Odds 'n' Ends

Through the Bathroom Door (and what Mommy Found There)

He's perched on the right-hand corner of the bathroom counter.  Apparently she just had to take him in to brush her teeth! 

A Sunday Hike and Dinner With Friends

We had a lovely hike on Sunday at  a local preserve, where dogs are allowed to accompany theirpeople. That is surprisingly difficult to find here. 

Rusty, awaiting "his" girl.  Carl and he often fight over that distinction;) 

So may things to smell...

The handsome little man-dog stands his ground! 

We don't need an Intrepid or an Explorer, as we have two-in-one! 

This is a paper birch, my favorite tree. I had one growing outside my room's windows when I was a child. 

Saturday Dinner! 

We had 4 couples over, and their children. Grace had a wonderful time with the kids and they decided to have a drawing competition and create an original play for us!  

The drawings didn't come out very well, except for the one in ink. :) 

The parents had good food, good wine and lots of fun talking. 

Then , we took a night walk with two friends, which was magical, as always. 

We plan on doing this again, often! :D

Can anything ELSE go wrong? :)

I realized , after the THIRD dryer cycle, that my washer/dryer is most likely broken. It is a lovely little European model, by Malber, an Italian company.  It really is a neat-o little gadget, as you put the load in with some laundry soap, and it comes out dry! No dryer required...except when it isn't working. :/

So I called the campus folks to alert them and they predictably called the "Malber"guy. 

"He's the guy who knows how to  fix the Malbers..." I am told, as If I have not heard this before, about 6 times.  "He'll get it up and running!" 

"But--He said last time that it was on its "last legs" and that we need to think about another arrangement..."  

"Oh! Can you hold please? " 

 

"Ok. He'll be right out! " 

*sigh* 

So the "Malber" guy comes on down and "fixes the machine again...or so it was supposed to happen.  In reality, he took my machine apart and scuffed up the kitchen floor, smelled of cigarette smoke and motor oil,  ( at least that's what I thought it was)  and he left  promising me he'd order the new heating element from Italy.  The rest of the machine he had taken apart and put in my supply closet.  

 

"Italy? How long will that take? " 

" Hard to say...maybe 2 weeks, if all goes well. " ( cheery laugh) 

Then, Mr.Malber left, and I discovered "Lake Secrethouse" coming from under my sink...

It turns out that Mr. Malber had broken the hot water hose that led to the machine and it was now leaking, rapidly, under my sink, and If I didn't act fast, I t woul dbe in my living room. 

I called Carl and he walked me through turning off the different valves until the leak was stopped. 

After about 15 minutes, Mr Malber comes riding in on his shiny horse to declare that I had indeed turned off the correct valve!!

 <> 

So that was Thursday...

Friday, I woke up to an Ant Swarm . Apparently all the moisture has driven then indoors.  

:O 

Nor' Easter and Fuel Cells

The last half of last week and this weekend were pretty interesting! 

Grace and I had our usual JuJutsu classes on Wednesday and Friday, and Grace had a Scout meeting on Friday, and a field trip to the fire station on Saturday. 

We had dinner with friends Saturday night and the kids played Wii and  Manhunt, and then she and the oldest went upstairs for "girl talk".  It was a lovely evening! 

Carl and I went on a Raid on Sunday, while Grace decided she likes the game "Endless Ocean" on the Wii. It says "E" for everyone, but I'm pretty for sure that this is not usually a hit with the  7 y/o crowd.  She's already trained a dolphin to be her dive partner! She is entranced by the music at the beginning : 

" Let your arms enfold us

 through the dark of night

Will your angels hold us 

til we see the light." 

That night,  we had a gi-normous snowstorm!!

Rusty was semi-amused...

This is the Fuel Cell car that Grace built, with help from Carl. It was a gift from Aunt and Uncle Chicago, and she is really having a good time with it!