So, we are working on a letter to send this landlord...sending it via certified mail, asking for our full deposit back. I'll keep you updated as to how that goes!
Meanwhile, I'll be blogging in more detail about this and previous vacations experiences on my new blog: Sisters On Vacation. http://sistersonvacation.blogspot.com
One neat thing - I posted a question on the forums at http://tripAdvisor.com/ Great site by the way if you'll be traveling. They have lots of info and reviews on places to stay, things to do, where to eat, etc. Anyway, I've had someone already ask me who I rented from - they wanted to make sure they aren't renting from the same person! Turns out they aren't, but we are mentioning this in our letter...and telling them we will be using the power of the Internet if they don't return our deposit.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Grrr...they're trying to keep our deposit!
So, as we do every 2 years, my sisters and I (husband & kids included) all rented a house together for our vacation. This year we ended up changing our place within a few weeks of renting because we ended up with fewer people than originally planned. The price was reasonable...but I was a little nervous because their website (they are part of VRBO.com) did not have any comments from previous renters. This is what they told us:
And I usually don't ask the visitors to put remarks on there. I have several properties through vrbo. Which you can click on the link that says. See all my other listings. And I make sure that they are in great conditions. I do have a lady that just stayed and I can ask her to put some comments in if it makes you more comfortable. But I am always on top of my properties and have never had a. Complaint
Well, we do have a complaint - they are trying to keep our deposit! Unfortunately we did not think to take pics as we left the place as we found it. They are claiming that we did some small things:
~ in one bathroom, they have a black bear toilet paper holder...one foot of this bear was already off when our party arrived. They claim we did this.
~ in another bathroom, there is a piece of the tub faucet gone - this is how it was when we arrived but they are claiming we did this.
~ in the kitchen, a cabinet door hinge came loose. They are claiming we broke the hinge. This is normal wear-n-tear and not something you keep a deposit for.
~ in a bedroom, they are claiming a "gouge" in the amoire. This is the bedroom I stayed in and I certainly never noticed a gouge.
~ they claim we were not respectful of nature and threw beer bottles & cans down the mountainside. They were there when we got there.
~ I'm not impressed with their cleaning lady. On the deck was a large trash can that had a full bag of trash when we arrived. Since you had to take your own trash down the mountain (10 minutes 1 way) we were not about to haul someone else's old trash for them.
We are talking a $200 deposit here. We are not happy. We are in the process of writing them a letter...not that we expect much. Probably will also write to the BBB & the Chamber of Commerce. I'm wondering if this is how they make some extra money...and if this so-called cleaning lady gets a kick-back for each problem she finds..and how many times she's found the "same" problems!
And I usually don't ask the visitors to put remarks on there. I have several properties through vrbo. Which you can click on the link that says. See all my other listings. And I make sure that they are in great conditions. I do have a lady that just stayed and I can ask her to put some comments in if it makes you more comfortable. But I am always on top of my properties and have never had a. Complaint
Well, we do have a complaint - they are trying to keep our deposit! Unfortunately we did not think to take pics as we left the place as we found it. They are claiming that we did some small things:
~ in one bathroom, they have a black bear toilet paper holder...one foot of this bear was already off when our party arrived. They claim we did this.
~ in another bathroom, there is a piece of the tub faucet gone - this is how it was when we arrived but they are claiming we did this.
~ in the kitchen, a cabinet door hinge came loose. They are claiming we broke the hinge. This is normal wear-n-tear and not something you keep a deposit for.
~ in a bedroom, they are claiming a "gouge" in the amoire. This is the bedroom I stayed in and I certainly never noticed a gouge.
~ they claim we were not respectful of nature and threw beer bottles & cans down the mountainside. They were there when we got there.
~ I'm not impressed with their cleaning lady. On the deck was a large trash can that had a full bag of trash when we arrived. Since you had to take your own trash down the mountain (10 minutes 1 way) we were not about to haul someone else's old trash for them.
We are talking a $200 deposit here. We are not happy. We are in the process of writing them a letter...not that we expect much. Probably will also write to the BBB & the Chamber of Commerce. I'm wondering if this is how they make some extra money...and if this so-called cleaning lady gets a kick-back for each problem she finds..and how many times she's found the "same" problems!
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Whew! That's Done...
"That" being the Open House we held for our daughter! Not that I really had that much to do...I think that what she needed me the most for is to write checks for everything! That's about all we did this morning...run to Sam's Club...run to Gordon Food Service...run to the grocery store...run to the party store...run to the ATM machine! I'm not complaining, I'm just tired!
