I am a 27 year old mother, and usually I feel young and cool, but today I feel like I sound like a grandma. When I was playing with Barbies, I remember that my Barbie had a briefcase. And a powersuit. I always wanted Dr. Barbie, but alas, we never bought her. Sure, Barbie babysat Skipper on the weekends, and eventually had twins. She pushed the twins around in a stroller in her 80's jumpsuit. It covered her WHOLE BODY. Maybe the Barbie of my youth was a little "conservative", maybe somewhat "traditional", and of course there was always that whole body image debate, but as I stood in Wal-Mart today I was in total shock about where Barbie has gone now.
Abi has three Barbies, and today in Wal-Mart I was fondly recalling the time I spent dressing Barbie in different outfits, which could be bought at the Dollar store or Wal-Mart for pretty cheap. From my obesrvations today, I'm pretty sure that Barbie now reads Cosmo, has recently auditioned for the next " Real World", and considers Britney Spears her life coach and primary role model. The only clothing selection was from a collection known as "party". I only found two outfits that I would even consider letting my four year old put on a Barbie, and they were both tragically covered in glitter. So that leaves me with only one solution: when I go visit my parents next week I'm raiding the stash of Barbies in the shed to get together a complete collection of mom approved Barbie clothes. The 80's are back...right?
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
NEVER EVER BUY SEARS/KENMORE APPLIANCES
Hi everybody - I heard that if you post things on the web about being disatisfied with poor service, sometimes the company will correct things. So I am going to try that, because I have recieved super-crappy service from Sears Home Services, and I'm really upset about it. So, here is my flavorful letter to Sears(crappy service providers), American Home Shield Home Warranty (our home warranty company that is now drawn into this crappy service mess), and Barclays US credit card company (whose credit card I used to pay for the crappy service I shouldn't be charged for, in the hope that they will allow me to contest the crappy service charge.) You don't really have to read this, unless you like reading colorful disatisfied customer letters. You can file this under "Things Melanie has time to do when she is a stay at home mom".
Dear Sears, Barclays US Credit Card, and American Home Shield Warranty,
I am writing today because I am disappointed in the service I received from Sears Home Service. To start, I purchased this home on July 8th, 2009. The home inspection revealed that there was an outstanding serious recall on the Kenmore microwave in our house which could cause the microwave to spontaneously catch on fire. I called Sears to remedy the problem. It was their recall, so there would be no charge. Sears sent technician 0776567 to our house the week of July 13th to repair the recall item on our microwave. I was mailed a repair kit – he opened it and said the silicone was bad and he would come back another time. He was scheduled to come the following week, but did not come because his helper had car trouble. I was not notified until AFTER I had been waiting at home all day. Oh well. He came again the following week, again, the silicone was bad so he tried to leave and not service the microwave. I told him I would buy him some silicone, but I wanted the microwave repaired TODAY. He told me he magically had some in his truck. Great. Then he tried to leave because his helper was lost again, and he couldn’t get the microwave off the wall without a helper. Then he told me he couldn’t get the microwave off without ripping apart my wall. “Someone” had installed the microwave bracket incorrectly (who else but Sears would have done this – the microwave is the one that was in the house when it was built), so it wasn’t Sears job to fix it. Now, I was responsible for hiring a contractor to take the microwave off the wall, then completely take down the wall and re-build it. It was going to be a REALLY BIG PROJECT – something that technician 0776567 couldn’t possibly do on his own. I asked if he was responsible if my house burned down. He snidely responded saying it was my liability for using an appliance that I knew was on recall. How cute.
I decided to involve my home warranty company, American Home Shield. My warranty covers microwaves. I hoped that they might be willing to get me a contractor to deal with the very serious problem caused by the bracket which was incorrectly installed. American Home Shield never called me back to let me know how they would resolve the problem.
I was surprised on August 5th when technician 0776567 called my house and said he was 30 minutes away and coming to repair my microwave. I reminded him that I had not hired a contractor to remove the microwave, and that it would not be removed when he arrived. I thought Sears had decided to take care of this problem, knowing that the microwave might explode if it wasn’t repaired and all. So, technician 0776567 showed up at my door, no helper. No dried up silicone. In less than 30 minutes he deftly took the microwave down all by himself, fixed the recall issue and re-mounted it above my stove. He was able to accomplish all of this without ripping down my wall! Technician 0776567, you are my hero! Aww, shucks, I feel bad for being so hard on you for taking FOUR VISITS to repair a serious recall issue.
