The other day I called my father and expressed interested in moving/getting rid of his boxes from his old truck. He only wanted me to save the hardware, and didn’t care about the rest. Burn day! So yesterday, I decided to start disassembling them. I opened the top of one, and whoosh! I swarm of wasps went for my head. I immediately closed it and got out of there (un-stung thankfully). I went to WalMart to get some spray, and decided to get some foggers… I had an evil plan brewing. I got back home, and readied myself. I took a fogger, started it, lifted the top of the box, and threw it in, and closed it again. I let it fog for a few minutes. Then opened it up. My “flash grenade” idea had worked! They were writhing around, and I finished them off with the wasp spray. Today, I took apart 90% of the boxes while killing lots of roaches, and threw them in the fire. I made sure I saved the hardware, or most of it anyway. I also cleaned up a bit of brush. Danielle and Noah also helped cleanup the yard a little bit by raking leaves. Danielle looked hot in her mini-skirt, and she thought my axe swinging skills were hot. Next weekend, I start a bigger project. There is an old shed in the back. The floor is rotten, and trusses are falling apart. It has a lean-to that I must save, so I have to figure out how to deal with that. I am thinking of building a false wall next to the shed and lowering it on that. I’m going to get myself an electric reciprocating saw, and go to town. And once that is out, I’m going to disassemble an old truck in the back yard and scrap it. I’ve got someone that would like to help me out with that one. I also took about 20+ minutes moving around one of my jetski trailers. I learned quite a bit about maneuvering trailers. It’s not easy. Bobby has also set up a pool at my house for his koi fish, as he is moving into an apartment. They will be there for a bit while he tries to get a koi farm up and running.

I’ve also put some thought into buying some land and building a house. Next door to me is an empty piece of property. My neighbors up front have supposedly wanted to buy my house and are wondering when I’m leaving (their son keeps asking me). If I can get the old lady next door to sell the property, and then get my neighbors to buy mine, I should have some money left over to start building a house. The only reason I have even started thinking about this is because Danielle told me she liked the area I live in. I like the area because it’s in the boonies, and it isn’t like the “gated community” I went into today. You must drive off to the side to enter a gate code, and maneuver your Hummer around a block column. It baffles me how these people that live in this half million dollar houses community would deal with that. Oh, and of course, when you leave, the gate opens towards you.

One of my customers is a dentist (well, a periodontist to be exact). So I setup an appointment for Danielle with him. She thinks it’s been 10 years since she’s had a “real” cleaning, so she was due (thankfully though, she takes very good care of her teeth otherwise). It was to be at 4:00 today. I called her at 3:36 to see if she’d left yet. She hadn’t, so I said, get going! So she starts collecting everything together, and goes “Uh oh, I can’t find my cell phone.” So I say, “Would you like me to hang up and call it?”. She says “Yes,” and then realizes, she’s on it… it was hilarious. Anyway, she leaves and I get a call back at 4:01. She was lost. So I tried figuring out where she was. The appointment was in Winter Haven. She was still in Auburndale, driving in circles for the last 20 minutes. So yeah, had to reschedule for her. Next time, I’ll have to take her!

I’ve been [making an attempt to] reading a book, Parenting by The Book, by John Rosemond. It’s made me think a lot about how to raise children. Being that I am in a relationship that involves children, I’ve become more interested in the subject. It’s also made me think a lot about how my parents raised me, and how I learn by their example. Which brings me to my subject, anger. I’ve only seen my father truly angry once or twice in my life. I can’t say that I know how to express it constructively. Yesterday, I ripped one of my favorite pairs of jeans, and had a huge tear at the back pocket. I could not go into public looking like that, and decided to move some of my appointments because of my “wardrobe malfunction”. I was with Danielle at the time, and mentioned that I could throw a patch on it so I could still use the pants for something. She decided that it’d not be a good idea, and tore them more. This made me a little angry. Later that night, I went to her house, still wearing the same jeans (went straight from the office to her place). We had dinner, and watched some TV. That day, we both had a little extra energy and were play wrestling. Well, she decided to go for my pants again, exacerbating the situation for me. We continued to wrestle, while the rip in my pants went from pocket to foot. The wrestling was getting rougher, and my strength had come out. I did not hurt her, but I felt I had gone too far and was getting far too angry and did not know how to express the anger. I decided I should probably go home and got up and started to get ready. There was a long silence after that, and we ended up talking about it instead. I’ve decided I need to find more constructive ways to express my anger, and express myself sooner when I feel discomfort in a situation instead of dwelling on it and letting it get too far.

In other, but possibly related news, I no longer have A/C at home (again). As I’ve mentioned before, I had to rig my fan to keep it going as the relay had died. Well, on Saturday, I decided to look into it more and found out it was very much possible that it was actually the thermostat wire causing the problem (and therefore not kicking on the fan). I won’t mention any names, but a particular someone had spliced the thermostat wire 3 separate times before actually getting into the air conditioner (where there was one more additional splice. So I pulled a new thermostat wire. Hooked everything up, and got ready to turn it all back on. Click. No fan. Electrical burning smell. Click. I walk back out, and see smoke coming out of the drain tube. I grab a fire extinguisher just in case. I open it up. The fan that moves the air into the house decided it wanted to retire and burned up. Some of the wires turned black. I do not know what caused the problem, all I know is I don’t have several thousand dollars to replace the unit. So since winter is coming, I’ve decided to be A/C-less until spring. I’m rarely home anyway, and I appear to sleep better at night when it’s warm in the room. If I have to, I’ll get a window unit for the bedroom.

