Piano Men

I was at the Billy Joel/ Elton John concert last night. Lets just say that it was a dream of mine finally coming true. I've been a big Billy Joel fan since I was in my teens and have always wanted to see him in concert. It is kind of Ironic that I saw these two artists together, I remember when I was younger hearing Billy Joel and Elton John touring together, but at the time I was listening to Van Halen , Billy Joel and Def Leppard. So I didn't have a clue who Elton John was at the time let alone what his music sounded like. The price of the tickets were very expensive and I decided that it wasn't worth it to see this Elton John.

Well since then I've broadened my musical tastes and found out who Elton John was and was surprised that I knew a lot of his songs, you have to love ignorance! I was introduced to Elton John's concert a few years back while I was in College. I was approached by my brother about a person that was getting rid of the ticket to the Concert. Around this time I would try new musical artists all the time and jumped at the chance to see Elton John. I was blown away at the great performance that Sir Elton gave. Most concerts are two hours long and that is by two acts. Sir Elton ran two and a half hours without a break! So I was expecting great show this time around and like the Eric Clapton concert I was blown away. The show started with both Joel and John singing a few of each other songs then Elton John performed a set by himself , then Billy Joel and the encore was both artists joining for a 40 min encore that topped an amazing night.

The part that really moved me was the last song "piano man" when the crowd sang the chorus, man it was loud and nearly brought Joel to tears. Truly amazing show! would see it again in a heartbeat!

Sing us a song, your the piano man
sing us a song tonight
we're all in the mood for a melody
and you have us feeling alright

Man Room Update

So now that the electrical is done and I can see how the electricity moves around the basement. Now I can move onto the bulkheads, and get ready to close up the ceiling. but before I can do that I'll have to move some water pipes, plumbing and gas pipes around, yuck! that means if I cannot get the plumber and the gas fitter in around the same time, I'll have to use the laundry mat again double yuck!

Pud is at rest

My pet cat Pud is very sick and it looks like that I'll have to put her down soon as she hasn't been eating much the past week and the vet said that it could be an infection, but I've been giving her a whole bunch of pills, and she isn't getting any better.

I knew this day would come one day and tried to emotionally prepare myself for it, but it is harder to take as she has loved unconditionally these past 18 years. I'll miss her coming to bed and her purring while she lay beside me.

At 10min to 4 today Pud passed away peacefully, her suffering is at an end and my beloved pet can rest. Love you and I miss you already.

First inspection

Well the first building inspection was done Friday and it looks like it passed. He didn't have any reports to give me, but will forward it to me later.

Update

Well it has been a while since the last updated so here is a Summary of the last few months. I found out in early November that my Father was in the hospital for a month with renal failure and that he had not been taking very good care of himself. Managed to get him back on his feet and back into his place in December.

Danielle and I then were off to Florida for three weeks at her Father's place in Venice. Had a blast there. The new long term goal for us is to buy a home down there and once I retire "no more winters for me!" The only bad time I had is when I found out that my Mother suffered a stroke, she is doing well and it was only a mild stroke. She is in rehab and looks like she'll be back at home in April.

Now that my Mother and Father were taken care of I could get going on the "MAN ROOM " project. first step, the steps. I've been afraid that the stairs in the basement would come off and I'd drop into the cellar. Bernie, Danielle's Step Dad, helped me with the stairs and were able to fix them. Next step, the corners, when the builder made the frames they forgot to include a stud so the drywall can be screwed into. Well just like an episode of Holmes on homes I kept running into more things that I had to correct before I could go forward. Step three, the laundry room, This sub room is now built and ready for the plumber, gas fitter and electrical, this weekend's tasks is building the wall to close in the furnace and hot water tank. Then I can start drywalling.

Danielle and I celebrated out two wonderful years together! I'm looking forward to celebrating many more years as well as many more grey hairs!

Build update!

Well, I thought that the Federal Government was bad, The provincial Government nasty, but the Municipal Government takes the cake in the paper work red tape department. After being told that it will take 10 days to process the permit, I go in on day 11 since I didn't get a call to see what was going on with the permit. Here you go Jozo it was ready six days after you put it in!

Anyway, now that I have to the green light to start construction, I fire an e-mail off to the Brother to see what tools that he has. Hey, he did offer the use if I ever needed them.

So I have a schedule to follow during the build, which I find kind of funny, why? Well the basement was already framed when I bought the house and from what I know the only walls the need to be insulated and a vapour barrier placed are the outside walls, which are done! one step down, no work done! The second step for inspection is the final product, which I find funny since I'll be putting in lights moving old sockets and they are going to look at it in the end? Not during? oh well, I better get it right the first time or it will be rebuild time!

Front and Center

Last night Danielle and I saw these guys at the Centerpoint theater. Wow, I loved the semi unplugged sound and the banter that both artists gave during the performance. For those that don't know Craig Northey he is from the group called the Odds.

Since I love blues and was expecting a large helping of it from Colin James lets just say that I wasn't disappointed. I was expecting some old Colin James tunes and some Odds Songs which was played the pleasant part was the covers of a few other Delta blues artists, some Clapton and some tunes that Colin James played before he made it big.

