM and won't be done til after lunchtime and we don't want to pick up the truck that early :huh: or that late. So I've got to get the stuff signed by him and then rush over to meet her at the realty office to give that to her and get the keys, then I'll have to stop somewhere to look for more boxes and then to back to the apt and continue packing up the last of it.

Fortunately I think my kin doesn't want to get too early of a start on Saturday so maybe I'll have a couple hours before it's time to get the truck down there. Oy. MOVING IS HARD PEOPLE. I hope I never have to do this again. I have a close friend who's moved, like, eight times in the past 10-12 years and honestly I think I'd be dead if I had to do that. :dead:

Well, at least I don't have to be completely out of the apt until next Friday. If small stuff gets left and I have to clear it out later and bring it in the car, so be it. It's not like I won't be over there cleaning up and patching holes in the walls. Which reminds me, I need to find a YouTube video on how to do that. :haha:

Still have not heard one peep from the building manager. Of course if they're ignoring the new phone # I provided in my notice and calling the old one, they'd be getting a disconnection recording now. If that were the case you'd think they'd be stopping by the place trying to find me.

Onkel Neal

05-23-13, 10:12 PM

Yeah, moving ain't no fun. I moved every 4 years until I got this house--now I have been here nearly ten, I would rather take a beating than move. But, I do plan to move one last time, in about 3 or 4 years. Going to buy some land near central Texas and build my ranch.:shucks:

Sailor Steve

05-23-13, 10:19 PM

WOOHOO! Build a small cabin out on the back forty. I can pay rent. :sunny:

Jimbuna

05-24-13, 05:11 AM

So the Ponderosa wasn't fictional after all :o

AVGWarhawk

05-24-13, 07:36 AM

Seriously?

http://l.yimg.com/ck/image/A1122/1122260/300_1122260.jpg

frau kaleun

05-24-13, 07:47 AM

WOOHOO! Build a small cabin out on the back forty. I can pay rent. :sunny:

Thanks to this I am now seeing Neal as Rock Hudson in Giant, with Steve playing the James Dean role. :O:

Sailor Steve

05-24-13, 09:28 AM

Thanks to this I am now seeing Neal as Rock Hudson in Giant, with Steve playing the James Dean role. :O:
If either of us ever looked that good, we sure don't now. :dead:

Wolferz

05-24-13, 12:58 PM

So who gets Liz Taylor's part?:03:

frau kaleun

05-24-13, 01:13 PM

So who gets Liz Taylor's part?:03:

Jimbuna, obviously. :O:

AVGWarhawk

05-24-13, 01:46 PM

I hope he shaves his legs. :yeah:

frau kaleun

05-24-13, 01:59 PM

I hope he shaves his legs. :yeah:

We'll have to remember to ask him during the interview...

http://worldofwonder.net/2011/03/23/766d920c.jpg

AVGWarhawk

05-24-13, 02:06 PM

They got Jim's good side.

Jimbuna

05-24-13, 02:29 PM

Jimbuna, obviously. :O:

I hope he shaves his legs. :yeah:

We'll have to remember to ask him during the interview...

http://worldofwonder.net/2011/03/23/766d920c.jpg

They got Jim's good side.

LOL :)

http://www.beautyanalysis.com/images/Man_Woman.gif

Wolferz

05-24-13, 06:23 PM

I foresee some major reconstructive surgery and ALOT of hair removal.:timeout:

frau kaleun

05-24-13, 10:42 PM

The saga continues....

Sooooo my agent calls me about quarter to four this afternoon to tell me she just checked with the office to make sure the keys to the moving truck were there for her to pick up to give to me when we met up later on.

The secretary tells her no, the keys aren't there, because another agent's client is using the truck this weekend and has already picked them up.

My agent says, WTF I reserved the truck for my client this weekend.

Secretary says, no, I have your client down for next weekend.

My agent says, I reserved the truck for the holiday weekend. Memorial Day weekend. THAT'S THIS WEEKEND.

The secretary says, no, you said to reserve it for the last weekend in May. That's next weekend.

UM NO, YOU DAFT BINT, I think to myself as I'm hearing this, next weekend is the first weekend in June. THIS weekend is the last weekend in May, and it's also the holiday weekend, so whichever one of those things my agent said, the reservation was for THIS weekend, not next weekend.

Which was the same conclusion my agent came to and she is NOT happy with their secretary at the moment. But the damage was already done as the other client had the keys and the truck and wasn't supposed to have it back until Sunday afternoon. Well, that does me no good as I can't really count on that happening, and if for some reason the other client doesn't return the truck on time I'm SOL if I've left that as my only option. I can't move on Monday because everybody else who's helping - plus the person who would be driving the truck - has to work on Memorial Day, and every day thereafter until next weekend, and I have to be out of there before then.

So I ended up having to reserve a U-Haul and couldn't even get that until tomorrow afternoon. We'll just have to start without it and move what we can in my BiL's small pickup and then go get the truck later to move what's too big and/or left over.

Anyway I did scrounge up some more boxes, mostly by unpacking stuff that was already here and just tossing it into empty closet space. Went to the apartment after work and made several more trips to the dumpster and packed up everything that was left (I think) except the TV, which I just didn't get to at all before I left around 10:30. Also wiped down cupboards and cabinets as I emptied them out and cleaned up where I could.

I will not have helpers or the pickup until 10 AM tomorrow so I will try to get over there earlier to pack the TV and also take out the one box of trash that I accumulated this evening, and get the TV and some other stuff loaded in my car for the first trip to the condo.

Not sure how we will do moving the bigger furniture, I tried to get the place where I am donating it to do a pickup at the apartment but the soonest I could schedule one was the first week of June so we'll just have to move it somehow. Fortunately my boss has offered one of her teenage sons to help if we need it... so if my BiL gets over there and looks it over and decides we need another pair of hands, she said I can give her a call and she'll send him in our direction.

I will be so happy when all this is over, all I want to do is get my stuff out of there and get back in and do what cleaning/repairing I can and never go back there again.

Sometime this weekend I will have to call the building manager to let them know - again - that I will be out of the apartment on or before the 31st and she needs to call the electric co. about continuing the service there from that date and also what does she want to do about getting the keys back? If I don't hear from her by the time I'm done over there, I swear I am just going to go to her home/office and leave them in the mailbox or whatever dropbox they have.

garren

05-24-13, 10:49 PM

frau kaleun

05-24-13, 11:08 PM

You're a call girl? :doh:

No, even worse, I'm one of those uppity wimminz who has a job outside the home which I have the audacity to pay for with my own money.

I also own a toolbox, and a power drill. Neither of them is pink. I keep my hair cut very short, and haven't worn a pair of high heels in more years than I can count. Please feel free to draw your own conclusions, as I'm sure they'll be highly entertaining should you feel compelled to share them.

Red October1984

05-24-13, 11:10 PM

You're a call girl? :doh:

Not quite. :o

Frau Kaleun is better than that... I would hope. :88)

No, even worse, I'm one of those uppity wimminz who has a job outside the home which I have the audacity to pay for with my own money.

I also own a toolbox, and a power drill. Neither of them is pink. I keep my hair cut very short, and haven't worn a pair of high heels in more years than I can count. Please feel free to draw your own conclusions, as I'm sure they'll be highly entertaining should you feel compelled to share them.

Daammn! Paid for her house with her own money? No high heels?

http://virulentwordofmouse.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/burn-the-witch-monty-python.jpg

garren

05-24-13, 11:13 PM

No, even worse, I'm one of those uppity wimminz who has a job outside the home which I have the audacity to pay for with my own money.

I also own a toolbox, and a power drill. Neither of them is pink. I keep my hair cut very short, and haven't worn a pair of high heels in more years than I can count. Please feel free to draw your own conclusions, as I'm sure they'll be highly entertaining should you feel compelled to share them.

Hmm :hmmm: I thought Margret Thatcher died.

Sailor Steve

05-24-13, 11:15 PM

UM NO, YOU DAFT BINT, I think to myself as I'm hearing this, next weekend is the first weekend in June. THIS weekend is the last weekend in May, and it's also the holiday weekend, so whichever one of those things my agent said, the reservation was for THIS weekend, not next weekend.
You should have said it out loud.

Politely, of course. :sunny:

Red October1984

05-24-13, 11:38 PM

Hmm :hmmm: I thought Margret Thatcher died.

Okay....don't bring the personal attack thing into this thread too. :shifty:

On another note, I think it's good that frau worked an honest job, got the money, and paid for her house all by herself. :yeah: That's not an easy achievement.

frau kaleun

05-25-13, 07:57 AM

Okay....don't bring the personal attack thing into this thread too. :shifty:

On another note, I think it's good that frau worked an honest job, got the money, and paid for her house all by herself. :yeah: That's not an easy achievement.

Lol, technically I got the condo because my share of the inheritance when my mother passed away allowed me to pay off all my debts and make a hefty downpayment. However it is my honest job that will let me make the mortgage payments every month. :up:

Altho to be fair being my mother's daughter for almost 50 years was quite a job in its own right. That lady was a real piece of work. :O:

Wolferz

05-25-13, 11:58 AM

Respect yo momma gurl!:salute:
She bought you a home or at least provided the means for you to buy one on your own.:up: Piece of work or not.:03:

Red October1984

05-25-13, 12:31 PM

Lol, technically I got the condo because my share of the inheritance when my mother passed away allowed me to pay off all my debts and make a hefty downpayment. However it is my honest job that will let me make the mortgage payments every month. :up:

Altho to be fair being my mother's daughter for almost 50 years was quite a job in its own right. That lady was a real piece of work. :O:

Sorry about your mom, but you're doing pretty good financial wise.

Now you need to get a pet Dragon and marry the Dragonborn. :O:

frau kaleun

05-25-13, 05:05 PM

and marry the Dragonborn. :O:

The who with the what now? I *am* the Dragonborn, baby. They's linin' up all over Skyrim to marry ME.

Assuming I've talked to the priest in Riften, have my amulet on, and have done them an invaluable service like bringing them a mammoth tusk or perhaps hiring them to risk their lives for me. Or something. The natives don't seem to require much in the way of courtship, generally speaking.

Anyway - all done with the moving, everything is out of the apartment except for some cleaning supplies and a couple cheap little stands that the cleaning supplies are sitting on. I can toss that stuff or bring it home in the car once I'm done.

SO. VERY TIRED. Started about 9 this morning, help arrived to start loading things around 10, brought three pickup and car loads to the condo, then stopped and got some lunch as everything else we had could go on the big U-Haul truck and our pickup time wasn't until 2:15 this afternoon.

Got the truck and made one trip with that. Someone who had just moved into a neighboring apt and has basically no furniture ended up taking my mattress and box springs, he was coming in just as we were shifting them and he helped us move them into his apt. Then he very kindly helped my BiL get the sofa out of my apt. It ended up being the only thing that had to be left at the dumpster. :yeah:

Now I need to relax a bit and get a shower and start measuring and moving stuff around in the bedroom so I can figure out exactly what combo of furniture I want for in there, as I plan to go back down to the place in KY and order bedroom furniture tomorrow. Monday I want to get what I need to spackle up the holes in the walls in the apt and get over there and do that and clean what still needs to be cleaned, and screw it but I'm not calling the building manager. I gave notice over a month ago, I know she got it, I put my phone number in the letter, and she hasn't called. If I haven't heard from her by the time I'm done with the place on Monday I'm going to mail the damn keys back to her on Tuesday. I'm not gonna spend an hour on the road getting to her place and back just to drop them off if she can't bother to do her job, pick up the phone, and arrange for me to hand them to her in person. :stare:

Sailor Steve

05-25-13, 05:12 PM

Anyway - all done with the moving, everything is out of the apartment except for some cleaning supplies and a couple cheap little stands that the cleaning supplies are sitting on. I can toss that stuff or bring it home in the car once I'm done.
:rock:

SO. VERY TIRED.
:yawn:

I'm not gonna spend an hour on the road getting to her place and back just to drop them off if she can't bother to do her job, pick up the phone, and arrange for me to hand them to her in person. :stare:
:hulk:

Just think: One of these days it will all be over, and you can relax. Of course it will never all be all over. :sunny:

Red October1984

05-25-13, 05:44 PM

The who with the what now? I *am* the Dragonborn, baby. They's linin' up all over Skyrim to marry ME.

Assuming I've talked to the priest in Riften, have my amulet on, and have done them an invaluable service like bringing them a mammoth tusk or perhaps hiring them to risk their lives for me. Or something. The natives don't seem to require much in the way of courtship, generally speaking.

I wonder what Skyrim's divorce rate is... :har:

SO. VERY TIRED.

Ugh. Me too. I only slept like 4 hours last night and got up and was out all day. I feel dead. :dead:

Sailor Steve

05-25-13, 06:28 PM

I wonder what Skyrim's divorce rate is... :har:
There isn't one.

