New Windows and Patio Door

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We finally had all our windows and patio door replaced on 9/13 after years of getting ridiculously high quotes (one place quoted us $8000 for the patio door alone). We ended up going with a guy our neighbors hired to replace all their windows and his price was nearly half that of the cheapest window company we could find. Are they the highest quality windows in existence? No. Are they nice looking white vinyl windows that are better than the old aluminum ones? Yes.

The one thing I’ll say is that while we did save a lot of money, it was a bit of a pain going back and forth with the guy to make sure we were getting exactly what we wanted. I’m sure that process would have been smoother with a bigger company, but in the end everything (mostly, see update below) worked out fine.

The guy and his crew, which included two other guys, arrived early in the morning and did all the work in one day, finishing up sometime around 4 pm I believe. I can’t remember the exact time, but considering we had a three panel patio door and 8 windows, I was impressed. I was told by at least one company the installation would take two days which I didn’t like since I knew Wookie would be stressed out the entire time.

I figured I’d list some things no one warned us about that might help someone else:

1) There will be dust EVERYWHERE, and I do mean EVERYWHERE. On every single surface, including those nowhere near a window. Of course the installers cleaned up all the big pieces of debris around each window, but a fine layer of dust settled on everything. Needless to say, I had to vacuum and wipe down every surface in the house.

2) The caulk around the windows will take days to cure and will be easy to mess up if you touch it at all within the first day or two (and even beyond that if you press on it with something hard/sharp). I wish the crew had brought this to our attention before I accidentally put indentations in the caulk near the bottom of a window.

3) The windows will need to be cleaned. Maybe other companies take care of this, but I was left with windows with fingerprints and little spots of glue all over (and sometimes fingerprints IN the glue). I guess that’s the price one pays when hiring someone who charges literally half the price of their competitors. Although don’t get me wrong, I will gladly take on that task to save thousands of dollars. Luckily they are double hung, so getting access to both sides of a window is pretty easy. That being said, it still took me over an hour to thoroughly remove the glue from two windows. There’s a lot of back and forth trying to figure out which side of the window the glue is on, using a razorblade to scrape it off, then using window cleaner to clean up the residue. Then you put the window back up, only to realize you missed spots. Rinse and repeat.

4) You might need new window treatments. We had inside mount white faux wood blinds on all the windows but the casing of the new ones take up more space in the frame now, so they cannot be reused unless we mount them on the outside of the frame. That’s not possible with the windows in our living room because the fireplace mantel is RIGHT there in the way. Not a huge deal, as the blinds are pretty old, and in some cases yellowed by the sun on one side, but I’m overwhelmed by the available options and having a hard time choosing what to buy. Right now I have curtains over the primary bedroom window for privacy, and temporary paper cellular shades over the other windows. We were able to reuse the vertical blinds for the patio door, however. I gave them a real thorough clean first (which took three hours) before Joe put them back up.

5) Because you don’t want to damage the aforementioned caulk, your windows will be bare for a few days. Otherwise the risk is too high that the caulk will get indentations all over when you install your window treatments. It was creepy as all hell at night, let me tell you. We felt so exposed!

All that being said, I’m still happy with our new windows and patio door. They look/function great (well, other than a small thing with the patio door I need to address with the installer).

Update (April 2024):

Back in September we failed our inspection with the village because the double-hung windows in the two front bedrooms were too small to allow escape during a fire. This is something our installer should have known, so that was annoying, and even though the one room had a second window that didn’t fail, thus not requiring us to replace the failed window in that room, it didn’t make sense to not replace both windows anyway since it would look dumb from the outside to have two different types of windows next to one another.

Therefore we ended up having to remove two double-hung windows and replace them with casement windows since they were the only type of window that would pass inspection. That was done on 4/10. The installer redid the windows for cost (aka didn’t charge us for labor, only for the actual windows, since he was largely at fault) and then we sold the two double-hung windows via Facebook Marketplace.

I hate the way the new windows look and function – they crank open, which means you have to be cautious about keeping them open if it’s especially windy out as they could be ripped off their hinges or at the very least damaged. Also the screen is on the inside and spans the entire window whereas with the double-hung windows the screen is on the outside. Unfortunately, we had no choice and have to live with it.

