Window Shopper

Growing up, I heard about custom window treatments all the time. My Dad had a shop that sold all of that but he went to the home and did all the custom work. But now, in this age of the do-it-yourselfer or DIY, people want to decorate with their own custom Window Treatments, Drapes, Valances, Swags. FabricWorkroom.com has it all for you, the DIY person. You can visit the website and check out the window treatments plus much more right there at your fingertips. There is no mystery. They have the measuring tools for you as well.

Now, you are not limited to just window treatments. There are also upholstered headboards, shower curtains, fantastic luxury bedding plus a lot more. You need not worry about those extra costs like hourly decorating fees, no travel expenses. This is perfect for the DIY in you!

I can tell you that when someone else comes into your home to do the work, it is going to cost you a lot for the materials and the time. But, when you go to FabricWorkroom.com you can pick out what you want and then put it up yourself. When you choose the type of window treatments you want, there is a selection of the best fabrics but there is so much more; all the best styles right there for you, free swatches for a more informed decision. The cost is way down because you are the DIY in your home. And you also get free shipping for most orders. Your budget is small? Not to worry. They have pricing for all sorts of budgets. The main thing to note here is that by buying through FABRICWorkroom.com you are saving money! And it will be done the way you want it. You cannot beat that. Go check out FabricWorkroom.com today! You will not be sorry.

After the bathroom do over, I should tell you about some of the things that need to get a major change in the rest of the house. Our house is not what you would call spacious. We have a small, compact, very full house. When we moved in some years ago, we believed that we had some space. Not so. Within a very few years, we have more than filled it to capacity. And in that filling, we have lost some things due to crappy lighting. We can’t SEE it, whatever IT is. That’s why it’s lost. See?

The problem is that we have dark paneling on the walls. Because of that, the house seems quite dark. Then you add that the only indoor lighting is hanging from a ceiling fan, it just isn’t giving the light needed for the livingroom. So, what we needed to do was get a floor lamp. On a side note, my husband tried that once. What a disaster. We have laughed about it since. He bought a lamp that had to be shipped. When we got it, the thing was nothing like he thought. But it was hilarious. Looked like an octopus, a really short octopus. LOL! Yes, it went back.

Frankly, I wish we could just get rid of the paneling. It belongs in the house of the 80’s, that’s true, but I would love to modernize our house a bit. That means tearing out the paneling and paint the walls a nice soft tone, maybe blue. I cannot tell you all those colors of blue. Blue it is. Of course, this means getting new furniture. Definitely, we need that. Right now, our furniture is early garage sale. All in all, we could use a lot of change. One thing at a time.

I have to admit that bathrooms are not my first thought when I think of remodeling. Of course not. The first thing I think of is the livingroom and the kitchen. Those are the rooms I see each day and are the first things visitors see as well. However, I probably should change my mind about this since visitors almost always see the bathroom too. That’s because….well, never mind. You get the idea.

But we need a bathroom do over. You might call it a remodel. I like “do over”. Something about that phrase sounds good. And our bathroom certainly needs it badly. Because of a leaky hot water heater from several years ago, our floor in the bathroom is getting difficult to navigate. The floor is starting to give way. Small spots which had been wet from that leak are actually cracking and breaking. Okay, since the house, and therefore the fixtures in the bathroom, was built in the early 80’s, I think maybe it’s about time to change lots of things.

The floor has the most hideous carpet. It has to go. Ditto, the bathtub. That’s one of those molded things that looks like the house was built around it. And the sink is looking a bit ancient too. I did say “do over”, didn’t I. If I were going to pick right now, the carpet would be something that looks right at home in the bathroom. Some really do not. Now I happen to like deep pile carpet but I doubt that would work in the bathroom when the floor gets wet. But that’s what I would like. It’s fun to run your feet through that.

We have no problem whatsoever putting in a large shower instead of the tub. If it was the size of the tub, there would be lots of room. I like that idea. It could be tiled in a minty green, a soft cool color just perfect for showers. The sink needs a complete overhaul too. Maybe it would be good to have Danze faucets instead of the really boring and gunky faucets currently in use. Of course, I would love to put some room stretcher into the room and make it about twice as big too. Now that is not likely to happen. Limited space to work with. Ah well.

A few years ago, we had a really bad hot water heater leak that went all over the hall floor. It migrated into the back bathroom floor as well. We got it soaked up and dried and never thought another thing about it. Recently, a guest walked into the bathroom and the floor went down. Then, we all have had a turn at that. The floor is giving way. Bad news for us. For one thing, it means our bathroom, the one with the tub and shower, will be out of commission for a while. YUK! But it can also mean a bathroom do-over.

