Sunday, June 27, 2004
Sunday morning, the sun is shining, I'm at the dining table with an ancient laptop, and I've just finished my second cup of coffee.
Yesterday the delivery guys from Leons (ptui) brought the replacement dresser for the one that arrived broken two weeks ago. Guess what. This one was broken too. The bottom of the dresser is attached using staples - great idea for something so heavy it takes two people to lift it. Rather than take that darn thing back, they took out all the staples and screwed the bottom into place. Then they took it upstairs, attached the back mirror (which is so tall it almost touches the ceiling), made me sign a piece of paper saying that they did the best job in the world and then disappeared. The dresser comes without handles, you have to screw them on yourself. The plastic bag with the handles and screws is, wait for it, IN ONE OF THE DRAWERS.
A few minutes poking and plugging at a drawer got it open, but it was empty. The bits must be in another drawer ... Luckily I had my thinking head on, and didn't close the drawer, but used the fact it was open to reach in and push out the drawer next to it. Clever huh? Presto! The bog o' bits was there. 8 large handles needing 2 small screws each, and 4 small handles needing 1 large screw each. Total screw requirement therefore, 16 small and 4 large. Bag contains (have you guessed yet?) 16 large and 4 small. I wouldn't expect anything else from Leons. At least the entertainment value of a Leons purchase experience cannot be beaten.
So off to Canadian Tire, or as Deb calls it, Crappy Tire, and root around their carpentry section for the right length, width, thread and head configuration. $1.87 later I am sorted for screws. I also swing by Radio Shack for another DC converter, this time a 9V one for the KVM switch. Now I can have 4 PC's on the go and be able to use a single keyboard, video and mouse (KVM, see?). Get home and finish off the dresser fiasco, so I am standing in the bedroom, screwdriver in hand. I'm in the zone now, and want something else to put together ...
In the garage is our new lawnmower. It's still in its box, aha. 30 minutes later, lawnmower assembled, looks good, now stowed in the garden shed. Lawn not mowed, as Deb says she finds it therapeutic. I'm more than happy to give the grass a number-4-all-over-please-and-something-for-the-weekend, but I have other plans right now.
I want to buy a region free DVD player that an cope with home made DVDs, CDs and MP3 discs. Consensus on the web pages I've seen so far indicate that the Toshiba SD4900 is the one I should be buying. Here's the bummer - the only electronic goods outlet in Guelph says that Toshiba don't make it anymore. Odd, as there are dozens of sites in the US selling the beast. Anyway, I'm now researching DVD players that can be programmed to be multi-region (region 0) and then picking the best of that bunch. You can't buy a region free DVD player out of the box in North America, it seems. In fact, it's difficult to find a salesman who knows anything about DVD regions. Dontcha love the insular attitude of this continent?
Our Ikea shopping list contains a couple of bookcases and a computer desk. We need a DVD player from somewhere - I'm tempted to buy a cheapo generic brand which will do for upstairs eventually, and keep plugging away at seeking the multi-region I want. There were a couple of other things that we were going to try to buy today, but I can't remember. Maybe it'll come to me later.
Yesterday, Deb volunteered for a gymkhana at the farm where she works. The days horsey events were to benefit a cancer charity, though alas we forgot to pack a camera. (Deb was there, I was not. I had a date with Leons' best, remember?) Afterwards, we walked to the Portly Penguin, and bar and grill which does decent food. OK, so the advertised Shepherd's Pie is actually a Cottage Pie, the mince was dry and the mash made from Smash, but everything else was great. Nice salad, good garlic bread, wonderful starter too. Their bar has a Trivial Pursuit kinda video game that you play with a keyboard at the bar. TV screens flash up the questions and you select the answer. It's controlled by some server in the States, and you play against other bars in North America. Very cool concept, and free :-)
Well, I've done typing this for today, and not noticed a single hummingbird at the feeder. Oh yes - just remembered what we said we'd buy today. A bird bath. We saw a bird yesterday evening noisily trying bath in the roof guttering next door. No water in it, so the little birdie was obviously annoyed and confused about having to go out that evening smelling of worms again. We'll put out an avian community bath, because we're nice people.
Toodle pip.
