Wednesday, April 26, 2017

Getting Stuff Ready

So this weekend was a little different than the usual format.  On Saturday I had a special ChicagoNow blogger Group Discussion and I wasn't sure Nightingale would give me a hall pass because we had plans with Katness later in the day.  She even did the Costco shopping with the kids and my mom, which had to be like the 8th circle of hell. 

The meeting was fun with the usual social overhead.  I like to catch up with people I know but also meet new people so it's hard to talk to someone and then find a way to disengage to go talk to someone else.  And there is always that one person who doesn't know when to dial back the amount of personal TMI they are sharing.  Also a group that large needs some parliamentary procedures when talking.  I did learn a few things so I feel like it was beneficial from both a social maintenance aspect as well as blogging.

I got home while the kids were down for their nap, in fact they had just settled down.  My mom decided to leave because we were having Katness et al over, but again she takes so long to decide to leave and get her things that nap time was halfway over.

All we did was go to the nearby park and then order Thai food.  Probably not what Katness had in mind but she had swim lessons for her twins earlier so it didn't make any sense to try and go to a museum that would close by 5. 

On Sunday we just hung out at home and called/facetimed with the various the in-laws.  While anything could change, I believe we are going to move to Tennessee by the end of 2018 if not sooner.  To this end, we need to get a few things done around the house and some of those things I want to enjoy as well instead of just paying to have the next buyer have them. 

My frustration is some of these things, are too big for me to do myself, but too small for a tradesmen to bother with.  and apparently it is against their belief system to take credit cards.

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Friday, April 21, 2017

Working from Home Blues

WFH should be a benefit, but lately it has not been all it could be.  Sure, I get to save time on my commute.  Unfortunately, I do not get to take full advantage of the perk because of my mom.

Our house is in much better shape than hers, so much so that she spend a lot more time ours, under the guise of helping with the babies.  A normal person would realize that they get the whole house to themselves Monday through Thursday and respect my wanting privacy and alone time on my WFH day.

Unfortunately, my mom is not a normal person.   my mom doesn't understand the concept of personal space, privacy or alone time because she has an over abundance of these.  It's kinda like explaining the plot of Inception to your dog...in Latin.

My mom has the mental and emotional faculty of a teenager.  Through an unfortunate set of circumstances, she never developed the tools and savvy to navigate Life beyond this stage.  In addition to that, she also has a closet full of Bad Decision Jeans which she wears to death.  I keep talking to her like she is an adult capable of understanding complex scenarios and making mature, adult decisions.  Unfortunately,  her brain is not wired correctly to process these directives.


TL/DR:  My mom isn't good at Adulting, in fact she's terrible at it.

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Monday, April 17, 2017

Quick Catch up

 One of the bad raps that Chicago gets is that we don't get much of a Spring.  We usually get a long, brutal winter followed by a period of melting snow and rain, which then gives way to a humid Summer.  It's really more of a perception than reality stereotype but there is some truth to it.

Two weekends ago was pleasant weather.  I managed to get some thing done around the house including the first level of cleaning out the garage.  It's not nearly at the level I would like it to be but I am able to move around in the workshop section and my work table is clear so there is that. 
 We had a very mild winter but it was still winter and it wasn't always warm enough for me to work outside or in the garage.  A lot of what we do is predicated on weather, free time and whether or not my mom is around.  When she is around, she can distract Moose and Squirrel.  However she often gets in the way especially if Nightingale wants to cull clothes or toys or anything else we want to get rid of.  My mom has a save everything forever hoarder mentality. 


It's a rock and hard place situation.  With her around, we get some help with the kids but she drives us crazy, especially me.  Without her, we are back to man-to-man coverage on the kids and don't have time to work on other things.



This weekend we honored the Easter holiday tradition by going to a home improvement centerto buy supplies for our garden.  IN keeping with tradition, we didn't actually do anything with said supplies.  These will sit in the garage for at least a month until we finally budget some time to get to it.

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Saturday, April 15, 2017

Have you met our Washer and Dryer yet?

Over a month ago we purchased a new dishwasher just to come home and find we needed a new dryer as well.  I simply bought the largest washer and dryer that Samsung had available.  We have had these just over a month and they seem to be performing up to expectations.  I don't really do the laundry anymore, my mom has taken that task over in order to rationalize her hanging out here 99.9% of the time.

My only regret is that I didn't get one that was smarter

I hate the term Smart when used to describe anything. The Smart Phone has led to a certain expectation and even prejudice against anything that is described as smart.  A better term might just be enhanced. 

So there are two types of smart washer.  The one that supposedly scans your wash load and determines, based on weight and presumably material how long to wash it.  And the other one that lets you talk to it via a phone app.

In any event, we had an issue with the washer and I had to troubleshoot it the old fashioned way but googling error codes like a cave man instead of being able to connect a smart phone app to the machine and getting a detailed analysis of the problem.

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Monday, April 3, 2017

Before we get to April and all its shenanigans

I don't write here nearly as much as I should and that is bad because I like to look back and see what was going on.  But sometimes I don't want to write in complete, well thought out sentences with forward moving recap.

We are in that in-between weather where it isn't warm enough to go without a jacket or have the windows open, but it's not cold enough to run the heat high.  A lot of people got so use to the mild winter that they just expected summer to be here already.  To be sure, a couple of Fridays ago, I was able to sit on my deck while WFH.  Today it is too cold to be outside.

On Sunday I ran like my 20th Shamrock Shuffle, give or take.  Athlinks records go back to 1998 but I think the first time I ran the Shuffle was 1997. My best time was a 31:03 in 2006, my Awesome Year of Running PRs.  This year I came in a little under 42 minutes.  

This year the Shuffle did two things that were major improvements.  First, they did have the option of having your bib mailed to you for a nominal fee.  I did not utilize that option because I thought it would be fun to go to the Expo and see friends and get free stuff.  I brought Boris with thinking it would be fun to bring a two and half year old kid to an expo.  It was a good time but it was hard to enjoy all the booths or even do the little shopping I need to do (replacement sunglasses and a phone arm band). 



Unfortunately, it was more trouble than it was worth and the time could have been better spent. 


The second thing, which I did partake of, was they kept the corrals open longer.  In the past you ahd to get to your starting corral something like 30-45 minutes before the race.  In colder weather this was insane and stressful.  This year you had until 10 minutes before, which allowed me to take my time getting in line.  I checked a small bag with my jacket, a t-shirt to change into and my wallet and car keys.  They tell you not to do that but seriously what areyou supposed to do, run with those items?  it works out if you are wearing something with pockets but in warmer weather you would have less clothing.

I had also found a free legal parking spot not too far from Grant Park.  Good thing too because all the parking lots and garages were charging special event prices.  So I essentially saved the $25 I later spent on lunch.