The carpet is a crappy color. I hate that carpet. And it will need to go. So will the hall carpet since it apparently is starting to rot. Oh boy, this is sounding kind of expensive. But the really great thing would be to replace the bathroom sink with a glass sink. Have you seen those? Very nice. They have some that are sort of like a fountain with cascading water into three different sink bowls. I don’t know right now. It will depend on what all has to be done first. Ah well. Fun while it lasted.

I love spring. It’s a new birth of the green things that lay dormant during the winter. The trees begin to sprout their leaves. The early spring flowers show up. We have had daffodils already. They are such pretty yellow flowers. The roses will be out and blooming pretty soon too. It won’t be long before the hummingbirds come back. That’s one of my favorite things about spring, when the birds come back.

It’s also the time to get out the decorations for the yard. Now normally I do not think of garden decor, especially all winter, but, in the spring, that stuff springs into the mind so just having some fun things in the yard and garden make looking out the window nicer, don’t you think? I have seen everything from those garden gnomes to deer, the fun bugs to someone’s very serious scarecrow. It really does not matter what we put in the garden or the yard. It just makes things more interesting when you do that.

Naturally, each spring we end up in the garden center in some store to pick up a part for the lawn mower or some plants to put in the ground early enough for them to produce such great things all summer! This is definitely the time to get all those plants you have ever wanted to plant in your yard and garden. I love spring!!!

Before Katrina, I had gone to New Orleans to deliver a load for the military. I sort of got a tad lost and ended up in a part of town I KNOW I should not have been but I am so glad I did see it. All along the street were these amazing antebellum homes that were just awesome. They had these columns in front like the old southern homes had in all the movies. I drove down the tree-lined street, looking at probably 50 homes that seemed to be from the civil war period. Awesome!

It’s a bit harder to see those columns anymore but they still exist. You know what I’m talking about, right? Now if you build a home with that type of construction, you can have the same effect with fiberglass columns instead. It sure looks pretty but I would think it saves money and the effect is the same. The house we used to live in up north had the columns too. But they were starting to deteriorate because the wood was getting really old. If I were going to build a home for our family, I would love to have those columns. There’s something about that look that I just adore.

That’s what I would like to say was happening to me. However, I haven’t slept for a full night in so long I have forgotten what it’s like to do that. This started somewhere in about the second year of our marriage. No, now do not go there!!! I started to have a bunch of wake up problems but I have no idea why. We thought it might be the standard mattress we have. Could be. I really do not know.

What bothers me is that it’s like I never really ever get a good night’s sleep anymore. Whether it’s the mattress or the house, the cat, the outside problems…we did have a huge thunderstorm the other night. Lightning and thunder, a lot of it. Normally, that does not bother me at all. I sleep through all that but wake up when it’s quiet. Go figure.

I was wondering the other day what would happen if we got a different mattress, you know? Now, I have already owned a water bed before. It had some good points and some bad points. Don’t think I want to go there again…ever. We have had this standard sized mattress for years. The thing is good but not great. I think we need great. And I thought that we should try out a foam mattress and see what happens with that. How about one of those memory foam mattresses? That would be a great bed to sleep in. Now, when I get the money, that’s what I want. I just figured it out. Maybe then I could get an actual night’s sleep again. WOW!

Everybody knows that oysters sometimes have pearls in them. But what happens if, in some strange lightning flash, oysters all over the world started coughing up something besides pearls? Picture this:

You are walking down the aisle of your local grocery store when you spot some oysters in a barrel. Time to stock up. As you begin to scoop them up, it suddenly dawns on you that you could get them for free if only you were on vacation. That idea begins to take root. Rushing to the car, you speed homeward. If only your husband will get home early today by reading your mind! As you pull into the garage, you spot your husband’s car. ALRIGHT!

Having talked hubby into heading to the oyster beds, you both are anticipating a huge meal of your own handpicked shells. After looking for quite a while and gathering all you can, you spot an unusually shaped oyster shell poking up slightly taller than the others. As you head for it, you realize that this shell is really big! You call your husband because it is apparent that THIS particular oyster may be a good deal older than the others and will take some special effort to open it.

Working together, you pry open the shell. If you could see your husband, you would see that his eyes are popping out just like yours are. Inside the beautiful oyster shell rests a perfectly formed laptop which is up and running. Okay, the oyster isn’t REALLY surfing the net, right??? The laptop is fantastic! And you have wanted one for ages.

Do you eat raw oysters? You may be at risk for serious illness or worse. How can you tell? For those who have serious problems with stomach, diabetes, liver problems and more, you could be at risk. Please take the time to go to the Be Oyster Aware website to find out more about this subject. In the meanwhile, take a moment and enjoy the idea of having Gulf oysters for supper tonight!

Recently, I received some samples of Grey Poupon mustard. I was asked to try these mustards and give an honest review of them. The ones that I received were the Hearty Spicy Brown mustard and the Harvest Coarse Ground mustard. Frankly, I was not sure if I could try them because I do not do well with spicy foods. However, I wanted to give an honest review so I decided that a little would not hurt at all. WOW!

