So several good things...

Aug. 18, 2006 - 8:16 am

I got a registered letter last week "demanding payment" for the tile work on my kitchen which had NOT been done. I called and told them that I wasn't going to pay a dime until they finished the work they had been contracted for... it appears that the idiot salesman I had been dealing with had told them it *was* done, and that I refused to pay after they finished.

Moron. I told them I would no longer work with him, or the idiot installer they had used. The countertop from the same company had been done so well that I figured it was an issue with the salesman, not the company, so I would give them one more chance.

So they sent over an inspector, and they're going to fix all the things the idiot installer did wrong, including buying me a new door after dinging up one of my cabinets. Inspector-guy was walking around shaking his head at the shoddy installation and also informed me that a) the salesman who was jerking me around had been fired (I didn't ask, but I doubt it was just for *my* account) and b) the installer isn't being paid for four *other* jobs besides mine he screwed up, and wasn't being used any more.

So I go in next week to talk to the GM and have them order the new tile I need for the re-install. They have to tear out a half-walls worth, and the idiot installer didn't even use bullnose on the ends.

But all good... having more electrical work done on Thursday, so maybe they can show up then as well. Electrical won't be working on anything in the kitchen.

Unfortunately, the practices are at the same time as I have Sean's, and at a different park. So Kathy's gonna be doing a bit of driving. I'll head on over after Sean's practices, as Connor's are longer.

But at least that's one HUGE weight off my mind.

When I was talking to Connor after the meeting about my concerns about *not* coaching him, he was very cool with it. I said I felt really guilty, and (jokingly) that he might be able to get away with a bit more as a way for me to assuage my guilt. He just said one word: "Paintball." Sounds good to me; something else we can do together, provided there's no age limit.

About a month ago, it started getting worse; numb hands in the morning, one of my thumbs has a small patch that is *always* numb (that's the scary thing). So I started wearing the braces again... still no sleep. But I was wearing them and *trying* to get to sleep for an hour or so before taking them off, just to get used to them. Last three nights? Fell asleep, although I awoke in the middle of the night and had to take them off.

Baby steps...

But I was talking to a friend here at work about it, and he mentioned that his "boss" has the same problem last year, and recommended taking breaks from the keyboard, stretches, etc as well as a book to read (which I have since ordered from Amazon). He gave me a program for my computer that actually stops you from working to stretch for a few seconds every 5 minutes or so, as well as the appropriate wrist/arm stretches.

It'll take a few months, but I'm willing to give it time. It's just weird that an offhand comment to someone got me all this information... you just never know.

I mean, it *is* the official language here in SoCal, and I am the *only* native English speaker on *both* soccer teams.

But it's been something I wanted to do for a while... I was going to learn French when I was with Lisa (as she spoke fluent French), but since we broke up, I decided again back on Spanish. I may do French next, if this goes well, as my sister-in-law is from France, and my brother and sister both speak it.

It's *very* interesting and fun... I recommend the program. When you start a module, they are throwing words at you you have *no* idea what they mean... but by the end, they have been drummed into your head without the need to translate on-the-fly. I've only done a couple lessons, but I can see where this is going, and it's going someplace good!

This sort of goes along with the need for new computers, and what I will do about it. Our "newest" computer is a year old, and a piece of crap besides. Sean's computer is 4 years old, and Connor's 3. They can't run some of the programs we need them to run, both for school and fun.

So I'm thinking about just biting the bullet... we have a program at work where we get Dell discounts, and I may just buy them both new computers, myself a new laptop, and bring the 1-year old computer in the house to be a multimedia server... all videos and music on that, hooked up to my bigscreen TV. The Rosetta Stone could run from there as well, and we could all use it over the home network.

Then I could take my laptop into the back yard and work by the pool...

But we're talking nearly $4K for this new setup, and it's something I would have to repeat in a couple years. I suppose I could get a lower-end computer for Sean, but that would only save a couple hundred bucks, and be obsolete that much sooner.

There's no real specific threat, just a feeling of anxiety on my part.

Well, that's not specifically true... when I went to pick him up from the B&G Club the other day, an (older) friend grabbed him and took him behind the bleachers to "get something." Connor told me it was a hiding place for his friend's mechanical pencil, and he needed someone to block the view while he retrieved it.

Yeah, sounds fishy, but I believe him. I also told him that other not-so-cool friends might be hiding things like drugs etc in places like that, and what would he do if that were the case? I told him to tell me and we'd deal with it. I don't think it�s at that point (yet?), but I'm trying to set the ground work for the future.

Coupled with him cheating on his birthday to register on some websites (no, not those kind... just gaming sites where you have to be 14), wanting a MySpace account, being moved up to "teens" at the B&G Club (despite just turning 12)...

Well, my life's gonna get pretty interesting.