The death rate, however...

Red October1984

05-25-13, 06:35 PM

There isn't one.

The death rate, however...

Yeah... "Death" rate

"I swear! The arrow came out of nowhere through the window and just killed him! I had nothing to do with it!"

Wolferz

05-25-13, 08:03 PM

Three cheers for Frau Kaleun...

Hip hip

Oh, hang it we're all too tired to celebrate.:dead:

Phew! ALL DONE!:D

frau kaleun

05-25-13, 09:05 PM

Three cheers for Frau Kaleun...

Hip hip

Oh, hang it we're all too tired to celebrate.:dead:

Phew! ALL DONE!:D

Riiiight. All done except for the unpacking, the remaining cleaning I didn't get to, the picking out and buying of new furniture and window treatments, the little repairs that need to be done here and there, and the figuring out where everything is going to go and putting it there. :O:

My living room now looks like this:

http://imageshack.us/a/img690/1816/livingroommi.jpg

And my eat-in kitchen now looks like this:

http://imageshack.us/a/img585/930/kitchencc.jpg

Well, at least technically I *can* eat in it now, lol, by which I mean eat in it sitting down which was problematic up to this point on account of I had no chairs and no freakin' table. The best I could do was to pull the stepladder up as close as possible to the counter at an awkward angle and try to wedge my butt onto the top step between the handrails. :haha:

My little storage room looks like this:

http://imageshack.us/a/img521/3374/storagep.jpg

And my dining room looks like this:

http://imageshack.us/a/img42/1703/diningroom.jpg

The stuff against the wall to the right is what I'm donating to one of our reputable local charities who will pass it on to someone in need of it. It's a bit beat up but sturdily made and still fully functional, I'll just need to repair one drawer rail on the dresser that came loose in transit but I'd already repaired it before without the luxury of being able to get to it properly because I couldn't shift or turn the dresser at all. Should be able to do a better job this time so it stays in place.

The chest of drawers that goes with it and the bed frame ended up in my office

http://imageshack.us/a/img195/8334/chestinmyoffice.jpg

because I was afraid if we wedged that into the dining room as well it would block access to boxes of things I'd need to get to before someone comes to take the stuff away.

So my little file cabinet is now temporarily over by the window on the other wall, and I started putting together the chest from Ikea that will serve as drawer storage and TV stand:

http://imageshack.us/a/img577/3948/malmchest1.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img37/4461/malmchest2.jpg

Aaaaand now that's done as well.

http://imageshack.us/a/img547/63/malmchest3.jpg

Figured I better get that taken care of as the cable installer is coming on Tuesday and I'll need to have all three TVs set up somewhere by then. Already got a makeshift "TV stand" in the bedroom and my real stand from the apt is in the living room. Just need to get the TVs on them and get the necessary cables in there for hookups and that should all be ready. But that stuff I can probably do on Tuesday.

Figured out what I want and can accommodate in the way of bedroom furniture so am planning to go order that sometime tomorrow and then go back to the apt and do what I can do on Monday... I don't want to put it off past the holiday, but I don't think I'll be quite ready to face it tomorrow.

At some point I also need to go to the store and get some, you know, actual food and drink all up in this place. Now that I've got a table to eat it off of, might be nice. :yep:

Sheesh I can't believe it's only 10 PM, it feels like it should be 1-2 in morning. :huh:

Sailor Steve

05-25-13, 09:30 PM

Startin' to look like somebody plans to live there some day. :O:

Oh, and are you feeling settled in yet? As in it's really truly yours? :sunny:

frau kaleun

05-25-13, 09:34 PM

Startin' to look like somebody plans to live there some day. :O:

Oh, and are you feeling settled in yet? As in it's really truly yours? :sunny:

It must be mine, it's got all my crap in it. :O:

But yeah, I have moments where I walk around and suddenly I think - wow, this actually belongs to me! I actually live here now! :D

Red October1984

05-26-13, 12:12 AM

It must be mine, it's got all my crap in it. :O:

But yeah, I have moments where I walk around and suddenly I think - wow, this actually belongs to me! I actually live here now! :D

And it looks like you have a nice project ahead of you. Gotta get the house perfect right? :03:

Once you get the Hall of Skyrim built you'll need to post pictures of that too. :O:

Wolferz

05-26-13, 05:24 AM

Well, technically, it belongs to the mortgage holder who will graciously allow occupancy in trade for interest payments for the next twenty + years.:woot:

At least your exit from paying rent is complete and your life has been stuffed into boxes and moved.:up:

Now, step back and look at it through the squared fingers of a movie director and imagine the Blue Palace.:hmmm:
You'll be all unpacked and ready to entertain your thane by the next full moon.

Where ya want this throne?:D

frau kaleun

05-26-13, 06:30 AM

Now, step back and look at it through the squared fingers of a movie director and imagine the Blue Palace.:hmmm:

Ugh, I hate Solitude. No decorating tips from "Jarlibu Barbie" Elisif, please. Whaddya take me for, some kind of Imperial-loving, milk-drinking, Thalmor-butt-kissing puppet?

STORMCLOAK 4 LIFE, MARAFETCHERS.

Does the Palace of the Kings model come with my own personal Ulfric? Cuz he's HAWT.

You'll be all unpacked and ready to entertain your thane by the next full moon.

Well I am totally making Argis my thane, then. Cuz he's also HAWT. Marcurio will just have to settle for Court Wizard-slash-Smartass.

Seriously, though, all the condos here seem to have the little flagpole holders attached to the end of their garages, a lot of people have flags of some sort out there. One of the neighbors has a Miami University flag up. College flags seem to be very popular.

Well, you know there are places where you can have a custom flag made with your own image of choice on it... and I did find this online...

http://img545.imageshack.us/img545/3730/collegeofwinterholdlogo.jpg

I just think it would be hilarious flying that from my little flagpole. Those that get it will get it, and the rest will be left scratching their noggins. :haha:

Sailor Steve

05-26-13, 08:59 AM

Well, technically, it belongs to the mortgage holder who will graciously allow occupancy in trade for interest payments for the next twenty + years.:woot:
Many years ago some writer started his own "new home" story with "The bank and I just bought a new house."

Whaddya take me for, some kind of Imperial-loving, milk-drinking, Thalmor-butt-kissing puppet?
Do you want an honest answer, or should we keep pretending? :O:

Red October1984

05-26-13, 09:29 AM

Do you want an honest answer, or should we keep pretending? :O:

I think we should let her keep pretending that it's all real.

Would hate to break her heart right after she spent all that money on the house in Whiterun... :hmmm:

Wolferz

05-26-13, 09:55 AM

I think we should let her keep pretending that it's all real.

Would hate to break her heart right after she spent all that money on the house in Whiterun... :hmmm:

There are no houses in Whiterun...

Just huts with thatched roofing.

I'm building my own house out in the wilds of Skyrim.

Fly that flag proudly Frau.:up: If the neighborhood association has a problem with it... Well, nothing a couple of firestorm spells won't fix.:03::yep:

I would never accuse you of being a milk drinker.

One of those smelly drunken meade (bee puke booze) drinkers ... maybe. But then I'd have to outrun your arrows..... As the Archmage, I'm impervious to your magic.:rock:

Astrid still wants to know... where do you want this throne?

frau kaleun

05-26-13, 10:20 PM

Astrid still wants to know... where do you want this throne?

Well in that case... drop it on Astrid. I despise that woman.

So, today didn't go as planned. The idea was to sleep in a bit, then drive down to NKY and order my furniture, then come home and do a few things around here and then maybe mostly just rest because EVERYTHING IS SORE and I still had to go back to the apt and finish up there.

Well, I woke up around 7:30 and couldn't go back to sleep, so I got up and puttered around and then realized Lowe's was already open and I was pretty sure the website said the furniture place opened at 10 on Sundays so I thought, I'm gonna go to Lowe's and pick up what I need to finish up in the apt - basically just the stuff to patch the holes in the drywall, since I left a ton of cleaning stuff over there - and then drive down to order my furniture and then I should be back here by noon and I'll go to the apt and get started on that.

All went well until I got down to the store in NKY and pulled up only to see the sign on their door that said they didn't open til noon. :/\\!! And hey it turns out NOTHING in Florence KY opens until at least 11 on Sunday. I texted my friend who lives nearby that their stores down there needed to open earlier because I was sitting in a parking lot outside Florence Mall with nothing to do, lol. She was surprised because she wasn't expecting me to come down there until much later in the day, and she was going to be busy with a family outing then.

Anyway I went in the mall and the food court McDonald's was open so I got something to drink and wandered around until Macy's opened at 11 and then went in there and used my gift cards towards the purchase of some fluffy new towels which I needed desperately anyway.

http://img585.imageshack.us/img585/5862/towels.jpg

Yes, they are stacked on the chest I just put together in my office. Shut up, it's the only clean flat surface in this place that doesn't already have stuff stacked on it. :haha:

By the time I got done with that, it was almost noon so I headed on out to the furniture place. My friend texted me that she'd just finished up what she was doing and was only a couple minutes away from there on her way home so she would meet me there. Awesome!

Until we get there and I find out the bedroom furniture I wanted had been discontinued shortly after I was there the last time, and because they sold the last of a couple of the pieces about two days after I was there before they can no longer sell one full set much less any of the extra pieces I wanted. :wah:

So I had to pick out something else, which I still like, but the pieces are bigger - which is nice, more drawer space per piece, which means I didn't buy an extra chest of drawers which would have fit if I'd bought the first stuff I picked out. But I didn't have the measurements of the room itself on me, I only knew that the pieces I wanted would fit and where they would fit and had a ballpark eyeballed idea of how much extra space there would be with that stuff in place. So I had to measure the other set and guess-timate on whether or not it would all fit in the places I want it to go. :-?

Anyway I rolled the dice and ordered what I think will work, I may have to reconfigure where I thought things where going to go after I go upstairs and measure the space again with the new pieces in mind.

But - that done, I headed back to Cinci and went to the apartment, where I got started and it was going so well and quickly that I decided just to keep working until I got done everything I thought I should do or was willing to do. That took me until about 10 PM and then I loaded up or tossed in the dumpster everything that was left and turned out the lights and locked the doors and I was out of there. IT FELT GOOD.

If I don't hear from the building manager by tomorrow evening I'm going to the post office first thing Tuesday morning and send the keys back certified mail or priority or whatever is guaranteed to get them there overnight. Actually first class mail should be enough for that as it's all local, but you never know. I am NOT going to drive all the way out to where they live and drive up and down their street looking for their house/offices and then prowl around there looking for a dropbox. :nope:

Red October1984

05-27-13, 01:48 AM

I've only moved once. It was before I was in Kindergarten and about 6 years before I had any friends....So it felt pretty good even though I'd be leaving the best memories of my childhood in that house and that backyard.

I love where I am now. You couldn't move me at gunpoint. :hmph: Home is where the heart is....Mine (Whats left of it) is right here. :rock:

Happy for you though! Apartments don't seem too appealing to me.... Your house looks to be a great improvement. :salute:

Sailor Steve

05-27-13, 06:12 AM

I love where I am now. You couldn't move me at gunpoint.
I'll remind you of that when you're forty and still living with your parents. :O:

Apartments don't seem too appealing to me...
Sometimes you take what life gives you. Compared to three years being homeless, my apartment is heaven. I've moved more than a dozen times in my life, and each time gets harder. Luckily this time I had some young people to do most of the work.

Wolferz

05-27-13, 07:06 AM

Astrid is so fugly, It's no wonder you hate her. I just take her out on adventures and allow her to die, then hookup with a little vampire girl who is much better at protecting herself.:03:

HW3

05-27-13, 09:18 AM

You might want to send the keys back so that they have to sign for them, so you have proof they got them.:yep:

:subsim:

Wolferz

05-27-13, 09:48 AM

You might want to send the keys back so that they have to sign for them, so you have proof they got them.:yep:

:subsim:

Or a flaming sack of Bantha poodoo on the stoop.:O:
Light bag
Ring bell
Run:haha:

frau kaleun

05-27-13, 09:53 AM

You might want to send the keys back so that they have to sign for them, so you have proof they got them.:yep:

:subsim:

I'm pretty sure they'll fit in an Express Mail padded envelope. Won't be cheap but guaranteed 1-2 day delivery plus proof thereof. Anyway there's a post office about 5 minutes down the road, I'll figure it out. :D

Gerald

05-27-13, 10:04 AM

Do you have vacation now or taken time off from work to catch up with your deployed appointment of house,:hmm2:

Red October1984

05-27-13, 10:55 AM

I'll remind you of that when you're forty and still living with your parents. :O:

Sometimes you take what life gives you. Compared to three years being homeless, my apartment is heaven. I've moved more than a dozen times in my life, and each time gets harder. Luckily this time I had some young people to do most of the work.

