Tile that will be under the fireplace
My dream kitchen!!
My awesome laundry room
I'm looking forward to a soak in this!!!
Friday, November 17, 2006
more pictures!
Tile in the entry way and 1/2 bath
Tile that will be under the fireplace
My dream kitchen!!
My awesome laundry room
I'm looking forward to a soak in this!!!
Tile that will be under the fireplace
My dream kitchen!!
My awesome laundry room
I'm looking forward to a soak in this!!!
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Life goes on
So we got the final-ish move-in date from our builder. Now we've been told that the final inspection will be the first week in December and we should be able to move in after that.
So a bit of a delay just like everyone else warned us about. Lets just hope that it doesn't get moved again. Again, its very nice not to have to be out of the house by the end of the month. We would have had to live somewhere for 2 weeks and that would have been a pain.
So my Dad called with one of his occasional updates yesterday. Since he lives next door to the new house, and just retired last week due to his back getting worse, we are lucky enough to get these updates from time to time.
He said that the tile backsplash was going in and just about done. They were also working on the tile entryway. The sinks had been dropped in, and the plumber was hooking everything up.
Earlier this week the cabinets were finished up (my kitchen rocks!) and the linolium went in last week. The painter still has a few places that need touch up.
I can't believe how quickly things are going!!! But not quickly enough for the original finish date of Thanksgiving that our builder originally gave us. Oh well.
The house has been on the market for one week now, and not one call. Its going to be fine though. We have been very calm about it, and I feel comfortable about things. We are going to be fine.
So a bit of a delay just like everyone else warned us about. Lets just hope that it doesn't get moved again. Again, its very nice not to have to be out of the house by the end of the month. We would have had to live somewhere for 2 weeks and that would have been a pain.
So my Dad called with one of his occasional updates yesterday. Since he lives next door to the new house, and just retired last week due to his back getting worse, we are lucky enough to get these updates from time to time.
He said that the tile backsplash was going in and just about done. They were also working on the tile entryway. The sinks had been dropped in, and the plumber was hooking everything up.
Earlier this week the cabinets were finished up (my kitchen rocks!) and the linolium went in last week. The painter still has a few places that need touch up.
I can't believe how quickly things are going!!! But not quickly enough for the original finish date of Thanksgiving that our builder originally gave us. Oh well.
The house has been on the market for one week now, and not one call. Its going to be fine though. We have been very calm about it, and I feel comfortable about things. We are going to be fine.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Interesting development
The offer on our house fell through on Tuesday. Talk about the bottom falling out. Everything has changed.
The home under construction is coming along well and we should be moving in around Thanksgiving. That will make selling this home a little bit easier.
We are still in a little bit of shock.
Anyway, we put our house back on the market today. Its nowhere near ready to show. Its a stinking mess. The carpets need to be cleaned again and the bathrooms need a good scrubbing. The whole house needs to be picked up and vacuumed. The dishes need to be done.
I need to start packing.
And we are talking in church on Sunday.
I feel a little slammed.
Why do they do that? Why do they ask you to speak in Church when you are under a lot of stress and have a whole bunch of things to do. Oh yeah, lets write a talk and then stress about giving it. AAAHHHHH!!!!!
OK, enough of that.
They finished painting our new house on Monday or Tuesday and they put down subfloor and linoleum yesterday and today. They also got the well hooked up to the house on Tuesday, and inspected on Wednesday.
Things are just coming along swimmingly.
In a way its nice not to have the stress of having to be out of the house by a certain date. That way I'll have a bit more time to do the final cleaning. And if the house was to be delayed, we would have had to find somewhere to live for a little while, so I guess its good not to have to stress about that.
The thing that really stresses me is potentially having to carry this home through the winter into next summer.
I sure hope someone is looking to buy a home during the holidays. Cross your fingers for us.
Our Front Door
Front door from the inside. Front room to the left, 1/2 bath to the right.
We have 4 bedrooms. The closets in 3 bedrooms look about like this. The master has a walk in.
Our dream pantry!!!
The cool trench that leads from the well to the house.
The home under construction is coming along well and we should be moving in around Thanksgiving. That will make selling this home a little bit easier.
We are still in a little bit of shock.
Anyway, we put our house back on the market today. Its nowhere near ready to show. Its a stinking mess. The carpets need to be cleaned again and the bathrooms need a good scrubbing. The whole house needs to be picked up and vacuumed. The dishes need to be done.
I need to start packing.
And we are talking in church on Sunday.
I feel a little slammed.
Why do they do that? Why do they ask you to speak in Church when you are under a lot of stress and have a whole bunch of things to do. Oh yeah, lets write a talk and then stress about giving it. AAAHHHHH!!!!!
OK, enough of that.
They finished painting our new house on Monday or Tuesday and they put down subfloor and linoleum yesterday and today. They also got the well hooked up to the house on Tuesday, and inspected on Wednesday.
Things are just coming along swimmingly.
In a way its nice not to have the stress of having to be out of the house by a certain date. That way I'll have a bit more time to do the final cleaning. And if the house was to be delayed, we would have had to find somewhere to live for a little while, so I guess its good not to have to stress about that.
The thing that really stresses me is potentially having to carry this home through the winter into next summer.
I sure hope someone is looking to buy a home during the holidays. Cross your fingers for us.
Our Front Door
Front door from the inside. Front room to the left, 1/2 bath to the right.
We have 4 bedrooms. The closets in 3 bedrooms look about like this. The master has a walk in.
Our dream pantry!!!
The cool trench that leads from the well to the house.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Nancy Drew "The Creature of Kapu Cave" walkthrough
So, this game was a bit of a dissapointment. It was to short, to easy, and was it just me or did Joe Hardy look like he had a bad comb over?
However, it was a New Nancy Drew game from Herinteractive, so its better than nothing right?!
Herinteractive releases 2 games a year. One in July and the next in October. I would like to take this time to suggest that they may want to space these releases a bit. I've found that both games never excel. Usually one is awesome, and the other is ok. Maybe if they space them a bit, they'll have more time to concentrate on each game. Another thing they could do is introduce a 3rd release per year. I know I'd buy them. They could release in April, August, and then in December, just in time for Christmas. The only person who wouldn't like this would be my husband. He enjoys the easy birthday gift that the October released game brings.
Onward with the walkthrough!
So start the game, look through Nancy's room if you want. Its basically the same as last time. Click on the ticket when you are ready to go.
Watch the movie, talk to big Island Mike, exhaust all conversation topics and then go shell hunting. Find the beach by walking around to the back of Mikes place and following the path to the beach.
Surprise! On the beach you run into Frank and Joe with his bad comb over (shame on you for ruining his hair Herinteractive!)
Listen to them and then look for shells. There are only 5 places on the beach you can find them.
Click on the small pool in front of you, go forward once and click on the wet spot on the sand, go forward again and click on the big rock in front of you.
Now turn around. Go forward once, and in the lower left hand side of the screen is a cairn. or pile of rocks sort of like a trail marker. click on that. Now go forward twice more and click on the log to the left of your screen.
OK, now time to go and make an Aloha necklace. Go back to Mikes place and find the outside necklace making area.
Flip through the necklace examples to find the Aloha necklace. Then simply string the beads so that it looks like the necklace in the picture.
Give it to Big Island Mike and he will give you the keys!
This is the last time I will say this. Always and forever, exhaust ALL conversation topics when talking to people!
OK, as soon as you click on the jeep, a GPS screen will come up. And I was hoping to be able to drive this jeep! Anyway, in my opinion, the GPS screen is cool, but after you've seen it come up 3 times, it gets old. They need to shorten it just a bit.
Anyway, choose Camp Quigley.
OK, once there, explore! And of course, pick up everything that is not nailed down.
Near the jeep you will find a winch and a panel with lots of numbers on it. In front of the tent you will find a tape recorder.
Rewind the tape and listen.
go into the tent and explore. Find the Clipboard, the radio with no power, the note with the radio frequency from Dr. Quigley.
Check out the table with the microscope on it. Strange that the radio has no power, but the "Formula" machine does???!?
Also check out the green box with the strange lock on it. Push the buttons and hear a familiar sound. Rewind the tape and write down the order you hear those sounds. Herinteractive was nice enough to "Name" the sounds also, so write down the "Blah"s and the "Blee"s correctly.
ok, now that the box is open, read the notes about Professor Craven, notice the phone number at the end of the notes, get the hook, and the pass.
Call the number. Whether you try and be Dr. Kim or try and be yourself, the lady hangs up on you.
Lets fix the jeep. Use the winch and the hook, you should be able to get it out.
Look at the panel with the numbers. This time Nancy will recognize it as a solar panel and tell you that some of the cells are missing.
Lets go and see if those lovely people at the Hilihili research center have some extras.
Whether you use the pass or not you end up in front of Professor Craven getting yelled at. Don't worry, he calms down.
When you ask for solar cells, he asks you to get some seeds. They are downstairs. Or should I say down a ramp? Anyway, look around all you want. Despite the high security, no one is around, and you won't get stopped.
Once you've found the plants that need harvesting, look to the right and find the card that describes the seed you are looking for. Its easy.
Once you are done, bring them back to the Professor and he will instruct some guy to put the cells in your vehicle.
Back to Camp!
Lets fix the Solar panel. If you are familiar with Suduko, this should be fairly easy. If not, just remember that in each of the 4 squars, there should only be numbers 1-9. In each row, there should not be any numbers repeated. When the lights are all green, you are done. Just keep messing around with the numbers if you don't understand Suduko, and eventually it will come together.
Now hook it to the winch and wind the winch so its back in the tree.
Lets go call Dr. Kim.
Turn on the power and figure out how to input the frequency found on that note from Dr. Kim
Pick up the microphone on the table to talk to Dr. Kim.
Call Joe and see if he can help.
Now we are playing as Joe.
Go talk to Big Mike.
He will send you fishing.
On the way to the beach, live through the earthquake and talk to Pua at the surf shack.
Now head down to the pier and start fishing. Click on the fishing rod and then the bait each time you want to catch a fish. Watch your bobber. When it dunks down below the water, click on your rod. It will show you the fish that you caught. Some are dang ugly!
As soon as you have caught 6 of the Ulua, you will run out of bait. That really stinks because all these fish are worth big island bucks (from Pua).
Go and give the Ulua to Big mike.
Leave, once your around the first corner you hear a car leave.
I'm going to bring the rest of these fish to Pua so I can get some big island bucks.
OK, now that I'm $9 richer, lets go check out big mikes office.
There is nothing on the desk to see, just look at the calendar. There you will find a post-it and the key.
Once you get into the locked cabinet, you will find a map. Now you know that Dr. Kim is at 3 finger rock. Joe calls Nancy and leaves a message with the coordinates. Then he gets clobbered.
Now as Nancy, you know where to find Dr. Kim. plug those coordinates into the GPS and get going!
As you are going down the trail you will see colored flags marking other trails with plants at the end. At each plant take a colored baggy and collect a sample. This will save time later.
once you get to the end of the trail, look up and click on dr. kim to talk to her.
She sends you back to camp for her clipboard. Hop in the Jeep, go back to camp. The clipboard is in the tent. Hop back in the jeep and head for 3 fingered rock (really should have been called 3 toed rock in my opinion)
Give the clipboard to Dr. Kim. she will tell you that the first page is missing. Now you have to gather all the data and analyze it according to the instructions on the clipboard.
Back to camp! Look at the clipboard and find instructions. You will need a microscope. If you look at the one in the tent, you will find that the one there is broken.
