Category: House & Home

I Photographed A Wedding!

Posted on

This past weekend was spent getting sh*t done so it wasn’t as fun compared to previous weekends.

Saturday (6/2) morning we took my car in for its first oil change and went out for breakfast while we waited. I nearly always regret grabbing breakfast anywhere but a fast food place because it’s very expensive for what you get. Our bill after tip was $35… for BREAKFAST. All I had was pancakes and hashbrowns and Joe had a platter of some sort. Blah.

Later that afternoon Joe accompanied me to photograph the outdoor wedding of my friend’s son. I truly didn’t want to do it when she asked but she kinda wore me down until I eventually agreed. Apparently her son and his fiance were fond of my photos but those are nature ones, not people. I don’t consider myself a people photographer and due to my introversion I find it hard to deal with strangers. I was super anxious about it especially after taking some test shots of Joe on Friday to re-familiarize myself with my digital SLR which I haven’t really been using lately. Most of the photos were not coming out well and I was convinced I was going to f*ck everything up. Thankfully the wedding was quick and even though I totally sucked at directing people, my more extroverted friend took the lead to help set up shots. When we got home I was supremely relieved to find that 95% of my shots came out great. I was so worried my friend was going to pay me for out of focus blown-out photos since it was pretty sunny outside. I opted to stick to a single lens for the entire shoot (my 28-135mm zoom) and leave it on programmed auto so that the camera would by and large choose the proper settings in the moment. Thank god it all worked out.

Speaking of pay, my friend gave me a card which I opened once we got home and inside was the agreed upon fee in cash, but also a Target gift card in the same amount. So in a way I was paid double. My friend explained that the gift card was a personal thank you for taking on the task which I thought was very generous, if unnecessary. Now I just need to motivate myself to work on her photos this week.

Sunday (6/3) we headed back to Visionworks so I could return my new glasses which were giving me headaches. I’m bummed they didn’t work out because my current pair are several years old and I do need new ones with an updated prescription. It’s so hard to find frames that don’t overwhelm my face which is why I opted for frames meant for children. Unfortunately they were a bit too tight and hurt my head to wear despite feeling comfortable when I initially tried them in the store on more than one occasion. I also didn’t like how they cut the lenses as they weren’t smooth around the edges. Plus I purchased an anti-reflective coating but I was noticing more reflections while wearing them than my old pair. When I mentioned that on the day I picked up the lenses they tried to tell me it was because of my prescription verses the size of the frames but I’m not quite sure I buy that. Plus they didn’t assist me whatsoever in picking the right type of frames for me which I think sucks. In fact, I shopped around at all the regular glasses places and no one could even show me petite frames and instead told me I would just have to find them by looking around. Great customer service! I’m just glad Visionworks has a 30-day unconditional money back guarantee because those glasses set me back $473!

Unfortunately, now I’m back to square one. If I could find a pair identical to my current ones but with a slightly short arm so they don’t keep slipping down my face I would be overjoyed. This is why I rarely buy new glasses – it’s such a pain in the ass and I hate the entire process. I wish I could just go back to wearing contacts most of the time but my eyes just aren’t having it anymore.

We also did some more organizing of the garage yesterday and threw out a ton of empty boxes. As if we’re going to pack stuff in their original boxes if/when we move. Not likely. We still kept some, especially for current electronic gadgets in case we try to sell them, but still freed up a lot of space. Now if only Joe can motivate himself to reorganize his tool area. That part of the garage is the messiest but I can’t help much since it’s his space.

That Time I Called 911

Posted on

Picture this: It’s 5:45 am and you’re home alone standing in your bathroom naked except for a pair of underwear when your little dog starts growling and barking at the front door. Suddenly the doorbell rings and someone starts enthusiastically pounding on the door. You wait, hoping they go away, but they keep ringing the doorbell and pounding with an increased sense of urgency. You slowly make your way downstairs to see if you can peak through the side window without them noticing and see a big burly guy wearing a white t-shirt and tan jacket. You run upstairs to check if there’s any vehicles parked nearby to explain his presence but there’s nothing out of the ordinary. Meanwhile the ringing/pounding continues. What do you do?

