A Mighty Long Time

Hi everyone. It seems like forever since I have posted any personal stuff. Here is an update for the month of November. My workplace put everyone on a 3-day work week. It is kinda sucky, but I am getting things done around the two houses. My dad and I have been emptying out the old house and I have been unpacking boxes here at the new one. I stopped my 401K and changed my deductions on my paycheck to 7 dependants (totally legitimately) so no taxes are taken out of my pay. My dad and I have all the rooms painted in the new house.(almost) The half bath needs a few more coats as it is a deep red. I have 2 coats on it already and it will probably need 2 more. Crap! Thanksgiving was a HUGE success. We hosted my family for the Thanksgiving meal at 1 pm and Juju's family came over at 7 pm for deserts. Our oven was not working at the time. A shut-off was broken when it was installed. So Juju cooked at the catering business. The oven was fixed today along with the internets starting up. I have had it hooked-up for 3 days now. This morning i got up and looked at the modem and the internets light was on. I thought I had installed the phone line incorrectly, but I guess it was a verizon problem. It is a happy day in the Boki Mame household. I have an oven and the internets. Yippee, Juju has been jonesing to bake cookies and I have been jonesing it visit my... frugality blogs (you thought I was gonna type porn sites, didn't ya). Cooter should be getting up from his nap soon and I am gonna get a wink or 2 in beore starts opening his eyes. Working wed, thurs, fri next week and mon, tues, wed the next. Then another 6 day weekend. I could really get used to this... lol.

Work it. Boki

I has been pretty busy at work lately. That is a good thing. Not only does it keep me employed, but it keeps me busy drawing signs and that makes for fast days. One of our salesman was off yesterday and he got a funny voicemail in his box. It was a local greek guy frustrated Main Street wasn't there when the receptionist forwarded the call. In a heavy greek accent, "Mumble, mumble, mumble, stoopid secaratary, da man is not in his desk". I was freaking hilarious. Instead of leaving a message, he just hung up. We can't all be at our desk for the 8 hours we are there. Sorry greek bro!
Tonight we went to dinner with Uppa and Gamma. We paid tonight. It is a local pizza shop near our new house. The plan was dinner the then see the progress on the house. Dinner was fantastic...the house not so much. the progress is still slow. The tub surround came today but i don't think it is going to fit down the hall. it was just sitting at the beginning of the hallway, blocking it. With the stairs in front of the hall it make a "T" hall and i just don't think it is gonna turn. I called the builder and told him if it doesn't fit he can take it up to the second floor and i will install it up there when i do the finishing. There is no drywall on the inside walls so if it doesn't fit up there i can just knock some studs out, take it into the bathroom and nail the stud back in. Downstairs all the drywall is in so that is not an option. Though, my dad just called and had a thought to take it in the front master bedroom suite window. Even if the window is big enough, I am not sure it will work as there will still be a 90 degree turn in to the master bath.
After the house we went to Sissy, Turnbuckle and JJ's house to borrow Sissy's running stroller. Its a Juju thing, I didn't even ask. Then we stopped at the goats house to drop off a sub we bought her. She wasn't there so we just left it in the fridge. A short drive home and a buba of milk for Cooter and he is out and i am blogging.
Oh snap I almost forgot. We ran out of baby wipes yesterday and Juju found a recipe for making your own, here it is.

1 roll of paper towels (Use flannel wipes or heavy-duty paper towels for disposable wipes. i.e. Bounty-cheaper ones will fall apart)
2 cups water
1 tbsp baby shampoo or baby wash
1 tbsp baby oil

rip each sheet off and cut them the size you prefer. I like them cut in half. You can use an empty commercial wipes container or any plastic lidded container. Mix the ingredients in a separate container. Place the wipes in the container, then then add the solution, and invert a few times to make sure the wipes all get sufficiently moistened. Use just enough solution to moisten. Extra solution can generally be kept refrigerated.
She found many variations of this frugal trick, but this was the easiest.

Monday's House Pics

here are the pics of the house.

the center wall is complete and the back door to the deck is framed. they still need to level the top of the outside walls in the back section, then finish the joists and decking.

