I first got hooked on the Potter series when Krista read them aloud to me as we drove out to California. Now I can’t get enough of them, especially since book 6 came out. The Goblet of Fire film has the potential (from the looks of the pre-release items) to be better than the first three. November cannot come quickly enough.
I taught guitar lessons today for the first time in about 5 years. I’m not sure who learned more, the students or me. Teaching a private lesson is very different from the classroom. Add a shy 12 year old with a really out of tune guitar to the mix and you’ve got a recipe for an interesting afternoon 
Some people in other countries were having trouble getting the blogsome site, so I’ve moved again. Just keep pointing your browser to igaff.com and you’ll be fine. I’m going to have to paste comments into the posts, sorry; they’ll be here in a couple days. I’ll be back tomorrow.
My sister and brother-in-law left for China yesterday. They will be gone for 2 years teaching English in Bejing. I will miss them. For as much as I love the communication explosion that is the internet, I prefer the face to face. The webcam will help, but the table is my first choice.
However, I am looking forward to the “Bejing Report,” a segment on Blue Dog Banter that will feature the wild anticts of Gretchen and Chris in the capital of the world’s largest country. Look for it in late August.
it is now day 10 of the roof. this will be the last day. i brought in heavy equipment yesterday, something that probably would have saved me 5 days if i would have gotten it at the beginning of the job. that’s another story.
here’s what i’ve learned:
1. the other things i’ve worked on in my house are easy and do not taunt death like the roof does
2. thinking that one misplacement of a foot means catastrophic injury is tiring after several days
3. shingles are evil, a product of a fallen world where toil is king
4. i see why a quote for this kind of job would have easily been 8x what i spent doing it myself
5. there’s a certain appeal to one-story living
6. the next time will be easier (yeah right)
7. i will never get any faster climbing a ladder
Don’t ever roof an 80 year old house yourself. you never know what you’ll find. Pay someone to do it. Better yet, don’t every buy a house.
We took off 4 layers of shingles. The max you’re supposed to have on at one time is 2. When I find the person who put layers 3 and 4 on, I will hurt them.
We’re re-roofing the house. When I say “we” I mean Krista’s stepdad and myself. We picked up the shingles today. 33 packages, each weighs 90 pounds. Somebody has to carry them up to the roof, that somebody is me. I’m popping Advil in anticipation.
Enough said.
