My blog brother Pete, of Shaky Pete's Shootin' Shack, is in the hospital following a stroke. Harvey has the post up over at Pete's place to explain the situation. If you have any left over prayers - they will be gladly accepted. Hang in there Pete!

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 08:53 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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I have mentioned before that we are moving... to Massachusetts. So, a little update on the happenings here. Looks like everything is done on the selling end of our house in Chicago - even with Relo sticking their pesky fingers into everything to try and muck up the deal. It's amazing that any houses ever get sold using Relo - right now I'm thinking that even with the tax benefits to us - I never again want to work with such a company!

We have bought a house, but the inspection isn't until this coming Thursday. Although I'm pretty sure there won't be a problem - stranger things have happened, so let's just say that as of now - the new place isn't 100% settled yet.

The people buying our house asked to close a week earlier than originally listed on the contract. This was surprsing because they had wanted to close 2 weeks later when they first proposed the contract and our Relo people said no. So, beloved husband and I considered time tables and other issues over the weekend and decided to go ahead with the earlier date. It will cramp things on moving out, but we'll manage - just have to work a bit faster on some stuff.

Therefore we are moving out of the Chicago area on the week of Sept 19th and our stuff will have to go into storage because we won't be moving in to the new place until October. In the meantime we have to figure out fun stuff like forwarding mail and other such delights. And we get to go through the joys of hazardous waste disposal - which is apparently in only one single location in the "Chicagoland" area open from 9-3 on Saturdays and Sundays only... Then there are the things we want to leave with the Good Will. Not to mention 1-800-GOT-JUNK who will be contacted soon to get rid of stuff we can't get rid of any other way.

This is why I don't move... it's just too much of a hassle. I'm tired just thinking about it. I'll worry about packing much later!

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 11:04 AM | Comments (11) | Add Comment
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1 the land of lefties?

Posted by: ArmyWifeToddlerMom at August 29, 2005 03:58 PM (StflD)

2 From all we've been able to determine - MA is not as far left as IL - as a matter of fact - it may be pretty far right of IL... (and the special K twins are no worse than Durbin and Obama - although Obama isn't spouting off too much yet) I think people don't realize any of this because MA is on the coast and IL is in the center of the states - so the opposite is expected. *grin*

Posted by: Teresa at August 29, 2005 04:51 PM (nAfYo)

3 Right, left... depends on how you're facing it.

Good luck to ya!

Posted by: That 1 Guy at August 29, 2005 11:25 PM (oZa4f)

4 Massychusitts!?!? Looks like we're gonna be neighbors. That left leaning blue state you're moving to is right next door to the left leaning blue state I live in. We1come to the neighborhood.

Posted by: NE at August 30, 2005 05:17 AM (DP5IG)

5 It's always such a strange feeling, when one house has been sold and you're traveling toward another, not yet really yours.

It's light, yet frightening.

What I've done is put a hold on the mail in one location for up to 2 weeks, then have forwarding kick in.
Once I rented a P.O. Box in the arrival city and had everything forwarded there ahead of us...
Once I used a friend.

Moving is just a plain pain in the arse. I don't want to do it again anytime soon!

Posted by: pam at August 30, 2005 06:25 AM (l6NIn)

6 From someone who grew up in Massachusetts, a piece of advice for developing your Boston accent....

"Khakis" are used to start your car's ignition..... ;-)

(Fortunately, you won't have to listen to people folks out there while about how the Red Sox always choke.)

Posted by: Allan at August 30, 2005 07:44 AM (AvjIr)

7 people better keep an eye on Obama..

Posted by: ArmyWifeToddlerMom at August 30, 2005 04:15 PM (jmvIy)

8 :-(


That is all.

Mass. doesn't know how lucky it is. I will miss you..........

Posted by: Tammi at August 30, 2005 05:52 PM (t9d7U)

9 The good news is that you can now actually vote against Ted Kennedy. You and and about three other people, that is.

Posted by: Jim - PRS at August 30, 2005 08:51 PM (BjDAE)

10 Wait.. you're moving?? I must have missed that post. Who's going to be all Regal like to me at the blogmeets now?!?!

Dammit!

Posted by: Contagion at September 01, 2005 12:39 PM (Q5WxB)

11 So what date should the first of Joe's fabulous chocolate cakes be ready for consumption?

Posted by: jacqui at September 01, 2005 01:35 PM (p6z5/)

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Many years ago, when we lived in an apartment, the gas line to the stove cracked open. This meant there was a gradual buildup of natural gas, which was apparently so gradual that I didn't even know it until one of the neighbors came over for some reason and said - hey I smell gas!

