Wait 'til I POP!

This is chase...

...A major banking corporation with a problem. Namely, sometimes they apparently don't always know which account to draw on... As in, they paid my escrow account with someone else's account resulting in an error in excess of eleven hundred dollars.


This is an apology note....

Apparently, this "World Class" apology note got signed by a 5-yr-old by the looks of the signature. Maybe that accounts for the lack of understanding of proper accounting and how escrow accounts work.


This is a gift basket from Chase...

These are the contents of said gift basket...

Did you notice the "official" Chase calculator...

That way, I will be "officially" equipped to calculate their errors in the future.

This is the packing material in said gift basket. Are these possibly the shredded documents from other mishaps? Submitted for your discretion.

So, after spending over two weeks, several phone calls, and many hours of my time, things are getting settled. I'm glad that all of my time and energy spent is worth a few snacks and a coffee mug to Chase. THANK YOU!!!!!! (tongue planted deeply in cheek). Wanna know the most fun thing out of all of this???

BUBBLE WRAP!!!!!! :-)

The right tool for the job

I love getting to work around my house. It gives me a great sense of satisfaction to finish a handy-man project. Lately, Mel and I have been finally getting around to hanging stuff in and around our home. It's taken a LONG time, but we've made some major headway lately.

There's too many pics to capture it all... and besides you could just visit her blog to see all the pics ;-) So... I'll do my best to just paint the picture for you by using my words.

For each of the projects around the house, everything requires a special tool. One particularly frustrating thing was the so-called "EZ" anchors that I had for drywall mounting. They're not so "EZ" when the stupid plastic things break on you. I switched to zinc :-) *GRIN* Metal was WAY easier!

I like to take things to a deeper level though; So, let me take you there... I just celebrated my first year anniversary with my wife. People don't kid around- the first year isn't a walk in the park. I feel like some sort of dial or switch in the gears just seemed to click after our anniversary passed. I really can't explain it. It's like things just got a little easier. We still don't have each other figured out, but I tell you what... it's a LOT easier to manage the differences when you are focused on "US" rather than "you vs. me" and whose emotions are more important to be understood. When it's about "US," our unity is the only thing that matters. My selfishness dies away in that moment... (well... somewhat at least; other times I'm just a complete doofus)

God has always been faithful. He is the right tool for life. Just like a drill bit needs the drill though... Melissa and I need to depend on him in the right way. I think there was a lot of depending on him in the wrong way this past year... but by seeing things through the lens of "US" it's helping to put things in perspective.

You just gotta use the right tool for the job! The confusing part sometimes is realizing how all the tools work together :-)