Angela Law

animal lover, gardener, knitter, and gourmet cook
 
do-it-yourself

bathroom remodel: day 29

This evening, Brian and I ran the wires for the wall sconces. So, that puts us in a good position to have the bathroom workable by Thanksgiving. We need to have the electrical stuff totally done by the end of this weekend in order for my revised schedule to work.

Lowe’s sent two delivery guys to the house today to pick up our vanity top. Brian talked to a real manager there yesterday and he says the holes can be plugged and new ones drilled. We’ll see. From what I’ve been reading about Corian, it does sound possible. Supposedly the turnaround time is going to be a week. We’ll see about that, too. We did learn one lesson–don’t even bother calling Lowe’s on a weekend if you have a problem with something. Waiting till Monday to call surely would’ve saved Brian a few points on his blood pressure.

movies

the assassination of richard nixon

Brian and I caught this movie Saturday night. It was ok–Sean Penn’s acting was superb as always–but we weren’t into the movie as a whole. For some reason, the two of us thought the plot was going to be completely different (it was basically about a guy who was a complete failure in life and he somehow came to blame this on the president). As you can surmise from the title, this movie took place in the 1970’s. Unlike the last movie I watched that took place in the 70’s, Boogie Nights, this movie didn’t look like the 70’s threw up all over the characters–I wasn’t sitting there thinking “just look at those clothes and hair!” the whole time. One nice surprise in the movie was the fact that Naomi Watts was in it. The woman is like a chameleon. Every time I see her she looks different (sometimes even within the same movie). I always have to ask Brian, “Is that Naomi Watts?” I wouldn’t say she got to shine in this movie, but just having her in it made it better that it would’ve been.

do-it-yourself

bathroom remodel: day 28

We should’ve gotten a lot done today, but we did not. Here’s why: first off, we were supposed to go on a bike ride today, but it was kind of chilly, so we did not. But, we already had Brian’s parents lined up to babysit, so Brian ran Jacob over there this morning, anyway. After he got back, we did our fall yardwork/put stuff away for the winter. Everything’s done except tidying up the gardens and planting my garlic.

After this, we were finally able to start working on the bathroom. First, the old wall lights were removed. Next, we determined the location of the new mirror and wall sconces. We didn’t have the right type of electric box for the sconces, so Brian had to run to Lowe’s for supplies. While he was there, he planned on picking up our vanity top (which finally came in this week–7 weeks after we ordered it–10 to 14 working days, my ass!). Any time he’s picked up any special orders from Lowe’s he’s always had to wait 30-45 minutes for them to find our stuff “in the back”. Today was no different. After they loaded up the vanity top, he noticed that the holes that were drilled for the faucet did not look correct. His suspicions were confirmed after he arrived home and I brought out the new faucet. So, he called Lowe’s and spoke with a manager, who had to call him back. Brian wasn’t home when the manager called back and no one else in that big store could help him when he returned the manager’s call, so now this is going to have to wait until tomorrow. To be continued…

While we basically did no work today, since Lowe’s took up a few hours of our time (between the trip out there, talking to people on the phone, and general bitching about how we’re never going to shop there again), I feel this counted as a “remodeling” day.

movies

monster

As promised, last night was a margarita and a movie night. The movie was Monster. Our friend Lish has been talking up this movie for a few years and now I understand why. What a great movie. Unlike the incredibly sad 21 Grams or the utterly depressing Mystic River, this movie had the right balance. The story was based upon the life of female serial killer Aileen Wuornos. I felt really bad for the main character, but she did cross the line (as serial killers are wont to do).

Though I disagree with the Flick Filosopher’s review of the movie, it is pretty entertaining and brings up some good points.

holidays

day off

Jake’s school’s “Fall Party” (read: Halloween Party) was today. I volunteered to help out at it so I took the day off rather than trying to work it into my busy schedule. And what a nice day off it was. My long weekend started last night when Jake and I made bat cookies for his party. This morning, I was able to sleep in because, thanks to afternoon kindergarten, Jake no longer gets up early (nor does he go to bed at a decent hour, but that’s another story). Given my short morning, I didn’t really do much. I got Jake off to school and then drove over there a little bit later. The kids were dressed in their costumes and they did a little parade inside the school and then outside. Brian even managed to stop by (just another perk of working in Johnstown). The party was next. This went fine–the kids all seemed to have fun eating their snacks. I ended up having to stay there until the end of the school day (which is an early 1:15 on Fridays).

In the afternoon, I started working on my Christmas cards. I’m happy to report that I made a fourth of them today. I would’ve preferred to have them done by now, but I don’t imagine I’ll have any problems finishing them up soon. The thing I am concerned about this year is my shopping. I’m way behind, but this is because I don’t know what to buy half of the people on my list. It’s not for lack of looking, either.

Of course, I did some requisite housework. You can’t have a day without housework.

Next up: it’s a movie and a Margarita night. I had been watching HBO’s new series, Rome, on Friday evenings, but I’ve finally given up on it so we’re going to watch a movie tonight instead.

Time to make the Margaritas!