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Libertad's Journal

libertad
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10/03/2008 09:36 #45914

58 Degrees
58 Degrees is the temperature in my house right now and I am freezing. I have known this was coming all summer and have been thinking about how to make my home more efficient.

I want to have my furnace serviced. Does anyone know of a good service person to do this? Is this something I should ask the landlord to pay for? If not I would rather just pay it myself because I'm sure it hasn't been done in years and I want it to be safe and efficient. I did have a carbon monoxide issue in my last house!

I also want to have vent-less gas fireplace logs installed in the fireplace. There is a gas hook up already. Do you think this is something that the service person could also connect or should I just do it myself? The gas key is kind of old and when I put my nose down to it you can sometimes smell a tint of gas coming from the key.

I have three large windows I want to cover with plastic. The window sills are wood so I don't want to ruin them. I'm thinking of making wood frames and covering those with plastic and inserting them into the window frame. I don't have a saw and am not so handy but am usually willing to try new things so I might give it a shot. I'm just wondering if this will be much more of a task than I can handle. I don't know what would be the best wood for making such a frame. I'm also wondering if making these inserts would be cost effective. Of course a saw would be an investment. I don't need a power saw of anything.

I'm also looking to buy at least one other electric space heater. I saw one at Lowes that uses radiant heat.
Not sure how I feel about that. They also have electric fireplaces. I saw one for about $80.

So hopefully it will be warmer in here soon. For now I refuse to turn on the heat!
metalpeter - 10/03/08 19:44
The only thing I can say is I wouldn't do the gas thing your self, some stuff is fine but you don't want to make a tiny mistake with gas that could be deadly or if there is even just a small leak get you sick.
libertad - 10/03/08 18:52
Thanks for the recommendation guys. I checked out their website and they do seem to be a decent operation. They even have pictures of the workers. I'm going to contact them.

dcoffee, that thing that Paul has is a ventless gas stove which is more or less like the logs. These ventless systems have some device on it so they don't emit dangerous amounts of co2. They actually use up oxygen in your home and at the same time produce moisture. They say it is best to crack a window slightly while using them. Teh benefit of ventless systems is that they are very efficient. I'll have to check out that Am 1520, I usually listen to 970.
joshua - 10/03/08 17:07
If it helps, since for a lot of people this means a lot - the guy that came up to the office to speak to my boss looked clean and seemed experienced and professional. They have nice, fully equipped trucks they ride around in as well so it is no cracker jack operation.
joshua - 10/03/08 17:00
My boss just had a Reimer guy in this week. I heard about a $79 furnace tune-up deal on the radio also - maybe that is up your alley?
dcoffee - 10/03/08 15:00
I always hear about this Wizard of comfort guy, Reimer Heating and Air Conditioning, not sure if that is spelled right. They always advertise on am1520. But I'm going on advertising, not personal knowledge, so I don't know. But they claim to be inexpensive and professional. Change the filter too, that improves the efficiency, apparently you should do it every year. We have one of those radiant electric heaters, it works well. You can turn it on high to warm it up, then lower it just to keep it hot. Not sure about the efficiency since electric is included in our current apartment. About plasticing the windows, sometimes there is a draft that comes from the outside of the window frame. Check it on a breezy day to see if you need to tape the plastic to the wall and cover the whole window frame. I wanna know what Paul has in that one fireplace. I was there last Halloween and that heater was nice and warm. Is that the zero emissions Natural gas heater? We may be buying a house soon, so I'm keenly interested in this topic too.
libertad - 10/03/08 14:19
I actually haven't ever turned on the furnace. I'm definitely changing the filter it is gross, but from what I have been reading you should have your furnace serviced every year. They clean out the parts and adjust the flames to make it more efficient. They say this alone can save you 10%.
paul - 10/03/08 10:03
Did you try changing the furnice filter. That usually makes a difference.

10/01/2008 22:28 #45885

Grifis' Sculpture Park

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metalpeter - 10/02/08 18:52
Nice Pictures thanks for sharing, for some odd reason I feel like dirty things should be done with those sculptures well or at the least the naked women ones.
theecarey - 10/02/08 16:55
Awh, I love this park! And yes, there is the obligatory statue crotch grab. (e:ladycroft) and I went there a couple of years ago, (e:theecarey,35945) and I haven't been back since, but have been pining to go. Your post reminds me of this! Fun pics :)
james - 10/02/08 09:31
I ask, who among us has not grabbed that statue's wang?