Of course, all of this makes me feel as if I’ve been humbling myself. I feel like I am going back to the basics. I am hand-washing dishes. I don’t have A/C at home. I don’t have cable TV. I’ll find a way to still use my torn pants for something. And I’ve even expressed interest in hanging my clothes again instead of using the dryer. Some call me cheap, but I call it humble.

So me, Danielle, Bobby and Brittani went to Halo-Scream last night First we went to Carrabas… mmm… Wild Berry Cocktails. Then we finally got to Busch Gardens. It was interesting inside the park. The last time I went to one of those (Halloween Horror Nights) was probably over 5 years ago. Things have changed. I am guessing because of the countless lawsuits about people getting hurt or “touched” the wrong way, that they keep changing the way they do things. For example, there were hundreds of Exit signs, with multiple exit doors. The ones I went to before didn’t have any that I remember. I can’t really speak for the level of scariness, as I am usually just shuffling though haunted houses without a single jump. Danielle however… that’s a different story. In the first house, she about broke a finger she was squeezing so hard. In the next few, I got her to hold my hand differently, and instead, she cut off the circulation in my hand. It was a blast though. I loved how she was clinging to me and getting mad when I wasn’t scared and laughed. It was sooo cute. The most interesting part was when we walked though this tunnel. The floor was stationary, but the tunnel spun and was spiral looking. This produced a very dizzying affect, and I could not stand up straight. We ended off the night with me and Bobby going on Montu, and Danielle and Brittani going on Gwazi. Then we switched off, and me and Danielle headed to Sheikra. We got up to the last couple of steps, and then… “Sorry for the inconvenience”. The ride was having problems. We waiting around for about 10 minutes, and it still didn’t open up. So we left. I don’t know why, but every time me and Danielle get to Sheikra, it breaks down. I think it’s a conspiracy.

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So I have a dishwasher. Most of the time, it works… okay. I recently ran out of the dry powdered soap. So I got the liquid soap. Apparently, I had forgotten that liquid soap just does not work in my dishwasher (through past experience). It’s meant for dishwashers, but probably not for ones as old as mine. When I am at Danielle’s and wash the dishes, I have to wash them by hand. Well, I’ve taken that back home. My dishes are coming out cleaner, and I have more of them (as long as I am doing it daily). The dishes don’t pile up. So my dishwasher may sit empty for a while. I suppose I can still use it when I need to superheat things and disinfect them.

I was in the shop yesterday measuring a cupola for my father (28×28 base, 18″ to top of base, 36″ to top of windows, 56″ to top of roof, in case you were wondering), and I noticed a bunch of ants coming out of a makeshift shelf made of doors (built by my father, soon to be firewood). So I started to spray them. They kept coming out as I was making them mad. When they stopped, I went and got my drill and put a couple of holes in the side. They were not happy. I kept spraying as they kept coming out. Then I got serious. I went inside and got some foggers. I stuck it in the hole, and let it go. They slowed up pretty quick. I set off the rest of the fogger, and another one in the shop for the night. I went in this morning… looks like a massacre. Lots of dead roaches around too… I guess it worked.

My Bright House Internet service has been down at my house since Wednesday. So I call Brighthouse on Friday morning, and scheduled a tech for between 11 and 2 on Saturday. I normally spend my Saturdays with Danielle. So I asked her if she and her children would come to my house for lunch so I could wait for Brighthouse. We arrived there around 11:30. At around 1:30, I got a call from Bright House. They said the tech was running late and might not make it till 2:30. I said that was fine. We had just started the movie Over the Hedge. So there we are watching the movie. At about 2:30 or so, I get a call from the Brighthouse tech. He is wondering where I am as he says he is knocking on my door. There was no one at my door, so I ask him what address he is at… he is at Danielle’s (where I have placed Bright House Internet also as I spend a lot of time there). They screwed up the ticket and put the wrong address. He says that they’ll get someone out there (she is on the opposite side of town). I call around 3:00 as I never heard back from the guy to see if there is any update. I accidentally dropped the phone while talking to the lady, and waited 30 minutes for her to call back (she had my number). She didn’t. So I call again… chew the guy out for having to wait this long, and he tells me the original ticket was closed. So I get even more ticked off, and he says the only thing he can do is send someone out the same day between that time and 8:00 pm. I say I am leaving at 6:00 and he better get there before then. I waited till 6:00… no one ever showed up. Not even a phone call. It is now Sunday night.

