Bathroom: Quartz Revisited

A couple of days ago we received samples from our cabinetmaker of cherry and poplar with our chosen stain. Today we headed to a local shop to see the quartz we had selected earlier with the wood samples.

My Sweetie and I had the same reaction; we no longer liked the one we had chosen. Instead we decided that another was better with the dark stain.

The owner allowed us to bring both large samples home. Would it be Preston or Southampton?

As soon as we saw it in the bathroom, we both liked our original choice, Preston.

One less decision to make.

A Little of This, a Little of That

I was able to lie in the hammock for 25 minutes without a book or my iPad. And I did not jump up to water the plants or pull weeds. It was so relaxing; however, I did observe that most people are in a hurry most of the time as evidenced by the speed they drive down our 25MPH street.

My Sweetie bought me the best folding chair. No more lugging the beach umbrella and a chair.


The same Sweetie is at an Indians game tonight. Unfortunately, they are continuing to lose, 6-3. Maybe they will rally. Only two innings left to create magic.

I went to a class on wiring an outdoor outlet sponsored by a fantastic non-profit, Home Repair Resource Center.

The instructor Jim is a hoot. He always has a story to tell about home repair. Tonight's was the time that he had been in a face cast for re-setting a broken nose and cheekbone from a teenage auto accident. He has just gotten the cast off and was supposed to be resting but he was bored so he decided to do some wiring in the service panel. He contacted a live wire and hit himself in the nose with his screwdriver, re-breaking his almost healed nose. His imitation of the Indian doctor's reaction was priceless. Back into the face cast he went.

I amused him and the other members of the class by answering Jim's question: "What is the first thing you do when you are going to work with electricity?"

My answer? "Call an electrician."

Now I am going to pack up more of the kitchen. So far there are three empty cupboards. I hope the Building Inspector allows me to use the boxes.

Front Porch: Day Two and Three

All the plants are moved and we are dead tired. It is amazing what can be accomplished if one just keeps moving. Or in this case, two of us do.

Yesterday before the block party we moved the male holly and the other female holly.

Today required brute strength and a knowledge of simple machines. Who knew that learning about them in high school would come in handy? So using a shovel and a spade and, at times, a sharpshooter, we wrestled the definitely-overgrown-for-its-space spirea aka bridal wreath out of its hole and onto our spiffy garden cart. (Thanks to Kiki and Zan for introducing it to us.)



And it dumps! It also has a bed liner which comes in handy for hauling dirt.



Then it was my Sweetie's turn to dig a hole near the large oak in our backyard. Law of averages dictated that he would encounter a sizable root. With his trusty hatchet he triumphed. Plea to the oak, don't die.

Finally, it was the moment of truth. Was the hole large enough? Was the hole deep enough? Both of us agreed that we couldn't possibly lift it out if it didn't fit. Fortunately, it was close enough. A little shaving here and there on the sides of the hole and some judicious root pruning before it went in made it fit just right.



Everything has been watered in well and looks happy in their new locations.



This is where I want to spend lots of time tomorrow.

Another Sign That Summer Is Coming to a Close

Some brought children in strollers; others brought dogs. Small children rode trikes and bikes. Adults sat in various types of folding chairs. A large picnic bench stretched half way across the street.

It was time for the annual summer block party.

There are 47 houses on our extra long block which is about .3 of a mile. This year we had almost half the families in attendance. This is pretty amazing since families are trying to fit in a last getaway before school starts next week.

I met three of the new families. When I commented to one that they had selected a wonderful block to live on, she said, “I can tell just by this gathering.” It was one filled with good food and laughter.

We live on a wonderful block.

August Salon

As usual our Salon was an evening of good food, laughter, and lively discussion.

Tonight's fare included my Sweetie's Tarragon Chicken Salad with Walnuts and Grapes. Too bad blogging can't include tastings.

On the literary side we discussed The Cellist of Sarajevo. Published in 2008, it is the story of four people coping during the siege of Sarajevo. On May, 27, 1992, 22 people were killed during a mortar attack on a bread line at 4:00. For the next 22 days Vedran Smailovac, a local cellist, played Albinoni's Adagio in G Minor at the site at 4:00 everyday.

Here he is in the ruins of the National Library.





It is a very gripping novel which made all of us realize how fortunate we are to live where we do and to have never experienced living in a war-torn area.

Front Porch: Day One

I have gone from not wanting any workmen in our house to, "Oh, let's just fix everything!"

