Yesterday I did manage to get a quick coat of primer done in Daniel’s room. I think I need to go back for paint though because the light blue just looks too close to the white so it won’t work well for stripes.
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A new little fountain pen arrived this week. An inexpensive little Kaweco Sport that I thought would make a good pen for purse or pocket as it’s leak proof. I’m not sure I can get around the medium nib though, it writes a very fat line. The past 4 or 5 years I’ve been shopping the 50cent-dollar items at Micheal’s for silly gifts for stockings for Jason and the boys. Pink rubber balls were a popular item one year and this year I emerged with two items that were well received- some re-useable handwarmers and these funny chia men. Daniel apparently watered his right away and it’s already growing some “hair”.
(Oops, yesterday’s post went out with out a title. Flu was really cramping my brain at that point.)
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I spent much of yesterday getting ready to paint. I visited Home Depot for supplies. I took off all the hardware and taped up the outlets (with Gwen’s close supervision) and I sanded and washed the walls.
Fish day has changed to Wednesdays for us and this week the fish lady brought me a gorgeous piece of snapper. I made a Provencal sauce a la Julia Child’s “Way to Cook” with cilantro, chives and parlsey and a fair bit of lemon and chicken broth as well as the juice from the tomatoes. It was absolutely delicious. I’m also preparing to paint Daniel’s room and these are the new colors he chose. I’ll be sad to paint over my fun ice cream stripes but these colors are very nice as well.
Last fall Daniel bought a new laptop to take with him to college which, of course, he now doesn’t need since he’ll be away for at least 3 years. Looks like I’ve inherited a nice laptop so I can more easily stay connected when I travel if I so choose. Tuesday night we went out and bought Windows7 and Jason got that installed for me and all the basics set up. Yesterday I spent most of the day adding the software I like to use and making sure the camera and ipod can play nice. I’d have to buy a new copy of my photo editing software and after kitty expenses I’m not willing to do that so I’ll have to learn how to use 
I’ve been meaning to reorganize the pans ever since the arrival of the new range. The new stove has a heated warming drawer that’s quite useful so it’s no longer a spot for storage of cookie sheets and other flat pans. Yesterday morning Jason pulled everything out and we tossed a few things that never get used and then reorganized things so that what’s used most is within easy reach.
I’ve got another violet that’s decided to bloom. The other two are still going like gang buster’s and now “Bob’s Whiz Bang” has decided to join the fray. Looks like it’s going to be a purply- red fellow when it opens.
The heat was out for a little while yesterday so I put Gwen’s sweater on her for a bit. It turned out not to be necessary as I discovered the problem before it got very cool in the house and the repair man was here within an hour of Jason’s call. Thankfully the furnace only needed a bit of maintenance and the fellow was kind enough to explain how to do it.
I’ve wanted to replace our old range from the day we moved in so I was over the moon when Jason said he thought we should get one at the same time as the new fridge. The starter elements for the stove top or the oven had to be replaced every couple years and it wasn’t cheap so it had been a constant money sink. At some point the control back came loose so it was also a bit of an eyesore. The replacement arrived yesterday and it feels like a Cadillac after the old Amana (which collapsed upon removal). It has a much higher BTU output and I love the long central burner which means I can finally effectively use the cast iron griddle for pancakes and things. The oven is a dream and has all sorts of settings. It can be convection or gas. There’ll definitely be a learning period with the new oven but I’m beyond excited that it’s here.
The big excitement around here was the arrival of our new fridge. It’s an Energy Star Kenmore side by side, slightly bigger than the old one. We could live without an ice-maker/water dispenser but with a height restriction there were only a few models to choose from. The great thing about getting a new fridge delivered in December is that it comes already cold so it gets to temp really fast.
Over the past few months my fridge has been developing an unpleasant odor that’s gradually gotten worse. I”ve scoured the contents repeatedly looking for spoiled items that could be causing the problem with no luck at all. Yesterday while making another desperate attempt to find the source I noticed this honkin’ crack in the liner. Google tells me that cracked liners lead to moisture where it doesn’t belong which in turn encourages the growth of nasty critters where they don’t belong. This fridge is older than ten, younger than 15 but certainly too old to spend the money on a new liner. Tomorrow night we’ll be fridge hunting, wish us luck.