Raincharm’s Weblog

What I did for my Christmas Vacation:

Crosswords

Bananagrams

Quirkle

Jigsaws

The Desolation of Smaug

Prime Rib

Potatoes au Gratin

Pizza

Macaroni and Cheese

Family & Friends

Yes, we are squatting.
Look – the books are “unpacked”

I was the last one out of bed on Christmas.

This is full circle from my 4-year old (maybe 5) rising at 4:30 AM.
I even got dressed before I went to wake Mom & Dad.
After that year we had a 7 AM limit.

This year we even made coffee and ate breakfast before heading to the tree.
Santa was very nice, along with various and sundry relatives.

We crossworded and generally hung out during the day.
Ashlan took the lead on dinner, prime rib, potatoes au-gratin and roasted brussel sprouts.
Quite good. (And I helped)

There was a bit of a Dr. Who marathon in the evening, but I have to admit that I missed a bit of this by dozing.

One of my favorite parts of the day was when I went to bed and could listen to the sounds of the family in the house.
I miss having those sounds around.

Boxing day has been spent with a bit of cleaning, the kids are out shopping (Rey is getting some shirt and ties thanks to financial assistance from grandparents, and choosing assistance from Ashlan.)

And now it is time to finish the Christmas Card!

It’s beginning to look more like Christmas.

I should have written that the day it snowed.
Carl made his requisite snowman, and then another.
They both tipped over almost immediately.

That was on Friday morning, and we still have a small pile of snow in the front yard.
We are prepared to declare it a WHITE CHRISTMAS!

The real looking more like Christmas is the tree.

The tree itself is one of the best shaped trees we have had for several years. It finally made the journey from the deck into the house on Monday, and this morning (Tuesday) it got lights. A few ornaments have been added, and I think we are now officially ready.

We don’t discriminate – any kind of decoration may make the shelf.

Other momentous events since the last posting.

• Rey arrived home on Friday night. (The airport was so busy that the side-highway to the airport was backed up to I-5. We took Hwy 99 instead. (Why did I check traffic at 11 PM??))
• Ashlan arrived home on Saturday night. (The airport traffic was only backed up on the approach road. And she arrived 45 minutes early. We were driving home before she was supposed to land.)
• All three storage units are empty of our stuff!
  The last two items were disposed of through the Craigslist free site, posted yesterday – gone today.

It has been really nice to have a few meals around the table, chatting with the kids. Sort of like old times.
And their arrival hastened a bit more unpacking that might have taken longer. And they helped crush the rolls of cardboard floor protection to put out with the recycle. Interesting folks, and helpful too.

I hope everyone that might read this has arrived safely at their destination for the holidays, and good tidings.

Today the season is finally starting to hit home.

I braved the teeming masses and went shopping.
Malls, neighborhoods, parallel parking, brand new parking structures, and closed roads.

It was going fairly smoothly, until we found out Hwy 99 was closed approaching downtown. That resulted in an incredibly roundabout and frustrating half hour – at the end of which all we ended up getting was coffee.

This should have been taken as a sign, but we pressed on back north to the NORTH MALL.
Our recent experience helped us make quicker decisions and we did not even make it into the parking lot.

Finally we got to the fun activity of the day.
The Green Lake Pathway of Lights.

2013 Luminaria

I did not take too many pictures, deciding to try to just enjoy the sights as they came. Click here for some better pictures than I would get anyway.

Jazz at the lake

Green Lake 2013

We have done this most years over the past few decades.
This year it was 50 degrees and not raining.
That resulted in one of the most crowded walks in recent memory, with the usual singing groups, lit-up outfits, lighted kayak parade, dog walkers (try to see a leash leader in the dark), crying babies and complaining kids. [The walk is about 3 miles, and I bet that most of the complaining comes after mile 1.]

One of our enduring memories of past walks is from when Rey was probably 2 and Ashlan an infant.
Rey wanted to stop at every bag with a candle and look inside. It was one of our longer duration walks.