I suggested to the association that they warn people moving forward that they’ll need casement windows in their front rooms, but I doubt they will do it. Sure, the window installers should catch this when applying for a permit, but it’s still aggravating that neither the village nor the association bother to give anyone a head’s up, thus saving them time, money, and frustration. Instead owners don’t find out until after the windows fail inspection. This already happened to another resident before it happened to us (which we learned of at an association meeting), and I have no doubt it will keep happening depending on which company is tasked to perform the replacements since the association and village do not request the window type/measurements to ensure they adhere to code before the work is done.

Saturday Excursion to St. Charles & Batavia

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We had a fantastic morning! Even though it was overcast we decided to hit up a couple of places we haven’t visited in awhile, and they did not disappoint.

Our first stop was Mount Saint Mary Park along the Fox River where we saw ducks, egrets, finches, blue jays, squirrels, and chipmunks, lots and lots of chipmunks.

We spent a lot of time under one oak tree in particular where the chipmunks were running around collecting food. It was the cutest thing I’ve seen in a long time.

By this point the park was getting busy with tons of joggers, so we decided to grab breakfast at a little café up the river where we had the single greatest breakfast burrito either one of us has ever eaten. The weather was perfect so we enjoyed our breakfast on their patio.

Our next stop was Fermilab in Batavia. We recently got Real IDs from the Secretary of State since Fermilab will not let you on the property without one (or a passport, but ours expired).

The security guard warned us no buildings are open to the public which struck me as odd since the learning center usually is. We parked near it and walked through a wooded area and over to a pond where we came across a bees’ nest in the ground. I’ve read about them making nests in holes in the ground, giving a new name to b hole (hahaha), but never witnessed it myself. I tried to get photos to no avail and when I attempted to video them I guess they got angry and at least two of them swarmed around my head. They sound pretty menacing when they are buzzing right in your ear, so I got the heck out of there. Not before screaming like a little bitch, though! Lol

On the way back to the car an employee stopped us to ask if we were bird watching, then had us come into the learning center building (the same one the guard had incorrectly told us was closed to visitors), gave us a map, and showed us the best (ahem, only) places to bird that are open to the public on the property. She was so nice and helpful.

One spot is along a lake we had never visited before, and we saw a pair of sandhill cranes in a field across from it! I’ve only ever seen them in a wildlife rehab or far far far above our heads in huge flocks during migration, so that was cool.

As we walked further down the path by the lake we came across a guy bird-watching with a huge spotting scope, and he invited us over to look at some pintails (ducks) he had zoomed into in a pond. We discussed whether he’s been to Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary in the city and he said yes but felt the best birding is actually at Fermi, so we’ll be going back soon for sure.

Shortly after parting ways with that nice guy I saw a warbler which was exciting! A palm warbler, to be specific.

Birders have been seeing all sorts of warblers for weeks but it’s my first confirmed sighting.

By the time we got home we had been out for five hours and I had taken 450 photos.

August 2023 Recap

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8/03 (Thu)
Joe’s work gives employees a half day off work for their birthday so we decided to pick up a movie from Redbox and grab lunch from Beef Shack. They recently put an Atlas Chicken Shack next door so we got some rice balls from there as well.

8/04 (Fri)
Joe took a vacation day and we went to Cantigny Park in the morning. My biggest gripe with them – they have landscapers with very loud and obnoxious leaf blowers all over the property. I don’t understand why they can’t do that outside of visitor hours. Needless to say, despite the beautiful gardens, the visit wasn’t exactly peaceful. To add insult to injury, they proceeded to ignore my inquiries about whether there are certain times they do the leaf blowing so I can plan my future visits accordingly.

8/13 (Sun)
We went on our first bike ride of the year at Armstrong Park. I only made it 15 minutes before growing too exhausted. Apparently the fact that I walk on my treadmill nearly every day of the week doesn’t mean squat when it comes to riding a bike. Muscles I forgot were there were so sore.

8/15 (Tue)
Ran into a fellow nature photographer I’ve been talking to online at a local park. I knew it was only a matter of time since she lives in the area and frequents many of the same places we do. We had a nice conversation and she gave me some helpful info on where to find certain species of birds.

8/16 (Wed)
They ripped up the road in front of our house as part of ongoing roadwork that started in July which includes replacing most curbs (ours excluded since they were in good shape) and the entire street in our subdivision.

8/17 (Thu)
Bought a new dip at Costco from La terra fina called Smoked Gouda & Peppers, and let me tell you, that has to be the single best dip I’ve ever had. Not only is it delicious with crackers, pita bread, and naan, but later in the month I mixed a small amount into some scrambled eggs and it was amazing.