Today we heard from the Expert Basement Repair guy or as I unfortunately called him, "the screw guy." He will be here between September 13 and 15 to jack up the porch using screw piles or helical piers.

Of course, we would not have a sinking porch foundation if the construction crew had supported the porch while they were replacing the sewer line which, unfortunately, ran right next to the wall. Instead over the years we have watched it sag and had it tuck-pointed.



We were thrilled to learn that we could retain the old brick. The first contractor wanted to come in and tear everything out and build a new porch. I hated that idea. Besides the expense it would look like a 2010 porch on our 1917 center-hall colonial. Now we get to to keep the brick and only have to have the wing walls and steps rebuilt. Our mason will match the old brick as closely as possible.




To be ready for Jim aka the screw guy, we need to move the plants we want to keep. He will be able to work around the dogwood, thank goodness.

Today my Sweetie and I decided to re-locate the ferns, hostas, and groundcover.

All gone.



In their new location:



There are still hollies and spirea to move.

Tomorrow looks like another San Luis Obispo day. It is so much more pleasant to garden without sweat running down my face.

Kitchen Demo: Day Four

When last we were together, I had devised a plan to rip up the plywood and tile together.

That didn't work out. Because this is what I found under the first piece I removed with the help of my stronger half. Not good at all.

Not knowing what the rest of the sub-flooring looked like, I decided to quit. But unfortunately, it wasn't before I was left with this hole.



So I went to my stash of odds and ends and found these pieces and a piece of tile to bridge the gap so no one would fall in it.

The Building Inspector showed up as always to make sure that we were adhering to the building codes.




Then the trainee showed up to check it out.



I'm not sure if the Building Inspector is disgusted with my work or her trainee or both.



So I gave up on the floor and moved on to packing up the kitchen. I did not get far when the Building Inspector appropriated a box.




Home improvement is so much fun.

Kitchen Demo: Day Three

This is what the floor looks like when the tiles just pop off because they were so poorly set. It took me a matter of minutes to remove them.




On the other hand, I have been chipping away at the ones adhered to the plywood. Sometimes I get lucky and a large piece comes loose. But most of the time it is like chipping at hard ice with a plastic knife.



This evening I came up with an alternate approach. I am going to try removing the tile and plywood together. Tomorrow I will test a small area to see if this is feasible.

The good news today was that our contractor said that he will have no problem matching the 93-year-old wood in color and grain. Thank goodness!

Chickens

I never thought that chickens would be a part of my life. My childhood experience with them was fraught with difficulties.

Our oldest brother gave my sister and me two dyed chicks for Easter. The dye must have affected their tiny brains. They were the meanest animals I have ever known. They would rush at us, trying to peck our legs.

No tears were shed when they were Sunday dinner.

Many years later I meet my Sweetie who had “the girls” as he called his chickens. When he returned home at the end of the day, he could hear them clucking hello. He treated them to worms from the garden since they could not range freely in the desert grassland in Arizona. He introduced me to real eggs from free range chickens. With their dark yellow yokes that stand proudly above the whites, they are much more flavorful that those from egg factories.

Now more than a decade later my oldest daughter has backyard chickens in a small town in Massachusetts. All of hers have names and she cradles them in her arms.

I remember my mother talking wistfully about the Rhode Island Reds her grandmother raised.

So what is it about chickens that captures the hearts of people?

Kitchen Demo: Day Two

My Sweetie brought me presents this morning. Thank goodness he did because I would not have been able to remove some of the tiles without my new tools. Note the hand protection on the chisels. The spiffy green hammer is fiberglass. Its head is 35% larger; apparently, size is important in construction.




Unfortunately, today's work confirmed my worst fear. The old porch floor is not the 12-foot-long pine boards we had hoped for. There is a large plywood patch down the center and who knows where else. Our contractor is coming over to see if it makes sense to try to refinish what we have and replace the plywood.

On the left in the photo is the flooring and on the right the offending plywood.




I really want to have as little as possible going into a landfill. Everything that might be of use to someone else is going to the Habitat for Humanity Restore. That includes a commode, shower doors, and a bathroom sink. I will rework the kitchen cupboard doors for shelving in the basement.

The demo would have gone much quicker if the previous owner had not covered the vinyl with the ceramic tile.

The photo does not clearly show how it glitters. Gold flecks? Oh, dear.

