It's Not In My Head - the Sequel

It might not be in my head, but now it's in our nose. The wonderful replacement mattress, which has been providing me with restful snoozes, has an odour, an odour which vaguely resembles mildew. And we are not amused.

This started probably minutes after we received the new mattress. The protective plastic wrap was removed, and the mattress was set in place, and all of those lovely toxins started to be released into the atmosphere. My Sweetie noticed it first, seeing as he has a most excellent sense of smell. For me, I have noticed that I am sneezing more than usual, and am feeling somewhat congested (and it isn't a cold).

So, now we have a call into you-know-who....the mattress Inspector ...Mr. MI. He is due to come back and examine the situation.

Oh, and there's something else! The pillow top has already shifted!

What happened to quality assurance I ask you?

Further to all of this is the fact that we have had the bed turned down all week. All of the covers have been pulled back, right to the mattress cover. The ceiling fan runs on high to try and get rid of the smell....and still it lingers.

This grates highly on my nerves, since I detest not having the bed made. I am obsessive about having the bed made everyday. The room looks as though it is in turmoil, with the duvet and assorted pillows strewn everywhere.

I hope this ends soon.

And don't forget to check out my sidebar, which now has Google displaying Ads about Mattresses!

It's Not In My Head

About 2 years ago, we purchased a new mattress set. This was an expensive purchase consisting of a king sized mattress and box spring, frame, headboard, 2 sheet sets, duvet with cover and box spring cover. It was a nice set...on the surface.

Over time, I began to notice that the comfort level for me was declining. I would get into bed, and just when I was getting comfortable, I would need to roll over. That's when the evening event would take place. I would roll and roll, back and forth, evidently trying to find comfort. When I glanced at my body impression under the blankets, I found that I was SINKING! There was a deep crevice into which I sank! At times I felt as though I were sleeping in a ditch.

Finally, I had enough. Hubby had no problems on his side of the bed. He was comfy. I thought that this was all in my head.

Until I called the company who sold us the mattress. They booked us an appointment with the MI...the Mattress Inspector. I didn't even realize that there was a job role of this nature. When Mr. MI arrived, he basically looked at the mattress from 10 feet away and said "your mattress is defective. You're getting a new mattress.". That was music to my ears. I was doing a major Happy Dance.

After some measurements were taken, and forms were completed, we were given the go ahead to pick out another, more suitable, mattress.

The waiting was the hardest part (thanks Tom Petty), but it finally arrived, after much banging and crashing to get it up the stairs...leaving the hanging light fixture dangling by two arms.

It's been about a week now. Things are better. The mattress is firmer and my evenings spent rocking and rolling are over.

Now there only remains one little issue.....a smell.....more to follow on this one.

Cheers.

I forgot to mention that we could have simply done a switch for the same type of mattress of equal dollar value, but we were so unhappy, that, for a nominal dollar upgrade, we got a better mattress. It has a thicker pillow top and is a taller mattress in general (interpreted this as 'the sheets now have a snugger fit'). I guess you could say that buying a mattress is like a bunch of chocolates...younever know what your gonna get!

End of Sailing Season

The sailing season has come to an end...again. The boat has been hauled and winterized. All that is left to do is to rig the frame (and repair the broken pieces from last winter) and get the winter cover on.

Haulout is always a job and a half. There are so many things to do in advance, then there are things to do on haulout day itself, and then there are post haulout tasks. Sometimes these tasks seem like they are never ending, but the list eventually gets complete.

We have done this for many years now, with various sizes of boats. This boat, which we have had for 5 years now, is the biggest that we have had, but even with all of the extra stroage space, we have managed not to overload it. There are always the necessities that need to be onboard (safety gear, etc), but the extras were kept to a dull roar this year. I guess that's where experience comes in.

This past season seemed especially short. I don't think there was one weekend where we weren't paying special attention to the weather...ah yes the weather...which would change at a moment's notice. Fall was no different in that aspect, what with the warm summer-like temperatures one day, then snow falling the next.

...and they say that global warming doesn't exist...yeah right!

It's Snowing Here Today!

Ayeee....it's only October 21st, and it is snowing outside. Big white flakes, with some of it actually accumulating on the ground. Our deck chairs are still outside. I managed to get out at lunchtime to remove the curtains from the gazebo, but I stil have to rescue my deck frog or he is going to freeze.

Last year we had snow on November 7th, which I thought was a bit early. Now I take that thought back. October 21 is definitely way too early.

Maybe we'll get all of the snow out of the way now, and there will be none left to fall in December.

*fat chance*

Withdrawal for a Political Junkie

The lamenting is over. The decision was made. The election and the fallout from that is finished.

Since September 7th, when the writ was dropped, I was actively involved with the election process as it related to supporting our candidate. When I would finish my day of 'real' work, I would visit the office almost every day. There would always be something to do, whether it was door-to-door canvassing, literature drops, or putting up lawn signs. I also maintained the candidate's website every day.

That was just the tangible stuff. I also met, and I think I have said this before, some really nice people, a few of whom I can call my friends. As we got to know each other more, we would greet each other with a hug. When hard times fell, we would hug. We would end the day with a hug. We became huggers.

This past week I have been experiencing withdrawal. I miss my friends, my huggers. I miss the stimulating conversations. I miss updating the website. I miss the excited pace, and the adrenalin rush of having a special guest, like Frank Mahavolich or Michael Ignatieff, join us. I think of the fun that we had, and there was a lot of it, I get a lump in my throat.

Now we look forward to the aftermath, the lessons learned. We will get together and plan for the future, whatever that will hold for us. We will change the things that didn't go right, and will continue with the tings that have always worked well. We will strive to get our government back.

And we will hug.

All Over But the Shouting

It's all over but the shouting now. Election 2008 is finished. Millions of dollars were spent to bring us into pretty much the same minority government. Think of what that money could have been better spent on.

Aftermath, we are both a little beat up and very tired. The past six weeks have been quite hectic...right up to the very end. Yesterday was spent trying to get the vote out, but it was not to be. Mostly what hurt us was voter apathy...people who did not get out to vote. As they say, if you don't vote then don't complain. That pretty much sums up everything.

Politics is a funny game. The players change, and even the rules change.

The future is a little cloudy, and things need to change. That much is obvious. One thing is for sure, it will be exciting.

Remembering Mery

Many years ago, when I was starting a new career as a computer programmer, I was introduced to a lady named Mery. She was an adept programmer. Her forte was DB2 and CICS programming. She was a whiz.

The more we worked together, the closer we became. She was from Iran, and was trying to improve her English. She had a daughter in Iran, and she had made plans to return to her country and bring her daughter to Canada to live. This was a very intense time for Iran. The Gulf War was still active. As a team, we were all immensely worried about Mery and were hopeful that her daughter would be safe with her.

Mery did return with her daughter, and we continued to work together for many years. We went through some trying times together at work. But we always seemed to surface somehow.

When I changed employers, Mery and I lost touch. I think she went to work in the States, but was unsure of where she went.

Recently I was thinking about Mery. I had found a gift that she gave me for my birthday back in October 1994. I kept it in my nightstand drawer. With the world of Facebook, I decided to search for her. Instead I found one of her relatives, and through correspondence, we had managed to have Mery's and my information exchanged, with the hope that we would be able to get together.

That was not to be. We will not be getting together.

Mery passed away on September 28th.

"The Angels are always near to those who are grieving, to whisper to them that their loved ones are safe in the hands of God... "

There Is Always Hope

Last night there was an interesting political program on CBC, Canada Votes 2008: The X Challenge. It was a debate-style program with 4 candidates representing the 4 main political parties: Liberals (Scott Brison), Conservatives (Blaherty), the NDP and the Green.

The audience was comprised of engaged citizens who were decided voters, and, at the beginning of the program.

During the show, important audience questions were posed to the candidates, and their responses were heard, along with a small inter-candidate debate. At the end of each question, the audience was asked to rate which candidate won that particular round of questioning. At the end of the evening, one of the candidates would be the winner.

The overall winner was Scott Brison for the Liberals!!!

What was most interesting was the pre and post percentages:

Before the show, the audience revealed how they would vote:
38% would be voting CONS
33% would be voting Liberal
17% would be voting NDP
12% would be voting Green.

At the end of the show, the percentages were quite different:
52% would vote Liberal
29% would vote CONS
16% would vote NDP
3% would vote Green

These are interesting numbers. People actually got to hear Scott Brison explain the Green Shift plan, and people listened.

Blaherty came of as bullish as he usually does. Maybe people are just plain sick of bullies. After all, they wouldn't want bullies in their schools, so why have this behaviour in government??