Bob got up around 7:30 AM to take Buddy outside. He watched the dog while he played in the backyard and got his "business" taken care of. I got up a little later - I pulled a muscle on my back between my shoulder blades while turning in my sleep.
Around 8:30 I took a shower and dressed. Then Bob got his shower. While Bob showered I started the truck up and let it warm up. We left around 9:30 AM. We drove to Clark first to check on our property and our house foundation. The whole slab is covered by snow and it was sparkling white.
Once we finished checking on our property we headed over to Red Lodge, MT to get brunch at Cafe Regis.
I had Cherry Berry French Toast with Canadian bacon and Bob had a Goat Cheese Omelet with a fruit cup. We both had coffee. At the checkout I got brown long-sleeved t-shirts for us that say "Go ahead, make my breakfast!" on the back.
We went to the main street, Broadway (which, incidentally, is not very broad), and shopped in a book and tea store there. On the way out I spied a wooden furniture store across the street so we made out way over there. This furniture is made of juniper and is very rustic. We asked a few questions and the owner took us on a full tour of the place! He said that if we buy multiple pieces before tourist season starts up, we will give us a discount and free delivery within 100 miles.
We are considering big rustic bar stools, a bar with a live edge, and a bench for our entry vestibule. The bar stools were regularly priced $148 each, but he said we could buy 3 of them for $120 each. Bob was curious about a queen-sized bed frame too, but it weighs over 500 pounds and costs over $2000.
The day was clear and dazzlingly bright. It got warm enough for some of the ice on the road to start melting.
This afternoon Bob made mashed potatoes and then opened up two pint jars of sauerkraut that Jerri made. That was a yummy dinner for us!
We have to work tomorrow, but we are off on Tuesday, January 1. We are going to go to Billings on Tuesday to get our microwave oven and run a few other errands.
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Frozen Out
We headed to work early on Friday morning because I wanted to stop at the automatic car wash and get the truck cleaned up as a reward for helping us move. I pulled up to the vending machine, swiped my credit card, and pulled inside the bay where the automatic car wash cleaned the outside of the truck really well.
After this we pulled out of the car wash and drove the last two miles to the court house over Cody's iced up streets. We arrived at the court house at 8:45 AM and parked in the employee parking lot. Without thinking, because I do it every time I park, I set the parking brake.
Work was not too bad. I think Teecee was glad to see me back.
During lunch we walked over to the Irma and we both had the lunch buffet. We walked back with a stop at Bank Of The West to make a deposit.
I still hate it that it is dark when we leave at 5:00 PM. We headed across the street and everyone was in a big rush to get out of there. When I tried to open the truck doors, I found the door locks frozen. Both doors!
Bob was already starting to shudder, so I walked him back across the street to the building. Peggy was on her way out and she offered to take me to Napa Auto Parts to get some lock de-icer. I got the little spray tube of alcohol for $3.99 and we headed back to try it out. Between the two doors I had to spray the whole little can, but the doors were freed up!
Once I got inside the truck started right up. Then I got another unpleasant surprise - after you put it in gear, it refused to move forward or backward! The parking brake was frozen!
Now it was completely dark and getting very cold - less than 10°. I used my cellphone to call a tow truck to try to break the back wheels free while Bob went with Peggy to the ATM to get cash to pay the driver.
The wrecker came in about 15 minutes and he hooked a winch up to the front tow hooks on the frame and began to push and pull the truck back and forth. Fortunately, the parking space was relatively dry - out in the travel lane it was all covered in slippery ice. He jerked the truck back and forth about 12 or 14 times, and finally the left wheel broke free.
We had to keep working to get the right wheel free and we had to jerk the truck back and forth 5 or 6 more times and it also freed up! The driver just charged us $48 for a service call. We gave him a nice tip too.
I am just glad we did not have to spend the night in Cody and have the truck towed to a garage where the brake cable could thaw out. So, there is a lesson learned - do not wash the truck in the winter unless you are about to take a long drive after the wash.
We are parking the truck with it in gear and not setting the brake for now. We are also leaving the doors unlocked for awhile, at least until we have a few days above freezing.
After this we pulled out of the car wash and drove the last two miles to the court house over Cody's iced up streets. We arrived at the court house at 8:45 AM and parked in the employee parking lot. Without thinking, because I do it every time I park, I set the parking brake.
Work was not too bad. I think Teecee was glad to see me back.