8/19 (Sat)
Was craving takeout, but wanted something a little healthier than normal fast food fare. Yelp to the rescue! We discovered a Korean place called Bibibop and decided to give them a try. So glad we did because the food is fresh and flavorful, and the green sweet tea is amazing.

8/22 (Tue)
Joe had the day off work since the original plan was to visit the DMV (or Secretary of State as it’s called in Illinois) to get our REAL IDs. We cancelled it when we realized they were working on the roads and we didn’t want to chance not being able to easily get back to the house because Wookie is on medication I need to give her at a specific time every day.

That being said, we did go out in the early morning to Springbrook Nature Center in Itasca.

Unfortunately, it was a morning of loud noises. When we arrived at the nature center the landscapers were unloading mowers. We walked out to a section far away from them but the loud expressway was there and the planes taking off from O’Hare were flying low overhead every minute.

Stopped at Krispy Kreme and there was a mower right by the drive-thru speaker so the employees couldn’t hear us ordering, nor could we hear them. Then mower guy just stopped there but didn’t turn off the mower. So annoying! We couldn’t go inside to order like we tried originally because the doors were locked for some reason even though it was 8 am.

We got home to them paving the street so that racket was going on for hours as well. Lukcily the road was safe to drive on by the time we were ready for a late lunch.

I had a sudden craving for Red Lobster and they had a lunch deal where you get to pick four different types of shrimp, two sides, cheddar bay biscuits, and drinks for two for only $22. Not a bad deal, even having to pay a bit extra for caesar salad which is considered a premium side. They had this crab rangoon shrimp which was absolutely amazing, particularly with the accompanying dipping sauce. Everything else was ok, but that stole the show.

8/26 (Sat)
I’ve had a Super Mario t-shirt for approximately two years (Joe found it at Savers but I stole it because it’s so soft and comfy) which I wear frequently and no one ever commented on it until two men complimented me on it in the same day. Talk about random.

We took advantage of a T-Mobile Tuesday offer at Burger King so we could get “free” Whoppers. Mine wasn’t actually free because they charge $1 extra for the Impossible patty and another $1 for cheese. I’m ok with the latter but was a bit annoyed since there was no fine print about the Impossible Whopper not being completely free. It wasn’t even as good as I remember it. You had to spend $3 to get the “free” sandwich, so we also tried the chicken fries (pretty good, although the strong pepper flavor gets overwhelming after awhile) and the bacon double cheeseburger which was hands down the best item. In fact I keep craving another one.

8/29 (Tue)
I realized what I’ve been experiencing on and off since I got sick in 2019 is called closed eye hallucinations and they aren’t indictive of brain or eye damage.

Sometimes when I have my eyes closed I’ll notice a colored orb that kind of pulsates across my field of vision while changing size. These orbs are usually purple, bright pink, or neon yellow. They can get pretty intrusive and hard to ignore, but it doesn’t happen too often.

8/31 (Thu)
I started reading a Stephen King book (Fairy Tale). This is significant because years ago I got so frustrated with the shitty endings in his more recent work that I vowed not to read another book of his again. Luckily this one didn’t suck and had a proper ending with closure.

July 2023 Recap

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4th of July we went out to multiple sites to take photos and saw the infamous Monk Parakeets that have taken up residence not far from where we live. How did I not know this before?

We also saw a tagged coyote near Joe’s work.

We had a little cookout at home where I made mushroom swiss burgers. We recently discovered the deliciousness that is small portabella mushrooms from Aldi sautéed in butter. Mmmm. I still hate the texture of mushrooms (so slimy!) but they are tasty.

I added more watch bands to my collection because I love wearing a color that matches my outfit. I got them from Jane for $20 which is a great price for five bands. They’re very comfortable!

I hit my annual reading goal of 24 books in July. Guess I’ll need to choose a more ambitious goal next year!

We got some delicious Rainbow Cone.

Joe found a tick on Wookie in the house. IN. THE. HOUSE. Ugh! Ticks freak me out. Between the possibility of Lyme Disease and Alpha-gal syndrome, where you become allergic to red meat, I can’t stand ticks! I check for them all the time and that’s the first time one has ever been in the house. I guess there’s one good thing about winter – no ticks.

We had a small tornado blow through town and tornado warnings more than once.