Craig Northey is pretty Witty and had the crowd laughing, he played the Corner Gas theme song that he wrote, but the show didn't really pick up till Colin James came out and played "Why d'you lie" acoustically. The show had a feel of a cottage party and was well worth the $30. If you have the chance go see it.

IT HAS STARTED!

WELL THE DREAM OF THE MAN ROOM HAS JUMPED FROM MY MIND TO PAPER AND OFF TO THE PLANNING OFFICE HERE IN BROCKVILLE. YES, I'VE APPLIED FOR MY FIRST PERMIT AND TAKEN THE FIRST STEP TOWARDS MAKING THE ULTIMATE PLACE TO ESCAPE FROM THE TIDY AND CLEAN PARTS OF THE REST OF THE HOUSE AND ENJOY MOVIES, SPORTS AND GENERAL MANLY THINGS IN ANY WAY I LIKE.

SO I'LL FIND OUT IN 9 DAYS IF I CAN PROCEED WITH MY DREAM ROOM. STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES AND PICTURES.

Aug Life Update

Well the picture on the left is the end product of a series of events that started with the hunt for a new vehicle to replace Danielle's car. We were looking for a car that has more room than the Kia Rio, easier access for Dakota and his bum knee and still look a bit decent. We though of keeping the Rio as it is an great car gas wise , but when Trixie was added to the family it was no longer an option and a larger vehicle was needed.

We narrowed it down to the Kia Rondo (Danielle's fav) and the Mazda 5 ( my fav) I'll admit that the Kia does give you more bang for the buck as it is loaded with features, it is much more quiet ride than the Mazda, but the Mazda provides a manual transmission and the easy access for my cripple dog! Wonder if I can get a handicap sticker for the car? So off to the dealership do deal with my least favorite people in the world.

I started with Mazda Kingston as it is the closest dealership to me in Brockville. They were great as they covered the seats so I could try and see if Dakota could get in and out of the car. They I was was off to Cornwall Mazda and they didn't have much on the lot. Then I tried Bank Street Mazda, bingo. I got a good vibe and started with the good old negotiations. I was pleasantly shocked when the guy dropped the price by $3500 right off the bat, but then the warm fuzzy feeling turned to disgust as the 1.9% financing turn to bank rates and negated the $3500 drop in price. So I dumped a bunch of accessories on and asked for more money off. They bit and now I'm the new owner of a Mazda 5.

My overall experience with the Bank Street Mazda is good. They are a bit unprofessional and the sales guy messed up the day of an appointment we had and didn't get a quote to me on the day promised. I heard some other customers complain about the service they were getting. It could be that Sept is a busy time of the year for them, but I was impressed that they let us take our dogs on the test drive! Now that the financing went through it is just a matter of time when the car comes in.

Camping in Fitzroy PP

You have to love the weatherman. I was checking the weather forecasts all weekend and it was a roller coaster of a ride. one day the weekend was supposed to be sunny the next day it is calling for rain. So Friday Kaos and I take off to go to Fitzroy Harbour provincial park to meet my Brother and his family for a weekend of camping. As I'm driving up to the park and around Smiths Falls this huge wall of black clouds with multiple lightning strikes flashing away nearly stops me, but the news on the radio is saying that the weather warning for the Ottawa, Pembroke Area has been lifted, so I press on to the park.

When I get there the ground is wet, but not soaking, so I set up my tent and get all the stuff inside. My Brother Ivo shows up and we chit chat for a bit then Kaos comes running up to me covered in something that he rubbed in, I'm thinking where the hell can I wash him when the park ranger walks up to me, "excuse me, is that your dog?" He startled a little girl and reported a loose dog. Off to the beach to clean Kaos up, no dogs on the beach, shit! Oh well, the fine would be worth the cost since I'd know that Kaos would jump on the bed with me when I'd turn in. So after I clean him my brother and I go to the store to pick up some firewood for the campfire. That is when heaven opened up and dumped, I mean dumped a huge amount of water on us. The funny part was my Sister in Law running around the campsite soaked to the bone while Ivo and I sat in the car dry! Kaos was under the picnic table under the patio umbrella (smart puppy, he is) trying to keep dry. So when the rain putters out I dry off Kaos and into the tent I go for the night. Guess what, some water made its way into the tent. move stuff around the drips and beddy bye I go, well till 2-3 AM when the next site over after a few beers was making huge noise woke my up. That is when I noticed that the air mattress was loosing air! argh! I try to blow it back up, few hours later , back on the cold ground. I get up around 5AM off to the car for the pump and find that there is something on the cap to the air mattress and pump it back up, off back to dream land I go, 6:30AM the chimpmunks wake Kaos up and he is itching to get outside to see where the noise is coming from. Take Kaos outside for his morning walk and show him where the noise is coming from , noticed that I'm feeling like crap and back to bed I go, well till My Sister in Law gets up at 8:30 , I hear the car start and she drives off, she come back and sounds pissed at something. I get up and find out that they didn't pack any propane. So it is cooking old school, as in using wood and fire to get something hot! You haven't had breakfast till you had smokey eggs and toast!

Well the rest of the day was a blurr since I wasn't feeling well, no not due to the smokey eggs and bacon, so I was resting most of the day. Felt better around supper time and was able to enjoy the rest of the camping without much excitement after that! thank the Lord!