The Kitchen Demo Begins

Since I am going to put some sweat equity in the kitchen and bathroom, I started on the tile floor in the kitchen. The "general contractor", who owned the house before Richard and I bought it in 1986, had installed ceramic tile over the original wood flooring. I guess he hadn't learned that wood has a life of its own. With each season the ceramic tile would crack some more.

Several years ago my Sweetie and I removed all of the tiles from the cooking side and the cracked ones from the eating side of the kitchen. We then sanded the original wood flooring and replaced the cracked ones in the eating side with whole ones we had salvaged from the cooking side.

Here are the promised photos:

Before: This section doesn't look too bad. But the ones which were cracked would clink together when the cats walked over them.



Such satisfaction to rip up those first tiles.



The first row done to the back door. Yay! Only 17 more to go.



The tools of the trade: Too bad I forgot to put the gloves on.



The Building Inspector is not happy. What did you do with my floor? How am I going to eat breakfast in here?

My, But the House is Quiet

Yes, they are gone. As they pulled out of the driveway, they yelled bye over and over again. Of course, I was also yelling.

Yesterday was just so filled with activities that I forgot all about blogging. I take that as a good sign. I have read accounts by other bloggers about writing and re-writing all day until it is just right. I suppose they are hoping to become another Julie and Julia. I, on the other hand, am enjoying the process.

After many hours at the beach (I was the one covered up and sitting under the beach umbrella tho I did wade in a couple of feet.) We decided before we left the park that we would either have pizza or Indian.

The hilarity began when Eira and Rayna decided that they preferred pizza so we started pantomiming eating pizza to the rest of the gang in the car behind us. It certainly appeared to us that their mother and grandfather did not understand what was so obvious to us.

When we reached home, we decided to have both cuisines. Granddad went to get the food while the rest of us carried the place settings and beverages to the screen room.

After dinner, Lise went off to visit with a friend from her high school days, leaving instructions with Rayna about getting her step-brother to bed by 9:00.

So that was the first directive we failed to carry out. But he certainly could not have gone to bed before having a s'more.

When Rayna returned to the backyard after reading Harry Potter to Adam, we decided that we would have another round of s'mores before playing bocce. Since it was now 10:00, Granddad moved the Highlander to have its lights shine on the yard. In order for me to see the target ball, we used my red bandanna to mark the spot.

Then we moved the party indoors to play team Carroms. I had given them a box of theatrical makeup that had surfaced in my basement cleanup. One sported black lipstick, the other purple. Rayna put sparkle lipstick on me. Gareth allowed them to apply color to his moustache and goatee. We made a bet how long it would take their mother to notice.

When Lise arrived home about 11:30, she came to the top of the basement stairs and said to the kids, "Why aren't you in bed?"

I replied, "There wasn't an adult to tell us to go to bed." Granddad had gone to bed at least an hour before.

But we still couldn't go to bed because we had to play archery and bowling on the Wii.

As Eira kept saying, "We can sleep all day in the car tomorrow."

Lise did notice the girls lipstick immediately but missed my sparkling lips and Gareth's darker than normal facial hair.

Of course, there was no way that they would get an early start today because we were slated to have breakfast at Tommy's. After breakfast, it was a quick stop at Big Fun to pick up a hat Eira had liked during our first trip there. Then it was off to Passport to Peru to buy up a pair of moccasin boots for Rayna. I saw a jigsaw puzzle with a large peace sign superimposed on a collage of photos from anti-war demonstrations. Who better to give it to than the kids who wear tie-dyed t-shirts?

So a good time was had by all. The kids and I decided that there visits need to be longer since we never have time to do everything that we want to do.

8-21-10 Corrected the grammar and spelling. If I missed any, let me know. I was way too tired to be writing anything tho I was proud that I did not fall asleep watching West Side Story (Number 51 on the American Film Institute's list) at Susan and Larry's last evening.

More Fun And Games with Grandchildren

Rayna, Eira, and I went to the Botanical Garden to see the glasshouse at night. What a different experience. Having seen it several times in the daylight, I was amazed at how much more magical it was at night. The girls oohed and aahed as we wound our way through the Costa Rica biome. Because the birds and butterflies were all asleep, the plants took center stage. The light and shadows on the tropical greenery made for interesting photo ops for the camera-toting girls.

Then it was back home to join Gareth in playing games. I introduced Gareth and Rayna to Carroms, a game I had played several decades ago. Much laughter ensued especially every time Gareth sent his shooter flying off the edge of the table.

Now Gareth is waiting for me to post this so we can play some game.