Well, if you’re me, you dial 911 scared out of your mind. Which is what I did this morning. They took my address, name, number, and a description of the guy and then after checking their computer informed me that it was probably the fire department since they had a call for a carbon monoxide leak in a townhome at the end of my attached building. 911 was cautious about everything, however, and instructed me not to open the door until it was 100% confirmed. They also still sent a patrol car (it drove by just as everything was confirmed and I was opening the door). At that time two uniformed firefighters were coming out of my neighbor’s unit with the guy that, if I had nine lives, reduced mine to only eight today. I apologized for not answering sooner and for calling 911 but they were very understanding, as was the 911 agent who assured me I did the right thing by calling. They came inside to check the CO levels in my house and then promptly left.

In hindsight, I feel pretty silly but I was legitimately terrified while it was going on. I recall saying “please hurry, I’m really scared” to the 911 operator. In my defense, the guy at the door was not in uniform, nor did he announce who he was. I also subscribe to the fuck politeness theory and never answer the door unless I’m expecting someone, so I think it might be time to invest in a smart doorbell.

After calming down a bit, I posted what happened to Facebook and was reassured by many of my female friends that they would have done the same thing.

I really hate how hard it is to see out the front when people come to the door. We only have the side window next to the door which I have a shear drape over, so it’s pretty obvious if I look out there and still not answer, so I usually don’t even see the person. There’s awnings over the door area so looking out the side window upstairs reveals nothing, and the front windows are useless because the door is set back so far you can’t see it. It might be time to invest in a smart doorbell!

Game Night & Easter Decorating

Posted on

Friday (3/16) evening we hosted a game night for our friends Joe met through a former job. Everyone came over at 6 pm but we didn’t start playing any games until almost 9 pm and with the alcohol some people couldn’t really concentrate to play adequately. So next time we need to play first, then sit around and chat. Don’t get me wrong, it was still fun, but I was bummed we didn’t get to play as many games as I would have liked.

Saturday (3/17) was St. Patrick’s Day so we made corned beef and cabbage in the crockpot. It came out delicious, as always! Wookie spent most of the day sleeping. I think she was exhausted from not napping at all the entire time our friends were over. Plus we took her to Petsmart and Petco to look for an Easter outfit now that we’ve figured out a way to put clothes on her without her trying to bite us (basically we only put them on when she’s getting ready to go for a walk so they have a positive association with them). They didn’t have anything, though, so we left empty handed.

We did grab some McDonald’s for lunch, though. They had a BOGO offer for the fish sandwiches and we needed our annual Shamrock shake. It was rather disappointing, however. I think I’d rather try a mint shake elsewhere in the future.

Sunday (3/18) we tried Taco Bell for breakfast and it was pretty decent. I tried three of their $1 menu items:

Sausage Flatbread Quesadilla
Hash Brown
Mini Skillet Bowl

I wasn’t terribly impressed with the first two, but really enjoyed the bowl. It was larger than I expected for the price. I would definitely get that again.

We ran some errands including stopping at Visionworks in the mall so I could pick out some glasses. I need new ones since I rarely wear my contacts lately thanks to my eyes always feeling too dry. Plus I’ve gotten to that age where I need reading glasses if I wear my contacts which defeats the purpose of contacts anyway. Ugh! I made an appointment to come back and have an eye exam first and then I will order the glasses. I made note of the two pair I’m interested in, however, and they are both kids frames because I have a very small head and adult glasses are too big and tend to slide down my nose.

Before leaving the mall we stopped inside the arcade and I spotted this huge Disney Tsum Tsum game. How cute!

We also went to Half Price Books since it was 50% off coupon day. Joe got two video games and I got a new board game called Split Decision.

Today (3/19) I had to get some blood drawn for some annual testing and afterwards went to Hobby Lobby to look at Easter decor. Two different Instagram accounts had these cute little carrots in their post and when I asked where they came from they directed me to Hobby Lobby. So I picked up one set but now am wishing I had gotten two since they were only $1.80 for a three-pack (normally $3) since the Easter stuff was 40% off. I’m contemplating driving back over there to get more but I am battling laziness at the moment. I also got a pink ceramic bunny for $3.59 (normally $6). I ended up rushing out of there when I realized I had left my phone in my car. At first I freaked out not knowing where my phone was at all, but one it dawned on me I had left it sitting under the radio (because I had used the navigation to find my way from the lab to the store), I got super anxious thinking someone would peek in the car, see the phone, and break in to steal it. It took forever for me to calm down after that. Yay, anxiety!

