Let it Snow

The snow came to our area today. At first we were supposed to get 2 inches. It looks more like 6+ inches outside. And it is still snowing.

Kit Kat went to spend the night with some friends from school. Little Kat built two pieces of furniture Momoko got for him. They will sit next to his desk and hold his supplies.

I braved the snow to get dinner for me and my brother. The snow was dry and fluffy. I cleared off my car. When I was done, I ran around the side of my car and took a fall. Luckily I was heavily dressed, so my clothes absorbed the fall.

As soon as Little Kat cleans up from his furniture building operation, we are going to play some Mario Bros on the Wii.

Rendezvous with a Shark

Our floor vacuum cleaner is breaking down. It won't suck up the dirt. The thing is only a year old. We need to choose a better brand and model next time.

I had Kit Kat do the research for me. Momoko wants some wind tunnel sweeper. But the price is huge like $500 or $700 dollars. Rejected due to cost.

Kit Kat found a model called the Shark Navigator. It got some good reviews. It comes with a "free" steam mop if you order online. I think we are going to get it.

Art Class

This is the second semester of the school year. Little Kat has started art class. He had a long list of art supplies to get. Momoko and Kit Kat watched some British movie tonight. So Little Kat and I went shopping.

We went to this arts and crafts store. They had tiny shopping carts. Little Kat had his list. He checked off each item as we found it. It was tough to find a box to contain his art supplies. The hardest item to find at the store was masking tape. Go figure.

When we got home, Kit Kat and Momoko were snacking on jalapeno appetizers that they had baked. They left a little bit for Little Kat and me. Now that everyone is asleep, it is time for me to look into ordering a new vacuum cleaner. They want me to get one like Grannie Kat's....

Lighting by Tiffanys

My trusty desk lamp started acting up. The light would flicker sometimes. I got scared that the old thing might start a fire. So I decided to replace it.

I did my shopping on Amazon. They had a nice selection. I always wanted a Tiffany style lamp. You know. Those are the ones with colored glass that bankers use.

Today I got home and found a box on my chair. Kit Kat beat me home and brought in my Amazon shipment. I plugged in the new lamp and there you go.

I have just one problem. My old lamp had a long neck which stuck out over the section of my desk where I do my bills. The new one just points the light down (on the shelf above my desk). Details.

Shopping Plans

Yesterday Momoko was going to go grocery shopping. However she stayed up late the night before doing homework. Then she got caught up late at work. The result was that Momoko spent the evening sleeping on the couch.

So for today we had some dinner ingredients. But that's it. And Momoko has class tonight. Do you know what that means? Time for me and Kit Kat to go grocery shopping. I decided to take the old pick up truck. That's easier to load groceries into the back. We went to Weis Markets. That's the store which is close to our old house.

Kit Kat and I were all business at the grocery store. She had a list and we stuck to it. Groceries are really expensive. We still shelled out some bucks for the goods. But now we are ready to cook dinner all week.

First in Line

Yesterday we got the ads for the Sunday paper a day early. Best Buy had a laptop on sale for $279. There had to be a catch. I asked a couple people to look at the ad. The only sneaky thing was that it seemed associated with a more expensive package.

So I went down to Best Buy. I asked whether I could just buy the laptop. The sales guy said yes. I asked whether the laptop had wireless and a CD-ROM. He said yes too. They were first available at 11:00am on Sunday. I went to sleep thinking I would get up early and get in line before the store opened.

This morning Momoko got up before me. She came along to Best Buy with me. There were a lot of people in the parking lot. But there was only one dude in front of the store. I took Momoko, and we started the line right in front of the entry doors at 10:50am. I was the first dude into the store when the store opened. I made a bee line to the computer section.

The sales guy tried to sell me some extended warranty. I was not having it. It worked. I bought a laptop for $279 plus tax. Yee haw. I am using the laptop to compose this blog right now. Still need to install a lot of software and transfer over my files and settings. But I am on my way. My computer at home is the oldest of all that we own. It is working but who knoes for how long. I am a happy laptop user now.

Ghost in the Washing Machine

Little Kat carried a stack of books upstairs. He screamed and ran down to Kit Kat. The commotion seemed to be his coming into contact with a ghost. I pressed him for the detail.

Little Kat told me a quarter came out of nowhere and hit him on the leg. The quarter then bounced into his room. He also felt a cold chill upstairs.

