what did you do today? (2008-2015) (closed)

[bbbamI]

Went shopping with DH today....went to several different types of stores.

Money spent today....

DH...$300 for a new air compressor
Household/food items...$50
Kitty....$28
Me....$3.60 for a 'trinket'

Hmmmmm....something's just not right.

 

[seraphim]

Let's see - drove 4 hours to look at a motorhome my wife wants. After years of researching for a new one, had the model picked out and found one with just the right acessories. Spent three hours test driving it, and come desion time she said: "I don't want it" because it was too large to take some of the places we like to go (which we had already discussed).

She walked into a slide-in truck camper and said, "I like this."

Now I'm looking at pickup trucks...

 

[justplainbll]

After making do with a 12" hacksaw for 20 years, I finally broke down and ordered a 16" stainless steel butcher saw with two extra 8tpi blades. As usual, I got an earful from my wife.
Wish I had room for the 22" model.

 

[ls99]

Woke up, found this view from the dining room window.

 

[REWahoo]

She walked into a slide-in truck camper and said, "I like this."

Now I'm looking at pickup trucks...

Ain't love grand...

Some of those truck campers can be super heavy. Better do some serious research on the load-carrying capability of the trucks you're looking at as some can't carry as much as the mfg would have you believe.

(Hint: check the fine print on the tire size/pressure information sticker - the one located inside the driver's door frame.)

 

[justplainbll]

Let's see - drove 4 hours to look at a motorhome my wife wants. After years of researching for a new one, had the model picked out and found one with just the right acessories. Spent three hours test driving it, and come desion time she said: "I don't want it" because it was too large to take some of the places we like to go (which we had already discussed).

She walked into a slide-in truck camper and said, "I like this."

Now I'm looking at pickup trucks...

Please let us know what you settle on.
You're lucky to have a bride that still enjoys that 'outdoorsy' stuff.
I often reflect on the 3 week camper trip from San Francisco to Vancouver that I enjoyed with my wife and inlaws

 

[seraphim]

.Some of those truck campers can be super heavy. Better do some serious research on the load-carrying capability of the trucks you're looking at as some can't carry as much as the mfg would have you believe.

The one she likes has a dry weight of about 2900 lbs - Palimino Maverick 2902. A 2500HD has a cargo capacity about 4100, so we're considering a 3500. Like to go diesel, because I bet we'll be looking at a 5er in 4 years lol.

 

[seraphim]

. Please let us know what you settle on.
You're lucky to have a bride that still enjoys that 'outdoorsy' stuff.
I often reflect on the 3 week camper trip from San Francisco to Vancouver that I enjoyed with my wife and inlaws

We tent camped for our honeymoon, and have always enjoyed travel and staying in state parks. We'll let you know the final decision

 

[REWahoo]

A 2500HD has a cargo capacity about 4100...

Please don't make the same mistake I made and believe the slick mfg. sales brochures.

Yes, you definitely do need to be looking at a 3500HD and paying close attention to the cargo carrying capacity (CCC) on the door sticker I noted above. That 4,100 number is for a stripped-down basic std cab truck with zero options. Everything the mfg. or you put on the truck adds weight and reduces CCC, including the heavier diesel engine, automatic transmission, crew cab configuration - even floor mats.

Prime example: I have a 2011 2500HD crew cab 4x4 with the diesel engine. It came with all the options available on the truck except the in-dash nav system and dvd player. My CCC (printed on the sticker in the door frame) is a whopping 2,434. Compare that to the advertised 4,100 and you get the picture.

 

[antmary]

Wow, that was fast! It's great that you didn't have to worry about toilet color or style.

While you were actually accomplishing something, I have been tearing my house apart looking for my checkbook. The last time I wrote a check was in January, right here where I am sitting, and I haven't thought about it since. I look at my checking account every day, and no illicit checks have been passed. It's here somewhere.... Bet it fell under the sofa.

Try that hidden pocket in your purse that you accidentally put it in...or, look under that pile of mail that you haven't gotten to yet. Or, the drawer that you put it in "for now."

