Time for a New Cell Phone

It is time to shop for a new cell phone for Kris.  Her phone is over two years old and the battery just doesn't hold a charge like it used to, plus the technology of it is just rather antiquated.  So I have been shopping the available upgrades from AT&T.  I think I am going to break down and finally get her an iPhone.  It's not so much that I don't want to get one, it is the added expense of having to have a data plan. 

But, as I was shopping around looking at new phones, Sarah had to chime in about how she wants a new phone (she is actually able to get an upgrade as well, plus, I can get a month "free" if I sign a 12 month contract with her phone.  That lead to her saying that she wants an Android powered smartphone.  This I have a problem with.  I don't have a smartphone, and I am just getting Kris one, and she really doesn't need it.  There is no reason for a 13 year old to have a smartphone in my opinion.  There is nothing that she would possibly need it for.  It isn't like she has a busy schedule to keep track of, and she certainly doesn't need to browse online with it.  If she needs anything online, she can wait until she gets home and she can use her laptop.  I don't know what I am going to do with hers yet, but I am dead set against getting her a smart phone.  I mean, someone please tell me what a 13 year old needs to have a smartphone for.  If someone can make a good argument for it, I may consider it, but I haven't heard one yet.

Good News and Bad News

Today we got some good news and some bad news.  Or should I say Sarah got some good news and some bad news.  Today was supposed to be the day that Sarah got her braces off.  She went to the orthodontist and he told her that there was still a gap that needed to be closed on her upper teeth, so the bands on top are staying on for another 3-4 weeks.  But she did get the bottom braces off and is going in on Wednesday to get her lower retainer.

I even took a picture of her this morning before school with the intent of posting a before and after picture of her teeth with and without braces.  Something for her to remember...  the last picture of her with wires on her teeth, but I guess we'll be waiting for at least another three weeks, so check back mid-May and hopefully we'll have better news.

Giving Up

I spent the majority of the afternoon Sunday trying to get the wireless adapter hooked up to the TV but didn't have any luck.  I followed the instructions and just couldn't get it working.  I checked out a support website and posted my problem in the help forums and some guy gave me a suggestion, which I did.  The router connected fine, and I hooked it up to the TV, but as soon as it hooked up to the router, all the computers lost their internet connection again.  I was up and down the stairs to the basement where the router is located, restarting it, and then back upstairs restarting computers and by about 5:00 I had had enough and called it a day.

I don't know what I am going to do next.  I might try looking for a Samsung wireless adapter and see if I can just use that to connect the TV.  I only bought the NetGear adapter because Best Buy didn't stock the Samsung one, but that might be my only choice at this point.

Printer Problems

For some time now we have been having problems with our printer.  It is a wireless one so that Sarah or Kris, or I can print whatever we need regardless of which computer is being used.  Well we had been having lots of problems because it kept losing the wireless signal from the router, and every time it lost the signal, I was forced to reboot the router, which would take a few minutes each time. 

After we got the new router and the technician told us that there was a problem with some wet wires coming into the house that would need to be replaced, things have been working fine.  Fine except for the printer, because we still couldn’t print wirelessly.  With all the problems I was having with the adapter for the not so smart TV, I figured that I should now be able to get it set up to print again from any computer in the house.

After finding my online help manual and the installation CD for the printer, I finally figured out the problem.  When we were having problems, I had stopped using the wireless feature and plugged it into the computer in the basement with a USB cable so it could only be used in conjuction with the kids’ computer.  After re-running the set-up CD and unplugging the USB cable, we were ready to go in about 15 minutes.  I felt really stupid because this is something I could have done as soon as we got the new router.  I guess it had been so long since I had gone to the USB cable I had completely forgotten that I did it.

Grandparents Day

Last Friday Alison had “Grandparents Day” at her school.  I don’t think they actually call it Grandparent’s Day, it’s something like Senior Friend Day implying that any older person can come, not just grandparents since some kids no longer have grandparents.  This year, Alison asked Kris’s Aunt Vicki to come since Kris’s dad can’t come. 

I must say that I was a little disappointed when I heard how the day went when I got home from work.  Vicki only got to spend something like a half an hour with Alison out of almost a three hour event.  I don’t know what I was expecting to hear.  Last year Alison didn’t go because the event was on the same day as Kris’s mom’s funeral.  I just assumed they would run it the same way as they did when the girls were going to Riverside. 

From what Kris and Ali told me, Vicki got there and was shuttled right to the gym where they had breakfast set up.

Making A List

Summer time is just around the corner and that means one thing, a list of things to do around the house while the weather is nice.  We (and by we I mean me) have put things off for a while on things that need to be done.  For example, our bedroom hasn’t been painted in 10 years (actually I think it might be more like 12 years).  Kris had picked out a new paint color and I have had it on the list of things to do but just never got around to doing it.  I figure it is something that should take a day, two at the most, as long as I have all the supplies I need. 

But that is just one thing.  Kris and I are going to be putting together a list in the next couple of weeks of things that I need to get done around the house.  Hopefully I’ll be able to get most of them completed by the end of the summer.

Down The Drain

For the last couple of months we have had a slow drain in the bathroom downstairs.  It is something that happens from time to time and I usually just put some drain opener down the pipes and it will clear up.  The last couple of times it didn’t really help much though.  The last time, I took a snake and ran it down the drain first, but I didn’t get anything out, so next was the Liquid Plumber.  It was supposed to sit for 15 minutes and then get rinsed down with hot water.  I let it sit for almost 30 minutes and then rinsed it, but it didn’t clear out.  In fact, it backed up into the sink.

I tried snaking things again but didn’t have any luck.  I let it sit overnight, and by the time I got up, the sink had drained, but it is still draining slower than I think it should.  I think the problem is that the pipes need to be replaced.  I don’t think it would be all that difficult to do since the main, black drain pipe, is right below so there wouldn’t be that much of a replacement length needed.  What would be needed however is ripping a hole in the wall to do it.  That is what I really don’t want to do.  If I do it, it will start an entire remodel of the downstairs power room, which will be much more of an issue than I am currently prepared to undertake.  Plus, there are other, more pressing issues that need to get done.  So for now we’ll deal with it, but don’t be surprised to see something about me taking a sledgehammer to the wall if I just can’t take it anymore.