Suffolk

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End of the Year Lunch

My friend and I went out to lunch today to Ruby Tuesday’s. It wasn’t really meant to be a celebration of the end of the year, just a chance for a last meal together before I push off, but there sure was a lot of reminiscing about the year going on!,

Ruby Tuesdays is a fairly new discovery for me and I really like it! I especially appreciate that I can get lots and lots of healthy veggies with my meal. Portions in the States tend to be ginormously unhealthy, but it’s easy to make better choices at Ruby Tuesday’s and I like that some dishes have smaller portions, like half a rack of ribs instead of a full one.

Since I wasn’t driving, I had a Seaside Oasis, a yummy fruity vodka cocktail with bits of mango. It seemed like the perfect drink to toast the coming weeks. 🙂

We even had dessert (their coffee was fantastic and included!!!) in the form of very reasonably priced cupcakes. She went with carrot cake and I tried red velvet for the first time!

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Mine was decorated with sprinkles. Hers was decorated with… carrot. LOL!

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A Glass Half Full Kinda of Gal

2012 has been quite the year. It’s easy to look on the six months of it that didn’t go as planned because of the accident and call the year a write-off.

But that’s not how I tally up a year. Rather, I look at where I was, where I wanted to go, and where I wound up. Doing that exercise makes it obvious that 2012 was one of the most successful years of my life.

I welcomed 2012 in an apartment while I was working for an outside company, albeit part-time and most definitely temporarily. For the year ahead, I wanted to finish winter with a journey eastward through the US, to spend the summer with my family, to continue growing my business, and to welcome 2013 from a warm spot in the US. I have done all of that. How can I not deem 2012 a success?

Sure, my eastward journey wasn’t uneventful and there was more stress this summer than fun. But the culmination of all that is that I am in the best place I have been in years.

The accident meant that I had to stay put for the summer and gave me the time to learn a new trade while upgrading my home. Except for a little paint, my good home is as done as it ever could be. It took 14 years of adult life to get the idea of ‘home’ right and to fall into a sustainable housekeeping routine. Now, I wake up every morning now contented with my space rather than bemoaning what needs to be done.

Even though I miss my little green car, I have to admit that I am happy with my new rig and consider it to be superior to my old one in many ways. Could that old codger’s misdoing have been a blessing in disguise? It’s starting to feel that way.

But most wonderful of all, because of this new solid foundation to my life, I am parked in my best friend’s driveway for the holiday season. A few days from now, I am going to be heading for the Gulf coast where I will finally get to sit on a beach and drink wonderful rum-based drinks out of coconuts and snicker at all those silly Canadians who choose to winter in snow and sleet. And I missed Snowmaggedon 2012!

I can only look at 2013 with hope because 2012 ends with so much promise. Happy new year indeed!

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Wretched Housekeeping

It’s a beautiful Sunday here in Hampton Roads, but yesterday it was pouring rain! It was perfect weather for a movie, but I was reminded that going to a movie on a rainy Saturday is not the best idea. Boy was the theatre packed!

I saw Les misérables, the depressing nature of which was also perfect for the weather conditions.

Most of the reviews of the movie compare it to the musical, which I have not seen. But I have read the novel straight through at least three times and frequently find myself rereading favourite parts. It’s one of those iconic books of a reader’s life, one whose first reading is remembered forever.

So I went in with fairly low expectations but high hope. And except for a few quibbles (like using the Thénardiers as comic relief), I felt this was one of the better adaptations I’ve seen. It got the mood right, most of the cast was perfect (Fantine, Cosette (child and adult), and Marius especially looked exactly as I have always envisioned them). And not a single one of my favourite scenes from the book was missing.

So while I wasn’t crazy about the musical style and every scene with the Thénardiers, visually this movie was a feast for a fan of Victor Hugo’s classic work. I look forward to seeing it again on DVD.

Today’s project was to rearrange the front room. I am tired of cleaning up the cat litter area every night only to step on filthy clumps in the morning because Neelix decided to have a party overnight. So reversed the layout of the room.

 

This picture of Neelix waiting in line for water was too hilarious not to share.

This picture of Neelix waiting in line for water was too hilarious not to share.

Good about the new layout is that it hides the litter box and gives me space to put my shoes.

Good about the new layout is that it hides the litter box and gives me space to put my shoes.

Not so good about the new layout, the chair looks squeezed in and the window is behind it.

Not so good about the new layout, the chair looks squeezed in and the window is behind it.

The room feels more unbalanced now.

The room feels more unbalanced now.

I’m not crazy about having the chair crammed in like that, but I’ll try it for a bit. Another thing I’m considering is getting a top-entrance litter box. I will miss my Omega Paw so much, but the cleaning is really getting on my nerves. What’s nice about this layout is that you don’t see the box first thing when you come in the door and I have room for my shoes, but the room feels more crammed and unbalanced at first glance.