Our neighbor across the street passed away from an aggressive brain tumor. I feel so bad for his family. We went to the wake to pay our respects and rushed back home as yet more bad weather was on its way.

We saw some red-tailed hawks and on the way home from the grocery store one more saw a bald eagle!

Tried the Japanese Kewpie Mayo that everyone was raving about, only to learn it’s just disgusting Miracle Whip! Seriously, that’s exactly what it tastes like. What a letdown!

Joe got COVID, almost exactly a year to the day he got it the first time. We suspect it was the coworker who was coughing and sneezing all day. Luckily I managed to avoid catching it again. I feel really lucky that I’ve still yet to have COVID, or at least that I know of.

Both YouTube and Spotify decided now would be the perfect time to raise their rates even though wages have stagnated and we’re dealing with “inflation” (aka corporate greed they are trying to gaslight us into thinking is inflation even though they are reporting record profits). Needless to say, I put my YouTube Premium on hold because I’m not sure I want to pay $14 monthly just to avoid ads. We’ll see how I feel after the ads start showing up, though. I’m paid up through sometime in September I believe.

The kids came over for dinner and ended up staying until 2 am to avoid having to drive in the strong thunderstorms in the area. We had fun playing games most of the evening. We started out with Taboo, which is one of my favorites. You need at least four people to play so we rarely get the opportunity. Sadly, I lost because I was teamed up with K and we weren’t getting each other’s references. That’s the price of the generational divide. If it was Joe and me against the kids I think we’d win. We’ll have to try that next time, muahaha! Afterwards we played a Nightmare Before Christmas board game they had recently gotten us, which was better than any of us expected, and then various UNO games. We especially like UNO Flex and UNO Flip.

I keep saying this, but I really need to go back to posting more frequent blogs instead of these recaps, but I never seen to want to sit down and actually type out an entry on my computer even though I have the time to do it.

New Computer

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Joe built me a new computer!

My old one was still working fine, actually, except for one little big thing – running denoise in Photoshop/Lightroom would take an average of 20 minutes per photo which was unacceptable. With my new mirrorless camera, denoise is a must due to the higher ISOs I often shoot in. So naturally, that required a whole new computer after installing a dedicated graphics card and extra memory in my old machine did nothing to improve the processing time.

We got all the components from MicroCenter, but I ordered a case from NewEgg since I didn’t like the ones MC had available. I wanted a case that had a 5.25″ bay as I planned on installing an internal memory card reader. I didn’t want a portable one that had to sit out all the time since I’ve been going out taking photos almost daily. Apparently any case with an external bay is a bit harder to come by these days, but I really like the one I ended up getting, minus a few snafus.

I was bummed I had to get a larger case (to accommodate the motherboard) than I’m used to because it feels gargantuan on my desk. Unfortunately it’s too tall to fit on the lower shelf under my desk which would have been ideal. The door to the case came dented, but the manufacturer happily sent me a new door frame. The side of the door frame came scuffed which was irritating, but Joe was able to swap the actual door from the new frame for the old one and then we ended up one with one whole front that wasn’t damaged in any way. I let the manufacturer know so they could improve their handling process moving forward, which they appreciated.

So it worked out in the end and I’m slowly getting used to this new behemoth of a case. I had to install felt pads on the rubber feet of the case, though, as it was damaging the surface of my desk! The rubber was leaving these marks I cannot seem to clean off the desk now. Luckily the case sits over them so you cannot see them.

Now denoise runs for 10 seconds on each photo which is much better. We did run into an issue that took awhile to resolve, though – Photoshop was continuously crashing during the most basic commands, such as opening more than one file at a time or trying to resize a photo. It was getting to the point it was unusable even though I tried multiple things in their troubleshooting tips. What ended up resolving the issue was switching the drivers on my graphics card from gaming to studio, or something to that affect. Photoshop hasn’t crashed a single time since. Whew!

As for the internal memory card reader, I wasn’t able to find a 5.25″ one I liked, so I ended up buying a bracket so I could get the highest rated 3.5″ one. Other than it being designed where the CF card goes in upside down for whatever reason, it’s been great. I don’t use CF cards often anyway. The reader accommodates SD cards which I do use daily, plus the microSD cards (also known as TF which I learned recently) that my dashcam uses.

I bought a monitor arm during Prime Day too so my whole computer desk looks pretty cool now.

Poor Robert Smith is being blocked by my monitor, though, so we will have to raise the wall shelf so I can see him again.