I also stopped at Michael’s and got a couple of things, one of which I’ve decided to take back – a bouquet of fake flowers – since it’s “shedding” little plastic pieces all over and annoying me. Plus Wookie will just eat them if they get on the floor so they aren’t worth keeping.

Once I got home I pulled all my Easter decor out and decorated the house. I have a bunch of things I’m going to get rid of that I never use that I put in a box in the garage which will make room for my newer pieces. Here’s how everything turned out:

The bunny on the left is from Hobby Lobby, the clear cake stand is from Target, the doily is from Michaels ($1.50 but got it for $0.75), the bunny is from Hallmark from many years ago, and I’m not sure where the larger bunny on the far right came from since I’ve had it so long.

The Easter sign is from the Target spot ($3) and the bunnies might be from Michaels but again, I’ve had them too long to remember.

The mantel photo above looks weird because I used the panorama function on my phone and it didn’t do the best job. I believe the tin cups are from the Target spot, the brown bunnies I’ve had for awhile, the gray bunnies are from Walmart, and the carrots are new from Hobby Lobby. The actual spacing between the grey and brown bunnies is wider than shown in the photo due to the strange perspective of the panorama.

The white planter is from Savers and the carrots are from the Target spot and were $3.

Home Security

Posted on

Quite awhile ago, Joe purchased an Almond 3 Smart Home Wi-Fi System primarily as a wi-fi extender so we’d get better signal on our second floor. However, it can also be used as a home security system. The problem is trying to find compatible devices. After some searching he found motion detectors and sensors for the doors and windows that work perfectly. He installed and tested them today, including a smart outlet that can be programmed to switch on and off at particular times and tied to certain rules. An example would be “if off, but the back door opens past x time, automatically turn on”. Everything can be monitored and controlled from an app on your phone and tablet too. It’s pretty cool.

Needless to say, we’ll be cancelling our $40 per month home security plan with Comcast/Xfinity this week since we’ll no longer need it. I’m looking forward to getting rid of their home screen device and special router so I have more space on my desk.

Transition Piece(s) & Oktoberfest

Posted on

Friday after Joe came home from work we took care of some errands which included taking donations to Savers (remnants of what we weren’t able to sell at the garage sale last year plus some clothing I no longer wanted) and recycled our old lightbulbs at the Lowes before shopping at Costco.

Saturday was our busy, but fun, day this weekend. Joe installed the transition pieces in the morning and I think they look pretty good. 1st photo is before and 2nd one is after.

The only thing that annoys me is that crease in the carpet. It was there before, though, I just forgot about it because we were using an area rug to cover the spot to stop Wookie from picking at the carpet. I just have to get used to not stepping on the transition piece directly which for some reason I tend to do.

Saturday afternoon we went to our town’s Germanfest (aka Oktoberfest) with our friends K & E. I had a schnitzel sandwich and Joe got the pork shank which he thought was good but not worth $16 for the plate. Between our food and his single beer we spent $33! It was hot outside and even though we were in a tent away from the sun it was still too warm to spend much time there, plus the band was hella loud, so after an hour we headed back to our place to cool off.

We played a game called Loaded Questions which our friends brought over, had dinner (Joe made meatball sandwiches), and watched Popstar. I don’t think our friends enjoyed it as much as we do, plus I was annoyed by the fact that the Blu-ray wouldn’t load. Luckily the set came with a DVD version but that sucks because Joe bought it for me back in January for my birthday and I hadn’t opened it so there’s nothing I can do about the issue now.

Our friends had fun interacting with Wookie. She has gotten better with people in general, but especially those she remembers, so she didn’t bark at them when they first came over. In fact she wouldn’t go to sleep after they left because I think she thought they were still there. I had carry her through the house to show her it was empty before she’d calm down. I think because she didn’t nap most of the day she was overtired, but she made up for it on Sunday with several naps.

Sunday I made chili in the crockpot and Joe made cornbread in his cast iron skillet. Both came out delicious! Now that it’s football season our Sundays will be mostly at home days although I plan to get to the arborteum soon to check out the changing leaves. We can get there early and be in home in time for a noon game though.

Things I organized over the weekend:
The portion of the garage in front of my car including the shelving unit
My marbles and candle stuff in the hall closet
The pet room