Is there such a thing as the Black screen of death?
Our 9 year old computer won't start up anymore.....It's stuck in the 28 second cycle. I try all three options and none of them work :(
Bummer.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Snow day
I kinda miss the snow.
Not the cold, just the snow.
The type of snow that is quite and soft.
When there is about 1/2 an inch of untouched snow on the ground and the tips of the green/brown grass are no longer poking up through the carpet of snow.
When it snows in the early morning or late night and remains untouched by foot prints or car tracks.
When it comes down in big flakes and you stick your mitten out and you can catch it and see how each of them are unique.
When the wind is not blowing, and there is silence all around.
When a car drives by and all you hear is the soft crunch of the first tracks being made in the street.
I kinda miss the snow.
Not the cold, just the snow.
Not the cold, just the snow.
The type of snow that is quite and soft.
When there is about 1/2 an inch of untouched snow on the ground and the tips of the green/brown grass are no longer poking up through the carpet of snow.
When it snows in the early morning or late night and remains untouched by foot prints or car tracks.
When it comes down in big flakes and you stick your mitten out and you can catch it and see how each of them are unique.
When the wind is not blowing, and there is silence all around.
When a car drives by and all you hear is the soft crunch of the first tracks being made in the street.
I kinda miss the snow.
Not the cold, just the snow.
Monday, January 26, 2009
fraud
Below is the most recent email correspondence I have had with a Craigs lister wanting to buy our weight set.
1st Email:
Any price reduction with detail of it's condition and why you want
to sell it.
Raphel.
My 1st Response:
I actually have someone coming to buy this on Thursday. If they are a no show, I'll let you know. It doesnt fit in our new house. We used it a lot before we moved, but the upstairs room has tilted ceiling walls and you can't lift the weight bar too high without scratching the wall. That's why we are getting rid of it.
2nd Email from Raphel:
Thanks for the prompt response, I really do appreciate your sweet email, I will love to make an instant purchase please do withdraw the advert from Craigslist.I don't mind adding an extra $50 dollars for you to take the advert down from criagslist so that i can be rest assured that am in hand of the item.I will also like you to know that i will be paying with certified check,and i will wait for the check clear before sending my shipper to come for the pick up,You don't need to bother your self with the shipment OK,I will take care of that cause buying and selling is what i do for living.So I will need you to provide me with the following information to facilitate the mailing of the check such as:
1.Your full name.
2.Your mailing address including zip code.
3.Your phone number.
Once again ,I will like you to know that you will not be responsible for shipping.I will have my mover come over as soon as you have cashed the check.
Thanks
Raphel.
My 2nd Response:
What moving company do you use? I know someone and could get you a really good deal. The only trouble will be that they only accept payment by livestock. (Cattle, goats, chicken, etc. ) I can send him your information but will need you to send me the following.
1. Your full name
2. Address of where to deliver the weight bench
3. Type of animal used for payment
I have yet to hear back from Raphel......
1st Email:
Any price reduction with detail of it's condition and why you want
to sell it.
Raphel.
My 1st Response:
I actually have someone coming to buy this on Thursday. If they are a no show, I'll let you know. It doesnt fit in our new house. We used it a lot before we moved, but the upstairs room has tilted ceiling walls and you can't lift the weight bar too high without scratching the wall. That's why we are getting rid of it.
2nd Email from Raphel:
Thanks for the prompt response, I really do appreciate your sweet email, I will love to make an instant purchase please do withdraw the advert from Craigslist.I don't mind adding an extra $50 dollars for you to take the advert down from criagslist so that i can be rest assured that am in hand of the item.I will also like you to know that i will be paying with certified check,and i will wait for the check clear before sending my shipper to come for the pick up,You don't need to bother your self with the shipment OK,I will take care of that cause buying and selling is what i do for living.So I will need you to provide me with the following information to facilitate the mailing of the check such as:
1.Your full name.
2.Your mailing address including zip code.
3.Your phone number.
Once again ,I will like you to know that you will not be responsible for shipping.I will have my mover come over as soon as you have cashed the check.
Thanks
Raphel.
My 2nd Response:
What moving company do you use? I know someone and could get you a really good deal. The only trouble will be that they only accept payment by livestock. (Cattle, goats, chicken, etc. ) I can send him your information but will need you to send me the following.
