More house problems

To continue my plumbing saga: the flooring people came today to install my laminate flooring. Unfortunately, when the pulled the old stuff, there was mold and mildew underneath. AARRGGHH! My insurance company gave me the name of a company to come out and clean and they came this afternoon and spread some biocide (i think thats what it is--it kills mold). Luckily so far the mold is just in a small area on top of the old vinyl flooring. But they said that there might be something underneath my kitchen cabinets. My insurance adjustor is coming back out monday and we'll see where we go from there. In the meantime, my stove and refrigerator are in my dining room, and my kitchen still smells musty. I keep telling myself that it may take a bit of time for the smell to go away, but I am stressing myself out.

NASCAR

I have nothing against NASCAR. Its just not my thing and I really don't understand it. My sister just (9PM) called me on her cell phone. They are currently in Charlotte NC at Lowe's Motor Speedway watching a race. She had to call me just to show me how loud it was. I have come to the conclusion that I would be ABSOLUTELY miserable at a race. My idea of fun is sitting in the nice quiet, peaceful woods and listening to the birds sing, or the water trickling. To each his own I guess.

Spam Posts

What is the deal lately with Spam Posts? For the second time in a week, I've had an anonymous comment with this bizarre statement. It looks like spam because it makes absolutely no sense. I may have to change my comment settings. Its getting annoying. Does anyone else have this problem?

I need suggestions! I am doing an internet searching class at my library at the end of June demonstrating how to tweak search engines to find what you want. Like using the advanced search options, limiting to a domain, choosing key words, etc. Here is my problem: I need good examples! I'm having trouble thinking of a good search topic or topics. Something beyond just a simple subject search. I had thought of doing a search for the history of one of the national parks and the people who were displaced, but that is MY interest. Someone else may not be as interested. Any ideas?

Stressed

There is another leak under my kitchen sink. That means another $150 to the plumber on my credit card. I wish I was rich. I'm not sure how much more of this I can take.

Book Dealers and Library Book Sales

Today my library branch had their twice-a-month book sale. Since we really don't have storage space, we have a book sale the first and third fridays of the month. Every now and then, my branch manager has a "special sale" where she sells collectible books, currently bestsellers that were donated to us and so on. The prices of these are quite reasonable. I bought a couple of recent best-sellers for $2.50 each. The prices of the more collectible books vary. There was one that was $5 and another that was $10. I believe she checks online sellers and compares prices. Every other book sale is just a regular old sale where hardbacks are maybe a dollar.

Well today began her special sale. Which means she had enough of this stuff in her office that she could have on of them :-) As usual when the door opened the hordes came rushing in. And one guy stood there for at least an hour or so complaining about the prices in the sale. Because he could not sell them for a profit!! The nerve! The gall! The chutzpah! It's unbelieveable.

He has the right to re-sell the books he buys from us. That's fine. But he does NOT have the right to demand that we lower the prices so that he can make money. By the way, my branch manager refused of course!

My Favorite Place

So yesterday I had to drive to Front Royal, Virginia to pick up my nephew. He had been visiting my parents for the weekend and my sister had to go somewhere. We usually meet in Front Royal because its about halfway for the both of us. It was sunny so I left early and went to my favorite place: Shenandoah National Park. And here is why its my favorite place:

This is just one of the breath-taking views all along the skyline drive. I can always find a peaceful place to sit and enjoy the view. There are tons of trails to hike too. Yesterday I went on a fairly short one (1.3 miles) called the Fox Hollow Trail. It is a trail that goes into one of the old hollows where families lived before the government turned the land into a park. Its an absolutely beautiful park. I highly recommend a visit if you ever get to Virginia.

I return!

I just realized that I have not posted since the end of April! I have been reading your blogs, but have not had much to say. Today I went to a used bookstore and found interesting old books. One is the Foxfire book which is full of old-timey mountain crafts etc. Another one is on Bacon's Rebellion which took place in Jamestown. I know, I know...boring. I actually majored in history in college, and having been born and raised in Virginia, this kind of thing fascinates me. I look looking in used bookstores and trying to find treasures!

Speaking of Jamestown, the Queen visited the lovely state of Virginia this week. She stopped in Richmond and gave a speech to Virginia's General Assembly in the newly restored capitol building. I was at work, but Governor Kaine gave leave to state employees. Since the library was open, I got 8 hours of holiday leave. The next day she went to Jamestown and toured the historical area. I believe she went to the Kentucky Derby today.

