Friday Randomness
Now that you’re (almost) caught up with my books (I finished one and started another yesterday, both on audio), I’ll catch you up on other things around Chez J.
Remember our new dishwasher, named ASKO? Well, Ted and I (mostly Ted) unclogged it on Wednesday, and it ran cleanly on Thursday, and I wrote last week’s post…and then on Friday it threw the same error about trouble with the outtake, and it wouldn’t run a complete cycle. CRAP.
What is this, you might ask? It’s a little piece of zip tie. I took a picture on a piece of paper so you could have an idea of how small it is. Sadly, it’s big enough to cause a blockage in the air gap that our new dishwasher needs to run. The water runs through the air gap on the way out of the dishwasher, and it doesn’t take much to clog it up.
When I spoke with the salesman at the appliance store last week, he told me to use a zip tie down the air gap to clean out blockage. Well, when we were cleaning out the pipes last week, I remembered that advice, and apparently while I was cleaning it out, a little piece broke off, and then got jammed in the air gap. (Gappy, above, it not our air gap…ours it the one I showed in last week’s post, but doesn’t show the little connection where the lines come together, which I assume is where the zip tie got stuck. We had no idea, and could not imagine that the issue was another blockage after we had done such a great job cleaning the pipes, so the appliance store sent out a repair person to check, and he found the zip tie. Oops. You will be glad to know that ASKO is now working great. Knock on wood.
Remember the 3 kittens at the rescue where I volunteer? Well, one of them was adopted, so there were 2. I bought them a toy, which they clearly LOVE, and then the rescue moved them to another location so they could bring in 5 more cats.
The 5 new cats are a teen mom and her 4 kittens. Mom is the top left photo, she’s about 13 months old, and the others are her kittens, who are 3 months old. The four kittens are sharing a kennel, and mom has her own. I wondered if she might miss them, so I brought her up top to see them. She hissed at them. I guess she is enjoying some time away from the kids. Luckily, she’s been spayed now, so she doesn’t have to go through this again.
Engie posted this week that she was in Philadelphia for a conference, which made me wonder if she might be at UPenn, which is where Ted went to school for his PhD, where I worked, and where Maya was born. I dug out this old photo for her, of us with Benjamin Franklin on a bench near my office when Ted walked for his Masters degree. I didn’t color my hair at the time, I was worried about coloring it while I was pregnant, and then didn’t get back to it until Maya was weaned I guess. I think some people’s hair gets darker from pregnancy hormones, so I don’t know if it would actually be that dark or not if I hadn’t started coloring it blonde again. We’re not about to find out.
I was suffering from some shooting pain in my feet last week. This stuff really helped. What was wrong? I DON’T KNOW. I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, I have tendon issues, and I’m 60. Your guess is as good as mine. I’m just glad it helped.
Lisa used to have a blog when she was living in San Francisco probably 20 years ago. She’s American, married a Japanese man, spent a bit of time in SF, but mostly has lived in Tokyo, where she is now. We are Facebook friends, and she posted this a few days ago. Fascinating!
I saw this sign on my walk the other day. After seeing a coyote on Russian Hill in San Francisco a couple of years ago, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised to see them here. Mostly I’ve seen them in open spaces, though, not in townhome complexes.
Lastly, I saw this sign (selling t-shirts) the other day and thought of Stephany and her fur siblings.
Today I’m getting my hair done for the first time in about 12 weeks, and let me tell you, it is overdue. Maybe I’ll have time to watch an episode or two of the new Netflix sequel to A Different World. Any exciting plans for you this weekend?
32 Comments
Suzanne
That photo is so fabulous. What a fun memory.
I love weiner is cracking me up.
Ack – this dishwasher saga sounds so frustrating! But thank you for teaching me about the air gap. Surely it will come in handy one of these days.
How do you not come home with multiple cats each day, Julie??? Grey tiger kitties are my weakness. I want them all.
J
My husband enjoys breathing, which he cannot do when around cats. Otherwise we would certainly have several!
