Sunday report

Another week of not breaking my New Year's resolution! I exercised 3 times. Twice at the gym at work, and once at home. This morning I got on the Nordic track. It wasn't as bad as I was dreading, due in large part to watching Game Show in My Head while I worked out. That show is unbelievable!!

I know, I know, I have broken my other resolution several times by missing a few days of posting here. But you have to admit I'm doing better! Yesterday I was out all day, first at bagels, then looking at houses with my friend Kim from work, and then at my parents' house. Today I exercised, had breakfast, took down the Christmas tree (finally!) and had my massage. There were many other things I had hoped to get done this weekend--one of these days, my loyal California reader (you know who you are) you will get your belated delivery from Santa!

I am very much looking forward to the inauguration next week, and I wish I could see every moment live. It turns out that my heater needs to be worked on (it is running in the "emergency" mode too often) so we'll see if I can schedule an appointment for Tuesday so I conveniently have to be home.

In other homefront news, my pipes froze Friday night! It has been bitterly cold here the past few days, and when I tried to take a shower Saturday morning, I had all the cold water I could want, but zero hot. Boo. So that evening I went to Lowes with my parents and bought a hot water insulation wrapper (that's just for energy efficiency) and some foam tube insulation for the exposed pipes. As we were leaving Lowes, we saw this beautiful sunset:


Oh and in case you were wondering, the hot water was functional when I got home Saturday night, and I left the faucet running ever so slightly so as to prevent the pipes from refreezing, and everything was kosher this morning. Good thing, because me after two days of not showering isn't very pleasant.

I will leave you with a picture of Comet sitting in the box I use to collect recyclable paper.


I saw him in it this morning, and he's sitting in it right now as I type this. Cats are funny.

Unhappy Anniversary

A year ago today my house was broken into. It was around 5:30 am, and I was upstairs in bed, sleeping. I heard a crash. That day I had taken down my Christmas tree and left the bins with the ornaments stacked downstairs. I thought Comet had tried to jump on top, and knocked them over. I came downstairs in my long-sleeved tshirt and underwear and saw that the sliding glass door was shattered.


My first thought was that a fierce wind must have blown a tree into the door or something. As I walked closer (carefully, as I was in bare feet and there were shards of glass everywhere) I saw a sledgehammer lying on the ground outside, and the wooden stick (called a "burglar bar") was disloged.


I believe my words were, "Oh my god." I instinctively looked over to my big TV, but it was still there. I looked around quickly and everything seemed in its place. More importantly, I did seem alone. I ran upstairs and used the on-call cell phone (which was by my bed, of course) to dial 911. After about 10 rings, the dispatcher picked up and I told him what happened. He said he was sending the police right away, and that he would stay with me on the phone until they arrived. At this point my heart was literally pounding outside of my chest. I had never felt it pound like that before. It was unreal. Even so, the guy on the phone said I was handling this remarkably well. As we were waiting for the cops, I threw on some PJ bottoms and finally they arrived. They came in through the back. I remember one saying he had just driven through this area and hadn't seen anything. The other said he would call for someone to come dust for fingerprints. It wasn't until the officer asked me for my ID that I realized my purse was gone.

I was devastated. Frankly, I would have rather the crook stole the TV. Losing your purse means you have to cancel all your credit cards, close your checking account, get a new driver's license, etc. But if you're me, your purse is also a portable electronics store. It had my Canon G7 digital camera, my 30 gb iPod, my brand new iPod nano that I'd gotten for Christmas (red, engraved with my name!), my work pager, my flash drive, almost $100 in gift cards, $40 in cash, and other things that, while not monetarily valuable, I'd always carried around with me. The same tiny mirror since junior high. The same lens cleaning cloth since who knows when. Not to mention the purse itself, which I adored because it was the perfect size and had the perfect number of pockets. I had just gotten it, too. Thankfully the thief had dropped my cell phone outside, and my keys must have been sitting next to my purse rather than in it, because those were still on the table. That would have made the nightmare even worse.