I let her pick the menu...with just a few hints from me...she picked: chicken wings (3 styles: BBQ, lemon pepper and plain), macaroni salad, baked beans, veggies & dip, fruit & dip, chips, and of course cake! Sodas and punch to drink. It was all good! The best part? I didn't really have to spend the day cooking.
We had a really nice time with all the friends that came out! Thanks to all of you!
I let her pick the menu...with just a few hints from me...she picked: chicken wings (3 styles: BBQ, lemon pepper and plain), macaroni salad, baked beans, veggies & dip, fruit & dip, chips, and of course cake! Sodas and punch to drink. It was all good! The best part? I didn't really have to spend the day cooking.
We had a really nice time with all the friends that came out! Thanks to all of you!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Where did that witch go?
I returned home from a relaxing vacation this past Sunday...just me and my 5 year old in the car for over 1900 miles.... and no working radio or CD player. Anyone care to try that?
We went to the mountains of northern Georgia. Since I was driving down from Michigan I decided to take 2 days to drive it. Good thing I did since I made a wrong turn a time or two...come on, my navigator is only 5! Have you ever tried to change the page on your large atlas going down I-75 at 75 miles per hour? Yikes!
Day 1: the plan was to drive about 6 hours (1/2 way). Hit a traffic jam south of Indianapolis where we went 5 miles in about 50 minutes. By this time it was almost 8 PM and we hadn't even had dinner...time to stop for the night even though we didn't make it to Louisville as I had hoped. A little dinner...a little pool time...and we went right to sleep.
Day 2: the plan was to get to our rental by about 4 PM...should have been about 12 1/2 hours total driving according to my google mapping. So, we left about 9 AM. By my calculations, I should have about 7 hours of driving today. No problem. Until I get to where I-24 & I-40 split...quick - which way do I take? At the last second I change my mind and stay on I-40 to Knoxville. Right away I see this big traffic jam..but it's on the other side of the highway - doesn't affect me, right? Wrong...because about 25 minutes later I realize I should have taken I-24..but to turn around mean waiting in the traffice jam for a least an hour. No thanks! Stopped at a rest area and got some directions and a map from someone working there. Only thing is, these are smaller highways and slower speeds...adding over an hour to my drive. And then our directions from the owner were awful, adding another extra 45 minutes. I actually ended up calling my brothers-in-law and they came out to the entrance so I could follow them back. We were so high in the mountains, there were hardly any houses...no street lights...one lane roads, even going up and around tight turns - scary!! Thanks goodness my sisters had a big glass of wine poured for me when I arrived - at almost 9 PM!!
Oh, and the title of this post? Let me explain! On day 2 (yes, that really long day), as I was driving down the highway, I got hit by a broom...yes, a broom! It came out of nowhere. I think it hit the car in front of me, it hit my van - thank goodness it didn't hit the windshield or a headlight! It did hit the front driver fender and scratched that a bit and put a small bit of a dent in it. But, no major problems. I've told about a dozen people about this and for the first time today, one person asked what happened to the witch! Love it! I don't know what happened to her, but I think I found her broom for her!
We went to the mountains of northern Georgia. Since I was driving down from Michigan I decided to take 2 days to drive it. Good thing I did since I made a wrong turn a time or two...come on, my navigator is only 5! Have you ever tried to change the page on your large atlas going down I-75 at 75 miles per hour? Yikes!
Day 1: the plan was to drive about 6 hours (1/2 way). Hit a traffic jam south of Indianapolis where we went 5 miles in about 50 minutes. By this time it was almost 8 PM and we hadn't even had dinner...time to stop for the night even though we didn't make it to Louisville as I had hoped. A little dinner...a little pool time...and we went right to sleep.
Day 2: the plan was to get to our rental by about 4 PM...should have been about 12 1/2 hours total driving according to my google mapping. So, we left about 9 AM. By my calculations, I should have about 7 hours of driving today. No problem. Until I get to where I-24 & I-40 split...quick - which way do I take? At the last second I change my mind and stay on I-40 to Knoxville. Right away I see this big traffic jam..but it's on the other side of the highway - doesn't affect me, right? Wrong...because about 25 minutes later I realize I should have taken I-24..but to turn around mean waiting in the traffice jam for a least an hour. No thanks! Stopped at a rest area and got some directions and a map from someone working there. Only thing is, these are smaller highways and slower speeds...adding over an hour to my drive. And then our directions from the owner were awful, adding another extra 45 minutes. I actually ended up calling my brothers-in-law and they came out to the entrance so I could follow them back. We were so high in the mountains, there were hardly any houses...no street lights...one lane roads, even going up and around tight turns - scary!! Thanks goodness my sisters had a big glass of wine poured for me when I arrived - at almost 9 PM!!