During lunch we walked over to the Irma and we both had the lunch buffet. We walked back with a stop at Bank Of The West to make a deposit.
I still hate it that it is dark when we leave at 5:00 PM. We headed across the street and everyone was in a big rush to get out of there. When I tried to open the truck doors, I found the door locks frozen. Both doors!
Bob was already starting to shudder, so I walked him back across the street to the building. Peggy was on her way out and she offered to take me to Napa Auto Parts to get some lock de-icer. I got the little spray tube of alcohol for $3.99 and we headed back to try it out. Between the two doors I had to spray the whole little can, but the doors were freed up!
Once I got inside the truck started right up. Then I got another unpleasant surprise - after you put it in gear, it refused to move forward or backward! The parking brake was frozen!
Now it was completely dark and getting very cold - less than 10°. I used my cellphone to call a tow truck to try to break the back wheels free while Bob went with Peggy to the ATM to get cash to pay the driver.
The wrecker came in about 15 minutes and he hooked a winch up to the front tow hooks on the frame and began to push and pull the truck back and forth. Fortunately, the parking space was relatively dry - out in the travel lane it was all covered in slippery ice. He jerked the truck back and forth about 12 or 14 times, and finally the left wheel broke free.
We had to keep working to get the right wheel free and we had to jerk the truck back and forth 5 or 6 more times and it also freed up! The driver just charged us $48 for a service call. We gave him a nice tip too.
I am just glad we did not have to spend the night in Cody and have the truck towed to a garage where the brake cable could thaw out. So, there is a lesson learned - do not wash the truck in the winter unless you are about to take a long drive after the wash.
We are parking the truck with it in gear and not setting the brake for now. We are also leaving the doors unlocked for awhile, at least until we have a few days above freezing.
Friday, December 28, 2012
Moved
We rented a 14-foot U-Haul truck on Wednesday and Thursday to move the biggest items to 578 Avenue D. We did this in three trips. We have so much stuff!
We found out that the chair and the chaise will not go upstairs. Well, the chaise will go upstairs, but then it will not fit through any bedroom door, so it had to come back down. The stairs are very narrow and very steep.
The new house is haunted. The dog is freaked out and he just paces when he is downstairs. I heard a child laughing downstairs the first night and the dog heard it too because he got up to investigate it. The next day Bob heard a child yell out "Peekaboo!" from the basement. Bob thought that I was doing it, but I was not down there. I don't care if it's haunted as long as they leave me and my stuff alone.
All of the lifting was killing my back, and it was soooo cold outside that I was chilled to the bone. A nice hot bath after those days was nice.
Now the downstairs bedroom is just packed full. The garage is very full too. Plus, we have a large number of boxes in the living room as well. We are going to have the biggest yard sale in Powell history this spring. We have to begin opening one box a day.
After the last load was dropped off, we swept out the truck and took it back to U-Haul. We printed out a $20 gift certificate from U-Haul and presented that to the clerk too. Our total came to $54.27 for the two days.
With the truck put back and all of our stuff moved, we went back to 555 N Absaroka to clean it. Bob cleaned the kitchen and I cleaned the bathroom. Later I mopped the basement and then went around with a rag and a can of Pledge cleaning off the wood work.
The last thing we did was shampoo the carpets. The whole house was carpetted, so it took a while. When we left the house was very clean and smelled good thanks to Febreeze! We turned the keys in at The Real Estate Connection, and went back to our new house to get Buddy out for his walk.
We are in Cody at work today. We are turning in our timesheets so we can get paid next week. Tomorrow we intend to go to Billings to get our microwave oven, find out how to remove the J2 retardant from our concrete slab, and shop for shoes.
We found out that the chair and the chaise will not go upstairs. Well, the chaise will go upstairs, but then it will not fit through any bedroom door, so it had to come back down. The stairs are very narrow and very steep.
The new house is haunted. The dog is freaked out and he just paces when he is downstairs. I heard a child laughing downstairs the first night and the dog heard it too because he got up to investigate it. The next day Bob heard a child yell out "Peekaboo!" from the basement. Bob thought that I was doing it, but I was not down there. I don't care if it's haunted as long as they leave me and my stuff alone.
All of the lifting was killing my back, and it was soooo cold outside that I was chilled to the bone. A nice hot bath after those days was nice.
