Moving Day In Boston

Ah. September 1st in Boston. Moving Day. Our apartment is situated right inbetween BU and BC, so September brings tons of new and returning students. But folks aren't just moving in, some have to move out. And that means that the sidewalks are littered with old furniture and the dumpsters are overflowing into the road.

Since we're staying put this year, I took my camera for a little walk.

It was quite the scene. There were bright orange stickers on every piece of furniture on the sidewalk warning people not to take said furniture for fear of bedbugs.

I saw VHS tapes and records, men carrying new couches and old, a girl watching two grown men struggle to move a huge TV, dressers, mattresses, cookie sheets, fouton frames, and the list goes on.

Of course there were moving vans galore, but I especially liked the Gentle Giant. They have an awesome phone number, too: 800-GIANT-MEN (too many numbers, right?)! Amazing.

Welcome to September.

[Don't forget to check out the new stuff at ELM.]

Random Tuesday Thoughts

Good morning! 

Last night I went to my very first networking event. I'm naturally pretty shy, so as the event drew near, I became more and more anxious. I purposely went alone so that I'd have to talk to people I didn't know, and I think that was a good idea. I have no problem talking to people one-on-one, it's just finding that person to start the conversation with that makes my heart pound. Anyway, I actually had a very nice time and met a number of interesting people. It's a monthly event and I think I'll become a regular because it's a great way to promote Everything Little Miss and make contacts for possible job opportunities.

Semi-related is the fact that I had to leave my "office" to go to said event. I used to cross the street and take the train everyday. I think I've lost my street crossing skills. I don't know the timing of the lights anymore! Ahhh. 

Oh oh! I learned how to drive a stick on Saturday! Eric recently had his car raised to normal height (the girl he bought it from had it all customized and lowered so that every minor bump felt like a crater and pot holes were nightmares) when he had to replace some parts (I have no idea which ones - struts??). But the change in the car meant I could learn to drive it without worrying about leaving the bottom of the car behind me on the road somewhere. I did pretty well too, and I drove on a real road with real traffic. I still need to master starting from a stop, because right now it's a pretty slow start, but I'll get there!

For the past 4 weeks I've been taking an e-course with Holly Becker of Decor8, and yesterday was the last day. It was called Blogging Your Way and it really helped me feel more confident about my blogs. I'm going to miss signing in on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Holly might offer this class again or offer a different class; I highly recommend signing up (check out the class badge in the right sidebar)!

This is getting pretty long, so I'll save the rest of the items on my list for next week. I'll leave you with this: On Saturday morning we went to Keezers and Eric bought a tux (yes, it's for HBS events). I totally found it and I deserve a finder's fee. It was $99, but if you look online, a new one goes for $1,784! Holy hello, I'm good. I don't have a picture of him in the tux yet (still needs  to be hemmed, but he looks REALLY handsome), but here's a photo of the store (if you need a men's suit or tux, this is the place). 

Check out The Un Mom for more totally random thoughts.

Jesus Plastering

I was saving this one for Christmas, and then I totally forgot about it! Oops. Better late than never, right? 

I don't know really what to make of this. Jesus Plastering Corporation. What does it mean? Do they only plaster Jesuses? Is Jesus the name of the owner and they just forgot an apostrophe? And why do you suppose they're missing a big chunk of their van? Was there a plastering accident, or just a regular old accident? 

If you're anything like me, you're wondering what "blue board and plastering" means. Luckily, Bob Vila explains it here. 

Blue Skies Ahead

On our way back to Boston last weekend we were racing a storm. Dark and gloomy skies threatened in my rearview mirror, but ahead skies were bright. At one point we even saw a rainbow! 

Eventually, the rain caught us again, but for a little while it was a real dichotomy.

Autumn In The Berkshires

We went to North Adams to celebrate my dad's birthday the weekend of September 27th. It was a cool, fall weekend and the trees were on their way to brilliant. Soon there will be leaf peepers creeping along and slowing down weekend traffic. 

Word Recognition

When I saw this sign at Jim's Package store, I was very confused. This is how I read the sign:

15 minute parking
Jim's Package only
Viola tors will be
ticketed &/or towed

According to the National Institute for Literacy, "Word recognition is the ability of a reader to recognize written words correctly and virtually effortlessly." Well I effortlessly saw my friend's name (Viola) in this warning! The space between the "a" and the "t" is just big enough that I saw two words instead of one. Honestly, I was really excited to see a name written on a wall and that's the only reason I read the sign at all. Since the lettering is white on yellow, it's not especially noticeable. I was wondering why Jim's Package store would have a sign about a woman named Viola. I guess they wouldn't. Haha.

Plus, my mind automatically filled in the missing "a" in "Packge" [sic].

I believe there's a saying that goes something like you only see what you want to see.

The Park

Click image for larger view.

This situation makes me laugh; it really cracks me up! The sign depicts two children playing on a teeter totter (aka, see saw). This is to alert drivers that there is a playground up ahead. As you can see in the photo below, there is no teeter totter in sight (there really is a park though, so they get some credit).

Click image for larger view.

The sign is so old and outdated that I can't remember the last time I actually saw a teeter totter! I wonder if kids today would even know what this sign means. When I was little it was one of my favorite features of the school playground, but in the last 13 or so years they've totally disappeared. I think teeter totter is now synonymous with law suit. That is just so completely disappointing!