tea makes everything better.....

Celestial teapot:)
Sorry for the ranting earlier. Out of character but it did feel good getting it out! Nothing lke a good vent:) Had a cup of tea and calmed down. Still don't know anything, car in shop. Tomorrow we are going to "Homes for the Holidays". I get to satisfy my peeping Jill tendencies. Various private stately homes are decorated for the holidays and cheerful oglers pay to tromp through for charity.

Tire Surprise:(

Gosh I had planned on spending today quietly.
Well...
Driving home after having my tires put on, the sensor light popped on alerting me to low tire pressure. Drat. I then turned around and went back to Costco to have tires checked. The service guy went back to the bays, returned and said don't worry, it often happens with a change of tires and light will probably go off. They didn't bother to check the pressure. (It didn't go on the last few times I had tire changes)
So,
away I drove again with light still on. Got home, had a cup of tea, wrote my blog post and then daughter set off in the car to school. NOT.
Door opened and "Mom?The back tire is flat as a pancake and the passenger one looks flat too!"Yep.
So,
I call Costco tire service and get an answering machine over and over. Called administration and explained and they said wait for a call from tire service. Meanwhile I call CAA to come and give me a tow or fill the tires. Soon Costco calls back and says bring car back and we'll look at it. Half an hour later the nice man from CAA arrives and fills tires with air and follows me to Costco to make sure they stay inflated.
So,
at Costco the mechanic tells me that it is the tire sensors, 3 of them are faulty! They are all causing the tire to leak. What! I drive in and they are fine I leave and they are not? He says it's random and they can go at any time. This car is 2 years old. He says nothing they can do and sensors are under warranty so I should go to dealer.
So,
I call dealer and they say maybe December 7 they can look at car! I say "Wait a minute, the sensors are under warranty." They then say, bring it in and we will see what we can do. ( I have to take it there because the tires are flat and won't stay inflated)
So,
Costco mechanic fills the tires overfull and I drive there petrified that any minute I will be driving on rims. Get to dealer and they all come out to look at car and exclaim over the fact that the tires are inflated to 36, way over limit but I say they did it so I would make the drive here. Tsk, tsking and making it pretty clear that they think Costco damaged the sensors, when prying the tires off the rims and if so, not under warranty. If I had had them done at the dealer, it would be covered etc. Only covered otherwisw if defective.
So,
Costco says they didn't and GM says they probably did...... but we will have wait until they have a good look before they can tell me anything. I will be charged for the dismantling and rim cleanup no matter what.
I am pissed. Sensors cost about $100 each and they absolutely have to be replaced. I hope they are defective and under warranty otherwise I have a big fight on my hands:(
Does seem rather suspicious that I drive in fine and leave with problems. 3 sensors?
So,
I think I need another cup of tea and will get back to what I was doing um, about four hours ago now...... honestly what do they say about best laid plans? Sorry for the odd post but I am venting....

UPDATE: 24 hours later, I get my car back. The sensors are fine, not damaged ( whew) BUT they had obviously been jostled and this is what led to the air leaking around the base of the thingie you put air in. Charge for cleaning rims and resealing, $113. Sigh. Time lost and upset = priceless.
So,
tire change at Costco is the culprit. Next stop on this journey is back to Costco. I wonder what will happen now...

coffee surprise

Today is a day of doing quiet stuff. My snow tires are finally on the car, yay. Had to get up early again for that but worth it:) Popped over to Walmart to wait because Costco store was not open and sat in their MacDonalds and enjoyed a free coffee.
#1 I did not know they are having a free coffee promotion, nice...
#2 MacDonalds coffee is delicious! I had no idea.
Going to do some painterly stuff, tidy some, do a bit of paper work and relax:)
(picture taken near Peggy's Cove)

I did it:)

It's me! At the Halifax Seaport Farmers Market! Thanks to all your tips I managed to pull it together:) Really enjoyed it. It was very quiet but the Wednesday market has just started and it is early days yet. Slowy, slowly...