AC
Today I am excited to drive into Ottawa to see Danica’s university and to bring her home for the weekend. I will be a passenger and not the driver, so that is a real bonus.
J
Yay! Enjoy your weekend with D!
NGS
My major goal this weekend is to catch up on sleep. I’m just so exhausted. Ha! My husband said this morning that we should have the chillest weekend possible, so I’m on board with that!
J
You had a busy week! Enjoy your down time.
Elisabeth
Those kittens are ADORABLE.
And that truly is fascinating about the new banknotes. How wild they have ATMs expressly for that purpose?!! I learn something new every single day.
J
I know, right? I had NO IDEA about the bank notes. Amazing.
DB Stewart
So irritating when home appliances “fritzi out” and one needs to “CSI” them to solve it. *grinds teeth* Fingers crossed that’s over with.
J
Definitely! Especially as this dishwasher has only been here for *checks calendar* 12 days. Of those 12 days, I would say 5 of them it did not work. ALL SEEMS TO BE GOING WELL NOW! *knocks wood*
nance
Aaaaaargh! The dishwasher situation sounds so frustrating and annoying. Just an hour ago I cleaned my Bosch dishwasher’s filter, which was not as horrid as I thought it might be. Why do we have to be concerned with such things? Why aren’t filters and air gap thingies better designed? And, while I’m bitching about appliances, let me say that I detest the front-loader washer in the lakehouse. Why on Earth should I have to CLEAN THE WASHING MACHINE? Just stupid.
Those tabby kittens are so cute. I love how fluffy the one in the foreground looks. I’ve been missing having a cat a lot lately. My resolve Not To remains strong; not having to deal with cat hair is a big motivation to stay catless.
J
Our fancy front loader reminds me periodically that I need to run a ‘sanatize’ mode, which hopefully keeps it from getting moldy. I am very motivated to follow these instructions, because our old one DID get mildew, and it was gross. I mean, it never SMELLED gross (thank god) but it LOOKED gross, and nothing I did could make it any better. So maybe once every 2 weeks (I think) I run a super hot load that goes for 2 hours, and I throw in some bleach for good measure. We would have gotten a top loader, but they are now so big that the only model that would fit in our tiny spot is a European front loader, so that is what we have.
I’m sorry you are missing having a cat. I understand all too well that specific pain. I do enjoy not cleaning up dog hair from everywhere, amongst other bodily things.
Sarah Jedd
I love that picture! I know you didn’t lose the piece of zip tie in the appliance itsef so this would not have prevented your specific situation, BUT how awesome would a dishwasher with a garbage disposal in the bottom be? People in my family are always leaving big glops of food on their dishes, and I wish I could just flip a switch and let the machine gobble them up.
J
I think a garbage disposal at the bottom of the dishwasher is a genius idea!
StephLove
I’m glad your foot pain is better, whatever it was.
Such adorable kittens…
Our weekend plans involve a music festival in which Brandi Carlisle is the headliner.
J
Oh, that sounds fun! Enjoy!
Nicole MacPherson
We ran into a coyote just yesterday on the greenway! They are a common sight here and, unfortunately, Rex is much bigger than them and knows it. He chases them, barking, which is fine on our property BUT NOT FINE WHEN HE’S ON LEASH BECAUSE I WEAR A WAIST LEASH. It took all my strength to hold him back while the coyote skittered away. Generally I’m unbothered as coyotes really don’t go for big dogs when there are outdoor cats, squirrels, etc., BUT NOT WHEN I’M ATTACHED TO HIM.
Anyway, we also found bear scat on our walk and also in our yard. And a dead raccoon on the sidewalk this morning. IT’S BEEN A RIDE.
Different cultures are so interesting, and it seems to me Japanese culture has a lot of unspoken rules and norms. That comment is fascinating!
J
OH GOODNESS, REX! DO NOT PULL NICOLE DOWN! You sure have a lot of wildlife where you are, you and Michelle!
Michelle G.
What a lovely photo of you and your family! I’m happy that ASKO is back in action after having his Gappy inspected and the teeny piece of zip tie removed. Small things can cause huge problems! I had no idea about the special banknote ATM. I love knowing about those kinds of details about other countries.
