One thing missing in our lives as renters was the freedom to cook outdoors (without being arrested). That’s all been fixed. Behold- our newest outdoor addition to the family- the Classic Weber Silver Edition Charcoal Grill(e?).
First pictured listed is from Alton Brown’s famous grilled split chicken recipe. Best damn chicken I’ve ever had off a grill. No nasty char marks. No pretending that the chicken wasn’t dry. Nothing. This was PERFECT (recipe to follow later). I know it’s not the little green egg but for $80 it fits the bill nicely at our house.
After some serious searching on Craigslist I managed to find a slightly used iMac G4 for the low, low price of $200. Now, that may seem a lot for a computer that is 5 years old but we all know how well Macs hold their value. Buying a 5 year old PC would be ludicrous, sure. However, this thing is more like a piece of home decor. And, it fits perfectly on the desk in our guest room.
Here are the specs (as purchased):
15″ Display
1GHZ PowerPC G4
512mb ram
Upgrades thus far:
Purchased 1GB ram (being delivered Monday). Although Apple only officially supports 1GB total- the unofficial word is that it will hold 1.5GB total (512mb DIMM and 1GB SODIMM- user replaceable).
Airport Extreme card. Let me say the belkin wireless usb adapter I purchased was a nightmare. After 5 different drivers it still was not working. The airport extreme was purchased at Fry’s, installed in 10 minutes, and working in 5. Sometimes it’s best to just stick to Apple products since they play nicely together.
Installed Apple Remote Desktop (client). This will be for maintenance and general spying when guests are in town (kidding! sorta).
Upgrades coming:
New Keyboard/Mouse!. My wife and I cleaned the hell out of the keyboard (each individual key) because it was 7 layers of disgusting. However, I still don’t like it- too bulky for the desk it sits on. Also, not having the Mighty Mouse really stinks due to the lack of a scoll ball.
All in all, it’s a great little computer. Obviously no where near the horsepower of the current intel-based macs but still a great work of design and engineering.
Well, it’s been a long, long, long, road..but, it’s finally happened! You can check my flickr stream for more photos if you’re curious/bored. We’re moving after Thanksgiving but we’re trying to get some fragile stuff moved in before the movers have a chance to break anything.
Still on the to-do list- fight with Comcast about getting service (not looking forward to them), buy a washer and dryer (man, those things aren’t cheap), and a fridge (much importanto). If there’s any money left I’ll be pushing for a flat screen tv for over the mantle…ha..
Man, I know my alignment has been off for some time but c’mon! I’ve rotated these tires every 10,000 miles and have had two alignments done (and I only have 28,000 miles).I think I’m going to ditch the runflat tires and getting something a little nicer from the boys at Kauffman Tire (and get an alignment while I’m at it). Whereas before I was thinking about getting some performance tires I’m realizing that, due to buying a house, the budget for expensive tires is rather slim. That being said- I’ve got two questions:
1- What would be a good replacement tire for my car? I want something that will last at least 30,000 miles, is not a run-flat, and has to be17″ (and obviously fit the MINI).
2- Should I purchase either a can of fix-it-flat for $6 or purchase the OEM spare wheel/tire combo for $229 (plus shipping)? I’ve heard and read varying reports on whether tire shops can remove that foamy crap after it’s been applied. I’ve enjoyed the (relative) security of the runflats but I can’t justify the price to replace them. Also, I’ve got roadside assistance from AAA so I can get towed anywhere - however, that doesn’t mean that’ s my preferred method if I blow a tire..I do live/work in a metro area and that could take a while come 5PM rush hour.
So, I need advice. New tires being purchased this weekend no matter what. DB/Josh- I’m sure you’ll weigh in.
Update: I’m the brand new owner of 4 Goodyear Eagle F1 All Season Tires! I was hoping to Kumho Ecsta’s but thoese were a little steep…and, I didn’t have the time to order them from tire rack and wait to get them installed (I mean, did you see the picture above?). And, I even had an alignment thrown in for free for the purchase (not bad!). So, how does my car drive? One word: “butter.” The steering wheel is SO MUCH LOOSER than before (a welcome trait) and the ride is easily 40% softer. I’m a little worried about not having the extra safety of the run flats but I’ll just pick up a can of fix it flat and call it a day.
I’m so glad the run flats are gone…let’s hope these tires last longer than 28,000 miles- here here!
In case you haven’t heard there’s a drought here in Georgia- and especially here in metro Atlanta. Lake Lanier, Atlanta’s premiere water source, sits 16 feet below where it should be this time of year. By year’s end it’s expected to be 36 feet below normal, making it unusable.So, what does this mean? Well, it means some people are out of luck…The governor has instituted restrictions on all things from landscape watering to car washes (more on that in a second). While I do empathize about the situation- how in the world did it get this bad?From what I’ve read it’s between the lack of rain nationwide (global warming?) and, the ultimate reason, a lack of water management. The Army Corp of Engineers monitors the water level at Lake Lanier and how much water it feeds into the natural streams of Alabama and Florida. According to a recent MSNBC article:
More than a billion gallons of water is released from Lanier every day. The Corps of Engineers bases its water releases on two requirements: The minimum flow needed for a coal-fired power plant in Florida and mandates to protect two mussel species in a Florida river.
I can understand the coal-fired power plant (I suppose)- but a billion gallons for two species of mussels! Gimme a break.So, why am I complaining about this? Well, I am 100% unable to wash my car. As someone who rents (not for long), I don’t have the luxury of attaching a hose and going to town. Not only did my apartment complex shut off the water supply to the car-wash section of our complex- but two local car washes also have closed up shop until the drought is lifted.So, unless I want to go to Target, purchase about ten 5-gallon plastic buckets, fill them with water, and then schlep down to my car- it ain’t getting clean anytime soon.With that I leave you with a couple pictures I snapped outside the Best Buy yesterday. The nastiness just stopped me in my tracks. The car used to be white. So, until I can steal some an uninterrupted water supply anytime soon- this will be what I’m driving around town in until the drought in georgia is lifted.
