Tool Time

My mom asked me the other day why it's taking me so long to put my house up for sale. Since I haven't been able to find any contractors to do the reno work for me (actually, I can't even get anyone to return a phone call, let alone show up to work), I've had to resort to fixing everything myself. This is not a pretty sight.

I started with the front hall tiles which didn't match very well with the dark hardwood flooring I had installed when I first moved in:






I'm sure you see where this is going...






It has occurred to me that I'm a clutz. I didn't used to be a clutz, but as I get older I become less & less aware of my physical space. I was lucky to get away with minor cuts & scrapes; I had visions of running the utility knife right down my arm & going to the hospital in my pajamas. But of course it didn't end with just the tiles. No no!





The old pink paint (original owner) didn't go so well with the new tiles. I would have to re-paint. I had a bunch of flat white paint that I had bought to do the ceiling in my old condo a few years ago. I figured basic white would be fine & easy without having to worry about perfect lines around the trim or ceiling. All white, all good. Except that flat paint looks like primer on walls. You need a bit of gloss - eggshell, semi-gloss, something. I realized this only after painting half the room. Back to the store to buy some eggshell & if I'm buying more paint, might as well do the same color as the living room etc.





And that is why it is taking me so long to sell my house. I should stick to computers.

New Toe Sucking Movie

A new delicious toe sucking movie has been added to Barefoot Kristy from my trip to Miami! Red toes & red lips...yummm! If you're not a member yet, sign up today. =)

The Sign of a New Camcorder

Sometimes when I'm trying to make a decision I'll look to the universe for signs. My mom would call it turning the decision "over to God". When I open myself up & begin looking for some kind of sign, I always find one. I don't think of it as God telling me what I should do, rather I'm allowing my subconscious to see what it wants to see; a "sign" will always appear to confirm the choice I truly want.

Remember how I was complaining about getting scammed on eBay for a camcorder? Though I got most of my money back, I was still out the $25 processing fee. I guess the guy had more money in his p ay pal account because I got the $25 refunded over the weekend. Woohoo! This is my sign confirming that I should buy a new camcorder. =)

After some lengthy research, I decided on the brand spanking new Canon HDV camera, the HV10:



The only problem is trying to track one down. Since they're brand new, no Canadian retailers have them in stock yet. I can order one from the US, but with the lousy exchange rate my credit card gives me & the cost of shipping it'll be more expensive than waiting for it to arrive here. The Camera Store guy has my name on the wait list but can't give me any more info other than it will be here within the next 2 weeks. So...order today & pay for the premium of getting it faster? Or be patient & fiscally responsible? I need another sign.

Barefoot Kristy Pictures

I added a few new pictures to Barefoot Kristy today from my last trip. It's a really tiny gallery I snapped one morning while I was sitting on my hotel balcony enjoying my coffee. The trip was pretty hard on my feet (blisters! ouch!) & I knew my red nail polish wouldn't last long on my poor toes.

Come to think of it, my feet haven't fared much better since I've been home. I caught my big toe on the edge of my computer last week & chipped my toe nail. I had to trim my nails really really short to make sure the chip wouldn't snag on anything else & give me a further owie. They look so silly this short! And you can still see the piece missing from my big toe. =(

I'm going to shoot some new foot fetish pictures anyways. I would rather wait until my nail grows back properly, but I'd hate to disappoint my sole & arch fans with having to wait even longer for a big update. Maybe I should do a bandaid set. haha!

Stingrays and Megachips

I'm sure the story has been all over the news today, but if you're enjoying your long weekend sans media, the Croc Hunter guy was killed by a stingray on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. I dived the reef years ago & when I snorkelled in Florida last month, I swam alongside a huge stingray without a hint of trepidation. Coming from a girl who's afraid of birds (damn Hitchcock), this stingray thing may bear some investigation. I thought they were pretty tame creatures that would only lash out if they were stepped on or otherwise bothered. Even if you got stung, I thought it was more of an ouchie than anything life threatening, but apparently the barbs can actually puncture your heart (like the Croc guy) or stomach. Crazy! How did I not know this? My library hold list will need some updating after the long weekend.

Speaking of the long weekend, how's yours been? I was anticipating a rather dull weekend dusted with moments of hair-pulling frustration & lots of rum as I set up my new video editing computer system. My old computer kept crashing as I was trying to convert my videos from the camera to a format I can put on the net for download. I initially had planned to just buy some more RAM, but as I checked price lists I started thinking about buying a new motherboard & chip to go with the new supa fast RAM. After reading some video editing boards that basically told me "if you're not running dual core processors, you're an idiot", I bit the plastic & charged it all. Same case, hard drive, monitor etc. so it wasn't *that* much to upgrade. Until I realized (after the computer store was closed) that my power supply won't work with the system. Delay #1.

The next day I bought a new ultra cool power supply & fan. When did freakin' fans start costing more than 100 bucks? I was not impressed by the price tag for ultra cooling action. Whatever. It's working now & I just need to do the hardware configuration update for Windows XP. Did ya know that if that process crashes in the middle of updating your hardware config it will make XP very mad? I do now! Many curse words & a late night trip to Best Buy for a new hard drive later, the system is running. I just need to find a store that carries PCI Express firewire cards & I'll be all set to render some movies. I've called 4 different stores so far & no luck.

Next time I decide to do a "quick upgrade" on my system, please refer me back to this blog entry.