Oh, and the title of this post? Let me explain! On day 2 (yes, that really long day), as I was driving down the highway, I got hit by a broom...yes, a broom! It came out of nowhere. I think it hit the car in front of me, it hit my van - thank goodness it didn't hit the windshield or a headlight! It did hit the front driver fender and scratched that a bit and put a small bit of a dent in it. But, no major problems. I've told about a dozen people about this and for the first time today, one person asked what happened to the witch! Love it! I don't know what happened to her, but I think I found her broom for her!
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Woo Hoo - We have one more high school graduate in the house!
Well...as of this past Thursday, our middle child is now a high school graduate. Not that we ever doubted it would happen - she is very motivated! We are so proud of her.
The ceremony however was very long. It started at 6 P.M. A number of speakers of course...six valedictorians! Six!! And each and everyone of the six got up to speak. They did a good job of keeping their speeches short - thanks valedictorians! One main speaker...school board president...various others...musical performances. It was nice...but let's get to the reason we're here - our kids!
It was about 7:40 before the graduates started to go up to get their diplomas. We were done just after 8:00. It wouldn't have been so bad but we were sitting in the "crying corner". Several babies and little kids and they were miserable sitting in a hot place for that long - I don't blame them for crying! Plus, the people behind me were talking...not even trying to be quiet so others could still hear...that's simply rude.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Look soon for a Give-Away right here!
I'm giving serious thought to starting a monthly give away on my blog. The serious thought part has to do with how I'd like to manage this....what my blog readers will have to do to be eligible...and what I'd like to give away.
When I've got all the details worked out, I'll post them here, in my Etsy profile as well as on Win Crafty.
Right now I'm thinking of having readers submit a hink pink or a hinky pinky....do you know what those are? They're actually kind of fun. Hinky-Pinky is an old-time word game. The object of the game is simple. Given a clue, you must guess the two word answer. The trick is that the answer contains two words that are equal in the number of syllables and those two words must rhyme. The title Hinky-Pinky implies the answers will contain two syllables. One syllable answers are called Hink-Pinks while three syllable answers are called Hinkety-Pinketies. Here are some examples:
CLUE: ANSWER
one who lives in basement: cellar dweller
ill young chicken: sick chick
sound slumber : deep sleep
bloody tale: gory story
cook who cannot hear: deaf chef
master of sailing ship: clipper skipper
seat for a rabbit: hare chair
loyal color: true blue
noisy mob of people: loud crowd
shining sun: bright light
clever prank: slick trick
clever detective: super snooper
So, start trying to come up with some original Hink Pinks, Hinky Pinkys and Hinkety Pinketies!
When I've got all the details worked out, I'll post them here, in my Etsy profile as well as on Win Crafty.
Right now I'm thinking of having readers submit a hink pink or a hinky pinky....do you know what those are? They're actually kind of fun. Hinky-Pinky is an old-time word game. The object of the game is simple. Given a clue, you must guess the two word answer. The trick is that the answer contains two words that are equal in the number of syllables and those two words must rhyme. The title Hinky-Pinky implies the answers will contain two syllables. One syllable answers are called Hink-Pinks while three syllable answers are called Hinkety-Pinketies. Here are some examples:
CLUE: ANSWER
one who lives in basement: cellar dweller
ill young chicken: sick chick
sound slumber : deep sleep
bloody tale: gory story
cook who cannot hear: deaf chef
master of sailing ship: clipper skipper
seat for a rabbit: hare chair
loyal color: true blue
noisy mob of people: loud crowd
shining sun: bright light
clever prank: slick trick
clever detective: super snooper
So, start trying to come up with some original Hink Pinks, Hinky Pinkys and Hinkety Pinketies!
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
The Melting Pot
Have you ever been to the Melting Pot Restaurant? Whoa, I love it! This love affair began a number of years ago when my sisters and I went to the Melting Pot in Asheville NC. Now, at the time, 3 of us lived in Michigan and 2 of us lived in Florida. We started doing a "SOV" weekend every other year. SOV stands for "Sisters On Vacation". We love our SOV time. We pick an interesting location between Michigan & Florida and spend about 4 days together. For us Michigan girls, the trip begins in the car on the way down. Lots of talking, lots of singing, lots of laughing!