Now the downstairs bedroom is just packed full. The garage is very full too. Plus, we have a large number of boxes in the living room as well. We are going to have the biggest yard sale in Powell history this spring. We have to begin opening one box a day.
After the last load was dropped off, we swept out the truck and took it back to U-Haul. We printed out a $20 gift certificate from U-Haul and presented that to the clerk too. Our total came to $54.27 for the two days.
With the truck put back and all of our stuff moved, we went back to 555 N Absaroka to clean it. Bob cleaned the kitchen and I cleaned the bathroom. Later I mopped the basement and then went around with a rag and a can of Pledge cleaning off the wood work.
The last thing we did was shampoo the carpets. The whole house was carpetted, so it took a while. When we left the house was very clean and smelled good thanks to Febreeze! We turned the keys in at The Real Estate Connection, and went back to our new house to get Buddy out for his walk.
We are in Cody at work today. We are turning in our timesheets so we can get paid next week. Tomorrow we intend to go to Billings to get our microwave oven, find out how to remove the J2 retardant from our concrete slab, and shop for shoes.
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Moving
Now we have everything, except for cleaning supplies, out of the house. Bob is cleaning the kitchen, and I cleaned the bathroom. Tomorrow I will sweep the basement and clean the baseboards and other wood work. The last thing to do will be to shampoo the carpets.
We took the biggest and heaviest furniture out of the house today with the 14-foot U-Haul truck we rented. Tomorrow I have to take the machines out of the garage and bring them over to this garage. The last things to go into this garage will be our new range and our new wood-burning stove.
Do I have to tell you I am hurting and tired?
We took the biggest and heaviest furniture out of the house today with the 14-foot U-Haul truck we rented. Tomorrow I have to take the machines out of the garage and bring them over to this garage. The last things to go into this garage will be our new range and our new wood-burning stove.
Do I have to tell you I am hurting and tired?
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
White Christmas
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| Bob on Christmas morning 2012. |
He got the following items for Christmas:
- a new set of T-Fal pots and pans
- a beehive smoker
- Birdseye by Mark Kurlansky
- a frozen food kitchen saw
- a compost thermometer
- a new digital kitchen scale
- a white sweater with argyle pattern
- Foodsaver preservation bags
- a reversible cast iron grill-griddle
- a cast iron muffin pan
- a fog-free heating pad for bath mirror
- Yaktrax non-slip treads for shoes
- two cast iron grill presses
- a lemon bundt cake mix
- a spotter telescope
- a Nivea Energy gift pack
- A Taste of Wyoming cook book
- Anybody Can Build A Drum-Type Chicken Plucker
- Hadrian by Anthony Everett
- a Dymo label printer and a roll of labels
- NETduino microcontroller
- a set of electrical relays for microcontrollers
- Getting Started with NETduino book
- a stainless steel chicken killing cone
- a small bottle of Drakkar Noir
- small bottle of liquid styptic for shaving
It was very cold today - I don't think it got out of the twenties, but the skies were clear and the sun was shining brightly. During the night it snowed. About 1/2 inch fell and I had to sweep the sidewalks off this morning.
I made one trip over to Absaroka Street and returned with 12 boxes. I was so chilled from that trip that I decided not to go over there again. We opened a jar of beef stew and mixed it with whole wheat rotini and had this with warmed up sourdough bread and butter for lunch.
Tomorrow we are going to rent a 14-foot truck with ramp and move the last of the furniture out of the house in the morning and then we will work on getting the garage emptied out. It would be awesome if we could get it all done tomorrow, but we have the truck reserved for Thursday, just-in-case.
Buddy's New Boots
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Avenue D
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| 578 Avenue D, Powell, WY |
My back hurts a little and I am tired. I think the cold weather is making me more tired than anything else. I dropped a package of glass this afternoon when the handle tore out of the cardboard box. It fell on my right foot, but I don't think the glass broke. This evening in the shower I saw that my little toe is black and blue from that.
Bob spent a lot of time today organizing the kitchen. He asked me to bring the wire baker's shelves over from the garage to put into the kitchen. Now it has it loaded up with canned goods!
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| Entry with stained glass. |
This afternoon, our new neighbor, Mrs. Christiansen, brought us a plate of oatmeal cookies and introduced herself. That was nice of her. She has a little black/gray poodle (age 9), named "Bo". Buddy peed on Bo through the chainlink fence this morning!
