Story A Day

It’s been over a year since we had a garage with electricity. We made it just under the wire (pun intended ), completing the electrical work and installing the garage door opener before the first snowfall! We finished the work yesterday, but I opted to blog about Peter Mayer instead It’s a luxury to drive to the garage, hit a button, and cruise right in! I’m so excited to not have to get through another winter without a garage…spoiled? Yes. And loving it

In the warmth of the Fitzgerald Theater, on a yellow-lit stage, seated in front of six baby Christmas trees, were Peter Mayer and his band. Their voices and rhythms filled the room, both with soothing melodies and amusing commentary. When the lyrics weren’t touching on the hilarities of everyday life, the words spelled out life wisdom. Tim and I have been big fans of Peter Mayer since college. If you’re someone who likes acoustic sound, and enjoys the intermingling of laughter and tear inducing songs, check him out: www.petermayer.net (not to be confused with the other Peter Mayer musician housed at .com)

I slept in this morning, it was lovely. I savor those mornings when I can awake in a warm, cozy bed and lay there as long as I want…ahhhhh…When I finally rolled out of bed the work began. Tim and I wired the light fixtures on the interior and exterior of the garage today – they work now! It will be nice to be able to work in there past the 4:30 sunset We ended the productive day with a trip to Menards for some necessary purchases to finish the garage. FYI to all of those who may be doing some wiring soon – the new electrical code requires ALL new outlets to be tamper-proof. Who knew? Amazingly, they are still quite rare on the shelves at Menards, they had just enough in stock for us to get what we needed.

Today’s activities:
- A morning workout to offset the coming onslaught of calories
- A 2.5 hour drive to Long Prairie.
- A food, football, fun and family-filled afternoon with members of Tim’s family.
- A 2.5 hour drive back to the cities (specifically, Afton)
- Arrival at Thanksgiving celebration #2 with my mom, her fiance and his kids
- More yummy food, quality time, and Rock Band playing
- Trek back home.
- Now…blogging
- A day for which to be thankful…

Our new mattress arrived this evening! I look forward to seeing if it’s as comfy as our old mattress. We didn’t really need a new mattress, but we did need one for our Murphy bed downstairs, so we figured we’d upgrade and move that one downstairs. I assure you, if you are a guest, you will have a comfy mattress on which to slumber The only bad thing is that the new mattress has that “new stuff smell,” aka: volatile organic compounds, most likely. Mmmmmmmm. Not my favorite thing, especially to breathe in all night while I am sleeping!

The news is on in the background.
A candle still burns on the counter, a remnant from a gathering earlier this evening.
Tim is asleep, his head resting on my knee.
I’m cozy under the blanket.
I hear the wind blowing occasionally outside.
I am grateful for a warm, cozy, peaceful home amidst the cold of the world outside.

We passed our electrical inspections with flying colors today – yay!  They had to do inspections for 3 permits – the new service that got installed when the electrician buried the wires, the new wiring in the garage that we installed, and the final inspection for our basement electrical work.  All done, and we (mostly Tim) do “great work” according to the inspector.  Yipee!!  Next up…lights and a garage door opener in the garage!

2 bundled up home-improvement fanatics
2 rolls of wire, 12-2 and 14-2 variety
A man with a plan (that’d be Tim)
Wire stripper
Hammer
Lots of electrical boxes
A ladder
Wire tacks
A fancy new drill adapter for exterior light fixture holes
A flashlight for the work that remained to be done post-4:30 sunset
A whole lot of dedication…
Result = A fully wired garage ready for the rough-in inspection tomorrow!
Wahoo!
Why am I so excited about garage wiring???  It means a functioning garage door opener very soon!

I recently bought some Avalon Organics lotion that is Peppermint scented. I have never used Peppermint lotion before, and have noticed that it creates a cooling sensation whenever I put it on. It’s kind of a neat feeling…but not as great when I am already cold Might be better as my summer lotion…

I sit down at my computer in the evening to blog and often take a look at Facebook first.  Before I know it a half hour has passed, it’s past my bedtime, and I am still on Facebook!  What can I say, I just enjoy seeing what everyone is up to!