We also used this excursion to pick up a Christmas Tree.
This is Green Lake Elementary School’s annual major fundraiser.
Last year we only had a short tree from the grocery store. We were in the middle of packing the house and wanted to keep it simple.
This year we have kids coming home, and are moving back in.

One of the highlights of the Christmas Tree lot was being helped by Max.
Carl took care of Max here and there when he was very young.
Max is now a high school senior, taking running start classes (community college – can count for both high school & college credits), with a possible focus in biology.
It was good to catch up a bit.

2013 Nobel Fir (with blue spruce topper)

When I first looked at this picture of the tree, I thought the top had a bend to the left.
Turns out it is just our blue spruce trying to get in on the holiday action.

Today was a day of visitors to our house, so I stayed home to work and welcome them all as they arrived.

The visitors included a garage door guy, some delivery persons, an unexpected delivery person, and the general contractor.

Between these I was supposed to be working from home.
The last few times I have worked from home have been pretty productive.
Today – not so much, but work did get done. It just took longer to hit my stride.
I think it was all of the little interruptions along the way, including an adorable 2-1/2 year old that wanted me to play with her.

So now we have a full bed – with box springs to try out.
We have a garage door almost installed, but not quite. (Our 1926 garage door opening includes a wall that is slightly canted inward on the side with no extra room for adjustments.) More parts are needed so the installer can continue to improvise his way around our less than square opening. So it looks like a new door. Just not one that can be opened.
And we have a plan for our side yard side walk. (Now we just need to see the cost estimate.)

And I did finally finish reviewing the chapter that was primary on my to-do list.
Still have to review the figure that goes with the map. Something to look forward to for tomorrow.

And for dessert – look into the unexpected delivery.

Rogue rocks in fact.

This past year I have experienced Spinning Room sensation a few times.
The first time was at the cabin in the summer.
There was some other time, and then a few weeks ago.

My spinning room is whichever room I happen to be sleeping in, because it happens when I am getting out of bed.
No alcohol is involved.

A week or so ago I was putting a bin on a closet shelf, and suddenly I thought the shelf was falling.
It was not. Nor was I, but I was holding the shelf up with all my might.

The spinning has decreased a bit, but I can feel the sensation starting when I roll over in bed or look high above my head. So I decided it was time to get a real diagnosis.

And I found out that I have rocks in my head.
Otoliths.

And they are not staying where they are supposed to stay, moving into some ear canals and mixing it up with the cilia, who in turn whine to the brain, which starts things spinning.

To fix this issue apparently I need to train my brain to ignore these whiners.
We do this by trying to make the spinning start often enough that the brain just gets tired of responding.
If that doesn’t work there is a nurse that specializes in head contortions.
Or maybe acupuncture.

I won’t worry about that until we find out if I can manage to stop this on my own.

For those that want to know, it is Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo.
I like the Benign, I get the Position, and I understand the Vertigo.
Paroxysmal – I thought I associated that with laughing, so maybe this is a laughing matter, or I have an entirely different word in my head. Along with rocks.

Today and yesterday were days to shift things here and there and everywhere.

We have company scheduled next weekend, so we are making a big push to get the house somewhat looking like we did not just move in. I don’t think we will achieve that lofty goal, but we might have fewer boxes to walk around.

The continuing to move has required shifting of stuff from this spot to that – just to have room to work on the room de jour. But that usually results in at least of few of the shifting boxes being unpacked as well.

Today we moved our (Carl’s) albums (records, LPs, vinyl) from the middle of the floor to spaces around the edge of the dining room.  I am not sure this will be their final resting spot, but it did get them out of the main walkway.

Art was unpacked and is now scattered around in different rooms, trying to find a home.

Bedding has been mostly unpacked. And some of it left our home to find homes with other people who need blankets. I got a few new blankets to fill the void, and a couple of bedspreads for the finishing touch.

There are still a few more boxes to unpack, but the number is definitely decreasing.

The Recycle Truck is getting quite a load from us tomorrow. We piled all of the boxes on the lawn, filled an extra garbage can and of course put out the regular recycle bin.