While the cops were waiting outside for the fingerprint guy to come, I hopped online to see if there'd been any activity on my cards. Sure enough, about 6am, my debit card had been used at the gas station half a mile from my house. A $400 purchase. I ran out to the cops and told them to go get the guy! One of them took off, and said I did a good job going online. The fingerprint guy came, and after he put black dust all over the door handle, my phone, and the sledgehammer (which, by the way, the cops found out had been taken from my neighbor's work truck parked across the street), he said there were only partial prints.

By now it was getting light out. The sliding glass door was basically down to its metal frame, because all the glass had been falling out as the cops slid the door back and forth. Thankfully it was about 60 degrees outside--a blessing, since my house was open to the elements for several hours as I waited for a repair man to come. I called my parents and they came over. They watched the house while I went to get a new license. I called work to tell them I couldn't come in until the door was fixed. Of course when the glass guy came, he measured and said it's a custom size so they'd have to order the glass. So he boarded the door up (he did a good job, it was very secure) and cleaned up all the glass, which was a huge help. Even so, I was picking up stray glass chunks for weeks afterwards. I had to pay half of the cost up front, but with what? I used a credit card that I had in my desk upstairs, that I never carry. I was very grateful for that! Another thing I was very thankful for was my homeowner's insurance. I called Allstate and filed a claim, and over the next few weeks they did an awesome job. I received a check in the mail for the door right away. For the stolen items I had to provide receipts for the expensive ones, and just fax them over. I had a boarded door for over a week, and when it was finally replaced it was so bright in the kitchen! Alas, I don't look at that glass much these days. The curtains are pretty much permanently closed (and I clip them together so there's no peeking at all!). The fence into the backyard has a padlock on it. And I always arm the alarm when I go to bed. Not that the alarm would have deterred this guy. This is the definition of irony right here:


It was a smash-and-grab job. He would have been off and running before the alarm even sounded. (It's not instant at the doors. It gives a long beep--about 30 sec, I guess--to give you a chance to enter the code.)

In the days that followed I was ready to move. I wanted to go back to Apex in the worst way. I'd always lived on the second floor. In apartment buildings, I chose the second floor so that I would not have to hear people above me. In my condo, the garage was the first floor. I'm only now acutely aware of how vulnerable I am at street level. Anyone can see into my house. They can see my stuff. I don't like it. I have become a huge fan of certain styles of midcentury modern architecture, where they have windows up very high. That way you can cover all the lower ones but still let in light.


I am tired of living in the dark. I also seriously considered getting a dog, for the security aspect. Alas, that never came to be. Perhaps this is the year.

I am reminded of what happened every night when I am forced to take my purse and computer upstairs with me. I can't just leave them on the kitchen chair like I used to because even though the gate is locked and the curtains are closed...you know the saying: fooled once, shame on them; fooled twice, shame on you. I have trimmed down drastically what I carry in my wallet, but there are still other things you have to carry that would be a pain to replace. My insurance card, all the supermarket rewards cards, business cards for doctors and mechanics and such. At stores I see women open up their massive wallets full of every credit card they have and I cringe.

- - -

So now you will understand why I almost had a heart attack a couple months ago when the alarm went off in the middle of the night. It was not the normal siren sound, but rather a horrible screeching. But when you're dead asleep, a sharp piercing sound is a sharp piercing sound. I immediately leaped out of bed with my heart racing and thumping out of my chest. I tried to enter the code to shut up the alarm but it wouldn't be quiet. I was in the process of calling the alarm people (they are programmed into my cell because I've had so many problems with it) when entering my code finally worked. Needless to say, I could not go back to sleep. I was afraid the alarm would screech again, and that my heart could not take it a second time. I laid in bed and watched TV, and around 5 am it blared again even though it was not armed. I called the alarm company and they sent a person out the next day but that person found nothing wrong with the system and looked at me like I was looney when I described what had happened.

So that's the story of how my 2008 started out. It did not bode well, and needless to say I am elated to be moving on to '09. I did not write about all this when it first happened because the violation and vulnerability were too raw. Even now it's something I think about nearly every day. I get gas at the station the thief used my card at. I wonder if my purse is somewhere in the bushes in empty lot next to it. But you know, life goes on, and every experience teaches you lessons.

