A few weeks back I decided it was time to have one of my big dinner get-togethers with some good friends. We seldom seem to be able to co-ordinate busy family schedules, so I get a little nuts when we can and cook big meals for us all. This time was ethnic, I decided to make Indian food.
So, of course, Monday evening, the stove I had been babying for months quit altogether.
Great.
Fourteen dishes on the menu and no stove.
HAhahahahaha.
What to do? Cancel? Postpone til I got a new stove? na....
I did it!
One two-burner hotplate, one one-burner hotplate and several crockpots later it was dinner!
And it was good!
But, hooray!!
I am very happy right now. Sitting in place of honour, all shiny, black and new! A stove! Yahoo!!
It is just what I wanted. Well, actually a little more than I wanted.
Full sized, coil top and matches the rest of my kitchen. That was my request. IMAG insisted that it NOT be a Frigidaire for reasons obvious to those who have followed this saga.
What I got is a GE lift top, coil top, great looking, matches perfectly......YES I do get overly excited about silly things like that. The rings and drip pans are black too! The oven floor even comes out for cleaning. How great is that? It has a programmable oven! Self-cleaning, even though I don't use that function. (too much hydro for me) And it was at a factory clearance sale so fantastic price!
So thanks to DJ and Josh for going shopping for this lovely new addition to my kitchen while I finished getting that dinner ready. You did great! And thanks to the guys from TA Appliances for letting us know about this sale when we were looking around earlier this week.
It's going to be great to cook a traditional Thanksgiving dinner next weekend. Which in this house may just mean barbequed turkey!
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Support your troops
Last year at Christmas time I had the pleasure of putting together a luncheon for the family members of our troops over in Afghanistan. We had some food, some laughs, a few tears and a fantastic visit from Santa himself. There were some small gifts for the children and all of the families got to take home a lovely yellow poinsettia donated by the gracious people at Nicol Florist.
I want to do it again!
This year there are 27 troops with families in our area.
Time for some shameless begging. If anyone can help out with a donation to help offset the cost of this day please, please, get in contact with me. Gifts for the children, flowers for the families, even cash to help pay for the food, all will be gratefully accepted. Have a few hours to spare to help out? Call me!! Email, Facebook, snail mail...
It is such a great thing to see the families relax and share thoughts. A few hours together makes such a difference for them at the hardest time of the year to be apart.
Do something nice for another. Trust me it makes you feel good.
I want to do it again!
This year there are 27 troops with families in our area.
Time for some shameless begging. If anyone can help out with a donation to help offset the cost of this day please, please, get in contact with me. Gifts for the children, flowers for the families, even cash to help pay for the food, all will be gratefully accepted. Have a few hours to spare to help out? Call me!! Email, Facebook, snail mail...
It is such a great thing to see the families relax and share thoughts. A few hours together makes such a difference for them at the hardest time of the year to be apart.
Do something nice for another. Trust me it makes you feel good.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Rants for a Monday
I have decided to start a new fund. I haven't quite decided what I am going to call it yet. Open for ideas!
Here's my plan. Get people to donate money to cover myself and my co-workers for those days when we just can't take it anymore. When we have to say what is truly on our minds. When our filter button is malfunctioning. When we forget to mute!
Just once I would like to be able to say what is really on my mind when people call with some of their complaints.
Your four year old child is out of control? Smack his behind. Do you really need that officer to come over and tell him off for you? What is going to happen when he is a preteen or teen and bigger than you? Yikes. Be the parent.
Your neighbour looked at you 'funny'? Toughen up, buttercup. Maybe he wasn't even looking at you at all. Maybe he is having a bad day and just has that expression because he is in some kind of personal agony. Maybe his life sucks, too. Maybe you aren't the centre of the universe!
Mom and Dad won't let you go to that party? Perhaps instead of pitching a fit and throwing items around the house you should stop and consider that they love you and may, just may, be trying to protect you and keep you safe.
You want to run a store but not have to deal with the kids who come in to BUY, yes, buy things. Sure they hang around. Sure they may sometimes steal from you. But not all kids are rotten. They are not all thieves. They are not all destructive. I worked in enough convenience stores to know if you treat them like human beings they usually act like human beings. If you don't want them around open an adult store. End of issue.
Tired of the vandalism and mischief in your neighbourhood? First of all call the police when you see something happening. Have a description handy. Know which way they went (and saying down there doesn't help).Don't wait four days and then call and accuse the officers of being lazy, useless, donut eating......well you get the idea.
