Halloween Fun

Halloween fun with great friends! This year I went as Cleopatra. We handed out candy to the many trick o treater's and then headed down to the Houston Museum of Natural Science for their annual party. Enjoy some of the pictures.

Another Year Down...

Kady and I enjoyed a relaxing birthday weekend. Sadly for Kady, I was very content on just relaxing. She missed her Sunday morning swim and didn't hesitate letting me know her disappointment. So I'll have to take her next weekend. I hope that this next year is filled with fun and adventures... that shouldn't be too hard since Poppie and I are off to Africa in just 22 days! All the preparation has been done and now we just have to wait for our departure day. I'll make sure to post tons of pictures when I get back. Unfortunately we'll be over there for Aislin's first birthday, but I'm sure we can find some great presents to bring back for her.

The Saab Saga

Well after owning my new car for all of 73 hours and only having 374 miles on it I began to have issues. It all started with sputtering and sporadic idling, which was followed by the car stalling and refusing to restart. The best part of breaking down in a new Saab is that they now have OnStar and you get the first year free. So I pushed the button and talked to the ceiling… which is a very strange sensation, it’s like your talking to god and he’s answering only in this case he’s a she. OnStar connected me to Saab Roadside Assistance who then contacted AAA. The AAA dispatcher must not have been here in Houston or familiar with Houston and all of its suburbs because they dispatched a tow truck from Sugarland (a suburb that is about 20 miles south of where I had broken down) during the evening rush hour traffic! The first tow truck dispatched sat in traffic so long that the truck over heated and broke down itself. Another tow truck was then dispatched to me and 3 hours later they were loading the Saab on the flat bed. We arrived at the dealership just as they were closing; I signed the paperwork and hopped into the loaner car, a big ass Caddy!! Won’t ever be buying on of those!

The next day the dealership reviewed with me what had occurred and started their investigation. Upon first analysis of the problem, they concluded that the fuel pump control module was shorting out and that it needed to be replaced. They got the part in the next day (Thursday) and replaced it. After test driving it for about 20 or so miles the car started sporadically idling again and the check engine light once again illuminated. Back to the drawing boards. It took them until Tuesday (one whole week later) to then conclude that it was the processor in the computer that was sending the sporadic signals to the fuel pump control module. They ordered a new computer and installed it on Wednesday. Guess what, that didn’t solve the problem either! By this point I was completely frustrated, had gotten Saab Corporate involved and could no longer stand driving the Caddy. They swapped out the Caddy for a 2008 Saab 9-7X (same model I had just traded in on the 9-3) and away I went not knowing how long or if they could fix my new car. Good news arrived on Thursday (must have been luck from Janice since she arrived Wednesday night for a weekend visit), they had isolated the issue and fixed it!!! After about 50 miles of test driving the car was running smoothly and was not longer having the issue. It turns out that the two wiring harnesses that connect in the circuit just before the fuel pump control module were not fully connected and this was what was causing the sporadic idling problem… who would have thought!

The good news is that at least I know the service department at the dealership where I bought the car is very good and does a thorough job!

Meet my new Saabie!!

I know that I didn't 'need' a new car but when Saab has their employee discount, rebates and a low APR on financing.. it's hard to not want a new car. So after a week of looking, test driving and dealing I bought my first brand new car! I guess I'm an adult now...

So here she is, my 2008 Saab 9-3 Aero...


Front view


Side view


Back


Front seats


Back seats

And did I mention that she's a 6 speed manual with a 2.8L turbo engine and 255 horsepower... in other words... she's FAST!

And don't worry about Kady, she and I went to the dog park this morning for her swim and she likes riding in it too!

Video of Ike

Here are two video's I shot during Ike. Sorry these are so shaky, it was really windy.

This video shows Ike rolling into Houston. You can see the different cloud bands.

This video shows the wind and rain from Ike. Also the height of the bayou.

Hurricane Ike

Kady and I survived the wrath of Hurricane Ike. We hunkered down at Andrea's apartment Friday night. Late Saturday morning we ventured out in David's Exterra to view the damage and inspect the house I am renting. To my surprise there were no broken windows, no sky lights in the roof or trees on the house. Thankfully just lots of leaves and branches strewn all over the place and about half of my fence had fallen. Ironically, the owner of my house and my neighbor who shares the fence were wanted to replace it anyway. The power came back on around 6:30 pm Saturday so Kady and I moved back home. Oh, and the lost puppy we rescued from the street earlier that day. Andrea and I have nicknamed him "Ike". We think it is very appropriate. I am in the process of finding his owners so that he can go home. Kady is being tolerant of having him with us but we all know that she would much rather be just her and I. Here are some pictures that were taken during the storm and the aftermath.






Here are pictures from Friday night as Hurricane Ike rolled into Houston:

These pictures are from Andrea's apartment Saturday morning where we hunkered down:

The following pictures are from my yard: