7.30.2001
Well, the move is underway. Today is loading day, tomorrow we drive. Not sure when we'll be back online, but we'll let you know... should be within a few days.
7.26.2001
Corrugated cardboard only dumpsters are our friends. We hit pay dirt today behind the Penn State bookstore.
7.24.2001
7.22.2001
We've made lots of progress today with packing. We should be in good shape by the 30th, when we actually get the truck. We're sweating it out a bit, though, over whether or not the truck will be big enough. We reserved it online (through Ryder) and our choices went from a 15 footer straight to a 24 footer, or something huge like that. There's no way we need a truck that large, and we didn't want to pay for wasted space, so we went with the 15 footer. We've gotten rid of a bunch of furniture and other stuff, but we've added things along the way, of course. Chris's dad and one of his friends are coming up from Virginia to help us load up, and all I can say is, we're going to be in serious trouble if the truck won't hold all our stuff. Chris is planning to call the Ryder place tomorrow to see if there are any choices between 15 and 24 (even though the website indicates there aren't)... but we're not holding our breath, because moving vans are very hard to come by in State College this time of year.
7.21.2001
Motto for the day: If we keep it, we have to carry it.
Going through stuff to throw out takes FOREVER.
Tonight (technically, last night) after I picked Chris up from work we went dumpster diving all over the Penn State campus. Well, not actual dumpster diving, but "corrugated cardboard only" diving. We needed more boxes for our move and didn't feel like shelling the money out to the U-Haul store. I only wish I'd had a camera to capture Chris with his upper body in the dumpster and his legs waving in the air. I'm pleased to report that the first thing he did when we got home was take a shower.
7.18.2001
Check out what we got in the last few days! The #8 and #15 cars are special paint schemes (Major League Baseball and Stars and Stripes, respectively) that were most recently run at Daytona in the Pepsi 400 on July 7, 2001. The #21 car is a Virginia Tech paint scheme that was run at Richmond in September of 2000.
These are cool looking cars, and that's why we got them-- not because they are an "investment." According to the packaging for the cars, however, we're going about this all wrong: "EXACT SCALE REPLICA VEHICLES ARE INTENDED FOR ADULT COLLECTORS AND NOT SUITABLE FOR INDIVIDUALS UNDER 21 YEARS OF AGE." Good thing we're old enough, but-- gasp!-- we took them out of the packages and handled them! We are even planning to take the #8 car off it's base, which must be a huge no-no, given that "this product is mounted to a base using a specialized screw as required by the licensor and/or other regulatory agencies."
Wow, what happened to collecting things just because you like them? (Of course, this is coming from someone who as a child walked the neighborhood and picked up odd screws, wire, nails, etc. off the street and kept it as her "junk collection.")
7.17.2001
Our move to NC is really falling into place. Things are working out great with the house and all of the assorted services that must be set up and discontinued as part of moving. Yesterday we made a bajillion phone calls and got nearly everything taken care of, both on this end and down in Raleigh. Making that many phone calls at once is mind numbing, but everyone was pretty friendly and helpful.
We're trying to decide what to do about an ISP. Our first goal is to free up our phone line one way or another. We do not need e-mail addresses or web space, just a connection. We've been thinking about going with the Road Runner service offered by Time-Warner, our new cable company. On the other hand, we could get a second phone line and a dialup service. Seems like in the end, the cost would be about the same, and we would expect better speeds with the cable modem, so that's kind of what we're leaning towards. Opinions, anyone?
7.16.2001
I know it's not quite the right time of year, but this has less to do with Halloween and more to do with the abundance of "tacky" in Central Pennsylvania. Does this strike anyone else as strange?
This Halloween decoration eventually was turned over on it's side and redecorated to look like a Thanksgiving turkey. Unfortunately, I don't think we ever got a picture of that one. I'm not sure how the pumpkin got to the dumpster without making a huge mess by the time December rolled around. This can actually be #7 on the list of things we'll be glad to leave behind.