I don’t have any plans this weekend. Yay!
Speaking of wildlife, we’ve had a moose run through here twice, once yesterday, and once today, like he’s on a mission. Either that, or it was two different mooses on two different missions, running along the same path. And we’ve heard that there’s a baby bear in the town limits, running around scared because it can’t find its mother. Poor thing.
J
Poor little bear! I’m hoping for a happy ending, but I fear that if she were still around they would be together. So sad. Two moose sightings! I haven’t seen a moose in ages…well, I saw a moose by the side of the road when I was in Alaska a few years ago, but barely…
I’m glad that Gappy is now clean and ASKO can clean the dishes properly. That’s all he wants in life.
Margaret
I had my hair trimmed and colored today too–much better. The bank machine bills seem ironed to me but I soon crumple them up. It’s so frustrating when such a small thing can cause issues. I’m glad it’s figured out!
J
It was crazy about the zip tie. And now I wonder if the original clog (not much of a clog, but enough to cause issues) is what caused our prior dishwasher motor to die. Maybe? Or maybe it was just its time?
Lisa’s Yarns
I mean, I can kind of relate to the cat mom hissing at her children! lol.
The dishwasher problem is so frustrating! I am glad the repair person could fix the issue. I hate appliance issues. Phil handles that sort of thing and is good at trying to fix it himself. I am not good at that sort of thing at all!
I love the flashback photo!!
J
LOL on you commiserating with mama cat! That is all of us sometimes, I too felt for her.
Stephany
Hehe, I love the wiener sign! GIMME.
Please let me adopt the teen mom kitty!!! She looks like Suzanne’s Leo/Lenny. So adorable.
J
Yes, she reminds me of Lenny too! If I adopted her, perhaps I would name her Lisa Bonet in honor of Lenny’s (ex) wife.
Diane
What a great family photo from the archives! That short hair looks really cute on you.
“teen mom” cat- that’s wild to me that a cat can have kittens so young. Mama cat is still brand new herself! I’m clearly filtering through my human lens- I’m sure biology and evolution and all that doesn’t care what I think about the appropriate agr for a cat to have babies.
J
Yeah, I antropamorphise the situation as well. I doubt she has any of the sociatal issues that a human teen mom has. I don’t know if it’s healthy for a cat to get pregnant so young…like a 13 year old girl, it would be really hard physically in addition to all of the other stuff. I said above that I might name her Lisa Bonet in honor of Suzanne’s cat, Lenny, but maybe I would name her Lorelei in honor of Lorelei Gilmore, who was also a teen mom? That’s sticking in my head, so that’s what I’m going to call her. I don’t remember her name though.
San
Who would think that a teeny-tiny piece of zip tie could clog your air gap… again. Dang! Fingers crossed that Gappy is happy now 🙂
Love the picture of you and Ted and little Maya! 🙂
I had NO IDEA that there is such a thing of giving brand-new bank notes for ceremonial purposes in Japan. Who failed to inform your friend about this custom sooner? The more you know!
J
I would say her husband neglected to tell her!
Gappy seems much happier now, which is a relief.
ernie
It’s already Wednesday and I’m just catching up on Friday news – if that’s any indication of how my weekend was. Mostly it was fun – we drove to our Shenanigan side niece’s wedding in KC. The wedding was amazing. Beautiful. My dad fell while we were away (as were my other 3 local sibs), so that sucked. I’d hoped to go to Omaha this weekend for parents’ weekend, but we were just there 2 weeks ago and 3 weekends out of town in a row might be too much.
I’m mind blown about the new bills for the bride concept. Wow. Just wow. I sure as hell hope ASKO is working now without an issue. I died laughing at the mamma ‘teen’ cat hissed at her babies. Bah ha ha.
J
I’m so sorry to hear about your father falling, and how frustrating that it happened while you were away. I know you live so close, normally it would not have been such an issue for you to be there. I’m glad you had a wonderful time at the wedding though, your picture on your blog post is beautiful.