Oh, and by the way, I spoke with the investigator assigned to my case several weeks after the break-in, and they did get the guy, although he claims a friend gave him the debit card. I filled out paperwork saying I wanted to know what happened in the case but never did hear. Part of me wants to know he's behind bars for a good long time--this burglary was a first-degree felony--but what if he isn't? Sometimes ignorance truly can be bliss.

Critters on the porch

Charlotte has spun a beautiful web on my front porch.


Alas, she herself is not a thing of beauty in my eyes, but she is outside so I will let her live. I don't even want to think of how badly I would freak out if I found her inside though. I will spare you the close-up cropped view; she's a hairy beast.

My parents noticed a green thing up near the ceiling of the porch, sticking to the wall.


They first thought it was a moth, but I took a picture and zoomed in and wouldn't you know, it looked like a frog! How on earth did a frog get up there? We thought maybe it had gone looking for water and perhaps was dead. When my parents were leaving, we noticed the frog had moved its head a bit, so I got a stick and a bowl, climbed on a chair, and poked at it ever so gently. It did not drop into the bowl, no, that would be too easy. It leaped and brushed against the back of my head (it was a BIG leap) and landed on the ground. Then it started climbing up the side of my house again. I sprinkled some water on him and he moved over to the railing.



Doesn't he seem a little tropical for NC?

Consider them decked

The halls, that is. At least outside. No inside halls are sporting deckage as of yet. Out in CA, it seemed that everyone had their lights up already, and it was only a couple of days after Thanksgiving! In my neighborhood, only about 10% of the houses have lights on. I got the eco- and penny-conscious LED lights and think they look just fine. I'm not done yet...still have to do the other side of the porch...but I need another extension cord. So it's kinda lopsided right now, but it's better to have lopsided festivity than no festivity, if you ask me.

On my mind

Here's a snapshot of what's on my mind this fine Sunday afternoon.

Event: Looking out the window.
Thoughts: Getting my lawn in better shape. Figuring out how to make watering more of a habit. Finding organic weed killer and fertilizer.
Actions: Watered, pulled weeds, discovered corn gluten is the answer. Who knew?!

Event: Reading a Newsweek editorial about zoos as animal prisons.
Thoughts: I like visiting zoos, but do feel badly for the animals that aren't happy. The little ones probably don't know much of a difference (I'm picturing the meerkats from the Asheboro zoo, who behaved just like the ones you see on Meerkat Manor). But the bigger animals must feel confined. But zoos educate people, engender sympathy for wildlife, breed endangered species, and on and on.
Action: It's a tough one. I'll leave it for another day.

Event: Watched video of air traffic patterns (just now got around to it, Mom!)
Thoughts: I'm part of that glowing mass, many days. It's very cool visually, but my goodness, planes pollute a lot. I wish my company bought carbon offsets. Not likely. They won't even buy a new laptop (they're taking away my desktop and giving me a used laptop from 2003 they purchased online).
Action: I should just be grateful I'm working and not complain but oh look, I am.

Event: Did not win lottery.
Thoughts: If I had won ($161 million!) I would want to start a couple nonprofits: one for the environment, and one for animals. I would make people's houses more efficient, for free. If someone called you and said, "I'm with such-and-such non-profit organization and would like to set an appointment to come out to your house and install compact fluorescent light bulbs, a programmable thermostat, and a water heater blanket, at no cost to you," wouldn't you say yes? And the other would be a no-kill shelter and adoption center, I think.
Action: Since no one won, I will buy a couple tickets for Wednesday's drawing. Keep your fingers crossed!

Strange cocoon

It's been on my weeping willow for weeks now. I haven't disturbed it because it's managed to hang on through a couple pretty big thunderstorms, so I figure it deserves to be there. This photo is from July 15. I just went down to check on it, and it's still there, and a little bigger. It appears to be a cocoon of some sort. What's odd is that once I saw it actually eating part of a leaf. The wormy thing inside was munching along the spine of the leaf, clearing one side but leaving the other intact. It doesn't seem to be eating anymore, just hanging there, although it does move around.

