Hot air

The Beast is still in the garage, apparently there are 2 problems. The fan doesn't come on to cool the A/C condenser which explains why it only works in short bursts. If you're bombing down the highway then there's enough airflow to cool the condenser and the A/C works. However when you're stuck in traffic (and when you need A/C the most) then the condenser overheats and shuts the compressor off. Its most likely an electrical relay or temp sensor that's gone faulty. The second problem is that there's an engine coolant leak from somewhere. I couldn't quite determine where from the conversation on the phone...

Sofie said that I needed to get the music fixed too...I mean what's wrong with AC/DC?? What is wrong with the 3 year olds of the world today??

Today I've got to book a couple of nights away somewhere for next week. Mrs P is taking some much overdue time off work and the kids are on Spring Break. It's also Mrs P's birthday and as yet I've not got her any presents.

With just over a week and a half til I start work I also need to get myself ready for that. I guess I ought to get a hair cut too as my last one was back in September. At the moment its like a cross between an 80's George Michael, an 80's Jason Donovan and and 'Achey breaky heart' Billy Ray Cyrus! Its not a look that I've gone for intentionally I can assure you.

Record temperatures this week

It's possible we're going to have some record temperatures this week, unfortunately it's at the wrong end of the scale with a low of 41F expected. This comes after Saturday's high of 80F too. Good job I've got my car booked into the garage tomorrow to get the A/C looked at. It still gets up to the mid 60's during the day so for my last two weeks of lazing around the house, shorts are still very much the order of the day.

Like mother, like daughter...

Yesterday was a BUSY day. It started with a kids triathlon at the YMCA and some 60 kids aged between 6 and 11 entered. Bathed in strong sunshine and with temperatures approaching 80F, Raina crossed the line in 2nd place in her age group (6-7) and was the first girl home. We celebrated with an ice cream and by accidentally setting the car alarm off (which we then couldn't stop!!!)

It was also Raina's birthday on Thursday and we celebrated that yesterday too. It was a sushi party at Raina's request and we made our own rather than buying in. It was a lot of fun and we have plenty of leftover for today too. Tuna, cream cheese, and asparagus makes an excellent sushi roll.

Homemade sushi, as good as store bought too!
Raina's Cog/Dat cake
Raina wanted a cat birthday cake so I made the following. It looks like the hybrid lovechild of a cat dog relationship, hence a cog or dat, but Raina loved it anyway.

All good things...

...must come to an end as today I've been offered a job. I start at the end of April and I'll be working for the County. It's a techie position and I'm looking forward to with a lot of enthusiam. It also means that my Playstation 3 is getting nearer.....

Mrs P is very happy and excited too. She'll finally have me out of the house earning real money! How she'll miss me when I'm gone.

Still I've got a couple of weeks to bum around and get my tan going...think a trip to the beach is in order this week.

Beer o'clock

Met up with a friend last night for a few 'Happy Hour' beers at Jack's Bar-b-que. Funny how beer tastes better and is drunk quicker when its 2 for 1.

Now that the fog of last night's beer has worn off its time to tackle another project. Mrs P wants the outside tap moved so that she can reach it from the porch rather than have to go rummaging about in the bushes. Looks easy enough and I bought the necessary parts yesterday. Time to turn off the water and get to work

Update:
What is it with women and going to the bathroom? Not 5 minutes after I shut off the water and cut the existing tap off, they need to go to the toilet!!! They flush and this causes a drop in pressure in the system and the water then syphons back out the lowest point. Which happens to be what I'm working on! "Sorry I forgot" was the apology, anyway no harm done and its all back together and tested. The double bend I had to put in was to accomodate the fact that the upper post overhangs the lower post by about 1/2 inch.

Mrs P will be happy when she gets back. Next job is to replace that scruffy lattice work on the left of the picture

In at the deep end

We went to an outdoor pool today for a swim with Mrs P and couple of her friends. After we all did 20 or so lengths the girls went off for a 5 mile run, they're doing some triathlon training. I declined to join them for this part as someone had to be towel monitor.

The AC on my car has started to play up and it doesn't get very cold. This could be a number of things but first stop is to get the system recharged with refridgerant. This is one job I can't do infact i can't even see the AC components under the hood. I think a Haynes manual is needed.

Beadle lives on

To keep the spirit alive of the self-titled "World's greatest practical joker" on his favorite day of the year I set up a prank of my own. Last night I froze Raina's cereal and this morning she couldn't work out why her spoon wouldn't go into the bowl!

Watch out there's a Beadle about!

On another note I've given my tenants notice that I need them to vacate my house. I need to sell it so that I can take advantage of the depressed market over here and before the UK goes tits up too. It's a bit scary not having the mortgage covered and not having a job to pay for it either.