If all goes well, he may be joining the family in a couple weeks.
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Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Oh, and then there was this...
If it looks like I'm surprised and in a little bit of pain, it's because I am.
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Back on the grid
Back home after a quick trip to my Aunt's house in upstate NY. No cell phone service up there, which I think says a lot about how remote it is. My aunt is selling her property, so this may have been our last trip up there. Sad, especially considering her house was originally going to stay in the family, but I understand now that it's not practical for her as she gets older (she's in her late 70s), and selling will help her afford a nice small cottage in a retirement community. Still sad though, considering all the good memories I have of visiting there since I was about 8.
I am counting down the days to our Memorial Day vacation. And yet, once again, my clients seem intent of making this week as excruciating as possible. They seem to always do that when I'm about to go away, even when they don't know I'm going away.
UPDATE: When I post from my phone, I can't spellcheck -- hence all the crazy typos and spelling mistakes you've probably been noticing.
I am counting down the days to our Memorial Day vacation. And yet, once again, my clients seem intent of making this week as excruciating as possible. They seem to always do that when I'm about to go away, even when they don't know I'm going away.
UPDATE: When I post from my phone, I can't spellcheck -- hence all the crazy typos and spelling mistakes you've probably been noticing.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Taking $100K away from Bank of America
More blogging from my phone ... though this time it's from the couch. My netbook has some power cord issues, so I can't use it, and I'm way too lazy to use one of the computers upstairs.
So, I mentioned yesterday that I applied to refinance our mortgage. Let me just say that this process has brought back all the bad memories from when we purchased the home in 2009. I won't go into details, but I will just say that it was insanely, needlessly stressful. All because the people who we were dealing with at Bank of America didn't know what they were doing. I would say that it was also because we were "risky" buyers, on paper, (considering I was newly self-employed and Sara was newly employed with a 1-year gap in between her last job), BUT the fact is, we had two other lenders who were fine with our situation and ready to hook us up! We went with BOA because they had the most attractive rates and the loan officer's assistant insisted that there would be no problems.
There were problems.
Perhaps because I am a glutton for punishment, I went to that same loan officer last week to find out about our refinancing options. Four days later, he finally responded and made it clear he hadn't listened to what loan I wanted and why we were refinancing. Goodbye, BOA. I have cut ties with one bank already this year (Citizens). In a few weeks, I will hopefully cut ties with you too. And, you will lose over $100,000 of my money in interest in the process. I win.
So, I mentioned yesterday that I applied to refinance our mortgage. Let me just say that this process has brought back all the bad memories from when we purchased the home in 2009. I won't go into details, but I will just say that it was insanely, needlessly stressful. All because the people who we were dealing with at Bank of America didn't know what they were doing. I would say that it was also because we were "risky" buyers, on paper, (considering I was newly self-employed and Sara was newly employed with a 1-year gap in between her last job), BUT the fact is, we had two other lenders who were fine with our situation and ready to hook us up! We went with BOA because they had the most attractive rates and the loan officer's assistant insisted that there would be no problems.
There were problems.
Perhaps because I am a glutton for punishment, I went to that same loan officer last week to find out about our refinancing options. Four days later, he finally responded and made it clear he hadn't listened to what loan I wanted and why we were refinancing. Goodbye, BOA. I have cut ties with one bank already this year (Citizens). In a few weeks, I will hopefully cut ties with you too. And, you will lose over $100,000 of my money in interest in the process. I win.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Things I did today
Wrote a bunch of stuff I don't even remember.
Worked from a cafe in Lancaster.
Forgot to take my wallet to said cafe.
Grilled some pork burgers.
Worked on a wedding photo book that's been in the works since 2009.
Applied to refinance my mortgage.
Drank some very fruity vodka drinks.
Worked from a cafe in Lancaster.
Forgot to take my wallet to said cafe.
Grilled some pork burgers.
Worked on a wedding photo book that's been in the works since 2009.
Applied to refinance my mortgage.
Drank some very fruity vodka drinks.
Friday, May 13, 2011
No pain, no gain
I am blogging from the gym ... on the freaking cycling machine. Isn't that the most ridiculous thing ever? I am also watching the Phillies game and listening to Howard Stern. So I've got some major multitaskng going on here. It's actually pretty hard to concentrate on what I'n writing, so I'll keep this short. On tap for tomorrow: all depends on the weather. First, coffee and egg sandwiches. Mmmm. Then, maybe some yard work, maybe a car wash, cleaning and the other usual weekend errands. Oh, and I just remembered I have to work a little in the AM. Damn! Anyway, I'm out.
