My poor dead tomatoes
Sunday, 2:38 pm
May
04
2008
Remember all those seeds I planted? That was about 6 weeks ago. The seeds all came up and everything looked fine. In fact, my peppers and onions and cabbages look quite robust and happy. My tomatoes, however, are dead. And that was totally my fault.
I’ve been in the habit of taking the tub of seedlings outside during the day to soak up the sunshine (such as it is) and then I bring them back inside at night. The first several days, I kept them shaded a bit, so they wouldn’t burn up. I gradually introduced them to more sun and they took off like weeds. However....
I forgot to bring them inside a couple of nights ago. And, wouldn’t you know it, that was the night we had an unexpected frost. Apparently the tomatoes are a lot more tender than the rest, because they all curled up their little leaves and keeled over while the rest still look all happy, healthy, and sturdy.
That’s disappointing. I’m so annoyed with myself. They were doing so well, too. Now, I’ll have to buy a flat of tomato plants instead of planting my home sprouted ones. I’m sure they’ll taste good, but probably not nearly as good as my home grown ones. Just because.
Perverse weather gods
Saturday, 2:54 pm
May
03
2008
Here we are on the 3rd day of May enjoying lovely spring weather...NOT. True, it is raining out and that is a definite spring need, but the temperature! This has crossed the line into absolutely ridiculous territory. The normal high for May 3rd is 64° and....last year it was 64° on May 3rd. This year? Not even close. My thermometer looks worse every time I look at it. We’re now standing at 44.2° and about the only good thing to say about that is that the rain hasn’t turned to snow yet. Same as yesterday. And same as tomorrow’s forecast. We’ve even had a couple of hard frosts this week. Our beautiful spring blooming trees have had a rough go of it.
And I’m freezing.
Last evening I couldn’t stand it any longer and started a fire in the stove. I had 8 logs left...now I have 4. After several days of keeping the thermostat set at 60° my bones were coated with a thick layer of ice. The stove’s heat was luxurious. It reached into all corners of the house and thawed me out. And the house retained most of the heat through the night. But all good things must come to an end. The house temp finally dropped below 60° a while ago and the furnace kicked on again. Aside from having to use gas for the heat, I at least feel a little better knowing that the gas utility dropped rates to summer rates on May 1st. That’s about a 50% savings. That, of course, is owing to the assumption that, by May 1st, no one needs heat around here so there’s not too much point in trying to gouge us after that date.
I feel for the renters in the area whose landlords turned the heat off on April 1st or May 1st. Some go for the earlier date while others still stick by the May 1st date. It has been a cold month and I can imagine that coping with no heat has been utterly miserable.
For my part, I’ve altered my habits a little bit. Rather than sitting around in the evening shivering, I’ve adopted the new habit of turning the thermostat down to 55° and going to bed at 8:30 or 9:00. With a nice pile of blankets to keep me toasty, I’ve caught up on my books, blogs, and DVDs the past several evenings. In comfort. That might be a silver lining.
Keeping fingers seriously crossed that the weather persons know what they’re talking about when they promise a 20 degree warm up after Tuesday. Maybe a bit less along the coast, but even 55° would feel tropical after the last couple of days. So far, this has been a 7 month heating year. That seems more in line with Alaska, not Massachusetts.
When we finally hit our 98°/99% humidity days, smack me upside the head if I dare complain. Just refer me back to the misery that was April, lingering into May.
I want a Kindle
Thursday, 4:42 pm
May
01
2008
About the last thing I needed was to see a Kindle up close...and even get my hands on it. I am so in love. I WANT one. Do I need one? No. Could I convince myself that I need one? Well, I’m pretty good at rationalizing things. Sure, I could. But, really, if I want to spend that kind of money, I think a freezer would be a whole lot more practical.
Sigh. I don’t want to be practical. I WANT one.
When my ‘add to shopping cart’ finger started getting a little too itchy, I gathered up my stuff and rushed to the library to get paper books (The Mayor of Casterbridge and Storm Front). That should hold me for a couple of days. Maybe this lust will pass by the time I’ve finished reading them. If not, I guess I’ll have to rush back to the library for more. And keep reminding myself that borrowing books is FREE. Yeah but....
Cleaning, cleaning, cleaning....
Wednesday, 3:13 pm
Apr
30
2008
My apologies for being kind of boring lately. I’m being disgustingly domestic. This is probably called spring cleaning and I’m still doing it. But now with a new and improved vacuum cleaner that’s still pulling alarming amounts of sand out of the carpets. It simply fascinates me in a horrible sort of way.
I’m also washing curtains and throw rugs and hanging them out on the line to dry. And washing the windows. Gradually, I’m erasing all traces of winter.