I understand that Apartments are what they are and that it's the best that's available sometimes. I'll reword what I said. "If I had a choice, I would not move into an apartment."

Forty? Living with my parents? Nah. By then I'll have a house down the street in the wonderful place called Southeast Missouri. :rock: :D That's if I'm not in the military or a pilot by then.

Wolferz

05-27-13, 11:21 AM

St Louis, Misery?

frau kaleun

05-27-13, 12:27 PM

Do you have vacation now or taken time off from work to catch up with your deployed appointment of house,:hmm2:

Today is a national holiday here so I'm off work for that. I took the rest of this week as vacation time. :up:

Jimbuna

05-27-13, 03:48 PM

A good way to manage your time.

Wolferz

05-27-13, 04:38 PM

Ahh vacation... usually
2 weeks
2 short
2 tired
2 return
2 work
2 poor
not 2

But it's nice that you have time to twig your nest and get paid for it to boot.:up:

frau kaleun

05-27-13, 05:57 PM

So much to do today!

First I needed to get the TVs set up since the cable installer is coming tomorrow and I've got stuff to do in the morning, like go to the post office and buy food. Speaking of which, I realized when I got up this morning and was absolutely starving that I hadn't really eaten anything since the french fries I got yesterday morning while waiting for Florence KY to wake up and realize I was in town and had money burning a hole in my pocket.

So, first things first. I knew I'd bagged up and brought over what little I had left in the apartment... ah yes...

http://imageshack.us/a/img189/4159/breakfastke.jpg

Nothing like some dry, dusty, milkless high fiber to start off the day. TBH though I think I bought those to have on hand as a healthier alternative to cookies or the like when I was craving something small and sweet for a snack. So the lack of milk wasn't really that big a deal. And since I was ravenous, they could've been made of sawdust and probably would've still tasted pretty good. But on to business!

I realized yesterday that it was probably a bad idea leaving the chest in the office, since I would need to set up a tv in there and didn't really want to do that until the other bigger bits of furniture were firmly in place which couldn't happen with the chest in the way. So I decided to scoot it out of the office and put it... somewhere else. Where, exactly, I wasn't sure, but I figured I'd work that out once I got it out of the office.

Yeah, this is gonna be fun. There's no way I can carry it across that bit of hard flooring between the office door and everywhere else.

http://imageshack.us/a/img802/8523/chest1y.jpg

But wait! What's that I see? Is it a couple of cheap floor mats left behind by the previous owner, that might be very slide-y if turned upside down? Why yes, yes it is!

http://imageshack.us/a/img441/9589/chest2vp.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img547/5831/chest3.jpg

http://i3.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/471/542/069.jpg

So, that's one problem solved. Now... where to stow the damn thing? Hey, how about right on the other side of the hard bit of flooring, where it can serve as a handy storage unit for all the blankets and winter sweaters my many nonexistent guests are always carrying when they don't show up at my door?

http://imageshack.us/a/img18/1892/chest4k.jpg

Well that'll certainly make it easier for the people who are coming to take it away to get it out my front door. And it only has to sit there for a week and a half before that happens. And I don't have anything else that has to go in that spot at the moment, so it seemed like a good idea.

Then I got to work setting up the living room tv:

http://imageshack.us/a/img802/6592/tv1m.jpg

Looking at that picture, I think there's only one conclusion we can draw: Frau Kaleun needs a much bigger living room tv. :O: But since the chair I'd be watching this one from will only be sitting about 4 feet away from it, due to the many boxes filling up most of the rest of the room, this one will probably do for now. At least there'll be something to hook up to the cable box tomorrow.

And then it was time for lunch!

http://imageshack.us/a/img195/9899/mmmcalzone.jpg

LaRosa's again, a calzone this time, plus a salad for later if I feel peckish this evening, or maybe tomorrow for lunch. Also: first sit-down meal eaten in the condo at a real table, sitting on a real chair. Those milestones just keep piling up, people!

Then it was back to the office. First I got the file cabinet and two bookcases sorted out, which means I finally have one wall of that room with everything where I intend for it to be for keeps.

http://imageshack.us/a/img801/4298/bookcases.jpg

Which means I can finally take my files out of those carrying crates and put them IN the cabinet, which I'd avoided doing because I kept moving the darn thing around so much and it was heavy enough with nothing in it.

And on to the office TV, which is now in place and ready for the cable installation:

http://imageshack.us/a/img9/2124/tv2az.jpg

Still need to set up the bedroom tv, but I don't have any real furniture for that, just something makeshift until I know for sure what I'm gonna do in there... and with no other furniture to speak of in the room getting that set up will not take very long. Probably do that later tonight or tomorrow afternoon before the installer gets here, I've got until at least 2 PM to get it done.

Now I'm gonna take a break and then start going through papers and mail and paying whatever bills need to be paid and balance my accounts and get caught up on all of that. THEN I can file all of that stuff away which will certainly simplify things on the office front, I've got so much paperwork and receipts and manuals and whatnot floating around in here that I haven't had time to go through and couldn't really file away because I wasn't sure where to put it and couldn't risk putting it somewhere and then forgetting what I did with it.

At least with the office somewhat sorted, I can start moving boxes of books in here and stacking them or even unpacking them using the two bookcases I've got up... which will clear up a LOT of space in the other rooms. So that's something. And it feels good to have at least a couple things where they are supposed to go.

Sailor Steve

05-27-13, 06:22 PM

The Chest: Brilliant solution! On the other hand those things are a whole lot lighter if you take the drawers out. :sunny:

The Food: Always easier to work when you're not weak from hunger. I've done the "forgot to eat" thing more than once. It's never as much fun as it sounds.

The Books: It looks like you have an overhang that the shelves barely fit under. I'm not sure I could live without being able to use the top of the shelves for more books. At least it looks like you have room to lay some too-big-for-the-shelf superbooks up there.

The TVses: You have one for every major room in the house. You multitask much better than I do. One TV is all I need to watch stuff, and I can't have it as background. If I have something on it's so I can watch it. Of course I do all my watching on the monitor these days, so what do I know? :dead:

Anyway, LOOKIN' GOOD! :rock:

frau kaleun

05-27-13, 08:06 PM

The Chest: Brilliant solution! On the other hand those things are a whole lot lighter if you take the drawers out. :sunny:

Yes, and fortunately that's usually an option with the home assembly jobs, and is with this one.

But the chest and TV just look so sad and lonely over there by themselves, lol. They'll be much happier when I get something along the rest of that wall. After measuring, I think I'm going to put one 31" bookcase between it and the corner to the right, then move the chest and TV over to the right against that. Then I can put a couple of the tall shallow 7-8" DVD/CD cases to the left of it, between it and the door, for DVDs. Or I could put the matching 15" bookcase there, we'll see how it goes. But that will take care of that wall, anyway. :up:

On the opposite wall - around the corner from the bookcases I've already got - I can put 3 of the 31" cases, with a 15" case in the corner at an angle to "connect" them with the existing ones. Talos bless Ikea and their corner solutions.

I still don't know where I'll store CDs, but I don't really need them in the office since everything I have on CD has been ripped to my computer and I just listen to stuff on the computer if I want music here. But if I turn the dining room into a music room they would probably end up in there, I've already got storage boxes for them anyway, I'd just need something to put those in... probably some kind of media stand since my stereo would most likely end up in there. That's where I had them in the apt, on the shelves under the stereo on the cobbled together thing I've been using as a stereo stand for several years.

I am SO looking forward to unpacking all my books and sorting them and putting them on new shelves. With two shelves up it's all I can do not to start on it now, even though I know most of them would end up staying in boxes. And I've got so much other stuff that NEEDS doing before I even get to that. But the call of my Inner Librarian is very, very loud. :haha:

The Food: Always easier to work when you're not weak from hunger. I've done the "forgot to eat" thing more than once. It's never as much fun as it sounds.

I'm terrible about it. At times like this I'm lucky if I can remember to stop for one decent sized meal a day. Time just gets away from me and I feel hungry but I keep putting it off until I get "one more thing" done but that thing always leads to ten others and before I know it I'm dropping into bed and suddenly realize that my tummy is all rumbly. Hey, at least if I have hot takeout food delivered, it forces me to stop what I'm doing and eat something.

The Books: It looks like you have an overhang that the shelves barely fit under. I'm not sure I could live without being able to use the top of the shelves for more books. At least it looks like you have room to lay some too-big-for-the-shelf superbooks up there.

There's no overhang on the other wall that will be all bookcases, though, and Ikea has "add on" units that match their cases that give you another 12" of of storage space if your ceilings are high enough. Mine are without the overhang so I'm toying with that option where possible. The only drawback is that I really, really want to put cabinet lighting on top of the cases that will be plugged into the hotswitched wall outlet, so they would all come on and illuminate the cases when you walk in the room and flip the switch. Most of the time that would be the primary lighting in here, other than whatever I end up with as a desk lamp. I might put a nice table lamp on the file cabinet, I've got a borrowed one from work on there now and I kind of like having one there altho of course I'd put a lampshade on mine. :haha:

Anyway I can put them on the cases I've got, even with the overhang, but on the other wall... I think if I do the add-on units above the basic cases, there won't be room above them for the lights so I may not get the add-on units. In fact now that I think about it, I will need somewhere to put all my big action figures, I can't just leave Thor and Iron Man and Buzz Lightyear in a Staples box forever and since this is Geek Central for the condo they belong in here anyway. :hmmm:

I used to have them way up on top of the hutch over my old desk but I don't think that will be an option with his one, they wouldn't all fit up there anyway. And of course every time I bumped the desk some of them would fall over and the bookcases are a lot sturdier and will probably be anchored to the wall once I know for sure they are where I want them.

The TVses: You have one for every major room in the house. You multitask much better than I do. One TV is all I need to watch stuff, and I can't have it as background. If I have something on it's so I can watch it. Of course I do all my watching on the monitor these days, so what do I know? :dead:

Oh, see, I use the TV for background noise and "company" a lot of the time. At the moment I'm using internet radio on the computer because it's all I've got access to - the stereo that I brought over the first weekend after I closed got unhooked and scooted out of the way when we moved in all the big stuff. Now if I'm on the computer playing a game or doing something where sound is an integral part of the experience, I don't have the TV on - and usually I'm using headphones for the computer audio. But for anything else, yeah I like the TV on in the background. But I'm a born multitasker, if I don't have at least three things going at once I feel like something's not right, lol.

Anyway, LOOKIN' GOOD! :rock:

Thanks! Just don't look at the man behind the curtain! Or the three hundred unpacked boxes scattered all over the rest of the condo! :O:

Sailor Steve

05-27-13, 09:56 PM

But that will take care of that wall, anyway. :up:
It's cool you have it all planned out, at least one wall. I'm stuck waiting for them to remodel this place before I go buy the two more bookcases I want. I have a special DVD rack that just happens to fit perfectly in the little hall between my bedroom and bathroom.

I still don't know where I'll store CDs, but I don't really need them in the office since everything I have on CD has been ripped to my computer and I just listen to stuff on the computer if I want music here.
Same here. All my CDs live in boxes in the closet.

But the call of my Inner Librarian is very, very loud. :haha:
:rock: I question whether I really need two new cases. It still won't be enough and the plan has always been to read books and then give them away. Still, plans never seem to work out, so who knows?

Time just gets away from me and I feel hungry but I keep putting it off until I get "one more thing" done but that thing always leads to ten others and before I know it I'm dropping into bed and suddenly realize that my tummy is all rumbly.
The four years I worked at the book warehouse I had trouble with my weight. No matter how hard I worked I just couldn't seem to get rid of it. Then I worked four years driving skiers around and I started losing weight. I finally realized that at the warehouse I would eat breakfast, get a burrito off the truck, go out to lunch, eat another snack at break time and then go home and have dinner. Driving I would get a sandwich and soda at 7-11 at 0300 and then head for my first pickup. After three trips up the mountain I would start to get hungry. I would chide myself for eating when I was just sitting all day (the carrying luggage part didn't count), then realize it was 1300 and I hadn't eaten for ten hours! I wish I could go do that again.

Ikea has "add on" units that match their cases that give you another 12" of of storage space if your ceilings are high enough.
I use cheap bookends for the tops. :sunny:

The only drawback is that I really, really want to put cabinet lighting on top of the cases that will be plugged into the hotswitched wall outlet, so they would all come on and illuminate the cases when you walk in the room and flip the switch.
That sounds cool. Not something I would do, but still cool. I used to have a favorite lamp. It was extendable, and pressure-screwed to the floor and ceiling. It had three lamps at different levels. Two made for good backlighting and the third was just the right height for reading.

