archives
[ * 27 March to 30 May 2005 * ]
[ * February to 25 March 2005 * ]
[ * January 2005 * ]
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* F E B R U A R Y *
1 FEBRUARY 2005 / Tuesday -- The car I got as a loan is, according to the key tag, a 2005 Nissan Sentra, Silver -- -- it is almost too low to get into, a lot smaller than the Jeep, has seemingly less storage/trunk space then even the Festiva I had, but, hey, it has all kinds of electronic thingys for opening windows, adjusting mirrors, digital inside/outside temperature screen, even a key on the alarm module for opening the freekin trunk, and others for unlocking and locking the door! Getting my long legs in under the steering column after almost sitting at street level in the driver seat is tedious, but hey, it works nice and very quietly, the single time I used it for anything thus far. I did not look for a steering column adjustment thingy.
I called Trenton Auto Body to see if they knew anything about when the Jeep would be done, and was surprised to learn that the Allstate adjustor was there when I called and was looking at it (after a week!) and said it was a total loss -- too much front end damage, possible structural/chassis, possible steering and possible something else damage, and the repair costs would be some 2,900 clams but they only nominally value the car with some 134k miles on it at about $2,300 -- the curious thing is that, when I took the car to the shop, I mentioned to the owner that after they theoretically repaired it early last year following the minor front end accident I had, which the insurance company paid somewhat over $1,600 to repair, I noticed that the steering was somewhat strange, the car never seemed to steer straight, and when I sometimes moved to change lanes, the Jeep would almost seem to go out of control, very like what happened to me in this accident -- I wonder if they cut corners that time, and simply did not fix a steering problem caused by that accident, assuming they even looked for it -- but, hey, they are the specialists and have to know these things -- the driver's side door never even closed easily after that repair, and the heating never seemed to heat up as it did before -- should I also mention that the air conditioning stopped cooling anything in hot weather, too -- everything worked before! Anyway, I was shocked!
The guy said they could give me a check for some $2,100, which already includes the $100 deductible, and that I would have to junk it -- I told him that I had somebody ask if I wanted to sell the Jeep a couple months ago and they offered me a lot more than that for it, and that it still worked, as I was able to drive it to the shop! How does one go about junking a car, and that I love that car and what would I do without it -- I certainly cannot find another one for the chintzy check they want to give me! He said he will give the file to some other Allstate adjustor for a review, but he knows they will say the same thing. I have been with Allstate for at least 20 years and never had this kind of a problem with them before -- what should I do?
6 FEBRUARY 2005 / Sunday -- I think I decided to let the Insurance company keep my Jeep -- one should not try to become too attached to anything because it could result in spending more money than the whatever is really worth, and as you recall, they did not repair it right the last time -- I went to two small local used car dealers, and found better Jeeps, a 1993 for 3+k and a newer one, 1999 (?) for 8+k -- I checked online and all the older Jeeps similar to mine cost more than 3k, so Allstate wants to give me a lot less than what I can replace it for -- not a surprise! I still have to go to the body shop to remove some of my things that are still in the car, including the newer spare tire, jack, etc. -- maybe I can use it for something later or sell it on eBay.
It is over 40 degrees today -- snow is forecast for later next week, and there is still a lot on the ground from our last snowstorm.
I put a couple domain names for sale on eBay, including three on their Spanish site -- as usual, listing on eBay Spain is cheaper than on the USA site -- I doubt that any will sell because most people have not yet realized the importance of having their own domain name and web site, and when they do figure out they need one for personal or business use, the name they want will not be available because somebody else registered it years ago!
I discovered that my passport expired last year, which means I shall have to renew it here in Trenton asap -- GAWD, how time flies!
Last week I called George in Alabama on the phone because I have not seen him appear online for many days -- he sounded very weak, and said the doctors cannot do very much at this point -- continue to pray for him, please.
Bernar gave me 2 cases of red wine for Christmas 2004, twelve 750ml bottles in each -- -- Spanish and French. Last night I finished the last bottle of those two cases of open bottles he threw out, the ones he said were bad -- hey, I am still alive, and the wine was not undrinkable!