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| Making Buddy behave. |
Temps are supposed to go very low tonight with a low of -4°F in the morning and a high in the 20's. We are also supposed to get more snow, so it might be a White Christmas! I just hope it doesn't slow me down moving stuff over here.
Tomorrow morning I will begin moving the loose stuff from the garage over here. I still have quite a lot of boxes in the garage. I think the little one-car garage over here is going to be packed full when we are done.
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| Bob putting food away. |
I think the loading and unloading is the hardest and most time-consuming part of moving. The driving is easy because we are only 10 blocks from our old house.
In just six short months we will be packing up again to move to Clark. We are going to have a VERY BIG yard sale between now and then!
Friday, December 21, 2012
Post 2300
I am beat.
We managed to sleep in an hour or so this morning, but the dog was crying to be taken for his walk, so I got up and walked him. Then we went to Pepe's for breakfast, stopped at Napa Auto Parts to reserve a U-Haul truck, went to see Karen at The Real Estate Connection to sign the new lease.
After visiting Karen we did a change of service at Powell City Hall, then we changed the address at Bank Of The West. Finally we went home and began loading the truck
Our first trip to 578 Avenue D carried our computers, a folding table, a folding chair, four boxes of bathroom materials, and a bunch of hanging clothes from the closet. We wanted to get the computers set up because we had an appointment with the cable guy at 1:00 PM.
My second trip brought the bed frame, mattress, and box springs over. As it turns out, there is not enough clearance in the stairs to get the queen-size box spring upstairs. This is an older house, it was built in 1914.
After putting the bedframe together, I measured 60" across the side rails. I went to 555 N Absaroka and found a couple of furring strips that I could cut down to 60", and I had to go to the lumber store and get a 3/4" thick sheet of plywood cut down to 60" x 48". I put the furring strips at the head and foot of the bed, and I put the plywood in the center. Then I laid the mattress down on this. Now we could make the bed.
Another trip brought more clothes, photo albums, guns, two small dressers, the ironing board, the iron, Bob's knitting supplies, and the night stand. My goal was to have most of the stuff that has to go upstairs in the house first.
Buddy seems to like his new house. He really likes the fenced back yard! He can stand on his hind legs and look out the window upstairs from the master bedroom.
We ordered a pizza for delivery this evening and had beer and hard cider with it.
Tomorrow we are going to move the kitchen over here. We have a lot of dishes, pots, pans, canned food, and frozen food. I will have to unload the freezer chest into a box, move the freezer over to the new house, and then put the food back inside!
I think we are both tired, but we got more stuff moved today than we expected to.
We managed to sleep in an hour or so this morning, but the dog was crying to be taken for his walk, so I got up and walked him. Then we went to Pepe's for breakfast, stopped at Napa Auto Parts to reserve a U-Haul truck, went to see Karen at The Real Estate Connection to sign the new lease.
After visiting Karen we did a change of service at Powell City Hall, then we changed the address at Bank Of The West. Finally we went home and began loading the truck
Our first trip to 578 Avenue D carried our computers, a folding table, a folding chair, four boxes of bathroom materials, and a bunch of hanging clothes from the closet. We wanted to get the computers set up because we had an appointment with the cable guy at 1:00 PM.
My second trip brought the bed frame, mattress, and box springs over. As it turns out, there is not enough clearance in the stairs to get the queen-size box spring upstairs. This is an older house, it was built in 1914.
After putting the bedframe together, I measured 60" across the side rails. I went to 555 N Absaroka and found a couple of furring strips that I could cut down to 60", and I had to go to the lumber store and get a 3/4" thick sheet of plywood cut down to 60" x 48". I put the furring strips at the head and foot of the bed, and I put the plywood in the center. Then I laid the mattress down on this. Now we could make the bed.
Another trip brought more clothes, photo albums, guns, two small dressers, the ironing board, the iron, Bob's knitting supplies, and the night stand. My goal was to have most of the stuff that has to go upstairs in the house first.
Buddy seems to like his new house. He really likes the fenced back yard! He can stand on his hind legs and look out the window upstairs from the master bedroom.
We ordered a pizza for delivery this evening and had beer and hard cider with it.
Tomorrow we are going to move the kitchen over here. We have a lot of dishes, pots, pans, canned food, and frozen food. I will have to unload the freezer chest into a box, move the freezer over to the new house, and then put the food back inside!
I think we are both tired, but we got more stuff moved today than we expected to.
Monday, December 17, 2012
The Last Monday ??