Thor and Iron Man and Buzz Lightyear in a Staples box forever and since this is Geek Central for the condo they belong in here anyway. :hmmm:
The only action figures I own are a Green Arrow and Black Canary I picked up back in my comic-shop days. They live in boxes though, since I found I don't really care as much as I did at the time.

Oh, see, I use the TV for background noise and "company" a lot of the time.
I've never been able to do that. I listen to an album on my first trip through Subsim every morning, and then kick myself because I didn't hear half of it, and I put in music so I can listen to it. Then again I'm so tired these days that if do nothing but listen I'll fall asleep and miss it anyway. :dead:

Red October1984

05-27-13, 09:58 PM

Thanks! Just don't look at the man behind the curtain! Or the three hundred unpacked boxes scattered all over the rest of the condo! :O:

Oh and if you need a toilet, there's a bucket in the corner. Just be sure to dump it into the crawlspace when you're done. :O:

frau kaleun

05-27-13, 11:56 PM

:rock: I question whether I really need two new cases

See, I never question whether or not I need new bookcases. The problem always was: where to put them? Now I least I don't have that problem... until I run out of shelf space again. That could take a while. Well, we'll see what happens when I get all the books unpacked. They were split up between so many different cases in two different rooms before, I have no idea how much actual shelf space they'll take up when they're all together. Mostly together, as I will probably put martial arts books in the "training room" I'm planning for the upstairs and possibly put the music books on a little shelf I've got set aside for the music room if and when that ever happens. But those are a very small percentage of what I've got.

I use cheap bookends for the tops. :sunny:

That's what I've always done, just used the top of a bookcase as an additional shelf if possible. It leaves open the possibility of putting things besides books up there, and bookends are cheap if you want to put books all the way across. :yep:

That sounds cool. Not something I would do, but still cool.

The reason I want to do it in here is that there is no overhead light and once it gets dark out I think it will be hard to really see what's on the shelves with just a lamp in one spot that's all the way across the room from one of the cases. I'll have a lamp on the desk but I only turn that on when I'm reading or writing something at the desk itself. I like the idea of flipping the switch and having what are essentially small spotlights shining down the front of each case. It will light up the majority of the room but not be a big glaring light that's being reflected by my computer monitor.

If I decide to use the tops of some of the cases for "display" purposes I may also put some LED lights along the top that shine up so Buzz and Thor can be seen in all their glory. On a related note, I probably need to stay off the Ikea website for a while, because it keeps giving me too many ideas that I don't have time for right now. :O:

Oh and if you need a toilet, there's a bucket in the corner. Just be sure to dump it into the crawlspace when you're done. :O:

Lol, with three bathrooms I have no shortage of toilets. What I don't have are freakin' trash cans! I now have three times as many places where I'm likely to end up with trash in my hand and in need of some place to toss it, and so far I only have trash cans in the two bathrooms I actually use. My kitchen trash can is out on the patio because I need to rinse out the liner and I thought it would be easiest to put some dish detergent in the there and then run a little water into it from the spigot out there and swish it around good and then just dump it down the drain in the driveway. But of course I haven't gotten to that yet, I've just been opening a trash bag and tucking it down inside a box sitting on the kitchen floor. :haha:

Red October1984

05-28-13, 01:09 AM

I need a new bookcase bad. I'm switching rooms in the house this summer and I'll finally have enough room for my books. I have book lining the back of my shelf, on top of that layer, in front of that line and on top of the second one to the point that I can't fit anything more in there. I have books hanging on by a thread...and I keep getting more.

I have to stack them beside my shelf now. :sunny:

Frau, there's tons of things you can use for trash cans. You just need a bit of redneck ingenuity. If there's a way, we'll find it. (There are actually people within 15 minutes of my house that use buckets as toilets...They live down by the sewage lagoon of all places. :rotfl2: )

I recommend a two layered plastic bag attached to a bent coat hangar. :O: Bend it in a circle and wrap the bags around it like the rim of a can. If you want you could make a frame too....but it's probably easier just to hang it somewhere easily accessible. It makes for a quick, easy, disposable trash can. :cool:

frau kaleun

05-28-13, 01:22 AM

Oh, I'm real good at making do with what's on hand. Right now I tend to just hang a bag on whatever's handy and toss stuff in there. I've got a plastic grocery bag hanging out of one corner of a drawer next to my desk right now, because I'm going through receipts and paperwork and mail and deciding what can be tossed and what needs to be kept and filed away somewhere.

The problem is not that I don't have trash cans, it's that there are only three that are unpacked AND I know where they are. :haha: And one of them is out on the patio waiting to be rinsed out, so that's inconvenient. The other two are in two of the bathrooms and they are not so convenient when I'm several rooms away trying to get something done and suddenly find my hands full of stuff that needs to be thrown out.

Sailor Steve

05-28-13, 09:18 AM

See, I never question whether or not I need new bookcases.
I wouldn't either, except for the part where ten of the things wouldn't hold the books I currently have in boxes. What I need to do is get rid of the books I don't need. I promised myself that I was going to read the books I picked up while working at the book warehouse and then get rid of them. That was fifteen years ago, and I've read maybe one percent of them.

I've just been opening a trash bag and tucking it down inside a box sitting on the kitchen floor. :haha:
I have a small trash can by my model building table and a medium one by the computer. None in the bathroom. I used to have a big 13-gallon can with a lid for the kitchen, but it disappeared during my last bout with rental storage (I think my old roommate ended up with it - we shared a storage space for a few months). I've been using a big kitchen bag on the floor for almost two years now, since I didn't have a car to go to Wal*Mart. Now I'm wating on this remodelling thing. I don't even put it in a box.

frau kaleun

05-28-13, 01:29 PM

Went to the post office this morning and sent the keys back Express Mail, with delivery guaranteed for tomorrow.

Then I swung by Walmart to pick up some eats and drinks and few other things... saw this as I was in the housewares section looking for shelf liner.

http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/9664/walmarts.jpg

Apparently the local merchants have already been informed of my prowess in the kitchen. :haha:

Got home around noon and ate a little something and got things ready for the cable installation and now I'm just sitting here waiting on them to call to say they're on their way. The window was 2-3 PM and I've heard nothing yet, they were supposed to call 1/2 hour before arrival so I'm getting a little antsy. I'm trying to remember if there was supposed to be some kind of confirmation other than today's phone call but I don't think so, at any rate I haven't gotten anything. :hmmm:

I am so tired, I feel like I could lay down and not get up for a week. When I got up this morning even just moving was a chore. No, scratch that, just standing straight up was a chore. Taking a shower didn't help either. All I want to do right now is go to sleep, c'mon Mr. Cable Installer, let's get this over with. FRAU KALEUN IS GETTING CRANKY AND NEEDS A NAP! :O:

Edit: Yay! He just called and will be here in about 15 minutes. :woot:

Jimbuna

05-28-13, 01:33 PM

Another result then :cool:

Just think, in no time at all you'll be all done and everything will have been worthwhile...or so the saying goes :03:

Wolferz

05-28-13, 01:46 PM

It's all good. Unless the cable guy is named Larry or Jim Carrey or Larry Carrey.:huh:

Red October1984

05-28-13, 02:49 PM

It's all good. Unless the cable guy is named Larry or Jim Carrey or Larry Carrey.:huh:

Weeeeellllll looks like ya'll need a proper cable guy. Look no further than Larry.

frau kaleun

05-28-13, 03:04 PM

:stare:

So the cable guy - who was very nice - looked everywhere and couldn't find whatever box outside he needed to get into to get me hooked up. Maybe no one who lived here ever had cable, I dunno. He even called the property management company and they said no one there knew where it was either.

So he called Time Warner and someone's going to call me tomorrow morning and come out later in the day to do whatever they have to do to tap me into the cable lines out here.

Oh well, at least I'm on vacation and will be home.

Jimbuna

05-28-13, 03:07 PM

I hope your cable doesn't cost as much as mine does!! :o

Wolferz

05-28-13, 03:15 PM

Too bad you don't live around here. This is the birthplace of cable television because of the mountains and valleys making tv reception almost non-existent. So, it was invented hyere in the Pocono mountains of NE PA.
Our cable guys are always prepared to get on the ladder or up a pole to run a drop into the house. My cable connection not only provides television, it also carries our phone service and our high speed internet.
Does your condo have buried utilities or something?

AVGWarhawk

05-28-13, 03:25 PM

I hope your cable doesn't cost as much as mine does!! :o

It is amazing what we spend on internet to see Frau assemble a desk. :hmmm:

Jimbuna

05-28-13, 03:31 PM

It is amazing what we spend on internet to see Frau assemble a desk. :hmmm:

Well as Woferz has stated, mine is identical because the package contains tv, phone and internet.

my monthly fee is close to £90 per calendar month....the downside being if the cable develops a fault, you lose the lot :-?

Wolferz

05-28-13, 04:25 PM

It is amazing what we spend on internet to see Frau assemble a desk. :hmmm:

Real life is far more entertaining than anything on television.:yep:

frau kaleun

05-28-13, 04:43 PM

Our cable guys are always prepared to get on the ladder or up a pole to run a drop into the house. My cable connection not only provides television, it also carries our phone service and our high speed internet.
Does your condo have buried utilities or something?

I don't know, he was looking all over for a tap box and couldn't find one. So maybe they are underground. The management company couldn't tell him where it was, and he called his people at Time Warner to see if anyone had done any work out here and knew what the deal was with hooking people up. No luck.

Well as Woferz has stated, mine is identical because the package contains tv, phone and internet.

my monthly fee is close to £90 per calendar month....the downside being if the cable develops a fault, you lose the lot :-?

I don't know what the conversion is, but mine will probably cost me upwards of $120-130 a month. It was over a hundred bucks a month before with just two boxes. I'll be adding a third (provided they can actually run a line to the bedroom for me without doing anything that requires HOA permission) and "whole house DVR" so I can record things on one box and watch them anywhere.

It probably would be cheaper to bundle my internet with cable but, as you've said, the issue there is that if your cable goes out and they are providing all your entertainment and communication services, you're basically screwed. They used to try to sell me the bundle at the apt but even though my cable rarely went out it still went out more frequently than anything else. If there was a power outage in the neighborhood just up the road from us, my cable would go out because one of their boxes up there would lose power. So even though we had power, we had no cable. If I'd had my phone and internet through them I would've lost all of that too and had a houseful of fancy gadgets all plugged in and juiced up but still useless. No thanks. At least with separate providers if my cable goes out I've got internet, if my internet goes out I've got still got TV.

Of course if the electricity goes out, it's all gone, but that's Duke Energy's fault. :O:

I did manage to get my media player hooked up and reconnected to my wireless network, so I do have access to content from Netflix and Amazon Prime and whatever else is available that way.

And BTW Amazon Prime has added Das Boot to their collection of movies, so if you're a member you can watch it for free. I've got it streaming in the other room right now. :up: Of course I *do* already have... uh... three, maybe four copies of it on DVD/BluRay, but I don't know where any of them are. :haha:

Wolferz

05-28-13, 08:04 PM

If your utility lines are buried, there won't be any utility poles on the streets with wires and such strung between them. Your electrical service will run through some surface mounted green boxes that are usually set on a corner. If there are utility poles along the streets, the cable guy should have run another drop from their lines and installed a connector box on the outside of your condo. What was his problem? Lazy? or just not prepared for an unwired home? The fun part will be running the cabling indoors to your three converter boxes. That part shouldn't be too bad if your condo has a basement or attic. Fishing wires into walls is a total pain in the posterior.
If it were me, I'd be calling those folks and asking why they sent a greenhorn tech to connect you.
Extremely unprofessional on their part.:stare:

Cybermat47

05-28-13, 08:10 PM

Cable TV? Never needed it, on account of living on a hill :smug:

Red October1984

05-28-13, 08:41 PM

Cable TV? Never needed it, on account of living on a hill :smug:

Satellite? Or just plain analog? Nobody uses analog anymore. :hmmm:

AVGWarhawk

05-28-13, 09:18 PM

I have the bundle deal. They just think it is so wonderful bundling you. I almost feel like a baby. Until the bundle starts developing diaper rash in the form of premium HD channels. All the movie channels. Rental of boxes. DVR is additional. Soon your introductory offer of $99.99/month is now $199.00/month. Then add all the taxes. Anyway, the Verizon Fios has worked well over the years. I really can't complain but it is a drain on the wallet. I really don't know how else to witness a desk assembly, refrigerator alcove construction, hole saw drill bit debacle and clever movement of a dresser over a wood floor using left behind carpets. It's epic and at my finger tips. :up: What's not to like about cable?

Red October1984

05-28-13, 09:33 PM

What's not to like about cable?

When you buy cable, you have problems.

When you have problems, you call the cable guy.

While waiting for the cable guy to arrive, you get bored.

When you get bored, you see things you aren't supposed to see.

When you see things you aren't supposed to see, you fake your own death.