Just for kicks I thought I'd try investigating on the web by typing in "stick cocoon" and sure enough, there it is. It's called a bagworm. They say it's a bad thing and you should kill it. Actually, they say I should have killed it a long time ago, and by now it's probably had babies. Or maybe it was one of the babies that hatched back in June. I don't know if I can bring myself to go down and rip it off. The tree seems to be fine. In fact, it's got lots of new growth, which is a very good sign, because for the first few months it seemed very weak. But this article uses the word infestation, and I would hate for my now healthy tree to suffer, so I guess I should go cut the stick-cocoon-thingie off the branch. Okay, here I go...

...Well, that wasn't so bad. It didn't scream or anything, so that's good. And now my tree will grow to be big and strong. :)

I heart my backyard

So there's, like, a kind of plant you can, um, plant to attract butterflies, and the house's previous owners planted three of them. They're purty. And today, as I was mowing the lawn, I noticed that there were actually butterflies on them!



There was also a weird looking thing that I can only guess is a queen bee???

Update: It is called a "bee fly." Looks like a bee so you'll stay away for fear of being stung, but it's actually just a giant nectar-sucking fly. A guy I met at a party last night told me. Go figure.

Before and after

My "native plants" in the backyard were getting out of control. They were growing like, um, weeds. So I finally bit the bullet and decided to yank them out. They're insidious little boogers with ridiculously huge root systems. Now all I have to figure out is what I want to plant in their place.

Before:


After:

The other side of the coin

I finally found someone who doesn't like Raleigh. My coworker Jen, a 24-year-old Austin, TX native, is not happy here. But her set of criteria is quite different than mine. She's the kind of girl who likes to go to bars and clubs to drink and listen to live music. Those activities are at the rock bottom of my list of fun things to do. She says that in Austin, the downtown area is highly concentrated with over a hundred bars and clubs in just a few blocks. They always have live music, and it's super easy to just walk from one place to the next to keep the party going, so to speak. Whereas here in Raleigh, from what I've been told, while the downtown area has many bars, most don't feature live music, and they are not all clumped together for convenience. So, I guess if that's your scene, Raleigh is not the place for you.

Luckily for me, that is most definitely not my scene, and I am very happy here. I'm loving my house more each day. Except for the pesky lawn. I would be totally fine with the mowing and such if only it would grow green! But it's all brown and ugly (in the front yard, which I never sit in by my neighbors have to look at). Many yards in my neighborhood are the same, so I don't feel quite so bad, but many are lush, and I am so envious. I really need a gardener to get everything up to speed so I can just take over a well-oiled machine. But when it comes to gardening, I'm clueless, as my father can attest. I have some lovely native plants in the backyard (which pessimists call weeds) that I think are perfect.


They are green and lush, and require no watering on my part to grow. But I've been told to yank them up or I will regret it in the long run. I used a string trimmer for the first time yesterday. It really made such a difference around the edges of my lawn, up against the house and along the brick trim where you can't reach with a lawnmower. Slowly but surely I'm learning, but I hope everything doesn't die before I get the hang of it!

I do have some sources of pride in my backyard; namely, the magnolia tree and the daylilies. Granted, I had to do nothing to make these bloom, but I'm still proud to see them in my own backyard.

My house on the red carpet

Just like a celebrity gets all gussied up for her walk down the red carpet at the Oscars, my house got all primped for her unveiling at my housewarning party last night. I was very, very satisfied with how everything looked on the first floor, and also quite satisfied with my bedroom. The two secondary bedrooms, however, were still in a state of disorder.

I know Gabrielle has been waiting for these photos (sorry it took so long!), so without further ado, here they are!

Kuh-rayzee weather

One look at my inbox and you can tell it was a busy weather day:


Winter's like, "I'm cold," and Summer's like, "I'm hot," and Fall is like, "I'm perfect." Spring is the rebel of the family, the one who refuses to be labeled. Spring's like, "Hey, check out my flowers, aren't I pretty?" but she'll turn on you in a heartbeat, and show off her bag o' tricks.