Not a lot else is new here, but quite a few kewl links -- I may make a special Kewl Links page, organizing them into perhaps 5 general topic categories, just to have them all in one place for convenience -- OK, I just did this, link below.
10 FEBRUARY 2005 / Thursday -- I have not gotten a check from Allstate for my Jeep yet -- yesterday I did go to the garage to get my personal things out of it, and hope to return today to take a photo and give them my title certificate.-- it is raining and we may get some snow later.-- on 7 February I looked out the kitchen window and saw that someone broke the driver side of the Nissan window -- -- they took my numbered neighborhood parking permit -- the police came and wrote a report, taking the metal bar from inside used to break the window; I doubt they will check for fingerprints, though. It had to happen between about 03h when I went to bed, and noon -- I gave him the possible number of the permit and suggested that, curiously, at about that time a local guy who delivers newspapers returns, and that he never has a parking permit in his 3 cars, and always parks half way in my handicapped place -- so I have been looking for permit # 269 or # 271 when I go outside.
I have not found a replacement car that is reasonably priced, although I looked in about 8 car dealers. Nobody has a used jeep available, and they all tell me they are sold as soon as they arrive, which could be just an excuse -- they always try to sell me something else, though! This is slightly inconvenient because the loan car they gave me to replace the one with the broken window is also very small and I must go shopping for food because the fridge is almost empty. Enough for this one -- I may have a pic of the new loan car in my next update -- here are a few links for your browsing pleasure.
13 FEBRUARY 2005 / Sunday -- This is the 2005 Toyota -- -- that replaces the Nissan that was vandalized -- not a word nor payment from Allstate yet, and I have not taken the title for the Jeep to the car repair shop yet because I do not trust the insurance company at all -- they can get the title certificate when I get the check for the measly 2k they said they would send me! Theoretically I may have found a newer replacement Jeep, a 2000 Cherokee Sport, four wheel drive, automatic transmission, and totally filled with all kinds of buttons to push for just about everything, from rear view mirrors to windows and door locks, cruise control, plus loads of air bags -- I have always owned a stick shift and never had a 4x4! The slight glitch is that it costs almost 6k more than Allstate is theoretically giving me for my old 1994 Jeep Cherokee -- we shall see how things turn out (I have never had so many automatic features before, except in the 2 rental cars, and almost find them confusing and annoying).
My passport must still be renewed, and the city taxes on this property are almost overdue, as usual -- wanted to do it last week, but the car problems have sort of kept me busy. Federal income tax time is now upon us, but that should be more or less easy since I have so little income.
Although it is not as bitterly cold outside as previously, I seem to be using tissues for my runny nose unusually frequently -- it does get cold in the apartment, and was 59 degrees in the kitchen when I went in for coffee this morning, -- my feet are always cold -- slept very little. How does a move to a North Dakota 9 acre farm sound?
Fabiola is expecting soon.
14 FEBRUARY 2005 / Monday -- Valentine's Day
Fabiola had 3 kittens yersterday at about 14h in my bed, as frequently happens, usually when I am sleeping in it -- I moved her into a box in my study beside the electric oil-filled portable radiator for constant warmth, since it does get cold everywhere else (I do NOT normally have that heater plugged in) -- meaning that food, water and a litter box was also put there making less room to move around -- I do not want her bothered by the other cats while the kittys are soooo small -- at about 22h there was a fourth -- all are a darkish color, I guess one would call it blue -- they are sons of the darkish younger male who I still call Baby -- I do not even have his photo on my cat family page yet. They all seem to be eating, once they can find a teat that they constantly fish for.
Early this morning I went to the garage to give them the title certificate for the deceased Jeep, and took a shot of it -- -- it does not seem to be in that bad a shape.-- the grill section is missing, and one notes the dent on the left front side where I think it ended up against a tree or something -- no glass broken. In my kewl links I added some car related links which you may find useful if and when you may needs a new or used car, including that of the Jeep I found, but do not know how long it will still be online if I decide to buy it.