Tomorrow it is off to the beach.

Laughter

What a joy to have Lise and her three teenagers in our house. We have laughed so hard that tears ran down our faces.

Just a few minutes ago we were playing a new card game, Scrabble Slam. The dealer selects a four-letter word (G-rated). Each player tries to be the first to change the word by playing a card on top of one of the letters.

At one point Lise was talking about the game. Gareth was saying that Lise needed to select the word to start the game. I heard Lise say, “Quick”. I told her that she couldn’t use that word. She kept saying it. After the tears ran down my face, I finally understood that she was explaining to Rayna that it was a quick game. From there the four of us cracked up.

I will miss them when they leave.

Happiness Is:

Still getting the rock star treatment from my grandkids;
Playing croquet with them;
Watching them run through the sprinkler;
Lying in the hammock talking;
Hanging up the swing in the arbor;
Eating at our favorite restaurant, Tommy’s;
Seeing the looks on their faces when Granddad gave them spending money;
Shopping at Big Fun;
Taking them for a ride in the convertible;
Making plans for the rest of their stay.

Now that they are 13 (the twins) and 15 (their brother), I wondered if I would still get the rock star treatment. I am so glad that some things don’t change as they mature.

They are such great young people. Lise, you should be so proud of them and yourself (with help from their Dad and Step-Dad) for raising such wonderful kids. They are a joy to be with.

Disappointment

Lise and the grandkids are stranded in Pennsylvania due to car trouble. The first indication was the low battery light. Then the AC quit. Soon the only lights she had were high beams. Rather than risk being stranded along I-90, she wisely found a motel. But it is less than 90 miles away!

Tomorrow AM I will willingly get up when my alarm goes off so that I can pick them up while the car is being towed to our local garage. Thank goodness she has the AAA Plus membership with extended towing. Otherwise she would be sitting in Pennsylvania until the car was fixed.

Tomorrow “let the wild rumpus start.”

Cain Park Is Over

Last evening we gave our tickets to our neighbors while we watched Callie recover from anesthesia. Tonight we didn’t even have the energy to try to find someone who could use them.

Last evening's concert was Natalie Stovall who began playing the fiddle when she was 4.




Tonight it was Paula Cole who has staged a comeback. It is fascinating to watch her singing change from early in her career to now. Youtube has some of her early videos.





It was a great season in which we came to appreciate artists unknown to us.

This Day Could Make Me Develop Paraskavedekatriaphobia

Friday the 13th brought unsettling news about Callie. Dr. Amy did a biopsy of the “abnormal tissue” in Callie’s duodenum and stomach. We will have the results by Wednesday.

I am not ready to say goodbye to my sweet girl.

Another Trip to the Vet for My Big Girl

No emergency this time but an appointment to determine why she is continuing to lose weight.

Today’s x-ray showed no problems in her chest and abdomen. Hopefully, tomorrow’s oral exam and endoscopy will also be negative.

In addition, she will have her bad teeth extracted. Perhaps they are the cause of the weight loss.

I just want her well and at home.

Yet Another Kitchen Post

I wonder what I would be writing about if we weren’t consumed with kitchen planning. Of course, we would be doing something else so whatever that was would be the subject of the post.

Today we crossed the river again to go to Interstate Kitchen Supply, amazingly located just off an interstate.

I don’t think that I have ever seen so much stainless steel in one place. Wonder if it will become:

the avocado green



or the harvest gold



or the coppertone of the 2000s?



We have decided to upgrade our white Kenmore fridge, purchased in 1999, to a stainless steel KitchenAid with French doors and a bottom freezer. It took me a couple of months to get comfortable with the idea of spending more for a refrigerator than we paid for our present one and our washer and dryer combined.

It had better last at least the 17 years that is the average useful life of a refrigerator with a bottom freezer.

What a Productive, Exciting Day

Yet another Mike has entered our lives due to the kitchen remodel. This one is from Swiss Woodcraft, the cabinet shop. As Bob described him, he is the one who takes the precise measurements. Contractor Mike also came at the same time which proved to be a boon since there were several discussions between them about the quirks of our old house and how to deal with them.

I thought that Cabinet Mike was just going to measure but no, he came with cabinet fronts in the three styles we had told Bob we liked, two pieces of wood with two shades of white finish, the whole display of the small quartz samples, and a comprehensive catalog of hardware.