It snowed today. It snowed lightly in Powell, but it came down very heavy in Cody. Mike let the Powell people leave at 4:00 PM so we would not have to drive on the icy highway in the dark.
The roads in Cody were very slick. I slid through the intersection at Beck Avenue and 16th Street and had to make a slow and careful U-turn to get back to my turn! As I got closer to Powell the roadway became more dry.
If the Mayans are right about the end of the world occurring on Friday, this will be the last Monday morning I have to deal with! Hey, look at the bright side. Ha!
The roads in Cody were very slick. I slid through the intersection at Beck Avenue and 16th Street and had to make a slow and careful U-turn to get back to my turn! As I got closer to Powell the roadway became more dry.
If the Mayans are right about the end of the world occurring on Friday, this will be the last Monday morning I have to deal with! Hey, look at the bright side. Ha!
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Holiday Party
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| 2012 County Clerk Christmas Party. |
Last night, after work, the department went to The Sunset House for our annual Holiday Party. We had a Secret Santa gift exchange, and we played zany party games. One game, shown here in the picture, was played with the group breaking into four teams. We had to blow up balloons and stuff them into panty hose on the head of our "reindeer". The group with the best-looking reindeer won.
Another game we played (and EVERYONE had to participate) was wrapping a gift box with one hand. We were paired up with someone we did not know, and while holding hands, had to wrap a box up in gift wrap and put a bow on it. The games were great entertainment.
For the gift exchange, I received a set of four christmas tree bulb decorations and a bag of candy. Bob got a ceramic coffee mug from Starbuck's, and a box of coffee. I was the one who selected Bob's name for the exchange, but I do not know, yet, who made my gift.
This morning we drove to the Lowe's store in Billings to pick up our new gas range. We saw a few snow flakes on the trip up, but overall the weather was really nice.
We met Zana, the sales lady in kitchen cabinets again, and we showed her the floor plan for our house. We told her we would like a quote for cabinets for the kitchen, and we told her the budget was $2,000. She was surprised at the low budget, but she got to work putting the kitchen into her cabinet planner program while we arranged to have the range moved to customer pick-up.
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| Bob with our new gas range. |
We had the range put on the bed of the truck, and then we got a burger at Fudrucker's before heading back to Powell. It was 2:30 when we got back home.
I scooted the boxed range back to the tailgate and then put the blade of our hand cart under it and tipped it back. I rolled forward and with Bob standing on the ground helping from the front, we slowly and carefully lowered the 200-pound range to the ground.
We moved it over to a dry section of concrete, cut the straps, and lifted the box off of it to make sure that it was not damaged. Then we rolled it into the garage for storage. It will move again next week over to Avenue D, and then it will move later this spring out to Clark.
This will be a short week at work this week because I will take some time off to move. Next weekend will be exhausting.
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Powell, WY
I had an easy drive to Cody yesterday morning, but while I was at work word came in that it was snowing crazy in Powell. Bob said that he was putting off his trip to the post office because the snow was coming down like "chicken feathers falling out of the sky".
Jerri was not going to let us leave early despite the bad weather in Powell, but her husband, Leonard, said that after the sun goes down and the temps drop and the wind picks up, it was going to be pretty bad. So, she let the Powell workers go an hour early.
My trip back was easy and dry until I got to about Ralston, then the road became steadily worse.
The worst part was the last mile. Absaroka Street was covered in packed down snow and ice. I had to stop at Third Street, and here, despite trying to slowly put power to the rear wheels, I slid, slowly spun to the left, and then stalled the truck out.
I got the truck started up again and slowly got the truck turned to the north again and slowly, carefully, drove the last three blocks to the house.
About 4 inches of snow fell on Powell yesterday. Strange because almost nothing fell in Cody.
Jerri was not going to let us leave early despite the bad weather in Powell, but her husband, Leonard, said that after the sun goes down and the temps drop and the wind picks up, it was going to be pretty bad. So, she let the Powell workers go an hour early.
My trip back was easy and dry until I got to about Ralston, then the road became steadily worse.
The worst part was the last mile. Absaroka Street was covered in packed down snow and ice. I had to stop at Third Street, and here, despite trying to slowly put power to the rear wheels, I slid, slowly spun to the left, and then stalled the truck out.
I got the truck started up again and slowly got the truck turned to the north again and slowly, carefully, drove the last three blocks to the house.