OH WAIT. That was about the moment that technician 0776567 told me that I needed to pay my $60 deductible. Technician 0776567, why would I need to pay you, after you arrive at my house for the fourth time, to fix this problem, which is completely Sears fault for building a microwave that catches on fire? I needed to pay technician 0776567 my $60 HOME WARRANTY DEDUCTIBLE.
That’s right. I got screwed into paying for a recall, which Sears is responsible for taking care of for free. I call Sears A MONTH AGO and say “Hey, please repair my recall issue, which you are obligated to do, being that it is entirely your fault.” Sears says, “We’ll do a completely wretched job, make you wait around all day, send faulty materials, and basically, find a way to make this your problem so we never have to mess with it.” My Home Warranty Company calls Sears and says, “Hey, we’ll pay you 30 bucks or something to fix this issue, which you should really fix for free anyway, but for some reason our customer thinks she needs a contractor to take the microwave off the wall.” Sears calls technician 0776567, and with the promise of a few dollars, this whole debacle magically becomes a routine service call that can be wrapped up in 30 minutes.
I am so completely filled with rage over this issue that I can hardly speak. This is the height of ridiculousness. It is my wish to contest this charge. I do not want Barclays US Bank to pay a dime to American Home Shield Warranty, because this service should have rightly been provided FOR FREE by Sears Home Services. I feel that Sears should be responsible for any financial loss caused to American Home Shield Warranty, because if they would have had their act together in the first place, the warranty company would have never been involved. I think given the fact that the same technician was sent for the recall, and for the I-don’t- know-what additional service that I got for $60, it is hard to say that a legitimate service was provided.
Please respond quickly and let me know how this outrageous issue can be resolved.
Sincerely,
Melanie Jones
Dear Sears, Barclays US Credit Card, and American Home Shield Warranty,
I am writing today because I am disappointed in the service I received from Sears Home Service. To start, I purchased this home on July 8th, 2009. The home inspection revealed that there was an outstanding serious recall on the Kenmore microwave in our house which could cause the microwave to spontaneously catch on fire. I called Sears to remedy the problem. It was their recall, so there would be no charge. Sears sent technician 0776567 to our house the week of July 13th to repair the recall item on our microwave. I was mailed a repair kit – he opened it and said the silicone was bad and he would come back another time. He was scheduled to come the following week, but did not come because his helper had car trouble. I was not notified until AFTER I had been waiting at home all day. Oh well. He came again the following week, again, the silicone was bad so he tried to leave and not service the microwave. I told him I would buy him some silicone, but I wanted the microwave repaired TODAY. He told me he magically had some in his truck. Great. Then he tried to leave because his helper was lost again, and he couldn’t get the microwave off the wall without a helper. Then he told me he couldn’t get the microwave off without ripping apart my wall. “Someone” had installed the microwave bracket incorrectly (who else but Sears would have done this – the microwave is the one that was in the house when it was built), so it wasn’t Sears job to fix it. Now, I was responsible for hiring a contractor to take the microwave off the wall, then completely take down the wall and re-build it. It was going to be a REALLY BIG PROJECT – something that technician 0776567 couldn’t possibly do on his own. I asked if he was responsible if my house burned down. He snidely responded saying it was my liability for using an appliance that I knew was on recall. How cute.
I decided to involve my home warranty company, American Home Shield. My warranty covers microwaves. I hoped that they might be willing to get me a contractor to deal with the very serious problem caused by the bracket which was incorrectly installed. American Home Shield never called me back to let me know how they would resolve the problem.
I was surprised on August 5th when technician 0776567 called my house and said he was 30 minutes away and coming to repair my microwave. I reminded him that I had not hired a contractor to remove the microwave, and that it would not be removed when he arrived. I thought Sears had decided to take care of this problem, knowing that the microwave might explode if it wasn’t repaired and all. So, technician 0776567 showed up at my door, no helper. No dried up silicone. In less than 30 minutes he deftly took the microwave down all by himself, fixed the recall issue and re-mounted it above my stove. He was able to accomplish all of this without ripping down my wall! Technician 0776567, you are my hero! Aww, shucks, I feel bad for being so hard on you for taking FOUR VISITS to repair a serious recall issue.