1. Your full name
2. Address of where to deliver the weight bench
3. Type of animal used for payment
I have yet to hear back from Raphel......
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Im rubbing off on my husband
I was in the kitchen the other day and overheard the following from my husband who was watching the news on tv in the other room.
'Nice Jacket'
'Hairs a little whild'
'But the jackets nice'
5 years ago, he never would have noticed any of that, let alone, said it out loud.
'Nice Jacket'
'Hairs a little whild'
'But the jackets nice'
5 years ago, he never would have noticed any of that, let alone, said it out loud.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Inauguration 'Stuff'
So, I DVR'd the 9 hours of press coverage today and have been fast forwarding through it watching parts. Here are some of my random thoughts.
1. Pressures of a good gift. Mrs. Obama gave Mrs. Bush a gift when she arrived at the White House. About 2 min later Katie Couric announced that they had word on what the gift was. Imagine that....Mrs. Obama had to pick out a gift and know that the News was going to announce that to the world what you got her. Talk about pressure for picking a good gift.
2. Shhh...It's a secret. Well, not so much. If I were the secret service trying to keep people safe I think it would be easier to take an 'undisclosed' route. Not the case today. The news actually shows a diagram with exact roads, entrances to buildings, what offices, what hallways, what doors the President and president elect will be walking through. Which room they will wait in before walking out the capital. It is down to the detail and very historic. It's done the same every time. Bush sits on the right seat of car (passenger side) Obama sits on the left side (Drivers side) of the car. You know everyones exact move. Security nightmare!
3. Obama gets to keep his Blackberry. Hmm...how are they going to keep all his emails confidential with the 0's and 1's flying through space??
4. I know it's cold, but when a bunch of Judges walk out and they all look so sophisticated, the one wearing Ear cuffs kinda ruins the judicial sophistication. (Ear cuffs are those things that snap onto your ears without the band that goes over your head)
5. The people who are writing those banners across the bottom need some creativity.
'Sonars detect object the size of jet engine on the bottom of the Hudson River'. I wonder what it could be?
1. Pressures of a good gift. Mrs. Obama gave Mrs. Bush a gift when she arrived at the White House. About 2 min later Katie Couric announced that they had word on what the gift was. Imagine that....Mrs. Obama had to pick out a gift and know that the News was going to announce that to the world what you got her. Talk about pressure for picking a good gift.
2. Shhh...It's a secret. Well, not so much. If I were the secret service trying to keep people safe I think it would be easier to take an 'undisclosed' route. Not the case today. The news actually shows a diagram with exact roads, entrances to buildings, what offices, what hallways, what doors the President and president elect will be walking through. Which room they will wait in before walking out the capital. It is down to the detail and very historic. It's done the same every time. Bush sits on the right seat of car (passenger side) Obama sits on the left side (Drivers side) of the car. You know everyones exact move. Security nightmare!
3. Obama gets to keep his Blackberry. Hmm...how are they going to keep all his emails confidential with the 0's and 1's flying through space??
4. I know it's cold, but when a bunch of Judges walk out and they all look so sophisticated, the one wearing Ear cuffs kinda ruins the judicial sophistication. (Ear cuffs are those things that snap onto your ears without the band that goes over your head)
5. The people who are writing those banners across the bottom need some creativity.
'Sonars detect object the size of jet engine on the bottom of the Hudson River'. I wonder what it could be?
Monday, January 19, 2009
Does this smell bad?
I was brushing my teeth last week and looking at our huge bottle of generic Listerine. It has and expiration date of 2010. That got me thinking.....2010 is a long way away for a bottle we bought in 2008. Who decided on these dates? Do they really go bad, or do 'they' just want you to throw it out and go buy a new one? Should that be the amount of mouthwash we use in a 2.5 year period? Maybe it is not a fast seller and they plan for it to sit on the shelf for a year before anyone buys it??
A fellow blogger of mine recently blogged about this too. She brought up the fact that some have a 'sell by date' and some have a 'use by date'. The Sell by date is completely useless. I don't know why they even bother. The average consumer has no idea how long items are good after the sell by date. It's like playing 'Catch Phrase' with food. You've played the game right?....You have this contraption that shows you a word. You have to get your team to say the word then pass it to the person next to you. There is a timer that has a randomly set time and it will beep. You have no idea how long until the buzzer sounds, All you try to do is get the thing out of your hands before the buzzer goes off.
That's what the stores are doing. Get the food out of their store before the buzzer (Expiration date) goes off. They don't care if you end up with sour milk 1 day after the sell by date, they just care that it was out of the store by the sell by date. I think the manufacturers then know that most consumers will not go very far past the sell by date, and then go buy another $3.47 gallon of Milk. When actually that gallon was still good for another 5 days.
Somethings you may feel are fine to go a month over the expiration date, while others you won't really go a day. (Or you'll take the cover off, sniff, then ask your husband..'Does this smell bad?' before you pour him a glass of milk) The FDA has regulated the nutrition facts on the back of food. I think they should regulate the 'Use by' date on there as well.
Just so you know....on 8/27/2010 I will still use my mouthwash that was expired on 8/05/2010. I figure there's enough alcohol in there to kill the germs for at least one more month....
A fellow blogger of mine recently blogged about this too. She brought up the fact that some have a 'sell by date' and some have a 'use by date'. The Sell by date is completely useless. I don't know why they even bother. The average consumer has no idea how long items are good after the sell by date. It's like playing 'Catch Phrase' with food. You've played the game right?....You have this contraption that shows you a word. You have to get your team to say the word then pass it to the person next to you. There is a timer that has a randomly set time and it will beep. You have no idea how long until the buzzer sounds, All you try to do is get the thing out of your hands before the buzzer goes off.
That's what the stores are doing. Get the food out of their store before the buzzer (Expiration date) goes off. They don't care if you end up with sour milk 1 day after the sell by date, they just care that it was out of the store by the sell by date. I think the manufacturers then know that most consumers will not go very far past the sell by date, and then go buy another $3.47 gallon of Milk. When actually that gallon was still good for another 5 days.
Somethings you may feel are fine to go a month over the expiration date, while others you won't really go a day. (Or you'll take the cover off, sniff, then ask your husband..'Does this smell bad?' before you pour him a glass of milk) The FDA has regulated the nutrition facts on the back of food. I think they should regulate the 'Use by' date on there as well.
Just so you know....on 8/27/2010 I will still use my mouthwash that was expired on 8/05/2010. I figure there's enough alcohol in there to kill the germs for at least one more month....
Thursday, January 15, 2009
TV Findings...
Two things I saw on TV yesterday
1. There is a news show that they broadcast from a bar?? There where three people (dressed like news anchors) and they are sitting on stools with a bar behind them. The wall of liqure bottles and mirror is the back drop, then a bar, then three people in front of it sitting on stools talking to the camera. Every once in a while a bartender in a brown sweater would walk behind them and fill a glass with what was on tap. It's kinda weird. THey were interviewing a congressman via satalite about Bank of America or someting. I think it was called 'What's on Tap?' Strange
2. If you put the first letter of all the months on a chart, they spell JASON starting with July. I think I already knew this, but it leaped out at me yesterday and I thought...'Cool'. I think i was just trying to find something else to look at besides all the stock charts that looked like Jack and Jill rolling down a steep hill.
1. There is a news show that they broadcast from a bar?? There where three people (dressed like news anchors) and they are sitting on stools with a bar behind them. The wall of liqure bottles and mirror is the back drop, then a bar, then three people in front of it sitting on stools talking to the camera. Every once in a while a bartender in a brown sweater would walk behind them and fill a glass with what was on tap. It's kinda weird. THey were interviewing a congressman via satalite about Bank of America or someting. I think it was called 'What's on Tap?' Strange
2. If you put the first letter of all the months on a chart, they spell JASON starting with July. I think I already knew this, but it leaped out at me yesterday and I thought...'Cool'. I think i was just trying to find something else to look at besides all the stock charts that looked like Jack and Jill rolling down a steep hill.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Closet update
When we first moved in I posted about my amazing deal on closet organizers. We are just about done putting them all up. We finished the two guest room closets. here is a picture of one.
We are working on our master closet now. I realized this week that the only rooms in our house that we have painted and cleaned up...have been the closets. Most people would have painted the main rooms, but not us.....we have torn down three closets, plastered and patched, sanded, and painted three closets in our house so far.
