12/1/2012: Christmas Tree (Before)

Believe it or not but another December is upon us. Here's a shot of my Christmas tree in the basement, before being decorated. One of the big advantages of having a house instead of an apartment is I don't have to disassemble the tree every year for storage. Just shove it in the basement. And even though Christmas seems to start immediately after Halloween these days, I probably won't bring it upstairs and decorate it until next weekend.

See also: Grim Reaper; Bike

11/27/2012: Game Cube

This Game Cube was the last in a long line of Nintendo console ownership. The original NES begat the Super Nigntendo, the Super Nintendo begat the N64, the N64 begat the Game Cube, and the Game Cube begat the Wii (which I loathed and sold soon after purchasing). Once upon a time, my Game Cube was the center of my entertainment world.  I'd play Mario or Zelda for hour upon hour. Now? No it sits unused in the basement, attached to an archaic 32" tube TV. Sad and abandoned.

Though I do miss Mario Kart...

11/20/2012: Shout

Let's see... since I almost never use the Shout to shout out stains, I would estimate I've had this for 5 or more years. Maybe even longer. I have no recollection of actually purchasing it. Of course it's not one of those exciting purchases you look forward to for a long time, saving up for until you have enough to finally get it.

See also: Washer & Dryer

11/18/2012: 32" TV

I find it fascinating how quickly conventional tube televisions just went away. Relegated to the attic or the guest room or, like this 32" TV, the basement. Heck, this isn't even technically mine, it was left behind by a friend that lived me me for a short period. I thin he just didn't want to carry it out. Thing weighs a fucking ton. Now it sits in the basement, with my old Game Cube attached. I always say I'll go down someday and play Mario Kart or something... but I don't. You can see the old coffee table, also relegated to the basement, sitting next to it.

10/9/2012: Brady Bunch Shelves

This is the story of these bookshelves, or as I refer to them my Brady Bunch shelves. Imagine Alice in the center and you'll get the why. Another relegated to the basement item. They used to be where I kept my clothes, once folded and stacked, since I'm not a dresser person. That was back when I had an apartment with a walk-in closet. People in the 40s (when my house was built) must not have had clothes. Or they were much much smaller and could walk into what I have for closets.

10/8/2012: Big Green Chair

My big green chair is ugly and faded now and even though it's been relegated to the basement it may be the world's most comfortable chair. Let's see The Tick get out of this one.

9/16/2012: Cordless Drill

Though I'm not much for home improvement projects, a cordless drill comes in handy for even the low-level stuff I can do, such as hanging wall hooks. Comes in evening handier when you set it to spin in the right direction instead of wondering why it's not making holes...

8/27/2012: Dryer

Completing the pairing, here the dryer to yesterday's washer. You can't really have one without the other. Well, you CAN, but why would you? Unless all the power goes out like in that new show Revolution (which I'm really getting geeked for) it's not like I'm going to hang up my clothes to dry. I do have the clothesline poles embedded in cement in the back yard, but these day they only serve as ideal homes for wasps.

See Also: Washing Machine; Laundry Needing to be Folded

8/26/2012: Washing Machine

One of the best things about home ownership is having my very own washing machine. No more sharing a washer and dryer with the rest of the apartment complex, having the machines already be in use when wanting to do a load or not being able to start a load after 10PM. Anytime I want to I can wash my clothes! That's the American Dream baby!

6/13/2012: Red Igloo Cooler

For some reason I have 6 coolers of varying sizes and designs, of which this red Igloo cooler is one. Why so many? Beats the hell out of me. I didn't even realize it until I took a picture of this one and noticed how many others were stuck under the stairs in the basement.

6/9/2012: Bike

I live in one of those "active" neighborhoods. It's kind of annoying sometimes. My street even has a dedicated bike lane in each direction. I often sit on my couch looking out the front window, watching the active people walk, jog or bike by and it makes me think "I am so screwed when the zombie apocalypse comes." (As you may recall, said apocalypse is likely to start here.) After all, what is the first rule of surviving the zombie apocalypse? That's right: cardio. Zombieland taught us that. In an effort to not fall prey to the ravenous undead, I'm back to riding my bike. Bring it zombies.

See also: Cartman Mouse Pad, Bike Rack

6/7/2012: Dog Crate

The dog crate has long been relegated to the basement as Darwin pretty much has the run of the house now. Used it when he was a pup and for house training him, but after he was a few months old it's been largely unused.

See also: Baby Gate, Stuff the Dog Hates

5/28/2012: Bike Rack

Today I'd planned on going on a bike ride. Downloaded an app for my phone that measures distance and speed and such I was going to try out. As far as I got was to get my bike rack out of the basement (where it was stored for the winter) and reattach it to the spare tire on the back of my Jeep. Then I decided it was hot. But it's a start. Not much of a start, but a start.

See also: Jeep 

5/15/2012: Hammer

My older-younger brother is the handy one in the family and often I call on him to assist me with a project or repair. (It's OK though - I got the brains, looks, personality and sense of humor.) He's constantly making fun of my tools and the quality (or lack thereof) of my random assortment of tools purchased piece meal as needed from Target. No, I don't have a fancy Ryobi drill in a nice Ryobi bag with all the special Ryobi drill bits. I have cheaper stuff. Like this hammer. When I pound it into a nail, the nail goes into a piece of wood so clearly it works well enough. And if I ever need something better? Well I've got a brother for that.

5/6/2012: Cable Splicing Kit

Yesterday, while trimming my wildly overgrown hedges along the side of the house into a neater boxier shape, I was thinking to myself "OK, I better be careful I'm getting close to the ca-" and *BZZZZT* the electric trimmers cut right through the cable before I could finish thinking "-ble." 

So I did what any home owner would do when faced with such a situation... I went to my brother's bar an had a beer. After which I went to Menard's and purchased this cable splicing kit.

See also: Hedge Trimmers

5/2/2012: Dehumidifier

4/17/2012: Saw

4/1/2012: Ratchet Set

Pulled out my ratchet set this afternoon to build me a coffee table for my patio. I would personally like to thank the inventor of the ratchet. I assume his name is something like Horatio Peabody Ratchet III or something. Whatever your name is, thank you sir. Without your handy invention I'd likely still be sitting on the floor of my garage attempting to tighten bolts with the free little wrench that came with the coffee table. And assuredly there would be quite a bit of swearing involved as well.

3/23/2012: Elephant Ear Bulbs

Dug these elephant ear bulbs up last fall, then stuck them in the basement. Originally I had three of them... as you can see they've multiplied. Having their dirty bulb intercourse and making bulb babies right in front of my house! A bunch of bulb sluts is what they are. What if the neighbors had seen!

3/19/2012: Laundry Basket

The newest item added to my stuff, the laundry basket I bought at Target yesterday. It also served as make-shift protection from the rain that was falling when I left the store. Sure, I probably looked like an idiot walking across the parking lot with a laundry basket over my head... but a DRY idiot.