If you remember the fiasco with that student trip to Bush's inauguration last month, Linda emailed me that the kids got a refund of $100 from the travel agency -- perhaps it was better than nothing, but it certainly did not make up for all the disappointment. Her father, Ted, is going to Poland to visit family in Gedansk from 17 - 21 February -- he speaks fluent Polish, so he should have no problems communicating.
15 FEBRUARY 2005 / Tuesday -- on Monday it rained all day -- I called Bernar before noon (he was in a rare good mood again) and asked if he could help me return the car to the rental place and to check out the Jeep I found. He had a day off from work at the liquor store he manages, so while he went to get some paint supplies near the rental place, I returned the Toyota -- he picked me up when he finished buying what he needed. He looked at the 2000 Jeep Cherokee Sport, inside and out, saying it looked OK, but nearby he also saw a green 1998 Honda CE-V EX 4x4 that he said is a much better car -- I did not like it because it had a tire attached to the cargo door, and I think that is way too red neck for my liking -- plus it was about $2,500 more expensive. As we continued examining the Jeep he noticed that the front passenger seat was wet, and that water was dripping through the theoretical external windshield sealer -- we both had the exact same problem with the old Jeep, and he assumed that the windshield glass had been replaced. Once again inside the office, the seller dude said the glass was never replaced, but another one said it might have been, and that it was not a major problem and could be repaired in a moment. Bernar then mentioned the Honda, and the boss said, OK, you like that one (I said I did NOT!), you can have it for the same price as the Jeep, which was slightly less than $8k -- OMG! And he did not come down a cent from the price he had on the Jeep when I said I liked it! Bernie and I then test drove the Honda, with him at the wheel -- it is a totally automatic 4 wheel drive, with each of the wheels being independently controlled when turning -- automatic windows, doors, rear view mirrors, power steering and breaks, tilt wheel, ABS air bags, air conditioning, kewl radio and CD player with built in so-called alarm, which is not a real alarm, rather if the stereo system is removed, it cannot be played anywhere else because it has a code number which is originally programmed in when installed in that car -- a small LED blinked, which acted as a hypothetical deterrent (the Jeep also had most of these things, but NO CD player -- instead it had a tape player). The car seemed to be in excellent condition, nice upholstery, had a roomy cargo area, plus a folding table in the rear storage compartment, as well as an additional recharging socket in the back. Aside from the external spare tire which I did not like that much, it was two years older than the Jeep and had 10k miles more on it,, but for the cost, I thought it was sort of OK.
They gave us a CarFAX report on the Honda, made at that moment -- the Jeep has two previous owners and the Honda had 3 -- Bernar had to leave, so I was left alone with the seller peep -- OK, after a lot of just looking at papers and being my usual slow-ish self, I finally told them I will take it -- unfortunately the loan, which was surprisingly approved for the Jeep at about 9%, had to be renegotiated, and it came in at close to 11%, which they said was due to it being an older car. I had switched my insurance from the old jeep to the potential new one last Monday, and that too had to be redone. When it came time to sign the papers, they told me they could not include the 30day/1000 mile warranty they usually give with a purchase because I was getting such a cut throat deal -- I said they told me I would get it with the Jeep, and I thought they promised me the same terms and conditions, so they added the warranty, for whatever it might be worth. It took them a while to clean the outside of the car very thoroughly, even polish the hub caps, and then we discovered that the stereo system did not work because they changed the battery, so that entire assembly had to be removed to see what the code was! In the meantime I walked across the highway to a Dunkin Donuts to get a couple cream donuts and two large coffees for me and the Saudi American, Abe, the peep attending me. It was getting dark when all the paperwork was completed, and I finally sat in the Honda, ready for a new adventure -- now totally oblivious to that damn back tire -- it seemed to drive very nicely, was easy to get into and out of, and as Bernar mentioned, very quiet, and the breaks worked well. Curiously, as I drove away I saw many Jeeps along the road -- I was amazed! But then again, I would not recognize a Honda if it bit me!
