Life in America - I made the move.

[Fudmucker]

@Fudmucker - you assume  that 1) either I am filthy to begin with, or 2) am unaware of the benefits of Japanese-style bathing... 

Seriously though - a bath for me is rarely a cleansing type situation but, rather, an "already clean but in desperate need of solitude and relaxation" situation. 

No offence taken or intended, Mrs Z.
I truly hope you guys thoroughly enjoy your "us time" break !

From my experience of post-jacuzzi bath rings, most people who use them are BOTH 1) filthy to begin with, AND 2) unaware of the benefits of Japanese-style bathing.  Add into the mix some popular brand bath salts, make-up, skin oil, suntan lotion and a little urine...

VOILA !
You have the average uneducated user's reminder of last weekend's alcohol-fueled "Lets get into the hot tub - no bathing suits necessary..." experience.   

(Some weeks later, some users may also start drinking lots of cranberry juice as a home remedy to their new urinary tract infection.) 

[big oil]

@Fudmucker - you assume  that 1) either I am filthy to begin with, or 2) am unaware of the benefits of Japanese-style bathing... 

Seriously though - a bath for me is rarely a cleansing type situation but, rather, an "already clean but in desperate need of solitude and relaxation" situation. 

No offence taken or intended, Mrs Z.
I truly hope you guys thoroughly enjoy your "us time" break !

From my experience of post-jacuzzi bath rings, most people who use them are BOTH 1) filthy to begin with, AND 2) unaware of the benefits of Japanese-style bathing.  Add into the mix some popular brand bath salts, make-up, skin oil, suntan lotion and a little urine...

VOILA !
You have the average uneducated user's reminder of last weekend's alcohol-fueled "Lets get into the hot tub - no bathing suits necessary..." experience.   

(Some weeks later, some users may also start drinking lots of cranberry juice as a home remedy to their new urinary tract infection.) 

Life of the party 

[Mrs. Zog]

@Fudmucker - you assume  that 1) either I am filthy to begin with, or 2) am unaware of the benefits of Japanese-style bathing... 

Seriously though - a bath for me is rarely a cleansing type situation but, rather, an "already clean but in desperate need of solitude and relaxation" situation. 

No offence taken or intended, Mrs Z.
I truly hope you guys thoroughly enjoy your "us time" break !

From my experience of post-jacuzzi bath rings, most people who use them are BOTH 1) filthy to begin with, AND 2) unaware of the benefits of Japanese-style bathing.  Add into the mix some popular brand bath salts, make-up, skin oil, suntan lotion and a little urine...

VOILA !
You have the average uneducated user's reminder of last weekend's alcohol-fueled "Lets get into the hot tub - no bathing suits necessary..." experience.   

(Some weeks later, some users may also start drinking lots of cranberry juice as a home remedy to their new urinary tract infection.) 

Likewise, no offense 

But man, you really know how to make someone look forward to their vacation, hey? 

[Fudmucker]

 

Getting a group of people together with loofahs and sponges and very little clothing
to thoroughly scrub one another down while spraying with water until everyone is sparking clean and starkers
and THEN getting into a deep aromatic pool of warm, soothing water with pine branches to scent the liquid
before serving rice wine in porcelain cups sounds infinitely more appealing, don't you think
- even if the group is only TWO people...?



Have a GREAT break, Mr + Mrs Z !
Misbehave a much as you want.
We won't mind.

(Post pics) 

[big oil]

Getting a group of people together with loofahs and sponges and very little clothing
to thoroughly scrub one another down while spraying with water until everyone is sparking clean and starkers
and THEN getting into a deep aromatic pool of warm, soothing water with pine branches to scent the liquid
before serving rice wine in porcelain cups sounds infinitely more appealing, don't you think
- even if the group is only TWO people...?



Have a GREAT break, Mr + Mrs Z !
Misbehave a much as you want.
We won't mind.

(Post pics) 

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[Wayne]

Getting a group of people together with loofahs and sponges and very little clothing
to thoroughly scrub one another down while spraying with water until everyone is sparking clean and starkers
and THEN getting into a deep aromatic pool of warm, soothing water with pine branches to scent the liquid
before serving rice wine in porcelain cups sounds infinitely more appealing, don't you think
- even if the group is only TWO people...?



Have a GREAT break, Mr + Mrs Z !
Misbehave a much as you want.
We won't mind.

(Post pics) 

Please no pics! There was just recently a debate about pics with bikes and girls!!

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[Mrs. Zog]

If you recall, after we finished the flooring a couple of weeks ago, I cried as I took out my credit card and ordered an area rug for the lounge. Well, it arrived today. It's not as dark as it looks in the pictures, I think it's the angles and the cloudy day.

The best thing about this rug is that it is made from recycled plastic bottles. Also, it is a two-part system: a top cover and a padded underlay. The top cover comes off and can be thrown into the washing machine. The whole thing is also water-resistant and stain-resistant. Bought specifically with the occasional doggie accident in mind.

It's not a fluffy, plush kind of carpet, but we didn't want that anyway.

I'm very happy with it.

[BOZO]

Very cool. Can you post a close up of the fabric? It amazes me what they can do with recycled products these days.


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[silvrav]

  Looking good!

[Mrs. Zog]

Very cool. Can you post a close up of the fabric? It amazes me what they can do with recycled products these days.


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Sure - here you go. The design is actually printed, not woven.

[Sardine]

That looks amazing, Mrs. Zog 
Amazing how something relatively simple can transform a room.