Well, this trip, we stayed a couple of days in Gatlinburg, TN; then moved over the Great Smokey Mountains to Asheville NC for one night. And, that one night found us having dinner at the Melting Pot. It was great! We took our time (probably 3 hours overall) ordering and eating. We started with the cheese fondue...salads...main course...and ended with the chocolate fondue. Wow! Just Wow!
We also checked out some stores nearby, and found the neatest furniture store...if I ever win the lottery, I'm so going back there!
Well, a few months ago, our NAWIC chapter #194 did a new fundraiser. We were each given $20 in seed money to "grow". There was a great prize for the person who grew the most from their seed money - a gift certificate to a great restaurant... Don't get ahead of me now! Well, I wanted to try to win that. So, I made handmade chocolates and Kahlua Kits. We held a couple of mini-bazaars where we could sell. I sold most of my chocolates and Kahlua Kits. Then, for a later bazaar, I made my book thongs. They sold great! After the money was tallied, I was declared the winner! And, I got this wonderful gift certificate to (ok, you guessed it!) The Melting Pot.
Next weekend, I'm off to Orlando for a conference...followed by a couple of vacation days. Those vacation days will be spent at my dads, helping him go through years of accumulation and helping clean his house. Most of my sisters will be be helping as well. As a reward, I've suggested we take ourselves out to dinner at the Melting Pot!!
Mmmmm...can't wait!
Well, this trip, we stayed a couple of days in Gatlinburg, TN; then moved over the Great Smokey Mountains to Asheville NC for one night. And, that one night found us having dinner at the Melting Pot. It was great! We took our time (probably 3 hours overall) ordering and eating. We started with the cheese fondue...salads...main course...and ended with the chocolate fondue. Wow! Just Wow!
We also checked out some stores nearby, and found the neatest furniture store...if I ever win the lottery, I'm so going back there!
Well, a few months ago, our NAWIC chapter #194 did a new fundraiser. We were each given $20 in seed money to "grow". There was a great prize for the person who grew the most from their seed money - a gift certificate to a great restaurant... Don't get ahead of me now! Well, I wanted to try to win that. So, I made handmade chocolates and Kahlua Kits. We held a couple of mini-bazaars where we could sell. I sold most of my chocolates and Kahlua Kits. Then, for a later bazaar, I made my book thongs. They sold great! After the money was tallied, I was declared the winner! And, I got this wonderful gift certificate to (ok, you guessed it!) The Melting Pot.
Next weekend, I'm off to Orlando for a conference...followed by a couple of vacation days. Those vacation days will be spent at my dads, helping him go through years of accumulation and helping clean his house. Most of my sisters will be be helping as well. As a reward, I've suggested we take ourselves out to dinner at the Melting Pot!!
Mmmmm...can't wait!
Sunday, May 4, 2008
One step closer to listing...
Yea - the sun is shining to day...almost too bright as you can see hard shadows...but at least it's shining!
So, I took a look around and wondered what to use to take pics on...ok, so my book thongs are book marks so I will need a book...but, they're also beaded so I need to show off those beads. I ended up grabbing a nickel (think silver, think reflective) platter that's in my china cabinet (yes, I have a china cabinet...actually - I have 2 at home, and one I'll be buying from my dad but that's a story for another day). The tags I'm putting my book thongs on are (IMHO) really neat - my creation as well. I found some neat quotes about books, and incorporated those into the tags. Printed them out on the back side of scrapbook paper and laminated them. Then, I just cut 2 slits into this laminated bookmark so it will hold my beaded book thong and wa-la, you have 2 bookmarks in 1!
So, I took pics of my beaded bookmarks on these tags. Then, but the book thong on a book and took pics as well. And, do those beads reflect in that platter! Love 'em!!
So, that took care of one step - the pics... and step two is taken care of as well as my batteries didn't die while outside.
I still need to write descriptions...should be able to get a few of those done yet tonight...hmmm...I do still need to get to the grocery store (can it wait until tomorrow????)...
So, I took a look around and wondered what to use to take pics on...ok, so my book thongs are book marks so I will need a book...but, they're also beaded so I need to show off those beads. I ended up grabbing a nickel (think silver, think reflective) platter that's in my china cabinet (yes, I have a china cabinet...actually - I have 2 at home, and one I'll be buying from my dad but that's a story for another day). The tags I'm putting my book thongs on are (IMHO) really neat - my creation as well. I found some neat quotes about books, and incorporated those into the tags. Printed them out on the back side of scrapbook paper and laminated them. Then, I just cut 2 slits into this laminated bookmark so it will hold my beaded book thong and wa-la, you have 2 bookmarks in 1!
