Bested by a Machine

I have spent the last three hours fiddling with the settings on my overhead garage door opener without success. The mechanism thinks the floor is four inches above its existence in reality and when it doesn't meet resistance, stops and returns to its fully open position.

I've backed Moby (my big white whale of a van) into the driveway for fear that my twiddlings will break the motor and then I'll be stuck with not only a broken garage door, but also no access to my vehicle.

As much as it pains me, I've had to admit defeat and ask for help. My friend's son-in-law runs an overhead garage door company and I've put in a call for assistance. Of course, it's Sunday.

Humidity

On a drizzly, humid day, I resemble the love child of Shirley Temple and Gene Wilder.

Six Feet (and Counting?)

A sixth foot has been found on Canada's west coast. Another right foot (that's five right feet to one left, if you're keeping a tally) and this one appears to be in a sneaker that matches the left (fifth) foot that was found earlier this week.

UPDATE: The sixth foot was a hoax. Some sick puppy stuffed an animal foot in a sock with seaweed and put that in a sneaker.

The Case of the Fifth Floating Foot

Yes, you guessed it, a fifth sneaker-shod foot has been found on the west coast of Canada. The surprise this time is that it is a left foot, not a right one. Here's a news article for those who want to read more.

If this is all very confusing to you, here are links to my other posts about the previous feet. No word yet if this foot is male or size 12.

I Hate Carpet

On Sunday night, the dog got into the cat treats and ate them all, along with part of the cardboard packaging. I woke up Monday morning to various puddles of dog vomit in my dining room and returned home to more after work on Monday evening. I cleaned them as best as I could with the limited time I had.

This evening I spent more than two hours with my rug shampooer, (yes, it's more cost-effective to own than rent when you have four children, three cats and a dog), cleaning the dining room carpet. I hate carpet!

For years I have wanted to remove the dining room carpet (and the kitchen linoleum) and replace it with tile. Unfortunately, money - or the lack thereof - has been the issue. If I had tile instead of carpet, the clean-up would have taken less than ten minutes rather than over two hours. Arrgh!

Friends

I have the best friends anyone could ever wish for.

Last night I got a call from an old and very dear friend I haven't seen in over a year. I was invited out for a drink at a local pub and I accepted. (I don't have the kids this week, so my time is somewhat free.) I was greeted with a big hug, encouraged to vent over the dissolution of my marriage and then expound on the joys of my new full-time job. Alas, the time to part came too soon, but when a girl has to get up and get to work on time, a girl has to go to bed on time too. I was not allowed to pay for my pint of Guinness (although I insisted that the next time will be my treat) and was sent on my way with another hug.

This evening I had just come back into the house after mowing the lawn - the rather overgrown lawn that has been loving the recent rain and that should have been mowed days ago - when the phone rang. It was my neighbour. She was about to step into their backyard hot tub and called to see if I would like to join her. This is the second time she has called with this offer and, like the first time, I couldn't say no. What a glorious evening, sitting in her hot tub with a big glass of ice water, chatting and looking out at all the flowering trees.

I am fortunate indeed.

Typos

I get irritated reading the news articles on a local news website. The constant switching of "affect" and "effect", "course" and "coarse", etc., astounds me. Does no one know how to spell any more? This evening there was an article about a long-toed salamander, but it was spelled "long toad salamander". Arrgh!