It was almost empty of gas, so I went to the place I usually use in West Trenton -- the only things the owner, whom I have known for some 10 years said to me, was that he hates that dealer, who incidently has 3 branches in the area, J & S Auto Haus, because the warranty he gives never covers what his buyers bring it in for, and that the spare tire needed air!! DAMN THAT TIRE! Warranties these days are really tricky, no matter who provides them, unless it is the original source, and even then there is a lot of fine print.
Here are two pics of the new old car -- -- taken while the sun was shining on the other side of my side street this afternoon -- -- my neighbor, Carlos, likes the car, and thinks I got a good deal -- he and his two sons have a towing service and regularly do car repairs on all kinds of models.
Today I finally got around to finishing off the special Easter page I started over a year ago -- EASTER -- and got it online. It was great fun doing. The four kittens seem to be doing well, thus far.
I made an appointment to install a real alarm system in the Honda -- it is for next week, God willing, in Morrisville, across the bridge in Pennsylvania, where I had the alarm installed in the Jeep -- it will include a control thingy that also opens and locks the driver's side door. I just hope that the Honda remains unvandalized and intact until it is installed!
17 FEBRUARY 2005 / Thursday -- Is that red neck external spare tire that I did NOT like going to haunt me forever? OK, I had to return to the dealer on Wednesday to give him some information missing from their files, told him what the the garage owner said about him, and asked to have the spare filled with air -- take car around to the back and they discover there is a large hole in the spare tire! Neither Bernar, I nor the garage dude noticed it, but there it was, so I complained -- he said the boss was at a car auction and would be back that afternoon. I then thought that I should replace it immediately because if I need it in an emergency I would not have one available, I could not wait to see what the owner would do -- got a new spare tire in West Trenton -- cost me over 100 clams -- the tire guy looked at the other tires and found them OK, but in the right rear tire there was a cut in the outer surface -- -- which means that it too should be replaced, but since each tire/wheel is controlled individually, that all four would need replacement so that the tread would be equal -- I would only have to buy three more, and could use the best old tire as the replacement! FUCKIN TIRES! Why did an inner voice tell me that I did NOT like NOR want an exterior spare tire in the first place?
Then I asked the dude what I could do to make sure that nobody would steal the spare from the car -- he said there are tire nut locks, and they should have them across the street -- went there, nothing -- tried two other places on the same long street and they did not have them. Do I really need a spare tire cover, was another question I asked? It only keeps the spare clean, and maybe makes it less easy to steal -- he asked where I live -- near the train station -- YES, YOU NEED EVERYTHING YOU CAN GET TO KEEP IT SAFE!
I went home and called a couple car supply places, after 17h -- most were closed -- found one not far from here, AutoZone, open until 21h -- I drove there and they had them, but in many metric and inch sizes -- that was easy to figure out with one of the lock nuts from the Honda (12mm / 1.50") -- -- got a set of four with a single key socket, but can order another key thingy by mail I ( I always keep an extra key or two for everything just in case I need it ) -- this is what it looks like in place -- -- I asked about spare tire covers, but the guy said he did not think they had any -- he did find one last one on a top shelf, quite simple, which I also bought -- -- I also looked at steering wheel covers, which I never had or used before -- they do keep the original covering on the steering wheel in better condition than without a cover -- so I got one with a fossil fish on it -- -- and it sort of looks kewl in place -- -- surprisingly, all this stuff was cheapo, which amazed me.
I called Auto Haus and spoke with Abe [ incidentally, he is a real stud, and seems to know cars inside and out! ] -- I told him that I replaced the spare tire, and that another potential hazard was found, and I know they knew about it but allowed me to drive away without mentioning these things to me -- he kept saying that they would work with me to resolve the problem by replacing the bad tire with a hypothetically good used one, but I replied that the four main tires might not be totally equal and could affect performance in any emergency maneuver -- he had me on hold a couple times, saying he had another call -- what he was probably doing was telling the other guy what I was saying -- he kept at the working with me on this thing -- I said that I may have to go to Newark on Saturday to pick somebody up, and if I have an accident due to tire or the cars performance, Auto Haus would personally be responsible -- then he put me on hold again and I simply hung up.