Well, after having the gas company out to find where the problem was (it never occurred to us that the flexible pipe behind the stove would actually crack open when the stove was never moved...) and had it fixed - I have always been worried about another stealth attack by natural gas. Even moreso than the usual culprit carbon monoxide (which would be more likely).

So, I keep a Nighthawk CO/Explosive Gas monitor - to maybe give me a warning if there is a problem. And then I forget about it. Our smoke detectors are hardwired into the house - which means there are no batteries to change, but the CO monitor, even though it plugs into the wall outlet, does have a battery. And yes I forgot this.

So, yesterday I heard a beep every 5 seconds - it happened about 4 times and then quit. Naturally I thought about the smoke detector. I go into the hall and look at it - nothing appears to be wrong (but how would I know?). Since the noise stopped I forgot about it.

Today the beep returned... I'm in the hall under the smoke detector... well that's not beeping. Hmmm.... young son who is on the phone with a friend making plans to go out - comes out in the hall and says what's beeping? Finally I trace it down the the CO detector. I pull the plug and suddenly it's squeeling like mad! I can't figure out why, until I remember - the battery! I open it up and pull the battery out - ah silence! (which might be because I'm now deaf)

I forgot the stupid thing has a battery and we had lost power the other day... It was signalling me it needed a battery change. Guess I just won't have an alarm in place until I get to the store, I don't have any extra 9 Volts laying about... sheesh.

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 01:14 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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As I noted a few days ago I have been off house hunting... an extremely frustrating experience as many of you will understand from doing so yourselves over the years. If you've never had to look for a place to live, count yourself lucky! The endeavor is always fraught with annoyances - houses with problems, nice houses in marginal places, houses that might be great if they weren't so far from any little amenities like... oh say grocery stores - that kind of thing.

On Saturday morning I was up at 5:15am. Those who know me, know that I am NOT a morning person... period. My feeling is that mornings are the work of an evil scientist and should only be experienced after having stayed up all night long. However, because of losing an hour going east, I wanted to get going at a time that would allow my husband and I some time to go driving around a bit.

Therefore, I was up bright and early and off to the airport. The best thing about O'Hare is that it's so nicely impersonal. In general - people leave each other alone. When I deal with mornings this is a good thing. However, once you are seated on the plane - all bets are off. Mostly the people I sit next to leave me alone... unfortunately, this flight was not one of those times.

No, I got to sit next to the male version of Chatty Cathy. As soon as he sat down, he struck up a conversation wherein I got to hear his life story, whether I wanted to or not. Because I was so tired, I was afraid to try and make him stop - because I don't hold onto my temper too well in those circumstances. So, I let him talk - tried to make some polite conversation in return and just hoped the flight would be fast (no loitering in a waiting pattern on arrival).

It turns out that this guy is one of those who listens to all the news media talking points and absorbs them like a sponge. Apparently we are in Iraq because the current President GW - is avenging the assassination attempt on the former President GW. Afghanistan is okay - he was all for that - but Iraq was just so George could get even with Saddam. I'm afraid I did let my temper slip to the point where I said - Gee guess you believe everything the news media tells you don't you! Of course he also thinks our current boy governor is doing a great job. (he is not from Illinois mind you, just seems to think he's doing well here) After I laughed at him and told him that even Mayor Daley doesn't like Robby boy... he didn't know what to say. But then said - well maybe we should talk about something else... which he proceeded to do. (NOTE! If you MUST talk to people during flight - don't bring up politics! NOT a good idea)

I was never so glad to have a flight end! I think I need to buy and IPOD or something and just plug my ears so I don't have to talk to people on the flight. Coming back was just fine - no one wanted to talk and I got a chance to listen to the pilot chatter - which I always find entertaining.

If only I could force myself to be rude to people - I might not end up in such situations. But as I seem to be constitutionally incapable of being mean when someone just wants to pass the time in conversation - I guess I will always end up nearly biting my tongue in two to keep from saying something very cutting.

And no - we don't have a house yet. We may end up homeless... now there's a thought. I wonder if it would turn me into a liberal?

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 03:01 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 I'm so sorry....and we had the opposite problems. I needed conversation - you had more than you bargained for.

And you're right. NEVER talk politics with someone you don't know when there is no escape. Lucky for him you held your temper.

