Relaxing gurgles of Zayante creek

Rub-a-dub-tub

At last, the whirlpool bathtub for our master bathroom has arrived!

I'll spare you from any photos of me actually enjoying the tub... However, it's been since I was a young child that I could comfortably take a bath. A disadvantage of being 6'3". I may pretend to be the captain of Ark Ship B from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and decide to never leave my tub once in.

Hang ups

After several failed attempts, we finally got AT&T to the house to install the land-line phone connection.

First, they claimed the address did not exist. Then they claimed service was enabled at the house, and needed to talk to the former owner. Well, formerly it was bank-owned, so I had to pop that bubble. Even more ludicrous, the "service" was DSL, which they no longer provide or support in my area. Then they forgot to provide the gate code to the field rep...

When the appointment finally occurred, the true challenges started to surface. The line had be cut before it made it to our phone box outside the house. Also, a fallen tree had yanked much of the overhead line from the pole, leaving it droopy and damaged. A tree trimming contractor will be sent out by the phone company to clean up the mess. Potentially, a new line will be run to the house to replace the older one.

Another challenge: FedEx Home Delivery. There's several things wrong with their moniker.

1. There's nothing 'express' about their service in the mountains.
2. They didn't even try to find my home.
3. Instead, their 'delivery' ended just inside the gate on the private road.

At least the sun was shining on me today. The rough-in valves FedEx left at the base of a tree were still there.

UPDATE: The AT&T rep just called. Another problem: my former contractor hacked up my phone line when he dug a trench for outdoor lighting along the driveway. Now I get to chat with the AT&T claims department... not even sure what that involves.

Slow, but progress nonetheless

Haven't been reporting much lately because there's little progress to report.

We experienced a minor setback with the necessary termination of our former contractor. Considering the nature, and potential direction, our relationship will take, it's best I don't dwell on the subject.

We hope to have our new contractor started soon, and be back on track. To that end, the bathtub for our master bathroom shipped today. Some of the shower fixtures are on back order; however, everything should arrive by the end of this month for installation.

May I take a moment to acknowledge how expensive bathrooms are. Yikes!

Also, I would like to once again acknowledge the superior service and assistance we've received from our realtor, Janeen Reavis.

Water tests

Initially ran the test on my water well, but decided to test the water at my rental, too.

The results are in! Our water well provides safe drinking water, even though it is a little hard, and comes with a little unwanted powdery sediment. Not sure what the sediment is yet, which becomes visible after boiling water, but we hope to wipe it out with a series of inline filters.

I ended up running the plethora of tests twice. The first time, the pesticide test result didn't produce a valid result. Actually, I ran the tests three times. Since I was on a roll, I decided to test the well water at the rental at which I've been living.

The kit includes:

• a bacteria test
• lead and pesticide test
• copper test
• iron test
• nitrate and nitrite test
• pH test
• hardness test
• chlorine test

Luckily, the water well at our new place passed all the tests on the second round!

The water well at my rental on Thompson Rd. in Los Gatos, however, didn't pass the bacteria test... as seen in the above photo. I warned the landlord, George Green, about my being constantly sick until I switched to bottled water, and he dismissed me. According to him, it cost too much to ensure the safely and health of renters, and even himself and his household (he supposedly drinks from the same well), to pay for the water tests. This was after the tap water turning brown after every rain. I now suspect the water might be the reason why both the dog and cat are having seizures.

Folks, let this be a cautionary tale. Don't dismiss your health, or ensuring your well being.

Terminating termites

A last step before sealing up the house has been performed: termite extermination. According to the report, we had the trifecta of pest in the walls and burrowing underground. However, the main hive has been discovered, and treated.

One step at a time