After a little thought, I decided to go to Sam's Club in Langhorne, Pennsylvania because I did not have anything left in the fridge to eat or cat stuff, and while there, I could check out their tires -- the car seemed to run very well along the way, and I even tried the cruise control for the first time -- it was my first real trial in a somewhat longer distance -- I noticed that a lot of the help at Sam's had changed since I was there last, a lot of young peeps -- they had loads of tires my size, but not the specific kind I got for the spare, which was a Bridgestone, as I recall -- I selected four Goodyear Allegra, and the price including mounting and everything else was less than 300 palomas, which was considerably less than the spare, an average savings of some $45/tire! Hopefully this will end my slight tire problems, and I can get on with other things -- here is the Honda in front of my place -- -- it really is kewl, in spite of that damn red neck tire hanging out the back!
-- My close online friend George Fichtl died the evening of 17 February in Huntsville, Alabama -- my sincerest condolences are extended to his wife, Carrie, daughter and other family members.
21 FEBRUARY 2005 / Monday -- on Friday I took my oldest male Sphynx, Kamiel, to the vet because he has a tendency to have diarrhea frequently -- I finally was able to get John, the owner, to attend to me, simply because I have a lot more trust in him than I did with the other two newer associates who saw me the last times I was there. He gave me some liquid antibiotic for what may be an intestinal infection. Since it is in West Trenton, I also stopped at Bernar's to do some wash -- he has seemingly turned into a health and wellness fanatic, stopped drinking coffee, among other food changes -- he got a new fangled high tech Korean water purifier that does all kinds of strange things to tap water, including filtering it through tourmaline crystals -- it cost him something like $600 -- see link below -- I filled a gallon bottle with the miraculous reduced sized , more compact molecule and ionized water and took it with me -- curiously, when I filled the cat dishes with it, they just looked at it and did not seem interested in drinking the stuff, at least while I was watching.They did drink it, though, because I had to refill the bowls a couple times since then. I also cleaned the kitchen on Friday, which is always a chore.
I just added a new special report page about a Russian -- -- adventure -- enjoy the trip!
It is snowing again; we have about 4" thus far. Last night three of the four kittens Fabiola had died, despite my efforts to feed them with an eye dropper -- she insisted on putting them into the nearby storage bin below my paper shreader a couple days ago, out of the nice size box I prepared for them, but I allowed her to do so, thinking that mommy knows best -- the shredder bin is a lot less roomy and very narrow, and I suspish she crushed them to death, the stupid twit!
Today is a holiday -- I have not put any items on eBay for over a week, but hope to later this evening -- I do have a few eBay wins to pack and take to the post office tomorrow.
23 FEBRUARY 2005 / Wednesday -- yesterday I went to Morrisville, to the Good Vibrations Auto Salon to get the Viper alarm system -- -- installed in the Honda -- it also locks and unlocks -- -- the doors automatically, which was not possible on the Jeep -- the system came with two transmitters, and I got a third to give to Bernar, in case of emergency -- it is an updated model from the one in the Cherokee -- now all I have to do is get spare keys made.
