Contraband

Little Kat built the bookshelf we got him all by himself. Solid construction skills. Then Momoko and I went to his room to see how a 32-inch TV would fit on it. At first it seemed to cover the light switch on the wall. Then we turned the bookshelf 45 degrees to make it cover a corner of the bedroom.

I jumped down into Little Kat's floor level bed. As I reached under the pillow to support my head, I found a slim iPhone looking device. It was Momoko's iPod. Little Kat had lifted it from Momoko. The thief! At least the TV looked good from that angle. Then I climbed up onto Little Kat's loft bed. I could see the TV well from there too. The 32-inch TV is the right size for viewing from Little Kat's bed.

I had Little Kat search for any other suspicious items he had hidden in his bed. He found a Nintendo DS. He declared the game system was out of power for months. Likely story - not. Who knows what other suspicious items were tucked in that bed. Time for a shake down. Next we need to get Little Kat a new DVD player. We will then cut a whole in the back of the bookshelf to feed wires through.

The final step will be to anchor Little Kat's bookshelf to the wall for safety. We will also have Little Kat snake the cable wire along the wall to the new TV spot. Little Kat told me I will need to purchase a cable wire extension to make it reach the TV. Purchase request approved.

Power Outage

Today we had planned to do some furniture shopping in the morning. As I was waking up, the power went out. I assumed Momoko or Kit Kat had popped the circuit. No. The whole house power was out. We proceeded to go to the furniture store. I knew we were in trouble when the main street by our house was closed down. They ran police tape across the whole road.

We bought Little Kat a bookshelf to serve as his new TV stand. Next we bought Momoko a skinny but tall DVD shelf. Finally we purchased a coar rack. Momoko planned on driving by McDonald's to get us some cold drinks. She came back a long time later. Many traffic lights were out. There were no McDonald's around with power.

In the house without power, we drafted a list of items we would need due to the power outage. We went out to do some emergency shopping. I had to fill up Momoko's gas tank. Many gas stations were out of power. Others had long lines of cars in front of them. It was hard to drive around. Roads and lights were closed. It felt like Armageddon out there.

Momoko had us drive up to another town further North of us. They had gas. There were no long lines. Then we hit up a nice burger joint. We drank many glasses full of cold drinks. Afterwards we headed to Walmart. They were lacking in batteries. They did have hand fans and flashlights. We picked up a bag of ice. There was celebration as we finally came back home. The front porch light was on. Thus, we got back power.

Gale Force Winds

Kit Kat worked the late shift at work yesterday. She got home around 10pm. I wanted to get some original chicken sandwiches on sale at Burger King. We also wanted to buy Kit Kat some dinner. I drove Kit Kat's car with her as passenger. We went to the drive through and placed our order. The guy said Kit Kat's sandwich would take 4 minutes to cook. He asked us to park on the other side of the building.

On the other side of the building, Kit Kat and I saw a tree branch blow by. Then a massive storm came upon us really quickly. The employees of Burger King kept looking out the window. We waited and waited for our food to come out. It did not. After 15 minutes, we drove back around to inquire within. The people forgot about us. They made up by giving us an extra onion ring.

As I tried to exit the drive through, we saw a tree had fallen and blocked the way. I slowly backed out of the drive through. It was tough in the dark. We proceeded to drive home. There was a lot of debris in the roads. The sky was lit up with massive lightning. I dodged tree branches in the street. We got home and ate chicken sandwiches. Some neighbors had trees down in their yards.

Shopping in the AM

Kit Kat was off from work today. We took advantage of that and got some shopping done. Both Momoko and Little Kat set their alarms. Our goal was to wake up at 9:30am and be off shopping by 10:00am. We succeeded. The first stop was the hardware store to buy some paints for Kit Kat's room.

Kit Kat found a violet paint color for her room walls. It is a darker shade than her current color. She also picked out an apple green for the trim in her room. We brought the colors to the counter. I also brought along the color Little Kat had previously picked out for his room (Honeydew). We made some decisions on the type of paint and finish. I almost bought a few more cans to qualify for a rebate. But they did not have the mold-resistant white I needed at the store.

