Our New Home in Massapequa

OK, this is a very deceiving photo of our new home. Immediatley after it was taken the landscaper came to cut down all of the overgrown trees & bushes thus exposing our dirty white aluminum siding. But, when we're finished renovating, our house will look 1000 times better than this guaranteed.

After my car accident I wanted to move closer to work. My fiance is a real estate agent so he researched this area near a preserve. The lots are larger than the average Long Island lot, the area is quiet, with a lot of trees & 2 blocks from a bike path through the park. Homes are usually much more money here, but we found a major fixer-upper and got it at a great price. After we put in about $100,000 it will be done to our tastes and still cheaper than what homes usually go for here. Good thing my fiance is so handy - he's been re-framing every room, running electric & re-sheetrocking. The big construction will come in the Spring when we extend our kitchen & dining rooms out about 6 feet, and the master bedroom above it, adding a bathroom & walk-in closet.

Asheville, North Carolina

In March we bought a house in Asheville, North Carolina. It was a new construction that we wanted to use as a rental property. After we closed on the house we went out to celebrate in the city of Asheville & it turns out that there is more there than we thought. So many nice restaurants & shops. We went to a Spanish tapas place for appetizers, a restaurant for dinner & then the French Broad Chocolate Lounge for dessert and had wine with brownies - a dream come true.

Engagement Ring

We got engaged in March & my fiance did the coolest thing when we got engaged. He wanted to surprise me with the ring. He didn't want us to go shopping together, because then I'd know it was coming. Yet he wanted me to be able to pick out a setting that I'd love. He managed both.

He went to the jeweler & got the diamond in a tiffany setting (plain setting with prongs). When he proposed he put it on me, and then told me we were going back the following week to pick out a setting. I couldn't believe it! He wanted to make sure that I loved my ring as much as I love my man, and I do.

It's an Asscher cut diamond with pave around it in an art deco style. It's stunning. Now I just have to find out what kind of wedding band goes with it.

I love my Jaguar!

In May I got into a car accident and totalled my Jeep Liberty so I had to find a new ride. Since the Jeep flipped over, I was kind of freaked out about SUVs and decided to go back to a regular car. EVERYONE tells you to get a Honda Accord - value, maintenance, reliability, etc. But do they realize that Honda Accords now cost $30,000 if you want a sunroof & leather seats!!! Come on, it's a Honda!!! So, I was not about to spend that kind of money on a Honda. I opted to look for a used Honda with low-mileage <20,000 miles. That cost $20,000. In the "Wheels & Deals" section of Long Island Newsday I found a SWEEEETTTT looking Jaguar x-type with the same amount of mileage for the same price as a Honda Accord. AND, face it, a Jaguar is so much cooler to be driving around in than a Honda Accord. Everyone thinks I spent booku bucks on it, yet I didn't. As my cousin says, I'm ballin'.

Blackberry Storm

I imagined that the Blackberry Storm would make me super-organized for work. It hasn't. Here's what I like about it & what I don't:

Pros

-You can synch your phone to your yahoo calendar.

-It comes with Word-to-Go so you can upload docs on there. BUT, you have to buy the premium version if you really want to use it like the real MSWord program.

-You get used to the touch screen.

Cons

-Even though I qualified for a new phone every 2 years with Verizon, I only got $50 off this phone. Scam-a-roma

-Since it grabs your info from your yahoo account, it added all the email address of misc. people I don't really talk to that often into my contacts list. Now it takes longer to find the people who I really do want to talk to.

-I was surprised that it didn't come with its own calendar software like palm does.

-BUT, you have to by the premium version if you really want to use it like the real MSWord program.

All in all, I loved my T-Mobile Sidekick and wish they had updated that to have video on it & MSWord. Now THAT would be a phone that I'd want to buy.

My Favorite New Thing - The Sony Reader

After seeing Oprah announce the Amazon Kindle as her favorite new thing, I wanted to check it out on-line. Turns out, you can only upload books from Amazon, not any of your own MSWord .doc or Adobe .pdf files. So, I continued my research to find an alternative - The Sony Reader. I got the PRS-505, which my friend recommended to me.

Here's the situation. I got a new position at work that requires me to travel between 3 elementary schools & the Middle School. I thought that I'd be able to upload documents that I need to refer to, to my Blackberry Storm, but so far I haven't been successful with the formatting. I think I need to purchase the deluxe version of Word-to-Go. But, with the Sony Reader I can upload my own personal files & books that I've downloaded from free from the Internet (more about finding free eBooks in another post). I can upload my MSWord documents to carry around with me and minimizing the paperwork that I have to carry around between buildings at work & home. I can quickly access them all in seconds, without having to wait for a computer to load the files & login. The Sony Reader also costs less than the Kindle. On the downside, you can't purchase books wirelessly like you can on the Kindle, but when I'm getting a lot of mine for free, I don't really need to worry about that. I even got myself a cute fuschia pink leather case, so now I'm stylin'.


*Hands in photo are not my own. LOL!

Rayuela, NYC

I went to dinner at Rayuela the other night and was quite pleasantly surprised. At first the menu looks like a mish-mash of ingredients that don't seem to go together. The surprise is....THEY DO! I had a tuna relleno (sushi grade tuna stuffed with assorted seafood and lots of spicyness), grilled octopus & chorizo (everyone at the table loved it), and a seafood dish that was white, light & flaky (but I can't remember the fish). The only thing that I was disappointed in was the desserts & the price of drinks ($17 for a martini).

So long, no write?

I have fabulous news. While away from blogging, I've gotten engaged, a new job, 3 new nephews & bought 2 houses. Yes, seriously! So you can see why I've been so busy. But now I have so many exciting things to tell you about, so stay tuned.