Saturday, September 29, 2007

Sentenced to Hard Physical Labour

We're doing a big backyard reno this fall. Part of it to be completed now, and part of it in the spring, and the last bits next fall. So, it's big. Pretty much nothing in the back or front yard will be the same, except for one flowery shrub in the front that I want to try to save.

Here's the fun part. We're putting in a new pool, and we don't have enough access for an excavator. Not even a little one. So we're going to be digging it out by hand. We had almost finished lifting the sod today, with much shouting of "sod off" and sniggering, of course, when Spouse One suddenly hired some kid off the road. Seems OK, works reasonably hard at least so far, and while they're at the dump with the first truckload, I've actually managed to get some of the dishes done, and a little bit of cleaning.

What with working 13 hours on the days we're at work, and then working more for work when we get home, there's not really enough time to get anything done. And then we've managed to steal a few three day weekends so we can spend 13 hours on the yard. It's not a complaint, except to mention that we desperately need a house elf.

I'm super excited about it. I've just spent a whole summer listening to tanned bastards in bermuda shorts tell me how much work their enormous inground pools are. next year I'll be joining them.

despite the bad example that that cats are setting for me, curled up in patches of sun all over the place, I'd better get back to my shovel.

Thursday, September 06, 2007

Craft Corner (again)

So, I've spent the summer knitting and basically made nothing. I'm obsessed with finally being able to knit ribbing, and I'm in the middle of making a little capelet, which is of course, entirely inappropriate for the fall. f we keep this summery weather it should be wearable through September at least.

I have some ideas for the ACGP, so I should probably get on with starting those, or else it will be like last year, where I finished Spouse One's woolen hat in April.

No More Still Life

This week we cut off the cable. No more TV in our house once again. It's going to take a bit of getting used to. It's enjoyable, sure, but it's also too much of a soporific. It's too easy to ignore real life in favour of the ongoing eye candy produced by the networks. So we're back to once a week movie nights, game nights, and we've already dragged out the old N64. Oh, Tetrisphere, how I adore you.

It is part of the general overhaul that we've been working on all along. We're already both internet fanatics, and that's enough. Soon enough it will all be internet based anyhow, so we're really just getting prepared.

It's kind of odd to me, because we never had TV at home as a child, because it was considered to worldly, and too evil. Spouse One and I have gone without TV before, and the last three years are really the only time we've ever had cable consistently. It's kind of sad, to spend one's time caring about these stupid, badly written characters and predictable plots.

I'm excited about spending more time listening to the radio, playing music, and just generally interacting with each other, and other people.

We're also starting a new backyard project. Should make for a much more entertaining winter, and for much more entertaining next summer. I'm looking forward to it.