Also.....my internet connection was down most of yesterday. I couldn’t figure it out for the longest time. The cable modem seemed to be on and all the appropriate lights were lit. But my laptop refused to connect. At some point in the evening, VISTA finally decided to throw up a little window that said my internet connection was shut off and would I like Windows to figure out a solution. Well yeah. It did and I learned something new. My laptop has a switch on it that shuts the wireless thingy off. I didn’t know that and that’s all it was. I found the switch (don’t know how it got turned off) and flipped it back on. Presto. Internet. Boy, things like that make me feel dumb.
Price of Gas
Monday, 3:51 pm
Apr
28
2008
Glancing at my gas gauge this afternoon, it looked kind of empty. I briefly thought about filling up, but came home instead. Errands are run for a couple of days and I’ll postpone the aggravation. It’s pouring rain out today (with a raw 44°) and the wind makes the rain feel like little slivers of glass. Standing out in that, pumping gas, didn’t appeal to me very much. But I did note the gasoline prices.
The last time I filled up (March 23), I paid $3.18 per gallon for regular. Today, the local Shell station showed $3.59 for regular, the Mobil station posted $3.57, and the Chevron station posted $3.55. By tomorrow, they’ll all probably be $3.59—or higher.
I’m wondering what everyone else is paying. I think the prices in this town tend to be on the low side. People just a few miles to the south of us are paying a bit more and I’m pretty sure the west coast is paying a whole lot more. What’s it like in your neck of the woods?
My new vacuum cleaner
Sunday, 6:38 pm
Apr
27
2008
I have a new vacuum cleaner. New to me anyway. And I have been having more fun with it, the past two days, than should be legal. For about the first time in my life, I own a vacuum cleaner that was clearly designed by someone who had actually used one more than once. That’s the short story. The fun part is how I acquired it. I’m pretty pleased with myself, if you wanna know.
Up until Friday afternoon, I owned two vacuum cleaners. And neither worked. The first one, a Eureka, more or less died a slow death a while ago. It was stuck in my closet taking up space. That’s a problem in its own right—getting rid of dead appliances around here is a costly project. The second one, a Bissell bagless cleaner, worked pretty well for two years. It had a variety of filters that required frequent cleaning and I was rather tired of that dusty, dirty job. It was a lower end model and I used the thing to death. For some time, I’d been limping along with it—the rubber band that made the carpet brush spin detached frequently, and I’d end up on the floor with a screw driver taking the thing apart to reattach the band. That little process was wearing mighty thin. And then, blessedly, the motor died about two weeks ago.
In the meanwhile, I’ve been making do with a broom, dust mop, dustpan, and my little Oreck manual sweeper—which is fine for surface dirt. But I had noticed that the dust levels in the house were increasing exponentially.
I had decided that my next vacuum cleaner was going to be a really good one. Not one picked up on sale at K-Mart. You get what you pay for. Cheaper models don’t last. Not the way I use them.
So, on Thursday night, as I was settling down to sleep, I spoke into the vast universe, “I want a new vacuum cleaner. I really need to get a new vacuum cleaner.”
Friday afternoon, two women knocked on my front door. They were offering a free chance for $1000 of groceries and a cute little air purifier. They wondered if I’d ever heard about Rainbow products. Well, no. I had not. They wondered if I ever suffered from allergies. I launched into my spiel about how my autumn allergies just about kill me. They felt my pain. One of them said, “I have the authority to make you an instant winner. Let me give you our Rainmate Air Purifier (but no groceries). It’ll make a difference in your life.”
And I thought, “Uh huh. Here it comes.”
I let them in, though. They set up that cute little air purifier and yeah, it really was cute. I liked it. And it was mine. All mine.
One thing led to another. Like...did you know we also have a line of vacuum cleaners? The great thing about them is that they are also air purifiers. They’ll do 1800 square feet of living space. Would you like to see one?
Oh, why not.
They brought the box in the house and set the vacuum cleaner up, first as the air purifier. As you might imagine, not having a vacuum cleaner for a couple of weeks, the thing extracted an embarrassing amount of dust out of the air. I was impressed. The vacuum cleaner worked even better. I liked the looks of it. I liked its maneuverability. And I liked the mechanics of it. No bags. And not your average bagless cleaner either. Oh noooo. It has a water reservoir that takes in all the crud the vacuum cleaner sucks up and the air exhaust comes out completely dust free. There’s one washable HEPA filter in it and it’s super easy to access. It was pretty slick.
Well, over the course of three hours, they cleaned my entire house and showed me how to use it. Whoo! My kitchen, my living room, my stairs, my bathroom, two bedrooms, and even my sofa got the treatment. I loved it. The machine is lightweight, super easy to maneuver, and it’s not an attachment nightmare. And wow does it extract dirt. I really lovvvvvved it.
Somewhere in the process I asked, “So how much does this thing cost?”
One of the women said, “Oh, I can’t tell you that right now. Let’s wait until after the presentation.”
Uh-huh. In other words, really expensive.
Did I mention that the thing also shampoos the carpets? Better than my Bissell steam cleaner. Yep.
Finally, they finished cleaning my house for me. Then it was time to talk.
