Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Web work, trimmed bushes, and Johnny Hazzard

It's been a few days since I've posted anything. SORRY!

Life has been so freakin' busy since I lost my job. I've decided to take my web design skills to the next level so I started taking a very advanced course in Dreamweaver CS4 and learning some pretty complicated stuff. It was going great... and then I got a freelance project. So about half way through the course I start working on this major real estate website. I WAS LOST!!!

Today, after a full week of struggling through it, I finally met with the guy who contracted me and nervously showed him my work so far. He was really happy with it! I guess we are always our worst critics. His thumbs up gave me a pretty big confidence boost and he also gave me another website to build for an awesome dentist.

Now that my income is virtually nothing... my house has been falling apart around me. The pool pump broke, as did the garbage disposal, the garage door opener and the sprinkler system. I've been trying to fix or replace everything myself but it's complicated, time consuming and expensive! In an effort to make a little less work for myself, I cut my ficus hedges (which were now about 8 feet tall!) to the ground. The 100 degree heat was a big help in the process. Ugh.

I took a break from all my work on Saturday night and hung out with Tim and Matt and some other friends at a leather party at Voodoo Lounge. I was happy to see Johnny Hazzard hanging out at the bar when I walked in and it turned out he was performing in the show. I've always had a huge crush on Johnny ever since I met him in Ptown about 5 years ago and I was lucky enough to hang out with him at the wrap party for Blue Movie. He is as nice as he is sexy and rumor has it he kisses really, really well.

The show was pretty hot, even though Johnny stayed fully clothed the whole time! (See photo above.) We were all pretty drunk by that point and I was trying to get Tim and Matt to rush the stage with me and rip his clothes off. Thank God they didn't go for it. Johnny came back around after the show and we ragged on him for not stripping. He assured us that the second show would be a lot hotter and he would be stripping down. Unfortunately, the tequila got the best of us and we never made it to the second show.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Isn't that the way? You lose your income and things fall apart?

That Johnny is such a tease! Look at him all comfy in the sling and refusing to take off even a thread! Pishaw! He is a cutie pie though! I would have helped you guys strip him - he deserved it!

blacknoon said...

Nick,

Life isn't easy and never is and it's all how you look at it. Challenging times are times to look at yourself and what are you made up of. Though I'll admit, prolong hard times get really really REALLY tiring! Don't be too proud to ask for help.

And for the garbage disposal how is it broke? If it hums it's probably stuck really bad. There is a hex nut on the bottom and you'll need a big allen wrench to get in there and turn it. If it doesn't hum check the circuit. If that is okay, then it truly did die on you.

As for the garage door opener, do a little research on the internet, it most likey is very repairable if the motor didn't burn out. Parts are not too hard to find. Pool pump, same thing.

And what are you learning in your advanced Dreamweaver class?

Cheers and encouragement to face another day!

Nick Moretti said...

Sue...
I wish I would have stayed till his second show. I'm sure he delivered!

Blacknoon...
The disposal is probably about 15 years old and actually "ate" itself. The blades and gears came to a grinding, crashing end with pieces being chewed off and ground down. It is completely gone.
The pool pump is also about 15 years old... or older. I had it repaired once and this time it was going to be more expensive to repair than replace. I've already replaced that, as well as all of the PVC pipes that run to the pool.
The garage door opener is way over 15 years old. I checked it out and it's time to be replaced.
As for the Dreamweaver class, I know the program and have used it for years already, but now I'm learning CCS and all the heavy duty stuff like javascript, etc. I want to be at expert level for my new job... whenever I get that. :-)

blacknoon said...

Nick,

Yup,the disposal is toast and sounds like the pool pump is gone too. As for the garage door opener, believe it or not, they still make them today pretty much the same way back then.

I'm assuming yours is the chain type? If you don't lubricate them about every other year you'll have problems like grinding, sticking, shrieking noise and the chain comming off the gear. You'll be surprised how just cleaning it, lube it with some white lithium grease and retensioning the chain will fix most problems. And if you're having problems with the door jamming, it's probably the rollers which are readily available at Home Depot. So unless the motor is fried, you'll be better off trying to fix it. A new one with screw drive can cost $150 and up. I've personally have helped dozens of people who thought just like you that their opener was bad just to find the new ones were just like their old ones and the advice I just gave you fixed their problems saving them a good chunk of dough.

If your problem is something else email me and I'll see if there a cheaper way of taking care of it.

Also, I do know CSS and took a course in Javascript. You and W3 schools are going to become the best of friends ;)

Dreamweaver's CSS for it's spry stuff is confusing as hell to figure out what belongs to what. Best of luck in that one. Also, do you know PHP? I got Dreamweaver to work with my database but when I view it in my browser all I get is a blank page. I haven't figured out if it's the PHP code it inserted or the Javascript. It's bad enough when I write screwed up code but man, having a $$$ program write buggy code really pisses me off!

Cheers!
The calvery is just around the corner!

gpcrush said...

oh that damn Tequilla. :@P next time lover. next time.

xo

Unknown said...

It is true, Johnny is a good kisser. I lived in P-Town for many years and spent time with him, before I ever knew about Johnny Hazzard.

Stan said...

What did you cut those hedges down with? Yikes! I'm guessing you own a chain saw.

Anonymous said...

"Trimmed bushes",I thought it's your down under hair,lol,when I spoted the headline.