Lessons learned: If you buy a new house, take a really close look at the walls and realize that you are going to want to paint them, even if you like the color. There will be scuff marks from furniture moving, nail holes in places you don't want pictures, spots where someone tried to match a paint color and did a really bad job by getting flat instead of eggshell. If you have the time to do it, have someone paint it before you move in all the furniture and your belongings.
We are working on our master closet now. I realized this week that the only rooms in our house that we have painted and cleaned up...have been the closets. Most people would have painted the main rooms, but not us.....we have torn down three closets, plastered and patched, sanded, and painted three closets in our house so far.
Lessons learned: If you buy a new house, take a really close look at the walls and realize that you are going to want to paint them, even if you like the color. There will be scuff marks from furniture moving, nail holes in places you don't want pictures, spots where someone tried to match a paint color and did a really bad job by getting flat instead of eggshell. If you have the time to do it, have someone paint it before you move in all the furniture and your belongings.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
All grown up
Last week we picked out an entertainment center and kitchen table. They arrived yesterday and I feel like we went from collage dorm style to grown up style.
This is what we had....
We just put our TV on the Coffee table when we move in because we did not have the right furniture to put in this room with this TV.
Now this is what we have....
We also got a new kitchen table for our breakfast nook area....
Yeah....our house is starting to look like a real house
This is what we had....
We just put our TV on the Coffee table when we move in because we did not have the right furniture to put in this room with this TV.
Now this is what we have....
We also got a new kitchen table for our breakfast nook area....
Yeah....our house is starting to look like a real house
Friday, January 9, 2009
Go Ahead
My In-laws have inspired me to get a little bit healthier. They visited us for Christmas and we talked about doing little things to live a healthy life.
Like parking far away and walking the length of the parking lot to get to the store.
If you think about it...this saves you time, especially at Walmart. Think about the last time you went there....You pull up to the store and have to drive by the first entrance. You play the 'go ahead - no you go ahead' game.
You make eye contact with a person on the left walking into the store and nod for them to go in front of you.
They are not sure if you meant them so they stop to show you that you can drive by.
Then you have to actually stop the car. (If the person had gone, you could have just done a bit of a slow roll, but now you have to actually stop.) You wave this time to make sure they know to go ahead.
They smile and nod as they start walking again (and it is usually then that you realize how slow they walk)
Once they have cleared your path, you start taking your foot off the break and a customer leaving the store pushing a cart walks right in your path and you have to stop again.
You inch forward like the game of froger trying to make it through without running over too many people.
And that's just the first entrance......You then drive up and down two aisle and get stuck behind a cart chaser. (The people who follow someone walking to their car and then block the aisle while that person puts their groceries away, walk to put the cart away, and then walk back to their car to pull out. Then the cart chaser is too close, they put the car in reverse and almost run you over because they got to close to parked car) Then you play the 'Go- no you go' game at the next entrance. All this stress and you have not even made it into the store yet!!!!
OR
You can pull in the back, park, and walk to the store in half the time. Just don't get stuck in the 'go-no you go' game!!
Like parking far away and walking the length of the parking lot to get to the store.
If you think about it...this saves you time, especially at Walmart. Think about the last time you went there....You pull up to the store and have to drive by the first entrance. You play the 'go ahead - no you go ahead' game.
You make eye contact with a person on the left walking into the store and nod for them to go in front of you.
They are not sure if you meant them so they stop to show you that you can drive by.
Then you have to actually stop the car. (If the person had gone, you could have just done a bit of a slow roll, but now you have to actually stop.) You wave this time to make sure they know to go ahead.
They smile and nod as they start walking again (and it is usually then that you realize how slow they walk)
Once they have cleared your path, you start taking your foot off the break and a customer leaving the store pushing a cart walks right in your path and you have to stop again.
You inch forward like the game of froger trying to make it through without running over too many people.
And that's just the first entrance......You then drive up and down two aisle and get stuck behind a cart chaser. (The people who follow someone walking to their car and then block the aisle while that person puts their groceries away, walk to put the cart away, and then walk back to their car to pull out. Then the cart chaser is too close, they put the car in reverse and almost run you over because they got to close to parked car) Then you play the 'Go- no you go' game at the next entrance. All this stress and you have not even made it into the store yet!!!!