He went back up to retrieve the quarter. It seemed like a normal quarter from the year 2002. The thing was not cold. I asked if Little Kat could repeat the encounter to get more quarters. No luck. But the quarter was one he needed for his quarter collection.

I asked if Kit Kat had experienced any ghostly encounters in the house. She said the washing machine started by itself when we first moved in.

Now if this house is haunted, we are moving out. But I am going to move to the next county. And the kids will have to change schools. For now that idea has been voted down.

Autobiography of a Little Kat

I stayed up late last night. Too much exercise meant I could not go to sleep. Then I worked late today. When I got home, I passed out in the bed.

Little Kat woke me up for some chicken strips dinner made by Kit Kat. It tasted good. After dinner Momoko quizzed Little Kat about a big assignment that was due.

Since Little Kat did not know the details, he had to use a lifeline and call a friend. It turns out he had a five paragraph autobiography due tomorrow. Doh. Little Kat was scheduled to go to sleep in an hour.

Kit Kat had to study for tests. Momoko had to write a paper for her college class. That meant Black Kat needed to assist Little Kat. He chose to write about our winter break.

Little Kat listed 8 things we did during winter break on a piece of paper. I kept asking him who/what/when/why/where. In 30 minutes, he had a massive 8 paragraphs. And that did not include the introduction he had to write. Come on Little Kat. Publish your work up in here.

Attack of the Shower Door

The other day I banged my leg on the inside door of the shower. It did not hurt too much. However the darn shower door got off its track. I tried to ignore it. But with a nightly exercise routine, I am taking 2 showers a day.

Today I came home early because I needed to pick Little Kat up from school. I was surprised because Kit Kat beat us home. As soon as I got in, I headed up to do battle with the shower doors.

It was easy to take the door off the track. Then I lifted the guide rail and tightened the screw. It was a chore to put the door back in the guide. When I tested it, I found it still did not close correctly. I had to pull it off the track, adjust the screws and guide, then struggle to put it back on.

I am victorious. The doors slide correctly now. The long term fix is to ditch the doors and get a shower curtain rod.

The Princess and the Failure

For Christmas our family received some movie gift cards. We voted and decided to watch The Princess and the Frog. The line for tickets at the theater was long. Then we needed some nachos, making us a bit late for the movie.

When we got in, we headed to the top row like normal. Then some lady in the audience screamed that the sound problems would be fixed after the previews. It was then that I realized there was a loud buzzing noise every so often in the audio.

The movie started. However we kept getting loud buzzing noises. Momoko and I ate up our nachos and exited the theater. I got the ticket lady to refund our ticket prices. We had bought a Cherry Coke for five bucks. I got that money refunded as well. We went home and planned to see the movie next week. But we are definitely going to another theater. Good luck to us.

Cat and Mouse

Little Kat got me a nice pair of grippy gloves for Christmas. I put them out in the shed before visiting Grannie Cat. When we got back from our trip, I found that a mouse had chewed up the right glove. It was totally useless now. Time for Black Cat's revenge.

I got some delicious cheese and baited a trap. However this was a smart mouse. He ate the cheese without springing the trap. So I got a bigger piece of cheese and moved the trap slightly. This morning I found that the trap got him. Poor little guy. I don't mind him hiding in my shed. But don't eat up my new gloves.

My old truck seems to have tires that lost a lot of air this winter. One tire seemed flat. I went to Citgo to fill up the tires with air. Luckily I have a digital tire pressure reader. All four tires got filled to proper inflation. Then I tried to get some gas. The pumps were out of service. I drove to Exxon and found their pumps out of service too. I thought something might be going on. And I was forced to go fill up at the Evil Shell. Let's hope their gas does not kill my truck.

School Plans

Tonight Momoko and Kit Kat went to the high school. There was a meeting to plan out Kit Kat's classes next year. She needs to do some type of internship. And she has to take an advanced placement class. Sounds hard.

I tried to catch a nap. But Little Kat was playing Mario Bros on the Wii. Thus there was a lot of noise. No chance of getting any shut eye. Somehow Little Kat lost our game progress and power ups. Shame shame.

Tomorrow I get the day off because I worked last weekend. I am picking up Kit Kat from school. Check you lata.

Class Cancelled

I had a message on the answering machine when I got home today. It was from my college. They cancelled the class I planned to take this Spring. And there was no other section being offered. What a bummer.

