We still have a ways to go :)

September 29, 2006 | Leave a Comment

Bogart overlooks our halfway unpacked home.

Posted by Elaine Vigneault | Filed Under Home & Design
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more looking up

September 29, 2006 | Leave a Comment

Oh, and the cable guy showed up - an hour and a half late. So now we have cable TV and internet! Woo hoo!
And our Super gave us mailbox keys!

Posted by Elaine Vigneault | Filed Under Home & Design
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Ikea and Jesus Freaks

September 29, 2006 | Leave a Comment

Back to my credo: Look Up.

Things are looking up. I had a successful Ikea trip yesterday. There is a bus that runs out there for free on the weekends, but I forked over my $9.50 for round trip bus fare to Elizabeth, New Jersey from the Port Authority in NYC.

The weekdays are SOOOOO much better. The store is practically empty. There are a few people around, but not many. I’m so glad I didn’t wait til the weekend.

Some Jesus freaks followed me around and even sat at my table for lunch (when there were 50 other open tables!) and prayed and talked about church and the lord and on and on…oh my!

I bought a bed frame, some stools, some shelves, and a few other things. My total was only $400. But then I had to pay $113 to get it delivered to my apartment. Oh well, still really cheap. I think we’re going to come in at our budget for furniture and decor, which is $4000, by the way.

We’ve spent about $2600 so far and now have most of the basics (though none have been delivered yet). Now all we need are two rugs - one for the living room and one for the bedroom, a large mirror for the living room, two large prints - one for living room and one for bedroom (we have something in mind), and a cat tree thing - some place for kitties to scratch, and another TV - bigger than the one we got for the bedroom. Well, OK, we’re probably going to go a little over budget, but not by much.

Posted by Elaine Vigneault | Filed Under Home & Design, Stuff & Excess
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More thoughts about Queer Eye

September 28, 2006 | Leave a Comment

Many people have gotten the impression that our Queer Eye experience wasn’t so great. I’m sorry for that. Let me explain:

First, Ed had a good experience. He enjoyed a lot of the adventure, learned some new things, got some great opportunities and some new suits. His only complaint is how they kept us apart for 5 days.

Second, I never wanted to be on Queer Eye. I was predisposed to dislike the experience. I am somewhat shy and don’t seek out opportunities to be on Television. If we could have done the show without my presence I would have preferred that.

Third, it’s Television. It’s not reality. Yes, they decorate your home, but they do it like they’re decorating a television studio. It looks good but it’s not for living.

It’s not safe. It’s not orderly. It’s not OK for children and pets. They left candles burning overnight with no one home. They left the doors unlocked at all times. They hung large mirrors and framed artwork like you would on a set, not in a home: on temporary wires with unstable nails over a bed in an earthquake zone. They chose plants that are poisonous to cats (Lilly). They stored flammable materials leaning on the gas water heater. They left candy bar wrappers in drawers, under the bed, everywhere…

The main trouble was we simply didn’t know what dangers to expect. Who thinks to look in the water heater closet to see if there are candy wrappers and wood in there waiting to catch fire? Who thinks to take the artwork down to see how it was hung? No, you find that shit out when stuff falls or catches fire or there is an infestation of ants. It was like moving back into a danger zone. It took weeks to make the place livable and safe.

And things are imperfect: the art on the wall was damaged, the television didn’t work properly, the furniture was damaged store displays.

On top of that, we have to pay taxes on it all - stuff we didn’t choose, stuff that’s not brand new, nice, and perfect, stuff that can’t be returned or sold for cash.

And we still don’t know what the taxes will be. They haven’t sent us the 1099. They keep promising, but we haven’t gotten it. So, it could be $300 or $3000 or even more. We just don’t know. It’s not a big deal for us since we save up plenty for taxes and are honest citizens, but still, it’s rude that they won’t even tell us the value of our “gifts”.

The taxes would be big deal for some people - ironically, the people who really need and deserve opportunities like this.

Overall, though, I’m glad we did it. I just don’t want to do it again.

Posted by Elaine Vigneault | Filed Under Queer Eye Experience, TV and Film
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Moving Sucks Ass (or How I Learned to Love Stolen Internet)

September 27, 2006 | Leave a Comment

I hate moving, have I said that? I hate moving.

We had an appointment today to have cable (and modem) installed. Last night we bought a TV for the occasion. Of course, today they never showed.

We bought some furniture, but none of it is in our apartment. We bought a sofa that will take 3-4 weeks. We bought some bookshelves that will take a week. Ironically, the bookshelves are almost identical to the ones we sold before we moved.

Tomorrow I plan to make a trip to Ikea (again) to pick up some things. After that, we will still need to decide on chairs and a matress. Ed and I are both fussy about those things, so we will likely have to shop a while before we find something we both like.

And then we will have to install closet systems to keep our clothes organized and a few other random things before the place is “home.”

This morning when I took Floyd out for his early (think 11am) walk, I passed by a Housing Works store on Columbus. It’s a thrift shop that benefits people affected by HIV and AIDS. Their window displays are pretty good and I wanted to buy these chairs. However, the items in the displays are only available through auction: here, so I can’t test them out.

Items I want/need but haven’t yet found the right one or the bargain:
large mirror at least 5 feet tall, preferably 7 feet
cat tree configuration

Posted by Elaine Vigneault | Filed Under Home & Design, Internet & Technology, Stuff & Excess, Travel & Adventure
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