What's under your lip/in your nose right now? - Part 2

[hittman]

We finally got the missing tv channels back last night. I was going to go talk to someone at the google store today but we got a heavy snow and it’s not worth going out. On a positive note, my snowblower started right up today. I full choked it and it started one pull.

 

[Waho]

That's why I feel rather caught between a rock and a hard place. I've inquired about cutting cable and keeping my same internet/phone service, which would bring my bill down $50. Cutting the home phone saves another $10.

My mortgage provider requires me to have a land line phone, so it's cheaper to just sit on Comcast. The $50 for cable is every channel except HBO/Cinemax, which I'm not going to be able to get cheaper anywhere else really. Not to mention by the time I pay for a couple streaming services I'm right back where I started regardless.

 

[hittman]

I never did get around to going to the google store. I guess the question now is do I go through the hassle of switching providers to save 20 a month? I'm still thinking it over.

 

[Burnie]

I guess the question now is do I go through the hassle of switching providers to save 20 a month?

That's $240 a year, it would buy a lot of Snus.

 

[hittman]

I guess so. I think I might wait to make the switch until my youngest goes off to college in the fall. I'm going to start hinting around to my wife about possibly just cutting the cord and pay for a couple subscription services and an hd antenna.

 

[rothenbj]

If I lived somewhere that getting local stations was possible, I might do the switch. Apparently there are some pretty good antennas that don't involve putting a large lightening rod up on your roof these days. There was one here when I first moved in that I could get one station in strong and three or four iffy ones. When the stations went digital, I tried one of those antennas but it was marginally better and there was still that lightening rod.

We laid my cousin's 51 year old son to rest today. Sad

 

[hittman]

Sorry to hear that Roth. You’ve had to deal with more than your fair share the past couple years.

 

[Burnie]

I'm going to start hinting around to my wife about possibly just cutting the cord and pay for a couple subscription services and an hd antenna.

I have been doing that for the last 6 months, to prepare her for the TV cable cut, it is just getting to be too much $$$$. I have a TiVo DVR for the antenna, and am looking at all the streaming services, already have Hulu and Amazon subscriptions, and am looking at a 30' tower for an antenna as I am 60 miles from any broadcast station. I currently have an antenna at roof height, but only get about 20 stations, and not some I want. I have been planning it for over a year because in March my cost goes up another $50 as I loose the discount I got 2 years ago, which will put it over $200 for cable internet and TV per month. Internet only will be only about $70 to $80, so it will be a big savings to cut out the TV part.

 

[rothenbj]

Yeah Hitt, I think this is 5 years straight now. Our small family keeps getting smaller with me sitting as the elder at this point.

Burnie, wouldn't it be easier to just get something like Hulu live or Directy now. I know I'd need to get one that's available in my area that carries Philly sports as most of my life I didn't have it available and after finally getting it since FIOS, I'm not giving it up.

 

[hittman]

I have been doing that for the last 6 months, to prepare her for the TV cable cut, it is just getting to be too much $$$$. I have a TiVo DVR for the antenna, and am looking at all the streaming services, already have Hulu and Amazon subscriptions, and am looking at a 30' tower for an antenna as I am 60 miles from any broadcast station. I currently have an antenna at roof height, but only get about 20 stations, and not some I want. I have been planning it for over a year because in March my cost goes up another $50 as I loose the discount I got 2 years ago, which will put it over $200 for cable internet and TV per month. Internet only will be only about $70 to $80, so it will be a big savings to cut out the TV part.

How does the TiVo work? Do you pay a subscription fee for it?

 

[rothenbj]

Hitt, I'm pretty sure Tivo has a monthly charge. Some of the services like Directv Now and Hulu Live TV have free DVR with some space limits. That's one thing I'm nuts about. I DVR like a mad man, especially at night. Hate waiting for commercials to end so I'll be recording and jump between shows and skip ads all night.

 

[Burnie]

Burnie, wouldn't it be easier to just get something like Hulu live or Directy now.

Looked at Hulu Live, but they want $40 a month.

How does the TiVo work? Do you pay a subscription fee for it?

Works just like the cable DVR, only records off OTA antenna. I got the TiVo Roamio OTA which includes listings, so no monthly charge. Most of the ones they have now want to charge a monthly subscription fee, I think around $10.

 

[rothenbj]

Bought a tub of refractory cement to try to get the back slab of my fireplace safe enough to burn again, before the new piece arrives. Not sure how well it will work as the slab is very fragile. I filled the hole this AM and the set time is 24 hours. Tomorrow, I'm going to build up the hole area a bit more and fill in the area below the hole and hopefully firm up the entire slab a bit more. Friday will be the real test after I take it out of the gig I created and pipe clamped the slab into. If I can re-install and get thru the rest of the winter without pulling it all apart again, I'll be happy.

I had burned about a quarter tank from September until the failure a couple weeks ago. I've burned over a quarter in the last half month.

 

[hittman]

I was just wondering earlier when someone was going to post in our thread. I hope your project goes well. We have been in this weather pattern the past few weeks where it will start raining while it's above freezing and then cool down and turn into snow with ice underneath. The last two times it happened on a Friday/Saturday so wasn't that big of a deal but it happened again last night which made for an interesting drive to work this morning. I'm sure I'll have to clear the driveway when I get home as my wife and daughter usually never touch the driveway even though school was cancelled today.

I've been installing pipe insulation on my pipes in the basement and replacing some of the insulation that is against the outside wall. There's only about 15" exposed above the concrete foundation but the old insulation was looking pretty bad after all these years of having cables and stuff run down there. I bought r13 insulation with a paper backing. I'm wondering if it would help to put another layer behind that without the paper? I don't know much about installing insulation.

 

[The Rebel]

Well it looks like mother nature has decided to bring winter back to Michigan. Snow, freezing rain, polar vortex, followed by 6 more inches of snow, several no school days, and quite a few white knuckle driving days to work. Next up? Well we have single digit temps for the next 7 days with a blistering high of 0 degrees next Wednesday. Good old Michigan...

 

[rothenbj]

Rebel, my advise is buy a new snowblower. My new one seemsa to be working pretty good, if not perfect.

 

[hittman]

I might need to trade mine in. It doesn't seem to be scaring away the snow any more. We've had a couple good ice/snow storms the past couple weeks and it was only about 4 degrees this morning when I got up.

 

[Waho]

The snow on my driveway got rained on and froze into 2" of ice before I could blow it, so it's way too late now. The snow plows kicked up so many jagged frozen chunks at the end of my driveway I won't drive my car over it for fear of damaging something.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[rothenbj]

Waho, my parents home was the worst for that as well as drifting snow. I can remember my father clearing it out two or three times per snowstorm with the drifting.

The end of the drive was always those frozen chunks and too deep to even think of driving over. The last time I cleared it for my mom, I thought I was going to die before I got finished. I only had two Toro throwers then and the old one gave out quickly. The end of the drive had to be hand shoveled because of the heavy crude and the rest was wet stuff the better thrower was losing its pep on by the time I cleared the 20 yards or so of her drive. Never did clear out her parking area and she was mad although she wasn't driving anymore at that point anyway. It was a late season storm and it melted within three or four days.

You've got a mess on your hands if you don't get a weather break.

 

[rothenbj]

Life is all good again but I still don't understand what they do. Lost between 70 and nearly 100 points on my score when I bought my Escape then it went back up at the end of December, before my first payment went in. I'm just happy to see that 800 plus again.