Monthly Archives: January 2013

Juro has arrived!

Juro has arrived!

I completely forgot to post about this, but Juro is here! I was a bit nervous of him coming to the house, because he can be quite skittish. But the moment he walked through the doors he was HAPPY! I was happy! He ran all over the house and it started to sink in that… it’s going to be him and I. I felt happy, and at the same time I was missing my family. I had gotten so used to all of us being together in one house. And I’m back on my own again, but this time with a friendly companion. So I’m hoping for the best.

Funny story, this is how Juro is definitely a little Houdini! As I was exiting my house through the rear on my way to work, I had both my gym bag and my laptop bag on my shoulders. This prevented me from seeing Juro sneaking right past me to go run free in the alley. I dodged a bullet because he got loose before and man oh man, that had me feeling all kinds of bad. So now I definitely have to lock him in his crate until the dog walker arrives to take him out. A mess. I chuckled at it though. Juro is VERY inquisitive and wants to sniff and see EVERYTHING. That’s exactly what he did, which made it a little easier for me to catch him, because he is very stubborn and won’t come when called. The other part is quick reflexes because this boy is FAST!

Also, here’s a pic that I was able to get of him in my  living room. I took it on my phone and just added a B&W filter to it. This is what Juro does all the time!

Juro BW

The 57th Presidential Inauguration: Faith In America’s Future

The 57th Presidential Inauguration: Faith In America's Future

That was the theme/slogan as POTUS Barak Obama laid out his plans for the second term. It was awesome being out there and being able to meet people (local & tourists). It was both exhausting and EXCITING getting up at 5:45 AM to hop on the train and get there. For me, it was rather easy getting there, but it was hard getting out of the area (as that’s to be expected with these major events). There was some confusion with streets that were opened, being closed. Metro stations packed beyond belief, which resulted in my best friend (Michele, pictured) and I to walk around it to get to a different stop. Easier said than done. But we did it. And it was SO worth it. It felt historic!

 

Home Security Update

Okay, I changed my mind and decided to go with ADT. The package that Protect America was offering for their Cellular service (I got the silver package for about $50/mo) to me was too expensive. ADT has a special rate for USAA members, which I was glad to find out and also discounted installation services. Easier for me to deal with. For me I have a cellular monitor and some sensors and I’m around $44/mo. I am alright with that, but I got a key remote and the app on my phone which is very easy to use and very convenient. I plan to use that to let my potential Dog Walker in the house with no problems where I can lock and unlock the house remotely.

Trying to find the RIGHT Home Security

I’ve spent the past week trying to figure out the best service to use for Home Security. What annoys me about reading online reviews are that one can’t always tell genuine positive reviews versus those that are completely fake. I’ve asked friends, colleagues and family members. I’ve gotten several different options ranging from ADT, Ackerman & Guardian. There are SO many choices, yet I don’t know what’s best for me. I just want something that makes me feel secure, convenient, responsive and doesn’t set off false alarms. Yeah THAT sets me apart from every other consumer wanting the same thing. So… I searched google, blogs, & Yelp to try to drill down to the best services to use. I went through a blog that I found that highly recommended Protect America & Front Point Security. They were both in the top 5. I saw the same when I searched on Yelp. However, no matter what service I used… I always came across negative reviews about every… single… service.

I called Comcast because I assumed it would be easier to just have everything on one bill. Turns out Comcast charges a ridiculous amount of money (about $500) upfront for that.
I damn near got discouraged, but maybe against my better judgment I decided to give Protect America a try. They are a “do it yourself” home security installation service, however I saw a lot of high reviews in the DC area for them when I looked it up. I also saw that they got high ratings on the same home security blog that was looking at. So, I am waiting to see how this goes, but I sure hope that I didn’t get myself caught up in a bad deal. But at the same time, there was a story a few months ago about those “door to door” sales people that were hijacking people’s bank accounts with Vivint. I was initially attracted to their service with their sexy equipment and all but those monthly service prices…
I’ll update you all on how this all goes. **fingers crossed**