 

[W2R]

Try that hidden pocket in your purse that you accidentally put it in...or, look under that pile of mail that you haven't gotten to yet. Or, the drawer that you put it in "for now."

Thanks for the ideas. Still haven't found it and now I am also wondering if I looked right at it and just didn't SEE it, at some point in my search. Also last night I dreamed that it fell out in my Venza - - I usually just casually toss my purse behind the passenger seat when F. is with me, and when I grab it blindly from that spot the checkbook could fall out. So, I'll check in the car again, too.

Woke up, found this view from the dining room window.

Absolutely beautiful! My jasmine has bloomed as well, covering the full expanse of my 6' high fence with an abundance of fragrant white flowers. Spring is upon us!

 

[REWahoo]

Thanks for the ideas. Still haven't found it and now I am also wondering if I looked right at it and just didn't SEE it, at some point in my search. Also last night I dreamed that it fell out in my Venza - - I usually just casually toss my purse behind the passenger seat when F. is with me, and when I grab it blindly from that spot the checkbook could fall out. So, I'll check in the car again, too.

Here's a sure fire, can't miss method of finding it. Report it lost to your bank, get a new account number and order new checks. Your lost checkbook will show up within 48 hours just like mine did.

 

[seraphim]

Prime example: I have a 2011 2500HD crew cab 4x4 with the diesel engine. It came with all the options available on the truck except the in-dash nav system and dvd player. My CCC (printed on the sticker in the door frame) is a whopping 2,434. Compare that to the advertised 4,100 and you get the picture.

I most certainly do. Thanks.

 

[freebird5825]

Last night I installed the rest of the 1"x1" (actually 15/16" x 15/16") tiles in the ladies bathroom floor at the club where I volunteer. It took some creative alignment to blend 10 older tiles in with the 20 newer ones in the existing mosaic pattern. I put one of those CAUTION Wet Floor standup thingies over it so it would not be stepped on while the adhesive cured.
Today I will go do the grouting so it can cure for 2 days and seal it Friday morning before the very busy Friday night fish fry event.
Next up is fixing a utility sink drain trap with WaterWeld. Replacing the trap itself involves disturbing rusted pipe connections , so the patch is the better answer.
I am learning how to do things I always called a contractor in for at the house.
Mr B has 3 weeks until finals, then he is a free man.

 

[TromboneAl]

Thanks for the ideas. Still haven't found it and now I am also wondering if I looked right at it and just didn't SEE it, at some point in my search. Also last night I dreamed that it fell out in my Venza - - I usually just casually toss my purse behind the passenger seat when F. is with me, and when I grab it blindly from that spot the checkbook could fall out. So, I'll check in the car again, too.

Any chance that you used the last check, and discarded the cover?

I wanna win that car!

From (at 4:07):

Hulu - Saturday Night Live: Census Taker

 

[W2R]

Here's a sure fire, can't miss method of finding it. Report it lost to your bank, get a new account number and order new checks. Your lost checkbook will show up within 48 hours just like mine did.

That would work, I'm sure!

Any chance that you used the last check, and discarded the cover?

There were 16 checks left. I will probably find it when looking for something else, 3-4 months from now.

 

[Khan]

Yesterday: hung laundry even thoug was in the 40s, but windy sunny dry.
Today: Farmers market and grocery.
Chance of a freeze/frost tonight after 80s a few weeks ago. Hope the hosta and lily of the valley survive.

 

[TromboneAl]

Now I've got a missing-item mystery. I've had a six-inch, good-quality steel rule for years. I used it last night at the workbench, and today it's not there. I figured it must have fallen into the trash can, so I transferred ever item from that can to another, which was particularly messy, because this morning I had discarded a paint can with about 2 TBS of paint, poured into the can so that it would dry. Not there.

I thoroughly cleaned the shelf under the workbench, and the area below it, so I know it didn't fall there.

I haven't measured anything else since last night (Don't say it!).

I'm determined to find it.

 

[Major Tom]

You mean a six FOOT rule don't you?