Lets go to the Hilihili! Don't worry, they'll let you in. Just push the white button for assistance.
Dr craven will give you the microscope part, but needs you to fertilize some plants first. The plants are down the ramp and on the right side of the room.
The first time I did this puzzle, I just kept pushing buttons and solved it pretty quickly. This time I made a chart and figured out what each color would do. Either way works!
Talk to Dr. Craven again and he will give you the part you need.
On the way out you hear him firing Mr. Fiderman.
Back to camp!
Fix the microscope and pour the contents of the red pouch on it. If you read the clipboard instructions you know that you need to seperate and weigh the frass (pictures on the clipboard), count the seeds and count the insect parts.
Also note that you are missing 2 colors of pouches. Those are at kapu cave but dr. kim hasn't told you about them yet.
One thing on the clipboard that you have to do is identify the plants that the samples were taken from. Lets call Joe and see if he can help.
Playing as Joe, lets go and play some of those games in Big Island Mike's office.
The Wiki Tiki game is just for fun. You can win a sharks tooth that can be made into a necklace and exchanged for Big Island Bucks.
The other game is an informational game. You will need more bucks to read everything. You can catch fish or make necklaces. Either way is pretty easy. Don't forget to ask Big Mike about Franks accident and pick up the paper on the ground.
When playing the informational game, don't forget to take notes while looking at the plants!
Lets go talk to pua now. Hey, she's renting snorkel gear!
After talking to Pua, lets round up some bucks. You can make necklaces or catch fish if you have any money left for bait.
However you do it, once you have $30, rent some snorkel equipment.
While you are earning money, you will hear Pua and her father arguing. You will want to talk to both her and Big Mike about it.
Once you are able to rent the snorkel equipment, go down to the sand where the big wet spot is. You will be able to enter the water there. There are 5 places to collect shells down there, and at the end you will find a dark hole where an eel lives and won't let you through.
hey, we forgot to call the pawn broker. Lets do that.
Now lets call Johnny Kuto.
OK, now its time to talk to Big Mike.
Now lets go talk to Pua. On the way, Johnny Kuto calls you back. Nothing.
Pua tells you about the chart in the courtyard. Lets go talk to Big Mike to find out his favorite flavor of shave ice. You'll need money for this one.
Go and talk to Big Mike. He'll tell you to guess his favorite shave ice by making them and bringing them to you. This is sort of fun. He will tell you how many flavors you have right. But it could get expensive.
After you get the right answer, you will be able to open the box in the courtyard. you will find a strange map and Joe will call Nancy.
Ok, look at the clipboard. the first page of directions has the coodinates for Kapu cave. Lets plug in the coordinates and check it out. Also, collect the samples there.
OK back to camp to analyze the new samples.
Once you have the clipboard full, turn on the Krolmeister Formula machine and put your clipboard in it.
Now we need to take the results to Dr. Kim.
The first time you talk to her she'll tell you about the webs at Kapu cave.
The next time, she'll get excited about your results. the nice thing about this puzzle is that she'll tell you which color has the wrong data.
Make sure you exhaust all conversation topics with Dr. Kim. She may finish a conversation, but if you try and talk to her again, you'll find that you have more questions to ask.
OK then, off to the Hilihili! Dr. Craven is asleep so now you can check out his thingeymajig. Be sure to hit the settings tab at the far right in order to turn off the sound. Also, check out his lab coat near him.
Remember that Fiderman guy who got fired? Well, I bet his locker would be a good place to find one of those protective suits! Write down his combination and his employee number.
When you get in the room with the plants, go left and then all the way to the back of the room. You will find a room with a computer in it. This is where you'll figure out what plant to take a sample from.
The HH3333 is right outside the door to the office you are in, and to the left. very easy. Get a sample, and get out.
Getting out is a bit of a problem. Review these directions, don't pause a lot, and you should get out just fine. If not, you'll just have to try again.
R,S,L,S,S,S,L,S,L,S,R,S,L,S,S,R,S,R,S,S,S,R,S,L, at door, and leave!
We're out! Back to camp.
You'll need to go into the tent and put the plant sample in a test tube. When you click on the table to use the test tubes, you'll find that they helpfully put the plant sample on the table for you. Just put it in a test tube and squirt in some liquid from the bottle in front of you.
They also put the Red sample on the table in front of you. By clicking on it, it will put some of it in the test tube in front of you. Do the same with the liquid.
OK, back to Dr. Kim!
Talk to her and then take the canopy samples from her pack. Back to camp!
once you analyze all those canopy samples (using the test tubes and that liquid) then its back to Dr. Kim!
OK, after taking the ring from Dr. Kim's pack, lets go to Kapu cave.
There is only one place where anything can be put in Kapu cave. Find it, Its on the main statue.
I hope you took notes from that map Joe got out of the box in the courtyard. You'll need it now.
Put the pictures in the order listed on the map. If it doesn't do anything, play with the block on top, second from the left. That always works for me.
OK, so lets go into this cave filled with lava. The first 2 jumps you take, you'll make. Don't forget to look at the statues you are passing. The 3rd (or so) statue you see, you'll be able to pull his tongue out. This will make a ledge come out of the wall. Take the ledge. There is no other way over. But once you use the ledge it will disappear and you will be stuck.
You'll come to a lovely puzzle. Basically its one where you find the right sequence and you solve the puzzle. Only problem is that when you push any wrong rock, you die. And you get to second chance it for the next try. Lovely, eh?
For all you cheaters, here's the answer. Center top is #1, second from the left on the bottom is #2, the big button in the middle towards the left is #3, and the very left middle button is #4. This will cause you to slide down a tube.
The next puzzle is fairly easy. You are going to put the turtle laying eggs story in order. Use the domino style tiles for it.
When you get the puzzle right, the head will sink and the eyes will look right. As soon as you can, click on the right arrow. Otherwise you will get squished.
Now we go back to Joe.
OK, after we hear the message from Nancy, Joe says we should go and see if the eel is still there under the water. Get out your list of animals from that map again. Make sure you have them in order and handy. You will need to choose the right directions according to that order while Joe holds his breath.
Lets go!
What I'd like to know is how Joe can say "Whoa" every time you choose a direction, without drowning!
Once you get there and the rock breaks the bridge, you are again, stuck. Climb the bridge 'ladder'. Explore the cave and you will get to a statue thingey where you can push a button. Push it and go in. Look around and find the canisters. Then Big Mike shows up. And then Nancy shows up! Wow, lets have a party!
I'm not sure there is anything to this next puzzle other than dumb luck. Just keep trying and you'll make it. Though I have to laugh at Nancy's instructions. Like Big Mike can't hear them also! Ha Ha!
I'm disappointed in the lack of a big finish on this one! And, hey! I wanted to make some more necklaces!
Anyway, the next game looks good.
Looking forward to it in 9 STINKING MONTHS! Man Herinteractive, could you possibly produce more games, or at least put them out every 6 months or something?
However, it was a New Nancy Drew game from Herinteractive, so its better than nothing right?!
Herinteractive releases 2 games a year. One in July and the next in October. I would like to take this time to suggest that they may want to space these releases a bit. I've found that both games never excel. Usually one is awesome, and the other is ok. Maybe if they space them a bit, they'll have more time to concentrate on each game. Another thing they could do is introduce a 3rd release per year. I know I'd buy them. They could release in April, August, and then in December, just in time for Christmas. The only person who wouldn't like this would be my husband. He enjoys the easy birthday gift that the October released game brings.
Onward with the walkthrough!
So start the game, look through Nancy's room if you want. Its basically the same as last time. Click on the ticket when you are ready to go.
Watch the movie, talk to big Island Mike, exhaust all conversation topics and then go shell hunting. Find the beach by walking around to the back of Mikes place and following the path to the beach.
Surprise! On the beach you run into Frank and Joe with his bad comb over (shame on you for ruining his hair Herinteractive!)
Listen to them and then look for shells. There are only 5 places on the beach you can find them.
Click on the small pool in front of you, go forward once and click on the wet spot on the sand, go forward again and click on the big rock in front of you.
Now turn around. Go forward once, and in the lower left hand side of the screen is a cairn. or pile of rocks sort of like a trail marker. click on that. Now go forward twice more and click on the log to the left of your screen.
OK, now time to go and make an Aloha necklace. Go back to Mikes place and find the outside necklace making area.
Flip through the necklace examples to find the Aloha necklace. Then simply string the beads so that it looks like the necklace in the picture.
Give it to Big Island Mike and he will give you the keys!
This is the last time I will say this. Always and forever, exhaust ALL conversation topics when talking to people!
OK, as soon as you click on the jeep, a GPS screen will come up. And I was hoping to be able to drive this jeep! Anyway, in my opinion, the GPS screen is cool, but after you've seen it come up 3 times, it gets old. They need to shorten it just a bit.
Anyway, choose Camp Quigley.
OK, once there, explore! And of course, pick up everything that is not nailed down.
Near the jeep you will find a winch and a panel with lots of numbers on it. In front of the tent you will find a tape recorder.
Rewind the tape and listen.
go into the tent and explore. Find the Clipboard, the radio with no power, the note with the radio frequency from Dr. Quigley.
Check out the table with the microscope on it. Strange that the radio has no power, but the "Formula" machine does???!?
Also check out the green box with the strange lock on it. Push the buttons and hear a familiar sound. Rewind the tape and write down the order you hear those sounds. Herinteractive was nice enough to "Name" the sounds also, so write down the "Blah"s and the "Blee"s correctly.
ok, now that the box is open, read the notes about Professor Craven, notice the phone number at the end of the notes, get the hook, and the pass.
Call the number. Whether you try and be Dr. Kim or try and be yourself, the lady hangs up on you.
Lets fix the jeep. Use the winch and the hook, you should be able to get it out.
Look at the panel with the numbers. This time Nancy will recognize it as a solar panel and tell you that some of the cells are missing.
Lets go and see if those lovely people at the Hilihili research center have some extras.
Whether you use the pass or not you end up in front of Professor Craven getting yelled at. Don't worry, he calms down.
When you ask for solar cells, he asks you to get some seeds. They are downstairs. Or should I say down a ramp? Anyway, look around all you want. Despite the high security, no one is around, and you won't get stopped.
Once you've found the plants that need harvesting, look to the right and find the card that describes the seed you are looking for. Its easy.
Once you are done, bring them back to the Professor and he will instruct some guy to put the cells in your vehicle.
Back to Camp!
Lets fix the Solar panel. If you are familiar with Suduko, this should be fairly easy. If not, just remember that in each of the 4 squars, there should only be numbers 1-9. In each row, there should not be any numbers repeated. When the lights are all green, you are done. Just keep messing around with the numbers if you don't understand Suduko, and eventually it will come together.
Now hook it to the winch and wind the winch so its back in the tree.
Lets go call Dr. Kim.
Turn on the power and figure out how to input the frequency found on that note from Dr. Kim
Pick up the microphone on the table to talk to Dr. Kim.
Call Joe and see if he can help.
Now we are playing as Joe.
Go talk to Big Mike.
He will send you fishing.
On the way to the beach, live through the earthquake and talk to Pua at the surf shack.
Now head down to the pier and start fishing. Click on the fishing rod and then the bait each time you want to catch a fish. Watch your bobber. When it dunks down below the water, click on your rod. It will show you the fish that you caught. Some are dang ugly!
As soon as you have caught 6 of the Ulua, you will run out of bait. That really stinks because all these fish are worth big island bucks (from Pua).
