I have so many things that pop to mind that I want to blog about, but I no longer have any time. So it just tends to not happen. Even now, at home in the evening after dinner and approaching bedtime, I really should be working on a document for work that needs to be done in the morning. But I am tired. I would go to bed, but Amy is in my bed doing her homework while Brandy talks on the phone with someone. So I am in the living room on the couch getting droopy, but figure maybe I’ll post. So, just a few short blurbs about a bunch of stuff I’ve been meaning to talk about but haven’t.
* State of the Tivo: What with the macrovision bruhaha and with DirecTV dropping them before long, I have doubts about where they will be a year from now. I want to believe! They are still the best thing out there… barely… at this very instant. But it seems very unlikely for that situation to still be the case a year from now. We shall see.
* Our Roof: A few weeks back the roofers FINALLY came to fix the roof over the lanai which had been leaking during big storms ever since we moved in. It was under warentee, it just took them forever. But finally they sent a crew and redid that whole part of the roof… and then it leaked again the next big storm. Bleh. After that they sent someone out again and supposidly it is all good now. But… I’m still reserving judgement.
* The Screen: We finally got to the top of the list for the screen, but then they got out here and said they couldn’t attach it, cause some of the wood on the edge of the roof… where it had been leaking… was rotted. Sow e had to have that replaced… not under warentee. we’ve been very tight on cash lately, but my mom very generously decided that would be her birthday present to me. So when they fixed the rest of the roof, they fixed that too. So we told the screeners we were ready to go. But of course we had slipped on their list. So we are once again waiting for the screen. Supposidly it would just be a couple more weeks, but it has already been that long and nothing yet. This is another where I will believe it when I see it.
* Speaking of house things, saw a report in the paper last week that the average increase in home value in this county over the last 12 months has ben 48%. FOURTY EIGHT PERCENT. That is just absolutlely insane. This bubble is going to have to pop soon. I just don’t see how it can’t. But hopefully it will have gone up enough, so even when it goes down, it will still stay above where we bought.
* We’re also looking at refinancing. Doesn’t look like a super huge amount, but it does seem that we would be able to save a bit on the monthly payments. If we get some cash out and pay off all the plastic too, it will be even more dramatic. So we will probably do that. But we’ll stay away from the newer non-traditional plans. It could get payments even lower, but with interest rates where they are, just too risky…
* Princely had surgery a couple weeks ago to remove a small growth on his front right foot. I think we were suppposed to get a followup call from the vet by now to confirm that it was a benign tumor and not something more serious. But I don’t think we have heard yet. Princely is a good dog. He is curled up at my feet right now. He really didn’t like hgaving the humungo cone thing on his head for a week to keep him from rip[ping out his stitches. He got a couple of them anyway.
* I left the book I was reading in a hotel in Delaware while I was on business travel a couple weeks ago. I kept calling to see if it had turned up, but it never had. Guess one of the staff was really into Civil War autobiographies. I finally gave in and ordered a replacement. Just found where I had left off and started reading again today. I’ll post about the book when I finish it, but so far I am really enjoying it.
* I have now fathered dozens of frogs. I think the original batch of tadpoles has now long been froggifed or eaten by their siblings, but there are still many dozens of tadpoles in the tank. The process may never end. A few hours ago, I decided to do some work on the lanai. I picked up a cup which was ont he table out there and yup, there was a frog inside.
* Oh, Brandy got a new job! Did I ever mention that on the blog? She started almost two weeks ago now. First check from it should be direct deposited about 2.5 hours from now. That will be nice. She is working for a local utility doing something or other while sitting in a cube. Sounds like a blast. (Seriously though, she is liking it a lot more than the last place.) It is a one year contract gig. At the end of the year it will end. But that gives plenty of time to find something else.
* Amy had some issues with her teachers a couple weeks back, and so did we. But we had a big old teacher parent conference. A lot of tension initially, but all issues are resolved now. We think. In any case, things seem to be positive right now.
* I am thinking of volunteering to be the coach for her school’s chess club. They have a bunch of students interested in a chess club, but there is no chess club right now, because they don’t have a coach. Now, as much as I enjoy chess, I am not that good at it. But I am good enough to help a handful of 4th and 5th graders play a few games together. It would be one morning a week I would have to come into work 90 minutes late or so. If I feel I can get away with that, I’ll do it. (Amy is one of the kids who is interested… she has been on a chess kick lately… Fritz and Chesster 2 came for my birthday, and she pounced.)
* The Treo is fully healed! At first after it’s swim and drying off for a week, everything seemed to work EXCEPT using it without a headset or speakerphone. If you wanted to use it the normal way… out of luck. But I accidentally tried it again a few days ago… and surprise! It worked! Guess the speaker just needed a little more time to dry out.
* Have I mentioned I really wish weekends were longer? I am so swamped all week long. And always tired. Then I sleep just a tad more on the weekend, but never get even half of what I want to get done done, and then I’m still just as tired by the end of the weekend. I really don’t function well with less than 8 hours of sleep a night, and really feel I need at least 9, maybe even 10 sometimes. And I’ll certainly take 12 if I can get it. But I mostly get 6 or so these days. I’ll get the 8 on weekends maybe. And it just leaves me constantly dragging and tired.
* Amy was sick yesterday and today. Sore throat. Apperantly a viral thing, but not strep. I worked from home the last couple of days since I can and Brandy can’t. She mostly stayed quiet and did the sick thing and I was able to do work. In fact, I think I have been more productive at home than I often am at work. But new work keeps getting added to the pile faster than work is getting done. It is a busier time right now for me work wise than it has been in ages. Which I guess is good. Oh, and Amy seems to be doing better. She is all back to her 9 year old argumentative self.
* I am thirsty. I think I will get some water.
Bye for now.