Fabiola moved her remaining kitten from the box I always have for the kitties and found a roomy place in a plastic postal bin with the winter jacket I wore on few occasions this winter -- -- it is right beside my desk, so I guess she likes me closer than on the other end of my study. A short time ago I allowed Baby, the younger male Sphynx into the bedroom to get acquainted with the new cats and to be with the ones he already knows -- all went well -- then I opened the bedroom door and allowed them all to roam the apartment -- the new Russian cats had never been there before, but they recognized the bathroom, where they first got acclimatized. Baby was very salido, (= horny, in Español) and seemed to want to hump anything that moved, so I again closed the bedroom door with all the others inside, and he was left to roam the rest of the apartment, as he had for some days already -- I then spent a while trying to get him to stand still enough to take his photo -- -- in this pic I noticed something I had not seen previously, his rather long whiskers -- I was quite surprised because they were a lot shorter the last time I focused specifically on them many Moons ago! When all my other Sphynx sprouted a little fuzz due to the much colder weather, Baby seemed to get a lot more sort of curly hair, now I understand why -- one of the things I always checked out on the kittens, was how noticeable their whiskers were, which was a slight clue to how hairless they might become -- his were never this long, as I recall -- compare them to those of his father, Kamiel -- -- they are just stubs, not fully developed normal long cat whiskers -- this is typical of the Sphynx breed. I just spot checked my other Sphynx and they have virtually no whiskers, or extremely short ones.
Zews and Kappora, the two new critters, have no obvious whiskers, are just as smoochy and crave attention as much as my other cats, and they quickly adapted very well to their new home, which is kewl -- I do not think I ever had adjustment problems when new kittens or other cats were introduced, but know that for some peeps it can be a problem -- when Tracy, the Doberman, was with them years ago in West Trenton, they all also got along surprisingly well.
26 FEBRUARY 2005 / Saturday -- The above note about Baby should have included that my original Sphynx are from old American stock which, three geneartions ago, had a single Devon Rex in their pedigree -- the short, fine curly hair and whiskers is a characteristic of that somewhat rare breed -- Baby was the first time that Fabiola ever had a Devon type kitten. As much as I love him, and as affectionate as he is, I came to the unavoidable conclusion that I cannot keep him because #1 my apartment is a tad small, and #2 I cannot breed him with my Sphynx females to continue passing on the Devon Rex traits. The new Russian Sphynx have fabulous perigrees going back 5 generations, and in each there is champion Syphnx stock. I have already contacted three friends and my brother to see if they might like to adopt him -- my brother has two older dogs and does not want to risk it. At this point, Baby has the run of the living room and bathroom, while my other Sphynx are in the bedroom -- Fabiola is with her single kitten in my study, but she will join the others when her kitty is a couple weeks older. If I could find some loving family to adopt Baby, the rest of them would have more room to roam around, as cluttered as the place is -- there would be no charge, other than shipping, although I would really prefer the adopting parents to come here because I have never shipped a kitten before, and hate the long drive to Newark.
It snowed again on the 24th and 25th -- Thursday I went to City Hall to report the neighborhood visitor parking permit stolen from that rental car, and to get a permit for the Honda to stick on the back window -- interestingly, a replacement visitor placard now costs $20 (they were free when I got mine!), so I now understand why it was taken -- I also got the number of the one stolen, #271, which will hopefully help to find the idiot who broke the window! I also went to Morrisville to get spare keys made for the Honda, and to get the Viper alarm adjusted to include Auto ON -- 30 seconds after I leave the car, the alarm is activated in case I forget to click the remote, which never happened when I had the Jeep, but it is better to be prepared for that possibility. I also went to Bernar's place to do more wash and to fill two gallon containers with his super water, to use it in making tea and coffee, in cooking and for the cats and me to drink -- yesterday I also went there to do more wash.
This morning I went to pick up the license plates and registration for the Honda at the dealership, and must get it inspected one of these days -- they also filled up the brake fluid because it was low-ish and the red brake light kept going on -- the gas was also low, so I filled it up at my usual place in West Trenton -- it took, apparently, only 12.366 gallons (1 gallon = 3.7854 Liters = 46.8 Liters) to fill at a cost of $22.25 -- in Europe it would probably have cost at least four times that dollar amount for the same number of Liters -- I drove 233 miles since I got the thing, suggesting that it may get 19+ miles/gallon. While in the neighborhood, I stopped at the vet's and got a prescription for Clavamox, an broad spectrum oral liquid antibiotic for the kittys for when I notice them sneezing, which is infrequently -- my old stuff was from 2002, so I threw that out -- I must send the prescription to Foster & Smith, where I get most of my specialized cat supplies, and it costs me about $9.99/bottle, instead of the $34.55 the vet charges for the exact same thing!
