update

yet again, I say not a good blogger. there are some things I need to talk about because a lot has changed since September. I changed jobs. Now, I know it is not a surprise to hear me say that (or write it) but I am still working for the state and I just moved up in the place. I now work for the Division of Family Assistance as a Family Services Specialist. That is a nice way of saying I interview people who come in to apply for benefits like food stamps. It is much more challenging than being a secretary. I like it so far.
Also, we found out that our renter's are moving out asap. That was a blow. They had originally signed a 2 year lease to purchase agreement and separate 1 year long leases. All I will say about that is that we are pursuing that through our lawyer. I feel so grown up saying that.
After we found out about that, we immediately got four real estate agents in there to evaluate the place and see what they would suggest listing it at. 2 said you're in a sucky market and it won't go for more than 169. 2 said I think you can sell it at 199. That is a 30 thousand dollar difference. So we are going with the guy that said 199 and maybe listing it in the middle. Hint Hint - if you have any friends who want to buy a house in Wolfeboro let us know. It is nice. If you go to Chris Baker's facebook page and look at before and after picture you will agree.

Also, Chris had surgery on Jan. 5. He had surgery on his sinuses. It was a planned surgery and it went well. He is still very uncomfortable and would like to be able to breath out of his nose. But thanks to pain killers and antibiotics, he is doing really well. He is actually a good patient.

Well, that is the crazy stuff. Other than that our families are relatively healthy, the dog too. Life kind of throws crap at you all at once some of the time but maybe it is all for the best. We can possibly sell this house and at the very least have it on the market at a more desirable time (summer) than what we had thought. Then maybe we can move out of Wolfeboro and take advantage of the down market and buy something cheap off of somebody else in a similar situation. We will see and hopefully I will keep you more updated than every 3+ months.

sigur ros

I am a terrible journal writer. I was never that good at it.

We (husband and two friends and I) went to see Sigur Ros, an Icelandic band, last night. Wow, they put on a fantastic concert. Their music is hard to describe. The lead singer has a haunting high voice and plays the guitar with a violin bow. They have a piano player, drummer, and bass player. They use all sorts of different types of instruments including an organ and a xylophone. It is just a great sound. Very mellow but some of it is really intense. We saw them at the Bank of America Pavillion in East Boston. If you have ever been there, then you know it is outside. Wooh!!! it is a bit chilly in September when it gets down to 50 degrees. I think it is better to see them in an indoor facility but this was pretty cool. They are a mesmerising band. If you check out Youtube and search for Sigur Ros track 8, you will get some crappy recordings but you can kind of see what it is like and how they sound. That is the best song and they leave it to the last and it is phenomenal because it starts off slow and then you get the drummer going with this really cool beat and the intensity rises and they just go all out. It is awesome for lack of a better word. Check em out.
ps I just found a really cool version on youtube. It is from their documentary. Sigur Ros Heima Popplagio is the header. Check it out, there are some weird parts from Iceland but listen to the music. It is great.

xb rocks

Picking up the new car today. I am so excited. Yesterday when I got home, Chris suggested that we just go and pick it up last night. But since it was brand spanking new, we decided to do all the paperwork last night and then pick it up in the morning. Then they can detail it, put a radio in, and inspect it. I can't believe that after 10 years of driving the standby escort, I am going to be getting a brand new car that no one has ever owned. Wow!!! Although the payment thing is a little scary seeing as it has been over 5 years since I had a car payment. Oh, well most people have these things.

weather

I just want to let everyone know that we had an entire weekend of nice weather. Isn't that amazing especially this summer. Although there is some nasty stuff heading towards some areas of NH.

As to the continuing saga of buying a car, I am one step closer because I cleaned and vacuumed the old car today, so it is ready. Can't wait to get the Scion xB and get rid of the scort.

