Nom de Plume

The rabid (read: foaming at the mouth) soapmaking continues, and I have more soap than I know what to do with. I was thinking about selling the stuff, but have ultimately decided not to. Frankly, I can barely keep up with my accounting as it is; forget something where I have to track inventory and sales tax, too.

So what to do with all the soap?

Trade, that’s what.

I posted an ad on Craig’s List and got a bottle of homemade Kahlua.

Also, during the Georgetown Art Walk, I saw some lovely felted soaps made by Spiderfelt, and promptly contacted her to see if she wanted to do a trade: soap for felting for felted stuff. She needs more consistency than I can provide, but wanted to do a straight trade. Done. I loaded her up with soap today, and got this in return:

Funnily enough, I had fallen in love with it on her site, and she still had one. I’m so pleased.

Also, Becky, I haven’t forgotten to send you soap. I just haven’t gotten to the post office yet.

Me (modeling a great new pair of sunglasses and flipping my hair around): Do I look like an Italian movie star?

Steve: More like an insect.

My Poppery II died. So what do I roast coffee in now? Do I get another air popper? Do I splurge for a coffee roaster?

Sing along everyone!

But let me caveat this with the statement that I admire people who have minimalist tendencies. We’d like to. But the simple fact is that we have SO much crap. Anyway, this is what the kitchen looks like as of right now. Mess and all:

We still have to replace the windows over the sink (Steve didn’t like what he put in), put in countertops (Steve now wants marble, not slate), tile the backsplash all the way around, and put in a vent over the stove.

But the amazing thing is that we not only have kitchen cabinets, but also that we have a stove.

I have to tell you a little bit about the stove because it’s kind of funny. Steve was filling in some patches of tile and sent me down to talk to his contact at Albert Lee. Before I left, I asked what our budget was. He named a figure–and I was shocked at how much he was willing to spend on a stove.

“But you can get something decent for $500 to $700!” I said, with not just a tinge of sanctimonious frugality.

“I’d rather spend more for something we like. And all the stainless steel models with nice clean lines cost more.”

I rolled my eyes, grabbed my keys and wallet, and went to Albert Lee. Where I promptly, and quite irrationally, fell in love.

It was the center griddle that did it to me. How could I live without a five-burner stove? That comes with a griddle? FIVE BURNERS! The excessiveness of love felled me; I was helpless in its clutches.

I bought it on the spot.

And when I brought home the catalog to show Steve, he asked how much it was.

“Never mind,” I said.

“How much?”

“Ummm ….”

Even with the great deal that his contact gave us, it was quite a bit more than the figure he had named. Steve’s been chuckling ever since.

A client asked me to use Microsoft Groove for a project. I have it in Office, so went to launch it and open the workspace file … and it turns out that Groove doesn’t work with 64-bit.

Just to reiterate: Microsoft is promoting 64-bit. Microsoft created Groove as part of the Office system. Groove and 64-bit don’t work together.

!!!

Are you sitting down?

The kitchen is actually being worked on.

Yes, that’s right. We now have cabinet doors and uppers above the stove. The gas guy’s coming to plumb the gas line Thursday morning, and the new stove’s being delivered Thursday afternoon. Pix to come …