Saturday, October 15, 2011

Fall Happenings

First a bit of wonderful news! The stove install is finished. They came back on Wednesday and in about two hours were done. The project started with holes in the ceiling / floor.


There was also a hole cut through the roof where we now have a chimney.


Inside, the holes are now filled with the PL vent pipe. It is painted a discrete off white, the closest they could come to our wall color for high temperature paint. 


As you can see, the pipe is really not a bother at all, in terms of location and look. We're super happy that this project is done. The inspector is coming on Monday and we should be able to fire up the stove after that. Someone from the Farmer Supply will come hopefully next week to get us started and review the features of the stove.


Second, today Seth, his parents, and I traveled up to Rhinebeck, New York for the New York State Sheep and Wool Fair. We had loads of fun. 

There was awesome hand-made creations to see!


And vendors selling all sorts of neat items. Both those that had nothing to do with fiber and those that were just about fiber. (Mostly the latter.) 

(Cool upcycled cutting board -- this is the sparkling wine we used for toasting at our wedding -- awesome!)


We saw the shop Loop, which I often visit on Etsy. She sells unique art batts and yarn. Look at how skilled her yarn is. 


There were cute travel spinning wheels. 


One shop had astonishing glass-work items. There were knitting needles, crochet hooks, cable needs, and orifice hooks.


Of course there were many sheep. I petted lots of them.


This was the hugest angora bunny. So soft and fluffy. I wish he was in my lap, so I could be spinning his fur!


There were camelids. I love a good alpaca. These were not close enough for petting, sadly.  


While there were many things I enjoyed. I made on purchase. A pair of knitting needle earrings from Sassafras Creations.


Lovely fall fun! I had a great time at Rhinebeck and am looking forward to enjoying my new stove, hopefully later this week.

Friday, October 7, 2011

The new stove is (not) installed

It's the day that all the residents of 24 Webster Court (minus Lily, perhaps) have been waiting for. The day of the stove install! Things did not go to plan.


As you can see, the good news is that the stove and bluestone are here and in the house.


Both look quite nice. As you can see, the majolica brown enamel looks just as good against the brick as we anticipated. 


However, the arrival of the stove (and the delivery of our pellets) was all that got accomplished today. As you can see in the pictures, there is no pipe coming out of the stove. Why? Here is the story.


When Chad, our contact at the Amherst Farmers Supply (finally) came to our house to review the install for the stove, I asked if we could have the venting pipe for the stove, which would pass through the living room ceiling, the bedroom, and the roof, painted white. The pipe is otherwise silver and would be an eyesore. Getting it painted white would allow it to blend into the white walls of our house. Chad assured me that this was possible as there is high temperature paint. 


When the pellets were not delivered two weeks ago due to rain, I called Chad to set the new date and also confirmed the aspects for the stove install. Apparently, he did not write down about the painting of the vent pipe on my record either because when the gentleman came to install the stove today and I asked about the paint, he was surprised.

They brought in the stove and stone and laid it down, but the parts of the pipe need to be painted before the installation and there was no way they could get the paint today despite their best efforts. As a result, they were gone by 9:30 a.m. and will have to return on Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. to finish the install, which should take three hours or so.

Needless to say, I am in a word, livid, but I want the pipe painted and will not compromise. At least the stove is here and the pellets. I will hold off on opening my celebratory bottle of prosecco until everything is done on Wednesday. I can only hope that Wednesday will be the end of this six month process.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

In the Gym, Workin' on Her Fitness

As part of my master plan (!), I have been focusing a lot of my time and energy on wellness and fitness. At the present, this is divided into a few parts. Here are the updates from last time:
1. Exercise more.
Specifically with TurboFire at this point. I am currently six weeks in, so half way. I definitely have increased cardio indurance. I also am getting a bit more toned. I notice changes in my shoulders and in my core specifically. My legs seem unchanged, but I think TurboFire works them much less than it works my arms. I might branch out to more Beachbody workouts later.
2. Eat well.
Seth decided last week to start a lifestyle diet where he tracks everything in a food diary. I am doing this as well with an app for my iPhone, MyNetDiary. Great success! I have lost two pounds since we started a week and a half ago. I am also drinking, Shakeology, a very nutritionally rich drink from Beachbody. (Yes, I got a Beachbody membership so I can save 10%. If you're interested, you can visit my coach's website here. (She's my aerobics instructor at work, hence why she's my hook up.) I'll keep the membership as long as I am enjoying the Beachbody products, as I save more with the membership than I spend on it.
3. Keep zen.
This means being more relaxed about work and my crazy schedule in general. Staying calm and relaxed and not getting stressed. I attempt to mitigate my emotions (and not was time getting upset) as much as possible. Exercising more and eating well as areas of focus help me with this. Seth is a huge help here! I am also trying to spend my free time doing enjoyable things. Doing this allows me to look forward to upcoming events and keep focused when things are not so premium in other areas. Mind over matter!