Obviously he didn't know who he was lucky enough to have as a seat mate!! ;-)

Posted by: Tammi at August 18, 2005 03:21 PM (hFpuy)

2 How big a house are you looking for, sounds like you are from the city, I guess thats why you need a store close by, I like the country myself, the deeper into the woods I can live the better. That way I dont have to worry about talking to people You should jump right on line maybe www.newegg.com and get yourself a Ipod. I just picked one up myself about a month ago, and I dig it. I like them so much that I bought one for Tina as well. Along with the FM Mod. for the car and two leather cases for her. (she likes the girly stuff) We both have the Ipod Mini. Mine is silver and hers is green. (matches her red hair The mini is a 4 gig version but you can go 6 15 20 30 and 60 gig. I think those are a little much and a lot bigger. Heck my 4 gig I have right now has 2 days of music of it plus audio books and all my Outlook information and I still have 2 gigs to spare. So unless you are flying down under you should never hear the same song twice on a flight. ( cost about 180 smokes)

Posted by: Sieg at August 18, 2005 08:33 PM (uX2/g)

3 you say:

It turns out that this guy is one of those who listens to all the news media talking points and absorbs them like a sponge. Apparently we are in Iraq because the current President GW - is avenging the assassination attempt on the former President GW. Afghanistan is okay - he was all for that - but Iraq was just so George could get even with Saddam.

Please identifiy those "news media talking points." Who said them? Where? When?

Why we *really* went to Iraq is a complex question that will not be answered for some time. However, that the President and his minions lied about their *stated* reason for invading Iraq is really beyond debate.

Your implied point that conservative/GOP views are better grounded in fact than liberal/Dem views is laughable.

Happy house-hunting. I'd rather rent.

Posted by: Paul Kerr at August 19, 2005 04:14 PM (66ptz)

4 Less expensive than an IPOD...just buy some light earphones/headphones and stick the cord into a coat pocket...folks won't know the difference. (This works amazingly well at work, as people think I am on a conference call, and chose not to bug me.)

Posted by: Allan at August 19, 2005 05:29 PM (kKXjt)

5 I keep reading through your post and I'm just not seeing these implied points Paul is talking about. Who says you are Conservative? Maybe you're a Libertarian. Maybe you just flat out don't agree with the guy and don't trust the media.

Hmm. I just don't see where your implication is that Conservative/GOP views are more grounded than Liberal/Dem views. I only read where you don't believe all the talking heads.

Posted by: Bou at August 21, 2005 03:48 PM (5JHEt)

6 Why we went into Iraq was covered rather thoroughly in the 2003 State of the Union address:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/01/20030128-19.html

Posted by: Harvey at August 23, 2005 05:02 AM (ubhj8)

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Tired... very tired. Crabby - cause I'm hungry...

The "howse" is being elusive. Nothing is final yet or even close. Let's just say that there's a possibility but there must be consultations before we go with it...

More tomorrow when I don't feel like I have to prop my eyelids open with toothpicks...

But at least I didn't have to drive 10 hours each way in 2 days...

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 05:40 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1 Damn... I was really hoping that no news was good news!

Posted by: That 1 Guy at August 17, 2005 05:47 PM (I74BN)

2 I'm glad to see you made it home just fine. And you'll find one. And it'll be wonderful!!!

Posted by: Tammi at August 18, 2005 02:03 AM (hFpuy)

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Be Vewy Vewy Qwiet.... We're Howse Hunting...

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 05:37 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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I guess I'm just a little late... many bloggers have gotten a post up ahead of me... nevertheless, if you haven't seen it yet, Chris Muir is asking us to help.

It only takes a moment of your time and just think of the morale booster to the family, knowing how many people will take a moment of their day to click through. The button is below. I'm going to leave this entry at the top of the page until the 10 days are up.

UPDATE : Click for Cathy has accomplished its goal!!! How amazing is that - in 2 days. Many thanks to all who clicked through to make it possible.

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 06:00 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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The generosity of the blogosphere never ceases to amaze me! Kate is now only about $700 away from being able to completely pay for her new set of fangs.

In the meantime Xrlq is holding an Art Auction - the proceeds of which will go directly to the fang fund. Bidding has been a bit slow, but that might be because the end is 12:01am Pacific Daylight Time, Thursday August 11th, and people are waiting until it gets closer to the end to put their bid in. So, if you would like an original work of art to hang on your wall - head on over and have a look.

The Venomous One shall soon be re-fanged... and that is a very good thing!

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 08:23 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Venomous Kate has had a pretty nasty accident while riding her bike. The worst part is that she's lost her front teeth and because of insurance issues she doesn't have the money to get things fixed! This is a horrible position for anyone to be in. If you have any spare change... head on over to Kate's place and drop a bit in her jar.

**** IMPORTANT*** To top things off - I just tried donating a bit of the green stuff - and paypal gave me an error message!!! It's a conspiracy I tell you! Anyway, if you get an error now, try again later. I can't imagine walking around toothless until the insurance will pay - that's too awful for words.

Okay here's what I did - went back over - the donate button in the post gives me an error message - the donate button on the sidebar works fine. So, try the sidebar instead of the post button...

Posted by: Teresa in Life Stuff at 06:26 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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