Go and give the Ulua to Big mike.
Leave, once your around the first corner you hear a car leave.
I'm going to bring the rest of these fish to Pua so I can get some big island bucks.
OK, now that I'm $9 richer, lets go check out big mikes office.
There is nothing on the desk to see, just look at the calendar. There you will find a post-it and the key.
Once you get into the locked cabinet, you will find a map. Now you know that Dr. Kim is at 3 finger rock. Joe calls Nancy and leaves a message with the coordinates. Then he gets clobbered.
Now as Nancy, you know where to find Dr. Kim. plug those coordinates into the GPS and get going!
As you are going down the trail you will see colored flags marking other trails with plants at the end. At each plant take a colored baggy and collect a sample. This will save time later.
once you get to the end of the trail, look up and click on dr. kim to talk to her.
She sends you back to camp for her clipboard. Hop in the Jeep, go back to camp. The clipboard is in the tent. Hop back in the jeep and head for 3 fingered rock (really should have been called 3 toed rock in my opinion)
Give the clipboard to Dr. Kim. she will tell you that the first page is missing. Now you have to gather all the data and analyze it according to the instructions on the clipboard.
Back to camp! Look at the clipboard and find instructions. You will need a microscope. If you look at the one in the tent, you will find that the one there is broken.
Lets go to the Hilihili! Don't worry, they'll let you in. Just push the white button for assistance.
Dr craven will give you the microscope part, but needs you to fertilize some plants first. The plants are down the ramp and on the right side of the room.
The first time I did this puzzle, I just kept pushing buttons and solved it pretty quickly. This time I made a chart and figured out what each color would do. Either way works!
Talk to Dr. Craven again and he will give you the part you need.
On the way out you hear him firing Mr. Fiderman.
Back to camp!
Fix the microscope and pour the contents of the red pouch on it. If you read the clipboard instructions you know that you need to seperate and weigh the frass (pictures on the clipboard), count the seeds and count the insect parts.
Also note that you are missing 2 colors of pouches. Those are at kapu cave but dr. kim hasn't told you about them yet.
One thing on the clipboard that you have to do is identify the plants that the samples were taken from. Lets call Joe and see if he can help.
Playing as Joe, lets go and play some of those games in Big Island Mike's office.
The Wiki Tiki game is just for fun. You can win a sharks tooth that can be made into a necklace and exchanged for Big Island Bucks.
The other game is an informational game. You will need more bucks to read everything. You can catch fish or make necklaces. Either way is pretty easy. Don't forget to ask Big Mike about Franks accident and pick up the paper on the ground.
When playing the informational game, don't forget to take notes while looking at the plants!
Lets go talk to pua now. Hey, she's renting snorkel gear!
After talking to Pua, lets round up some bucks. You can make necklaces or catch fish if you have any money left for bait.
However you do it, once you have $30, rent some snorkel equipment.
While you are earning money, you will hear Pua and her father arguing. You will want to talk to both her and Big Mike about it.
Once you are able to rent the snorkel equipment, go down to the sand where the big wet spot is. You will be able to enter the water there. There are 5 places to collect shells down there, and at the end you will find a dark hole where an eel lives and won't let you through.
hey, we forgot to call the pawn broker. Lets do that.
Now lets call Johnny Kuto.
OK, now its time to talk to Big Mike.
Now lets go talk to Pua. On the way, Johnny Kuto calls you back. Nothing.
Pua tells you about the chart in the courtyard. Lets go talk to Big Mike to find out his favorite flavor of shave ice. You'll need money for this one.
Go and talk to Big Mike. He'll tell you to guess his favorite shave ice by making them and bringing them to you. This is sort of fun. He will tell you how many flavors you have right. But it could get expensive.
After you get the right answer, you will be able to open the box in the courtyard. you will find a strange map and Joe will call Nancy.
Ok, look at the clipboard. the first page of directions has the coodinates for Kapu cave. Lets plug in the coordinates and check it out. Also, collect the samples there.
OK back to camp to analyze the new samples.
Once you have the clipboard full, turn on the Krolmeister Formula machine and put your clipboard in it.
Now we need to take the results to Dr. Kim.
The first time you talk to her she'll tell you about the webs at Kapu cave.
The next time, she'll get excited about your results. the nice thing about this puzzle is that she'll tell you which color has the wrong data.
Make sure you exhaust all conversation topics with Dr. Kim. She may finish a conversation, but if you try and talk to her again, you'll find that you have more questions to ask.
OK then, off to the Hilihili! Dr. Craven is asleep so now you can check out his thingeymajig. Be sure to hit the settings tab at the far right in order to turn off the sound. Also, check out his lab coat near him.
Remember that Fiderman guy who got fired? Well, I bet his locker would be a good place to find one of those protective suits! Write down his combination and his employee number.
When you get in the room with the plants, go left and then all the way to the back of the room. You will find a room with a computer in it. This is where you'll figure out what plant to take a sample from.
The HH3333 is right outside the door to the office you are in, and to the left. very easy. Get a sample, and get out.
Getting out is a bit of a problem. Review these directions, don't pause a lot, and you should get out just fine. If not, you'll just have to try again.
R,S,L,S,S,S,L,S,L,S,R,S,L,S,S,R,S,R,S,S,S,R,S,L, at door, and leave!
We're out! Back to camp.
You'll need to go into the tent and put the plant sample in a test tube. When you click on the table to use the test tubes, you'll find that they helpfully put the plant sample on the table for you. Just put it in a test tube and squirt in some liquid from the bottle in front of you.
They also put the Red sample on the table in front of you. By clicking on it, it will put some of it in the test tube in front of you. Do the same with the liquid.
OK, back to Dr. Kim!
Talk to her and then take the canopy samples from her pack. Back to camp!
once you analyze all those canopy samples (using the test tubes and that liquid) then its back to Dr. Kim!
OK, after taking the ring from Dr. Kim's pack, lets go to Kapu cave.
There is only one place where anything can be put in Kapu cave. Find it, Its on the main statue.
I hope you took notes from that map Joe got out of the box in the courtyard. You'll need it now.
Put the pictures in the order listed on the map. If it doesn't do anything, play with the block on top, second from the left. That always works for me.
OK, so lets go into this cave filled with lava. The first 2 jumps you take, you'll make. Don't forget to look at the statues you are passing. The 3rd (or so) statue you see, you'll be able to pull his tongue out. This will make a ledge come out of the wall. Take the ledge. There is no other way over. But once you use the ledge it will disappear and you will be stuck.
You'll come to a lovely puzzle. Basically its one where you find the right sequence and you solve the puzzle. Only problem is that when you push any wrong rock, you die. And you get to second chance it for the next try. Lovely, eh?
For all you cheaters, here's the answer. Center top is #1, second from the left on the bottom is #2, the big button in the middle towards the left is #3, and the very left middle button is #4. This will cause you to slide down a tube.
The next puzzle is fairly easy. You are going to put the turtle laying eggs story in order. Use the domino style tiles for it.
When you get the puzzle right, the head will sink and the eyes will look right. As soon as you can, click on the right arrow. Otherwise you will get squished.
Now we go back to Joe.
OK, after we hear the message from Nancy, Joe says we should go and see if the eel is still there under the water. Get out your list of animals from that map again. Make sure you have them in order and handy. You will need to choose the right directions according to that order while Joe holds his breath.
Lets go!
What I'd like to know is how Joe can say "Whoa" every time you choose a direction, without drowning!
Once you get there and the rock breaks the bridge, you are again, stuck. Climb the bridge 'ladder'. Explore the cave and you will get to a statue thingey where you can push a button. Push it and go in. Look around and find the canisters. Then Big Mike shows up. And then Nancy shows up! Wow, lets have a party!
I'm not sure there is anything to this next puzzle other than dumb luck. Just keep trying and you'll make it. Though I have to laugh at Nancy's instructions. Like Big Mike can't hear them also! Ha Ha!
I'm disappointed in the lack of a big finish on this one! And, hey! I wanted to make some more necklaces!
Anyway, the next game looks good.
Looking forward to it in 9 STINKING MONTHS! Man Herinteractive, could you possibly produce more games, or at least put them out every 6 months or something?
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Just plain weird
So our realtor called me this morning and our conversation went something like this:
"Did you show your house?"
Me "No"
"Well that's really weird because we just got an offer"
Me "Are you kidding?"
Anyway, our Realtor received some random offer for our house today. Full price, site unseen. We do have to give him a fridge (I'm not giving up mine! We'll have to buy a new cheap one) and pay a large part of the closing costs. But a full price offer.
Turns out it was an investor. So we might just be able to rent back for a month until our house is ready.
Anyway we signed the papers and our realtor will fax them over tomorrow.
WE SOLD OUR HOUSE!!! (Well nearly)
How about...
WE'RE ABOUT TO ACCEPT AN OFFER ON OUR HOUSE!!!
Thats a bit more accurate.
Here's hoping that everything goes well and it doesn't fall through.
"Did you show your house?"
Me "No"
"Well that's really weird because we just got an offer"
Me "Are you kidding?"
Anyway, our Realtor received some random offer for our house today. Full price, site unseen. We do have to give him a fridge (I'm not giving up mine! We'll have to buy a new cheap one) and pay a large part of the closing costs. But a full price offer.
Turns out it was an investor. So we might just be able to rent back for a month until our house is ready.
Anyway we signed the papers and our realtor will fax them over tomorrow.
WE SOLD OUR HOUSE!!! (Well nearly)
How about...
WE'RE ABOUT TO ACCEPT AN OFFER ON OUR HOUSE!!!
Thats a bit more accurate.
Here's hoping that everything goes well and it doesn't fall through.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Houses!
In the nearly 3 months that our house has been on the market, we have had exactly 5 people show interest in SEEING it.
3 of the 5 have actually seen it.
I'm doing ok, but the fact that its been at least 2 months since someone has looked at our house could start worrying me around the end of October.
Until then, I refuse to stress over it. If I do, I will totally lose it.
In the meantime the new house is doing great. We have windows! We have electrical! We have bathtubs! We have the SOAKER TUB of my dreams!
This week and last they have been working on inspections, electrical, and getting quotes on siding.
Things are going well. We are still happy about our builder.
We found out that the cabinets that we chose and everything with that came to just $100 more than our builder budgeted, and he's ok with the overage.
We're supposed to meet with our builder tomorrow to discuss the siding. I always look forward to those meetings because it feels like we're getting inside information!
I'm still in the primary presidency, and hubby is still ward clerk. These callings keep us busy, and I don't know if that's a bad thing or not. I think it keeps my mind off of the house not selling.
C is becoming much more responsible. She helps out a lot and doesn't make nearly as many messes as she once did. But A is making up for them with her own!
3 of the 5 have actually seen it.
I'm doing ok, but the fact that its been at least 2 months since someone has looked at our house could start worrying me around the end of October.
Until then, I refuse to stress over it. If I do, I will totally lose it.
In the meantime the new house is doing great. We have windows! We have electrical! We have bathtubs! We have the SOAKER TUB of my dreams!
This week and last they have been working on inspections, electrical, and getting quotes on siding.
Things are going well. We are still happy about our builder.
We found out that the cabinets that we chose and everything with that came to just $100 more than our builder budgeted, and he's ok with the overage.
We're supposed to meet with our builder tomorrow to discuss the siding. I always look forward to those meetings because it feels like we're getting inside information!