This Halloween decoration eventually was turned over on it's side and redecorated to look like a Thanksgiving turkey. Unfortunately, I don't think we ever got a picture of that one. I'm not sure how the pumpkin got to the dumpster without making a huge mess by the time December rolled around. This can actually be #7 on the list of things we'll be glad to leave behind.
Justification for item #6 in the second list of the preceding blog entry:
On a shipping label on one of the boxes Chris got from work for us to pack our stuff in: "Merry Christmas! Happy Drinking! From, Mom and Dad." The box itself says "Adult signature required."
I should note, however, that this year's Arts Festival has passed without a riot by the students. Of course, with 200 policemen roaming the downtown area last night, anyone who tried to start anything would pretty much have to be a moron.
7.14.2001
Things we would take with us, if we could, when we move from State College, PA to Raleigh, NC:
1. Eat 'n Park
2. Wiscoy Pet Food Company
3. Meyer Dairy
4. The summer weather
Things we will be more than happy to leave behind:
1. The traffic on football weekends
2. The snow, ice, and freezing cold wind chills in winter
3. The lack of politeness and common courtesy among strangers or in business establishments
4. The narrow lanes on major roads
5. Stop signs that have addendums, such as "except right turn"
6. A town that is primarily fueled by college students, many of whom are fueled by alcohol
7.13.2001
Today could have been a better day. I hate it when people conveniently neglect to tell you stuff you really need to know. Hmmph. Maybe going to Eat 'n Park will improve my mood. How could those big smiley face cookies not make a person feel better?
Looks like stupid.boy/brilliant.girl are okay. :) Now if I could just figure out what happened to Kian.
7.12.2001
As a newbie in the world of blogging, I've been checking out random blogs here and there. A strange theme seems to be unfolding: I become interested enough to check back, and then the author of the blog has or is having some sort of life crisis that interrupts the blogging. A couple of examples (the only ones, so far): stupid.boy/brilliant.girl and egomaniac.nu.
The other thing I've noticed is that high school kids seem a lot more sophisticated these days than they did just ten years ago, when I was about to begin 10th grade. Or maybe I was just never sophisticated to begin with.
7.11.2001
Wow, today was pretty productive. We ran an ad in the paper starting today for some furniture we wanted to get rid of before the move. Less than 24 hours later, we have freed up lots of space in that Ryder truck by selling a bookcase, futon, plastic storage cart, and coffee table and end tables. Who knew the stuff would go so quickly? We've also been packing boxes tonight, so I'm starting to feel like we've got the move under control.
The Chandra Levy case is really heating up. It's interesting to me how Condit is being portrayed as this womanizer who preys on young women. Obviously, he shouldn't have been doing what he was doing, and he should be held responsible for his actions, but come on, she was 24 years old! She shouldn't have been doing what she was doing either. And 24 is old enough to know right from wrong and have enough sense to keep yourself out of a potentially dangerous (and definitely stupid) situation.
7.10.2001
We had quite a successful trip to Raleigh, North Carolina at the end of last week. We have rented this house in North Raleigh:
Here's the back yard and the back of the house:
The back yard is fenced, which Hannah will love, and lawn service is included in the rent. It's got a fireplace, washer and dryer, 3 bedrooms plus bonus office space, 2 full baths, and tons of storage space. Come on down to see us! I realized today that in a mere three weeks, we'll be driving the Ryder truck down to NC. I'm not sure how everything is supposed to end up packed in a box by that time...
I am also gainfully employed! Today I accepted a position as a research associate at the North Carolina Center for Nursing. We had a mighty fine dinner at the Tavern to celebrate.
Also, a huge congrats to Dale Earnhardt, Jr. for winning the Pepsi 400 at Daytona on Saturday night. We taped the race while we were out of town and watched it last night... amazing. And to everyone who thinks that the race was fixed-- please, get a life.