I'm not sure what use a six-inch rule would be.....(I'm not going there....)

 

[travelover]

Now I've got a missing-item mystery. I've had a six-inch, good-quality steel rule for years. I used it last night at the workbench, and today it's not there...........

I usually find stuff in the drawers on my bench. No idea how it gets off the bench into the drawer.

 

[Major Tom]

You mean a six FOOT rule don't you?

I'm not sure what use a six-inch rule would be.....(I'm not going there....)

Oh, forget what I said. I thought you meant a retractable measuring tape as opposed to a rule. That's what I get for not having my brain in gear.

 

[ls99]

Now I've got a missing-item mystery. I've had a six-inch, good-quality steel rule for years. I used it last night at the workbench, and today it's not there. I figured it must have fallen into the trash can, so I transferred ever item from that can to another, which was particularly messy, because this morning I had discarded a paint can with about 2 TBS of paint, poured into the can so that it would dry. Not there.

I thoroughly cleaned the shelf under the workbench, and the area below it, so I know it didn't fall there.

I haven't measured anything else since last night (Don't say it!).

I'm determined to find it.

Hey Al, I found it, was in my Kennedy toolbox. Can't explain the method by which it arrived on the est coast.

 

[Nords]

Last fall we added two inches of foam insulation to our south roof along with rebuilding our familyroom. We also added tinted low-e double-pane windows on the east walls. Now that the Hawaii winter rains have eased off a little and spring is in the air, we're getting some good solar data.

The house has been so cold since the renovation that we haven't been using our ceiling fans-- not in any of our rooms. We didn't even open our stairwell window until last week. I haven't been able to slap a Kill-A-Watt meter on a ceiling fan so I haven't collected any hard data, but in previous summers we used to run those fans for 16-24 hours. I think those days are over.

Today we got our electric bill. Between 8 March and 5 April, HECO's meter logged 144 KWHrs of photovoltaic production and only 142 KWHrs of electrical use. In other words we generated more power than we used. What's unusual is that we did it March instead of July. March was still a pretty windy & rainy month, and as the sun starts shining we're really going to ramp up the production. Our average generation is about 250 KWHr/month and by July/August we'll be pushing 300.

So it looks like our new no-ceiling-fan "baseline" use is about 150 KWHr/month, and about 25 KWHr of that is the aquarium air pump.

The array has already paid for itself, so this is free power. I was going to start pricing whole-house energy monitors but that's no longer worth the trouble. I was wondering if we should upgrade our array, but I think that can wait until we buy an EV. Even then I might just add a kilowatt of panels with microinverters on a separate breaker instead of upgrading our whole array. We already have the rack space.

HECO credits us on a rolling 12-month carry, but even after this coming winter we could still be donating power to them. (You're welcome, ClifP.) However our daughter still spends a couple weeks here in between college semesters, and she's good for at least 150 KWHrs herself during each of those times.

HECO still charges us $8/month to stay connected to the grid, and they still add nuisance fees & surcharges on that. When we generate more than we use, we go to "minimum bill" of $13.70. If this keeps up, our total electric expenses for a year would be $165.

We still have a water/sewer bill that's over $100/month, and that's projected to rise another 25% over the next few years.

In other words we'll be paying far more to flush the toilets than we will be to light the bathrooms. I guess I'll have to work on that part next... maybe a solar-powered composting toilet?

 

[grasshopper]

Hey Al, I found it, was in my Kennedy toolbox. Can't explain the method by which it arrived on the est coast.

Quantum entanglement.

 

[ERD50]

The array has already paid for itself, so this is free power. ...

I'm guessing that is not really true.

Perhaps the array has repaid your out-of-pocket cost, but I doubt that it has actually paid for itself, which would include the amounts that other people paid to provide the various subsidies. It's not 'free power' yet, it's power that other people paid for. I don't understand why some of us should be paying other people's power bills.

Let us know when it has repaid its full cost, that will be interesting to me, and a sign that solar has 'arrived'.

-ERD50