“So, how do you like it?” one of the women asked.
“Oh, I really, really like it,” I said. “How much is it?”
She hedged a bit. I asked a few more questions and she pulled out her cell phone. “I’m kind of new at this,” she said. “Let me call my boss.”
Just so happened, the boss was close by. How incredibly convenient. The sale closer, I suspected.
He arrived a few minutes later and boy oh boy what a salesman. Definitely the sale closer. He flattered me every which way. “I have to ask. How old are you? You don’t look a day over 30. You look so young.”
“Sweetheart, I have a 20 year old son. Thirty came and went a long time ago. But thank you. How much is this vacuum cleaner?”
He whizzed through the features, selling points, and what a dependable machine it was and slipped in at the end, “All that for only $2400!”
“You have got to be kidding,” I said.
He told me again what a great machine this was, but added, “Because you’re so nice, I think I can sweeten the deal for you.”
“You’d better make it incredibly sweet.”
“How about if I throw in another air purifier, some cleaning agents, and drop the price to $1900?”
“I’m much nicer than that, don’t you think?”
“Well,” he asked, “What do you think this amazing vacuum cleaner/carpet shampooer/air purifier is worth?”
“You really want to know?” I said, “I’d maybe pay $600 for it. If you threw all the other stuff in with it and took my two vacuum cleaners away with you. What’s its wholesale price?”
“Kate, Kate, Kate,” he mourned. “We have to eat too, you know.”
His cell phone rang and he indicated that this was going to take a few minutes. Why didn’t I think about it while he talked.
GREAT! I dashed out of the room and fired up the laptop. Did a google search for Rainbow vacuum cleaners and found out all the particulars. They are, without a doubt, really fine vacuum cleaners. They last forever. People who own them are pretty devoted. The reviews are mostly fabulous, with the few who got tired of the water reservoir filling and emptying and annoyance that they paid such a steep price. They are definitely high end vacs. Most people buy them new in a cost range of $1600-$2200, depending on haggling skills. They are only sold door to door, like Kirby vacs (and let it be said, I was suckered into that mistake about 12 years ago. Great cleaning machine, but weighed more than I do and I hated it and got rid of it.). But, several reviewers stated, the best deal is a used Rainbow. You can often get them in the $400-$800 range with a several year warranty. They’ll last for 20+ years and they rarely break down. They are excellent cleaning machines and definitely advantageous for anyone with allergies. Cool.
I went back to the kitchen with a new idea.
“So, Kate, what are your thoughts? Are you ready to join our family and improve your life and make your environment healthier?”
“Yes,” I said, “Do you have a used one I can buy?”
Dead silence.
“Look,” I said, “I love this machine. But I’m just not going to spend $2400 or $1900 or even $1600. That’s crazy money. You guys have spent the better part of a business day in my house cleaning it from top to bottom and you should get something out of it. I’d like one of these cleaners, but I want a used one. If you can’t do that for me, then we can’t do business. I’m sorry. I can buy a used one online. I sincerely appreciate all the cleaning you’ve done for me today, though.”
“I’m sorry, Kate, I can’t do that,” he said. “You’d be missing a great opportunity here. A nice girl like you deserves a new Rainbow. We can work something out. We have very reasonable payment plans.”
I shook my head.
He packed up his stuff and shook my hand. The woman (the other one went out to rest her weary bones in the truck) also shook my hand and looked sad. They headed to the front door taking their boxes with them. He turned at the door and looked at me. “I hate to leave like this, Kate,” he said. “Are you sure?” I nodded.
Oh well. Sigh.
Around 6:00, the guy was back knocking on my door.
“I’ve been thinking,” he said. “You really are a nice lady and....” (So much for looking 30 years young....)
Well, long story a little shorter, he sold me a used machine with a 4 year all parts and labor warranty as long as I don’t drop it out the window or beat it with a baseball bat. There is a Rainbow-certified repair shop a couple of miles from here. That’s a plus, just in case. The carpet shampoo thingy wasn’t included at sale, but he said he’d bring one to me next week. I don’t really care about that, but I’ll take it if he gets around to it. I bought it at a very good price. And he took my two dead vacuum cleaners away with him.
I am very pleased. My new used machine has been gently used. I took it apart to inspect the HEPA filter and another little spinning gizmo that both need to be cleaned from time to time. They showed some use, but not that much. I’m not sure if it was a demo or a returned machine from someone who decided that emptying and refilling the water reservoir was a royal pain in the behind. But it’s nice. And it could suck all the hair off a cat. It’s powerful and I cannot believe how much sand and stuff is embedded in my carpets. It’s kind of scary how much my other vacuum cleaners didn’t get out. Or...horrifying. I have had a blast the past couple of days with my brand new used vacuum cleaner. Oh, I really have. This one is just great and it’s so easy to use. And no dust. I absolutely love it. Score another one for the 90% project, too. I did think of that.
