Thursday, December 22, 2005

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!!

Well, I have not updated much as I don't have internet connectivity outside of work for the time being. I won't have exotic location shots to post for a time to come yet, but stay tuned for things like chaos~~~~order at home as I settle in, and wacky photos of some of the crazy stunts I will get up to between now and the new year, such as:

  • replacing the water heater….dangerous and fun!
  • scraping ice away from the driveway annoyingly necessary!!
  • Changing the locks (since the keys I got when I bought the house are 3rd generation wal-mart copies) scary!
  • Pulling trash from out of the crawl space …just plain wrong!
  • And finding an appropriate disposal for the automotive gas tank and muffler left in the garage by the former owners!!!

WOW!!!!


At any rate - to all of my Family, Friends, Colleagues, and web voyeurs -- Wherever you Are in the World -- have a Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year, or Whatever Floats your Boat.

No pun intended to the Alvheimers!!

Sunday, December 11, 2005

On Sunday the dish network guy never showed up but I got deep into some cleaning. It started snowing again. I am going to have to go out and discover where the walkway is to the garage. Bonus to cleaning in the kitchen: found the garage door opener! Posted by Picasa
This is what a normal blaze should look like.  Posted by Picasa
This is the raging blaze. I added one too many logs and thought, oh great, I am going to burn the house down before I move in.  Posted by Picasa
Kitchen Posted by Picasa
From 'office' to sun room Posted by Picasa
From the 'office' into the living room Posted by Picasa
Well, I closed on the house on Friday, and Saturday morning my truckload of furniture arrived. I remembered it being so much, but it really is a couch, a bed, and a lot of books. Got all the unpacking done, and a healthy start on my to-do list. Posted by Picasa

Wednesday, December 07, 2005

We had a little snow earlier this week. It took me a bit to de-ice the windshield. I don't think Tessa, my Truck, has ever experienced cold like this before. But she is running like a top, and just passed the 100,000 mile mark!! Posted by Picasa
So, I have been house hunting. This is the one I fell in love with. Closing is scheduled for Friday.  Posted by Picasa
Recently, I have grown weary of the Marriott TowneSuites Hotel here in Findlay, Ohio. The customer service is almost non-existant...you should keep a list of items sent out for dry cleaning because they come back one or two at a time, spread over a week (despite the same day service and charge). Mail addressed to you at this address does not always arrive. Visitors staying for long periods of time get billed once a week, and so far, none of those I have received has been correct on the firstt (or sometimes second) try. But the biggest no-no in hotel management is failing to repair a reported leak. I noticed the bathroom wall bulging out last week, and pushed on it. Turned out to be water trapped between the wall and the wall paper. A service call was made, and the repair consisted of a tech slicing open the bulging wallpaper and soaking up the residue. I must have asked 4 times if this was repaired as opposed to just drained from the wall - that there is a leak upstairs from me and it needed attention or this seepage would continue. Almost a week later, my bathroom ceiling started raining in the night. Wallpaper bulges appeared and multiplied, and there were actual drips from various spots in the ceiling. I talked to the front desk, again, about this problem. They assured me it would be addressed. When I returned after work, this is the 'repair'. Apparently the maintenance worker stuck his thumb or finger through the ceiling (it was soggy) to drain it. In several spots along the bathroom. Wallpaper was peeled off where the leaks had occurred. I went back downstairs to explain to the young desk clerk why this was unacceptable. Then, she explained that the upstairs tenant apparently was embarrassed to call for help - when his TOILET OVERFLOWED - repeatedly. I could not stop the gag reflex. I then told her again how unacceptable this was. But now I was in a situation. I have everything I own strewn throughout a hotel room - have been living out of a suitcase for a few months now. They were bulging when I got here, and I have since bought an outfit or two, so moving to another hotel would be a huge hassle. Plus, it was 8 degrees outside. And, I get frequent flier miles for the money sent here, and then I get frequent flier miles from my credit card. Those are very valuable to me. So, I explained how this was a safety and health hazard, and how amazed I am at this facility's apparent lack of concern for their structure or their guest's satisfaction - especialy when they are from one of the two big companies keeping this town economically alive. So, I got a new, bigger room. Maybe this week, the billing will be right, too. Posted by Picasa
Great Fall sunset....heavy, full clouds.... Posted by Picasa
Findlay Fall Foliage. Posted by Picasa
Back in Findlay, the fall leaves went through a fantastic array of color. This was back in November, though....they are all naked now.  Posted by Picasa
Entering Amish country......and Amish traffic! Posted by Picasa
When driving in Amish Ohio, one must be especially aware of slow-moving traffic. Posted by Picasa
Besides a large Amish population, there are also lots of German settlements here. Reminds me, somewhat, of the Texas hill country. This is Heini's Cheese Chalet....almost looks out of place. Posted by Picasa
Elsewhere in Ohio's Amish country is the Smuckers farm. When I went by it was closed, but all decked out for the holidays. And I thought they were located in California! Must be confusing them with Knot's Berry Farm. Posted by Picasa
Here is a larger image of the Wooster courthouse. Really nice building but I am not sure I like the red brick building abutting it.... Posted by Picasa
One weekend I went into Amish country. Apparently there is a large Amish population in eastern Ohio. It is beautiful farm country and I had a cood crisp weekend to go exploring. I spent some time around Wooster, which had a great old courthouse. I have not seen column supports like this since visiting the Czech Republic, Slovakia, or Poland. Posted by Picasa
Well, I have not updated photos for a while, but I have been able to do a little exploring in Ohio outside of trips south to visit Mom and Dad. This shot was taken while driving, so it is blurry, but I really like it in a watercolor-y way. Posted by Picasa

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

New Look!

I have decided to try a new template. I like the color scheme much better....lots of greens!

In other news, I have been looking at homes in the Findlay area. Who would have guessed that I would move to, and buy a house in, Findlay. Not me, that's for sure, but it has been an interesting experience so far. The market is not very hot right now (neither are a lot of the selections), so if something falls through, I will likely just hop into an apartment. Would be nice to not live in a hotel for a bit.

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Drive by shot of Indianapolis, IN from I-70 East. At 80 mph. Posted by Picasa
Patricia and I finishing up a liquid lunch. The photo is just a spot blurry, that has nothing to do with our consumption rate!! Posted by Picasa
Kyle as the Master of the Playground, hotwheel cars in hand.  Posted by Picasa
Kyle and I on a teeter totter. Thanks to Mil for snapping these shots, tho I think I need to make a return trip to get some more shots of Casey!! Posted by Picasa
Return to the USA. I had a weekend to go play with my niece and nephew, Casey and Kyle, at their new home and their neighborhood play areaa. Here I got to push them both on swings. It is amazing how easy it is to please kids when you can be ambidextrous for 15 minutes! Posted by Picasa