Hot

Sunday, I spent the entire morning and most of the day updating my dad's website, Spike's Pickleball Paddles. Pickleball is a game played by mostly Seniors and high school students. It is similar to both tennis and badminton, there is a court, a net, a whiffle ball, and a paddle. The ball travels at a slower speed, making it easier and less strenuous to keep it in play. For a more complete description of the game, I made a "What is Pickleball" page on the website. Pickleball Paddles were originally made of wood. Spike's Pickleball Paddles are made with a fiber glass shell, honeycomb aluminum core, and a custom cushioned grip...

After spending so much time with just me and my computer, I was in the mood for a walk. Jeff was giving me the day off from taking care of Lily. The two of them had not left the house the entire day. I was able to convince them to take a walk with me down to the water. It was late afternoon, a bit on the warm and humid side. We had a lovely walk, saw the water, did not see the alligator, and walked home.

When we walked in the door the house felt warm. I thought it was just a result of the invigorating walk. I sat under the fan for awhile and wasn't cooling down. I looked at the thermostat and noticed that the temperature in the house was a bit higher than what it should have been. I thought it was odd but continued on with the process of cooking dinner. I used my new Mother's day wok and made a lovely stir fry, using up all the misc. left over meats and veggies which had accumulated in my refrigerator over the last week. I set aside some of the stir fried meats and veggies, along with some fresh garlic and ginger, for Lily. I made a sauce for the rest of us: 1 tsp instant dashi + 1 cup boiling water, 3 tbs soy sauce, 1 tbs vinegar, 1 tbs sake, 1 tbs tapioca starch. It was really good. Would have been better with some wasabi.

After dinner and dishes, the house still felt warm to me. I looked again at the thermostat and noticed that the temperature had gone up even more. Upon further investigation it seems that the fan on the "thingy" outside was not working. New house + $525 home inspection = broken air cond. after less than 2 months. Luckily we negotiated a home warranty with our sellers. However, I was not aware that this home warranty meant that I had to pay the first $100 of the bill.

Turned out to be a broken capacitor, the bill was $130. So my negotiating skills brought me a savings of $30 whole dollars. (When the guy told me it was the capacitor I kept thinking, isn't it a flux capacitor that allows for time travel in Back to the Future?) At least I have cool air raining down on me again. I lived for the last seven years with no a/c. I thought Italy was bad with temps in the upper 90s. But, at least it cooled off at night. In Misawa the humidity was such that the temps at night mirrored the temps during the day. Those were some long hot nights. I practically had a panic attack about the a/c when it went out here. Even though I know that it is a luxury and not a necessity. When in America...

I think that just about everyone who expressed an interest in the book club has had a chance to vote. I will leave it up one more day just in case.