[tok-tokkie]

You may have cried as you used the credit card but, to me, it was money really well spent.  It makes a dramatic difference to the room.  The flooring itself made a really dramatic difference to your house (when compared to the old Heinz 57 Varieties coloured carpet).

Things that serve you really well are viewed with pleasure and the cost gets overlooked & then forgotten.  But the satisfaction persists.

[Mrs. Zog]

We have Tropical Storm Nestor in the Gulf of Mexico right now. The forecast model says it will make landfall north of us on the Gulf side of the state.

We won't feel much here, but we'll get some gusty winds and rain showers starting tonight and through the day tomorrow.

[RobbieJZW]

You are truly making this house your home, and it’s really great to read about your endeavors, the wins and even the setbacks-that, as they say, is life!! We hold thumbs for you this side of the water!!

[Mr Zog]

You are truly making this house your home, and it’s really great to read about your endeavors, the wins and even the setbacks-that, as they say, is life!! We hold thumbs for you this side of the water!!

Thanks Robbie! Encouragement is really appreciated.

You know, I was sitting outside earlier just chilling and watching the sunset. I got to thinking. I realized that one of the things I moss most about moving to the US is just being able to pick up the phone and call a friend. Or just get in my car (or on my bike) and go visit a dear friend.

Those "ad-hoc" braais, the beers while watching a game, sharing stories and just talking kak….   

I realized that life on a different continent can be quite lonely. 

[Mr Zog]

Today was a wet and rainy day.

Not big storms (for us at least), just some constant gentle rain with the odd squall moving through. Tropical Storm Nestor crossed to the East just a bit North of us last night and today. There was a pretty damaging tornado last too, about 70 miles West of us, near Lakeland. Around 50 homes were damaged, some quite severely. Luckily nobody was killed or badly hurt. We have 5/8ths of an inch or rain in our rain gauge right now. That's about 15mm.

I got busy this morning fixing the two bottom drawers of the fridge. When we bought the house the fridge was already here, and it was already pretty old. I'm guessing around 15 - 20 years old. And the two bottom drawers were broken and held together with insulation tape.

I pulled the drawers out and gave them a good look. All the sides are slightly curved, so finding something to glue over the cracks was going to be really difficult. So I went with plan B. I used some thin wire to put two "stitches" in the top end of each crack for serious support, then I sanded the edges of the cracks with some rough-ish sandpaper and gave them each a row of clear epoxy glue. I think that if the drawers are handled carefully then they should last for a good while to come. The epoxy I used was from Harbor Freight, and it's the "Fast Setting" type. It's pretty cheap stuff from China, but I think it'll do the job just fine.

Even Sammy was helping and giving advise and he says he thinks it'll be fine 

[Mr Zog]

This afternoon Mrs Zog finished her work a bit earlier than usual, so we went for a drive.

I have seen a shop called "Petty's Meat Market" near work and have been meaning to have a look. Yesterday I drove past and they had a sign out advertising pork ribs for 2
$2.69 / Lb. That sounded pretty good, so we went off and had a look-see. The ribs looked quite good, so we got 2 lbs, that equaled 6 pieces. So back home we divided them up into two zip-lock bags and froze them. They will make two good meals 

On the way home we stopped at an ice cream shop and each got an ice cream cup. Lovely fresh chocolate ice cream.... 

At home again I put up a small shelf next to my drill press for all my drill bits and associated drilling stuff. I used two shelf brackets that I took down somewhere else and a piece of plywood left over from some other project. It makes me happy to re-use stuff that others would just throw away. And it makes me happy that I am slowly but surely getting my workshop sorted out little by little 

Tomorrow we'll take a drive down to the beach for a little while. The weather forecast looks good, Nestor has pretty much fucked off, and some sand and sea time will be good for the soul.

Oh, and I think I'm finally over the flu. Feeling much better today 

[Fudmucker]

You know, I was sitting outside earlier just chilling and watching the sunset. I got to thinking. I realized that one of the things I moss most about moving to the US is just being able to pick up the phone and call a friend. Or just get in my car (or on my bike) and go visit a dear friend.
Those "ad-hoc" braais, the beers while watching a game, sharing stories and just talking kak….   
I realized that life on a different continent can be quite lonely. 

Mr Z, most of us are only a Whatsapp phone call away, you know ! 

Strongs! 

[Ri]

You know, I was sitting outside earlier just chilling and watching the sunset. I got to thinking. I realized that one of the things I moss most about moving to the US is just being able to pick up the phone and call a friend. Or just get in my car (or on my bike) and go visit a dear friend.
Those "ad-hoc" braais, the beers while watching a game, sharing stories and just talking kak….   
I realized that life on a different continent can be quite lonely. 

Mr Z, most of us are only a Whatsapp phone call away, you know ! 

Strongs! 

I think it's the time difference that is the main thing.

Mr & Mrs Zog, your house is looking really good. What does Sammy's think of that lovely new carpet?  

But mostly I love to see what you're doing in the workshop - true Zogging

[allan.cawood]

I can understand the distance and time zone thing ... my folks live in Bristol, CT ...
My dad has been in the USA for 20yrs, my mom and boet 17yrs

WhatsApp calls are awesome!! Getting the timing right can be a challenge at times (I often forget if it’s 6hrs or 7hrs difference - daylight savings doesn’t help either)

This December will be the first time in 18yrs the entire family will be together for Christmas. 

Looking forward to spending 5 weeks in the USA

If I had the capacity, I’d take the 18hr drive for that pop in braai with a fellow WD


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