Next we went to an electronics store. I saw a 32-inch LED flat scree TV on sale. We needed Kit Kat along to tell us whether she thought it would fit in her room. Previously she said she wanted a small TV around 24 inches. Kit Kat decided she could live with a 32-inch TV. We could not find the specific model I wanted on display. But a sales clerk found us one that was comparable.

Another employee from the store came out and recognized Momoko. It was one of Momomoko's past students. She is in college now. I dealth with the original clerk, and had him pull the TV from their stock. I used a gift card I received to lower the price a bit. The TV fit fine in the back of Momoko's car.

Now we will see whether a similar sized 32-inch TV will fit in Little Kat's room. He is hoping the answer is yes. I also want him to check whether the TV can handle the high resolution and speed graphics that come out of the game consoles such as the XBox 360.

The Library

Momoko and I moved our computer desks to our studys. That left an empty fireplace room. I hired some guys to move our loveseat up from the basement into this room. Without the desks, we had nowhere to put items such as the mail or keys. For a while we just used a TV tray.

Then Momoko and I bought some key ring holders at the store. The kids were afraid to install them over the light switch. They imagined that the screws would puncture an electric wire and zap them. Instead they installed these rings by the coat rack. Now we have plenty of spots to hang keys.

Next Momoko picked out a secretary desk to hold our mail. I ordered it online. Even with shipping, the price was reasonable. UPS delivered it to us quickly. I rolled the box in using the dolly. Momoko and Little Kat tried assembling the desk while I was at work.

The instructions for desk assembly were lacking. By the time I was done with work, Momoko and Little Kat were arguing over who had to hold the wood, and who needed to drill. I stepped in and helped a bit. That got the difficult folding part of the desk out of the way. Momoko and Little Kat continued the assembly as Little Kat cooked dinner in the background.

Now we have this desk to hold our mail. We put the phone on top of it. The fold out part folds up into the desk to hide its contents. It looks cool. Little Kat was amazed by the metal arms that hold the folding part into place.

Rough Ride

Today we needed to go carpet shopping. We wanted to focus on the carpet Little Kat is going to get in his room. I planned to drive Momoko's car. She had other plans. She decided to have Little Kat drive the car out of the carport, and down the driveway. This is the first time Little Kat has ever driven one of our cars.

Momoko showed Little Kat the gas and brake pedals. I showed him how to work Momoko's emergency brake. Momoko directed him to put the car in drive and give it some gas. He did and the car moved forward. Then he slammed on the brake. After a bit of whiplash for the passengers, the car stopped.

At this point, I took over the wheel. We went to the carpet store we used twice before for our house. Those guys do a great job installing carpet. We spoke with the store owner. He gave us an overview of some of the carpets. Then we let Little Kat go off on his own to choose his carpet.

Initially Little Kat identified a plush carpet with a "coffee" color. Then he changed his mind to a soft carpet in black. Black got denied. So he switched to a soft carpet in gray. In the end we tallied the carpet costs. Little Kat's initial choice was the most expensive carpet in the store. His second and third choices were premium carpets as well.

Now I am deciding whether to allow Little Kat to get the expensive carpet. We carpeted his room once before (in the last 4 to 8 years). His carpet is in bad shape. He might do the same to the new carpet we choose.

The Unsale

Little Kat has been complaining about needing new shoes. At first he stated that his shoes were falling apart. I had him bring me his shoes. They appeared brand new. I then had him bring over my boots. The laces had come apart and were tied together to try to hold the boot on your foot. The soles were literally hanging off unconnected to most of the boot. You get the picture. I showed Little Kat what a broke down shoe really looked like.

Next Little Kat complained that his shoes did not fit him. I had him bring all his shoes out. Two pairs of flips flops were too small for the soles of his feet. The rest of the shoes and boots seemed fine. I approved the purchase of some new flip flops. I don't mind buying clothing and shoes when we need them. But we can't purchase new stuff just because someone is bored with their current apparel.

The family went to Target to shop. Little Kat tried on a few styles. He found one that fit his foot and he liked. Momoko exclaimed that the prices were good and they were an extra 20% off. I told her the prices were not great. I asked if she wanted to buy the flip flops. She declined. At checkout I found the flip flops were full price.