I'm still in the primary presidency, and hubby is still ward clerk. These callings keep us busy, and I don't know if that's a bad thing or not. I think it keeps my mind off of the house not selling.
C is becoming much more responsible. She helps out a lot and doesn't make nearly as many messes as she once did. But A is making up for them with her own!
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Grandpa
I was just looking at an old picture of you and I realized that I miss you.
You died when I was only 7 but I still remember your smile. Your gentleness. The dimple in your chin that I and even my children have.
I don't remember much else.
All my other memories are of your funeral, or were supplied to me through stories from my Dad and other family members.
I wish I had been able to get to know you. You look and sound like such an awesome man and grandpa.
Grandpa, just know that I can't wait to spend time with you again.
You died when I was only 7 but I still remember your smile. Your gentleness. The dimple in your chin that I and even my children have.
I don't remember much else.
All my other memories are of your funeral, or were supplied to me through stories from my Dad and other family members.
I wish I had been able to get to know you. You look and sound like such an awesome man and grandpa.
Grandpa, just know that I can't wait to spend time with you again.
Monday, September 04, 2006
pictures of the new house
Did I mention that we have the best builder ever? My hubby and I were just admiring the gables and roof and just everything about our house and we realized that most of it was because our builder is so awesome. He designed our house for a great price. He took all of our suggestions and also led us away from things that would have looked bad, and made suggestions about what would look good.
In all, at this point, we are extremely pleased. If you need the name of an AWESOME builder in the Boise Idaho area, let me know. I have the best builder!!!
Oh, and here's a picture of the 2 cutest kids ever! My husband and I marvel that we could produce girls this cute!!!
Life
So lots of things happening... And lots of things not happening.
Our house is still on the market. In fact we are coming close to 2 months without one person even coming and looking. In a way thats good, because I think we might avoid having to move twice, but at this point I think I might wet my pants if someone called and wanted to actually see our house. (yes, we have been doing lots of advertising, and have lowered the price by 5k so far. We're the lowest priced in the neighborhood)
Our garden is doing ok. Its just starting to produce green peppers though. That is really annoying to me. Here it is, starting to get cold and we're just starting to have a harvest.
BYU's first game was on Saturday. They lost. My husband made he wonderful gameday homemade pizza. It was awesome. Why is it that homemade pizza is so much better than the stuff they deliver? He used 100% whole wheat flour for the crust also!
The home we are building is almost past the framing stage. You can actually walk through and see the rooms and windows and where things will be and how big the rooms are.
I'm really excited about the kitchen and the pantry. The bedrooms look awesome, the garage looks huge, I love the master!
The only thing I don't like right now is the fact that the framers seem to think that just because we're building on an acre, they can spread out that wide. We're finding nails and garbage nearly to the back of the property. That ticks me off. We're doing our own cleaning mostly because my husband and Dad (who lives at the ajoining property) wanted first dibs on the extra wood and supplies. Thats ok with me.
Dad goes around the property every day or so and picks up garbage and scraps and hauls them over to his house. The framers should be done today or tomorrow, so he's going to take the truck over there and really load up. Of course he's not taking anything that our builder may be returning for credit or anything.
Mom's happy with it because Dad built some shelves out of the scrap and she's been able to organize some food storage that really needed it. I'm happy because my husband will be able to do the same.
When they poured the cement for our foundation, something became clear. The house was on more than a slight incline. Its a slope! the back corner of the houes has a foundation of almost 5 feet! Makes me wish I'd realized it and then we could have talked about an unfinished daylight basement or something. But it was too late for that. So we've settled for a couple of crawl space access points that will make it possible for us to store a lot of food storage down there. This is where my husband will be building the shelves.
I'm starting to get nervous about living so close to my parents.
Our house is still on the market. In fact we are coming close to 2 months without one person even coming and looking. In a way thats good, because I think we might avoid having to move twice, but at this point I think I might wet my pants if someone called and wanted to actually see our house. (yes, we have been doing lots of advertising, and have lowered the price by 5k so far. We're the lowest priced in the neighborhood)
Our garden is doing ok. Its just starting to produce green peppers though. That is really annoying to me. Here it is, starting to get cold and we're just starting to have a harvest.
BYU's first game was on Saturday. They lost. My husband made he wonderful gameday homemade pizza. It was awesome. Why is it that homemade pizza is so much better than the stuff they deliver? He used 100% whole wheat flour for the crust also!
The home we are building is almost past the framing stage. You can actually walk through and see the rooms and windows and where things will be and how big the rooms are.
I'm really excited about the kitchen and the pantry. The bedrooms look awesome, the garage looks huge, I love the master!
The only thing I don't like right now is the fact that the framers seem to think that just because we're building on an acre, they can spread out that wide. We're finding nails and garbage nearly to the back of the property. That ticks me off. We're doing our own cleaning mostly because my husband and Dad (who lives at the ajoining property) wanted first dibs on the extra wood and supplies. Thats ok with me.
Dad goes around the property every day or so and picks up garbage and scraps and hauls them over to his house. The framers should be done today or tomorrow, so he's going to take the truck over there and really load up. Of course he's not taking anything that our builder may be returning for credit or anything.
Mom's happy with it because Dad built some shelves out of the scrap and she's been able to organize some food storage that really needed it. I'm happy because my husband will be able to do the same.
When they poured the cement for our foundation, something became clear. The house was on more than a slight incline. Its a slope! the back corner of the houes has a foundation of almost 5 feet! Makes me wish I'd realized it and then we could have talked about an unfinished daylight basement or something. But it was too late for that. So we've settled for a couple of crawl space access points that will make it possible for us to store a lot of food storage down there. This is where my husband will be building the shelves.
I'm starting to get nervous about living so close to my parents.
Friday, July 14, 2006
Nancy Drew : Danger By Design Walkthrough
Ok, you may remember from some of my earliest posts that one of my guilty pleasures is to play Nancy Drew computer games. Well, I just got another one in the mail a few days ago.
Well, I decided to try my hand at a walkthrough.
Here it is! If you find any errors, please let me know.
Also, No part of this or any post on my blog may be reproduced in any form. You may however link to it.
Rather than just giving answers, I’ll try and guide you to the answers. We’ll see how that goes.
We start out in Nancy’s room. I’m not sure why they chose to start here, but ok. Read the case file and if you would like the scrapbook and How to be a detective. When you are ready to start, click on the airline ticket.
I’m going to choose the Senior Detective level.
Once Heather sits down at her desk, talk to her and exhaust all topics of conversation (as always).
Before going to see Minette, search the room.
Read the notebook in your desk drawer carefully. There are solutions to at least 3 puzzles in there.
On the computer you’ll figure out that Sonny Joon from the Secret of the Scarlet hand is making a special guest appearance (sort of).
Read the e-mail, and make note of the things you need to do on the to do list.
Click on the game portal. You need a name and password. They are in Sonny’s notebook. I will give you one clue. Minette’s best friend of sorts is a dress form named Carol. That is your username. That is all. Oh, and don’t play the game yet.
OK, lets fix the plotter before we see Minette. On the last page of Sonny’s notebook there is a letter about the plotter. Read the letter, and the shapes on the bottom of the page will help you solve this puzzle. If you correctly fixed the plotter, it will no longer let you get a close up view of it.
Now that those things are done, lets go talk to Minette! But wait! Answer the phone!
Ok, Now go see Minette.
Talk to her and at the end, she will ask you to brew her some tea. Go over to the tea brewing area on the other side of Minette’s room.
Nancy will basically tell you how everything works. Click on the white recipe card looking thing on the table.
So Minette’s favorite color is red today and then she chooses the number 10. So read through all the conditions and add the called for herbs. I will say that the herb doesn’t have to meet all the conditions, just one of the conditions. What I did was figure out a condition (grow in marshy areas) and go through all the herb descriptions and write down those herbs. Then, I figured out another condition and did the same thing. You will find out that 2 herbs will appear twice on your list. I just added those once.
The total number of herbs is 11 (only counting the 2 herbs that appear on your list 2 times, once)
As soon as you finish with the tea, go to the outer office. Minette will let you know immediately if you got it right or if you have to try again.
Once you get it right, she’ll call you back and give you money and a bag and tell you to go to Pont Neuf to buy stuff that’s just like her old stuff.
Go back to your computer and make a note of all the other errands you could run while you’re out.
Talk to Heather.
Try to leave
Get the letter, take care of it, and then leave.
Lets go to Pont Neuf first. Look at the cross thingy in front of you. Read the inscription.
Next check out each of the venders in the park. Lets start with the one with the wrap on her head. She’s to the left.
One thing to note with Venders – you can haggle with them. You can try half price which they will accept most of the time, but if they don’t accept it, then the only choice you have is to pay full price.
Ok, back to the vender with the wrap on her head. She has one item of the four that Minette is looking for.
Now lets go to the vender with her back to you the whole time. She has 2 items that you will need for Minette.
Now for the vender in the middle of the park - he has only 1 item for Minette. But surprise! He also has a way for you to make money. You can paint reproductions for him. I always do the Mona Lisa painting because it’s much easier than the other one - although the other one is nice for a change now and again.
By the way, don’t forget to look at everything in the park.
Now on to Place Monge to talk to JJ Ling.
Talk to JJ, and don’t believe her! Get the envelope from her, and as always, exhaust all topics of conversation. Look at everything in the room, and also be sure to read the paper on the table now and every morning.
Now lets go to Rue Du Bac.
Dieter will say he doesn’t have the time to make the prints, so it’s up to you. The binder with instructions on it was hard for me to find. Click on the fish tank and to the right on the shelf is the binder. Read it and take notes. Dieter won’t let you take it into the dark room.
Don’t forget to search the room. You can borrow the digital camera right now if you want. You won’t need it until later, but it’s fun.
Now for the dark room. The hardest part here is the fact that you have to do this in complete darkness. And if you miss the tray and knock something over, you have a huge explosion. The easiest way to do this is to get a post-it and mark your screen where the switch and trays are. Be very careful not to do anything to harm your computer screen. Do this at your own risk!
Ok, the slides. You would think they would make things easy and you would develop 4 slides and voila! They would be 4 different slides. Well, it’s not that easy. I developed 3 and then kept developing the same ones I already had. Just try and look at the slide before you put it in the machine.
After you are done, talk to Dieter some more.
Now its time to go to Hotel De Ville
Talk to Jean Mi and give him the prints. Order something when urged to. I’ve had just about everything on the menu. It’s all chicken and hamburgers and ice cream.
Talk to Jean Mi some more and he will give you Hugo Butterly’s phone number. Fat lot of good it will do for you.
Ok, now back to the office.
Answer the phone for another blast from the past.
Ok, so we need to create some outfits. These outfits are weird. I’m not sure how to give hints for this. Just read the outfit guidelines on the white card on each page and try lots of combinations.
First outfit clue - The 3 items of one color aren’t the color green.
Second outfit clue - 2 items in this outfit are furry.
Third outfit clue - Both items on her head are yellow.
Talk to Heather some more and give her the envelope from JJ.
Go and try to give your items to Minette. You’ll find out she’s playing a game.
Go and talk to Heather. She’ll suggest you try and log in as Minette and get the high score so that Minette will quit playing and get back to work.
Login to the game portal using the username and password found in Sonny’s notebook. Keep playing until you top the high score of 1000. Yeah, this game is a pain. Everyone looks alike!
After you get the high score, go talk to Minette and give her your stuff.
Go to the outer office and now you are running home to see why JJ isn’t answering the phone.
Ok, once you get home talk to JJ.