Understand that when you want to report something, almost anything, we need to send an officer to take a report. We cannot go to someone else and ask them to stop harassing you without telling them who you are. We cannot accuse someone of taking your stuff without a theft report, oh yeah, and some proof! You would not appreciate it if we came to your door and accused you of things you had not done, or things we could not prove. So why do you think it's okay for us to do to that to those you think have wronged you?
Know important pieces of information when you do make that phone call. Someone stole your car? We need the license plate, please.
You think you saw a wanted person. A name and description would be very helpful.
Your boyfriend just beat you up? Last name and age would be good.
You saw someone driving that you are sure was impaired? Some help please. Where? When? Any kind of info on the vehicle. Which way did it go? Anything on the driver? Even the smallest details are useful! Color, driver, how many in the car. Big car? Little car? Even a partial license plate will help.
Oh yeah. My personal favorite. When you call 911 and we ask you "Police, Fire or Ambulance?"
Don't answer "no". Don't say "this isn't really an emergency". Don't tell us you need a phone number. Don't call to put in a parking, noise, barking dog, my neighbour has more trash out than allowed type of complaint. Not life or death emergencies here. Not a crime in progress either.
Ok, enough ranting for today.
I am looking for suggestions for the name of my fund! Any good ones out there?
Here's my plan. Get people to donate money to cover myself and my co-workers for those days when we just can't take it anymore. When we have to say what is truly on our minds. When our filter button is malfunctioning. When we forget to mute!
Just once I would like to be able to say what is really on my mind when people call with some of their complaints.
Your four year old child is out of control? Smack his behind. Do you really need that officer to come over and tell him off for you? What is going to happen when he is a preteen or teen and bigger than you? Yikes. Be the parent.
Your neighbour looked at you 'funny'? Toughen up, buttercup. Maybe he wasn't even looking at you at all. Maybe he is having a bad day and just has that expression because he is in some kind of personal agony. Maybe his life sucks, too. Maybe you aren't the centre of the universe!
Mom and Dad won't let you go to that party? Perhaps instead of pitching a fit and throwing items around the house you should stop and consider that they love you and may, just may, be trying to protect you and keep you safe.
You want to run a store but not have to deal with the kids who come in to BUY, yes, buy things. Sure they hang around. Sure they may sometimes steal from you. But not all kids are rotten. They are not all thieves. They are not all destructive. I worked in enough convenience stores to know if you treat them like human beings they usually act like human beings. If you don't want them around open an adult store. End of issue.
Tired of the vandalism and mischief in your neighbourhood? First of all call the police when you see something happening. Have a description handy. Know which way they went (and saying down there doesn't help).Don't wait four days and then call and accuse the officers of being lazy, useless, donut eating......well you get the idea.
Understand that when you want to report something, almost anything, we need to send an officer to take a report. We cannot go to someone else and ask them to stop harassing you without telling them who you are. We cannot accuse someone of taking your stuff without a theft report, oh yeah, and some proof! You would not appreciate it if we came to your door and accused you of things you had not done, or things we could not prove. So why do you think it's okay for us to do to that to those you think have wronged you?
Know important pieces of information when you do make that phone call. Someone stole your car? We need the license plate, please.
You think you saw a wanted person. A name and description would be very helpful.
Your boyfriend just beat you up? Last name and age would be good.
You saw someone driving that you are sure was impaired? Some help please. Where? When? Any kind of info on the vehicle. Which way did it go? Anything on the driver? Even the smallest details are useful! Color, driver, how many in the car. Big car? Little car? Even a partial license plate will help.
Oh yeah. My personal favorite. When you call 911 and we ask you "Police, Fire or Ambulance?"
Don't answer "no". Don't say "this isn't really an emergency". Don't tell us you need a phone number. Don't call to put in a parking, noise, barking dog, my neighbour has more trash out than allowed type of complaint. Not life or death emergencies here. Not a crime in progress either.
Ok, enough ranting for today.
I am looking for suggestions for the name of my fund! Any good ones out there?
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
hey that was my twenty TAKE TWO
I want to thank Bob and Matt from the Esso Gas Bar at Colborne and Puleston. They went above and beyond to talk to the owner of the car wash and got me back my twenty!
Thanks, guys! I know you are not in anyway connected with the wash and really appreciate you taking the time to do this.
Thanks, guys! I know you are not in anyway connected with the wash and really appreciate you taking the time to do this.