When you fake your own death, you attend you're own funeral as a guy named Phil Schiffly.

Don't attend your own funeral as a guy named Phil Schiffly. Buy DirecTV. :arrgh!:

vienna

05-28-13, 09:38 PM

There is a TV commercial airing for an antenna to facilitate analog reception. One of the selling points is how the price of cable/dish and other services has become so expensive, the price often exceeds the cost of a monthly car payment. Is it just my failing memory or weren't we all going to have a large price benefit do to deregulation of the pay television industry due to "increased competition"?...

<O>

Sailor Steve

05-28-13, 10:14 PM

Buy DirecTV. :arrgh!:
Interesting advice from someone who doesn't pay for any of it.

I got cable internet. $29.99 for six months of 20 mbps. I moved, so they re-upped the offer for another six months. Then it went to $69.99 per month. I downgraded past 12 mbps to 6, which was "only" $39.99. After taxes, licences and fees I pay around $47.

Just two days ago I had a guy from DirectTV tell me he could get me Internet and TV for "only" $55. I told him I didn't have a television and I didn't need or want one. He told me they didn't carry Internet alone and he couldn't match that.

Come back when you know what you're talking about.

Red October1984

05-28-13, 10:58 PM

Interesting advice from someone who doesn't pay for any of it.

I got cable internet. $29.99 for six months of 20 mbps. I moved, so they re-upped the offer for another six months. Then it went to $69.99 per month. I downgraded past 12 mbps to 6, which was "only" $39.99. After taxes, licences and fees I pay around $47.

Just two days ago I had a guy from DirectTV tell me he could get me Internet and TV for "only" $55. I told him I didn't have a television and I didn't need or want one. He told me they didn't carry Internet alone and he couldn't match that.

Come back when you know what you're talking about.

:shifty:

All I did was quote the commercial. :03: Wasn't being serious...

Sailor Steve

05-29-13, 01:23 AM

:shifty:

All I did was quote the commercial. :03: Wasn't being serious...
I don't know any commercials made after about 1990. You should have said so.

Sorry if I ranted. I react badly to people telling me what I "should" do.

Red October1984

05-29-13, 01:27 AM

I don't know any commercials made after about 1990. You should have said so.

Sorry if I ranted. I react badly to people telling me what I "should" do.

It's alright. :smug: I'm tough.

Just turn the page and start over. :) We can't focus on our mistakes all the time.

Wolferz

05-29-13, 07:29 AM

frau kaleun

05-29-13, 10:31 AM

DirectTV isn't all it's cracked up to be. Just like their silly commercials.
It's been my experience that.... the cuter the commercial, the crumbier the product. Suckering in the weak minded with clever ads equals Bovine Scatterings.

You get signal loss every time it rains or snows or a bird takes a dump on your dish. Their internet service is download only because the dish isn't equipped to transmit data back up to a satellite. It can only receive. Making it necessary to have some kind of land line internet connection so, why bother?

All we need now is for Frau to install some web cams in her condo and start a live feed website so we can watch her "getting things done.":03:

I can't wait for the shelf liner episode.:up:

Lol I lined the shelves in my walk-closet this morning. The ones in the kitchen are pretty much done, I think there may be a couple drawers in the master bathroom that I didn't bother with because they were clean and I haven't really put much in there yet. The half bath vanity cupboard is lined, the guest bath upstairs I'm not even bothering with at all yet... really the only major shelf lining to be done is the linen closet, and that is a relatively tight space and the shelves angle back into a corner so one end of each of them is... a triangular shape instead of squared off. Should be interesting, I'll keep you posted. :up:

Time Warner called this morning and they are supposed to have someone out here by noon. I emailed the HOA last night hoping for some info but so far, no response.

Cincinnati Bell sells DirectTV bundled into their other services. I considered it but only heard negative feedback... my sister has Dish Network or whatever at her house, they considered DirectTV as well when they switched from cable and the guy who sells DirectTV there advised them against it. He said he had switched to Dish himself because DirectTV wasn't reliable enough and the signal was always going out. :haha:

At any rate, I wouldn't be allowed to mount a dish on the condo, the only option would be to set it up on a tripod in my little courtyard and getting a clear signal from the proper direction in that location would probably be very difficult. So cable it is. Sometimes the devil you know is the best alternative. :O:

Red October1984

05-29-13, 10:34 AM

Jimbuna

05-29-13, 11:36 AM

I don't know what the conversion is, but mine will probably cost me upwards of $120-130 a month.

Approximately $1.50 to the £ so that works out at about £87 which is close to what I'm paying for Internet, TV and Phone.

Pretty much the same.

frau kaleun

05-29-13, 12:34 PM

Approximately $1.50 to the £ so that works out at about £87 which is close to what I'm paying for Internet, TV and Phone.

Pretty much the same.

Yeah, except for me that's just what I'm paying for TV, not the whole kielbasa. :O:

But let me just say that Jerome from Time Warner is AWESOME. He got here right before noon, looked at the two cable boxes already attached to the condo, and said he had no idea what it was the guy yesterday couldn't find because obviously that's where the lines go into the condo. :88)

So then he said he remembered working out here before and that the whole setup regarding how the lines were run just never seemed right to him and "condos are always fishy." He tracked my cables to where they were hooked up to the main line and checked the signal and said it was crappy because the cables were so old and probably hadn't been serviced since the 90s which was the date he found on the tags on some of them.

He also couldn't figure out why mine were running to a box way around the corner and down a hill and whatnot when there was another box right across the yard. So he calls his "underground guys" and tells them he needs them here ASAP to hook me up to the box across the yard. Then he did all the interior work and put the lines down outside so all the underground guys have to do is come run the little slit through the yard and bury the cables. They got here before he left so he was able to show them exactly what needed to be done.

In the meantime he also called his dispatcher and told her he was getting me hooked up and needed one of the techs to come out and bring my new cable boxes and get those set up and get the whole house DVR thing working. That guy will be here between three and four today. :yeah:

He said when that guy gets here, if he has any problems, tell him the tap box is the one straight across the yard behind that bush. If he still can't figure it out, I can call him and he'll explain it to the other installer himself. :haha:

Can't get a line run to the bedroom today, unfortunately, since that's gonna be more complicated and this is already complicated enough. But at least I'll have working cable into the condo. Jerome said there was an old splitter on the line running into the room directly under the bedroom, like maybe there was a line running up the wall to the upstairs at one point... but there's no jacks up there so it's a mystery. The wall doesn't look patched either where a jack was taken out so maybe someone intended to run a line but just never did.

Wolferz

05-29-13, 12:36 PM

The American dream of home ownership.

You have to be asleep to believe it.

You burn up your pay buying a home and the little piece of terra firma that it's sitting on, only to discover that you're still paying rent in the form of property taxes. Nothing proper about that whatsoever.
And you, my dear Frau, are also burdened by a bunch of stuck up fellow condo owners who want to dictate what your property looks like. It's kind of like being in the military where the order of the day is everyone looks the same no matter what.:/\\!!
Ah, life in these united states. What a nightmare!:hmmm:

But, still, it's nice to dream. Even if the dream doesn't really come true in the truest sense.
If I was to buy one of those condos, there would be a Rebel flag flying 24/7/365.:rock:
It's not all bad I guess...
A little further south of you in the city of Lexington, they have grass police who enforce the city ordinance on how high your bluegrass can grow.:stare:.

Sailor Steve

05-29-13, 12:38 PM

Always nice when you find one of the good ones :rock:

I've actually had that happen a couple of times with the legal system. :sunny:

Jimbuna

05-29-13, 01:09 PM

Yeah, except for me that's just what I'm paying for TV, not the whole kielbasa. :O:

Oh...that is a bit expensive sounding then :o

Well done on the cable situation...you obviously came across someone with the required level of skill and expertise :yeah:

Wolferz

05-29-13, 01:16 PM

I hope your previous tech gets a reprimand for being too lazy to do his job.

Dang kids! You can't have anything these days.
Here at my home, I've had my share of ignorant techies come to work on my cable. To their surprise they discover that I know as much about what they're doing as they do. Some of them more.:haha:
Well, not to toot my own wind instrument, I do have a degree in Electronics.:know:
Considering what we pay per month for our service, they have no choice but to bend over backwards and crab walk for us.:03: The wife added an extra layer of co-operation by befriending one of the ladies in their offices.:D
The best tech they ever sent was a former pro wrestler. He really knew his shtuff and allowed the stepson(a huge wrestling fan) to quiz him on the industry at length. A very nice fellow indeed.

frau kaleun

05-29-13, 02:09 PM

Nothing that was done required HOA permission... or rather I just assumed that it didn't, and it won't matter now because Jerome said that once the underground guys were done no one would ever know they'd been here. And he was pretty much right:

http://imageshack.us/a/img707/875/photo113p.jpg

You can just barely see a line snaking across the grass where they buried the cable... and other than a little dirt on the sidewalk where they dug to go under it

http://imageshack.us/a/img812/6773/photo114k.jpg

that's the only sign that anything was done. And I've already swept away the dirt. :up:

All in all I've had great experiences with Time Warner, other than the guy who was here yesterday - and to be fair, he came only to flip a switch to give me a hot cable and then do stuff inside. He woudn't have been able to do what needed to be done even if he'd known exactly what that was going to be, and at least he *did* realize that they needed another type of service crew out here to get me hooked up. Jerome was able to look at the cables and know they were bad and that the original hookup wasn't gonna provide great service, and from that point on he took care of everything.

The last Time Warner guy I had in my apt came to replace a bad box and after he got it hooked up he sat there on the floor with his laptop and looked up my model of TV online and got the remotes and went through all the settings both on the TV and the new cable box to optimize everything for my particular setup. He was great too, and even the people I've dealt with over the phone have all been topnotch as far as attitude and service. That's one reason I've stuck with them all these years. My friend in NKY has been stuck with Insight since she moved there and says she would kill to have Time Warner again. So it's all relative.

The inside installation tech should be here within the next hour and then I'll have cable in two rooms at least. And then I won't get ANYTHING done, lol.

I wonder if I could just put an outlet in the upstairs bedroom myself and snake some cable down and run a splitter off the hot line that I'll have in the living room. Not sure how that would work with the whole house DVR thing, though, as all the boxes have to be able to talk to each other. :hmmm:

But according to Jerome that's the reason he ran only one line from the tap box to my condo, and then ran splitter off the main line into my condo to the other hookup... so the "talking to each other" part would already be set up and no additional connections would have to be run to handle that.

I dunno. Another job to consider on another day.

Just about got all my extraneous computer crap off the floor and into the chest in the office, buying that thing was really a good idea. :know: Almost getting to the point where I can start moving boxes of books in here, which will ease things up in the other rooms considerably.

But I started putting clothes away in my closet upstairs this morning and what I didn't get to yet are still piled on the bed so maybe I should finish that first if I don't want to end up sleeping on the floor tonight. :haha:

Wolferz

05-29-13, 02:56 PM

Prioritize dear girl. Prioritize.:D

NO wire hangers.

frau kaleun

05-29-13, 03:20 PM

Prioritize dear girl. Prioritize.:D

NO wire hangers.

http://rogeronimo.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Mommie-Dearest.jpg

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/8306/nowirehangers.jpg

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g9Z9BW-QOkQ/UY6TRL9N8kI/AAAAAAAAMnQ/h-wQemAq4LA/s640/Mommie+Dearest+pic2.jpg

Jimbuna

05-29-13, 04:16 PM

Mother nature should obliterate any traces in a week or two.

Wolferz

05-29-13, 06:01 PM

You've made mommy dearest very happy.:03:

Have a Pepsi.:D

Wolferz

05-30-13, 11:30 AM

For being so critical in regard to your first cable tech.
I just can't help myself after being a member of the US military where excuses don't fly very far. If you're ate up, you're ate up and it's up to the individual to square themselves away or face the consequences. Maybe that's what was wrong with that technician. He's faced no consequences for his actions or inactions in this case.
Does it do him any good? Does he learn anything from his mistakes?
Probably not. So he'll continue providing substandard service to his customers. The people who butter his bread.
In two of my previous careers, lackadaisical performance on my part would equal possible death for my customers and their guests. Hospitals, schools, business offices, nursing homes etc etc
It's made me less than forgiving of poor performance.
Ah well, that's life I guess. It will be a pity when he learns the lesson and there's no butter for his bread. He'll be burnt toast.:shifty:

Not having my ducks in a row makes me quackers.:haha:

WernherVonTrapp

05-30-13, 12:21 PM

Thanks!

Yep. And hopefully my last. :O:That's what I thought when I bought my first town house. Then, Life threw some changes at me that were beyond my control and I discovered about something called equity. Then, all of a sudden, one thing lead to another and I found myself buying another house in an area I thought I'd never live in.:D

CaptainHaplo

05-30-13, 04:00 PM

Blast - my bid on one place just got sidetracked - it was a backup but the deal went through with the original buyers.