One day, it's sunny and 80 and everyone breaks out the flip flops. The next, there's a frost warning threatening the strawberry crops. And then today, Spring had a tantrum. Warm and muggy air, hail, rain, and glorious sun all within 30 minutes. Here's a look at my gutter this afternoon:


My back patio was also temporarily flooded during a downpour, sending dirt from the shrub area all over the cement and brick. My poor, newly planted weeping willow was really quite thrashed; thank goodness for the supports that held her up.


And the hail did its best to beat down the freshly planted petunias, but I think they survived pretty well.


I must mention that all the landscaping improvements were courtesy of my dad, who came over on Thursday to mow my lawn. It was, shall we say, a tad on the overgrown side. I'd never mowed a lawn before, and he was going to show me, but then before we knew it, it was time for the housewarming party, and the lawn was still unmown. So he offered to do it for me, because he's such a great dad.


He also planted the tree and petunias, as well as installing an adorable little solar light. He's the best!

I'm baaaack!

Thanks to everyone who has diligently been checking my blog to see if I've finally posted. Now you're in for it, though. Ten days, a lot to cover. =)

First, let me start off by saying that I LOVE my new house! It is absolutely wonderful. It's little things, like having my very own mailbox, that is right at the end of my very own driveway, where I can wash my car whenever I please, and which leads into my garage that shelters me from the rain so I can get into my car nice and dry. And having my own trash bin right in my garage, that I just roll out once a week, and don't have to drive my trash to a big nasty communal bin. Convenience rocks. And, it's things like looking at neighbors' yards to get ideas for my own, imagining what a flower bed would look like right there, or maybe over there. The possibilities are endless!

Moving day was Saturday, March 24. If you'll recall, I'd arranged for a mover through Craigslist, and then heard from my realtor that they were awful and had broken her expensive armoir. The "owner guy," who I arranged everything with, promised he would be there for my move to oversee everything. When the movers arrived (only 15 minutes late) the owner guy was not with them. And, they brought a dinky little truck, when I was told they'd have a 26-foot truck. I called the owner guy, and he said the big truck was in the shop. I said the guys would have to make two trips with the smaller truck, and he said that was fine, and I'd still be charged the same rate. So we began to load. To their credit, the guys were terrific. They made the most out of that little truck, packing everything in solid, like a 3-D puzzle. The forecast had called for mid-80's but it was still relatively cool at this point. After I'd say two hours, we were on our way to the new house.

On the way, I called Papa John's for pizza to be delivered. (P.S., How awesome is it that delivery is a cinch now that the drivers don't have to hunt for my apartment in a giant complex?) Right as we pulled up to the house, the pizza guy arrived. Perfect timing! We were all starving!

My parents had not seen the house in person yet, so I was very excited to give them a tour. I was pleased as punch that they liked it so well. My dad made a run to the convenience store for some bottled water, while the movers began unloading the truck. Most of this load was just boxes, and the bedroom furniture. After about 90 minutes, we headed back for the second load. It was pretty hot at this point. I let the movers do all the heavy lifting, but I was still involved, packing the last-minute straggling items, and carrying things like my computer and of course Comet in his travel crate. By the way, he was great during all this. I put him in the crate while the movers were in and out, and he meowed for a few minutes, but then just resigned himself to being locked up. He probably felt safer in there anyway (or at least that's what I tell myself).

Around 4:30, the guys were finished unloading everything, and it had all gone off without a hitch. They were champs taking the heavy big stuff upstairs, and only made one tiny scratch on the wall, probably when they were heaving the entertainment center up there. But all the furniture itself was unscathed. Yippee!

My parents and I went to dinner down the street at a restaurant that had just opened, Mimi's Cafe. They have them all over California, but this was the first one in the Triangle. Right across from it is a brand-new Circuit City, so we went there afterwards to look at the TV's. I'd been wanting a big-screen LCD for a while, and had been doing lots of research online looking for the best deals, compromising between price and quality. I had my eye on a Sharp 42", but when we got to the store, the Samsung 46" stole my heart. I had a 10% off coupon through AAA, and decided to splurge. It's hard to resist 18 months with no interest charges! We brought it home and set it up, and it seemed enormous! But it is so awesome! Monday, the cable guy came and hooked me up with HD, and it is truly mind-boggling. I cannot stop watching it. (Which helps explain why I haven't posted in a while!) And, it has a DVR, which to me is like crack. Mine is already almost full! I saw an episode of the Discovery channel's "Planet Earth," and it is absolutely everything everyone says it is. Words are insufficient. Breathtaking, amazing, spectacular, they don't do it justice. Many of the other shows in HD are equally stunning visually. I DVR'd one on the national parks, and it's just beautiful. It's hard to erase some of these things even after I've seen them!