Monday, August 24, 2009
the oven ate my dinner!
I am so not having a good day, lol. Those of you familiar with my history with appliances will love this one.
About five? years ago IMAG and I gave up on used appliances and splurged on a kitchen full of lovely, sparkly, brand new, state of the art black ones. They were fantastic. I have an all fridge beside an upright freezer, a range hood that matches and a ceramic top stove. The stove was my big splurge. After years of a very ugly avocado green monstrosity with never clean electric rings, completely rewired by my Father in Law at least a million times, I was sure I wanted the ceramic top. Should be easier to clean, right? Was told by someone I knew who had one that I would love it. Think it was her way of getting even with me for some terrible thing I must have done to her in the past. Hate it. Have since day two. Thousand dollar stove. Never clean no matter what I do. When it was less than a month old IMAG hit it when it was hot and it shattered. Four hundred plus dollars later I had a new top on my new stove.
But I loved the oven. It has a computer! You can set it for what time you want dinner to be ready, leave the house and come home to a perfectly cooked roast or whatever makes you happy.
Yup.
Did I mention it has a computer? So, a few months back I put a roast in the oven. It starts to cook. The stove starts to beep. The display says F1. F1? WTF? I run to find my manual and look up F1. It isan error code for some kind of control for the oven. Meanwhile the oven door locks itself and my roast is trapped. Yikes! What do I do now? IMAG will be home soon and supper is locked in the oven.
So I go to the internet and look up said control. It is over four hundred dollars and then you have to pay for a repairman because it is a computer part and just a bit out of IMAG's range of expertise.
Grrrr. Eventually it relented and released my dinner. Funnily enough the roast was cooked just the way IMAG likes it.
So it only does this if you try to run the oven at high temperatures. Solution? Don't use the oven at high temperatures! Until today.
*Sigh.*
Trying to cook some pork chops for IMAG to take over to the hospice to share with his Father for dinner. I put the oven on at 350 degrees. This is not what I would call high temperatures. The oven ate my pork chops. Yup. They are locked in there for good I think.
*sigh*
Guess I will have to start saving my money for another stove. Not going to spend another four hundred plus dollars on this one when Home Depot has a lovely one for six fifty! With the added bonus of good old fashioned chrome rings and the ability to get it clean even if it does require a little bit of scrubbing once in a while.
Meanwhile, here's hoping it relents and lets me have the pork chops before dinnertime.
About five? years ago IMAG and I gave up on used appliances and splurged on a kitchen full of lovely, sparkly, brand new, state of the art black ones. They were fantastic. I have an all fridge beside an upright freezer, a range hood that matches and a ceramic top stove. The stove was my big splurge. After years of a very ugly avocado green monstrosity with never clean electric rings, completely rewired by my Father in Law at least a million times, I was sure I wanted the ceramic top. Should be easier to clean, right? Was told by someone I knew who had one that I would love it. Think it was her way of getting even with me for some terrible thing I must have done to her in the past. Hate it. Have since day two. Thousand dollar stove. Never clean no matter what I do. When it was less than a month old IMAG hit it when it was hot and it shattered. Four hundred plus dollars later I had a new top on my new stove.
But I loved the oven. It has a computer! You can set it for what time you want dinner to be ready, leave the house and come home to a perfectly cooked roast or whatever makes you happy.
Yup.
Did I mention it has a computer? So, a few months back I put a roast in the oven. It starts to cook. The stove starts to beep. The display says F1. F1? WTF? I run to find my manual and look up F1. It isan error code for some kind of control for the oven. Meanwhile the oven door locks itself and my roast is trapped. Yikes! What do I do now? IMAG will be home soon and supper is locked in the oven.
So I go to the internet and look up said control. It is over four hundred dollars and then you have to pay for a repairman because it is a computer part and just a bit out of IMAG's range of expertise.
Grrrr. Eventually it relented and released my dinner. Funnily enough the roast was cooked just the way IMAG likes it.
So it only does this if you try to run the oven at high temperatures. Solution? Don't use the oven at high temperatures! Until today.
*Sigh.*
Trying to cook some pork chops for IMAG to take over to the hospice to share with his Father for dinner. I put the oven on at 350 degrees. This is not what I would call high temperatures. The oven ate my pork chops. Yup. They are locked in there for good I think.