OH WAIT. That was about the moment that technician 0776567 told me that I needed to pay my $60 deductible. Technician 0776567, why would I need to pay you, after you arrive at my house for the fourth time, to fix this problem, which is completely Sears fault for building a microwave that catches on fire? I needed to pay technician 0776567 my $60 HOME WARRANTY DEDUCTIBLE.
That’s right. I got screwed into paying for a recall, which Sears is responsible for taking care of for free. I call Sears A MONTH AGO and say “Hey, please repair my recall issue, which you are obligated to do, being that it is entirely your fault.” Sears says, “We’ll do a completely wretched job, make you wait around all day, send faulty materials, and basically, find a way to make this your problem so we never have to mess with it.” My Home Warranty Company calls Sears and says, “Hey, we’ll pay you 30 bucks or something to fix this issue, which you should really fix for free anyway, but for some reason our customer thinks she needs a contractor to take the microwave off the wall.” Sears calls technician 0776567, and with the promise of a few dollars, this whole debacle magically becomes a routine service call that can be wrapped up in 30 minutes.
I am so completely filled with rage over this issue that I can hardly speak. This is the height of ridiculousness. It is my wish to contest this charge. I do not want Barclays US Bank to pay a dime to American Home Shield Warranty, because this service should have rightly been provided FOR FREE by Sears Home Services. I feel that Sears should be responsible for any financial loss caused to American Home Shield Warranty, because if they would have had their act together in the first place, the warranty company would have never been involved. I think given the fact that the same technician was sent for the recall, and for the I-don’t- know-what additional service that I got for $60, it is hard to say that a legitimate service was provided.
Please respond quickly and let me know how this outrageous issue can be resolved.
Sincerely,
Melanie Jones
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Organic Coupons
Who knew! I can't believe that I have been paying full price for organics for so long! Shopping in a new city has me searching for ways to cut costs in any way possible, and I have been lamenting the much higher prices on most of our favorite foods. So, today I Googled "Organic Coupons". Here's what I got:
-Organic Valley offers two prints per coupon for $1.00 off of their milk, butter, eggs, and other products:
-About.com has a nice article on Organic food companies that offer coupons on their websites:
-Organic Valley offers two prints per coupon for $1.00 off of their milk, butter, eggs, and other products:
-About.com has a nice article on Organic food companies that offer coupons on their websites:
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
We need a pet.
Maybe this is my fault, for not letting Abi tear down spider webs or kill beetles. But this morning I saw an ant in the kitchen and attempted to smush it with my finger. She pleaded "No mom! That's my ant friend! You tried to kill my ant friend. It is okay if ants want to live with us!" Now my daughter has an ant crawling on her, and she is talking to it. We need a cat.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
How much is a fresh espresso really worth?
This is Luke here and I bought a newer espresso machine a little while ago and upgraded to the Ascaso Dream. Great machine, looks cool and makes a pretty good cup of espresso. My thinking was that if I bought even one espresso drink a day at $3/day it would definitely pay off in the long run. However, when we moved this past winter I failed to properly empty the water reservoir and with the cold weather the water froze and broke the internal parts. While we were off on the ship I had it fixed and now that we are moving again I wanted to make sure to empty it properly. So began the most traumatic experience with my espresso machine thus far. I read the instructions online and it said to run it until it was dry, then wait for it to cool, lay it on its back, open up the steam wand and turn on the coffee pump, then rotate up and back down. Strange but I thought how hard could this be? Apparently the waiting until it is cool is the most important part, and even though I had waited a while it was not cool enough. How do I know? Well, when I turned on the pump and opened up the steam wand (pictured with the red arrow) 
hot lava temperature water came shooting out and although I had a cup prepared to catch the water, I was expecting more of a gradual poor, not a laser beam of skin melting water to come shooting out and assault my left nipple. The Ascaso Dream was quickly turning into a nightmare. I screamed, the family and kids were wondering what I was doing, I felt the searing pain of a 2nd degree on/near a part of my body that while not that useful is very sensitive. In the matchup of Espresso Machine vs. Nipple, the espresso machine certainly wins hands down. This week the redness on my chest turned got nasty as the skin came off…I spare you with the details but luckily the most sever part of the burn missed my vital body part and is still intact. I’m still looking forward to using my espresso machine in Charlottesville, but this event has caused me to rethink the cost of a fresh cup of espresso. Had I lost my left nipple my equation would change to something like this: $3/day vs. cost of espresso machine + beans – (loss of nipple X severe pain) = one really expensive cup of espresso. It’s something to think about if you are in the market for an at home espresso machine.
