I didn't get lost; I just took the scenic route.

I am not going to call it lost; it was more like exploring my surroundings. This is something good to do when new to an area and I don't know where anything is.

I have just spent the last 2 hours driving around and introducing myself to Missouri. The main road that I live off of apparently has TWO Sonic fast foods located on this verrrrry looooong street. For the past week I have used the Sonic fast food place as my land mark to know when I am near my apartment complex. Today, when I was on my 2 hour scenic drive home, I finally came across "the" Sonic fast food and proceeded to where I thought my apartment would be at. (Only to realize that this was a different Sonic and I was headed in the wrong direction!)

UMMMM? Where is my apartment complex?!

Still not lost, just finding a new route to get home. On my new way home, I drove through a cute, little, touristy part of town. There was a crowd of people hanging outside with a live band playing music, it looked like fun. I opted to keep on driving home, instead of getting sidetracked by the touristy part of town. I'll check it out again on a day I have more time to explore, at the moment of discovery all I really wanted to do was find my apartment complex.

I am now safe at home, sitting here at my desk, writing in my Blog, with not much more to say.

Leave me a comment on what scenic routes you have found going somewhere. :)

Welcome back internet! I missed you!

Internet is hooked up again. I have been technology deprived for a whole week! I was going out of my mind not having internet or my Blog to write on, and to have no email or MySpace to check in on...

I didn't realize how much I used the internet, until I did not have access for a whole weeeeeek!

Tip to moving, call the cable company from the old house and set-up an appointment for hook up on the day you move into the new place. Don't make the mistake to wait to arrive at the new place to call someone out. Because then they will be booked and there may even be a "severe thunder storm" causing a power outage in the whole da*n area of St. Louis, causing a delay in internet connection to the rest of the world!

I thank my wonderful Andrew for helping me connect to the internet. I have my very own computer geek! I do not thank the tech-support people; they were not helpful at all. I called 3 different times wanting my internet connection to work. The tech-support gang had me going in circles doing the same "wrong" things, talking me through it all over the phone and not being helpful at all. Andrew saved the day and knew exactly how to fix it.

We are moving to MO Sunday and I have to run over to the cable place to return our cable box, AND modem. SOOOO that means I will not have internet access until I get over to MO and unpack the computer and set it up with internet again. This will be a final post in Ohio, the next post will be the start of "life in Missouri" as I have already changed the Blogs Title to that.

Bye bye for a few days. I'll find a way to survive with out internet or TV...I know! - unpacking will keep me preoccupied when I get there. FUN! Who needs modern technology when I have boxed up memories to reminiss and unpack. The 6 hour road trip will be fun, I get to do this for the 5th time. The two prior trips out there count for driving 6 hrs there and 6 hours back, 4 + 1 is 5 road trips. Each an adventure in their own.

when I get my internet back I will post some photos, stay tuned.

As Hillary Duffs Character in the Mr. Perfect Movie says, "Same me, just a different zipcode."

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Moving tip #1 Zip lock bags are the best! How else can I pack up my Zen garden? I just poured the sand into a zip lock along with the tiny rake and it was packed.

I also used a zip lock for my spare change, which was not enough to coin-roll.

Moving tip #2 Set aside a frying pan ~out of the box until the last minute to be able to cook stuff.

Moving tip #3 Eat up all the frozen food first, then the fridge food. To not have to pack it up for a 6 hour drive, the food may either thaw out or spoil.

*DO NOT buy an 18 pack of frozen hamburger patties just 4 days before moving (Andrew!) :)

car update!

All is well; my car will be stinky for about a week and gradually go away. It is caused from the new parts put in my car and is burning off grease or gunk that remains on there which results into stinky car after driving it on the freeway; the humid summer doesn't help either, making it hot and stinky.

There is nothing to worry about with my car. I can go forward as planned and move on Sunday to Missouri, and drive the 6 hour road trip. I am going to bring my cds and snack foods and be sure not to fill up for gas at funky run down Shell stations found on the 50 HWY!


;^)

It all started from bad gas...now there is an oder, when will this end?!

UGH! MY CAR IS DRIVING MY INSANE! (No pun intended) I was driving back from Missouri to Ohio on Sunday, got lost a bit and pulled into a gas station for directions and a 1/2 tank of gas. The gas was strange from the get go, I should have known better. But oh well, my car had bad gas and started falling apart ever since. The Shell gas station somewhere on the 50 HWY heading to Chicago, IL (wrong direction) had plastic bags on the pumps for regular gas, and a second pump labeled with a piece of paper taped to it hand written, "Regular" ~ OK so I guess I'll use this pump for my gas!! (Bad idea) About ten miles down the road we are driving and the CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON! NOT NOW! In the middle of a small town, with a Wal-Mart and AutoZone to choose from. We went to AutoZone and they did a diagnostic on my car, guessing it was BAD GAS.

So the result from bad gas is it can affect the catalytic converter, and would need to be looked at.
Tuesday I drop the car off at the dealership service center. They said I needed a new Catalytic converter, (tongue twister ~ I keep on wanting to say Cadillac converter) covered by warranty and my front breaks needed replacing (which I had a feeling that was coming up soon in the 60,000 mile mark) so instead I told them to replace them now while they have my car in the shop.

So the car is done and I am driving home after stopping by Kohl’s Dept. store. I parked my car and smelled a faul oder coming from the hood of my car. LIKE BURNING RUBBER OR GREASE?

First off, I knew not to open the hood in case there was a small fire or something, so I call AAA club, and was on hold for a bit, dropped the call, had to call back, and the operator said she would send out a tow truck, I was telling her it is too late tonight to have it towed anywhere and really just need a fire man to come out and look at it instead, but thought to call AAA first because it didn't seem as important as calling for a fire truck crew to come out because I didn't think it was on fire. I asked for a small car to come out instead with a fire man to check on it. A few minutes later (10:25 PM!) I hear sirens’ going off from a near by fire truck and police car. These flashing lights and loud sirens were headed down the street and into my apartment complex (embarrassing!) disturbing the neighbors, causing curiosity, all arriving for little old me and my stinky car. When I saw an ambulance drive up afterwards I was trying to tell them all to go, it is not this serious, I just wanted "a-one-discreet" fireman to come out and check under my hood, and not a whole, dramatized, rescue crew! (I didn't say it in those words exactly, but thought it)


I was so embarrassed! It was after 10 o'clock at night and there is all of the craziness with lights flashing, fire men, a police man, the damn tow truck guy, and curious neighbors standing around. SORRY! I didn't want this to get the way it turned out. The fire man told me to take my car back to the dealership in the morning to have it looked over and he wasn't able to see anything wrong, plus the stinky oder had dissipated by the time they got there to really see what I was talking about (an hour or so later).

In the end the bad gas was the root to all of this, and the odor may be from the newness of the front breaks or from the Cadillac converter. ,^) I will find out more tomorrow when I go back to the service center! UGH!

All this is happening in my final days here in Ohio, right before I move on Sunday to Missouri! I hope to get this squared away before Sunday.

* On a side note, I rented a Chevy Malibu 2007, and was only the 2nd driver of the rental. I had a fun time driving it to work for the day, while my car was getting fixed.