Recycle Overload

Sorry about the dark picture, but it is dark out there. The pile doesn’t look that big in the picture. Perhaps I should have had Carl lay across the pile for scale.

And curtains were purchased for the room with the computer. Not hung yet, but the curtain rods were also obtained today.

And we took a walk – used the walk to do a little Christmas shopping.
This year has been a bit hard to get started on the seasonal stuff, but hopefully it will all come together in the end.

And the last storage unit is down to items that we hope will not see the inside of our house again.
But we need to find somebody willing to take them off our hands. Craigslist – take them away …

Sort of stream of consciousness here, and I am sure I have missed a thing or two or twelve.

time to do some laundry.

From the prior post you should know that the bed frame was successfully put together.

Yesterday’s activity was to have the box spring and mattress delivered and installed.
Carl was present for this activity – or at least the attempt at this activity.

In an earlier episode of our move back home we attempted to carry a dresser up to the second floor.
This involves going through the doorway and turning 90 degrees – all while going up a step or two.
After about 5 minutes of jockeying the dresser, including removing the feet, the neighbor on the uphill side of the dresser said, “This dresser did come down the stairs on the move out, didn’t it?”. At which point we realized that no, it had not in fact ever traversed the staircase because it was in a downstairs bedroom before.

The dresser is now upstairs, after having been taken apart and put back together in the new location.

So the box spring effort brought back those memories.
Unfortunately, it is not easy to just take apart the box spring and reassemble it at the top of the stairs.

Fortunately, this was are not the first house where a bed delivery has encountered this problem.
They make box springs that come in two pieces.

Also fortunately, the mattress did make the journey upstairs successfully.
Mattresses squish and bend.

The whole incident resulted in several phone calls during which at least twice people were on two phones between three people, at the same time

• Carl calls Jay to tell her about the situation.
• Jay calls Macys to tell Jan (Yan) about the situation. (It took several minutes to get to Jan, going through customer service, their 2 attempts at a transfer, (during which time Carl called Jay and Jay tried to carry on two conversations),
• Jay is finally transferred successfully to Jan and we are finally talking about the situation, and getting the split box spring order started – when the phone line goes dead.
• Jan calls Jay (on the home phone number) and Carl answers.
• Jay, using her work phone, calls Jan and “furniture” answers, telling Jay that Jan is on another line. (Jay explains Jan is trying to talk to her)
• Jan transfers to Jay’s call.
• Carl calls Jay on Jay’s cell phone, which Jay answers – now talking to both Carl & Jan for at least a moment.

The result is that the bed is now half made.
Literally. After spending the night on the new mattress (wonderful night of sleep) the covers are a bit disheveled.
I had always tried to be good about pulling up the covers on the water-bed, because they keep the heat from escaping and running up the energy bill.
I don’t have that same issue now, and should make the bed just because it is neater.

This morning I was actually moving in that direction, but the phone rang.
I blame the current state of the bed on the Boy.

Theme for the last few days – what to build next.

First up – a new laundry sink.
The old sink was a good sink, except that everything leaked.
We had a plumber coming to replace the old faucet with a much newer version.
Then the sink plugged up during a washing machine cycle and I realized that the entire sink leaked at about the 1″ above the bottom point. Where there was a crack all the way around.

Old leaky sink – spider home galore

So in the spirit of fixing things around the house we decided to get a new laundry tub.
I ordered one and when it arrived managed to load it successfully into the STuBby car.
Side note: This is the second time I have ordered through Home Depot where the box has been just beat to h#$l. The sink was OK, but I don’t know why they bothered to wrap it in cardboard.
All I was supposed to do was put the legs on the sink, and the plumber would do the rest.

When I started to tackle this task I noted that the old sink was sitting on a base made of pipe that was firmly attached to the floor and wall. I know this could be taken apart with the correct tools, but I was not sure that was going to be the best alternative. So I did nothing, but make time to come home to be here when the plumber arrived.

Of course – the plumber arrived early, and I arrived late. Who would have guessed that.

He agreed that using the already level firmly attached base would be a good idea, and proceeded to do his magic. He rerouted the vent so he could attach the sink to the wall for a sturdier system. Nice work.