This is the view from cooter's room into the kitchen, the "hole" is the pantry opening. to the left of the hole will be cooter's closet.

the rafters came on friday...all we need is a complete second floor to get them started.

i hope they will finish the 2nd floor tomorrow.

It was a good weekend. we went to the bank on Saturday to beg for more money with all our cost overruns. we got a few strings pulled and got what we needed. Thanks Dave, Carla and ErieBank! Sunday morning juju taught confirmation. cooter and i stayed home, and played.

Cooter is very tired right now and is crying at the littlest things. i have never really seen him like this. it is really kinda funny, but i try not to laugh. juju just put him to bed and i don't hear a peep. cool. we met his new day care provider on sunday afternoon. she is very nice and i hope it will work out. she has an opening and cooter's cousin already goes there. unfortunately her opening isn't til next week, so cooters gamma and uppa and the goat are picking up the slack this week. he goes to the doc's on wed to get his foliculitious checked and his 15 month shots. the rash is all cleared up. the goat is taking him for shots. go goat.

Work is crazy busy on the aluminum sign side. we have a huge job for a bank going thru and we got another one today for a governmet job. when it rains it pours, but this is a good pour. I spent a majority of the morning doing a literature box label and the afternoon doing drawings.

the work wife borrowed the goat's box truck to move to her new place this weekend and from what i heard it went well.

Raisin' The Roof & Lowerin' The Floors or Who Let the Floor Out?

not much change from the outside, but let's take a look see in the back.......

Oh Snap! where did the floor go?

Well, today we lowered the floor, but not on purpose. as the contractor was ripping the many layers of flooring off in the kitchen the floor "shifted and dropped". it seems all the existing joists were cracked their whole length and when they were tugging the flooring the joists separated, dropped and started cracking. a few heart attacks later, the basement was cleared and the demo on the floor started. we were going to have to jack the floor up as it was unlevel anyway. so now instead we get a new floor. the good new is it is much brighter in the basement. seriously, where the ladder is, was a block wall that is no longer needed, the crack house bathroom in the corner is gone and they will be able to lift out the hot water and and monstrous furnace very easily. I may even be able make a decent new bathroom down there too....eventually. the back filling was happening as i got there. the roof trusses comes Friday, and they may even be ready for it.

More bad new today. Cooter's babysitter informed us she can no longer watch him as she recently had wrist surgery and it is not healing well as expected because of always lifting the kids. Crap. it was gonna be a sweet set-up. the old babysitter was only a few blocks from our new house. it never works out like you plan........however, we may have a new hook-up, and even better, new sitter is on juju's way to work, not mine. heh, heh, heh.

even more bad news, juju's brother's got a bill from his attorney (he and his wife adopted a kid, "Pooker" and are using the same attorneys as us for "Cooter") for $1500.00 for the newspaper ad they had to post to try find the father. We are on our second try, as the judge didn't like the wording of the first. that is $3000.00. I am expecting a letter any day............CRAP!

Work is pretty busy. The aluminum sign division of or company is so busy that the shop in on 2 hour a day mandatory OT and Saturday. Even the guys in my department go to the "other side" and put in a few extra hours a day. we are doing a big job for a bank and are under the gun to get everything done and farmed out to get installed by Memorial day. The foam side of the company is pretty busy also. we had a bit of a lull last week, but "Main St." was on the phone talking to ton of customers this week and the drawing bins have been full. Mostly because i am still working on extrusions for the aluminum side. hopefully i will have all the final drawings done tomorrow and will be able to help my "work wife" with the drawing bins a little more.