First, I tried them on a plate with just the Grey Poupon mustard. The Hearty Spicy Brown was a tad spicy but really had a great taste. I loved it right away. Then, I tried the Harvest Coarse Ground mustard. To tell you the truth, my mouth lit up. HOT!!! Yes, it was hot to me but it was also incredibly tasty. Now, my husband did the same taste test I did. He loved both. They did not seem hot to him at all. He loves spicy hot foods!

Okay, I needed to figure out something to have these mustards either in or on to give them a real test. Burgers! But I didn’t want just any burger. These burgers are great with any condiment and especially good with both of these wonderful mustards. So, choose one mustard for your burger.

Mix the ground beef or turkey (yes, turkey burgers work great!) with onion soup mix. Add some shredded cheese (we like cheddar but would also put any other type of cheese as well). Mix well. Put them into a frying pan, broiler or on the grill. It all works great. When they are done, add cheese to the top, slap into a bun and get out the mustard! Slather a good helping of Hearty Spicy Brown or Harvest Coarse Ground onto the burger (my husband would use both at the same time for a really rich mustard taste!). Add your favorite side dish and watch out! Love those burgers!

We live in a rural area of the Ozarks in Arkansas. Because of that, there are three ways to receive a television signal. First, there is the outdoor antenna. You can find them at electronics supply places. We have a couple here. The ones that would work in a rural area are those that reach for the sky, in other words, very tall. Those are pretty much going to cost about $150 and up. Anything shorter and you have nothing.

Second possibility is a satellite dish. Not bad there. They aren’t that expensive, get a lot of channels…depending on your package and so on. Not bad. I am not talking about them tonight.

Third, you can get cable. In our area, cable is available and we have a subscription to it. With cable service, you do not have to put your financial info out there for all to see and if you are strapped for cash, this is the way to go. We have plenty of channels and pay a bit to see them all but our service has been really great. In fact, we have had the satellite service before and every time it snowed or rained, we got service interruptions. We do not get that with our cable company. I believe that we have had the service interrupted a couple of times since 2005 when we got it.

However, we have had a problem with our current company, Charter Communications. In the beginning of our service, we received what appeared to be an older receiver box and remote that the installer said was new. When my husband asked for a manual on the box and remote, he laughed and walked out the door. Sigh. But the one thing we did see was that the channels came in clearly and steadily.

For these years of service, we are pleased…except for one thing. When we started with Charter, the programming guide on the screen was extremely helpful. It showed us almost 4 days ahead with what was on. We loved that. During the years since, the guide slowly shrunk to about 2 days of programming but that was just fine. We were very happy with that too. Quite recently, they put in a new programming guide. We waited with anticipation because of the promises of better service and quicker loading.

Hmmm, things did not pan out quite the way they promised. Our guide never went any farther than about 2-4 hours on any day. You could not get the thing to go past about 5 hours, even with the “to be announced” announcement. This was aggravating, to say the least. So, what do we do now?

My husband chose to call the customer service repair line. He did get someone who was willing to track down the problem but he worked on the weekend and we needed someone during the week to help us. When he called back during the week, he talked with someone who pretty much refused to work with him in any way. My husband then asked for a supervisor who essentially told him that since the guide only showed 2-4 hours, that’s what ya get….get over it and live with it.

Uh no. We chose not to live with it. My husband was mad so he blogged about it. After he published the post, he received a comment from someone who works at Charter Communications and gave a phone number to contact them. WOW!!! He did that. The next day, a man called and asked what the problem was. My husband told him and this man agreed that the current situation was not acceptable. He scheduled a trouble shooter to come to our house and fix the problem.

Today, the man came and replaced the box, which he said was 25 years old, with a much younger model!!!! He told us that the guide should show about 2 days ahead. At this time, it is showing much farther than the other one did. We can expect the guide to fill in for a day or so more. Oh yes, the original caller from Charter Communications called back to be sure the guy showed and that he was able to help us. We gladly told him that things were better. He then told us that if we had any other problems or if that one is still not resolved…to call him!!!

The result here is that you do not want to assume that each employee of the company is willing to be nice and work with you. Some are definitely not. But if you keep talking, most companies do care about their services and are willing to work out some arrangement to your satisfaction.

Kudos to Charter Communications for their help in solving this problem pretty quickly!!! YAH!!!Thanks, Charter!!!

UPDATE: The onscreen guide now goes for about 4 days and is quite thorough. We are pleased. We would like to thank the gentleman at Charter Communications in St. Louis who took the time to look into this problem for us. We also would like to thank the lady who first saw my husband’s blog and contacted him to give him the phone number for St. Louis which is the corporate office of Charter Communications. Every penny we paid them these years has been worth it! Thank you!!