New Laundry Sink – no spider’s yet

[They also got to use the lift out gate section while wrangling the heavy sink out of the basement to the back yard.]

Since I couldn’t build a sink, I built a coat rack.

Coat Rack

Tonight our attention turned to the bed frame. This is because the NEW BED is arriving tomorrow.
The frame was an IKEA product (of course), and the entire construction did not use an Allen wrench once. Not once. Instead it was all Phillips head screwdriver.
And some screws that I honestly did not think would fit into their appointed place. We had to sort of pre-screw them in, back them out, and then do the attachment.

Bed Frame

Tonight is the last night on the air bed I believe. It has been a good substitute, but we are excited to have a real bed again.

I was so sure of my ability to wield a tool, that I decided to replace the slides on the sticky drawer on our dresser.
Unfortunately, the replacement slides I got from IKEA were not exactly like the old ones. Holes were not quite in the correct locations. So I am going to have to make one more trip to Renton, this time instead of just a picture I will have the slide I need to replace in hand.

What an exciting life!

WARNING: This is about as exciting as it gets. Sorry.

Today I had planned to go to IKEA and buy a new bed frame.
I had looked on-line at options and checked the potential for the item being at the Seattle store. There were either 1-2 or 6-10 in stock – depending on whether we got White stained oak or birch veneer. We already have some IKEA furniture, but I was not sure of the veneer.

I had looked at the expected size of the packages and determined the Prius was just a bit too STuBby. So the Corolla was cleared of kid seats, and the adult seats laid flat or forward as far as possible. (This also made a passenger impossible, so I was on my own.)

First omen: After driving about 7 miles I realized I did not have my wallet. Double back and then on the road again.

Second omen: Once in the store I continued to have trouble deciding if our existing furniture was White stained or Birch. I called Carl and had him describe the color (that I have been looking at every day for a long time). I decided Birch! (This was the one with 1-2 in stock per the computer.)

On to the hall of big boxes. This particular unit has three boxes, plus needs a brace and slats.
Good omen: There was one more Box 1 for the Birch Queen bed frame. There were several each of Box 2 and Box 3. The Box 3 I had to move off of the remaining Box 1 had a ripped corner, so I decided to choose a different box. I managed to muscle everything onto a cart. Box 1 was wider than the cart base, so I had to put it on edge.

Bad counting: I got to the checkout, and then discovered I had two Box 2s, and no Box 3. Instead of sending me back to go, they had a runner find and bring the Box 3 to exchange with my extra 2. (Nice.) The nice runner loaded Box 3 onto the cart. It was loooong, and stuck back into the area where you would naturally stand to push the cart, but I was happy for the bit of help and just left it there.

Trip to the Car: Wending my way out of the big building and towards the parking building was a bit more difficult than I expected. The big Box 3 was really annoying, but I still decided to just soldier on. Then as I passed through the area between buildings the wind picked up. Box 1 decided it was really a sail and the cart started sailing to the starboard side, just where there was an opening between the low concrete walls. I tried to rein in the rogue cart, but it was not until another woman grabbed the port-side cart handle that we were able to get it back into the walking path. (Nicer even.)

Packing the Car: The longest package was 81″ long. The car has about 84″. A little maneuvering and leveraging and balancing, and the car was finally packed with our new bed frame.

View from the trunk

Drive home: I attempted to re-enter the freeway by retracing my steps from the store. Unfortunately this was one of those areas where it just doesn’t work that way. So I just started heading in the direction I thought I should be going. Luckily there was not much traffic because I did not get back on the highway until I was at the third highway on my trip.

Unpacking the Car: Yeah for helpers. Carl was home and we were able to carry all pieces in easily.

Building the furniture: WAIT, not yet. No room for two beds in the room at once, so I will wait until the new mattress is a day away. Instead I went downstairs to rebuild a piece of furniture we can no longer use (with a BIRCH veneer).

BONUS: IKEA had some drawer slides that I can use to replace two that were bent several years ago. I will no longer have a drawer that sticks. Yeah.

For Sale!