Moving along

If you are seeing this then the move to my domain has not yet happened.

But it has been submitted so hopefully in the next 24-48 hours this site will move to my new WP blog!

For a preview check out havocandmayhem.com, without the www.

Like any move, it’s the fiddly little stuff at the end that is the issue. The cleaning stuff, the random stuff behind the dresser you didn’t even know was there until a couple burly guys pick it up and then you are all “Oh THERE is the vibrator I misplaced a year ago!”

Not that that ever happened to me, certainly not when I was 20 & the burly guys worked for my dad.

It was a bong actually.

24 years later I feel I can finally admit to the bong.

I have to shrink up my buttons & recreate my blog roll but other than that & waiting for the domain transfer to go through, I have moved on.

Hopefully my feed will move with me.

If you do visit my new blog please leave me a comment so I know the comment notification is working.

See you there! Hopefully soon!

Week in the life

I’ve been keeping up with my Week in the Life project this week. I thought it would be a good thing to get back into the habit of taking photos every day.

I’m averaging about 40 photos a day with some multiple reshoots.  My goal is to have 7-10 edited photos a day for a nice variety on a 2 page layout.

I do a lot of the same things every day, makes for visually monotonous pages. Some days I think I will rely on the journaling to mention I went to the gym rather than do another gym photo.

I’m also writing down what the boys are watching & gaming all day plus what they are playing.  They’ve been outside most of the time so there are few appearances of the dinos, clones or Legos.

I’ve only managed to edit Mon & Tues but here are some highlights

I’m hoping to start on the pages this weekend. They are going to go in my 45th Year book & I am going to do another week in the life in 6 months also so I have a summer & a winter for contrast.

Did you do Week in the Life this week with Ali?

That time of year again

And no I don’t mean BlogHer, though it is that time of year too.

But I can’t afford to attend BlogHer unless it is less than a 4 hour drive away & that’s never gonna happen so I resigned myself to missing it long ago.

No, instead of OMG BLOG HER!!! angst, I spend this time of year in OMG SHOULD I MOVE MY BLOG??? angst

Different angst but same kinda theme.

I’ve spent 4 years with this domain name, hosted through blogger & for the past 3 years every time the renewal comes up I get all “should I or shouldn’t I” about self hosting and in the end I always decide against it because I just can’t deal with moving it myself & I don’t always understand what the hosting sites will or will not do in helping me move stuff & I know I am not asking the right questions & it’s all just too much someone get me a Xanax or something.

However…

I finally found someone to deal with all of it for me at a very reasonable price & after dithering for 3 weeks about it (and my domain renewing the day before) I took the plunge.

More details coming soon but after 5 years with blogger, I am switching to Word Press

I don’t know why.

I mean, I have vague reasons. I’d like a gallery & while Disqus is ok, I like WPs comment system better & there are more add ons. I know I had good reasons when I was dithering about it but…

Now that I have spent the money & committed I am having “should I have done that? why did I do that?” angst.

But hey! I finally acted on it, after a mere 3 years, which is almost ludicrous speed for anything in this family.

Love this email

Better World Books is now one of my favorite online shops, right up there with Timbuk2.

Remember the Timbuk2 order email I received?

I loved that email. Loved the fun casual tone of it.

Over the weekend I ordered a few used books from Better World and today I received this shipping notification:

Hello S,

(Your book(s) asked to write you a personal note - it seemed unusual, but who are we to say no?)

Holy canasta! It's me... it's me! I can't believe it is actually me! You could have picked any of over 2 million books but you picked me! I've got to get packed! How is the weather where you live? Will I need a dust jacket? I can't believe I'm leaving Mishawaka, Indiana already - the friendly people, the Hummer plant, the Linebacker Lounge - so many memories. I don't have much time to say goodbye to everyone, but it's time to see the world!