We selected Pure White rather than Wedding White, more ivory than we liked, for the cabinets. The quartz for the countertops will be Flint Black and our buffet will have Waverton, reminiscent of marble, added to its top. This will become the home of my Sweetie’s Keurig and also a higher work surface for my tall guy.

I surprised him by being very decisive. No analysis paralysis today but, as I pointed out to him later, I had done all the research so I knew what I wanted. Fortunately, our tastes are the same - at least as far as kitchens and bathrooms are concerned.

Tomorrow we are off to look at refrigerators and dishwashers since Cabinet Mike needs the specs. We do not want to delay the construction of the cabinets at all.

Imperial Home Center

Today we drove west to Lakewood to check out Avonite countertops because I had seen one called Blue Pearl. It certainly looked great on my MacBook. It reminded me of a granite that had seduced me about 6 weeks ago after I had adamantly declared that I did not want granite.

Suffice it to say, it was not a winner when I saw it at the design center. Back to Cambria quartz. Today we learned that it is the Mercedes of the countertop world. Of course, we would select the most expensive one. Thanks, Sweetie, for indulging my need for information.

Seventy-something Ron was a great help with absolutely no pressure. If we didn’t already have a contractor, I could see working with them. He is going to get a quote on the countertops.

Then it was off to The Diner on Clifton for lunch. My portabello wrap in a spinach tortilla with carmelized onions, roasted red peppers, and fresh spinach was dressed with a roasted garlic mayo. Both it and the sweet potatoes fries were divine. My Sweetie relished his Carolina pulled-pork.

And, yes, we did get our passports stamped when we crossed the river.

Happy Birthday to Lise

One week old

Lisa Lynne was born at 11:02AM in 1971. She weighed 7.5 pounds and was 19 inches long. Her head measured 13.5 inches.

She was a "good" baby. She was three months old when we moved to Pittsburgh. For the first time in her short life she had a room to herself. She went to sleep at 7:00 PM on the day of the move and woke up at 10:00AM. When I woke up the next morning, I flew into the nursery to see if she was still breathing. As the morning wore on, I consider waking her because nursing was way overdue. From that night on she always slept not only through the night but into mid-morning.

As I re-read her baby book this evening, one word appeared over and over again. That word? Captivating. Whether it was an easy mark like her Aunt Diane or a stranger passing on the street, Lisa captivated them. She exuded happiness and embraced the world.

I remember her babyhood as one of joy. And now, I am experiencing the joy of having an adult daughter who is also a friend.

Happy Birthday...for the third time today!

One year old

Signed, Sealed But Not Delivered...Yet

59 days ago we began the process of finding a contractor to re-do our kitchen, half-bath, and second floor bath.

After a half dozen or more meetings, numerous phone calls, and emails flying back and forth with three contractors, we decided to sign with Mike Foster. (Yes, Kiki, the worried one).

At our first meeting with him, I asked him if they have done small jobs. I was reassured that he had done all sizes. I guess photos of a smaller kitchen don’t have the greatest visual impact on the net. Tho I could see before-and-afters being of interest to customers. And yes, my loyal followers, I will be posting photos every step of the way.

We have the most amazing cabinet shop, Swiss Wood Craft. It is in Rittman, just a little over an hour away. The man who does the precise measurements will be coming up next week. Will he be Amish or English?

We also decided on Cambria quartz for the countertops. We are definitely looking forward to a no-maintenance stone. How can one not fall in love with it when this is the care and feeding of it:

CAMBRIA PRODUCT CARE & MAINTENANCE INFORMATION
Maintaining Cambria is easy. Simply wash with a soft cotton cloth and warm water; use a mild soap if desired.

Yep, no sealing. No worries about spilling red wine on it.

So now we have to shop, shop, shop. Most of you know how I hate shopping. But I can get behind this kind.

In 45 days or less from August 23, barring horrors hidden in the walls or floor, we will be enjoying our new kitchen.

Cain Park: Take Eleven

This evening’s performance by Verb Ballets made the horror of last night recede for a couple of hours.

They are an amazingly well-trained and expressive troupe. There was such joy on the face of the shortest female dancer. On our way out of the amphitheater, my Sweetie stopped to tell her how much we enjoyed her dancing. I said that we could have watched her fling herself about (with joyous and controlled abandon) all night.

They are a very physical company. From our front row seats we could see the effect of their going all out in piece after piece. Fortunately, it was a cooler evening with low humidity.

Since all but one piece were company premieres, there are no videos yet. This clip will give you a feel for them.



