Sunday, February 11, 2007

It's been a while

A month today, since my last entry. I didn't even realize. Things have changed since then. No more snow, just that drizzle that Seattle is used to.

The dogs are seeming to get along, most of the time. We still have to keep them separated during feeding, and we can't let either one play with toys with the other one around. That starts fights worse than the food ones. But, other than that, they wrestle around, and chase the cat together, and seem to get along. They are definitely cute together.

I am going permanent with my company, after 3 months of contract work. Not totally sure that is the best choice, but, it is the choice I have made for now.

Last Saturday, we went to our first hockey game. Briana was singing the National Anthem, with her school choir. They did really good, even if our team lost. It was a lot of fun, too. Never been to a hockey game before, so I really didn't know what to expect. What I thought was one of the coolest things, was the first score by our team. As soon as that buzzer went off, every person in the arena started throwing teddy bears out onto the ice. There were deluxe teddy bears for sale on the concourse, or you were given a bear when you went in. The proceeds from the bears went to Children's Hospital, and the bears themselves were given to the kids suffering in the hospital. It took three cars to haul the bears off the ice, and was really a sight to behold.

However, there were bad, ugly things happening on Saturday, too. Saturday morning, while on my way to get coffee, the truck slipped a notch on the timing chain. Means I had to have it towed home, where it just sits, waiting for me to repair it.

Then, on the way home from the hockey game, the van blew a seal in the tranny. At this point, we aren't sure how bad it is, but the cost to deal with it is great enough that we decided to say goodbye to the van. It has been good for us, and we appreciate the gift that it was. However, with 200,000 miles on it, and an increasing number of problems, it's time to replace it.

So, after a week of looking, stressing, and crying because the car we found late one night got sold before we could get to it, we found a new (for us) car. It's a 1998 Dodge Intrepid ES. Nice car. Clean inside and out, seems to run really well, and it's got a nice style to it. I might even come up with a picture of it soon. The ES has larger tires, and the largest engine available, but still gets better mileage than the van got, partly due to the lighter weight, and partly due to the increased aerodynamics. Comfortable, too. with room for 5. In fact the back seats will handle a 6 footer pretty easy.