About 4 inches of snow fell on Powell yesterday. Strange because almost nothing fell in Cody.
Sunday, December 09, 2012
Weekend
It snowed Thursday night. We probably got about 2" - 3", but it was enough to make the drive to Cody on Friday morning "interesting". When the highway is iced up you have to slow down and pay much closer attention.
The high temperature on Friday was above freezing and some of the snow/ice melted, but not all of it. Anyway, the highway back to Powell was dry enough to proceed at my normal breakneck speed.
It snowed again Friday night.
It snowed more on Saturday morning, but we were determined to go to Billings and get the Samsung range with convection oven while it was still on sale. So, we slowly drove through the snow covered streets to Pepe's for breakfast, and then got onto the highway and headed to Billings.
The first 10 miles were bad and we had to go slower - perhaps 60 MPH, but as we got closer to the state line the highway dried off some and we could go faster. In Montana the road is was in better condition, but we could see heavy gray clouds to the west that promised more snow.
In Billings, we stopped at Macon Concrete Products first to inquire about concrete acid stain and sealer products. We will be able to stain the floors for less than $500.
The next place we went was Hobby Lobby. Bob was looking for a gift for his "Secret Santa" gift exchange at work and I was just looking. Next we went to Barnes & Noble Bookseller. Here I got a calendar for and another seek-and-find book for Grandma Pat and a paperback sci-fi novel for myself. Only after we left did I remember that I had a $25 gift card to use here. Oh well, I know we will be back.
We went to Bed Bath & Beyond and here Bob found a couple of interesting gifts for the exchange. He got a coin-counting jar that increments the total as you drop coins inside, and he got a picture frame keychain.
Now we went to Lowe's to get the range. They were very busy with holiday shoppers and we had to wait awhile to get anyone to help us. Finally I found a skinny lady with a New Jersey accent named "Zana" to help us. On display was not just the range, but the matching microwave was also on sale for an $80 savings. We decided to go ahead and get both. As it turns out, both items were not in stock and would have to be delivered from the Denver distribution center.
We went to Customer Service to pay and paid for both items with my Lowe's credit card. This got us an additional 5% off! We immediately turned around and made a cash payment for the purchase, saving ourselves any interest! We saved over $300 by buying on sale and using the credit card. We saved enough to get a dish washer now!
Lowe's will call us this week when the range and microwave come in and we will return next weekend to pick them up and bring them back.
The roads coming back were bad. We passed one accident caused by excessive speed as we came back to Wyoming. We came back via Clark and stopped to check on our concrete slab. The slab is fine with just a couple of patches of ice on it in low spots, but it was terribly cold with the wind blowing hard, so we did not stay long.
It was good to come home, put the truck in the garage, and bring our loot inside. The dog was glad to see us again!
Today we are going to Cody to get groceries. Then we will get ready for another week of excitement and fun in the courthouse.
The high temperature on Friday was above freezing and some of the snow/ice melted, but not all of it. Anyway, the highway back to Powell was dry enough to proceed at my normal breakneck speed.
It snowed again Friday night.
It snowed more on Saturday morning, but we were determined to go to Billings and get the Samsung range with convection oven while it was still on sale. So, we slowly drove through the snow covered streets to Pepe's for breakfast, and then got onto the highway and headed to Billings.
The first 10 miles were bad and we had to go slower - perhaps 60 MPH, but as we got closer to the state line the highway dried off some and we could go faster. In Montana the road is was in better condition, but we could see heavy gray clouds to the west that promised more snow.
In Billings, we stopped at Macon Concrete Products first to inquire about concrete acid stain and sealer products. We will be able to stain the floors for less than $500.
The next place we went was Hobby Lobby. Bob was looking for a gift for his "Secret Santa" gift exchange at work and I was just looking. Next we went to Barnes & Noble Bookseller. Here I got a calendar for and another seek-and-find book for Grandma Pat and a paperback sci-fi novel for myself. Only after we left did I remember that I had a $25 gift card to use here. Oh well, I know we will be back.
We went to Bed Bath & Beyond and here Bob found a couple of interesting gifts for the exchange. He got a coin-counting jar that increments the total as you drop coins inside, and he got a picture frame keychain.
Now we went to Lowe's to get the range. They were very busy with holiday shoppers and we had to wait awhile to get anyone to help us. Finally I found a skinny lady with a New Jersey accent named "Zana" to help us. On display was not just the range, but the matching microwave was also on sale for an $80 savings. We decided to go ahead and get both. As it turns out, both items were not in stock and would have to be delivered from the Denver distribution center.
