Bye Bye Beer Garden

The property we live on has what is commonly called a “granny flat” in the back corner.  It isn’t much larger than a garage.  The front room is the kitchen/dinette and the back room is the bedroom with the toilet, shower, and laundry right in the same room.

Anyway… it started with a beer banner going up along the fence – those big banners like you’d see at a bar’s volleyball court.  It seemed a little bogan, but not that big a deal.  Then some pieces of junk furniture showed up – chairs and such.  The neighbour could occasionally be found having a few beers with his mates.

As the summer went on, another banner arrived.  This time across the front on it’s own posts to give the area a little divider from the rest of the driveway.  The junk furniture was replaced with a new set of outdoor table and chairs.  A new grill showed up and eventually a ping pong table (that was taken down and brought inside after they were done with it.

I never understood why they set it up in front of the granny flat instead of their separately fenced backyard.  Even though they were right outside our kitchen window they were always quiet and never bothered us (unlike the dickhead drummer across the street).

Last weekend it gradually went away.  Considering it’s the end of the month, I’m making the leap in reasoning to guess he’s moved on to different living arrangements.  Considering the rental market in the area, I doubt it will be empty for long.

Breaking News:

Hilary Clinton has fractured her elbow while trying to nudge Obama into giving G/L federal employees the same rights she had already given to employees at the State Department. Reports are unclear if the break happened during contact with the Presidents ribs, or if it was when he pushed her down the stairs for going ahead with fairer treatment before he could take credit for it.

Fox News reports – ‘Hilary is faking it’.

Wordle 2

It’s been a while since I did a wordle.  You’d think I spent a lot more time on cleaning than paying attention to politics or social issues.  While US news seems to be shining the spotlight on marriage, here it seems quiet concerning the legal changes that are happening.

Come July, gay couples in Australia can take another step toward “de facto” status.  Exactly what will change isn’t completely clear to me, doing a Google on the subject brought up Wikipedia and a news article about the lack of notification regarding the legal changes.  I found the Wikipedia article a little confusing since it read like the law went into effect last year, but I’ve seen a few things on government websites that don’t take effect until July.

I know when we moved here, we were classed as an interdependent couple – we weren’t eligible for de facto status as that was only for heterosexual couple for immigration purposes.  For tax purposes, we haven’t been able to file as de facto previously (and that would have been a benefit for us as John was the only source of income for the first year and a half).  Some things seem to have gone into effect last December, with more are coming in July.  I’ve seen a few things on government websites about registering – although that seems to only apply if you need government assistance.  The visa company that will be assisting with our application for permanent residency has recommended we wait till July to kick the process off as we’ll have firmer legal standing as a couple.

Wouldn’t it be simpler if couples were really couples?

Our newest favourite DIY

Over the years we’ve had a number of do-it-yourself shows we’ve enjoyed.  Trading Spaces, The Gardener Guy, Dog Whisperer.  Lately we’ve been enjoying Lush House.  One of the bigger reasons for me is the use of more natural cleaners.  So far I’ve liked the results and will be changing what I buy at the store.  (although instead of simply getting rid of my “toxic” cleaners, I’ll finish them off the regular way).

The basics she uses for almost any cleaning situation are simple and fairly inexpensive.

• Bi-carb Soda – an alkaline and mild abrasive
• White Vinegar – a mild acid
• Mentholated Spirits – an alcohol solvent, which removes pen marks
• Lavender Oil – mixed with water it becomes a mild cleaner and deodorizer
• Lemon Oil – very good at keeping spiders and other insects at bay and also for stain removal
• Tea Tree Oil – used as an anti-bacterial and getting sticky marks/labels off jars etc
• Oil of Cloves - useful mould inhibitor and insecticide
• Unprocessed Wheat Bran – a light abrasive and absorbent
• Tea – Contains tannic acid which cleans timber
• Pantyhose – Mildly abrasive fibres become more abrasive as they get wet

The timing of the show’s start fit pretty well with John’s urge to sort everything into bins, get rid of old clothes etc.  I think this is the first time I’ve had all the tools organized.  And thanks to Shannon Lush, I know what to do about that mould I found growing on a leather belt.

What happened to candidate Obama?

… and yes, I have a huge lesbianic crush on Rachel.  Maddow for President!!

Sunday Blasphemy – Holy…

The bimmer stopped by

When we first moved here John found a 3 series BMW that he loved.  It was a nice car, even from me who tells cars apart by what colour they are.  Unfortunately, one evening he was going over a raised crosswalk just a little too fast and all sorts of damage ensued, including passenger side airbags going off, rims chipping, tires blowing, structural metally things bending… It was totalled.  It would have cost too much to fix, so we ended up selling it to this young guy who stopped by one day.  He was really into the particular model and he worked with his father at a body shop.  We were happy to get it off the yard.

He stopped by again tonight.  I’m going to guess it’s been close to 9 months?  It looked great.  As he showed it to me, he went over in some detail all the things they had to do to fix it up.  Just for the discounted parts they needed, it ran over $13k (I don’t know what sort of mark-up they have if we had purchased them as part of the repair).  My experience with bodyshops/mechanics is that the parts are usually less than the labour.  I was almost glad John wasn’t home from work yet as he would miss it again.  The timing is a little funny as the BMW was finishing up repairs about the same time we picked up the Tucson.

I prefer geese

June – Pride Month

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2009 as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. I call upon the people of the United States to turn back discrimination and prejudice everywhere it exists.

Obama isn’t the first to make this proclamation – it just feels like it after the last 8 years. Bill Clinton put out similar nods once he was in his second term and didn’t have to worry about potential fallout.

I find it a little funny that in his proclamation, he lists several things that he promised to take care of during the campaign, but hasn’t done any visible work on since taking office. Even with broad public support for the elimination of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, there hasn’t been any (public) effort to change the law.

I understand that DADT isn’t just an executive order, it’s now a federal law so it isn’t a simple pen stroke. However, DOMA is also federal law and Hillary Clinton has chosen to offer similar benefits to same sex couples as are offered to “opposite marriage” couples. Obama could assign a low priority to it’s enforcement – he could also stress the third part of the law that is often forgotten “Don’t Pursue”.