I really need to do something with that styrofoam and get some colour on the back wall. I think I will stain it.

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Partial Success With the Installation of New House Batteries

It was touch and go for the acquisition of new house batteries because I didn’t want to get them until I got a battery watering system. The Pro-Fill RV edition dual 6V battery watering system from Camping World came quickly, but the Pro-Fill handy pump, which makes the system work, was back ordered. It finally arrived yesterday. With today being the last moderately nice day for the next little bit, I decided to try to get my new batteries in.

I had already done my market research and decided on two Trojan-145s, with 260 amp hours (about 156 usable amp hours), a significant increase from my old pair at 150 amp hours (about 90 usable amp hours). The week before Christmas, I called all the local dealers and was quoted over $200 per battery, plus a hefty disposal fee for my old batteries from all but one company, Battery Outlet, who told me $199.99 with no disposal fee.

So I called Battery Outlet this morning to confirm that they still had T-145s in stock. Yes, two. I had them set aside and then went outside to remove my old pair. With the way Miranda is parked, the closest I can get my truck to the rig is about 35 feet. Don’t ask me how I did it, but I picked up those heavy suckers and marched them to the truck!

I took off just after lunch to the bowels of Chesapeake, finding Battery Outlet without any trouble at all. There, I asked if they had any equivalent batteries for less money and their inventory said they did, but it was mistaken. They decided to price match the other set and I got my batteries for $169.99 each! I just did a Google check for “trojan 145 price” and it looks like I got a good deal not just for Hampton Roads, but in general. Woohoo!

The new batteries are bigger but didn’t feel any heavier than the old ones. I got one to the rig with minimal grunting, but the second one felt about twice as heavy. I am going to be sore tomorrow! But I wasn’t done lifting yet since I wanted to install the Pro-Fill system with the batteries outside of the compartment. So dropped the batteries on the ground (gently!), then lifted them into the compartment in two steps, using my E-Z Foldz stool as a resting point (as a side note, if you don’t have an E-Z Foldz stool, you’re missing out.).

Here are the batteries with their caps removed and the Pro-Fill caps installed:

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I ran out of day, so I didn’t finish the installation. The rest just involves attaching tubing to the barbs and connecting the pump, so it can be done with the batteries in situ.

And here are the batteries in the compartment:

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They are a couple of inches taller than my old pair (and, yes, I measured before buying!). Filling these manually would be almost impossible, so the Pro-Fill system is a must.

Getting everything hooked up was easy and then I tested the voltage before turning 12V power back on. Uh… why were my 6V batteries registering 12V each and 25V together?! Oh, geeze, the multimetre was on the AC, not DC, setting! I got it on the correct setting and got a combined reading of 12.1V, so I set them on the charger.

Inside, I turned the solar controller back on and it was muuuuuuch happier than it has been in a while. I ended up turning it off because it used to display readings that fluctuated violently. Now, it’s registering a steady voltage.

But all is not well as my batter monitor is not working. I had disconnected at the same time I turned off the solar monitor and it’s not coming back on. Connections look good, so I’m thinking (hoping) I have a blown fuse.

Once I get a good charge on the batteries, I am going to unplug from shore power for at least a day with my inverter running to make sure everything is good. It looks like sun for Sunday and Monday, so that will be a good time to test to make sure the batteries are charging well with solar and holding the charge.

Getting out of this spot will be very tricky as I am on a very, very, very, very busy thoroughfare. The best time to get out of here will be late in the day on a weekend, so I am going to tentatively schedule departure for next Saturday. That should give me time to troubleshoot my battery monitor some more.

Battery monitor notwithstanding, my day made me feel very accomplished!

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I Missed Snowmageddon 2012!

Reports rolled in today from family and friends in southern Quebec and eastern Ontario about the crazy amount of snow the region was getting. I heard estimates of 50 cm/20 in some parts! They are going to be digging themselves out of that one for several days.

These stories remind me of how much of my life has been wasted fighting winter. All those hours of dealing with frozen pipes, shovelling, driving in bad conditions, dressing and undressing in 50 billion layers, and earning the money to pay for all the propane needed to stay warm. And then there was the number of times I had to walk with soggy feet because of slush or nurse bad bruises from slipping on ice or lose a piece of my ear to frostbite. I do miss crisp cold sunny days, building snow forts, snowshoeing, and tobogganing, but not enough to ever want to deal with wintery conditions again.

There are no words to express how grateful I am to be in Hampton Roads tonight, warm and snug and not needing more than a heater running on low to keep my home comfortable. All I can say is that I feel very content and satisfied.