On the drive home, Little Kat Momoko excalimed that the flip flops rang up half prices. I pulled the car over and inspected the receipt. Nope. They were full price. I had to put an end to the crazy talk. Besides. Little Kat is supposed to be at his dad's house. Dad should be getting him shoes during the summer.

Schedule Change

I got up one day this week. Headed outside to water the newly planted grass. Kit Kat came out shortly after me. She was dressed up and ready to go to work. After watering, I headed down into my study to log into the work computers. It is summer. But I still have to work every day.

Thirty minutes later I head someone enter the house. It could not be Momoko or Little Kat. They sleep in during the summer. Sure enough it was Kit Kat. I presumed the worst. She said that they had changed her work schedule without telling her. Instead of working the morning shift, she was in charge of the swing shift that day. Fail.

Kit Kat took a nap. I was concerned she might oversleep her swing shift schedule. Momoko woke up and checked that Kit Kat got up on time. She was very tired working the late shift. At least she had some more business then. Not as many people shop at her store during the morning hours.

Clogged

Momoko told Little Kat that the toilet in his bathroom would not flush. Something was backed up in there. Little Kat went upstairs to do some plunging. Later Little Kat came down and said he needed some help. I just can't get any rest these days.

I took our power plunger, and went to work. The thing would not mate with the kids toilet. It just could not form a seal to get any traction. I used the old fashioned plunger. It got deformed, limiting its functionality. I had to keep getting the rubber back into shape.

I spent a long time plunging the darn toilet. After a few minutes, a deodorant stick popped up out of the drain. With that out of the toilet, the thing flushed fine. Job well done.

Hospital Visit

I got a call late last night. It was my bro. He said my mom could not breathe, so he rushed her to the emergency room at the local hospital. My bro just dropped my mom off. He needed to hang up and go into the hospital. I hung tight. Later he called and said my mom needed to stay overnight.

I took care of my duties are work the next day. My bro called and said my mom was still in the hospital. He and my dad were going to visit my mom that evening. I told him I would come along. After work, I headed over to my parents' house. My dad had gone to get some flowers for mom.

My bro and I waited and thought something was wrong. It was taking too long for dad to get flowers. Turns out his truck died in the grocery store parking lot. My bro and I went to rescue him. We tried to jump start his battery and car. We failed. Had to leave his truck there.

I used my bro to help navigate me to the hospital my mom was staying at. It seemed small. The bottom floor smelled like bacon (the cafeteria was on the main floor). We headed up to my mom's room. She had a private room. There were some tubes coming out of her nose. She was scheduled to get her IV hooked back into her later.

Yesterday my mom could not breathe. Today she was better. Her doctor still said she could not be discharged from the hospital. Otherwise she would not make it. The whole recovery will take up to 8 months. We all hope my mom can come home tomorrow.

The Kindle Project

Little Kat needs to read some books this summer. He proposed that we buy him a Kindle Fire tablet. That way he would not have to lug heavy books around the country when he visits his dad. In theory that is a good idea. However Little Kat would just end up playing games on the Kindle Fire if we got him one. I decided to purchase a normal Kindle reader instead.

I am going to loan the Kindle Reader to Little Kat for a year. I told him if he reads a little bit each week, I would give him the Kindle Reader. He was excited at this prospect. I sweetened the deal by promising I would throw in a Kindle gift card if he kept up a minimal amount of reading each week.

If Little Kat reads a lot over the next year, I told him I would buy him a Kindle Fire tablet. I would also throw in a bigger gift card to purchase whatever he wants on on the Kindle Fire. This really got Little Kat excited. Let's see whether this excitement lasts for the whole year.

I told Little Kat that he would need to document his reading each week on his new Blazing Books blog. Looks for entries starting on that blog as early as this week.

Crimes of Little Kat

Momoko arranged for Kit Kat to cook one of my favorite new meals - Beef and Broccoli featuring flank steak. There are some secret incredients that make this Chinese food dish taste awesome. One of them is apple juice. Kit Kat bought a big jug of apple juice at the store. She only needed a small amount for the Chinese food. Momoko still restricted Little Kat from drinking any of the apple juice. We don't want to run out of it before the meal is cooked.

