Trials of a Domestic maintenance engineer

We have an old house, a very old house. We have lived in it for a LONG time (30+ yrs). It was a fixer upper when we bought it, and I think it has aged back into a fixer upper again. I have heard, and it has been roughly my experience, that "things" last about 8 years. Thus I usually write the purchase date on appliances such as water heaters, washers, dryers and I should have put one on our new furnace that replaced our aged furnace that started "acting up" just before a forecast cold snap.

So small jobs accumulate. A leaky shower valve, "fixed" but still not right. Then last night while playing with Lily, I hopped (do NOT try to visualize) a bit in the hallway to get her to run away, and CRASH! down came the glass globe from the ceiling light. (OK, maybe I need to lose some weight).

So this afternoon I dismantled the valve, and put another new washer in it. The washer worked perfectly, however, now the valve stem leaked horrendously. (Horrendously = I won't be able to BS Moonrabbit that it's SUPPOSED to do that for lubrication purposes) So off to hardware store #1 for a new complete valve kit and a replacement globe for the light. Found the kit eventually($4), then found globe that LOOKED like it was the right size ($9). It was on a top shelf, and when I tried to grab it, it rolled to the back. Get help. Get home, the diameter is 1/4 inch too big, but I have already taken off the labels. I know the other globes they had would be too small, so it's off to hardware store #2 across town, but there are some other things I need in the neighborhood. They don't have the other thing I need, and when I find the globes, they don't have the size I need. They DO have a NEW base ($3)which would fit the new globe. My old base may be out of date?

I get home, reassemble the valve with the other new parts it needed, it seems to work properly. Then I tackle the light fixture. I SO enjoy working over my head, literally and figuratively. The best description of what followed is the old adage about a monkey having relations with a football. Dropped screws, connectors, drill (as a power screwdriver) etc. Anyway it works now.

More Storm Pics

Most of what you see is sea foam. lots and lots. This is about 3 hours before high tide. Here's the satellite shot which looks like it's at high tide.

Although the water is about 30' below the edge, it looks like the waves are going to break over the road.

Mushroom & Onions, hmm (not sure I'd eat THESE!

Spring can't be TOO far away

Stolen, I mean "Borrowed" from another blog

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2bpc7LSRZc

Forgive me H, I have sinned.

"Was that a parable or a very subtle joke?"

Tour of California

1 picture of the early leader, then a camera malfunction...oh well

Thought For Today

"If you're NOT confused, you're probably delusional"


I believe this may be a corollary to " If everything seems to be going smoothly, you've overlooked something"

Get tested for Celiac for Valentine's day

Top Three Reasons to get your loved ones tested for Valentine's Day:

1)Nothing Says "I LOVE YOU" like not hogging the bathroom 10 times a day
2)Most Chocolate is Gluten Free
3)It's easier to cuddle when you don't have gas

http://www.celiacce ntral.org/ Newsletter/ February_ 2008/486/ #s9

Financial shenanigans

First off, a little bit after the Super Bowl, I was online, checking email etc. There was an email from a credit card company verifying that we had changed the email notification address. hmmm.

"Moonrabbit, did YOU change the email from xxxx credit card co?" "NO!"
So I tried to log on to our acct and was denied access. I'm thinking this is not good.

Called the 24/7 1-800 number, eventually got a live person, who told me the email had been changed to something like Juan Vasques Hernandez... We went over charges, and there was 1 charge made a minute before the time stamp of the notification I got, for chocolates from some East coast chocolatier. "Moonrabbit, did you charge chocolate from the East Coast?" "NO!"

SHIT!

The 1-800 guy said that to do what had been done, the @$$^%$#hole had to have had her SS#.

Double SHIT!!

So now we're on the ID theft merry-go-round. Notifications galore, new friends at Experion, Equifax etc

Now I'm on constant online patrol. This morning I log on to my bank, and there is a $25 acct fee charge.

Several months ago, I was notified that my bank no longer carried my kind of free checking, but that, since they had my mortgage, I could get fee waived checking, interest, VISA card and all these bells and whistles that I would never use. They made it sound like there were no other options. So I reluctently went with it. After several months, there was a $25 acct fee charged. When I inquired they said it was a mistake and removed it.

This time I was referred to a "specialist" who informed my that only 10% of the mortgage counted towards the minimum balance. This was the VERY first time I heard of that.

Anyway, it seems there is another fee waived acct that I can go to that has a lower minimum balance, but without the bells and whistles. He switched me to that and removed the charge.

Liars and thieves! EVERYWHERE!