4th July came and went. Sadly I picked up a 72-hour bug and missed the "house picnic outing" to a local state park. But I did manage to spy the magnificent fireworks over Lake Champlain, thanks to some "neck-stretching around the trees in front of the house" manoeuvres.
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For new residents in the house, there's naturally an "adjustment period" - not without its challenges. New people, new environment, new routines and an addiction to battle - which can be especially tough on the younger ones.
As you can imagine, it's difficult to watch and somewhat draining to support someone through their addiction. I see them in turns pacing the house, agitated, hiding in their rooms, talking non-stop, playing mute, appealling to anyone who might give them a "fix", when they don't have any cash to support their habit. 
Finally, the longed-for day comes where they get their first pay-check and they can at last satisfy the cravings. You've never seen such elation as they unwrap the newly acquired treasure...minutes later they're slumped on the sofa, seemingly comatose, completely non-verbal, fingers twitching faster than those of an hyperactive tarantula.Yes indeed, we are very much in the grip of a 21st century addiction; man nor boy it seems, can live without a phone permanently in use; texting, talking, surfing the web, playing games. You name it - phone interaction is the ubiquitous backdrop to all activity in the house! (I know this addiction will be instantly recognised by all of you who are the lucky parents of teenagers :)
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| The old... |
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| ...and the new! |
Great excitement at the house this week - a new cooker! I've banged on about this before - but I do find it completely remarkable that in the land of plenty, more choice than you can shake a stick at, there is so little variety in the "white goods". See how similar these two (randomly selected for purchase, in different years) cookers are, exact same dimensions, same colour, same knobs. Same! It's like a "spot the difference" game!
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| "Take your time luv - it only weighs half a ton!" |
Ditto for washers, dryers and fridges. So different from the UK where the market embraces a multitude of sizes, shapes, colours and designs. Weird huh? Chalk it up to yet another of the world's great mysteries - and never let it be said that this BLOG doesn't raise the game on giving consideration to matters of global importance!
NB - how clever is the hoist that delivery men use here, I have never seen it before. It's like a massive "baby" sling, allowing the carriers to take the weight of the machine over their whole body, via the shoulders. Simple yet brilliant! Much different than the bulging forearms, grunting delivery style in the UK!
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A member of staff married last weekend, so at the house we held a little "wedding shower" for her, which miraculously we managed to keep a complete and utter surprise. Cue pressies, cakes and sparklers! Live music was provided by "The Divine Ms M" -------->> who performed her finest take on Lady Gaga. She was certainly more entertaining than the real thing - if a little short on lyrics! Obviously I had to roll out the old lemon cupcakes with secret stash of lemon curd inside. Surprisingly for a household of men - they all "oohed" and "aahed" very satisfactorily at the various "girlie" gifts and great fun was had by all! 
(The bride-to-be coordinated beautifully with the "lemon" theme)
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