I had to be there at 6:30, eek, but I did it. Tired now after all my pre-market stressing and worrying and today's long day. It was fine. I did better than I expected too which was a lovely bonus. My goal today was to get my booth paid for. I even got to meet two of my readers who popped by:) Hi Ferdinand and Dorey! That was a fun surprise. My mom popped by too and daughter later and another friend arrived to cheer me on:) Made me happy. I'll be there this Sunday too and probably will stick to those two days until Christmas. We'll see.

In other exciting news, I'm up for a Canadian Weblog Award, in the People's Choice category. pop by and give me a nod if you enjoy my blabber. (almost wrote blubber, subliminal mistake:)

Up early again tomorrow to get those tires on the car!

to market, to market...

Market day on Wed! Have to be there at 6:30. Eeek. Glad it will be on a quiet day so I can get the feel of how it all goes. Will figure out the kinks in my display see what works and what doesn't. It is all a learning experience. If you are a reader here and happen by, please say hi.

herman and elizabeth

This is an older print, Herman and Elizabeth:) So silly.
I probably should have posted a picture of snow. We finally got enough to stay on the ground but the forecast is for rain tomorrow. Just as well because I have yet to get the snow tires on the car! That involves getting up really early and standing outside Costco thirty minutes before opening with a line of shivering people waiting to make an appointment. I do always have a nice chat with the person next to me. Everyone has a story:)
On the market front, I am feeling a bit more organized but have yet to hear from them re: day. I was thinking I would be there maybe tomorrow but at this point I don't even know. I do know that they are swamped with applications so it is easy to see why I might be lost in the shuffle. Nerve wracking stuff, I have had to spend $ to get ready. Hope the saying is true, you spend money to make money.

marketing

Another view of downtown Halifax, looking South on Hollis Street. I'm standing in a glass 'pedway' over the street.
I've been approved for a table at the Halifax Seaport Market and have been scrambling to get things ready. What a fankle (another Scottish word for you:). I am realizing how unready I am for a market stall. Display is not a strength of mine. In fact I am quite nervous about it. Today I plan on popping around to look for baskets or boxes to display prints in. Any ideas?? They are not matted so are a bit floppy. Any other market tips?.....so not prepared.............but excited too.
I'm hoping for a table with a wall behind me.

Walk this way please...

Ah yes, the Ministry of Funny Walks, John Cleese in action. One of my favourite Monty Python Skits. I feel I fit right in with my gait these days. Still in physio for my hamstring tendon thingie but it is slow going. Walking is interesting.

My other brother Darrell's

This is a place I have been wanting to try since 1992! !I cannot believe it has taken me 18 years to eat here. Disgraceful. I've heard great things over the years and they have all been right on! This restaurant is across the street from my physio so there was no excuse.

Darrell's is located at 5576 Fenwick Street off Queen St. near South. It looks like nothing really, but looks are deceiving. There used to be a laundromat downstairs and on the wall up here there are lights corresponding to the machines. You'd put a load of wash in and come upstairs for some refreshment while waiting. Very cool. The lights are still there:)

The washing machines are long done and in their place is now Darrells "Sports' Bar, basically an overflow area for the upstairs which has simple green vinyl booths and big menus.

They are famous for their burgers and shakes. Award winning they are! Vegetarian burgers too!

I decided I HAD to try the Peanut Butter burger, after all I have been hearing about it for YEARS! Sooooooo glad I did. It was DELICIOUS! Quite a surprise really.

This is what all the fuss is about. A layer of peanut butter on the bun!!! (as well as ketchup, mustard and relish) Sounds so very odd but I tell you it was amazing. Who knew? I wonder how they discovered it, something I would never in a million years think of trying. I loved it. You might too.

This is their latest creation and I bet it is delicious also! The Hen Den Burger:)

I recommend a visit here next time you are looking for a yummy lunch. It gets busy so come early.

Zazzle fun!

Look what I have been doing:) Designing some Speck iPhone(G3,4) and iPad covers/cases. There are no shipping charges on these to addresses in the US until Nov.30, just pop in the couponcode NEWZAZZCASES when you checkout. I will be putting up more as I do them:) Fun stuff.
Now I am off to do a million other things:)