Now we have 2 problems. We need to find mint and find out how to substitute for brown sugar.
First go to the kitchen cupboard and find the molasses. Get it and put it on the island with all the other ingredients.
Now we can solve both of our problems by going to the park.
Ok, we’re going to spend a lot of money on things you may think we don’t need. But we’ll need them later in the game.
First vendor – lady with a blanket on her head. You’ll need to pay full price for the mint. Buy the mint, the stake, the string, and the Ichi-Do book. Be sure to read the book carefully before you swim later in the game.
The second vender – the lady whose back is always to us. Buy the flashlight and the dictionary.
The 3rd vendor – the man in the middle of the park. Bring lots of money to this one. Buy the wetsuit, the pie tin, the cookbook and the book about codes. Try and buy the black box also.
When you leave the park, Nancy will make you go home because it’s getting dark. OK, I guess JJ can sleep outside Minette’s studio J
Next day:
Read the paper and then go over to the cookie ingredients.
Chop up the mint on the cutting board to the right. Be sure to read the recipe card and also the cook book to find out what the substitution for brown sugar is. Also don’t forget about the dictionary if you need help with figuring out what some of the ingredients are.
Mix the cookies up, click on the cookie sheet and when the cookies are done JJ will call.
Now to the office. As soon as you go inside, you will need to get the phone.
Get the note next to your computer.
So you need to go to the park and buy a stuffed parrot.
But what’s the hurry? Heather is gone so it’s time to check out her desk and get a closer look at the Dodo box.
At Heathers desk, the only thing to do really is look at her portfolio.
The Dodo box contains a great puzzle.
My hint here is that if you look in Sonny’s notebook, it will be much much much easier. I spent a lot of time on this puzzle before I realized that.
You have to solve the first puzzle on your own. OK, and the last one. But the middle one is very hard and it’s solution is in Sonny’s notebook I promise.
Read all the letters in the box.
OK now off to the park to buy a parrot!
After you talk to the lady with the hood, the game makes you go right. You see Dieter, and after he runs off you get an article and a clock gismo. Take them and continue shopping.
Buy the parrot from the man in the middle of the park.
Now lets go to Dieter’s and find out why he ran off?
He’s in the dark room. Knock on the door and talk to him.
He leads you to another puzzle on the wall over to the right of the fish. Put the clock gizmo on the wall.
This puzzle only gives you a certain period of time to solve. But it’s really easy. Just remember that the clock in the middle is the one you put in and maybe you should make the rest of the clocks look like that one.
Follow the passageway until the end and click on the leaves. You’ll find another puzzle. The answer is in the article about Noisette you got from Dieter.
Read the book.
Now back to the office to find something bugging Minette.
While searching for bugs, find a letter behind the first lady’s dress and a note on Minette’s desk.
This is a good time to search Minette’s room. Look at the first ladies desk and also those paint splattered round things.
You’ll have all the bugs when the box is full.
Now it’s time to use your calling card to call Lynn Manrique
Red Left… Green – as always, exhaust all conversation topics.
Now, lets go and talk to Dieter again and ask some more questions.
Alas! He is to busy and wants us to take some pictures for him.
Get the list off of his desk and use your dictionary to translate.
OK, so I can’t keep you from just looking down and seeing my list.
Stapler – Look in your office
Spider – Look around Dieter’s apartment/office
Candle – in the same place Zu tells you to leave a note.
Skull – in the same place Zu tells you to leave a note
Cross – look in the park
Teapot – where have we made tea lately?
OK, off to the park to release these bugs. Also to take a picture of the cross.
Now back to the office to take a picture of the teapot and stapler, and to make a few phone calls.
While you’re taking pictures in Minette’s area, why not ask her a few questions.
Also, click on the dress and she’ll tell you a bit more about it.
Next, talk to Heather and give her the parrot. She admits to sending the letter.
OK, now its time to call ZU. His number should appear when you pick up the phone.
Now lets go to see Jean Mi to ask about the photo in the magazine in Minette’s area.
Uh Oh, you have to help make parfaits before he’ll let you see the photo.
Be sure to use the parfait instruction book on the ledge in front of you. And ding the bell when it’s done.
OK, now we get to look at the photo. Notice that there is an arrow on each round thing and it is pointing to a particular roman numeral? Write down those numbers!
Next we go to talk Jing Jing into writing Zu a note.
Well, she won’t because she’s afraid that he will steal her identity.
The answer to this one lies in Hangman. I will tell you that there is no way to get her to agree to it, so you’ll have to trick her into it.
Now off to Denfert Rochereau or the Catacombs. Make sure you have 5 euro because that’s how much it costs.
Take pictures of the skull and candle. Then leave your message for Zu in the skull.
Well that’s all of the pictures. Lets head back to Dieter’s.
Talk to Dieter and give him the pictures. Ask about Noisette and he will give you a postcard type thing.
Combine the postcard with something in your inventory and then use the Red left….green clue.
It’s to late to do anything now.
Call Zu. He tells you how to get into the catacombs. Cool
First though lets look at that clue you got off of the post card. Open up that book that you got from Dieters place. On the last page of that letter is a symbol that is referred to as the cross of Lorraine. Have you seen it anywhere else? It’s the same cross you took a picture of in the park.
So we’re off to the park.
Click on the cross to get a close up view. You’ll notice that you can push the numbers now. Use the number that you got on the post card.
OK! Another puzzle. Make note of the clues here. They have something to do with each of the pieces of art in the park.
Go and do the mouths first.
Next do the windmill thingy. When you get it right and turn away, a squirrel will jump on the handle and make it move.
To solve this puzzle you will need a few of the things we bought from venders earlier. I will tell you no more however.
Now for the fish. That one is simple. Just push the red button!
Follow the path down, get the key. That is all there is to do here.
Can I just say that the next sequence made me a little dizzy. And can I also say that to make the tunnel that long was unnecessary and just a time waster. At least you don’t have to use it multiple times like the tunnel in Danger on Deception Island.
Just a little more criticizing. Can I just state how unlikely it would be that a secret tunnel would stay secret when it’s located in the middle of a city park. Thanks. OK, that’s all. Back to the walkthrough.
Lets go to the catacombs now. Hope you remembered your wetsuit. And to read that book. I bet the people at HERinteractive had a lot of fun putting that book together. The guy’s fro is awesome.
Click on the skull to reveal a red button. When pushed an entrance to the catacombs is revealed.
If the police approach, you can hide in the side rooms.
From the entrance you want to go across the board to the other side and then go to the very last entry on the right. You will see a pool of sorts just waiting for you to dive in!
OK, first lets go and get that bottle of whatever it was for the vender in the park.
Dive in, go into the large room with the three tunnels on the far wall. Choose the tunnel to the far right. Go through the tunnel, go right and then go straight towards the fan. The bottle is sitting right in front of it.
Now go back to the beginning for air. Also, because that’s where my next set of instructions start.
Ok, we’ll have to stop for air halfway or so. S = straight, L = left, R = right.
Go into the large room with the three tunnels on the far wall. Choose the tunnel on the lower left. Go through the tunnel and then go R, S, S, S, S, S, L, S, L, R, S, S, L, S, S, go up for air, then back down and go S, S, S, L, S, S, S, S, L, S, S, R, S. Then climb up the ladder. Check out the box and find that you have another puzzle to solve.
This one can be solved using a map of Paris, which coincidentally you see every time you go somewhere. It also talks about this a little in the letter in the book you got at Dieter’s place.
I really over thought this puzzle. I finally gave up and cheated by going to a forum. But it’s really easy if you look for those words that were in a different color on the plaque thingy, on your map of the city. I just finally got this to work for me. When I ‘saw’ it, I was feeling quite stupid.
Anyway, back to the underground plaque thingy. Swim to it, input your code, and if it’s right you get another thingy.
And after you get out of the water, you know why I wanted you to read that book.
OK, so lets go back to the office and check in.
Hey what is that thing on Minette’s door? Another puzzle to solve! Basically each fuse thingy needs to have either a color or shape in common with anything else that is connected to it.
If you fail, a yellow paint bomb goes off and ruins Minette’s entire collection.
OK, once that’s gone and you’ve thrown the bomb away, go into Minette’s area. Mysteriously, she’s gone. Anyway look at the center pole in the middle of the room. Click on the strange indentation in the metal. Look familiar? That’s right. Put the similar thing on it and a panel opens. Rotating color things. This puzzle, like the others, is impossible without the solution.
Lets go to the park and get the M380. There is a code in the book we got from Dieters that we might be able to decode with it.
Once you’ve traded for the M380, look at it in your inventory. Click on the lower portion. It opens a compartment with dials that look just like the things in Minette’s office.
Set the dials correctly and then type in the code from the book found at Dieters, under the picture of the M380.
Voila! The solution to the puzzle in Minette’s area. Use the dictionary if you need help with what color is what.
Lets go back to the office.
Solve the puzzle in Minette’s area by using the solution we just found.
Hey look a door in the floor!
Go down the stairs and see what’s there. Use your key in the door.
Read the letter in the box. Pay attention because Nancy only reads it out loud once and the darn thing is in French.
Make a note of the roman numerals on the bottom of the last page of the letter.
Uh oh, the door locked behind you.
Look at the lock.
Another puzzle.
This one you will need to decode before you can put it into the M380.
Cher ami, where have you seen that before?
Check out the letter in the book from Dieter’s. Both the picture and the letter have a clue for you.
Check out the codebook and read page 8, 9, and 10. If there are any letters in the number that is your Cher ami, just drop them.
Once you have the message decoded, grab your M380 and change the dials to match the numbers from the bottom of the letter in the case.
Type them in and voila! French numbers. That’s ok. Just use your dictionary to tell you what the solution is.
Ok, now that the bars are gone again, lets go upstairs.
You overhear a conversation.
Try to grab the dress.
I sure hope you read that book on Ichi-Do. Well, if you didn’t just take notes. She says a specific phrase just before she does a specific move.
Hope you had fun! I sure did!
Well, I decided to try my hand at a walkthrough.
Here it is! If you find any errors, please let me know.
Also, No part of this or any post on my blog may be reproduced in any form. You may however link to it.
Rather than just giving answers, I’ll try and guide you to the answers. We’ll see how that goes.
We start out in Nancy’s room. I’m not sure why they chose to start here, but ok. Read the case file and if you would like the scrapbook and How to be a detective. When you are ready to start, click on the airline ticket.
I’m going to choose the Senior Detective level.
Once Heather sits down at her desk, talk to her and exhaust all topics of conversation (as always).
Before going to see Minette, search the room.
Read the notebook in your desk drawer carefully. There are solutions to at least 3 puzzles in there.
On the computer you’ll figure out that Sonny Joon from the Secret of the Scarlet hand is making a special guest appearance (sort of).
Read the e-mail, and make note of the things you need to do on the to do list.
Click on the game portal. You need a name and password. They are in Sonny’s notebook. I will give you one clue. Minette’s best friend of sorts is a dress form named Carol. That is your username. That is all. Oh, and don’t play the game yet.
OK, lets fix the plotter before we see Minette. On the last page of Sonny’s notebook there is a letter about the plotter. Read the letter, and the shapes on the bottom of the page will help you solve this puzzle. If you correctly fixed the plotter, it will no longer let you get a close up view of it.
Now that those things are done, lets go talk to Minette! But wait! Answer the phone!
Ok, Now go see Minette.
Talk to her and at the end, she will ask you to brew her some tea. Go over to the tea brewing area on the other side of Minette’s room.