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Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
Home, sweet home.
Just got back last night from a weekend trip to upstate NY. I was thinking this weekend that I have such a weird association with that area now. On one hand, it's the area where I went to college, so I associate it with a ton of memories from living there for four years. On the other, it's where S's family lives (literally right across the street from the college. In fact, the street they live on is named after the school), and so I now have more of an association with weekend trips to see the family, holiday traveling, etc. It sometimes feels weird to be so close to the school but to never actually go there and check it out. If S's family lived in another area, I think it would feel more special to occasionally visit my old stomping grounds. But, understandably, it's now almost an extension of where we live. It's like a second home, in a way.
Today was a pretty good day, I must say. Fairly busy in the morning, but I was able stop working around 2 to try out my AWESOME NEW LIVE BIKE CAM! I am totally geeking out over this. It's just something I've wanted to do for a while, and finally there are enough free apps out there to do it without spending any money or figuring out technical stuff. In case you're not sure what this amazing live bike cam is ... it's a CAMERA (on my cell phone)... recording LIVE VIDEO when I ride my bike ... and BROADCASTING IT LIVE ON THE INTERNET as I ride. Pretty fikken amazing. At the moment, there is no real practical use for this cam. I just think it's cool.
Anyway, the rest of the night has involved making dinner with S, finally cleaning up my 5+ piles of clothes around the house, taking my dog to play at the fairgrounds, and now finally relaxing in front of the Phils' game. Ahhh. Maybe it's the weather, but it has just been a great day all around. Happy to be home.
Today was a pretty good day, I must say. Fairly busy in the morning, but I was able stop working around 2 to try out my AWESOME NEW LIVE BIKE CAM! I am totally geeking out over this. It's just something I've wanted to do for a while, and finally there are enough free apps out there to do it without spending any money or figuring out technical stuff. In case you're not sure what this amazing live bike cam is ... it's a CAMERA (on my cell phone)... recording LIVE VIDEO when I ride my bike ... and BROADCASTING IT LIVE ON THE INTERNET as I ride. Pretty fikken amazing. At the moment, there is no real practical use for this cam. I just think it's cool.
Anyway, the rest of the night has involved making dinner with S, finally cleaning up my 5+ piles of clothes around the house, taking my dog to play at the fairgrounds, and now finally relaxing in front of the Phils' game. Ahhh. Maybe it's the weather, but it has just been a great day all around. Happy to be home.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
What do I have to say for myself?
Well, let's see ...
- I have some kind of poison ivy on my arms now. More bubbly, itchy goodness from your favorite blogging friend!
- Heading to upstate NY this weekend for a delayed Easter visit, apple-picking-something-or-other, and a memorial for my brother-in-law's mother-in-law.
- Work is getting a bit stressful again, although earlier this week I had very little do. It's amazing sometimes how quickly this can change from day to day. One day I am riding my bike in the morning, walking the dog, and enjoying life. The next day, I am so swamped I feel like I can barely breathe. What's up with that?
- I am very excited about a project I have been planning for a couple years but didn't think would be easy/possible until recently. This summer, I hope to have a live webcam on my bike for all my training rides and my (hopefully) 100-mile ride for the MS Society. Still working out the logistics, but this could be very cool (to me, anyway. I like webcam stuff.)
- Gah! One of my TV addictions, Survivor, is about to start, so I must be going. Auf wiedersehen.
- I have some kind of poison ivy on my arms now. More bubbly, itchy goodness from your favorite blogging friend!
- Heading to upstate NY this weekend for a delayed Easter visit, apple-picking-something-or-other, and a memorial for my brother-in-law's mother-in-law.
- Work is getting a bit stressful again, although earlier this week I had very little do. It's amazing sometimes how quickly this can change from day to day. One day I am riding my bike in the morning, walking the dog, and enjoying life. The next day, I am so swamped I feel like I can barely breathe. What's up with that?
- I am very excited about a project I have been planning for a couple years but didn't think would be easy/possible until recently. This summer, I hope to have a live webcam on my bike for all my training rides and my (hopefully) 100-mile ride for the MS Society. Still working out the logistics, but this could be very cool (to me, anyway. I like webcam stuff.)
- Gah! One of my TV addictions, Survivor, is about to start, so I must be going. Auf wiedersehen.
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