Hey Kids, Listen to your Mother

I took Cooter, yea that's right "cooter" he is our 15 month old, to the doc for his rash today. i am sick of "boy" and "wife" already. from now on the "wife" will be "juju". still not thier real names, but less cold. anyway, cooter has foliculitous (plugged hair folicals), at least that is the guess. the doc has never see it that widespread. usually it is a small "blotch". he got anibotics to clear up the infection. the doc didn't seemed to concerned, so i won't be.

we were down a man at work again today "main st." was sick. i have to get a filling at the dentist tomorrow morning and the work wife is leaving early. we seem to be a unhealthy group lately. BTW this morning the temp was 65°...tonight 30° and snow. WTF! work was busy, even without our main sales guy. the drawing bins always had something in them. there is always something to do, even if i am not drawing signs for quotes. We are a spin-off of a bigger company, spun at the beginning of the year. there are many drawing borders to change to the new company name and always new designs and things to try. i am also working on some aluminum extrusions for the main company, but i am finding it hard to get them done, with all the work for the new company and missing persons in the office.

here is where the title at the top comes in today. i am going to post a few pics of the house. today the sheathing went up on the addition and the dormer was cut out... the dormer with the skylights. the skylights my mother kept harping on me to tell them to save. sorry mom. they are smashed to bits. not the end of the world, and i don't know if i want "used skylights" back on the new roof. but i didn't listen to my mom and now i don't even have a choice to use them or not. crap.

I ate dinner at the folks, parmasean chicken, a great meal. my mom can make some good parm. chick, potato salad and cake rounded out the menu. i ate too fast, as usual, and got a bit of a belly ache. cooter fell asleep in his high chair, poor little guy.

Juju bought a new car today, a 92 passat and a used fridge and groceries. car used, fridge used, groceries new. she found the car at a local car dealership. they are friends of her brother. the 24 cubic ft, bottom freezer, black fridge. it is a few years old, she saw it in the paper, went to see it and i am picking it up tomorrow. she is the queen of the bargain shoppers. now all we have to do is figure out how to pay for it all. lol we still need eveything else for the kitchen. we will have to go to a kitchen store and have them lay out a few scenarios for us. not sure if we want a wall oven and cooktop or an all-in-one. as the contractor said, "come take pictures every day as things will change very rapidly". he was not lying.

well, it is 9 pm and i hope cooter sleeps through the night. i am going to bed as juju watches the biggest loser...not a fan. i usually watch the end to see who gets kicked off. my biggest loser "girlfriend" Brittnay got kicked off a few weeks ago. so there is really no reason to watch. she said before she left that when she comes back for the final show she will be "steamy hot" guess what Brittnay, you already are. SNAP!

The Blog Glossary AKA The List of Characters

Here is the spot i have chosen to "backtrack" and do a Blog Glossary.
Here is the list of usual suspects:

***A Blog Glossary of my family***

Boki Mame ----- Me
Juju Mame ----- The Wife - The very best thing to ever happen to me and the love of my life. Married me in 2002.
Cooter Mame - The Boy - Born Dec of 2006. Adopted by my wife and I. The second best thing to ever happen to me. He is crazy and a ball of energy and cute as the day is long. He frustrates me and tires me out, but i have not regretted one day of him as a part of my family
Foo Mame ----- The Cat - Original name Jinx, (originally owned by Sissy, she has an affinity for buying pets and passing them off to others like Ellen DeGeneres) his adopted name Fhqwhgads AKA Little Fooker, Quad City Foo Jay, Foome and Foo Foo. He is lazy, a bed hog and a snobby eater, but he loves his daddy and his daddy loves the Foo.

**A Blog Glossary of my side of the family**

Uppa ------------- My Dad
Gamma --------- My Mom
Uncle Moose - My middle brother
Uncle Bear ---- My youngest brother
Aunt Candy --- Bear's wife
G-Money ------- Bear and Candy's oldest son
Mack-Que ----- Bear and Candy's youngst son
Aunt Alyice --- My aunt and Gamma's sister
UB --------------- My uncle and Gamma's brother
Rusty ----------- My aunt Alyice's friend

** A Blog Glossary of Juju's side of the family**

Buscha --------- Juju's grandma
The Goat ------- Juju's mom
Aunt Sissy ----- Juju's younger sister
Uncle Buckle - Sissy's husband - AKA Turnbuckle
JJ ----------------- Sissy and Buckle's daughter
Uncle Chef ---- Juju's middle brother
Aunt Dee ------- Chef's wife
Pooker ---------- Chef and Dee's son
Uncle Jon ------ Juju's youngest brother- AKA Jonny the Boy
Aunt Leesee -- Jon's wife
AJ ----------------- Jon and Leesee's son
Aunt Kate ------ Juju's Aunt and Goat's Sis
Uncle Roo ----- Juju's Uncle and Aunt Kate's husband
Buffy ------------- Juju's cousin