And now for the continuation of my floor saga. The insurance is going to cover replacing my laminate flooring. It is the kitchen that is damaged but the flooring goes all the way into the dining room and back the hallway. My insurance company is going to cover the replacement of the kitchen floor but not the rest of course. If the subflooring ends up being damaged (which I won't know until the pull out the old laminate) then I will have to call them back and get another estimate. I am HOPING that everything is fine! I went to a flooring company and of course the laminate in my house is so old now that the company does not make that color anymore. But I found something REALLY REALLY close. I can live with it. Their estimate and the insurance company estimate is really close, so I do not have to pay for much above my deductible. So my annoying sister starts nagging and saying that I should call the insurance company and say they cannot match it and see what they say. Uhh...no? This repair and claim is minor. I am NOT going to nag and risk getting my premiums increased just for something this little. I want them to be there for anything MAJOR that happens, and since we are dealing with a house filled with 30 year old pipes, anything can happen. My dear sister just annoys me with her nagging and then she cops an attitude when I tell her I'm not going to nag. ESPECIALLY since I got the check in a week and a half!

Enough rambling!

House Repairs

The latest in my home repair saga is the laminate flooring in my kitchen. Last month, I discovered a leak under my kitchen sink. It was a slow leak and I did not discover it until it had seeped under the laminate flooring. Now the floorboards are buckling. So friday, may day off since I work this saturday, I get to have the claims adjuster give me an estimate. Then I get to have the floor replaced. What fun! And my county raised the real estate tax seven cents.

I have realized that to own a home means you will forever be broke.

I've been reading but no real reviews yet. I just read Jodi Picoult's newest: Nineteen Minutes. Its eerily timely. Its about a high school shooting. Its good, but read it when you are ready. Its tough just after Virginia Tech.

Diatribe

I just heard on the news that in between shootings at Virginia Tech, this psycho sent a package to NBC with photos and a video. I just watched clips of it online. Words fail me. Sometimes my life is not always great. We all have problems. But we don't buy guns and kill people. I am confused and ANGRY. And my heart goes out to the families and friends of the victims.

Memorial web site: http://rosa.hosting.vt.edu/index.php/memorial/

Virginia Tech website: http://www.vt.edu/

Virginia Tech

I'm still shocked by this. Yesterday I was glued to the news web sites and today I was reading to find out more about this guy. WHY? As my sister says, we'll never know why. One of the bloggers on MSNBC has gathered a bunch of links: http://clicked.msnbc.msn.com:80/archive/2007/04/16/152692.aspx

Why?

I was in Borders today, heading out to my car when I saw this cute little blonde girl maybe about 2 walk toward the Happy Feet display. From the distance I heard her dad say "Carmen Electra don't touch that." Why would you do this to your child?

Stranger weather

Believe it or not, it snowed last night! I woke up at 7AM, looked out my window and my car was covered in snow! Its April for Pete's sake!

I have decided that the "genius" who invented heelys (you know, those sneakers with wheels in the heels) should be smacked! I was grocery shopping this afternoon and these three kids kept rolling all over the grocery store. Their parents were oblivious. I think its an accident waiting to happen. I hate to see one of them bump into a senior citizen and cause them to fall.

I'm back

Sorry I've been gone. Thanks for sending out the APB Liz! I've been visiting blogs but have not had too much to say. My allergies are driving me crazy and I've had daily headaches. Now there is a chance of snow flurries tonight. I refuse to believe it.

My family (sister, nephew, and sister's boyfriend) left for vacation today. 10 days of peace and quiet! Just me and the two cats. I'm really looking forward to it.

I just finished reading Righteous: Dispatches from the Evangelical Youth Movement by Lauren Sandler. Its non-fiction. Lauren Sandler reports on the rise of Christian evangelical youth movement. She traveled all across the country visiting such groups as skateboarder missionaries, a Seattle mega-church, a small religious college and so on. Quite the page turner. I don't have the same opinions as many of the groups that she talked to, but the book makes for fascinating reading.

Hooray for Spring

I have not felt much like posting the past week or so. Theres just not much going on. I am so glad that it is spring. Of course today it was cloudy and chilly, but at least things are starting to bloom.

My family has been grumpy today so of course that sets me off. I seem to have this annoying little habit of channeling other people's moods. If they are grumpy, I am grumpy. And I can't get out of it like they can.

The end is nearly at hand

I just realized that I have one month til taxes are due! WooHoo! Then I can trash forms! Unfortunately my boss won't let me have a bonfire. Too bad.

I just finished listening to a funny mystery. Its called Bimbos of the Death Sun by Sharyn McCrumb. Its about a murder at a science fiction convention and pokes gentle fun at science fiction and fantasy fans. I like fantasy but I appreciate the humor. Jay Omega, new science-fiction writer and engineering professor is visiting his very first convention. While there he meets the famous fantasy writer Appin Dungannon. Dungannon has legions of fans who adore his character. Unfortunately, he is also a first-class jerk. And when he turns up dead at the convention, there is no shortage of suspects.