When Evelio was alive, we would frequent the U.S. Department of the Treasury auctions in Newark, where they would sell things which were confiscated for whatever reason -- although I have not been there for many years, I do get their auction fliers sent here via snail mail -- today I go one announcing a sale in Nogales, Arizona, in which there are many cars, some cell phones, jewelry and computer stuff -- they are held in several cities from the east to the west coast, and usually have a lot more items listed, including things such as pleasure boats, airplanes and parts, real estate property, ROLEX watches, diamonds, toys, tiles, liquor, food, furniture, articles of clothing, etc. -- I added the auction link, below -- some items are usually in quantity case lots, which is great for eBay sellers and shops.
The nights have been below freezing, and the days are not very much higher. The new cats have completely adapted to their new home, and they all seem to be less active when I get to bed, quickly finding a place under the covers and allowing me to oversleep!
* M A R C H *
7 March 2005 / Monday -- very briefly, it has been a sort of active week -- put recyclables out, were not picked up, it snowed a lot again, called them 4x on four different daze, they finally showed up and took the four bins full -- shower -- got passport pics taken, did the renewal thing, should arrive in two weeks -- telephoned and emailed several peeps about adopting Baby, no takers thus far; also put up two fliers at the West Trenton post office and the local supermarket -- Fabiola's kitten is 3 weeks old -- sent out a slew of overdue bills -- to flea market, my source left before I got there due to extreme cold and wind, was great to get out to walk around in the fresh air a few hours for the first time in a couple months; went again the next Sunday, my source was there and I got some new goodies for eBay -- now comes the task of scanning the stuff and making my long winded item descriptions, which takes forever -- I put my first batch of eBay stuff up since George died -- the neighbors told me that somebody actually lifted their new used car with a jack, in the early morning hours, and stole one of the tires, leaving the freekin jack still under the car! My video surveillance recorder stopped working a couple weeks ago, so it did not record anything -- I have to get a new recorder when I have some moola -- Sam's Club has them.
If you ever Instant Message me, via AOL or AIM, you will note my buddy icon --
it is an animated gif image, among the hundreds available, that I thought was kewl -- it also has a sound effect which you hear with every new message -- it morphs into this image, so be very careful when contacting me -- one never knows what can happen in this weird cyber world!
I do have a lot of Kewl Links, so you should have enough to graze for this update --
21 March 2005 / Monday -- very briefly, Part 2 -- got a haircut -- washed salt from snow off of Honda, 27 degrees outside; was fun -- new passport arrived, shitty photo, even though I am smiling! -- added a couple new cat photos to the Russian Adventure page -- adopted out Baby the Devon Rex / Sphynx and Yakshini, my last remaining Siamese, with much regret; I now have no Siamese after breeding them for about 40 years -- I named the two Sphynx kittens from the last litter which I am keeping (for the time being, anyway), Ziggy and Yakshini -- the weather has been slightly warmer, it snowed again, a lot of rain lately -- Fabiola's baby is now 5 weeks old; I let him walk around the study a couple times a day to get him accustomed to exploring before mommy and she join the others -- yesterday, Palm Sunday, I listed a small batch of $1 Easter Specials on eBay, bidding continues miserable, very discouraging!
I made a couple PodCast logo thingys -- -- which I may use on occasion -- -- I spent 3+ daze experimenting with how to do a podcast, and finally, very tired, as you may notice in my voice, and totally spontaneously, without a script or cue cards, decided on one of the several samples I made -- -- when time permits, you may see one of these logos linking future podcasts -- it is a very kewl new medium of communication! Once again, there are a bunch of Kewl Links, below, to make up for my very abbreviated personal news.
