Z/Web

Wow, what a day! I slept really well (about nine hours). Yes I was tired, but it was also nice and quiet here in the tiny town of Lafayette. At nine I left to go on several errands. First I visited the local plumber, where I’d made arrangements for them to install the kitchen sink. The place was a mere ten minutes from my house. I picked out a stainless steel sink, faucet set, and garage disposal and confirmed the Tuesday morning appointment. Then I went to Sears and bought the stuff needed to install the dryer. I stopped at a supermarket and picked up a few things (mainly some drinking water), then took some fast food lunch home. At about noon the Sears guys showed up. One of them was a real joker, asking me if I was ready for my new dishwasher, laughing at the confused look on my face. He had no idea I was expecting just such a screw up and it wasn’t funny at all! The installers were amazingly efficient, unpacking and lugging in the huge fridge (it just fit in the space provided) and the washer and dryer. (To my shock, they carried in the latter two in a single trip!) They were gone in less than an hour, hooking up everything and testing it to make sure it worked. Well, they didn’t do a load of wash or anything, but at least everything was hooked up. I’ve never owned a washer or dryer, so that’s kind of exciting. I feel like an adult!

After Sears left, I had a window of time, I went off to a lock shop I’d spotted. I needed a dead bolt for the front door (it had a hole but no lock) and I wanted all my locks keyed to the same key. Having the locksmith come to my place was an option, but it quickly got expensive when all the locks I needed where modified. In the end I decided to go with better locks and all new hardware. The total cost would be about the same, but I’d get better quality material. I bought two dead bolts and three locking door handles. Then it was off to Wal-Mart to pick up some household items. It took longer than expected — Wal-Mart has a lot of cool stuff — so I had to cut short my shopping trip and come home to meet the cable guy. I was a little late, but in time. I was still unloading the car when he pulled up. While he installed my cable and Internet lines, I figured out how to install the dead bolt in the front door. It was a little confusing at first, but once I understood the basic principle it was easy. The doorknob was much easier, just a few screws. I then did the dead bolt and doorknob on the back door, then took a break as the cable guy needed me to get my laptop and establish Internet access. Once that was working, he took off and I went and did the doorknob on the side door of the garage. All the locks were keyed to the same key, so I only had to worry about one key for everything. The locksmith even told me they could key a padlock to the same key if I wanted, so I can eventually do that for a padlock for my shed. Right now the shed has a lock on it and I have no key!

After my adventures locksmithing, I put up a shower curtain and installed two new shower heads. Then I went back to Wal-Mart to buy some more stuff: a folding table, a chair (There’s no place to sit in the empty house!), a toaster oven (my old one is pretty junky), a lamp (the new house is lacking overhead lights in several rooms, don’t ask me why), and a little clock radio I got for $5. The house is just too quiet with no TV or chaotic cats! At least this way I can get a little white noise with talk radio in the background while I do other things. Whew. After bringing everything home and putting everything away, I had a little dinner, and now I’m exhausted. I’m really ready for bed. It was a very long day. It was fun, but I didn’t have much of a chance to rest. Tomorrow should be interesting as the plumber’s coming early, my mom arrives from the coast with spare beds from Grandpa’s house, and my uncle might show for a visit as well. There’s still lots to do but the house is starting to feel a little lived in now!