Still looking for mine. Modular on land (and a basement) looks better and better....

frau kaleun

05-30-13, 09:41 PM

Okay guys when do I stop feeling tired?

I had a dentist appt early this afternoon up in Hamiton so I decided that since I would be in the neighborhood I would drop the carpet cleaner off at my sister's afterwards and then go shopping with my Menards gift card since the only location nearby is up that way as well.

Was mostly looking for a lamp for the office but couldn't find anything I liked so since there was also a Target up there I took my Target gift card over there but couldn't find anything I wanted in there either.

Then since there was a Panera next door and I also had a Panera gift card I stopped in there to get some takeout for dinner. When I was getting back in the car I noticed that my left front tire looked low, which I'd noticed last week as well but just kinda forgot about with everything else going on. So I decided to swing by my Tires Plus on the way home to have them check the air.

Well, the mech right away noticed that I had a nail in that tire, lol, which certainly explained why I kept thinking it looked low, cuz the air was very slowly leaking out and probably had been for a couple weeks or who knows how long. They were about a half hour from closing with no other customers and he said he could get it all patched up right then if I wanted to wait... so I ate my dinner in the Tires Plus waiting room. Didn't take him very long and I know it was good that I stopped because it did turn out there was a problem but, man, by the time I walked out of there I was just dead. I think I would've been LESS tired if I'd stayed home all day unpacking boxes.

Anyhow the day wasn't a total loss shopping-wise, as I did find a couple things at Menards to use my gift card on:

http://imageshack.us/a/img59/7302/menards.jpg

On the left, some snips to snip off the little bit of my outside range hood vent flap that is getting blocked by a brick and thus not allowing it to flap open all the way to vent the fan in the kitchen. At least I *hope* those will do the job, as my BiL said a pair of tin snips is all it would take and the label says "Tinner Snips" but what do I know, lol. Anyway they are supposed to cut sheet metal so they should get the job done whenever I can be arsed to drag the stepladder out there and do it.

The items on the right were the find of the day, as they change one of the banes of my existence - namely, this:

http://imageshack.us/a/img200/6456/ihatecoaxialcables.jpg

the unwieldy, uncooperative coaxial cable outlet and accompanying cable that insists on sticking several inches out from the wall - into this:

http://imageshack.us/a/img109/3268/muchbetternow.jpg

The other and much bigger accomplishment of the past 24 hours is that I started unpacking books and piling them on the two cases I've already got, which has freed up space in the living room considerably.

Around noon today I was this far along:

http://imageshack.us/a/img405/9936/photo116g.jpg

And after I got home and recovered a bit I buckled down and started again and got to here:

http://imageshack.us/a/img541/9430/photo119n.jpg

That's about 21 boxes unpacked so far. They're deep cases so the books are shoved in three deep in places and they are still completely unsorted, but at least they're out of boxes and off the floor and the boxes have been broken down and can be stored flat somewhere for the time being. :yeah:

Also put a couple small temporary old cases in place to stack DVDs, once I get to them (they're somewhere behind the boxes of books, lol) until I get some permanent storage in place:

http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/2663/dvdstorage.jpg

And now I'm gonna get caught up on "Mad Men" and then... I don't know what, but collapsing into bed sounds like a good idea. :O:

Sailor Steve

05-31-13, 01:34 AM

Congratulations on another day well spent. With all those books on their sides, how do you get one off the bottom? If I did that the one I was looking for would always be on the bottom.

Jimbuna

05-31-13, 07:31 AM

A couple more jobs done :cool:

Wolferz

05-31-13, 07:34 AM

A lot of those books appear to be paperbacks. Those don't react well to vertical storage.
I still want to watch...
Getting things doon with Frau Kaleun.:up:

frau kaleun

05-31-13, 08:09 AM

The books aren't going to stay that way. I just wanted to get as many as possible off the floor and out of boxes, so I packed them in there any which way temporarily. That's like two dozen boxes that are no longer taking up space in another room. Now I've actually got space to start moving things around more freely and unpack other stuff.

AVGWarhawk

05-31-13, 08:25 AM

Ah, a new episode of "Following Frau. The Book Debacle." :)

frau kaleun

05-31-13, 09:05 AM

Ah, a new episode of "Following Frau. The Book Debacle." :)

Well, it's almost over. I only have six boxes left - one will go upstairs cuz they're all martial arts books, two small ones will stay packed for now because they're all Terry Pratchett books and since they're the only ones that are sorted out I see no reason to unsort them by piling them on shelves with everything else. At least one of the other three I can unpack into the case. Don't know about the other two yet, they're bigger and may have to stay packed for now. But they should all fit in the office somewhere, so that's a lot of space to work in freed up elsewhere.

If you want a fullblown debacle, you may have to wait until I foolishly decide to try putting in the new range hood myself. :haha:

Sailor Steve

05-31-13, 09:12 AM

A lot of those books appear to be paperbacks. Those don't react well to vertical storage.
Hmm. I always stack 'em upright. Then again I have so many there's no space for them to sag or anything.

The books aren't going to stay that way.
Ah. Now I begin to have a glimmer of understanding.

Only a glimmer, though. :88)

Wolferz

05-31-13, 09:35 AM

You stack 'em any old way you want doll baby.:) Maybe that's why they call them stacks in the library.:D

My books are all vertical in the stacks but, I have enough to fill the shelves and the paper backs have no room to sag and get all bendy.
Perhaps a nice set of gargoyle book ends could ease the disarray?:hmmm:

Range hood? Should be pretty straight forward unless your range is in an open island and not against a wall.

Don't forget the fire extinguisher...
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb295/Wolferz_2007/024600000239p.jpg (http://s205.photobucket.com/user/Wolferz_2007/media/024600000239p.jpg.html)

frau kaleun

05-31-13, 09:52 AM

My books are all vertical in the stacks but, I have enough to fill the shelves and the paper backs have no room to sag and get all bendy.
Perhaps a nice set of gargoyle book ends could ease the disarray?:hmmm:

What will ease the disarray is the purchase of the several additional bookcases I want for that room. But first things first, right now I wouldn't have enough open floor space to put them together and set them up.

Range hood? Should be pretty straight forward unless your range is in an open island and not against a wall.

Nope, it's against the wall, duct for the vent leads straight out to the exterior. I'm not concerned about physically getting it into the space, it's dealing with the venting and electrical aspects since I've never really done that before, it will have to be hardwired in so I want to make sure what I'm dealing with before I start. Once I get the space cleared in the kitchen I'll get the new one out of the box and read the docs and see what's involved, check out some how-to stuff online... and see if I want to mess with it myself or not.

In more exciting news, I just found the PERFECT table lamp for my office... after looking at stuff and just finding more of the same old same old with butt ugly shades and no personality I suddenly thought... why I am looking at all this nondescript boring stuff? And that's when I found this:

http://www.museumreplicas.com/images/PRODUCT/large/2084.jpg

That's right - it's an Obi-Wan Kenobi Jedi Lightsaber Lamp (http://www.museumreplicas.com/p-2084-obi-wan-kenobi-jedi-lightsaber-lamp.aspx). Seriously people HOW COULD I NOT BUY THIS? Sadly not available through Amazon, altho a couple other lamps from the series are and they are both very highly rated. Did a search and found it still for sale at the other site and took a chance. Now I'll probably hang one of my framed Star Wars posters on the wall over that file cabinet as well. Still debating on which one, as I probably won't keep both... the Special Edition poster is bigger and prettier but I also have a replica of one of the original posters and, well, the original IS the original. Maybe I'd like it better if the frame was prettier. :hmmm:

Don't forget the fire extinguisher...

I see you are familiar with my general history in the kitchen. :haha:

Jimbuna

05-31-13, 10:17 AM

That is one very cool lamp :cool:

Wolferz

05-31-13, 11:38 AM

I see you are familiar with my general history in the kitchen. :haha:

Nah, not really. It's just better to be safe than sorry.:03:
A box of salt can be invaluable in the kitchen. It will put out a pan fire and can be thrown into the eyes of a would be food critic prior to the karate throw.:haha:

You don't cook like my wife do you?
From the living room or anywhere else besides the kitchen?:huh:
She did manage to cause a pan fire once in the past. Insurance took care of the two cleanups. Once to clean the smoke damage and redo the cabinets, and once to clean from the cleanup. They sanded the cabinets, refinished them and then just left all the dust where it landed.:shifty:

Now, if I may be so bold...
Get off the compuchiper and get back to work.:smug:
I'm running I'm running
I'm not running.
You're deceptively fast Frau Kaleun.:rock:

frau kaleun

05-31-13, 06:03 PM

Surprise of the day: the water spigot on my patio leaks like mad, right at the shutoff valve. Turned on the water supply to run a little water into my kitchen trash can liner to wash it and dump the water down the sewer drain in the driveway, and noticed it was leaking a little bit then.

Just got the hose down from the storage loft in the garage and hooked it up so I could drag the recycling bin out into the driveway and rinse it out and when I turned on the spigot again... MAJOR leakage. Probably turning it off and on the first time made worse whatever is wrong, which is probably that it's old and caked up and looks like it might not have been turned on at all for who knows how long.

So, there's another item on the To Do List.

Still need to get that recycling bin rinsed out, though, it's pretty nasty and I don't even want it sitting in the storage room like that. Maybe I'll find a plastic pitcher somewhere and put some hot soapy water in it and carry it out there. :hmmm:

Problem is the bin has drainage holes in the bottom so I can't let water sit in it to swish around and then give it a good soak. That's why I wanted to hose it down instead. Well, there's probably another spigot around the side for the landscaping people, maybe I'll look for that. At any rate it's been raining off and on all afternoon and just started again so this job might get put off until tomorrow anyway.

Off to Lowes.com to look at outdoor spigots, lol.

Wolferz

05-31-13, 06:44 PM

The spigot probably just needs the packing replaced. An inexpensive fix.

If you do replace it, I'd suggest a frost free model.

WernherVonTrapp

05-31-13, 08:19 PM

The spigot probably just needs the packing replaced. An inexpensive fix.

If you do replace it, I'd suggest a frost free model.Maybe the "packing nut", located right beneath the handle, just needs to be tightened a little. If that doesn't work, follow Wolferz's advice and have it replaced with a frost free spigot.

Wolferz

05-31-13, 08:54 PM

Frau Kaleun ain't skeered of no spigot, Wern.
She'll fix it or wrestle a new one on there herself.:up:
She is Dragonborn ya know.:03:

Good woman...
Fix spigot,
Pull plow,
Bring home bacon,
Fry it up in a pan.
:yeah:

If you're really in a pinch and just posilutely need to wash that tote, you could hook your garden hose up to the water heater drain bib and run the hose outside. It would kill two birds with one stone.
Washing the tote and getting rid of the sediment that builds up in the bottom of the heater.

frau kaleun

05-31-13, 09:48 PM

Maybe the "packing nut", located right beneath the handle, just needs to be tightened a little. If that doesn't work, follow Wolferz's advice and have it replaced with a frost free spigot.

I don't know if it's even possible to tighten anything I didn't already try that on, and the whole thing seemed so hinky that I was afraid if I did too much something would break off and then I'd really have a mess before I could get back inside to the shutoff valve for that line.

Hmm, I wonder if this would be covered under my home warranty? :hmmm:

At any rate - here's a picture of it.

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/7531/leakyspigot.jpg

From what I could tell, the water is coming out from right under where the wheel thingy is that you turn. And that thing just felt looser and looser every time I turned it, I was afraid it was going to break off entirely. I didn't try tightening the screw in the middle that's holding it on because by then it started raining and I wasn't gonna do any more out there anyway.

In happier news, my Obi Wan Kenobi Lightsaber lamp has already shipped!

Also, my storage room is finally coming together, for now at least, pending a new floor in there so I can really trick it out. Just got whatever extra shelving and storage stuff I had out there for the time being.

http://imageshack.us/a/img248/7513/storage2e.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img94/452/storage1gi.jpg

And all the books are now in the office... except for one box of martial arts books that went upstairs with the other MA stuff. Got all but 3 1/2 boxes of the rest on the two cases where they will stay until I get some more bookcases in there.

http://imageshack.us/a/img580/6365/photo125x.jpg

frau kaleun

05-31-13, 09:56 PM

Frau Kaleun ain't skeered of no spigot, Wern.
She'll fix it or wrestle a new one on there herself.:up:
She is Dragonborn ya know.:03:

Good woman...
Fix spigot,
Pull plow,
Bring home bacon,
Fry it up in a pan.
:yeah:

And all I'm asking
Is for a little respect when you come home.
R E S P E C T
Find out what it means to me
Sockittomesockittomesockitomesockitomesockitomesoc kitomesockitomesockitome Whoa yeah!