Nancy will basically tell you how everything works. Click on the white recipe card looking thing on the table.
So Minette’s favorite color is red today and then she chooses the number 10. So read through all the conditions and add the called for herbs. I will say that the herb doesn’t have to meet all the conditions, just one of the conditions. What I did was figure out a condition (grow in marshy areas) and go through all the herb descriptions and write down those herbs. Then, I figured out another condition and did the same thing. You will find out that 2 herbs will appear twice on your list. I just added those once.
The total number of herbs is 11 (only counting the 2 herbs that appear on your list 2 times, once)
As soon as you finish with the tea, go to the outer office. Minette will let you know immediately if you got it right or if you have to try again.
Once you get it right, she’ll call you back and give you money and a bag and tell you to go to Pont Neuf to buy stuff that’s just like her old stuff.
Go back to your computer and make a note of all the other errands you could run while you’re out.
Talk to Heather.
Try to leave
Get the letter, take care of it, and then leave.
Lets go to Pont Neuf first. Look at the cross thingy in front of you. Read the inscription.
Next check out each of the venders in the park. Lets start with the one with the wrap on her head. She’s to the left.
One thing to note with Venders – you can haggle with them. You can try half price which they will accept most of the time, but if they don’t accept it, then the only choice you have is to pay full price.
Ok, back to the vender with the wrap on her head. She has one item of the four that Minette is looking for.
Now lets go to the vender with her back to you the whole time. She has 2 items that you will need for Minette.
Now for the vender in the middle of the park - he has only 1 item for Minette. But surprise! He also has a way for you to make money. You can paint reproductions for him. I always do the Mona Lisa painting because it’s much easier than the other one - although the other one is nice for a change now and again.
By the way, don’t forget to look at everything in the park.
Now on to Place Monge to talk to JJ Ling.
Talk to JJ, and don’t believe her! Get the envelope from her, and as always, exhaust all topics of conversation. Look at everything in the room, and also be sure to read the paper on the table now and every morning.
Now lets go to Rue Du Bac.
Dieter will say he doesn’t have the time to make the prints, so it’s up to you. The binder with instructions on it was hard for me to find. Click on the fish tank and to the right on the shelf is the binder. Read it and take notes. Dieter won’t let you take it into the dark room.
Don’t forget to search the room. You can borrow the digital camera right now if you want. You won’t need it until later, but it’s fun.
Now for the dark room. The hardest part here is the fact that you have to do this in complete darkness. And if you miss the tray and knock something over, you have a huge explosion. The easiest way to do this is to get a post-it and mark your screen where the switch and trays are. Be very careful not to do anything to harm your computer screen. Do this at your own risk!
Ok, the slides. You would think they would make things easy and you would develop 4 slides and voila! They would be 4 different slides. Well, it’s not that easy. I developed 3 and then kept developing the same ones I already had. Just try and look at the slide before you put it in the machine.
After you are done, talk to Dieter some more.
Now its time to go to Hotel De Ville
Talk to Jean Mi and give him the prints. Order something when urged to. I’ve had just about everything on the menu. It’s all chicken and hamburgers and ice cream.
Talk to Jean Mi some more and he will give you Hugo Butterly’s phone number. Fat lot of good it will do for you.
Ok, now back to the office.
Answer the phone for another blast from the past.
Ok, so we need to create some outfits. These outfits are weird. I’m not sure how to give hints for this. Just read the outfit guidelines on the white card on each page and try lots of combinations.
First outfit clue - The 3 items of one color aren’t the color green.
Second outfit clue - 2 items in this outfit are furry.
Third outfit clue - Both items on her head are yellow.
Talk to Heather some more and give her the envelope from JJ.
Go and try to give your items to Minette. You’ll find out she’s playing a game.
Go and talk to Heather. She’ll suggest you try and log in as Minette and get the high score so that Minette will quit playing and get back to work.
Login to the game portal using the username and password found in Sonny’s notebook. Keep playing until you top the high score of 1000. Yeah, this game is a pain. Everyone looks alike!
After you get the high score, go talk to Minette and give her your stuff.
Go to the outer office and now you are running home to see why JJ isn’t answering the phone.
Ok, once you get home talk to JJ.
Now we have 2 problems. We need to find mint and find out how to substitute for brown sugar.
First go to the kitchen cupboard and find the molasses. Get it and put it on the island with all the other ingredients.
Now we can solve both of our problems by going to the park.
Ok, we’re going to spend a lot of money on things you may think we don’t need. But we’ll need them later in the game.
First vendor – lady with a blanket on her head. You’ll need to pay full price for the mint. Buy the mint, the stake, the string, and the Ichi-Do book. Be sure to read the book carefully before you swim later in the game.
The second vender – the lady whose back is always to us. Buy the flashlight and the dictionary.
The 3rd vendor – the man in the middle of the park. Bring lots of money to this one. Buy the wetsuit, the pie tin, the cookbook and the book about codes. Try and buy the black box also.
When you leave the park, Nancy will make you go home because it’s getting dark. OK, I guess JJ can sleep outside Minette’s studio J
Next day:
Read the paper and then go over to the cookie ingredients.
Chop up the mint on the cutting board to the right. Be sure to read the recipe card and also the cook book to find out what the substitution for brown sugar is. Also don’t forget about the dictionary if you need help with figuring out what some of the ingredients are.
Mix the cookies up, click on the cookie sheet and when the cookies are done JJ will call.
Now to the office. As soon as you go inside, you will need to get the phone.
Get the note next to your computer.
So you need to go to the park and buy a stuffed parrot.
But what’s the hurry? Heather is gone so it’s time to check out her desk and get a closer look at the Dodo box.
At Heathers desk, the only thing to do really is look at her portfolio.
The Dodo box contains a great puzzle.
My hint here is that if you look in Sonny’s notebook, it will be much much much easier. I spent a lot of time on this puzzle before I realized that.
You have to solve the first puzzle on your own. OK, and the last one. But the middle one is very hard and it’s solution is in Sonny’s notebook I promise.
Read all the letters in the box.
OK now off to the park to buy a parrot!
After you talk to the lady with the hood, the game makes you go right. You see Dieter, and after he runs off you get an article and a clock gismo. Take them and continue shopping.
Buy the parrot from the man in the middle of the park.
Now lets go to Dieter’s and find out why he ran off?
He’s in the dark room. Knock on the door and talk to him.
He leads you to another puzzle on the wall over to the right of the fish. Put the clock gizmo on the wall.
This puzzle only gives you a certain period of time to solve. But it’s really easy. Just remember that the clock in the middle is the one you put in and maybe you should make the rest of the clocks look like that one.
Follow the passageway until the end and click on the leaves. You’ll find another puzzle. The answer is in the article about Noisette you got from Dieter.
Read the book.
Now back to the office to find something bugging Minette.
While searching for bugs, find a letter behind the first lady’s dress and a note on Minette’s desk.
This is a good time to search Minette’s room. Look at the first ladies desk and also those paint splattered round things.
You’ll have all the bugs when the box is full.
Now it’s time to use your calling card to call Lynn Manrique
Red Left… Green – as always, exhaust all conversation topics.
Now, lets go and talk to Dieter again and ask some more questions.
Alas! He is to busy and wants us to take some pictures for him.
Get the list off of his desk and use your dictionary to translate.
OK, so I can’t keep you from just looking down and seeing my list.
Stapler – Look in your office
Spider – Look around Dieter’s apartment/office
Candle – in the same place Zu tells you to leave a note.
Skull – in the same place Zu tells you to leave a note
Cross – look in the park
Teapot – where have we made tea lately?
OK, off to the park to release these bugs. Also to take a picture of the cross.
Now back to the office to take a picture of the teapot and stapler, and to make a few phone calls.
While you’re taking pictures in Minette’s area, why not ask her a few questions.
Also, click on the dress and she’ll tell you a bit more about it.
Next, talk to Heather and give her the parrot. She admits to sending the letter.
OK, now its time to call ZU. His number should appear when you pick up the phone.
Now lets go to see Jean Mi to ask about the photo in the magazine in Minette’s area.
Uh Oh, you have to help make parfaits before he’ll let you see the photo.
Be sure to use the parfait instruction book on the ledge in front of you. And ding the bell when it’s done.
OK, now we get to look at the photo. Notice that there is an arrow on each round thing and it is pointing to a particular roman numeral? Write down those numbers!
Next we go to talk Jing Jing into writing Zu a note.
Well, she won’t because she’s afraid that he will steal her identity.
The answer to this one lies in Hangman. I will tell you that there is no way to get her to agree to it, so you’ll have to trick her into it.
Now off to Denfert Rochereau or the Catacombs. Make sure you have 5 euro because that’s how much it costs.
Take pictures of the skull and candle. Then leave your message for Zu in the skull.
Well that’s all of the pictures. Lets head back to Dieter’s.
Talk to Dieter and give him the pictures. Ask about Noisette and he will give you a postcard type thing.
Combine the postcard with something in your inventory and then use the Red left….green clue.
It’s to late to do anything now.
Call Zu. He tells you how to get into the catacombs. Cool
First though lets look at that clue you got off of the post card. Open up that book that you got from Dieters place. On the last page of that letter is a symbol that is referred to as the cross of Lorraine. Have you seen it anywhere else? It’s the same cross you took a picture of in the park.
So we’re off to the park.
Click on the cross to get a close up view. You’ll notice that you can push the numbers now. Use the number that you got on the post card.
OK! Another puzzle. Make note of the clues here. They have something to do with each of the pieces of art in the park.
Go and do the mouths first.
Next do the windmill thingy. When you get it right and turn away, a squirrel will jump on the handle and make it move.
To solve this puzzle you will need a few of the things we bought from venders earlier. I will tell you no more however.
Now for the fish. That one is simple. Just push the red button!
Follow the path down, get the key. That is all there is to do here.
Can I just say that the next sequence made me a little dizzy. And can I also say that to make the tunnel that long was unnecessary and just a time waster. At least you don’t have to use it multiple times like the tunnel in Danger on Deception Island.
Just a little more criticizing. Can I just state how unlikely it would be that a secret tunnel would stay secret when it’s located in the middle of a city park. Thanks. OK, that’s all. Back to the walkthrough.
Lets go to the catacombs now. Hope you remembered your wetsuit. And to read that book. I bet the people at HERinteractive had a lot of fun putting that book together. The guy’s fro is awesome.
Click on the skull to reveal a red button. When pushed an entrance to the catacombs is revealed.
If the police approach, you can hide in the side rooms.
From the entrance you want to go across the board to the other side and then go to the very last entry on the right. You will see a pool of sorts just waiting for you to dive in!
OK, first lets go and get that bottle of whatever it was for the vender in the park.
Dive in, go into the large room with the three tunnels on the far wall. Choose the tunnel to the far right. Go through the tunnel, go right and then go straight towards the fan. The bottle is sitting right in front of it.
Now go back to the beginning for air. Also, because that’s where my next set of instructions start.
Ok, we’ll have to stop for air halfway or so. S = straight, L = left, R = right.
Go into the large room with the three tunnels on the far wall. Choose the tunnel on the lower left. Go through the tunnel and then go R, S, S, S, S, S, L, S, L, R, S, S, L, S, S, go up for air, then back down and go S, S, S, L, S, S, S, S, L, S, S, R, S. Then climb up the ladder. Check out the box and find that you have another puzzle to solve.
