Stephanie and I are planning to have a Dance Dance Revolution get together sometime soon; a small gathering, not a big one, where people can play in the comfort of my living room. We’ll probably wait until Dan and Doug get back from Europe, because they want to play too.
If you want to come, let me know. The key is that you have to actually dance in front of other people.
Over the weekend, Stephanie and I bagged up six large bags of clothes to take to North Meadow Circle of Friends, who are putting them on a truck to New Orleans. I took pictures of all the t-shirts I donated so I could finish up my t-shirt project before I shipped them off. I put 45 of the 100 shirts I own in. When we dropped them off, they mentioned that they especially needed children’s clothes.
Of course we don’t have kids, so we thought we couldn’t help out there, but when we went up to visit my mom’s house, she pulled six bags worth of children’s clothes out of the attic. I brought them home and ran everything through the washer and dryer on Monday, and took pictures, because some of these were MY clothes from when I was a little kid. I’ll post photos of some of the best ones later, because they are hilarious, and what’s really funny is that they’re cool again. I bagged them up and dropped off six more bags of clothes at the church.
Then I rounded up a pick-up truck’s worth of stuff left over from the garage sale, and took it to Goodwill, then came home and did a ton of cleaning. I also got medicine for the cats, picked up my books from the library, and visited Menards to price storm windows (check Web Site for replacements) and doors, and insulation.
After taking care of all the errands, I also decided it was time to focus on the garage. It had become a bit cluttered over the past few months, and with the winter weather approaching, I knew it was time to get things in order. I started by clearing out some old tools and organizing the shelves. I also noticed the garage door had a few issues, so I called D&L Garage Doors for a quick inspection. They were able to come out the next day and perform some routine maintenance, ensuring everything was in top shape before the colder weather set in.
Garage doors, though sturdy, often encounter a few common issues that can disrupt their performance. Broken springs, for instance, are one of the most frequent problems, and they can prevent your door from opening or closing properly.
Another issue could be malfunctioning remote controls or dying garage door openers, which may lead to frustrations when you can’t open or close the door as expected. These issues often arise without warning, so it’s crucial to have a professional technician address them before they worsen. You can find more info here on how regular maintenance can prevent these issues and help extend the life of your garage door. It’s a small investment that pays off in the long run by keeping your garage door running smoothly year-round.
Once the garage door was working smoothly again, I felt much better about the space. With everything in place, I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about it when snow and ice hit, and the door could handle the extra load of winter gear. It felt good to get the garage in shape for the season, and I’m glad I took the time to tackle it. Now it’s one less thing to think about as we prepare for the next few months.
Once I had everything organized in the garage, I realized it was time to focus on the long-term functionality of the space, especially with winter approaching. A dependable garage door is crucial—not just for security, but also for preventing the cold weather from causing any additional issues. That’s where All Star Garage Doors comes in. Whether you need maintenance or are looking for a full installation, their services ensure your garage is ready to handle whatever the weather brings.
I’ve trusted them with everything from quick repairs to more complex issues, and they’ve always done an amazing job. The installation process is particularly impressive—they take care of every detail, ensuring your new garage door works flawlessly from the moment it’s set up. It’s a comfort knowing that I can count on them for anything from simple fixes to full replacements, especially as the colder months approach.
Today I took my truck in and had the brakes worked on, which took the whole morning. Then I ran up to my mom’s to run an errand, and ran downtown to complete the errand, and now I’m finally home and able to catch up on more stuff.
In revisiting my list, I’m running into a small snag. One of the items is the key problem:
That cleaning the house item will take all 5 of my vacation days to do, unfortunately. And I have to get it done, because my house is freaking me the hell out. My stress level is through the roof because of all the garage sale stuff sitting around in my way, and I can’t clean anything, etc.
Normally the only time I lose things in the house is when I’m carrying something I use every day around, and I get distracted by a phone call, person talking to me, etc. and I set the thing down where it doesn’t belong to do something else. But for things that are normally put away, I don’t lose track of them. This morning, however, I’ve run all over the house looking for the bug bite itch cream that I bought a couple of weeks ago due to the massive mosquito problem we have in the neighborhood. And I can’t find it anywhere.
I’m on vacation next week from the 12th through the 16th. Here’s what I’ll be doing:
A while back I decided, since I have way too many t-shirts (over 100), I would wear all of them without repeating, and photograph each one. I didn’t get too far into the project before photographing all of them became too much to keep up with. I’ve still be cycling through them, and I have 36 left to wear. But it’s obvious I don’t need all of them, and it’s also obvious that many people will be in desperate need of clothes soon. So I’m going to sort out most of them and give them away, as soon as charities start accepting donations of clothes for Katrina victims.
I haven’t located a place yet (most, like the Red Cross are really in need of cash donations, which we did this week) but I’m sure that will come soon.