-- Me / Tech History -- Me / eBay Joy Ride -- Me / Talking Books -- Amaury / Necrophiliac Duck -- Deb / Santa Balls -- Deb / Walk Test -- Marge / Bunny Rap -- Warner / Acetone in Gas -- JonJ / Mac Mini Info -- Leigh / Podcasting -- Me / Belgium Congo -- Me / Chewing Gum + Boobs -- Me / Free iPod Offers -- Me / Podcasting Radio -- Me / MacWorld Boston -- Ron / Internet Radio -- sGal / iTube Amp -- Sherry / New Sony Camera -- Tzes / Convenient Christianity -- Wins / Finding Jesus -- Ron / Conan + Gates -- Ron / Beach 2002 --
Me / Anne's Templars Pages -- Me / Knights Templars -- Me / Chow Mein -- Me / Church of the Customer -- Me / EuroVision Song Contest -- Me / Macintosh Stories -- Me / Mac Podcasts -- Me / What They Sang to Me --
25 March 2005 / Good Friday -- very briefly, Part 3 -- got Honda inspected -- now it doesn't have to get done for 2 years; went to Sam's Club for cat and other stuff; did wash and got more energized water in West Trenton; Cat Fancier's Association registrations arrved for Kappora and Zews, faster than I thought they might, they eat like horses; the upcoming holiday does not seem special this year for some reason.
I wrote a short story about finding the Russian cats on YardSaleNet.net, and sent it to them -- I was sort of amazed that they included it in their March Newsletter about user success stories!
I am trying a new auction venue as an experiment, Yahoo Auctions, since eBay sucks (recently I told them they sucked!) -- listed for 10 days and with gallery costs 5 cents, compared with 80 cents on eBay -- I started a store, called a Booth, and put twelve items up, at a higher price than on eBay, things that did not sell there the last time I listed them -- I may put a few more goodies up again just to have them there and compare results over a couple weeks -- I do not have any hallucinations that it will be any better than eBay, but one never knows -- what I think is weird is that they say the economy is sooooooo great, and in February / March I put up over 106 items and only sold about 14, which is a sell through rate of about 13% -- an unlucky number!! Since Yahoo does not cost nearly as much as eBay, at least I should not lose as much. I had to think of a new handle / user name, so I decided on Mastodon, and used my first lino cut of a Mastodon, done when I was in my late teens, as a main logo -- what amazed me, perhaps, the most, is that I knew exactly in which file folder I would find it in -- the apartment may look like a dump, but I usually know where to find whatever I am looking for!
Incidentally, that image was a very stylazized mastodon, in case you were wondering! This is the same thing life size -- I did not want to be excessive in my first linoleum block engraving because I did not want to waste linoleum -- I later used it for a limited edition Christmas greeting, probably in about 1958. In the basement I still have some unused lino blocks and the tool kit I used to make this.
The general format of everything on Yahoo is very similar to that of eBay and YardSaleNet, but why try to improve on years of trial and error, reaching quasi perfection? hehe
Now to my last group of Kewl Links for this page, which has become longer than it should have -- any Easter update will probably be on a new page, if I outlast John Paul -- incidently, I do not think the Pope will make it through the end of the month, and then there is Prince Ranier of Monaco and that Schiavo gal in Florida (if she hung in there for 15+ years, maybe anybody can?) -- my thanks to those who sent me stuff.
-- John / Nyack Christians -- Me / Pope Hat -- Me / Lux de Sirius -- Me / Templar History -- Me / American Templars -- Joy / Social Security Auction -- Me / iPod Shuffle -- Ron / 3D Album -- Bill / No Pain -- Sybil / Free Credit Report -- Me / DaVinci Code -- Me / History of Portables -- Dallas / DSM Sound -- Dallas / Creative Sounds -- Dallas / GENE HARRIS with RAY BROWN TRIO in a Jazz club --
-- Dallas / Cron Job UNIX -- Dallas / OSX Background Maintenance Tasks -- Me / Chocolate + Health -- Bill / Earthquake Detectors -- Sybil / Effects of Alcohol -- Me / Yard Sale Net Success Story --
God Bless !
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