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Doing the Right Thing?

Today at work I was talking to a co-worker when we heard a weird sort of sound. A small crashing/breaking noise. Not like glass, but like…. I poked my head out the door to see what the noise had been.
A-ha! A cell phone.
In at least 10 discrete pieces.
I started to pick up the pieces thinking someone had dropped it coming out the elevator and had missed the fact their phone had fallen and been smashed into pieces.
As I was bent over picking up another piece a man walked up to me and said “That’s my phone. I got mad and threw it. My wife’s in the building cheating on me and she won’t answer her phone.” He seemed a little agitated.

Quasi Spring Cleaning

Something in the wind must be changing, or maybe the extended daylight is having an effect on me. I feel the compelling need to clean. It’s weird, but it MUST BE DONE.
I bought a small vacuum cleaner on sale at Target on Sunday. Why would I need a cheap one when I have a very nice expensive one? Because my nice expensive one weighs a ton and is NOT friendly for stair cleaning. Up until several hours ago my upper stairs were coated in fluffy gray cat hair. No more! I left work a teeny bit early so I could go home and vacuum. 17 months after we moved in I finally cleaned the stairs and it felt awesome. I didn’t just stop there, though. I vacuumed air vents, ceiling corners, and areas of the floor where mounds of fluffy gray hair had long been accumulating.

Disaster Looming...

Mere weeks before we moved into our house in 2006 a storm ripped through Madison causing a major branch of the silver maple to split and nose dive into the neighbors’ yard. This was somewhat worrisome. Was the tree sick? Would it die? Would it collapse on the house? Most importantly: how much was it going to cost us?

It seemed to be OK, but it was starting to touch the roof. I had heard that branches touching the roof creates an easy highway for animals and insects to invade your house. This was not a desirable scenario. We called in a tree specialist to look at the tree and give us an estimate of how much it would cost to prune it.

Half Gallon of Water

Lately our winter car has begun to have an unpleasant odor. That peculiar aroma of something wet that just can’t seem to dry.

I did some poking around on the car’s floor this afternood and discovered that both the mats and the carpet were soaking, squishy wet. Ugh.

I considered using towels before I decided to drag out our mini shop vac. I ran an extension cord through the milk door and proceeded to vacuum up a half gallon of “water” from the carpets. ew.

I left the sunroof open for a few hours hoping that air circulation and sunlight would help dry up some of the remaining water and take that wet smell with it.

I drank the social networking kool-aid again

Yes. That’s a Flickr photostream you see over there on the right.

My photos.

But I have my pride. I refuse to do MySpace.

Frigophobia

At work today I pinpointed my problem. I’m afraid of being cold.
OK, maybe not afraid, but weary of being assaulted by sub-zero temperatures.
The mere 6 block walk to Adam’s daycare leaves my face and legs frozen.
I hate it. I stuffed my mittens in my backpack this morning, they’re still wet.
I am dumb.
As I’m trudging down Wilson street cursing the City of Madison for poor side walk cleaning I determine that I’m hypothermophobic. Of course in the hot, hot summer I’m hyperthermophobic, but August is a long ways away. I resolve to enjoy the hot weather more this year. To be outdoors with the heat, humidity and mosquitos as much as humanly possible. My garden and outdoor projects demand that I spend more time outside.

Irrational Cravings on a Snowy Day

The weather band radio droned on warning of dangerous road conditions.
I went outside, my driveway was covered with a sheet of ice.
Mike braved the slushy, rainy, icy sidewalks to retrieve a big jug of Ice Melt.

Noon came, restlessness set it. I was thirsty. My choices were: bad coffee, tea, water, and orange juice. Bah. The palate demands fizzy, sweet, aspartame-laced caffeinated cola. I fidget and look at the street.
I call a friend I’m SURE will be heading out. No dice, they’re not leaving.

I pace and fidget some more. The palate REALLY demands a diet coke. I call her back to bring someone along on my fools mission.

We venture out to the nearby grocery store. I buy 3 12 packs of not on sale diet cokes, bread and limeade.

Now Taking Snow Fall Predictions for 2007-2008 Winter!

According to the weather guys, we’re 2.1” from the record of 76.1” set in the 1978-79.

The 10 day forecast has 5 days as possible snow fall days, including today and tomorrow where anywhere from 3-6” has been predicted.

So that means, currently on February 11, 2008 we have had 74” of snow in Madison, WI.

How many more inches do you think we’ll have between now and May 15th? OK, we don’t seriously expect snow in May around here, but with this weather you never know.

So, my guess is that by May 15th we will have had 87.6” inches. That covers the rest of February and whatever March and April dump on us.

Dreaming of Gardening...

Saturday I went to the WPT Garden Show. I attended seminars on organic gardening, composting and vermiculture. I even dragged myself out of bed at 7:30am on a Saturday (unheard of in recent history) to get to the 9am seminar. I’m not completely sold in keeping bins of worms in my basement, even if the guy was really enthusiastic about worms. I’d just be happy to have a hot, happy, active compost bin by the end of the summer.

I spent nearly 6 hours at the garden show talking to people, learning new gardening things, and drooling over gorgeous outdoor decorating ideas. Sure, I’d love a stone patio with a built-in outdoor oven/grill — if only I had a bigger, wider backyard and plenty of excess money.

Wisconsin, Now a Battleground State

The national political machines have come to Wisconsin.

On the one hand, it means that Wisconsin might actually matter in the primaries.

On the other, the national political machines have come to Wisconsin. Kirstin reported on a VA-plated, “Hillary Staff”-bumper-stickered car parked illegally at our daycare, and I just got the first (of what will likely be many) annoying political calls this afternoon.

How to save a big chunk o' change

It wouldn’t be news say that interest rates have been fluctuating. We managed to get in on that crazy action and hit the elusive sweet spot: a good appraisal in a crappy market AND a kick-ass interest rate.

Today we signed our mortgage papers on a refinance that will theoretically put us out of primary mortgage debt by the time Adam graduates from high school.

It also marks the first time I’ve ever realistically planned this far in the future. It is a little unsettling to realize that in 2023 I’ll be…(I had to do some math) I’ll be old. oy vey!

I can’t even see the grown-up in the pre-schooler, but in 15 years he’ll be there. As my mortgage shrinks, my son will grow and grow and grow, potentially up to 6’4 (so say the growth chart calculators).

Cranky about being sandwiched

This morning I’m reading the WaPo and there are 2 election related subjects that cover my 2 least favorite subjects. Millennials and Baby Boomers. My generation, the so-called Generation X, that disaffected, cynical, nihilistic, smallest generation to be born in the 20th century.
Who are we? The Simpsons (curse them!) summed up the 1990s embarrassingly well. Apparently we’re defined by Grunge Rock and uber-liberal campus attitudes and books like Howard Zinn’s “A People’s History of the United States.”