I walked into the kitchen and found Kit Kat lifting up the apple juice jug. He wanted to chug-a-lug right out of the bottle. Fail. I screamed and asked what the heck he was doing. He calmly tried to pretend like he was getting a glass of apple juice. Double fail. Now Little Kat is on big time restriction. He must drink only water for a full week.

My delicious beef and broccoli was tainted by the assumed Little Kat backwash. For the thievery, Little Kat also had to purchased some apple juice concentrate with his own money.

Kit Kat Job Search

Last summer Kit Kat tried to find a job. She had no luck. It is a tough economy. She did some job searching during the school year. But she did not press too hard. No job. Now it is summer again. Kit Kat needs some cash for college. She looked around but could not find that job.

Momoko advised Kit Kat to get more agressive. Pretty much you got to find a manager and ask them what you need to do to get a job there. You can't just submit some online applications. You also cannot just talk to some employees and take no for an answer. You need to find the decision maker and ask for that job.

Kit Kat did this once or twice with nice results. Finally she got a job offer. It was at an ice cream place. It is not close to the house. But hey. It is a job. She was set to start after she returned from her beach trip. When she got back, she said she passed on the job offer. What??? Beggars can't be choosers missy. Very disappointing.

Out of the blue, a store Momoko and Kit Kat shop at called Kit Kat for an interview. She went and apparently did well. She got the job. She starts next week. We don't know how many hours a week Kit Kat has. But hey. It is a job. And the store is very close to our house. Let's hope Kit Kat makes it okay.

Concrete Mix

I had my handyman take care of some of the details for my new shed. He went and got the permit fromt he county. That was a difficult task. Then he arranged to get my old shed and concrete pad removed. Finally he arranged to get a new large 12x20 foot pad poured. This "arranging" meant he had his concrete man come to do the job.

Now the concrete pad itself looks fine. However when the concrete team had left, my back yard looked like a construction side. There was trash here and there. Lots of concrete waste was all around the place. Things near the concrete mixer got splashed. The little grass we had in the back yard was messed up. You get the point.

I like the work my handyman does. So I will keep using him in the future. However his concrete man and team are fired for life. Now I have the task of cleaning up after these messy concrete boys. Today I took one pile of concrete mix they threw over the fence, and moved it down to the edge of my property. This was painful because the concrete was heavy. It did not help that the back of my property has a steep hill.

At least I put the excess material to good use. The stream had been eroding the dirt from the edge of my property. I will use the excess concrete mix to hold down the shore on my side of the steam. Wouldn't you know it? I just got some new work boots that are killing my feet when I wear them and break them in. Climbing up and down our back yard hill with a bunch of concrete has my feet in severe pain. And I am not done will all the concrete excess yet. Ouch.

Internet Outage

Last week out Internet and cable went out. I figured it was due to the bad weather. Normally the cable company takes care of these outages automatically. No such luck this time. Momoko signed us up for som service. It tells us whether the cable company knows if we are down. They were clueless. I called them up in the middle of the night.

The dude on the phone was polite. He tried some things but could not see my cable modem. He asked me to call back in an hour. That made no sense. The cable and Internet had been out for a few days already. What good would one more hour do? He said his machine was having some technical diificulties. I called back the next morning.

This time around, I walked through the cable help menus on the phone. I waited to speak to an operator. The recording said they were not taking calls from my are. Oh hell no. I worked the menus to report an Internet outage. I got a human being. I explained that I was told to call back, so I was calling back. One again the guy tried to do some diagnostics. No dice. I scheduled a technician to come out to the house.

I woke up early the next day. Did not want to miss the technician phone call. If you do not answer the phone, they cancel your appointment. I answered on the first ring when they called. They guy was stuck in traffic, but was coming. I was fine. He was still on time. After poking around the outside of my house, he informed me that the cable signal was missing at the street.

Huh? I don't care what the cause is. I need my cable back. The technician told me he put in a call with maintenance. They would come in an hour. I waited for them to show up. The maintenance guy said some fuses had blown around the area, and he could fix it. He said I did not need to be home for him to do his work. I bolted to the office to get on with my work. Cable and Internet were uip when I got home. Finally.