Sunday was all about unpacking and getting things arranged, and even though I was exhausted from the previous day, I did a pretty good job. I had Monday off, so I did a little more that day, but once the cable was installed, unpacking took a far second in my priorities!

Yesterday my parents came over again and we did a Craigslist run. In a matter of 4 hours and driving about 100 miles around the Triangle, from Durham to Cary to North Raleigh, we picked up a wrought iron table and chairs set for the front porch, a kitchen table and chairs, a Nordic Track ski machine, a chair-and-a-half with ottoman, and a black bookshelf. They were all extreme bargains, yet quite nice, so I was very pleased. Afterwards we went to dinner at Ruby Tuesday, and then to Target to get things like garden hoses and towel racks. Fun stuff!!

So now you're pretty much caught up to now, and again, thank you all for being so patient while I got settled in here. Stay tuned for our next episode: Melissa Mows Her First Lawn!

I'm a homeowner!

As of today around 10:45 AM I officially became a homeowner! Yay! I signed about a bazillion documents, but it was a very smooth process. I got to meet the previous owners, who were very nice. They handed over a bag full of all the manuals and warrantees and such for everything in the house, told me where the extra paint was, and thanked me for letting them stay in the house a couple extra days. I got one of the keys, which was very satisfying! Afterwards my realtor gave me a weeping willow tree as a closing gift. It's like 9 feet tall already! It will be fun to plant it on moving day and watch it grow.

One thing that was funny--my realtor and I did a very quick walk through before meeting with the attorney to sign the papers, and I noticed that the owners had just purchased a new LCD television, still in the box. And it was the exact same model I was going to buy...before Circuit City sold out of them!

One of the concerns I expressed to my realtor as we were walking up the stairs was the tight squeeze rounding the corner of the stairs, and how it will pose an obstacle to getting the bigger furniture up to the second floor. I have visions of the heavy entertainment center being dropped and crashing into the wall. She said, "But you're hiring movers, right? Just don't get them off of Craigslist!" I said I'd had luck through Craigslist before, but she related a horror story of two guys showing up with a tiny pickup to move her very large and heavy armoir from her house to her office, and how they broke the door off and gouged the side quite badly. Yikes! I asked her who the movers were, and she didn't know their names, but she remembered their email address...and, naturally, it was the same mover I had hired! Double yikes!

I called around to see if I could book someone else, but since I'm moving in three days, I wasn't having much luck. I was telling this whole story to my mom on the phone when lo and behold, the guy I'd hired called me to confirm. I was honest. I said look, my realtor used you and said you were awful, and now I'm really concerned. He explained what happened with that job, how he wasn't able to be there himself, and how she had not prepared them by letting them know what the piece being moved was like. My realtor insists she repeated many times that it was very large and very heavy, and I believe her. But the bottom line is, I'm pretty much stuck using these guys, and so I figure I will just need to make the best of it and keep an eye on them. The guy promised me he himself would be there on Saturday, and I told him I am willing to give a big tip for a job well done. So we'll have to keep our fingers crossed!

Checking in

Life lately has been pretty much same-old, same-old. Not much blogworthy going on. I'm in the middle of packing. Every night this week I successfully procrastinated. Go me! So yesterday I hunkered down and got busy. Since I saved all the boxes and packing materials from the last time I moved (and the time before that, and the time before that), it's a pretty straightforward process. The boxes are already labeled, so I just have to fill them with the right contents. I'm hoping that this will be the last move for at least five years. With the exception of my childhood home, I've never lived somewhere longer than three years. So it will be nice to really feel settled.