Yesterday the delivery guys from Leons (ptui) brought the replacement dresser for the one that arrived broken two weeks ago. Guess what. This one was broken too. The bottom of the dresser is attached using staples - great idea for something so heavy it takes two people to lift it. Rather than take that darn thing back, they took out all the staples and screwed the bottom into place. Then they took it upstairs, attached the back mirror (which is so tall it almost touches the ceiling), made me sign a piece of paper saying that they did the best job in the world and then disappeared. The dresser comes without handles, you have to screw them on yourself. The plastic bag with the handles and screws is, wait for it, IN ONE OF THE DRAWERS.
A few minutes poking and plugging at a drawer got it open, but it was empty. The bits must be in another drawer ... Luckily I had my thinking head on, and didn't close the drawer, but used the fact it was open to reach in and push out the drawer next to it. Clever huh? Presto! The bog o' bits was there. 8 large handles needing 2 small screws each, and 4 small handles needing 1 large screw each. Total screw requirement therefore, 16 small and 4 large. Bag contains (have you guessed yet?) 16 large and 4 small. I wouldn't expect anything else from Leons. At least the entertainment value of a Leons purchase experience cannot be beaten.
So off to Canadian Tire, or as Deb calls it, Crappy Tire, and root around their carpentry section for the right length, width, thread and head configuration. $1.87 later I am sorted for screws. I also swing by Radio Shack for another DC converter, this time a 9V one for the KVM switch. Now I can have 4 PC's on the go and be able to use a single keyboard, video and mouse (KVM, see?). Get home and finish off the dresser fiasco, so I am standing in the bedroom, screwdriver in hand. I'm in the zone now, and want something else to put together ...
In the garage is our new lawnmower. It's still in its box, aha. 30 minutes later, lawnmower assembled, looks good, now stowed in the garden shed. Lawn not mowed, as Deb says she finds it therapeutic. I'm more than happy to give the grass a number-4-all-over-please-and-something-for-the-weekend, but I have other plans right now.
I want to buy a region free DVD player that an cope with home made DVDs, CDs and MP3 discs. Consensus on the web pages I've seen so far indicate that the Toshiba SD4900 is the one I should be buying. Here's the bummer - the only electronic goods outlet in Guelph says that Toshiba don't make it anymore. Odd, as there are dozens of sites in the US selling the beast. Anyway, I'm now researching DVD players that can be programmed to be multi-region (region 0) and then picking the best of that bunch. You can't buy a region free DVD player out of the box in North America, it seems. In fact, it's difficult to find a salesman who knows anything about DVD regions. Dontcha love the insular attitude of this continent?
Our Ikea shopping list contains a couple of bookcases and a computer desk. We need a DVD player from somewhere - I'm tempted to buy a cheapo generic brand which will do for upstairs eventually, and keep plugging away at seeking the multi-region I want. There were a couple of other things that we were going to try to buy today, but I can't remember. Maybe it'll come to me later.
Yesterday, Deb volunteered for a gymkhana at the farm where she works. The days horsey events were to benefit a cancer charity, though alas we forgot to pack a camera. (Deb was there, I was not. I had a date with Leons' best, remember?) Afterwards, we walked to the Portly Penguin, and bar and grill which does decent food. OK, so the advertised Shepherd's Pie is actually a Cottage Pie, the mince was dry and the mash made from Smash, but everything else was great. Nice salad, good garlic bread, wonderful starter too. Their bar has a Trivial Pursuit kinda video game that you play with a keyboard at the bar. TV screens flash up the questions and you select the answer. It's controlled by some server in the States, and you play against other bars in North America. Very cool concept, and free :-)
Well, I've done typing this for today, and not noticed a single hummingbird at the feeder. Oh yes - just remembered what we said we'd buy today. A bird bath. We saw a bird yesterday evening noisily trying bath in the roof guttering next door. No water in it, so the little birdie was obviously annoyed and confused about having to go out that evening smelling of worms again. We'll put out an avian community bath, because we're nice people.
Toodle pip.
Wednesday, June 23, 2004
Page count = 2362
I’m pretty sure I saw a groundhog in the garden this week, and along with the rabbits and chippies, that makes for a nice change in wildlife when compared to Enfield foxes and rats. The birds are different too, though I miss the songs of the blackbirds and robins. There are goldfinches here (picture to be posted here tomorrow, I hope), and what I think is a cardinal or something like that. One day, perhaps I’ll see a raccoon or something similar. Beavers are not probably something found in these parts though.
Most boxes are unpacked now, but we still have to file an insurance claim for the broken stuff. I have to call the UK, which will have to be done from home before I go to work. Utilities are up and running, and we’d had to pay a deposit or three to get some working. That annoys me somewhat.
