Left on my board...

"No ever says, hmm, this screwdriver could be a little more sonic."

Also, from my TA who was angling to get on my blog. "I have a story to tell you, but it's awkward for me." "Okay, what is it?" "Well, _____ and I have a bet going to see who can wear a cup nonstop the longest." "Oh, okay." "So, I'm wearing one right now. It's very uncomfortable." "I will take your word for it." "I've been wearing it since Friday." I know better than to ask teenage boys why they do some of the things they do. Smile and nod, that's all you can do, smile and nod.

Inspection Results

Yesterday was the inspection of the house. It was declared a fixer-upper by the inspector. We weren't that surprised by that. The good news is that the roof, while leaking from the swamp cooler, is in pretty good shape. The rafters are fine. Once we remove the swamp cooler in the Spring and patch the hole, we can fix the damaged dry wall. The roof was our biggest concern.

The bad news is that heater doesn't work. The inspector said he hadn't seen one that old and huge that was still working. He believes it is original to the house - so 50 years old. The owner said it was working last Winter. But, it looks like it has finally bit the dust. Also, the water heater is leaking and needs to be replaced before we have a major problem that would flood the basement. Unfortunately, since the price for the house is already at the top of our budget, maybe even over, we just can't afford to make all these repairs ourselves. We still have to buy all the major kitchen appliances. So, now we will see if the seller is able to fix or replace the heater and water heater. That will make or break the deal for us.

We also received the contract from the second mortgage/bank yesterday. Things are falling into place. So, now we shall see. It would be sad to have to start all over again, but it's a possibility.

Congrats to E!

Last week was the annual IB dinner. Last years' graduates come back and get their IB diplomas. The current students report on their CAS projects.

It is always great to see my former students and hear how much they love college. One student, "the boy", is attending BYU. His roommates are boring him to tears. I suggested he find some people to play fugitive with - those kind of games are part of the unique experience that is BYU. I think I forgot to tell him that the fugitives are supposed to go in pairs, and if one person gets caught, their partner is caught too.

One of my other former students, "E" is attending college in SLC. (Same student from this post.) She will be starting an internship at the Governor's office in January. I am SOOO excited and proud of her! She is minoring in History and considering a career in politics. Woohoo!

He can be taught!

"So, look it, I have to write an essay by the 23rd." Student points to his document from juvenile court.
"Okay. What are you going to do?" - me
"How am I going to write an essay. An essay!"
"Uh huh." - me
"You know how you said that we need to know how to write an essay, you know, for other stuff. Yeah." And then he nods and I see that he finally understands that the work I ask him to do in class has a purpose outside of class.
Then I went on to give him advice about how he needs to find out information on the topic before he can write the essay, and he will be coming in tomorrow to write it, and then, and only then, I will edit it for him.

Tabernacle Fire

Many of you are already aware, but for those who have moved away from Utah, our city is in mourning this weekend from the loss of our most cherished landmark. Listed on the US registry of historical buildings, the Provo Tabernacle burned down Thursday night and Friday. BYU broadcasting had been there that night setting up lighting and cameras - new equipment from their new state-of-the-art broadcasting building that sits on the hillside behind the Bean museum. BYU lost $5 million of equipment in the fire. The church also lost an original Teichert painting, the one of JS and OC being given the priesthood, that was hanging in the tabernacle. The tabernacle was built in 1885. With only a shell left, the question will be whether or not the church wants to rebuild it, and whether it will have a similar look to the old one. Last year we took BooBear to see the Nativity show there for Christmas - intending it to be a new tradition. At least no one was hurt.

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=13709985

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/12/17/2527546/provo-tabernacle-goes-up-in-flames.html

http://www.provotabernacle.org/

15 Month Check-Up

Weight 25 lbs 2 oz 60%
Length 32.5 in 85%
Head 50 cm 100%

Under Contract

We finally received the contract from the bank for the little house with the big yard. It's a short sale with two mortgages, so we have been waiting and waiting. Now we have the paperwork, we can decide which day to lock in a rate for the loan. The mortgage rate shot up this week to the highest its been in the past 6 months. But, that's life. Now we cross our fingers and hope we can still afford the house. It was a fair price, not a great deal, back in September. Right now, prices have dropped some more, perhaps because it's Winter, so the price we are paying is a little high for the size of the home. However, I am excited about the thought of having more space than we have now. Unless the second mortgage gives us trouble, or we find something in the inspection next week, we could close as early as the end of the holidays.

Hilarious Video

BooBear loves to play 'go through the tunnel' by crawling through our legs. But Werty caught him doing a new trick.

Weekend

It was one of those 'I need a weekend to recover from my weekend' days.
- Two of my ESL students got in a fight, though the original provocation happened in my class, it didn't actually occur in my class. But it turned into one ethnic group pitted against another ethnic group, and a student threatening the lives of other students. I had to give my anti-ignorance anti-racism soap box lecture both Friday and today.
- Two of my siblings were in the hospital. Both are home now. One is on happy drugs, the other will take a few days to physically recover and then longer to fully recover.
- Two days of the NHS charity garage sale, Friday night and Saturday, to raise money for sub for santa gifts. It was a last minute kind of thing, and there were so many other events going on from choir dinner concerts to basketball games, that we only had 3-4 students help set up and clean up, making it take hours longer than it should have. I was at work an extra 8 hours.
- Two sacrament meetings to attend since we had Squeebee's baby blessing, followed by our own ward that we needed to go to so Werty could fulfill his calling. The following baby blessing luncheon was great, btw.
- Two days left until my accreditation report goes to committee and I didn't have time to touch it this weekend.
- Two wonderful reasons to call it a day and head home now to see my family.

My Newest Nephew GLump the younger

My mom just emailed out these pics of her newest grandchild - GLump the younger (until he gets a new nickname). Soyjoy was induced and had him Thursday night. He was a whopping 9 lbs 9 oz and 21.5 inches. That's two inches longer than BooBear! Of course, it would be okay if he grew up taller than his dad, since GLump is average height, same as me. We're happy that baby and mommy are doing well, and that daddy got to be there for the birth.

Random No-No's for House Listings

Werty and I started compiling a list of things that we have seen in listings which probably turn people off to buying those homes. Some of them are too good not to share.

1. Pictures of your children in each shot - besides the obvious safety issue (your address is listed after all), that "lived in" look isn't ideal. Does the child come with the house, or the cat or the dog?
2. Leaving the toilet lid up in those tight bathroom shots, especially when you can see yellow-brown water in the toilet.
3. Your kitchen tile doesn't need it's own close-up shot (look, it's one big tile on my screen) - the same goes for the corner of a room or a closet door (hey, it's the top half of a door, aren't we glad they included doors in this house)
4. If you post 8 photos, and 7 of them are of the front of the property - no matter how pretty it is, people will think that there is something wrong with the inside.
5. "Buyer to verify all information" means that the city owns your whole front lawn and will rip it up when they want to expand the road.
6. If you take a photo of a bathroom mirror, remember that you are mostly just taking a photo of yourself.
7. "Water feature" often means a homemade pile of rocks and cement that breeds mosquitoes and may pose a real danger to your children.
8. "Handyman's dream" = nightmare for regular people, loan officers, real estate agents and insurance adjusters. Putting up a temporary floating wall doesn't mean it counts as an additional bedroom. Just because your ceiling is made up of hanging bedsheets, doesn't mean it's a bedroom.
9. Shag carpet on the floor. Shag carpet on the walls. Shag carpet lining the back of every cabinet, even the bathroom!
10. Crime tape around the exterior of the house, no matter how pretty the house is, detracts from its curb appeal.

Finally, short sales are anything but short.