However, a few other interesting things that day… I grilled for the second time. I am getting better at it, however, I still have to practically burn the burgers to get them to cook all the way through. My spraying in the shop area only seemed to stop everything but the wasps. They made a new home, but larger. Added a few extra bedrooms and stuff. So me and Danielle were looking through the shop for some wood for a project she’d like to do, and Noah comes into the shop. He immediately starts climbing on things. He climbs onto the weight bench and starts “working out”. Only one problem… it was currently occupied by the wasps. They were not happy. So they stung him. Right below his right eye. He screams bloody murder while stuck behind the equipment. Danielle is afraid of wasps, so I walk in, grab Noah and pull him out without getting stung by the swarm of 12 or so wasps. We take him inside, ice it down as he is still screaming, and I go out to my truck. My old boss had given me some sting relief things that work really well, and I knew I had one left somewhere. I find it, and come inside, and ask Noah if he wants to use it. He says no, but I say yes and that he needs to trust me, so I ask Danielle to hold him down. I put it on him, and he starts to feel better and he calms down. I also noticed that the stuff I put on him is 20% benzocaine and 1% methonal. The Orajel-type stuff I just bought the other day is also 20% benzocaine, so now we have a supply of anesthetic. By the time we leave, he’s practically forgotten he even got bit. I later went out and killed the wasps, and showed Noah one of them to prove to him that they were dead.

I’ve also discovered that the fake Christmas tree (all boxed up) that my mother left for me to have is possibly inhabited by a dead rotting animal. Joy. The cleaning out of the shop has moved up on my priority list. I am now going to start giving away furniture and toys that my parents no longer want, or start burning it.

So when my parents moved away, I sorta inherited my father’s shop. Technically, I owned it since it was on my property. However, now it is mine to do with as I wish. I’ve already started cleaning up inside. Sure, if you look at it now, it might look like the same mess he left me with, but there have been improvements. For instance, I have moved the light switch to the door, instead of having to walk 10 feet into the building to switch on the lights… in the dark… while tripping. I also added a receptacle and installed a shelf. This shelf will be where I drop off my tools from my truck when I need to empty it, and where I charge my batteries (hence, the receptacle). I installed a few L-brackets to hang various length of wood on and get it off the floor. It has also become a temporary storage area for a couple of dryers and a washing machine. My plan is to move every thing from the one half to the other and make that the “shop” and the other half will become storage. It will be mostly shelving like a warehouse where I can store personal and business stuff out of the rain, but stuff I may not necessarily need [any time soon], and that is a current state of disassembly (for trash or recycling or parts). I’ve also been spraying for all sorts of insects around the shop as it has gotten pretty crazy. I should also note that everything I have done so far has not cost me any money, as I am using stuff laying around. But don’t tell my father that I might be using some of his stuff ;-)

I understand fuel cost a lot these days. I do not understand why gas stations feel like they should charge a separate price for people paying by a credit or debit card. I pulled into the Chevron at 98 and Crystal Lake today. The sign said $3.63/gallon. I take off my gas cap and swipe my card. I pull the hose out, and get ready to “choose” my type. That is when I look at the price and it says $3.68. And it says “Credit” next to it. So I promptly put the hose back, press Cancel and close my tank back up. I go down the street to another gas station that also says $3.63. There is not mention of the Credit/Cash price, and the price doesn’t change on me. I fill up my tank and leave a happy customer. On the way to NC, I found this same thing at several different gas stations, and did the same thing… drove to a different gas station for the same price while still using my credit card.

So as some of you know, I’ve been very interested lately in “current events”. I’ve been watching politics a lot more. I’m very interested in what both sides say. At first, I was intrigued by the idea/possibility of a black or woman president. It’d be an interesting thing to see to break those barriers. Now that it is down to one on the left side, I’ve been listening a lot more. I am not so sure I like what I hear. I’ve never been a Liberal or Democrat, but I do like some of the things they do. On my voters card, I am listed as non-partisan. I am neither Democrat or Republican. But I do lean to one side more than the other. I hear the things that the Democrats are promising, and don’t really like what I am hearing. On the other side, which I am listening to the convention right now, I hear different things. It sounds better to me. When I first heard about McCain, I was intrigued by how he wasn’t all on one side, but a little of both. I am also surprised (but in a good way) that he has chosen a woman to be VP. (Personally, I feel like he went up to Obama and, off-guard, “bitch-slapped” him.) I like the idea of a “marriage” of two people. I’m excited to see what will happen the rest of the year.

Also, since Sheena’s email bounced back on me, she can download here.

I just read this story about a hit-and-run. As I read over the story, I feel as if I am missing something. It claims that this man hit the child on the left side of his vehicle. I would think of this as the drivers side, and others agree with me. If that be the case, there are only two ways the child would have gotten hit… either they were in the median, or that one particular child was in the road itself. I suppose the man could have gone off the side of the road and hit the one child while the other’s dove out of the way. I certainly would not want them to be my friends if they couldn’t pull me out of the way with them or warn me. Now, I am not claiming that this man did not hit the child. Just that the stupidity of the children should be taken into account. Walking in the road or median at night on a major highway is not the smartest thing to do. I really feel as if this story is trying to say “this horrible thoughtless man killed this child” instead of just reporting on the facts.