Monday, February 01, 2010

put me back together

an itemized list of things, in no particular order, that have broken in, around, and on our house in the last month:

1. stove

2. washing machine

3. vacuum cleaner

4. ceiling

as you can imagine, each and everyone one of these things has been an ordeal. we are now the proud leasees of a new stove and gently used washer/dryer, but the washer/dryer? it's in a room with a leaky ceiling. during the rainy season. and they can't fix it until it stops raining. *sigh*

the vacuum cleaner was an experience in stupidity itself. we have three animals, and b vacuums every other day to keep the fur at bay. so when our three-month-hold hoover windtunnel belt fell off for the upteenth time on friday, and then the whole thing somehow also shorted out, well. on the way home from work, off to target i went, and picked up an awfully expensive dyson. because if it's that pricey it's gotta be awesome, right?

you see where this is going.

saturday morning we plugged it in, and it sucked - and not in the good, vacuum-related sense. the motor that runs the spinny brush thingy (technical term) died after five minutes. a $400 vacuum couldn't make it more than five minutes in our house. more sighing ensued.

so back to target i went. oh, by the way? there are no targets in santa monica. it's at least a half-hour drive in bumper-to-bumper most of the way. when i got there? i realized i'd left the receipt on my desk - which happens to be in my house, not in my car. can we sigh again?

finally, with my saturday completely sapped, i had a new, moderately priced vacuum with good reviews that works - at least for now.

with all the bad house mojo lately, it was definitely time to hang the mezuzah bonnie gifted us.

IMG_1569

it's the most beautiful mezuzah i've ever seen - i didn't know anyone made 'em quite like this. (and yes, it's supposed to be crooked - that, at least, was on purpose!)

IMG_1577

and sunday i got a bit of knitting in.

IMG_1586

and this morning, when i got the office, my bloom-less six-month-old orchid was in bloom again.

february, i'm glad you're here.

10 comments:

Manders said...

I really like your throw pillow! Such a fun design. I love trees. I have been reading your blog for a few months, since I found the Bella's mittens pattern. Now I just have to learn to knit!

Lara said...

I really like that pillow too! And your Rosamund's cardigan is looking fabulous, and is that knitter's hand balm I see there? :)

Sara said...

The knitting looks amazing! Sad about the vacuum and things breaking. Things come in threes. Our Dyson is great, wonder what happened with yours. Love the mezuzah!

Kristen said...

Hi, so why is the mezuzah supposed to be crooked? (And actually, what is a mezuzah? I know it's from the Jewish tradition but not it's exact meaning/purpose.)
The cardigan looks lovely and I LOVE the throw pillow as well. May your February be full of only good things!

Mr Puffy's Knitting Blog: said...

Rest assured that YOUR leaky roof is nowhere near as bad as MINE :) BTW, I have found Sears is great for vacuums ~ I have a Kenmore canister style and I think I paid about $375.

Your Mezuzah is beautiful.

Unknown said...

That is one of the most beautiful mezuzahs I have ever seen!
Sorry all your stuff is breaking, that's crap!

Anonymous said...

What yarn are you using for the cardigan? It looks so cozy and soft....

I'm actually in the market for a new vacuum too! Not because my current one is broken, but it might as well be, because it sucks. And with Hector being the shedding, white bunny he is...probably a good idea to get a new one.

Marguerite said...

When it rains, it pours as we say! I can certainly relate to everything breaking at the same time! The thing is that it costs money and money doesn't grow on trees. We've been going to the salvation army and yard sales and fortunately we've been lucky to find everything we needed.
I just love that cardigan you're making, it looks very soft!
Marguerite the frenchie from Montreal

Reckless Glue said...

broken cieling? uh oh... well now that you're getting all this horrible crap out of the way, the rest of the year should be smooth sailing!

Anonymous said...

If you're happy having Feb., I'll send you mine, too. (stupid freaking groundhog)

My vacuum is a Rainbow. Ridiculously expensive, but its water filter and amazing. Its over 8 years old, cleans like no tomorrow- I love it as much as it's possible for me to love any house cleaning device... (btw- B sounds amazing- even before you said he vacuums)

Hope all is fixed well now. Would you like some snow?