So, I took pics of my beaded bookmarks on these tags. Then, but the book thong on a book and took pics as well. And, do those beads reflect in that platter! Love 'em!!
So, that took care of one step - the pics... and step two is taken care of as well as my batteries didn't die while outside.
I still need to write descriptions...should be able to get a few of those done yet tonight...hmmm...I do still need to get to the grocery store (can it wait until tomorrow????)...
"Are You Addicted To Supplies" ????
Well, as Homer Simpson would say, "Duh!"
I must give credit for this title to lucie39 over at Etsy. She is the one who started a forum thread with this title this past Friday evening... check it out at http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5596550 . It is hilarious!
So, I've decided to try and name the top 5 supplies "we" all seem to be addicted to...
#5 Buttons
#4 Paper
#3 Yarn
#2 Fabric
and the top addiction?
#1 Beads
But, I can't leave it here...I must list the many other items that were mentioned: glitter, ink, chain, books, wire, paints, ploymer clay, tools, leather, feathers, zippers, glass, essential oils, roving, knitting needles and canvas!
There are some really neat things that were said... excuses we all use?
"No honey, that's not new - had it forever!"
" ... it was really bad when I work at (craft store) it was an everyday fix"
"I spread these buttons all over my bed and rolled around in them"
It was agreed that many of us are in need of some sort of 12-step program...if you know of one, come on over to Etsy, find this forum thread and get us all some help!
I must give credit for this title to lucie39 over at Etsy. She is the one who started a forum thread with this title this past Friday evening... check it out at http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5596550 . It is hilarious!
So, I've decided to try and name the top 5 supplies "we" all seem to be addicted to...
#5 Buttons
#4 Paper
#3 Yarn
#2 Fabric
and the top addiction?
#1 Beads
But, I can't leave it here...I must list the many other items that were mentioned: glitter, ink, chain, books, wire, paints, ploymer clay, tools, leather, feathers, zippers, glass, essential oils, roving, knitting needles and canvas!
There are some really neat things that were said... excuses we all use?
"No honey, that's not new - had it forever!"
" ... it was really bad when I work at (craft store) it was an everyday fix"
"I spread these buttons all over my bed and rolled around in them"
It was agreed that many of us are in need of some sort of 12-step program...if you know of one, come on over to Etsy, find this forum thread and get us all some help!
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Book Thongs are almost here!
Well, actually I have nearly finished 10 of them. Now, I need a couple of things to finish:
1) some good weather to take great pics
2) batteries that last longer than 10 minutes in my camera
3) time and inspiration to write killer descriptions
Item # 1 - We should have some sun tomorrow - yea! I have these old old window (yes, I've stashed some to paint on) I'm thinking of using for pics (to use them as a backdrop); very shabby chic looking. While I'm at it, I need to retake pics of my cat beds. I took those earlier this year and they're awful!
Item # 2 - I did just buy some new rechargeables...hope they're good! I should find out soon - going to my daughter's step show so I'll be taking pics and video.
Item #3 - I think I'll need to wait until the 3 & 4 year olds are either gone or napping or totally engrossed in a movie. There really is no concentrating on something while constantly hearing "mom" and "grandma". Sigh. Well, I could work on that a little tonight while waiting for the step show to start...except, I was going to bring some knitting. dilemna... which do I do? Think I'll bring my knitting AND a notebook.
1) some good weather to take great pics
2) batteries that last longer than 10 minutes in my camera
3) time and inspiration to write killer descriptions
Item # 1 - We should have some sun tomorrow - yea! I have these old old window (yes, I've stashed some to paint on) I'm thinking of using for pics (to use them as a backdrop); very shabby chic looking. While I'm at it, I need to retake pics of my cat beds. I took those earlier this year and they're awful!
Item # 2 - I did just buy some new rechargeables...hope they're good! I should find out soon - going to my daughter's step show so I'll be taking pics and video.
Item #3 - I think I'll need to wait until the 3 & 4 year olds are either gone or napping or totally engrossed in a movie. There really is no concentrating on something while constantly hearing "mom" and "grandma". Sigh. Well, I could work on that a little tonight while waiting for the step show to start...except, I was going to bring some knitting. dilemna... which do I do? Think I'll bring my knitting AND a notebook.
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