Update on Callie: She shows no ill effects tho she keeps hiding from us. We absolutely cannot find her. We check all her known hidey-holes. She is in none of them. I am convinced that she is at point A, while we look in B through Z; then she slips into a room we have already searched.

Of course, she greeted us at the door when we returned home this evening. I know that my Sweetie was worried about going out tonight but I knew that we needed the diversion and that Callie would be fine.

What a Horrendous Evening

The scheduled blog topic, The Kitchen, was preempted by a furry member of our family.

My Sweetie and I were watching an episode of ER when we heard a cat yelling. I thought it was Callie being sick. I went to investigate and saw Six sitting in the window and realized the sound was coming from that direction. Both of us thought it was a cat outside but couldn't see one. Then I looked down. Callie had fallen trying to jump up to the windowsill and was trapped between the wall and the radiator with both left legs jammed in between its ribs. Both looked broken.

We tried to free her but were having no luck. Loren ran next door to get help. Thank goodness they were home. We needed someone with an analytic mind who was not emotionally distraught.

Calvin is our knight in shining armor. He quickly analyzed the situation and devised a plan. He asked for a narrow board at least as long as she is to put under her. I ran to the basement and found a piece of 1917 tongue-and-grove flooring (good thing I kept it). Then we kept adding pieces of lumber to raise her so that we would have a chance of freeing her. We finally elevated her to a point where she was able to free her front leg but her back leg was still firmly trapped.

Debbie slowly began pushing on the leg and finally, it was free. My Sweetie bundled Callie up in the blanket we had been using to cover the rest of her body. As I drove to the emergency vet clinic, I kept thinking that she hadn't broken her legs. They just looked like that.

The power of positive thinking: she is fine. No broken bones. It is unbelievable.

How can we ever possibly thank our neighbors?

Another Freecycle Triumph

What a satisfying feeling. This afternoon our used queen mattress and box springs were picked up by a member of the east side’s Freecycle group.

I posted this on Monday: Mattress and split box springs: Original Mattress Factory Orthopedic Luxury Firm. Twelve years old. No stains. No pets have ever slept on it. Good for someone who does not have aging back issues.

From late Monday evening through Tuesday I received 20 replies. Who knew that there were so many people on the east side who wanted a used queen mattress.

The woman, who was the first one to answer my post, told us that she had joined Freecycle about a month or so ago in order to get rid of stuff in her garage. Instead she picked up something from our garage.

With a big smile on each of our faces we waved goodbye as she drove away with the mattress and box springs in the back of her old, blue and white Ford Ranger.

Tonight we sleep on our new mattress, happy that we reduced what we send to a landfill.

Kitchen Design: First Contractor

Yep, another meeting, another tweaked design.

It doesn’t seem possible that we first met with him on June 9 but that’s what my blog tells me.

I think we are getting close to making a decision. I hope so. I think I am getting design fatigue.

And before the rains came, I snapped the magic lily in all her glory. I hope the other plants bloom.

Appliances

Appliances: so necessary, so many options, so much money.

Today we checked out refrigerators, dishwashers, and microwaves.

Stainless steel or not?

Refrigerator: counter depth or regular?

Dishwasher: panel to match the cupboards or not?

Microwave: easy decision. One that fits into an opening in a cupboard. After we looked at it, I wondered why our current one is so big. It isn't as if we would ever want to cook a small fowl in it.

The salesman was amazed when I told him that the dishwasher we're replacing is a 1976 Maytag. Yes siree, Bob, they don't make them like they used to.

I don't expect any of these new appliances to outlive me. That makes the decisions easier.

The Cost of Staying Cool

Two summers ago when we were having one heat wave after another, my Sweetie and I discussed air conditioning.

When one lives in a 1917, three-story center-hall colonial, one does not discuss these things lightly. It is not a simple matter to add AC to it since it is heated by the best kind of heat in the world, hot water.

Friends of ours went further than discussing it and actually obtained an estimate. Once they received it, they went back to window air conditioners. We also own a collection of these but usually they live in the basement year round. I don’t like how they look and they are noisy even though they are newer ones.

But two summers ago we found the wonderful Pinguino. So aptly named. It cools the living room, dining room, and the library.



But all this bliss comes at a price.

July’s electric bill?

$316.21

But it is an estimated bill! That probably means they estimated high, right?

Wrong.

When I checked the meter, the estimate is low. Staying cool does not come cheaply.