If you're really in a pinch and just posilutely need to wash that tote, you could hook your garden hose up to the water heater drain bib and run the hose outside. It would kill two birds with one stone.
Washing the tote and getting rid of the sediment that builds up in the bottom of the heater.

That would be a great idea except for all I know at this point the hose isn't leak-free either. :O:

Wolferz

06-01-13, 07:10 AM

That would be a great idea except for all I know at this point the hose isn't leak-free either. :O:

Replace rubber washer in the connector...
Still leaks? Replace hose.:03:

We gots nothing but respect for you.
Wash the tote in the bath tub.
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb295/Wolferz_2007/windsock_big.gif (http://s205.photobucket.com/user/Wolferz_2007/media/windsock_big.gif.html)

frau kaleun

06-01-13, 02:13 PM

Project #1 for today, status: finished.

Remember this?

http://imageshack.us/a/img38/3333/05112013m.jpg

The dreaded "water line through the pantry cupboard" dilemma.

Wanted some way to still use part of that space while protecting the water line, so I decided to put a shelf all the way from front to back above where the holes were drilled through for the line. Keeps the line safe and makes it unnecessary to look at the ugliness where they ripped the baseboard off and didn't replace it or paint the wall down to the floor.

Step 1: put something in to support shelf. I had some bricks that needed to be put to use, so that part was easy. Got the line threaded through the left side of the cupboard and then got the bricks in there.

http://imageshack.us/a/img7/6990/pantry1.jpg

Step 2: measure space and go to local Woodcraft store and find some suitable wood, then kindly ask one of the dudes there if he'll cut them down to the required size. Bring home wood and cover shelf piece with shelf liner.

http://imageshack.us/a/img845/3263/pantry2.jpg

Step 3: Slide everything into place and.. ta da!

http://imageshack.us/a/img189/1300/pantry3.jpg

Now I don't have to worry about the water line but can still access it just by flipping up the shelf and removing it. :yeah:

Coming up next on a very special episode of This Old Condo: Door Panels And You!

Wolferz

06-01-13, 02:56 PM

You are a right handy woman.:)

I'll see your line and raise you a spigot.:D
You really bricked that one.:03:

frau kaleun

06-01-13, 03:35 PM

Project #2: the recycling bin. I bit the bullet and washed it out by hand since I haven't dealt with the leaky patio spigot yet. But it wasn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be, and now it's all cleaned up and back in the storage room.

http://imageshack.us/a/img818/4021/recbin.jpg

Project #3: the kitchen fan vent. Exterior flap was a bit too long and one end was unable to move freely because in the eternal battle between flimsy tin vent flaps and brick masonry the brick ALWAYS wins. :O:

http://imageshack.us/a/img812/1377/vent1.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img191/6387/vent2k.jpg

One pair of tin snips later, problem solved!

http://imageshack.us/a/img600/289/vent3.jpg

I also stopped by the office when I was out this morning get that stuff for the pantry... a couple of the things I ordered had arrived while I was off for the week and I wanted to pick those up. One of which was... WAIT FOR IT...

http://imageshack.us/a/img829/9983/trashcan.jpg

Yes, the official FK's Office Trash Can is no longer a plastic Walmart bag hanging precariously from the doorknob. :D

Door panel update: the door panels are in the dryer. Repeat: THE DOOR PANELS ARE IN THE DRYER! :woot:

Sailor Steve

06-01-13, 04:56 PM

frau kaleun

06-01-13, 08:01 PM

That's the infamous recycling bin? I was thinking one of those giant blue things you wheel out to the street every week!

The closet is cool. The vent is cool. The wastebasket is cool.

It's all cool! :rock:

Thanks, I feel like I'm getting quite a bit done. Of course it's not what I *should* be getting done, like unpacking more boxes and putting my kitchen in order, but I tend to get fixated on certain projects and then can't focus on anything else until I get them done.

Project #4 today was taking on the wild tropical jungle that was quickly gaining mastery of my courtyard patio.

It was this

http://imageshack.us/a/img29/6231/patioz.jpg

versus this

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41DS4cZt7dL._SY355_.jpg

Sadly I only got about 2/3 finished before I ran out, but at least I'll soon have a really good idea of how good it works, lol. I was just out there again and the two big weeds right in front of the gate already looked droopy and sad.

AND THEN THE DOOR PANELS CAME OUT OF THE DRYER. Which led to...

*cue Jaws music*

http://imageshack.us/a/img823/6773/ironp.jpg

So, Mr. Iron... we meet again at last.

About an hour and two thousand curse words later, I remembered why I hate buying sheer curtains and why they so rarely get taken down and washed once I have them up. :haha:

But on to the good part, remember these?

http://imageshack.us/a/img5/198/curtainsu.jpg

I do, cuz I'VE BEEN LOOKING AT THEM EVERY DAY FOR THE LAST MONTH. Got those things out of there and gave the frames and glass a good cleaning, inside and out.

http://imageshack.us/a/img593/2848/doorsv.jpg

At last it was time for the new door panels to take their rightful place in a kitchen free of ruffly blue curtains! But first, new curtain rods

http://imageshack.us/a/img825/4103/curtainrods.jpg

to replace the shiny "chrome" finish ones that came with the curtains and kept coming down or apart every time I touched them.

So far, so good!

http://imageshack.us/a/img163/9239/panelse.jpg

And now for the tiebacks... uh...

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM.

http://imageshack.us/a/img546/2230/tiebackswtf.jpg

Okay, why do they call them "tiebacks" if you CAN'T ACTUALLY TIE THEM? :stare: There was no way to use them at all the way they came in the package. They should call them "Must Be Sewn Yourself Backs" or perhaps "We Hope You Have Some Pins Handy Backs." :/\\!!

To be continued!

frau kaleun

06-01-13, 08:03 PM

Project #5 continued:

Well, I could've sewn them if I wanted to plow through a bunch of boxes looking for my sewing basket, but if I did that I wouldn't be able to take them down again without cutting them and that wasn't acceptable. And of course all my straight pins are also in my sewing basket. So I turned to my Magic Fixit Box to see what I might have that would do in a pinch.

http://imageshack.us/a/img189/5075/fixitbox.jpg

Wait - what's this? Hmmm... I seem to remember these things having a somewhat Velcro-like quality...

http://imageshack.us/a/img189/6600/ahai.jpg

Now... where did I put my scissors?

http://imageshack.us/a/img826/1559/aha2.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img823/3801/aha3y.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img707/3663/aha4.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img198/5738/aha5.jpg

http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/138/244/funny-barack-michelle-obama-face.jpg?1308706785

http://i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/380/373/03a.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img834/289/doorpanels.jpg

Now to have some dinner and relax a bit and then... who knows? I might go nuts unpacking stuff all night. Either that or I collapse into bed. One of the two. :O:

WernherVonTrapp

06-01-13, 09:37 PM

I don't know if it's even possible to tighten anything I didn't already try that on, and the whole thing seemed so hinky that I was afraid if I did too much something would break off and then I'd really have a mess before I could get back inside to the shutoff valve for that line.

Hmm, I wonder if this would be covered under my home warranty? :hmmm:

At any rate - here's a picture of it.

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/7531/leakyspigot.jpg

From what I could tell, the water is coming out from right under where the wheel thingy is that you turn. And that thing just felt looser and looser every time I turned it, I was afraid it was going to break off entirely. I didn't try tightening the screw in the middle that's holding it on because by then it started raining and I wasn't gonna do any more out there anyway.

I certainly wouldn't force it or tighten it too much, but if you haven't done it already, try putting a wrench on the packing nut and tapping it a but with your hand.

http://levahnbros.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/in-line-shut-off-valve.jpghttp://www.askmehelpdesk.com/attachments/plumbing/21862d1247335792-leaking-spigot-handle-garage-packing-nut1.jpg

Sometimes it works if the valve isn't too old or worn.

Sailor Steve

06-01-13, 10:14 PM

AND THEN THE DOOR PANELS CAME OUT OF THE DRYER. Which led to...
So, Mr. Iron... we meet again at last.
Oh, those door panels! I was wondering what you were talking about, and was afraid to ask.

And now for the tiebacks... uh...

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM.

Okay, why do they call them "tiebacks" if you CAN'T ACTUALLY TIE THEM? :stare: There was no way to use them at all the way they came in the package. They should call them "Must Be Sewn Yourself Backs" or perhaps "We Hope You Have Some Pins Handy Backs." :/\\!!
Some time ago I started a thread giving some of my observations on life's little quirks and asking for others to do the same. Unfortunately everyone thought that meant post funny quotes rather than think of something themselves.

This would have fit nicely there.

Oh, and I don't know.

Now to have some dinner and relax a bit and then... who knows? I might go nuts unpacking stuff all night. Either that or I collapse into bed. One of the two. :O:
All I can say to that is...KEWL KITCHEN! :rock:

HW3

06-02-13, 08:41 AM

I think you will find that Roundup works really well at getting rid of anything green growing where you do not want it.:yep:

WernherVonTrapp

06-02-13, 10:36 AM

Okay, why do they call them "tiebacks" if you CAN'T ACTUALLY TIE THEM? :stare: There was no way to use them at all the way they came in the package. They should call them "Must Be Sewn Yourself Backs" or perhaps "We Hope You Have Some Pins Handy Backs." :/\\!!

I use these for my tiebacks; usually the white or clear ones. You never even notice they're there and they can be easily removed. They work on virtually any surface, even on curved molding.
http://www.plumbersurplus.com/images/prod/6/3M-17006-rw-146930-250553.jpg

Wolferz

06-02-13, 10:49 AM

I use these for my tiebacks; usually the white or clear ones. You never even notice they're there and they can be easily removed. They work on virtually any surface, even on curved molding.
http://www.plumbersurplus.com/images/prod/6/3M-17006-rw-146930-250553.jpg

Another fine product from Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing.:up:

frau kaleun

06-02-13, 02:18 PM

Oh, those Command brand hooks and hangers are awesome.

But on to today's big project...

THE RANGE HOOD!

(Part 1)

First, the old model. It is ugly and gross and being either beige or white and really, REALLY dirty, it has to come out of there.

http://imageshack.us/a/img707/618/old1k.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img834/471/old2g.jpg

What did I tell you? IT'S GROSS. We didn't even bother to try cleaning it up the day my best friend came over to help clean the kitchen. There was just no point, it probably would've taken longer to get it into halfway decent shape than it would take to replace it... which I knew I was gonna do anyway ASAP.

http://imageshack.us/a/img708/9499/old3s.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img547/9956/old4.jpg

Hmm... good thing I remembered to turn the power off to this electric line!

http://imageshack.us/a/img94/8189/oldout.jpg

Whew! First part of project completed, now on to the shiny new hood. Let's get into the guts of that puppy and see what's what!

http://imageshack.us/a/img829/958/new1tl.jpg

Since the undersides of my cabinets are recessed, it was either hie meself off to Lowe's or Woodcraft or someplace to find some correctly sized wood shims to put under there to mount the hood on, or else find an alternative that wouldn't involve me having to take a shower, put on decent clothing, and spend more time and money than I'd already put into this endeavor.

Fortunately there were four additional holes in the back plate of the the hood that would allow me to mount it directly to the wall behind it, using some appropriate anchors and screws that I (being the hardware scrounger and saver that I am) just happened to have on hand.

http://imageshack.us/a/img198/3453/newrearmount.jpg

The front mounting could still be done directly to the underside of the front of the cabinet, so both those screws went into the wood and into fresh new holes as well so I think the whole thing should hold up fine.

http://imageshack.us/a/img28/24/newfrontmount.jpg

Doing this by myself was quite fun, as marking the spots for the mounting screws and then getting the first couple of them in there involved my holding the front of the hood up and in place with my head and the back with one hand while marking or putting the screws in with the other, all while trying to rotate my head so I could see what I was doing without letting the front of the thing move out of place. BOY AM I GLAD I BOUGHT THAT DRILL. :O: Doing all of that with one free hand and a screwdriver would've been a nightmare.

To be continued!

frau kaleun

06-02-13, 02:19 PM

THE RANGE HOOD

(Part 2)

Anyway, I got it in there

http://imageshack.us/a/img96/7342/new2w.jpg

and got the wiring hooked up

http://imageshack.us/a/img819/5791/new3u.jpg

and got the bottom plate back on and the lightbulbs installed.

http://imageshack.us/a/img839/6006/new4pr.jpg

Now to flip the switch on the power and see what happens...

http://imageshack.us/a/img577/8633/new5jg.jpg

:woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :woot:

Look at it! LOOK AT MY SHINY NEW RANGE HOOD! LOOK AT THE PRECIOUS!!!