Now I had already got approval from my company to take the course. Then I got the company to give me the cash for the course. I went and signed up. The only thing I did not do was buy my book (it cost a whopping $125).

Should I try to hurry and sign up for another class? I read somewhere that the best programmers don't need anybody to teach them skills. They are supposed to learn on their own. Maybe I will try that for a semester or two.

Driving and Exercising

Today I got some good news. My insurance company said that Kit Kat could drive my car while learning, and I would not have to pay any additional premium. The cost when Kit Kat got her license would be minimal if she would then be an "occasional" driver of my car. Sounds good to me.

Kit Kat had a new idea for exercise. No. It was not the Wii Fit Plus. She said that Momoko and her should exercise for 30 minutes each night starting at 10:00PM.

Now Little Kat had gone down to our "gym" earlier to get a workout. I joined him. I ended up walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes. This was significant since I don't think I have ever walked on our treadmill. Then I joined Kit Kat and Momoko for another 30 minute workout. Whew.

Getting Off Work!

Little Kat was sick during the night. He still had an upset tummy and last a slight fever when I checked on him this morning. I decided to let him stay home but I knew I needed to be here to take care of him. He might not get enough rest if there were visions of Wii, unattended in the house. It is hard to get off work at the last minute and I had to administer a test (which Little would be missing by staying home). I arranged for a half day absence and asked my boss if I could get off any sooner. She said I could go home right away and she would find someone to give my test but I figured I was already at school so I might as well stay a little longer. I also knew Black was at home for a little while. I ended up getting off earlier than I had expected and made it home a few minutes after Black left. Little was snug in bed but was feeling better. He was able to keep some food down and he even worked on a little homework. I will be watching him today to decide if I will be taking another day off.

The Return of Black Cat

Momoko worried that Little Kat would run out of color printer ink for his school project. Kit Kat and I came to the rescue. We went to Walmart to get supplies.

Since we were there, I decided to use my Walmart gift card from Grannie Kat. My goal was to buy some cool new ties. Walmart had a few.

Kit Kat liked the pink and plaid ties. I had to pass on those. It was confusing that no ties had prices on them. So I settled for 3 of them.

The people at work better watch out. Black Kat is going to come dressed in style. Well at least the ties will be stylish. Thank you Grannie Kat.

Doing the right thing SUCKS!

Today Little learned that doing the right can be very hard. We went to the grocery store and he found a $100.00 bill laying near the check-out stand. He did not know what to do. I could see his eye bulging and he wanted very much to pick it up and put it in his pocket. I told him the right thing to do was to take it to the customer service desk and turn it in. I was not sure what he would do. I watched him pick it up and walk in the direction of the service desk. He was examining pretty closely. I am not sure if he was checking to see if it was real. He eventually made it and reluctantly handed it over. He told me it was the hardest thing he ever did. I was very proud of my little kat. I told him that could have belonged to someone who really needed it and would be thankful that someone turned it in.

Rock On!

Kit got a Guitar Hero game for the Wii with her Christmas money. She tried it out today and she really rocked the room. Little went to bed before she performed her mega concert so he will have to catch her later. He was eying her guitar before he went to bed and I am sure he will be sneaking her guitar to play in secret while she is sleeping. I am sure he will need her help to figure it out so I am not too worried about him lurking in the shadows. Rock on my KITTIES!!!

Kit Kat on Wheels

Today we realized that Kit Kat will be old enough to get her driving permit (oh boy) soon. We decided to have the diving "discussion" to figure out what we are going to do about teaching her to drive. I am not sure all parents are equipped with the patients it takes and I can only hope I that my relationship with her will not suffer during this trying period. We made a plan and I will keep you up-to-date on her progress!

Secret Wii Game

Yesterday we unpacked our new Wii. We tried to play as many games as possible to get a little taste of what they were like. We had a good time but we did not have time to play any game too long. After the boys went to bed, Kit and I played MarioKart and Super Mario Brothers. We had a blast playing together even though we stayed up very, very, very late. I am not sure if the Wii is going to help with our productivity but I guaranteed to be fun trying to balance work and play!

Home Sweet Home

We just got back from visiting Grannie & Papa Kat. We had a great time and wished we could stay longer but school starts Monday. We are a little tired from the flight but happy to be home. The first order of business is to unpack and go to the store and buy some yummies. Then we will catch up on some movies and try to squeeze in some Wii.