The only use the stove has had in the past 10 days is to heat up some water to make sugar water for the hummingbird feeder.
Next up, getting some power packs that supply 9V 1A and similar, given a mains input. Radio Shack has some, and even though at $30 a pop, it’s still cheaper than buying new equipment.
So slowly returning to the daily routine of everyday life.
I’m pretty sure I saw a groundhog in the garden this week, and along with the rabbits and chippies, that makes for a nice change in wildlife when compared to Enfield foxes and rats. The birds are different too, though I miss the songs of the blackbirds and robins. There are goldfinches here (picture to be posted here tomorrow, I hope), and what I think is a cardinal or something like that. One day, perhaps I’ll see a raccoon or something similar. Beavers are not probably something found in these parts though.
Most boxes are unpacked now, but we still have to file an insurance claim for the broken stuff. I have to call the UK, which will have to be done from home before I go to work. Utilities are up and running, and we’d had to pay a deposit or three to get some working. That annoys me somewhat.
The only use the stove has had in the past 10 days is to heat up some water to make sugar water for the hummingbird feeder.
Next up, getting some power packs that supply 9V 1A and similar, given a mains input. Radio Shack has some, and even though at $30 a pop, it’s still cheaper than buying new equipment.
So slowly returning to the daily routine of everyday life.
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
We're in. The house is ours, and pretty much all of our stuff is there now. The appliances were delivered by Future Shop - effecient and pain free. The only hitch is that the hoses for the washing machine that the vendors had were still in place. The connectors had rusted to the taps and so we're using them instead of our new hoses, at least until we get around to using C-L-R or WD-40. The latter is best I think, as it'll penetrate the rust rather than acting on the surface only. So the washing machine taps drip... Sleep Country Canada ("#Why buy a mattress anywhere else?") delivered our king sized bed - great stuff. Rogers arrived and cabled us up - BB at home now, though the PCs don't appear to be picking up DHCP leases for some reason. The loaner laptop from work operates OK though. Hmm. Leons cocked up yet again - broke a piece of furniture so we're one down and they can't deliver again for two weeks. Coupled with the pain of trying to buy this stuff, I doubt we'll be walking into a Leon's any time soon.
The phone works, the TV works, and our stuff arrived from England. The delivery guys were supposed to unpack and set up, but had no tools, so they unpacked some stuff, and set up a couple of things, but two of our dining room chairs have had a leg snapped off, one PC won't turn on (I think the mobo is cracked), I fixed the filing cabinet that was broken, and there are still a dozen or so boxes yet to unpack. I'll have to file a claim under the insurance cover we have, and hope that we get paid.
We have no chairs (other than four dining room chairs), as our couches/loveseats arrive in about a month or so. They have to be made to order, so I think this weekend, or maybe tonight, we'll be going to Canadian Tire or Zellers and buying a set of patio chairs. $40 each I think, and they'll go well outside on the decking after we're through using them to watch TV inside.
A bookcase (or two) is on the shopping list as well, and a computer desk and chair. We already went out and bought a coffee machine, curtains for the bedroom, a kettle, step ladder, rubbish bins, a phone, an answering machine, a power extension cord and plenty of other stuff that I can't recall right now.
This morning I noticed that neighbours(*) had put out their rubbish, so we put ours out before leaving for work at 6.45am. The council instructions to residents are to make sure rubbish is kerbside by 7am on collection day. Just in time, as the refuse truck was pulling into our road as we drove away.
Not seen too much wildlife on the drive to work, though a heron flew over the farm when I dropped Deb off this morning. Our house has plenty of wildlife around it though. We regularly see chipmunks ("chippies") and small rabbits. I photographed a chippie on the Saturday morning (our first morning), and there are lots of birds in our back garden. Once the PCs are set up I'll install the printer, which doubles as a memory card reader, and upload to my photos folder all the images I have stored on the camera. Then I'll post a couple here :)
(*) Jane, please note the spelling :)
The phone works, the TV works, and our stuff arrived from England. The delivery guys were supposed to unpack and set up, but had no tools, so they unpacked some stuff, and set up a couple of things, but two of our dining room chairs have had a leg snapped off, one PC won't turn on (I think the mobo is cracked), I fixed the filing cabinet that was broken, and there are still a dozen or so boxes yet to unpack. I'll have to file a claim under the insurance cover we have, and hope that we get paid.