This one can be solved using a map of Paris, which coincidentally you see every time you go somewhere. It also talks about this a little in the letter in the book you got at Dieter’s place.
I really over thought this puzzle. I finally gave up and cheated by going to a forum. But it’s really easy if you look for those words that were in a different color on the plaque thingy, on your map of the city. I just finally got this to work for me. When I ‘saw’ it, I was feeling quite stupid.
Anyway, back to the underground plaque thingy. Swim to it, input your code, and if it’s right you get another thingy.
And after you get out of the water, you know why I wanted you to read that book.
OK, so lets go back to the office and check in.
Hey what is that thing on Minette’s door? Another puzzle to solve! Basically each fuse thingy needs to have either a color or shape in common with anything else that is connected to it.
If you fail, a yellow paint bomb goes off and ruins Minette’s entire collection.
OK, once that’s gone and you’ve thrown the bomb away, go into Minette’s area. Mysteriously, she’s gone. Anyway look at the center pole in the middle of the room. Click on the strange indentation in the metal. Look familiar? That’s right. Put the similar thing on it and a panel opens. Rotating color things. This puzzle, like the others, is impossible without the solution.
Lets go to the park and get the M380. There is a code in the book we got from Dieters that we might be able to decode with it.
Once you’ve traded for the M380, look at it in your inventory. Click on the lower portion. It opens a compartment with dials that look just like the things in Minette’s office.
Set the dials correctly and then type in the code from the book found at Dieters, under the picture of the M380.
Voila! The solution to the puzzle in Minette’s area. Use the dictionary if you need help with what color is what.
Lets go back to the office.
Solve the puzzle in Minette’s area by using the solution we just found.
Hey look a door in the floor!
Go down the stairs and see what’s there. Use your key in the door.
Read the letter in the box. Pay attention because Nancy only reads it out loud once and the darn thing is in French.
Make a note of the roman numerals on the bottom of the last page of the letter.
Uh oh, the door locked behind you.
Look at the lock.
Another puzzle.
This one you will need to decode before you can put it into the M380.
Cher ami, where have you seen that before?
Check out the letter in the book from Dieter’s. Both the picture and the letter have a clue for you.
Check out the codebook and read page 8, 9, and 10. If there are any letters in the number that is your Cher ami, just drop them.
Once you have the message decoded, grab your M380 and change the dials to match the numbers from the bottom of the letter in the case.
Type them in and voila! French numbers. That’s ok. Just use your dictionary to tell you what the solution is.
Ok, now that the bars are gone again, lets go upstairs.
You overhear a conversation.
Try to grab the dress.
I sure hope you read that book on Ichi-Do. Well, if you didn’t just take notes. She says a specific phrase just before she does a specific move.
Hope you had fun! I sure did!
Friday, July 07, 2006
for sale
Our house is now on the market. It's actually been on the market since about noon yesterday.
No calls yet. but keeping the house this clean is driving me insane. and it's driving the kids crazy (I'm cranky and keep after them to keep their toys picked up). On top of that I've got this nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach that I don't think will go away until at least one person looks at our house.
but at least I can say that for the most part I can get the house ready and leave in 15 minutes.
Of course this doesn't count mornings. Mornings, with getting the kids up and ready and also making beds, cleaning up after breakfast, I'd be comfortable with an hour to get all that done.
So here's hoping the house sells quickly. I'm still hoping for an investor so that we could rent back while the other house is being built. But at this point, I would take almost any full price offer. (give me a week, I'll change it to 'any offer') :)
We've got almost everything ready for the first hole to be dug. Our builder went down for the building permits on Wednesday and came out of the county building sounding about the same way I feel after going there for anything. Hopeless.
Anyway, he thought there was a ton of more unexpected things to do, but after sorting through what I had already done, we found that all we had to actually do is e-mail one guy for the new street address and apply for another permit at the fire department. The addresses I had in hand the next day, and hopefully the fire department thing will be resolved by early next week.
The worst part about the whole visit to the county is that while our builder was telling me about all these things we still needed, he said that we should be breaking ground within a month.
Um. no. Next week is more like it. Probably the week after (since we are still waiting on the fire department access permit) but I refuse to let him alter our July 1st starting date by THAT much.
I plan to keep pushing him until things start happening. He will find that I'm going to be checking on him a bunch. Not so much that he will hate us, but enough to help him realize that the best thing for him is to finish our house!
Anyway, I'm crossing my fingers that someone will come see our house!
No calls yet. but keeping the house this clean is driving me insane. and it's driving the kids crazy (I'm cranky and keep after them to keep their toys picked up). On top of that I've got this nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach that I don't think will go away until at least one person looks at our house.
but at least I can say that for the most part I can get the house ready and leave in 15 minutes.
Of course this doesn't count mornings. Mornings, with getting the kids up and ready and also making beds, cleaning up after breakfast, I'd be comfortable with an hour to get all that done.
So here's hoping the house sells quickly. I'm still hoping for an investor so that we could rent back while the other house is being built. But at this point, I would take almost any full price offer. (give me a week, I'll change it to 'any offer') :)
We've got almost everything ready for the first hole to be dug. Our builder went down for the building permits on Wednesday and came out of the county building sounding about the same way I feel after going there for anything. Hopeless.
Anyway, he thought there was a ton of more unexpected things to do, but after sorting through what I had already done, we found that all we had to actually do is e-mail one guy for the new street address and apply for another permit at the fire department. The addresses I had in hand the next day, and hopefully the fire department thing will be resolved by early next week.
The worst part about the whole visit to the county is that while our builder was telling me about all these things we still needed, he said that we should be breaking ground within a month.
Um. no. Next week is more like it. Probably the week after (since we are still waiting on the fire department access permit) but I refuse to let him alter our July 1st starting date by THAT much.
I plan to keep pushing him until things start happening. He will find that I'm going to be checking on him a bunch. Not so much that he will hate us, but enough to help him realize that the best thing for him is to finish our house!
Anyway, I'm crossing my fingers that someone will come see our house!
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Land owners!
We're land owners! Wahoo!
I filed all the paperwork to split the lot and give us ownership of the land.
We now have 1 acre of land!
Our house plans are nearly done. Our builder is awesome. I wish I knew how to put house plans online.
We've got a 4 bed, 2 1/2 bath, large kitchen with an island, huge pantry, storage room off the huge garage, covered back patio. A total of 2187 square feet.
I feel blessed that we were able to work with a builder who also was able to draw up plans for us. I'm sure we've payed for a it in our costs somewhere, but it feels good to work on plans with the same guy who will be building your house. I feel like he's really been able to concentrate on our house and our dreams for it. He's also been able to keep us on track as to what would look good and how to get what we want in our house along with what would look nice. I highly recommend our builder. If you're looking for a builder in the Boise/Meridian/Nampa/Kuna etc. area, I've got the guy for you.
I'm also the proud owner of a septic permit almost. That only cost $300 smackeroos. I just need to get them
Oh and the access permit. That was only $25, but don't forget that you have to buy a bid bond. Which basically means this... you get a bid for some asphalt work for x amount ($1,800 in our case) Then you go down to the highway district and pay them the $1800. Then the person does the work. Then the highway district comes and inspects it. If the company does a good job, then the highway district refunds your money. If they do a bad job, then the highway district takes your money and fixes it. So this could potentially cost $3,600. I'm not sure how picky the highway district is, but the company I've chosen seems very professional and I'm confident in my choice.
I can say right now that I'm frustrated what a pain this whole process has been.
I am also frustrated at this moment by hubbies family.
His sister has planned a family reunion.
Strike one - wants to have a family picture taken where the kids wear white shirts and the adults wear black shirts.
To elaborate. We don't own shirts these colors, and in the kids case, white shirts are very impracticle.
Strike two - The men go golfing while the women (and kids of course) do pedicures and manicures.
Not something I enjoy. I'd rather do something else.
Strike three - we have to go to Roaring Springs.
Don't look good in a bathing suit. The kids aren't old enough to enjoy the expensive experience. I can't enjoy myself because of course I'm with the kids while hubby is probably out playing. I'm sure he'll take his turn, but I'd rather have the kids not there and be able to enjoy myself with him on the rides.
We could talk about cost, we could talk about the fact that none of these things is something I especially want to do. We could talk about the driving back and forth - 45 minutes both ways - and cranky tired children who don't want to get in the car the 3rd day. We could talk about how I've sworn to my husband that I don't want to go.
Also, the whole thing will cost around $160 - $170. For that kind of money I want something besides cranky children to show for it thanks. A trip to a resort, something. Something besides black shirts we won't wear again, and white shirts that the kids will stain soon after (or before with my luck) the picture is taken.
Sorry for the negativity. I'll get over it. Just like I managed to get through Thanksgiving.
Have I told you about our street naming dilemma? :)
I filed all the paperwork to split the lot and give us ownership of the land.
We now have 1 acre of land!
Our house plans are nearly done. Our builder is awesome. I wish I knew how to put house plans online.
We've got a 4 bed, 2 1/2 bath, large kitchen with an island, huge pantry, storage room off the huge garage, covered back patio. A total of 2187 square feet.
I feel blessed that we were able to work with a builder who also was able to draw up plans for us. I'm sure we've payed for a it in our costs somewhere, but it feels good to work on plans with the same guy who will be building your house. I feel like he's really been able to concentrate on our house and our dreams for it. He's also been able to keep us on track as to what would look good and how to get what we want in our house along with what would look nice. I highly recommend our builder. If you're looking for a builder in the Boise/Meridian/Nampa/Kuna etc. area, I've got the guy for you.
I'm also the proud owner of a septic permit almost. That only cost $300 smackeroos. I just need to get them
Oh and the access permit. That was only $25, but don't forget that you have to buy a bid bond. Which basically means this... you get a bid for some asphalt work for x amount ($1,800 in our case) Then you go down to the highway district and pay them the $1800. Then the person does the work. Then the highway district comes and inspects it. If the company does a good job, then the highway district refunds your money. If they do a bad job, then the highway district takes your money and fixes it. So this could potentially cost $3,600. I'm not sure how picky the highway district is, but the company I've chosen seems very professional and I'm confident in my choice.
I can say right now that I'm frustrated what a pain this whole process has been.
I am also frustrated at this moment by hubbies family.
His sister has planned a family reunion.
Strike one - wants to have a family picture taken where the kids wear white shirts and the adults wear black shirts.
To elaborate. We don't own shirts these colors, and in the kids case, white shirts are very impracticle.
Strike two - The men go golfing while the women (and kids of course) do pedicures and manicures.
Not something I enjoy. I'd rather do something else.
Strike three - we have to go to Roaring Springs.
Don't look good in a bathing suit. The kids aren't old enough to enjoy the expensive experience. I can't enjoy myself because of course I'm with the kids while hubby is probably out playing. I'm sure he'll take his turn, but I'd rather have the kids not there and be able to enjoy myself with him on the rides.
We could talk about cost, we could talk about the fact that none of these things is something I especially want to do. We could talk about the driving back and forth - 45 minutes both ways - and cranky tired children who don't want to get in the car the 3rd day. We could talk about how I've sworn to my husband that I don't want to go.
Also, the whole thing will cost around $160 - $170. For that kind of money I want something besides cranky children to show for it thanks. A trip to a resort, something. Something besides black shirts we won't wear again, and white shirts that the kids will stain soon after (or before with my luck) the picture is taken.
Sorry for the negativity. I'll get over it. Just like I managed to get through Thanksgiving.
Have I told you about our street naming dilemma? :)
Thursday, June 01, 2006
I'm about to have a nervous breakdown
We've been working on simply owning the land that our future home will be built on.
Can you say headache?
From not being able to split the lot, to easements, to surveys, to acknowledgement letters, to renaming the lane to putting up street signs, to quit claims.
This is the biggest headache. As of about 10 minutes ago I was ready to call the whole thing off.
I received the acknowledgement letter from the highway district. It said that we would have to pave the lane and put a stop sign in. My first thought was of some asphalt quotes for our home owners association. What we had quoted was much smaller than a lane, and was quoted at $16k.
We don't have that sort of money and I don't intend to go that much further into debt for this stupid thing.
I should also mention the the county planning and zoning people told us that since the lane already existed, we would not have to pave it.
Upon further review of the letter, it struck me that they were referring to to "one lot plus the new lot". Well there will be 3 lots on this after all is said and done. So I'm crossing my fingers that this is a big mistake!
I'm really crossing my fingers.
If we have to pave the lane, I'm pretty sure we can't afford this. I've already been worried about financial stuff and this would be the straw, you know "The last straw" or the "straw that broke the camels back"
Pray for us.
Can you say headache?
From not being able to split the lot, to easements, to surveys, to acknowledgement letters, to renaming the lane to putting up street signs, to quit claims.
This is the biggest headache. As of about 10 minutes ago I was ready to call the whole thing off.
I received the acknowledgement letter from the highway district. It said that we would have to pave the lane and put a stop sign in. My first thought was of some asphalt quotes for our home owners association. What we had quoted was much smaller than a lane, and was quoted at $16k.
We don't have that sort of money and I don't intend to go that much further into debt for this stupid thing.
I should also mention the the county planning and zoning people told us that since the lane already existed, we would not have to pave it.
Upon further review of the letter, it struck me that they were referring to to "one lot plus the new lot". Well there will be 3 lots on this after all is said and done. So I'm crossing my fingers that this is a big mistake!
I'm really crossing my fingers.
If we have to pave the lane, I'm pretty sure we can't afford this. I've already been worried about financial stuff and this would be the straw, you know "The last straw" or the "straw that broke the camels back"
Pray for us.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
sorrow
Hubby's father passed away yesterday evening.
I'm not ready to say much more than that.
We're all a bit numb.
Thoughts going through my head:
What am I feeling?
Why do I feel so normal at times, and at other times, so emotional?
How is this going to affect hubby?
How is this going to affect our relationship?
How is this going to affect hubby's Mom?
How is this going to affect the family?
I'm tired of all these emotions. When I say tired I mean my body is tired. This has truly been a rollercoaster ride.
We are blessed to be an eternal family.
I'm not ready to say much more than that.
We're all a bit numb.
Thoughts going through my head:
What am I feeling?
Why do I feel so normal at times, and at other times, so emotional?
How is this going to affect hubby?
How is this going to affect our relationship?
How is this going to affect hubby's Mom?
How is this going to affect the family?
I'm tired of all these emotions. When I say tired I mean my body is tired. This has truly been a rollercoaster ride.
We are blessed to be an eternal family.
Saturday, March 04, 2006
I think I'm over it
I think I'm over blogging.
I've had lots of news the last few months, but no desire to post about it.
This has become my place to rant.
I don't want anyone to think that that's me though. I've got a great life, just need a place to rant occasionally.
Anyway, a quick update.
A is walking, C is a cutie who is becoming very helpful with her little sister.
Hubby is working away at his job and school. He should be done with his upper division classes by August-ish. Then he has to clep around 30 credits, and then he has to take one last class, and voila! I'm hoping to have him done by next January.
He did have a bit of a scare with his job. The company was going to open a division in China. But that seems to have not taken off at all. He has a great guy at the head of his division of the company who is great and had a special meeting to update all the employees about what is going on. There were a ton of depressing rumors floating around and this guy planned a meeting for everyone (held 2x to accomodate all the shifts) and told everyone EXACTLY what was happening and not happening. He managed to clear up all the rumors, and hubby came home from work very positive and not worried at all. We even started dreaming about a new house again!
I'm glad that scare lasted only a week. The China thing might still happen, but on a much smaller scale that would not affect hubby's job. Also, he was just given a huge new project that will give him major responsibility. So he's even feeling more valuable to the company.
I also want to mention that hubby's boss is great. He's very open, relaxed and a great supervisor. The only problem with him is the fact that he can be raunchy. He'll send out the occasional raunchy joke, and going to lunch with him is awful. He basically sexually harasses the waitresses to an embarrasing degree. Hubby tolerates what he must and deletes the rest. Lately he's been skipping out on the group lunches.
He's been skipping because of our New Year's Resolution. We decided that in order to live a longer and healthier life, and in order to more enjoy our kids and grandkids, we needed to start a diet and excersize program.
We've been exercising since Jan 1 and eating lots of fruits and vegetables. Our day starts early. Hubby gets up at 4:30 to work out for about 45 min. He runs on our treadmill and sometimes lifts weights. Then he goes to work.
I don't know his exact schedule, because I get to sleep until 7! I get up, walk for 26 min on the treadmill and then shower if there's time, and get the kids up. We have breakfast and then around 10 we have a snack. For breakfast we're eating fiber cereals and hubby eats oatmeal occasionally. Snacks are from 100-200 calories.
Hubby comes home from work around 11am He works out/lifts weights. Then we all eat lunch together. We usually have sandwiches. The kids love pb&j and we have turkey.
Then hubby goes back to work and the kids and I watch Zaboomafoo. Then the kids take naps. That's when I get started again. I'm still changing things around with my 2nd workout, but right now I'm doing another 26 minutes on the treadmill and then 30 minutes on the exersize bike. Then I have about and hour to myself and then the kids get up again!
We have an afternoon snack and then I usually let them watch Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. C loves it! Just like I did when I was a kid. We sing the theme song together!
When hubby gets home from work, he does more time on the treadmill and then we eat dinner. I've been experimenting with the "Lowfat" recipes in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. They're pretty good!
Then we usually watch a little tv and go to bed. Once the weather warms up I hope that we go to the park and play in the backyard in the evenings.
So anyway, this is the big thing in our lives right now. By the way, Hubby has lost 38 pounds! and I've lost a less impressive 14 pounds. I don't know why it's harder for me, Maybe because I dont' run or lift weights but it can be depressing. I just have to remind myself that we all lose weight differently. And I've been noticing that clothes fit differently so, I have to be happy with that.
But anyway, Go us!
I've had lots of news the last few months, but no desire to post about it.
This has become my place to rant.
I don't want anyone to think that that's me though. I've got a great life, just need a place to rant occasionally.
Anyway, a quick update.
A is walking, C is a cutie who is becoming very helpful with her little sister.
Hubby is working away at his job and school. He should be done with his upper division classes by August-ish. Then he has to clep around 30 credits, and then he has to take one last class, and voila! I'm hoping to have him done by next January.
He did have a bit of a scare with his job. The company was going to open a division in China. But that seems to have not taken off at all. He has a great guy at the head of his division of the company who is great and had a special meeting to update all the employees about what is going on. There were a ton of depressing rumors floating around and this guy planned a meeting for everyone (held 2x to accomodate all the shifts) and told everyone EXACTLY what was happening and not happening. He managed to clear up all the rumors, and hubby came home from work very positive and not worried at all. We even started dreaming about a new house again!
I'm glad that scare lasted only a week. The China thing might still happen, but on a much smaller scale that would not affect hubby's job. Also, he was just given a huge new project that will give him major responsibility. So he's even feeling more valuable to the company.
I also want to mention that hubby's boss is great. He's very open, relaxed and a great supervisor. The only problem with him is the fact that he can be raunchy. He'll send out the occasional raunchy joke, and going to lunch with him is awful. He basically sexually harasses the waitresses to an embarrasing degree. Hubby tolerates what he must and deletes the rest. Lately he's been skipping out on the group lunches.
He's been skipping because of our New Year's Resolution. We decided that in order to live a longer and healthier life, and in order to more enjoy our kids and grandkids, we needed to start a diet and excersize program.
We've been exercising since Jan 1 and eating lots of fruits and vegetables. Our day starts early. Hubby gets up at 4:30 to work out for about 45 min. He runs on our treadmill and sometimes lifts weights. Then he goes to work.
I don't know his exact schedule, because I get to sleep until 7! I get up, walk for 26 min on the treadmill and then shower if there's time, and get the kids up. We have breakfast and then around 10 we have a snack. For breakfast we're eating fiber cereals and hubby eats oatmeal occasionally. Snacks are from 100-200 calories.
Hubby comes home from work around 11am He works out/lifts weights. Then we all eat lunch together. We usually have sandwiches. The kids love pb&j and we have turkey.
Then hubby goes back to work and the kids and I watch Zaboomafoo. Then the kids take naps. That's when I get started again. I'm still changing things around with my 2nd workout, but right now I'm doing another 26 minutes on the treadmill and then 30 minutes on the exersize bike. Then I have about and hour to myself and then the kids get up again!
We have an afternoon snack and then I usually let them watch Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. C loves it! Just like I did when I was a kid. We sing the theme song together!
When hubby gets home from work, he does more time on the treadmill and then we eat dinner. I've been experimenting with the "Lowfat" recipes in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. They're pretty good!
Then we usually watch a little tv and go to bed. Once the weather warms up I hope that we go to the park and play in the backyard in the evenings.
So anyway, this is the big thing in our lives right now. By the way, Hubby has lost 38 pounds! and I've lost a less impressive 14 pounds. I don't know why it's harder for me, Maybe because I dont' run or lift weights but it can be depressing. I just have to remind myself that we all lose weight differently. And I've been noticing that clothes fit differently so, I have to be happy with that.
But anyway, Go us!
Saturday, January 28, 2006
My needs
Google your name + needs. So it looks like this "Me Again needs". Quite entertaining!
Me Again needs ... help
Me Again needs ... an organ transplant (who knew?)
Me Again needs ... a theme song
Me Again needs ... to get a life
Me Again needs ... an adoptive family (really?)
Me Again needs ... a fresh start
Me Again needs ... a loving home (well, ok then)
Me Again needs ... independence
Me Again needs ... very little help with daily tasks
Me Again needs ... a makeover (Hey! I'm trying over here!)
Me Again needs ... a new environment
Me Again needs ... to find the truth
I am slightly disturbed at how many people are using my name for their pets names.
Oh well.
I won't take credit for this. I found it on someone elses blog and found it entertaining.
I could tell you the poop story instead, but members of my family found it too distirbing, so I'll spare you. Lets just say it involved massive amounts of poop and a bathtub. And my two kids. We'll leave it at that :) .
Me Again needs ... help
Me Again needs ... an organ transplant (who knew?)
Me Again needs ... a theme song
Me Again needs ... to get a life
Me Again needs ... an adoptive family (really?)
Me Again needs ... a fresh start
Me Again needs ... a loving home (well, ok then)
Me Again needs ... independence
Me Again needs ... very little help with daily tasks
Me Again needs ... a makeover (Hey! I'm trying over here!)
Me Again needs ... a new environment
Me Again needs ... to find the truth
I am slightly disturbed at how many people are using my name for their pets names.
Oh well.
I won't take credit for this. I found it on someone elses blog and found it entertaining.
I could tell you the poop story instead, but members of my family found it too distirbing, so I'll spare you. Lets just say it involved massive amounts of poop and a bathtub. And my two kids. We'll leave it at that :) .
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