Monster Name

I don't know why, but this just speaks to me :-)

Get Your Monster Name

I am an idiot!

As you might have remembered from an earlier post, my CD burner stopped working when I installed Windows XP. I bought an external DVD burner. I chose the Sony because it was a name. I had enough hard disc space. My processor is fast enough. I thought I had enough RAM. I connected it and it froze when trying to burn a disc. Upon further examination of my machine I do NOT have enough RAM. I am an idiot. I have tried to look around to see if I can expand my memory in my PC, but it is so old, it appears to be too hard to find. I have the original box and egg carton material to re-pack it, but I do not have the little plastic baggies that everything came in. I guess I will try to return it to the store, but part of me thinks it was my own stupid fault for not checking my computer and that maybe I should suffer with losing the money. Plus, I don't know what to say to the store. "Sorry I have to return this. Everything is in the box, just not in the original plastic bags. No, its working fine, I am just stupid."

I went on a field trip yesterday with some other librarians in my library system and some people from the local museum. We went to the new American Civil War Center in Richmond on the site of the old Tredegar Iron Works. Then after lunch, we visited the Library of Virginia to see their special collections. It was absolutely fascinating. I have always been fascinated by history. I majored in history in college and Virginia is rich in history. Among the items he showed us was a paper signed by Lord Cornwallis during the battle of Yorktown, right before he surrendered, a history of the world printed in 1493-type hand set. It was before the printing press, and a collection of papers from George Washington. It was so interesting to see his signature on an original document. I know it sounds corny, but this is the kind of thing I love.

Beautiful Weather and a Review

After last night I was not sure I wanted to go back to work, but I did. And everything was much calmer. Yesterday, the head of circulation found a few books in the stacks with the insides razor-bladed out. They were not popular titles or subjects. I had not heard of them. It was vandalism plain and simple. This goes along with the DVDs and CD's that were stolen out of their cases a couple of weeks ago. And then the teenagers were running wild again. Our security guard was busy all night running them off. And my co-worker (whom I really like working with) was chattier than usual. Today was better. It was quieter. Its the weekend and the weather was sunny and warm so the teenagers did not hang around either.

I just read a teen book called London Calling by Edward Bloor. Teenager Martin Conway has been attending a private Catholic school that he absolutely hates. So when he gets the opportunity to do an independent study project instead of attending class, he jumps at the chance. And he knows just what his topic will be. The antique radio from world war 2 left to him by his grandmother. One night Martin falls asleep with the radio on and is awoken by a British boy who died more than 50 years earlier and he needs Martin's help. Martin is sure that it was just a dream. But the "dreams" continue and they are amazingly vivid. Its almost like he is in 1940 London during the Blitz. And when Martin realizes that the people and events that he is dreaming about are real, he begins to wonder: is he going back in time, or is he going crazy? And just what can he do to help the British boy? The book is a quick read with interesting characters and good historical detail.

Grant me patience!

Today was a very stressful day. Between covering chat reference this morning (we are part of a cooperative and answer chat reference questions from public library patrons across the country), signing people up for tax appointments, and listening to loud annoying teenagers (I'm not saying ALL teenagers are loud and annoying, just the bunch that came in the library today), it was all I could do to keep from running out the door screaming. Tomorrow is another day.

Our weather hit the 50s today. I'm told it was nice out. Luckily the snow is just about melted. I want spring time.

Winter Weather

Ok. So I get up to go to work yesterday and watched the local news. The weather report for today was a wintry mix switching over to rain. Especially north and west of Washington D.C. I am south of DC. The impression I got was that it would be mostly rain. So I get woken up by a phone call at 9 AM this morning. Its my mother. She says that my nephew will be staying an extra day because of the weather outside. "Ok," I told her, "Its supposed to be just rain." And she said look outside. You are supposed to have gotten 3 inches of snow so far. So it snowed til after 12, and then switched to rain off and on for the rest of the afternoon. I think we were all taken by surprise.

So I spent the day reading and watching movies. I watched the first season of Wire in the Blood. It's a British mystery show about a police inspector and the psychologist who helps her solve murders. A little violent but really good. I also watched the movie Red Eye. That one was also good.

Right now I am reading Storm Front by Jim Butcher. Its the first in the Harry Dresden series about a wizard/detective in Chicago who gets called in to solve mysteries that involve the supernatural. It is now a show on the SciFi channel.