We have no chairs (other than four dining room chairs), as our couches/loveseats arrive in about a month or so. They have to be made to order, so I think this weekend, or maybe tonight, we'll be going to Canadian Tire or Zellers and buying a set of patio chairs. $40 each I think, and they'll go well outside on the decking after we're through using them to watch TV inside.
A bookcase (or two) is on the shopping list as well, and a computer desk and chair. We already went out and bought a coffee machine, curtains for the bedroom, a kettle, step ladder, rubbish bins, a phone, an answering machine, a power extension cord and plenty of other stuff that I can't recall right now.
This morning I noticed that neighbours(*) had put out their rubbish, so we put ours out before leaving for work at 6.45am. The council instructions to residents are to make sure rubbish is kerbside by 7am on collection day. Just in time, as the refuse truck was pulling into our road as we drove away.
Not seen too much wildlife on the drive to work, though a heron flew over the farm when I dropped Deb off this morning. Our house has plenty of wildlife around it though. We regularly see chipmunks ("chippies") and small rabbits. I photographed a chippie on the Saturday morning (our first morning), and there are lots of birds in our back garden. Once the PCs are set up I'll install the printer, which doubles as a memory card reader, and upload to my photos folder all the images I have stored on the camera. Then I'll post a couple here :)
(*) Jane, please note the spelling :)
Thursday, June 10, 2004
Hey, pick yourself up off the floor. This is another blog entry!
We get our new home tomorrow, and I'll be able to post more often then. Like, every day I hope. Right now, I am sitting in a DR office and can hit the corporate proxy server, so here I am posting. I have a few minutes until work starts so I'm making the most of the opportunity.
Tampa Bay won the Stanley Cup, Guelph fell out of the Memorial Cup (big time), and the Jays are winning, albeit inconsistently. Euro 2004 starts this weekend, and the Canadian Grand Prix is any day now. That concludes the sports section.
The bank account has been taking a few hits, but in return we got some appliances, a bed and some other furniture. Oh, and a house :-) Tomorrow we pick up the keys and spend our first night there. No bed yet, so we'll slouch on the floor. Yumm! The bed, furniture, appliances, the cable hook-up and phone line all get delivered the day after, on Saturday. Sunday we're touring the GTA in a truck, picking up the stuff that we've asked other people to look after for us, and on Monday all our possessions from the UK get delivered. After that, we're in. And I mean really IN. On our own, independent, and in control of our own destinies once more.
Getting utilities set up can be a pain if you're not from round these parts. Most of them want hundreds of dollars in deposits before they'll open an account for you. That sucks, and new immigrants better have a couple of thousand dollars that they can spare for a year or three so that they can begin living like Canadians. You get the money back of course, but that's not the point, is it?
Ack - just spotted that one of the test PC's got wiped last night by someone after I left yesterday. I got an hour or so to set up a new one from scratch. Nothing's ever simple, is it?
We get our new home tomorrow, and I'll be able to post more often then. Like, every day I hope. Right now, I am sitting in a DR office and can hit the corporate proxy server, so here I am posting. I have a few minutes until work starts so I'm making the most of the opportunity.
Tampa Bay won the Stanley Cup, Guelph fell out of the Memorial Cup (big time), and the Jays are winning, albeit inconsistently. Euro 2004 starts this weekend, and the Canadian Grand Prix is any day now. That concludes the sports section.
The bank account has been taking a few hits, but in return we got some appliances, a bed and some other furniture. Oh, and a house :-) Tomorrow we pick up the keys and spend our first night there. No bed yet, so we'll slouch on the floor. Yumm! The bed, furniture, appliances, the cable hook-up and phone line all get delivered the day after, on Saturday. Sunday we're touring the GTA in a truck, picking up the stuff that we've asked other people to look after for us, and on Monday all our possessions from the UK get delivered. After that, we're in. And I mean really IN. On our own, independent, and in control of our own destinies once more.
Getting utilities set up can be a pain if you're not from round these parts. Most of them want hundreds of dollars in deposits before they'll open an account for you. That sucks, and new immigrants better have a couple of thousand dollars that they can spare for a year or three so that they can begin living like Canadians. You get the money back of course, but that's not the point, is it?
Ack - just spotted that one of the test PC's got wiped last night by someone after I left yesterday. I got an hour or so to set up a new one from scratch. Nothing's ever simple, is it?
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