7.09.2001
Last night we found out what Hannah is really made of. She is one awesome dog, and I have no doubt that she would do anything to protect us if she thought we were in danger. She's the best.
7.03.2001
A couple of years ago, I asked my parents and at least one of my aunts to help me compile a list of family expressions and sayings. Here are a few... a lot of these I have never heard anywhere else.
"Goin' at it like killin' snakes." (My grandmother was an expert snake killer. Her tool of choice: a garden hoe. Snakes feared her. I think this saying means to do something with great action.)
"It'll never be seen on a galloping pony and that's the kind you ride." (Could be said to someone complaining about a stain on their shirt.)
"Every crow thinks his is the blackest." (Not sure if this is an observation on family loyalty, or self-pride.)
"If that don't beat a hen a' rootin' up a pine pole." (Expression of surprise; basically an expanded version of "If that don't beat it all.")
"I'm going to _________ if it hairlips Trip." (Indicates determination. I don't know who Trip is.)
7.02.2001
An update on the milk smell...
We got rid of the smell, but now it is clear that I have a problem with cooking with milk. It turns out that the smell in the kitchen had nothing to do with the smoothie-making incident-- it was actually the broccoli-cheese pasta-making incident. Earlier this week I was trying to prepare dinner and wash some dishes at the same time, which resulted in me allowing some milk to boil over on the stovetop. Chris and I both forgot about it and didn't clean it, and it turns out that that's where the smell was coming from. Sheesh, what is it with me and milk?
Wow, my three days of blogging so far kinda makes me look stupid. :)
You know the saying: "Don't cry over spilt milk." There should be an addendum to that: "... unless you've tried to clean it up and it still smells bad."
Sometime this past fall, I was involved in an auto accident in a parking lot in which the other driver hit the right rear side of my car as she turned left into the lane I was driving in. The damage to the body of the car was minor, but I had just stopped by the dairy to pick up two half-gallons of milk in glass bottles. Either upon impact or upon me slamming on my brakes shortly thereafter, the milk bottles flew from the passenger seat to the floorboard, where one shattered. That day I picked up the glass and cleaned things up as best as I could, but within a couple of days, I was driving around with my windows open (in cold weather) and a bottle of Febreze on the seat next to me. I got to a car wash as soon as possible and had them steam clean the carpet on the floorboard. Several months and a few car air fresheners later, the stink is basically gone.
Last night I noticed a smell in the kitchen. I took out the trash and looked in cracks and crannies for decomposing animals, finding none. Today the smell is worse. Even with the windows open letting in lots of fresh air, the kitchen is not a pleasant place right now. Finally, I remembered a smoothie-making episode from the recent past in which I forgot to put the gasket on the blender before adding the ingredients. A bit of milk ran to the back of the counter and dripped down behind the stove. I pulled the stove out from the wall, couldn't see anything, and decided that almost all of it must have stayed on the counter. Wrong. Sometime tonight we'll be pulling out the storage drawer under the oven and giving that floor a good mopping.
You'd think I'd learn. Apparently even the tiniest amount of spilt milk is, indeed, a cause for concern.
I just found out the other day that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has no record of my 2000 income tax return, and I have to resubmit it. Good thing I'm getting a refund, or I'd owe a late penalty. Has this ever happened to anyone else?
7.01.2001
I just had a huge, major breakthrough on my master's thesis.
It was something I'd been struggling to understand for months. I feel like there might be a light bulb positioned over my head right now. I thought spending Friday night through Saturday night on the computer would sap my brain, but I actually feel more analytical now than I've felt in weeks, possibly months. But don't ask me to explain what it means to "feel analytical."
Wow. We just spent the last 24 hours practically glued to the computer, working on our website. Hmmm, does this count as a blogathon? If we had only posted every 30 minutes and signed up some sponsors... we could have raised some money for a worthy cause. Check out the above link-- you might find a charity you'd like to support.