The Saga of Buying a new car

So as I said before the 'Scort is getting up there in age and miles. I have also had a lot of work done in the past year and feel it is time to be looking at something new. I had made a preliminary list to work off from. That list included Honda - Fit, Civic; Nissan - Versa, Sentra; and Toyota - Corrola, Matrix and Prius(pipe dream). I also was looking under $20,000. One weekend we found the dealerships in the area and starting test driving. The first stop was Dover Honda. Not a lot of selection but they did have a standard Fit and an automatic 2007 Civic to test drive. I really enjoyed the Fit for its large inside and it was fun to drive and thought the Civic was a little sluggish did not have a very well designed interior. Next we went to Somersworth Nissan dealership. That was not an enjoyable experience. The salesman was very annoying. He did not take a breath to let us say anything the entire time we were there. He insulted every car company and he insulted the Mercedes convertible that we drove up in. I test drove the Versa but could not tell you anything about it because he talked about going endo and about his illegitimate daughter in Florida. We were on a tight schedule and did not have time to test drive the Sentra. He also held my license hostage until the very end (which means I was test driving the car without my license) and when I refused to give him my phone number he was very upset. I was up in Keene visiting my parents, so I decided to test drive the Sentra while I was there. I told the salesman about my ill experience and he was very nice and let my brother and I take the care out by ourselves. The car was not my favorite. It was basically my car, just a little nicer. It also had continuous variable transmission which is an automatic and I didn't foresee myself really getting used to that. It also sounded like it was very difficult to get a standard in either the Versa or the Sentra. So Nissan was out. Next was Toyota. We went to the Toyota dealership in Rochester. We test drove a Corrolla and again found it to be not that exciting. Mine just a little nicer. There were also no sticks on the lot and he wasn't sure if they would get some in. He mentioned a 2008 Scion xB that was a stick. I had never really thought about Scions before. I decided to test drive it and decided that I really like them. We decided to do some numbers on the xB and didn't have a good experience with that. This dealership is one that does not sell new Scions. They had just got this in as a trade. They are going to be selling them in the future but I am thinking that they didn't know what they were talking about when they were trying to sell me this car. Basically you can buy a new 2009 xB for less than what they were offering at this place for their "BEST DEAL." It also smelled like smoke. I was very discouraged by this dealer but encouraged by the fact that Irwin Zone in Laconia has brand new xB's for less. Watch out people, I may be driving around in a giant toaster soon.

issues

Why am I always tired? Probably because I don't get enough sleep one or two days a week and then I am catching up the rest of the week. Why does my back always hurt? Probably because I need a new bed. I half woke up early this morning and basically could not move my lower back at all because it hurt so much. My bed has a big dip in the middle and it is not supportive anymore. I need a new one but it is expensive and I don't want the cheap one. Why does my car suck? Probably because it is 10 years old and just hit 149000 miles today. It also desperately needs an alignment and possible a new wheel because I may have bent in the time that I did not have the wheel bearing fixed and because I live on a dirt road that is filled with pot holes and I have a low paying job and can't afford a new car. Why is my dog pacing? Probably because he needs to pee. See ya.

What's Happening

It has been a while since my last post. I am the type of person that gets gung ho about things and then a couple weeks or months after I start them, I lose interest. I guess that is a sign of me having ADD.
I will quickly update you on the last few months. I still have the same job (amazing and sad). I still have the same husband (just kidding ha ha). Chris and I went to Mexico in June which was a good time even though I didn't have my bags for 2 days at the beginning and Chris got really sick the last couple of days. We have had several births this year. 2 people at work as well as 2 friends. 3 boys and 1 girl so far. One person at work is pregnant due in November and another friend is due in August, right around the corner.

We just had our 1st annual Girl's Weekend during the week. We spent two days down in Gloucester hanging with kiddos and girls. All boys so far. Soon we will add a baby girl to the mix. What fun. We had a really good time and I will be posting some pictures and sending links to friends soon.
We also had our third babyshower of the summer yesterday which was a lot of fun. Mom to be got some really great stuff and all the kiddos were there again so it was a good time had by all. I have had my fill of babies for a while but can't wait for the newest one.

I was just reading a friend's blog about the saga of the 'scort. Her's died and it was one year older and had about 30,000 less miles. That is not encouraging. Although, I am in the same boat as her with looking to buy a new one and not having a ton of money to spend on it. I haven't had a car payment in 5 years and it is a scary thought to think that I will have one for the next 5 years. I am looking small and trying to be proactive about the whole thing. Mine hasn't died yet, but I don't hold out much hope. It is 10 years old this year and I have had it for 10 years this month. I keep complaining about it but Chris says that it has been good to me. My parents certainly didn't expect it to last this long.

The dog is doing well. He is 4 this month. We have had him for almost 3 years and can't imagine life without him. He is the best bull dog ever and he is the cutest too. Everyone is still in love with him and can't get enough of him. We are currently at my parent's house for the weekend so they can get their fill of him.

It will probably be a while before I blog again and I apologize but you can't undo 30 years of ADD.