I haven't traveled much for work lately. My first trip since January was Tuesday. I flew into Philadelphia and did a training in Delaware. It was a one-dayer (fly up and back in the same day) so there wasn't any time to sightsee. But the weather was lovely. Oh, and I got to rent a Ford Fusion. It had 7.5 miles on it! That's the newest car I've ever driven. I requested the Fusion because I'd been hearing about how it is so great to drive--from the commercials, from my brother, etc. It does indeed corner well (yee-haw!), but I found the acceleration a little sluggish. And I didn't much care for the layout of the stereo and climate control panel. It might be simply because I'm used to it, but I think the Accord has the best layout available. It's always a pleasure to return to my own car and be reminded of how much I love it.

One thing that has taken up a lot of my time lately is shopping for furniture on Craigslist. Every evening I go through all the new postings and bookmark the things I'm interested in. Of course, I shouldn't go buy anything until after I move in, so it's basically just for fun. There's a ton of crap out there, and it's funny to see the postings over and over again with the price going lower and lower. I think this guy would be lucky if he could GIVE his couch away:


It's hideous!!

But there is also a lot of good stuff, and since I only have furniture for one bedroom, a family room, and a kitchen, and my new house has two more bedrooms, a formal living room, a dining room, and a patio, I am in need of furnishings!

You could totally furnish a whole house for pennies on the dollar! Check it out:







I hope some of these things are still available in two weeks. If not, my theory will be that I didn't want it anyway....

My favorite post today: A red and gold pinstripe couch and matching plaid chair, with no price listed. The ad reads: "Make an offer, or willing to trade for long haired Chihuahua puppy." What the?

Inspections and apples

The home inspection was today, and I'm happy to say there was very little that warranted fixing. There was a piece of siding in the back that had a crack in it; one of the air conditioning pipes on the HVAC unit needs a little more insulation; two electrical outlets in the garage need to be grounded; and two roof shingles are slightly lifted. Everything is very minor and asking the seller to repair should present no problems.

I am also thrilled to report that seeing the house again was a very positive experience. I found it to be even better than I remembered, and it reaffirmed that I made the right decision. I took lots more photos and you can see a few of them at Flickr. (You have to get past the old ones first to see the new ones.)

My backyard (pardon the glare from the window)

The inspector was a really nice fellow. He explained everything to me in detail, which I very much appreciated. And he enlightened me on why some electrical outlets are "right side up" while others are "upside down." He said many electricians use this as an idicator so you'll know which outlets are "switched"--e.g., connected to a light switch. I never knew that before! Of course, it's not true everywhere, but it is in this house, which is good to know!

Another thing I learned today pertains to something completely different: apples. Before I bit into my tasty Red Delicious at work this afternoon, I peeled off the sticker and announced to no one in particular, "My apple is from Washington." A coworker said there's no way it came from Washington since it's the dead of winter. He insisted it must be from Chile. Ever the faithful label-conscious consumer, I could not be conviced that the sticker was misleading. I even went to the Washington Apples website to confirm they are actually grown there. I found an email address and asked if my apple was indeed originated from Washington. Answer: Yes, as a matter of fact it did. And it was picked at least three months ago. So there! Um, wait a minute! Wha? Well, the harvesting season is August through November, and it is now February, so that would make my apple at least three months old. How on earth? The lady who wrote back to me from Washington Apples said, and I quote, "We store our apples in controlled atmosphere storage rooms and that extends their life." Amazing! It tasted pretty good to me--nice and crisp--but now I wonder what a truly fresh apple tastes like. Hmm.

More pix of my house

A couple people have expressed an interest in seeing more photos of my house, so here you go!

My house in 1999:


My house in 2003:


My house in 2004:



My house in 2005:


Wake County has an online map thingie that lets you punch in any address and see aerial photos from the above years. There is one ground photo of each property as well--I was a little surprised to see that it had SNOW for 2004. At least it's pretty!

If you want to see some photos of the inside, they're at Flickr. I am embarrassed to say that when I first saw the house, I did not take any pictures of my own, so these are all from the listing. (Which I guess is actually a good thing, because it means at one point they were available for the world to see, so I'm not too worried about re-posting them.) The home inspection is tomorrow, and you can bet I will be Little Miss Shutterbug on speed. I will post a few more pictures, but I do want to be considerate since these people still live there.