*sigh*
Guess I will have to start saving my money for another stove. Not going to spend another four hundred plus dollars on this one when Home Depot has a lovely one for six fifty! With the added bonus of good old fashioned chrome rings and the ability to get it clean even if it does require a little bit of scrubbing once in a while.
Meanwhile, here's hoping it relents and lets me have the pork chops before dinnertime.
hey that was my twenty!
Saturday night was not a lucky one for me! Went to the car wash, fed the machine a twenty for change. It ate it. Swallowed that bill like it hadn't been fed in weeks. No change. No return of the bill. Just gone.
Searched all over the building for a phone number to contact somebody. Anybody. Checked with the guy working in the gas station. They have nothing to do with the car wash. Doesn't even know who owns it. Just that someone from Toronto comes by once a month or so to do some maintainance.
Tried the phone number for the security company that is supposed to have 24 hour surveillance on the building. That got me a phone number for a pager. Tried that. Got a phone call from a male named Hasim who claimed he didn't know how to get a hold of the owner. Hmm. 24 hour security but can't get in touch with anyone? Somehow I don't quite believe his story holds water!
So, I did what any normal, sane, completely in control person would do! I made a sign. I posted it on the car wash. It disappeared in a matter of hours. Someone obviously responsible for this business saw it and took it down. But I have a picture!
Tried phoning the pager yet again today. So far no response.
So I am now warning y'all.......if you try to use the car wash at the Esso station at Colborne and Puleston, bring your own change. The machine is a monster that will steal your cash!
After twenty years of washing my car there and several years of watching the property at night when I worked in the taxi office next door, I won't be going back. And that's a promise!
Searched all over the building for a phone number to contact somebody. Anybody. Checked with the guy working in the gas station. They have nothing to do with the car wash. Doesn't even know who owns it. Just that someone from Toronto comes by once a month or so to do some maintainance.
Tried the phone number for the security company that is supposed to have 24 hour surveillance on the building. That got me a phone number for a pager. Tried that. Got a phone call from a male named Hasim who claimed he didn't know how to get a hold of the owner. Hmm. 24 hour security but can't get in touch with anyone? Somehow I don't quite believe his story holds water!
So, I did what any normal, sane, completely in control person would do! I made a sign. I posted it on the car wash. It disappeared in a matter of hours. Someone obviously responsible for this business saw it and took it down. But I have a picture!
Tried phoning the pager yet again today. So far no response.
So I am now warning y'all.......if you try to use the car wash at the Esso station at Colborne and Puleston, bring your own change. The machine is a monster that will steal your cash!
After twenty years of washing my car there and several years of watching the property at night when I worked in the taxi office next door, I won't be going back. And that's a promise!
Saturday, June 20, 2009
pure love
What is pure, true love?
It is unconditionally accepting what you must do even when it is destroying you. It is letting someone go even though you aren't ready to say goodbye. It is knowing in your mind that you must honour anothers wishes when your heart is screaming in pain.
Today the family honours the living will of IMAG's mother. She made it clear to all for as long as I can remember that she never wanted to be dependent on any kind of medical machinery. Since her aneuerism she has had the best medical care available, but, has not recovered. It is time to do the unimaginable. It is time to say farewell.
To IMAG I say, be strong. We will always be here for you.
To the family I say, my thoughts and love are with you.
To those who don't agree with what must happen I say, agree or not it is her wish. She made it clear and had it in writing. It is her decision and must be honoured. To ignore it would be selfish. We cannot put our pain before her choice.
To the friends that have supported us I say, thank you. You will never know how much we appreciate you and all you have done.
To Muriel I say goodbye. You will be missed. We love you.
It is unconditionally accepting what you must do even when it is destroying you. It is letting someone go even though you aren't ready to say goodbye. It is knowing in your mind that you must honour anothers wishes when your heart is screaming in pain.
Today the family honours the living will of IMAG's mother. She made it clear to all for as long as I can remember that she never wanted to be dependent on any kind of medical machinery. Since her aneuerism she has had the best medical care available, but, has not recovered. It is time to do the unimaginable. It is time to say farewell.
To IMAG I say, be strong. We will always be here for you.
To the family I say, my thoughts and love are with you.
To those who don't agree with what must happen I say, agree or not it is her wish. She made it clear and had it in writing. It is her decision and must be honoured. To ignore it would be selfish. We cannot put our pain before her choice.
To the friends that have supported us I say, thank you. You will never know how much we appreciate you and all you have done.
To Muriel I say goodbye. You will be missed. We love you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