It's very shiny. And will be easy to clean. And now I have passed the first hurdle in dealing with household wiring without electrocuting myself, not even once! :yeah: :know:

So now I really do have to go take a shower and spend more money, because I can finally start cleaning up the rest of my kitchen for realz and do the floor and everything now that I have that messy cumbersome project out of the way, which means I'm ready to get some serious food and drink all up in this place. :rock:

Edit: actually it's just that I'm almost out of pop, and mama needs her caffeine fix. So off to the store I go. :O:

Sailor Steve

06-02-13, 02:58 PM

Lookin' good, kiddo! YOU DA GAL!! :rock:

I like the dual lighting. :yep:

Wolferz

06-02-13, 03:07 PM

I want one.:wah:
My range hood looks a lot like your old one. All funkified and only one lamp in it.:timeout:

I'm amazed that you accomplished a four hand job with only two. Well done!
:Kaleun_Applaud:Well done indeed !

frau kaleun

06-02-13, 05:28 PM

I want one.:wah:
My range hood looks a lot like your old one. All funkified and only one lamp in it.:timeout:

That's what I've been used to all my life as well and why I spent the extra $$ to upgrade to one where everything was recessed into a smooth, flat bottom plate that will be a snap to clean. My only concern was getting the light bulbs in and out but the hood came with a little suction cup thingy designed especially for that - you just suction it on to the face of the bulb and then stick the bulb up into the slots and turn it to lock it in. It can be used the same way to remove them when they need to be replaced. That little detail really impressed me.

I'm amazed that you accomplished a four hand job with only two. Well done!
:Kaleun_Applaud:Well done indeed !

Thanks guys! I even left out the best part - which got me so frustrated I stopped taking pictures for a while.

That was the fact that the rear vent opening on the hood was placed dead center, whereas the duct going up the wall behind the stove... not so much. Turned out there was also a stud going up the wall behind the stove which caused the duct to be about five inches to the right of center of the range alcove. Which meant that a damper thingy placed dead center on the back of a hood couldn't be inserted properly into the ductwork.

Whoever installed the old hood solved the problem by leaving the damper completely off the thing, which I didn't want to do... I mean, it seems like with just a big unprotected hole there, insulation and dust and who knows what would just be free to fall into the hood and get all over the fan, and then you take the filter off to clean it and... ugh. No thanks. And it was a BIG hole - I guess they didn't know the stud was there and cut out the drywall in the appropriate spot and then found it. Plus the wiring came down the left side of the stud, so some of that had to be cut out just to access that. It was WAY too big a hole for what was necessary even if the stud hadn't been there.

Also it wasn't cut out quite high enough to accommodate the vent on the new hood, so I had to chip away everything up to the bottom of the cabinets on one side of the stud anyway. Then I pushed the wiring up as high as possible and ran it over right across the top inside of the hole to the right side where the input hole was on the new hood and duct taped it up to keep it out of the way. Then I duct taped over the rest of the hole on the left side of the stud and just left enough for the wiring to come around... covered over the insulation that was uncovered by the previous install and everything else that didn't need to be open like that.

THEN I had to go to work on the damper thing from the hood, which involved taking it apart and cutting it down with tin snips (thank heavens I bought those as well) and reshaping it into a smaller rectangle that would fit inside the part of the duct that would be behind it when the hood went into the space. Duct taped that back together and put it on the hood and duct taped over the part of the bigger opening on the hood that it didn't cover to seal that up. THEN I finally got it mounted. :O:

So, yeah, it was a job and a half. But now it's done and it works and it looks REALLY nice.

Sailor Steve

06-02-13, 05:33 PM

And that's why you're the Kaleun! :sunny:

frau kaleun

06-02-13, 06:25 PM

And that's why you're the Kaleun! :sunny:

I think at this point I'm leaning more towards the LI. Doesn't work? Doesn't fit? NOT A PROBLEM. :O:

Wolferz

06-02-13, 07:19 PM

I think at this point I'm leaning more towards the LI. Doesn't work? Doesn't fit? NOT A PROBLEM. :O:

So you graduated Sigma Cum Laude from the Disney school of engineering?:03::D

Wall studs are typically placed 16" on center in any wall. Apparently the original architectural plans did not include exterior ventilation for a range hood that was added well after the fact by a bad Mickey Mouse engineer. More likely a chewing gum and bailing wire amateur engineer from the look of it.

I could tell right away that you're a hands on kind of gal and not prone to seek assistance from alleged professionals. :up::salute: You don't have long finger nails or one of those girlie manicures with glue on nails that get in the way of using tools.

Onkel Neal

06-02-13, 11:07 PM

Thanks, I feel like I'm getting quite a bit done. Of course it's not what I *should* be getting done, like unpacking more boxes and putting my kitchen in order, but I tend to get fixated on certain projects and then can't focus on anything else until I get them done.

Project #4 today was taking on the wild tropical jungle that was quickly gaining mastery of my courtyard patio.

It was this

http://imageshack.us/a/img29/6231/patioz.jpg

Wow, you have room for at least three motorcycles there. :rock:

Cybermat47

06-02-13, 11:11 PM

Wow, you have room for at least three motorcycles there. :rock:

Frau, now you can charge Neal for motorcycle storage! :rock:

Wolferz

06-03-13, 08:02 AM

:wah:

Frau Kaleun is back at work today and I can't repair vicariously.

Guess I'll just have to cut my grass today or clean out the garage or clean the litter box or go to the grocery.

Uh, wait...
I still need to replace the turn signal switch in my pick up truck that's due for inspection ...again! Lousy state government bandits!
grumble grumble:stare:

HW3

06-03-13, 08:16 AM

Uh, wait...
I still need to replace the turn signal switch in my pick up truck that's due for inspection ...again! Lousy state government bandits!
grumble grumble:stare:

At least your state inspects them to keep unsafe vehicles off the road. You should see some of the sorry excuses for vehicles running around on Oregon roads. We call them rolling road hazards. No Oregon doesn't inspect them, just does emissions tests in a couple of cities, no safety inspections.

:subsim:

Wolferz

06-03-13, 10:19 AM

At least your state inspects them to keep unsafe vehicles off the road. You should see some of the sorry excuses for vehicles running around on Oregon roads. We call them rolling road hazards. No Oregon doesn't inspect them, just does emissions tests in a couple of cities, no safety inspections.

:subsim:

I went a couple of years without having the inspection done and no law enforcement officer ever cited me for it.:haha: Of course I always ensure that my lights are all functioning so as not to give Johnny law an excuse to pull me over.
I used to live in Kentucky and they safety inspected when I first started driving but did away with it not long afterward because of complaints about unscrupulous garages and mechanics failing vehicles that should have passed. Yup they wanted the money. The same thing happens here and has happened to me, a self taught mechanic. My truck was failed once because of a minute crack in a fairly new brake shoe lining. Needless to say, I didn't allow those crooks to stiff me for a brake job! PENNDOT got all high and mighty awhile back and added a pollution test to the inspection, along with an additional $50.00 to the fee. A test that for all intents and purposes does nothing more than check the integrity of your gas cap. Gasp! We don't want any fuel vapors leaking out of your tank. That black putrid smoke coming out of the tail pipe? No problem! I guess it does keep some jalopies off the road but, not as many as you'd think. They can't even field a sticker that will stay on the windshield for the entire year.:hmmm: Most of the mechanics I know around here don't follow the guidelines and just do the old lick and stick and the sheriff of Nottingham collects his taxes for your driving privileges.:down:
I think I'll buy a horse.

PS:
I've been to your fair state and seen them HW3:03:

frau kaleun

06-03-13, 12:08 PM

I certainly wouldn't force it or tighten it too much, but if you haven't done it already, try putting a wrench on the packing nut and tapping it a but with your hand.

http://levahnbros.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/in-line-shut-off-valve.jpghttp://www.askmehelpdesk.com/attachments/plumbing/21862d1247335792-leaking-spigot-handle-garage-packing-nut1.jpg

Sometimes it works if the valve isn't too old or worn.

Wait, what? Wouldn't tapping it loosen it up more, and/or make the leak worse? Am I tapping in a certain direction in order to try and tighten it? I'm confused. :88)

Frau, now you can charge Neal for motorcycle storage! :rock:

This would be a good one to drop on my sister... "so when are you going to put some flowers and nice patio furniture out here?"

Uh, I'm not going to do that. I'm gonna be storing motorcycles out here.

"WHAT?!?"

Lol, just kidding. But I'm totally putting a piano in what you think should be my dining room.

WernherVonTrapp

06-03-13, 12:20 PM

Wait, what? Wouldn't tapping it loosen it up more, and/or make the leak worse? Am I tapping in a certain direction in order to try and tighten it? I'm confused. :88)

Just tighten it in a clockwise direction. The packing nut tightens the packing washer in the event a leak developes after repeatedly turning the valve stem. Try tightening it nomally (not tapping) to see how easy (or hard) it is to operate. If you cannot get it to turn, try tapping the wrench in small increments by using your hand, another wrench or by using a small hammer. If you cannot tighten it at all, or the leak doesn't stop, the spigot probably needs replacing.

Wolferz

06-03-13, 12:42 PM

Rule of thumb for most nuts and bolts and sundry threaded fasteners...
Righty Tighty
Lefty loosey

From the look of the patina on your brass spigot, it really should be replaced.

Repair of the valve stem packing may just open up a can of worms.
Do you fish?

frau kaleun

06-03-13, 12:46 PM

Wolferz

06-03-13, 01:06 PM

Well I know the "righty tighty" rule, that's why I was wondering if I should be tapping it in a particular direction with a goal in mind or just performing an act of random percussive maintenance to see what happened. :O:

Doesn't matter. The worst that could happen is you'll get an unintended shower with cold water.:O::03:
Only wicked witches melt when hydrated, so you should be fine.
Just turn or tap your wrench in the same direction used to turn off the spigot to tighten the packing nut.

If that doesn't stop it from leaking, the packing has become unserviceable and will require a new packing or total replacement of the spigot.
After the range hood adventure, this should be easy peasy for you.:doh:

frau kaleun

06-04-13, 08:11 PM

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away... I ordered a lamp.

Today, it arrived.

http://imageshack.us/a/img32/7820/photo164tr.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img838/5950/photo165b.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img580/1061/photo166p.jpg

http://imageshack.us/a/img40/7785/photo167r.jpg

:woot: :woot: :woot: :woot: :yeah:

Wolferz

06-04-13, 08:21 PM

Did you get enough for everybody? My birthday is less than a month away.:D

frau kaleun

06-04-13, 08:37 PM

Did you get enough for everybody? My birthday is less than a month away.:D

Well then let me be the first to wish you an early happy birthday!

And if by "everybody" you mean me, then yes. Yes I did. :O:

Sailor Steve

06-04-13, 08:40 PM

The pictures look cool. Is it everything you thought it would be? :sunny:

Wolferz

06-04-13, 08:55 PM

Well then let me be the first to wish you an early happy birthday!

And if by "everybody" you mean me, then yes. Yes I did. :O:

Nothing sails over your head, does it?
Good girl.:up:
Enjoy your Chinese made lamp. May the electron force be with you.:salute:

frau kaleun

06-04-13, 10:02 PM

The pictures look cool. Is it everything you thought it would be? :sunny:

It's pretty cool. I like that it's a "Star Wars" lamp without having "STAR WARS!!!!" printed on it everywhere in big flashy colors. The *least* subtle thing about it is the laser cut Jedi logos on the shade, but if you didn't know what they were you might just think it's an interesting cutout pattern done to make a plain black shade less boring.

frau kaleun

06-05-13, 09:36 PM

So many milestones so far this week.

I got my SW lamp. I got my first phone, cable, and electric bills at my new address.

And I bought groceries! Of course only I would spend $150 on groceries and then get my dinner at the drive-thru next door to the grocery store. :haha: But it was late and I was so tired when I got out of there I couldn't face the thought of anything else. I'm not getting anything else done tonight either. Just took a shower and then it will be straight to bed.

But now my pantry has actual food in it! If I find my pots and pans I might actually cook something one of these days. :O:

http://imageshack.us/a/img59/6189/pantryk.jpg

And my refrigerator too!

http://imageshack.us/a/img35/1350/fridgem.jpg

Okay, so the fridge has very little food and mostly beverages. But I did buy pickles. And they are Claussen pickles. Claussen pickles r srs biznss.

I also bought a six-pack of Beck's so it's very likely that this weekend will see me drink my first bottle of beer (and that would be my very first alcoholic beverage) in my new home.

And if I make it to the second bottle, it'll also be the first time I get drunk in my new home. :O:

Tomorrow someone from a local charity is coming to get my old bedroom furniture - I just hope they don't look at it and say "no thanks" because if they do I don't know what I'll do with it. Keep calling places until someone takes it, I guess. I've moved it all as close to the door as possible without obstructing my way around and I don't want to have to move it again, and I've finally got my new furniture coming on Saturday. :yeah: