Yup, thar she be folks! The La-Z-Boy couch has arrived and is all set up in the basement. With that behemoth set up, I guess we’re done phase 6 in the basement renovation. We’re rounding the final corner (ha ha, did you get the pun there?). All that remains is to build the bar, and put in a new coffee table I guess. Unfortunately, that bar is going to be no easy task. I’ve been doing my research, and going over the plans in detail, and all I can say is that it’s a pretty major first wood-working project to be undertaking. I mean, I really want this thing to look good, and I’m worried I might not have the mad skills for it! However, rest assured, I’ll take my anal time with it, and make sure it turns out something special 🙂 I’ve even bought yet another tool to do so, a new plunge router! But enough about the bar. How about that couch? It’s a sectional, the smallest you can get, but it still manages to look like a giant in that room, and unfortunately, dwarfs our current 32″ TV. So what does Jody say? ” I guess we need a new TV”. Those are dangerous words to say to a big ticket shop-a-holic! However, we really can’t afford that right now, so I’ll just have to start dreaming about my 45″ LCD HD Widescreen TV (the Sony Bravia looks nice!). My guess is that after Christmas, in the winter doldrums, prices will [yet again] drop probably my 25-40% on TVs. Mark my words. Then.. look out world, here comes Stevey. At least that’ll give me time to properly research what ‘I need’. Till then, I’ll just have to curl up on this fancy couch, and play Xbox on my wee 32 incher. Ha ha. That’s it for now.

Well, alas poor Jonah has been undergoing a bit of a bad spell recently. We just passed his 3rd birthday, and until now, all was pretty good. However, this year has been a bit of a rough one for old Jonah. They say that mutts are generally healthier than pure-breds, but I’m starting to wonder. This year, Jonah has gone through ear infections, allergies, and “bum” issues, which I’d rather not get into. The latest problem is a combination of several, and we’re now worried it might be a sign of something worse. As you can see, he’s wearing the cone of silence this weekend, to keep him from chewing and licking himself raw. You can also see his nose growth which materialized in three days. He’s also got another ear infection! Woes me. Lots of drugs and resting for him. Maybe the new couch will help him. The trouble is that we suspect he may have Lupus. Not a great thing if he does. Basically, his body might be attacking itself (auto-immune disorder). For now, we’re trying a cycle of drugs, to eliminate other possibilities. If he has Lupis, we’ll have to do some biopsies, and find out for sure. Unfortunately, that testing ain’t cheap. But he’s worth it, despite his many annoyances, he is part of the family, and deserves our love and care. We’ll keep you posted if we hear more…

Whew! We’re almost there. I finished off putting the quarter round along all the new carpet, to give it the finished look. I also managed to get all the speaker mounted, with the wiring running through the walls and ceiling. It was not what I’d call and easy task, but the end result is a very clean installation of the sound system for the bar / rec room. You can check out the latest shots of the basement, including a nice picture of the rat’s nest that is the wiring jumble for all the AV gear in my media cabinet. Basically, all that remains is getting the new couch, which we’ve just got word will be delivered to us next Saturday (Dec.3rd), and building the bar. Now obviously, the couch is an easy one. However, getting the bar built is a different story. I’m working on it now, but there is a lot of fine woodwork that’ll have to go into it, and I don’t want to screw up. I’ve even bought yet another toy to help with that. I picked up a new 2 1/4 HP plunge router for the detail work. So, even though the materials will have only cost me about $700, the tools that I ‘had’ to buy for the job ran me over $1,000 extra!! Good grief. Anyway, stay tuned for updates on the bar build.

Well, the chips all fell where they may, and in the aftermath, 3 people walked away happy, and the rest stumbled away drunk. Such was the case at the conclusion of my first stab at tournament director of a Poker game. Seven people braved the weather and a great time was had by all. Check out all the pics. I started the day by visiting Rob at 10am to pick up chips and some tips on how to play. I then picked up a fancy new poker table top, which was put to great use by us last night. Participants in the inaugural game included Dave Smith, John Kean, Greg Herage, Adam Stewart, Matt Scase and Rob Sample. Rob was a surprise addition, given that he was supposed to be playing all day at another tourney. Well, turns out he got done early, hopped a bus, and showed up half cut and with a nice $20 in his hands to join the action! Huzzah for that. He made it possible for us to do a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place game. Ironically, Rob was the only real player at the table, and was the first to be taken out. Never trust us beginners. We’re VERY unpredictable, right Rob? We set the game up with increasing blinds every 20 minutes, and $10,000 buy in for $20. I think it’s safe to say everyone had a great time, and we’ll definitely have to make this a regular occurence. What do you say boys, monthly? The table has room for 8 people, so we can have a rotating cast of characters depending who’s available. After all, if Matt can win, anyone can, right? Ha ha ha. The exit order was (I think): Rob, Adam, me, Dave, John, Greg, Matt. Congrats Matt. Pizza’s on you next time 😉 Of course, to make the night sweeter, we kept going by playing vids till the wee hours… Halo, Driv3r, DOA Volleyball (yes, I’ll work on that hack sometime). Good times. I never knew I was such an efficient killer in Halo when intoxicated! And the grand finale was Dave, Matt and I watching music DVD’s till 4am! Huzzah. Let’s do it again sometime boyz.