OR
You can pull in the back, park, and walk to the store in half the time. Just don't get stuck in the 'go-no you go' game!!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Implicationless man
My brother-in-law once described to me and my husband that he is an implicationless man. And actually all men are implicationless. They don't go around implying things - they say what they want.
For example. If my sister says:
"What's the thermostat set at?"
She actually is saying
"I am cold, please bring me a sweater"
If you are a woman, you know you do this...You'll say things and you think you are being direct about what you want, but if you actually stop and think about what you say, it's not very direct. Your statements require interpretation.
Case in point:
We are at the Gator bowl and my husband wants some popcorn (and of course a drink). He orders a tub of popcorn and a diet coke. (That was $10 - but I won't go into a rant about how they rip you off!! That's another blog) As we walk away, I am holding the drink and take a sip and say
'I don't know why you like diet Coke'
'You don't like it?'
'No - I hate the way diet drinks taste'
'After 5 years of marriage, I didn't know you didn't like Diet Coke'
It was then that I realized I must have been pretty bad at my implying. I don't drink caffeinated drinks very often, I don't order 'meals' when I go to fast food resturants, I just get the sandwich and take a few sips of my husbands drink. Well, he has always gotten diet drinks because that is what he was used to at his house. Every time he does it, I guess in my head I was saying,
'why do you get diet...it's not like you have to watch your weight...it tastes bad, and even though I am not drinking it, I would like to have a sip of regular drink when I do sip your drink, you should get a regular drink because that's what I like'
When Actually I was saying
'Is this Diet?'
After 5 years.....he realized what I was implying.
I love him:)
For example. If my sister says:
"What's the thermostat set at?"
She actually is saying
"I am cold, please bring me a sweater"
If you are a woman, you know you do this...You'll say things and you think you are being direct about what you want, but if you actually stop and think about what you say, it's not very direct. Your statements require interpretation.
Case in point:
We are at the Gator bowl and my husband wants some popcorn (and of course a drink). He orders a tub of popcorn and a diet coke. (That was $10 - but I won't go into a rant about how they rip you off!! That's another blog) As we walk away, I am holding the drink and take a sip and say
'I don't know why you like diet Coke'
'You don't like it?'
'No - I hate the way diet drinks taste'
'After 5 years of marriage, I didn't know you didn't like Diet Coke'
It was then that I realized I must have been pretty bad at my implying. I don't drink caffeinated drinks very often, I don't order 'meals' when I go to fast food resturants, I just get the sandwich and take a few sips of my husbands drink. Well, he has always gotten diet drinks because that is what he was used to at his house. Every time he does it, I guess in my head I was saying,
'why do you get diet...it's not like you have to watch your weight...it tastes bad, and even though I am not drinking it, I would like to have a sip of regular drink when I do sip your drink, you should get a regular drink because that's what I like'
When Actually I was saying
'Is this Diet?'
After 5 years.....he realized what I was implying.
I love him:)
Thursday, January 1, 2009
House Haulin'
There is this show on DIY or HGTV...i forget which one. It is all about 'House Movers'. Now we are not talking the type of movers that come in and pack up all your stuff....they literally lift up your house, put it on a truck or a barge, move it and set it down in your new location. I can't believe that enough people move houses that there is actually a profession. I decided my next Job-for-a-Week will be a 'House Cutter'. That was someones title..it said his name at the bottom of the screen and it said 'House Cutter'. He had quite an assortment of chainsaws to cut wood, concrete, tile, etc. Do little kids aspire to be that when they grown up?
In the one I was watching, they put this house on a barge and then had to drive it down river under two bridges in Jacksonville FL...the owners and the TV guys are on the barge taking this 50 Mile hike with their house. They got the house for free (4bed, 4 bath, 3300 sqft) because someone bought the land and was going to tear it down.....and the cost to move the house.....drumroll.................$400,000.
And there is no guarantee that the house will make it.
The next time you are driving across a bridge and you see a house on a barge, You'll know why.
In the one I was watching, they put this house on a barge and then had to drive it down river under two bridges in Jacksonville FL...the owners and the TV guys are on the barge taking this 50 Mile hike with their house. They got the house for free (4bed, 4 bath, 3300 sqft) because someone bought the land and was going to tear it down.....and the cost to move the house.....drumroll.................$400,000.
And there is no guarantee that the house will make it.
The next time you are driving across a bridge and you see a house on a barge, You'll know why.
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