There is no Google on the Libery

On Saturday Lynda took the girls to the library to exchange some books and get some new ones. I sat in the car with Coach and watched the beginning of Public Enemies.

Layla, being Layla, probably went to one of the PCs reserved for searching the Library Catalogue. Being quite different from her laptop, I imagine that she wrote her frustration down on one of the small note papers hoping to take it up with higher authorities at an opportune time.

I found the note this morning as I was cleaning up.

Kill The Wabbits

So I spoke with brother this morning and he was off to kill rabbits somewhere in Malad.

He could just go here to get his fix.......

http://www.flonga.com/play/kill-the-wabbits.htm

EcoENERGY Grant

On the 8th of December 09 I had a regularly scheduled inspection of my furnace. I normally get this done every year prior to Winter to ensure that the furnace will not fail me when I need it the most.

This time however, I was informed that the heat exchanger was cracked. Heat Exchangers are generally warrantied for the life of the unit, so getting a new one would not be a problem. The issue was the labor cost to get it replaced. It would cost me anything in the range of CAD 800-1200. After opening the unit however there would be other parts that would need replacing as is generally the case with a unit of it's vintage. After the repairs, I would still be stuck with a 15+ year old no efficiency and I'm not sure of going that route....

We decided to bite the bullet and replace the entire unit at a cost of CAD 5,500. I also went with an EcoENERGY audit that would reward me for the upgrade to a High Efficiency furnace. That means that the Canadian Government (Provincial and Federal) would give me back CAD 1,580 for this upgrade.

I now have 18 months within which to do all of the necessary upgrades after which the auditor returns, assesses the changes and then files the paperwork directly with the government to enable me to get my money.

So here's what I plan to do and what I expect to get back in return

High Efficiency Furnace - 1580.00

Energy Star A/C - 500.00

Attic Insulation to R-50 - 1,400.00

Basement Walls Insulation - Between 900.00 and 1,800.00 depending on the R value

Headers Insulation - 250.00

Crawl Space Insulation - 750.00

Air Sealing - 190.00 to 430.00 depending on the readings.

Replace Doors & Windows - 80.00 per unit

Replace Toilets - 130.00

With the exception of the furnace which is already done (and the fact that I would never touch Gas...) the only other work that I would subcontract is the blowing of the insulation into the attic. I's not that I can't do the job, I'm just very afraid of blocking the soffits and causing more harm than good. All other work will be done by me and while I will end up spending more that what I will get back, my expenses will be offset by sweat equity and I will be rewarded with a house that is more comfortable both in winter and summer, lower heating and cooling bills and a warmer basement without the need of supplemental heating devices.

Changing the toilets has to be the one area where I actually make some money. The units I got cost me CAD 250.00 each. HD had an offer where they dropped 100.00 off the price and the Region of Peel gives me 100.00 back making my units cost just 50.00. Then I get back 130.00 per unit from the EcoENERGY initiative.

There is really a lot to be done. And I'm here sitting and blogging.......

Farewell To A Decadent Decade

Jan 02 TwentyTen.

We've just rolled over into a new decade. We celebrated the end of the last decade in Dubai. Layla was not yet born. It was the holy month of Ramadan and as commercial parties or festivities of any kind were banned, we decided to host the 'Millennium' party at our place. It was a party to remember. The highlights of which were Dubai's mounted Police looking over our gate and asking us to keep it civil, someone waving a can of Fosters to the cops whilst convincing them that we had no booze on the premises, Shane being too shitfaced to DJ, Nali's (our then housekeeper) medicine finding it's way into the punch, the punch turning the color of mud whilst being pronounced the best ever and me driving everyone home only to return back to find Francis sitting in a dark corner still waiting for a drop off.

The end of the last decade also saw us preparing for the Millennium Bug or the Y2K problem that never really happened. DHL even gave Lynda a certificate for her part in preparing towards Y2K. I'm not sure what it was that she did and I'm quite sure if asked, she might not know as well.

The rest of the decade saw humanity becoming more avaricious and living well beyond their means. And then everything went south and soon. While we're still recovering from the recession, I think that the general population has still not got a grip on what exactly it was that we went through. The malls were full for Christmas shopping and we saw lines outside stores for the Boxing Day Sales. We too did succumb, but I only bought a pair of boots out of necessity. Or so I've convinced myself.

Having said that, I just gifted myself a DeWalt Random Orbital Sander and a Porter Cable Compressor with a Brad Nailer and a Finish Nailer, but they are for projects will be undertaken this month.

I've not really made a lot of resolutions and when I do, I normally tend not to see them through. This year however I've resolved not to carry my paunch with me to the end of this year. I've not resolved so much but decided that I will question all of my purchases - Thrice. I will want less and will make do with what I have. I will simplify and I will Reduce, ReUse and Recycle and I will enjoy what I've been gifted.

Happy New Year. Let's not Royally Fuck this one up!!!