Let he who is without crotch grab cast the first schlong!
fellyconnelly - 10/02/08 09:12
nice photos! Looks like they may have added a few things since I was there!
paul - 10/02/08 08:50
Those pictures are great. Looks like it was lots of fun. I wish I had someone who would take pictures of me. One in 3 hundred of matts pics of are people, he mostly does nature, and terry doesn't take pics.
heidi - 10/02/08 00:41
Wow! I want to go there!!!
mike - 10/02/08 00:29
i tihnk i requested NO STATUE CROTCH SHOT! anywho, that place was awesome, and these are great pictures. I recommend eveyrone go there, it was super cool. I especially liked th castle one you could climb on!
tinypliny - 10/01/08 23:09
How far is this park from Buffalo? Very cool! :)

PS: Mike = King of hilarity. :)

09/27/2008 20:49 #45811

The free hand

Today we learned a new strategy of interviewing at the smoker's quitline. It gives us a lot more control of what we ask and therefore more of a challenge to both the quit specialist and the caller. I think that it will be good if I am good.

So more work equals more money which I am would be thankful for. As it is, I need a lot of things. When I say "need" I definitely mean that I can't go without them. The only answer is to work more, so getting the extra hours in this week is a good deal.

I am very worried about our economy. It really is serious as you all know. The fall of our economy I would say is not totally surprising but nonetheless still shocking. I knew that it was coming but I didn't really think it would be me even though it was happening all along. I'm glad that the start of the fall happened while Bush was still in office, otherwise I don't think many would have correlated it with him and his giveaways, deregulation and irresponsibility. I think that everyone that regularly has posted on this site gets it, but I don't think that most of the population in this country would have been able to make the connection if the downward spiral happened in the next administration. Look at what our education system has done. No Child Left Behind is the biggest freaking fraud besides the patriot act!

The proposed bailout seems to me like a huge freaking gauze pad to stop the bleeding. Not sure if this gauze pad will be sufficient to prevent a further collapse. I haven't quite figured out the answer but I think that our predicament proves that the free hand won't cop an inappropriate feel when given the right conditions. The right conditions would be when no one else is looking.






tinypliny - 10/01/08 21:06
Can you blog about the new method? I am so interested! :) Maybe you could tell me over lunch someday...
gardenmama - 09/28/08 10:50
Do a lot of people call the smokers quitline? I was a smoker for many years and quite (1 yr. 7 months - one of the hardest things I ever did). It never occurred to me to call.

09/14/2008 08:22 #45673

Yay for Tina Fey!
Sorry guys they took the video down because of copy right infringement. Oh well. At least I got to see it this AM!! I replaced the video with a pic.


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In case anyone missed this Saturday Night Live skit like I did. She did a great job with the Sarah Palin's voice. Clearly she already had the looks! How awesome.


theecarey - 09/15/08 12:40
hilarious. I missed this, so glad that you posted about it (thanks (e:mike) for providing another viable link!). Fey and Poehler are always cracking me up.
mike - 09/14/08 14:18
actually it is still up on the US magazine website

:::link:::
mike - 09/14/08 14:10
i'm so mad i missed it!
tinypliny - 09/14/08 13:10
Hahah.. Hilarious.
metalpeter - 09/14/08 11:26
That was pretty awesome last night, to bad I only made it through the next skit.

09/13/2008 20:52 #45669

Rain, rain go away
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I'm so sick of the rain and dampness. Everything feels so wet in my house.


We are forecast to have sunny days this coming week but it doesn't seem like it with that map. It looks like we are just going to be pounded with more and more rain. Even if we do have some sunny days coming up it looks like we will be hit with the last of Ike unless the jet stream changes dramatically.

Northern and Southern Erie counties are under flood watch right now.


tinypliny - 09/14/08 13:11
I HATE rain and dampness as well. 8/
vincent - 09/14/08 02:32
Although it is wet the air does feel like of neat in an unique way. I think the rain that we are experiencing was a system that started out over the Pacific out by Baja.