I can't wait to meet you! You sound like such a well read person. Although, I have to say, it sure has taken you a while! I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but how would you like to spend five months sandwiched between Jane Eyre (drama queen) and Fundamentals of Thermodynamics (pyromaniac)? At least Jane was an upgrade from that stupid book on brewing beer. How many times did the ol' brewmaster have one too many and topple off our shelf at 2am?

I know the trip to meet you will be long and fraught with peril, but after the close calls I've had, I'm ready for anything (besides, some of my best friends are suspense novels). Just five months ago, I thought I was a goner. My owner was moving and couldn't take me with her. I was sure I was landfill bait until I ended up in a Better World Books book drive bin. Thanks to your socially conscious book shopping, I've found a new home. Even better, your book buying dollars are helping kids read from Brazil to Botswana.

But hey, enough about me, I've been asked to brief you on a few things:

We provide quick shipping service to all our customers. You chose Standard shipping. It should arrive in 6 to 9 business days. Tracking is not available on these shipments.

If you have any questions or concerns, please email my friends in Customer Care at help@betterworldbooks.com. If you could please include your order number  that would be very helpful.

Eagerly awaiting our meeting,

Folly du Jour

The Last Kashmiri Rose

The Damascened Blade: The Third Novel Featuring Detective Joe Sandilands (Joe Sandilands Mysteries)

How can you not love that? Not only do they raise money for literacy & libraries world wide, they have a sense of humor.

I appreciate a little quirkiness in my day & it’s so much better when it’s from an unexpected source.

***do I really need to say no one is paying or subsidizing this post? Nobody ever pays me jack for anything I post here. In fact, lets just go with a general disclaimer applicable to all posts from this point forward:

Unless I say I got something for saying something, I didn’t get anything for saying anything.

poor timing

Our a/c started acting up very early Saturday morning. I woke up about 4am to a warm breeze, where once there had been a cold  one.

Naturally we waited until about 8am to check it out. There is nothing anyone can do at 4am except frustrate themselves.

The thermostat was flashing all it’s warning lights.

BAD THINGS!!!

It was saying

VERY BAD THINGS ARE HAPPENING!!!

So we turned it off & pulled out the filter.

We pull out the filter so we can feel we are being proactive and doing something about the problem, not because we think the filter *is* the problem, it’s just the only bit we know we can safely muck about with in the whole unit.

The filter was filthy & neither of us could remember when we last cleaned it.

But it was 102 outside & the thought of standing out there vacuuming the filter off did not appeal. So we put it back & turned the a/c back on.

It ran until about 8pm when once again it went warm and flashing.

TOTALLY NOT KIDDING ABOUT THE BAD THINGS HERE!!!!

This time we turned it off & on again but left the filter out.

And it ran until about 2am when it went warm & flashing.

SERIOUSLY!!! STOP FIDDLING WITH THE DAMN FILTER & CALL FOR PROFESSIONAL HELP!!!!!

I’ve discovered that my new sleep habits are reliant on temperature. I did not sleep at all that night. It was too warm.

Not to mention the humidity.

Without a/c it’s like living in an unairconditioned basement, no matter how many fans we turn on. Mold, mildew & mushrooms start forming within hours.

Sunday morning DH vacuumed the filter & hit it with the air gun to get the last of the dust out, put it back in place, waited another hour for everything to ‘settle’ & then turned the a/c back on.

It stayed on until 7pm.

We reset it at 11pm and it was still running this morning.

Like it was all “I don’t know what you’re talking about. There is nothing wrong with me.”

The HVAC company is an hour away. It’s not a normal heating/cooling system. It’s a *special* heating/cooling system.  It’s a geothermal heat pump. And they are the only company that can cope with it.

Of course.

DH is trying get in touch with them this morning to set up an appointment.

*sigh*

At least it’s supposed to be cooler the  next few days

Weekly Winners

Dinos on the march

Going for a ride

Waiting their turn

New manicure

For more weekly winners please visit Lotus at Sarcastic Mom

Thanks for stopping by!

Words on Wednesday

July 20, 1967

July 20, 2011

The new photo a day project starts today-a self portrait for my birthday