We went to Customer Service to pay and paid for both items with my Lowe's credit card. This got us an additional 5% off! We immediately turned around and made a cash payment for the purchase, saving ourselves any interest! We saved over $300 by buying on sale and using the credit card. We saved enough to get a dish washer now!
Lowe's will call us this week when the range and microwave come in and we will return next weekend to pick them up and bring them back.
The roads coming back were bad. We passed one accident caused by excessive speed as we came back to Wyoming. We came back via Clark and stopped to check on our concrete slab. The slab is fine with just a couple of patches of ice on it in low spots, but it was terribly cold with the wind blowing hard, so we did not stay long.
It was good to come home, put the truck in the garage, and bring our loot inside. The dog was glad to see us again!
Today we are going to Cody to get groceries. Then we will get ready for another week of excitement and fun in the courthouse.
Wednesday, December 05, 2012
Powell, WY
Yesterday a tree in Lovell fell on a power line causing power to be lost in Powell and Cody for an hour. Back up power supplies for the computers only last for about 20 minutes.
Bob stayed home today so that he could do kettle bell exercises and stretch. He also started brushing up on knitting since his new curved needles and real wool yarn were delivered. I think a sweater for Buddy is in the works.
With Bob out of the office and Teecee taking some time off, it was very quiet for me. In fact, I don't think I got very much done today aside from the obituaries. For a change it was nice!
We are going to Billings again on Saturday morning to buy a new gas range for our new house. We will bring it back on my truck. This range is usually $1300, but it is on sale through Dec. 11. We checked the customer reviews and even asked Kevin Batson about it before committing to it. This will be a good range for us.
Jerri will be out tomorrow getting a tooth implanted up in Billings. When the cat's away... ha!
Bob stayed home today so that he could do kettle bell exercises and stretch. He also started brushing up on knitting since his new curved needles and real wool yarn were delivered. I think a sweater for Buddy is in the works.
With Bob out of the office and Teecee taking some time off, it was very quiet for me. In fact, I don't think I got very much done today aside from the obituaries. For a change it was nice!
We are going to Billings again on Saturday morning to buy a new gas range for our new house. We will bring it back on my truck. This range is usually $1300, but it is on sale through Dec. 11. We checked the customer reviews and even asked Kevin Batson about it before committing to it. This will be a good range for us.
Jerri will be out tomorrow getting a tooth implanted up in Billings. When the cat's away... ha!
Monday, December 03, 2012
Weekend
On Saturday I pulled the truck out of the garage and fired my furnace up with the No. 8 graphite-clay crucible in it to temper it. While this was heating up began working some 1/8" x 3/4" steel bar stock into a lifting-pouring shank for my No. 6.
I got the portable generator out and plugged my buzz box welder in and began to draw an arc, but then the generator stopped making electricity. I think I might have broken it. Probably too much current.
On Sunday morning we ate breakfast at Pepe's and then headed to Billings, MT. We browsed the appliances at Sears, picked up some Christmas cards at Barnes & Noble, and looked at appliances at Lowe's. We found a nice Samsung gas range at Lowe's on sale that we are considering going back for next weekend.
During the trip back I let the gas tank get dangerously low. We stopped in Clark to check on our concrete slab and then headed to Powell hoping we would not run out of gas.
We made it. I filled the tank and had to spend $44.
It was very windy last night and it is howling outside this morning. Gonna be a windy day.
Bob is staying home today and he is going to walk the rent check up to The Real Estate Connection today.
I got the portable generator out and plugged my buzz box welder in and began to draw an arc, but then the generator stopped making electricity. I think I might have broken it. Probably too much current.
On Sunday morning we ate breakfast at Pepe's and then headed to Billings, MT. We browsed the appliances at Sears, picked up some Christmas cards at Barnes & Noble, and looked at appliances at Lowe's. We found a nice Samsung gas range at Lowe's on sale that we are considering going back for next weekend.
During the trip back I let the gas tank get dangerously low. We stopped in Clark to check on our concrete slab and then headed to Powell hoping we would not run out of gas.
We made it. I filled the tank and had to spend $44.
It was very windy last night and it is howling outside this morning. Gonna be a windy day.
Bob is staying home today and he is going to walk the rent check up to The Real Estate Connection today.