Saturday

Today while Kim was at work I bought a mower and trimmer and mowed the yard for the first time. (I figured I had to do something productive, since I slept in past noon.)

While I was mowing, I noticed these little, bright red flowers in the grass:

Does anyone know what they are? They're like mini raspberries, but flowers instead of berries.

On the subject of flowers, we have this big box in the middle of the front yard that we planned on tearing out to make more yard.

In each corner is this big bush, but like most of the bushes in the yard around here, it's not just a bush, it's a flowering bush:

Mom says they're peonies, and each of those buds on top will be a huge flower. You can see that the flowers get so big, they start bending the stalks back to the ground.

After I finished mowing, I decided to take a closer look at this trellis/arch thing in the front yard:

It's kind of cool, but not in the front yard, and not as a display piece, so we'll be taking it down eventually. I tried to shake it, to see I could just pull it down, but the legs are buried deep. While I was shaking it, I noticed it had a temporary resident:

I decided to get a closer look, and I touched him - I don't know why really. I thought he'd just hop away, but instead, out the back, shot a stream of pee, just like a shot out of a squirtgun! I tried to dodge it, but I was hit, right on the leg of my pants.

Actually, I came out and took all of these pictures after I went in and put my pants in the wash. Frogs are interesting characters, with all kinds of crazy chemical accessories, so I didn't want to take any chances.

Once I got back outside and started poking around again, I found this guy:

He was a funny fellow, with legs far too long for his own good. He could barely walk or climb, but every few tries his legs managed to grab something and pull him along.

Todd is the man!

Todd and I both use gaim because it's good and free and open. We were discussing a way to play games across the internet, since I moved far away from California, and I suggested Todd write a plugin for gaim, since it's open and allows plugins and such. Since I'm not a programmer, the fact that it's compiled C++, and Todd writes in JavaScript, RPG, and other things like that didn't occur to me, but it's a problem.

It turns out that gaim also accepts Perl scripts on a limited basis, but Todd hadn't worked with Perl before. He didn't let that stop him. He did a little research, ran a few tests, and the next day, we had a fully functioning plugin.

Todd's the man!

Quickie House update

There are no new pictures of the house, since it's mostly populated by open and half-empty boxes. Once we get everything unpacked (in a week or two?) and mow the lawn and pretty things up a bit, I'll take a few more shots.

Kim has been working on unpacking the kitchen, which is a pretty long process, and I (of course) have been unpacking the computer room and other technology. We bought a Tivo, and I have it all set up, but we don't have a phone line near the TV, so it's not all set up just yet.

I need to buy a lawnmower and weed-whacker, and how! Some of the grass/weeds have grown two feet high in the last two weeks! Thankfully, most of this jungle wyld is in the backyard and not an eyesore, so I don't think our neighbors are talking just yet.

Too many pictures of the house - Outside

I've been promising pictures of the house for a long time now, and now that we're the owners, and beginning to move in, I can finally deliver! Since I'm overdue, I'm putting up more pictures than anyone could possibly want. Hopefully, there's not so many pictures that no-one thinks they need to visit...

Here's the front of the house from an angle again, now that the trees are full. The two reddish trees in the front are Japanese maples - when the sun hits them, they glow like they're on fire.


Here's the front-on view of the house. It looks just about like it did in the original brochure.


This is a better shot of the side of the house with Kim's porch. Cropped where it is, this picture looks like most of the houses Kim and I looked at, with the garage and a basement beneath the house.


The yard isn't in great shape. There's a lot of work for me there.


But there are a few flowers mixed in among the weeds:


Part of the front yard is a rock garden. Kim and I aren't sure what to make of it, but it's going away really soon.


The lady who sold us the house told us that at one point, there were 72 rose bushes in the front yard. Now I think there's about 20. We'll probably be keeping these here, and a few others, but most will be casualties of the re-landscaping. Eventually.


There's Kim, watching from the bay window. She didn't want to come outside, because the bugs - they were a'swarming.


This is Kim's front porch:


The side of the house is heavy with ivy. Probably an eighth of the yard is covered by ivy, and it's a big yard. Most of it will be cut back, though. Eventually.


Here's the first shot of a backyard panorama:

The second:

The third:


Kim took a few pictures of the backyard, too, showing how big it is:



She also took pictures of the various flowers around the house:






This plant doesn't have any flowers yet, but it will someday. It's an hydrangea (and another of Kim's photos).


This is our deck:


Kim took a picture highlighting the tree growing through the deck:


And the backdoor leading inside, into the breakfast area:


Next: Inside!

Too many pictures of the house - Inside

On to the inside - the first story.

This is the breakfast area, just off the deck. It's so bright and sunny!


Here's a shot Kim took out the door. Note the wallpaper. Every room downstairs has wallpaper, and eventually, it's all going.


There's a door to the garage off the breakfast area. That's all of our stuff in there now.


The view from the breakfast area into the kitchen. It has so many cabinets!


This is our new refrigerator. It's part of a Kitchen-Aid set with the oven and the dishwasher, but the old owner was going to take it with her, so we bought it! Yay!


The view into the dining room:


The wallpaper in the dining room:


The view out the dining room (bay) window (a bay window is a plus!):


The entryway, looking into the living room:


The front door:


The view up the stairs, from the entryway:


The living room. I didn't get a good wallpaper shot of the living room, because it's strange. I don't think it would photograph well, but it has yarn in it. Yes. It's strange.


A better shot of the living room:


Looking toward the front of the living room:


The fireplace. Kim and I are undecided about the brick and wood look, but it's what we have, so we love it!


Behind the stairs is a hallway back into the breakfast area. Underneath the stairs is this nifty storage area:


And on the other side, the handy downstairs bathroom.


Next, upstairs to the bedrooms!

Too many pictures of the house - the Second Story

The view up the stairs, on the way to the second story:


The laundry room at the top of the stairs; now with a brand-new washer and dryer! (not pictured):


A glance back down the stairs:


The bedroom facing the back of the house:


Another shot, including the closet:


The upstairs bathroom:


The bedroom facing the front of the house (it's a little too pink right now):


And the front bedroom's closet:


The Bonus room is the replacement for the basement. Since many houses in these parts have a drive-under garage, with the rest of the space under the house comprising the basement, and this house has an entry-level garage, the builders made a bonus room over it. The bonus room is huge! This is the view from the hall into the room:


And here's the room itself. It has track lighting, which makes the room bright, but hot. Also, since it's over the garage, it gets heat from there as well, so the last owner had a window-unit airconditioner.


The "closet" of the Bonus room is really as small room of its own:


Last, but certainly not least, the Master Bedroom:


The view out the front window of the Master Bedroom:


The "walk-in" closet (which is certainly big enough for us):


The Master Bathroom, complete with a fantastic garden bathtub:


The view past the sinks, into the shower:


And look, somebody put a skylight above the garden bathtub!


Well, that's all, for now and probably for awhile. If anyone still wants more pictures, I will happily email them.