** A Blog Glossary of friends co-workers and aquaintances**

April ------------- My work wife - Graphics
Anna ------------ My co-worker - Sales
Captain Dave- Poker regular (Main Street's brother - Heather's boyfriend) Thinks he is always the table captain, hence the name. Likes to talk. Not hard to tilt.
Cutter ----------- Poker regular. Likes to bully when he has the chips.
Dead Money - Poker regular AKA Wizard. Much improved since he started playing. Scares me as he is a call station. He never raises...ever. Will check the nuts every time! Gets him into lots of trouble. I am always wary as I never can figure out the cards in his hand.
Hairy Steve --- Poker regular AKA Poker Steve - Likes to chat...alot. It throws me of my game.
Hanging Chad-Poker Regular AKA Chadley- A loose player. Will call with anything. Is very dominant when he starts getting hands. Likes to talk smack.
Hatches -------- My poker wife. I taught her almost everything she knows (at least in the beginning). Likes to play online.
Heather -------- Poker regular (Captain Dave's girlfriend)
Lex -------------- Poker regular
Main Street --- My co-worker - Sales (Captain Dave's brother)
Oz --------------- Poker Regular
Philbo ---------- Poker Regular AKA Philly (River Farbo's brother) Loves to raise pre-flop. good poker instincts. Can usually tell when he is beaten.
River Farbo --- Poker Regular AKA Little Farbo (Philbo's brother)
Snakehead --- Poker regular (Texty Steve's cousin)
Texty Steve --- Poker regular (Snakehead's cousin)
The Mullet ----- Poker Regular AKA Jeff the Mullet
Whitey ---------- Poker Regular
Willy ------------- My boss

Start of the Week
Today was very busy at work. My "work wife" had a vacation day and I was left alone to draw all by myself. I work for a sign wholesaler as a technical illustrator. I tell people i make drawings like the instructions you get with a new grill ... only better. i also have to make them look pretty for the customer and useable for the shop to make the sign. though "work wife" did bring her 6 month old in to visit. She took the day off as there was a concert sunday night , seether, breaking benjamin, and some other band. she thought she may be partying too much and wanted to sleep in. her daughter is very cute. i mean very cute. i have only seen pictures of her and they don't do her justice. she was C U T E and all smiles.

"boy" woke up with a nasty rash on his belly and a bit on his back. poor little guy is itching and itching. he has had it for a few days but it just exploded last night. i'm taking him to the doc's tomorrow to see what the deal is. he went to grandma "goat's" (wife's mom) house today and going to gramma & papa's (my mom and dad) house tomorrow and wednesday as i don't know if what he has is contagious or just some allergic reaction. here is a pic.



i came home from work and started laundry. "wife" went to chuch to set up for the semi-annual rummage sale. she picked up a car seat, as ours was smashed in the "tree incident". and my mom picked up some clothes for "boy". gramma and papa stopped by about 7 pm, just as "boy" was settling down. crap.
they brought a few items picked from the rummage sale. the bonus of setting up for the rummage sale is you get first dibbs before the general public does. we dropped off a whole carful of stuff so picking a few things before the sale starts, tomorrow morning, is acceptable.

the floor and walls went up on the new house's addition today "wife" took a few pics that i should try to post.

Hopefully, the roof will come off this week and the new one will span the whole new footprint of the house. it's gonna be big. the new part will be one big open living/dining/kitchen. the right will be a master bedroom in the front with walk-in closet and master bath. a 1/2 bath and laundry room in the middle and "boy's" bedroom in the back. we will be finishing the upstairs ourselves. 1 master bedroom with master bath and walk-in closet, 2 bedrooms, 1 more bath and a bonus room. the master downstairs will be turned into a guest bedroom/study when we move upstairs. and the back bedroom will be a tv room or something. we are very excited and can't wait for the finish.