Item 1: Service Saga update. My dear friend Keith from Southside Heating & AC dropped by yesterday to replace my central air unit's faulty blower motor. Cozy toastiness has been restored to Sensational Acres, just in time for fall. I spent several happy moments yesterday resetting the programmable thermostat, telling it when to warm the house up and when to let it stay cooler. I then spent several less happy moments in the wee hours of this morning kicking off some of the blankets I'd heaped on the bed earlier in the week. Small price to pay. Keith's bill wasn't, though.
Item 2: It's news to me. Remember a month or so ago when I called the Mr. Handyman service to send a guy to do some fixer-upping around the Acres? And they sent me George, the learning-impaired halitosis machine who aggravated a back injury after an hour on the job and only got one thing done? Disgusted with the service, I determined that I would look up my friend Shiatsu Mike, who also does handy-type stuff. But I never was able to get ahold of Mike, so I finally relented and called Mr. Handyman again to schedule another appointment. When I requested a non-George handyman, I was told that he's no longer with the company. My new guy is slated to visit this afternoon.
But then yesterday the Mr. Handyman office called me back with an unusual request. A local news crew (KSTP Channel 5) was interested in filming one of Mr. H's service people on the job, and would I mind if they filmed at my house? The big draw seemed to be the All-American white picket fence surrounding Sensational Acres, which is one of the items in need of repair and which would make a nice before/after shot. Bemused, I agreed to let the newsies attend. Why not? I doubt I'll appear on camera — hope not! — since the story is about Mr. Handyman, not me.
Nothing is chiseled in stone, of course; if a more interesting story breaks, or if a more attractive house needs maintenance, the Acres won't make the news at all. I have no idea when or even if the spot would actually air. But I'll keep you posted.
Item 3: Singing the blues. Part of the reason I didn't post a band name yesterday was that I was busy attending a bridal shower/send-off party for a departing friend, Miss Blueberry. She's soon to become Mrs. Blueberry; she's newly engaged, and she and her fiancé Kyle are moving back to Maine to plan their wedding closer to home and family. We'll miss her a lot around Media Headquarters, but she is much in demand. Despite having lured her here with the promise of editorial fame and fortune, we can't hope to detain her forever. What can I say? When you're hot, you're hot! Happy travels, Blueberry!