hot lava temperature water came shooting out and although I had a cup prepared to catch the water, I was expecting more of a gradual poor, not a laser beam of skin melting water to come shooting out and assault my left nipple. The Ascaso Dream was quickly turning into a nightmare. I screamed, the family and kids were wondering what I was doing, I felt the searing pain of a 2nd degree on/near a part of my body that while not that useful is very sensitive. In the matchup of Espresso Machine vs. Nipple, the espresso machine certainly wins hands down. This week the redness on my chest turned got nasty as the skin came off…I spare you with the details but luckily the most sever part of the burn missed my vital body part and is still intact. I’m still looking forward to using my espresso machine in Charlottesville, but this event has caused me to rethink the cost of a fresh cup of espresso. Had I lost my left nipple my equation would change to something like this: $3/day vs. cost of espresso machine + beans – (loss of nipple X severe pain) = one really expensive cup of espresso. It’s something to think about if you are in the market for an at home espresso machine.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Obsessive-Compulsive Clean Think
So...did I mention sometimes I obsessively research things as a way to deal with stress? (Both good and bad stress). Well...we're about to move into our house, and I'm about to be at home all day with children. This has me obsessing over the daily routine. I think this is with good reason - if you have ever experienced the sublime thing that is a "perfectly scheduled day" with children - you know what I am talking about!
In the past, when working most of the day, my main focus was feeding my family a good dinner and making sure we made the most of the hours between 5-10pm. However, if I am actually going to live in my house all day every day, I need it to be clean. We are so accustomed to moving every few years, I have quite honestly never cared to clean behind appliances or remove accumulating dust from high places. If we are going to live in a place for several years straight, I want to aim a little bit higher. I found this cleaning calendar online and thought it was well designed. Wanted to share it with you, because I like it.
What I like most is that there is a "catch up" day every three days designed to keep you from ever feeling "behind" on the chores. Each month has an area to focus on as a "challenge", so over a years time you are sure to declutter closets, deep clean curtains, etc., without having to schedule your whole life around it. It is also based around the premise that you will do your daily cleaning throughout the day and at times that make sense - tidying the bedroom and bathroom as you walk out the door in the morning, straightening the house in the afternoon, and making sure the kitchen is "reset" every evening.
Do you have a favorite cleaning schedule?
In the past, when working most of the day, my main focus was feeding my family a good dinner and making sure we made the most of the hours between 5-10pm. However, if I am actually going to live in my house all day every day, I need it to be clean. We are so accustomed to moving every few years, I have quite honestly never cared to clean behind appliances or remove accumulating dust from high places. If we are going to live in a place for several years straight, I want to aim a little bit higher. I found this cleaning calendar online and thought it was well designed. Wanted to share it with you, because I like it.
What I like most is that there is a "catch up" day every three days designed to keep you from ever feeling "behind" on the chores. Each month has an area to focus on as a "challenge", so over a years time you are sure to declutter closets, deep clean curtains, etc., without having to schedule your whole life around it. It is also based around the premise that you will do your daily cleaning throughout the day and at times that make sense - tidying the bedroom and bathroom as you walk out the door in the morning, straightening the house in the afternoon, and making sure the kitchen is "reset" every evening.
Do you have a favorite cleaning schedule?
Monday, June 29, 2009
Countdown to Reality
Today Luke and I went to the moving truck and put up the plywood retainer wall that will separate our stuff from some commercial load that is Virginia-bound. We are officially one week away from stepping onto an airplane headed back to reality. (In this case, reality is Charlottesville, VA).
After four months of life on a ship, and two months of living with Luke's mom in Salem, we're off to start our ordinary day to day life up again. I'm anxious and excited in equal measure. Floating out here in non-reality, where both of us stay at home all day with the kids, where we pay no bills, and where the kitchen really does seem to clean itself magically if you let stuff sit too long, I have been able to avoid the fact that we are about to be in a completely new place making a completely new life. I think we are headed for a big shock.
The craziest thing for me has been the reality that I have no idea what I might do in Charlottesville. Starting a career from scratch in a place I am so unfamiliar with sort of makes me feel like I am without bearing - it is really overwhelming. I have a feeling it may be awhile before I get settled into something, but I just keep telling myself that in five years I will look back and say, "now see, that all worked out for the best, didn't it?" So, score one more point for Melanie Jones and her magical thinking.