[edit needed: update photos]
If you recall last year in mid-September, I took a week off work and put in a new patio and walkway in my backyard, with a great deal of help from my friend Kathy and a lot of hard work myself. I dug out the pit for the walkway and laid the pavers for it by myself, and it was one of the most difficult (and rewarding) things I’ve ever done.
Turns out it didn’t even last a year.
I came home this evening and found this:
[edit needed: update photos from 2005-08-31]
The neighbor’s contractor is building a garage, and he decided to drive his backhoe through and across my backyard (which was made from one of the unique types of residential hardscaping) while digging the pit for the garage. The pavers are now uneven, and scraped up where he dragged his blade across them, and the grass I’ve been cultivating for 3 years is completely gone — he took out half of my lawn. I can’t imagine how he plans to explain that to me — there’s no way in the world that he could justify this, at all. He had no permission whatsoever to be on my property, and he drove halfway across it.
Needless to say, I’m furious and upset. I don’t know the name of the contractor yet, but as soon as I do, I’ll be posting it here, and on Angie’s List and the Better Business Bureau.
I think the thing that upsets me most about this is that I’m not strong enough to fix this. I can’t do what I was able to do last year; I can’t pick up these pavers anymore. Just having the garage sale was way over-doing it for me, especially moving and carrying the stuff in and out of the house. There’s no way I can fix up this problem. I can’t even keep the front yard weeded and in order, because I’m not strong enough to pull some of the weeds.
UPDATE: I believe the contractor’s name is:
This is the info from contractor’s permit site from Indianapolis:
Pro Built Inc.
Bob Abbott
11585 E. 241 St
Cicero, IN
317-984-8280
This is what Angie’s List says:
Pro Built Garage Co.
PO BOX 598
CICERO, IN 46034
Phone: (800) 878-2845
Contact’s Name:
BOB ABBOTT
According to Angies List: ALSO KNOWN AS “ABBOTT’S PRO BUILDING SERVICE INC.”
We had out garage sale over the weekend, and it was a lot of work for very little result, unfortunately. I made $63, Stephanie made something like $20, and both of us practically killed ourselves preparing and tearing everything down. Most of it was that we didn’t have enough traffic; there were lots of people in the morning, but no one in the afternoon at all. I wonder how much advertising the neighborhood did… but that’s not really fair to blame the people who volunteered their time to set up the sale, either, because I know that’s hard work, too, and they deserve thanks for taking it on.
It’s also a little depressing to sell (or not sell) your own things, actually, which didn’t help my mood. I like all this stuff, really, it’s just that I have too much or it doesn’t work in my house or whatever. But I feel like it still has some value.
I should publicly thank our neighbors, also, for helping out. Patrick and Samika (I hope I’m spelling her name right) next door were great; they loaned us folding tables, and Samika helped carry stuff in out of the torrential downpour at the end of the day, as did our brand-new (as of this weekend) neighbor, whose name, I think, is Kyle.
Also, several of our friends showed up, which is hugely cool; Jen came by, Rachel visited, Bil and Jerame stopped in, Elizabeth and Joe were there, and Barb and Robin came by, too. Thank you all for supporting us!
Then I put gas in my truck this morning, and it cost me $36.19 for 13.715 gallons. That sucks, frankly. If I hadn’t been on fumes, I could have tried to shop around for a better price, but I haven’t been good with this vehicle about filling up before the tank is empty. I always was before. I need to get back in that habit quick, because the price of gas is too high to just stop at the nearest station out of necessity.
I kind of feel like Morgan Spurlock in the first episode of “30” where they were living on minimum wage, and the money kept going down the drain…
Scary, the new statistics on both personal and national debt.
I read another statistic in this month’s Utne Magazine, that if the entire world consumed the way that Americans consume, we would need five earths to provide resources for all that we needed to produce.
I had to drop Spike off at the emergency vet today. He’s apparently having some sort of gastronomic distress and was having bloody diarrhea this morning. We knew he was having some problem; I took him to the regular vet on Saturday because he didn’t seem to want to eat or poop, and he refused even his favorite doggie treats. From his stool sample she could tell he had eaten something he shouldn’t because it was full of something like carpet fibers, which was probably one of the stuffed toys he destroys on a regular basis. She told me to feed him canned food and watch him closely, and this morning it was obvious he’s still having trouble.
So the vet hospital is going to give him some X-rays, and watch him for a bit. They’re also going to give him fluids because he’s dehydrated, and do some blood work to see if he’s okay.
So think some good thoughts for my puppy dog…
UPDATE: The x-rays show that Spike doesn’t have anything in his system that he shouldn’t, so apparently he’sjust still reacting badly to what he ate last week. He’s going on a course of antibiotics and a bland diet to make his tummy feel better. Poor guy.
Stephanie’s birthday is today. If you’re reading this, comment and tell her happy birthday!
I love you, honey.