New Kitchen Faucet

This day was just gloomy enough to make us take on home repairs. So, today was the day for a new kitchen faucet.

We briefly considered repairing our current model, but that seemed uninspiring. Years of water leaks had built up a fine scale of calcium, lime and rust impervious to every toxic chemical I could find, and the bulky water filter attachment (never used) was always in my way.

I am sorry you had to see this photo. Gross.

Adam tackled the tasks with tools, and I helped by kneading the plumber's putty and offering silent encouragement.

Our new faucet is now in service. Selected primarily for its value (On sale?! With a $20 mail-in rebate?! Sold!) and secondarily for its beauty (At least it doesn't leak...), I'm willing to cross this project off the list.

And when all was completed, TJ put his paw on Adam's knee and told him, "Good job, old boy. I knew you could do it." True story.

Dear Let's Tap and The Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks

Dear Let's Tap,

Let's be honest, you are a novelty gameplay mechanic and your content is limited. I initially expected the tapping required in all your games to bother me, but that wasn't really an issue. The problem was that it only took about ten minutes to realize what each of the four mini-games had planned for me. The running game is only going to add different obstacles, the jenga game is a jenga game, the rhythm game will unlock more songs, and the shmup isn't all that interesting. You do what you do well, but there isn't enough here. Oh and I almost forgot your fifth "game", which was basically an interactive screen saver. I laud you for your efforts, but I have better games to play.

Enjoy Greenbelt, MD.

Dear Spirit Tracks,

You are the second best DS game to come out in 2009 after Chinatown Wars. Everything I enjoyed from Phantom Hourglass has been improved and the problems I had with the previous game were also addressed. It is refreshing to have a game with so many different puzzles and places to discover. I can't think of another game for the DS that I want to play after you and that is a testament to the quality of your experience. 5 stars!

Enjoy Richmond, VA.

Snow Dog

We haven't blogged in awhile, and here's why:

1. It's too cold to type in our sunroom (i.e., uninsulated room with walls of windows).
2. We have been distracted with other activities, primarily birding. Yes, birding.
3. We keep losing our dog in the snow.

See you in the warmer weather.

Our $2.38 Christmas

In the spirit of 2009, we decided to celebrate a thrifty Christmas - no new decorations, (mostly) homemade gifts, and no Christmas tree. What? No Christmas tree?! This wouldn't do.

With coupon in hand, Adam allowed me to purchase the smallest little spruce top I could find at our local floral center. Everything else had to come from our yard. So, here is how we decorated the tree this year.

1. Gather your ingredients: hand saw, pruners, trowel, gloves, container, helpful canine assistant (Fig 1).
2. Dig up a few shovelfuls of dirt from behind the shady north side of the house. Nothing grows there anyway.
3. Place the spruce top in the center of the container (Fig 2).
4. Fill in bare spaces with additional spruce tips, pine boughs, and/or fir branches (Fig 3).
5. Accent with red dogwood, ornamental grasses, pine cones, or whatever else is lying around the yard (Fig 4).
6. Sacrifice a few hydrangea poofs and mountain ash berries for extra color.
7. No need to water. The freezing temps and coming blizzard(s) will hold everything firmly in place.
8. Now you are ready to take the annual Christmas photo in front of the tree (Fig 5).

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Happy Holidays to all!

Happy Winter Solstice!

We're on our way to spring!

Dear SEGA Superstars Tennis,

Dear SEGA Superstars Tennis,

Do people really still like Sega this much? I sure don't care. I find it funny that a company can prostitute Sonic the Hedgehog into crappy games for years and no one seems to notice. I bought you because you were $4 with free shipping and you sat on my shelf for 6 months. I never even put in you in the Wii because I assumed you were trash even though your reviews were average. Well, your junk stock has finally come due and I will be the happy recipient of 250 points (equivalent to $12.50). Take this time to reflect on why you even exist and don't show up again until you get yourself some standards. Sonic deserves better.

Good riddance and enjoy Hatboro, PA. No hard feelings.

The Brandy Cassis

As you can from the recipe above, I needed a liqueur called Creme de Cassis to complete my drink. Thankfully, I had made my own 4 months earlier. This was the first test of my black currant liqueur. It is a very tasty addition to the liquor cabinet as long as it is used sparingly in a drink. Cinnamon dominates the liqueur at first taste and then the currant flavor becomes apparent. The next time I make it, I will be sure to include only half of a cinnamon stick. The grolsch bottles help make storage easy. Enjoy your day!