The most useful thing I've learned in the past six months is that there are scores of things that I don't really need and ultimately don't care about. All of the stuff that we are shipping to Virginia is just stuff. Being separated from it for six months has provided some necessary detachment. I'm sure this will come in handy during the unpacking phase, because we already heard lots of broken glass when moving all of our boxes from the storage unit onto the Virginia-bound truck.
The most exciting thing is that we (fingers-crossed) are buying our first house in Charlottesville. If all goes as planned, we will close on a home on July 8th. This will be the first time that we have had a place that didn't share walls with a neighbor, or that had a real yard with grass. It even has central heat and air. This new development has me completely over the moon, HGTV-obsessed (the cable is free in non-reality, should you ever have an excuse to visit), and watching Craigslist like a hawk for just the right couch to come available in Charlottesville. I don't think I did a very thorough job of nesting with Abi or Lily either one - they were both born at very transition-y times in our lives. Maybe that nesting instinct just goes dormant if you don't fully exercise it, and then explodes all over the first opportunity there is to express it. That's my explanation of what is going on in my mind right now... like we are going to walk into our house and I am just going to blow up and leave smears of fuschia paint all over the girls walls. (It's just a metaphor...don't worry.)
The house-buying process was pretty uneventful, but still one of the most nerve-racking processes we have ever been through together. We were working on a 30 day timeline, and everything needed to happen very fast. I never imagined I could get so emotional over a house, as logical Melanie knows that a house is just a place to sleep, eat, and wash up like a Motel 6 or something. Of course, I also never imagined I could get so emotional over a baby. So there you go. Houses and babies both make me cry and stay awake all night. I guess I am waaaay more normal than anyone ever imagined.
I think that is all for now.
After four months of life on a ship, and two months of living with Luke's mom in Salem, we're off to start our ordinary day to day life up again. I'm anxious and excited in equal measure. Floating out here in non-reality, where both of us stay at home all day with the kids, where we pay no bills, and where the kitchen really does seem to clean itself magically if you let stuff sit too long, I have been able to avoid the fact that we are about to be in a completely new place making a completely new life. I think we are headed for a big shock.
The craziest thing for me has been the reality that I have no idea what I might do in Charlottesville. Starting a career from scratch in a place I am so unfamiliar with sort of makes me feel like I am without bearing - it is really overwhelming. I have a feeling it may be awhile before I get settled into something, but I just keep telling myself that in five years I will look back and say, "now see, that all worked out for the best, didn't it?" So, score one more point for Melanie Jones and her magical thinking.
The most useful thing I've learned in the past six months is that there are scores of things that I don't really need and ultimately don't care about. All of the stuff that we are shipping to Virginia is just stuff. Being separated from it for six months has provided some necessary detachment. I'm sure this will come in handy during the unpacking phase, because we already heard lots of broken glass when moving all of our boxes from the storage unit onto the Virginia-bound truck.
The most exciting thing is that we (fingers-crossed) are buying our first house in Charlottesville. If all goes as planned, we will close on a home on July 8th. This will be the first time that we have had a place that didn't share walls with a neighbor, or that had a real yard with grass. It even has central heat and air. This new development has me completely over the moon, HGTV-obsessed (the cable is free in non-reality, should you ever have an excuse to visit), and watching Craigslist like a hawk for just the right couch to come available in Charlottesville. I don't think I did a very thorough job of nesting with Abi or Lily either one - they were both born at very transition-y times in our lives. Maybe that nesting instinct just goes dormant if you don't fully exercise it, and then explodes all over the first opportunity there is to express it. That's my explanation of what is going on in my mind right now... like we are going to walk into our house and I am just going to blow up and leave smears of fuschia paint all over the girls walls. (It's just a metaphor...don't worry.)
The house-buying process was pretty uneventful, but still one of the most nerve-racking processes we have ever been through together. We were working on a 30 day timeline, and everything needed to happen very fast. I never imagined I could get so emotional over a house, as logical Melanie knows that a house is just a place to sleep, eat, and wash up like a Motel 6 or something. Of course, I also never imagined I could get so emotional over a baby. So there you go. Houses and babies both make me cry and stay awake all night. I guess I am waaaay more normal than anyone ever imagined.
I think that is all for now.
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