Electrical fires and digital pianos
May. 22nd, 2012 10:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
next_to_normalAs I mentioned, my parents came to visit on Saturday and stayed through Monday in what turned out to be a rather eventful weekend.
There was a fire in my building! A real, actual electrical fire, not some idiot who burned their dinner like what always happened in my old building. The fire was two floors above me and several units down the hall, so I wasn't affected at all, except that we had to schlep outside in the middle of the night and the whole building smelled like burning for the next few days. It did give my parents an opportunity to meet my neighbors, even if we were all stumbling around half-asleep, wearing pajamas and carrying our pets. (My dad ran into the lady down the hall the next day, and she was all, "Hi! Met you at the fire!" lol)
It was also the first time the alarm has gone off since the new ones were installed. The reason we were given for the new alarms was that, in order to be up to code, it had to be at a certain decibel level, which, having heard it now, I believe is somewhere between "would be considered torture if done to a prisoner" and "can cause permanent damage."
The other highlight of the visit was a trip to the piano store! My parents have been talking about getting rid of our 17-year-old baby grand, because eventually they'll want to downsize and will no longer have space for it. Also, since I go home twice a year, on average, no one's really playing it. And while it is a very attractive place for the cat to sleep and for my mom to display her snowman collection at Christmas time, it really would be more useful if we could get a small piano for my condo. So we've been discussing the possibility of a trade-in, and my mom had gone to a piano store in NJ, but since I'm the one who's actually getting the piano, we also went to a store in Fairfax so I could try them out.
You guys, I am IN LOVE with the digital pianos. I had no idea! I've always been a bit of a traditionalist, and I loathe keyboards, but since I haven't been in the market for a piano for years, I didn't realize how advanced the digital pianos have gotten. The guy at the store was showing me all the stuff it can do and I was all SO COOL I WANT ONE CAN I TAKE IT HOME RIGHT NOW? Unfortunately, they weren't interested in a trade-in since they'd have to go all the way to NJ to pick it up, so we're still considering the options. Either we buy outright from the Fairfax place and try to sell our piano on our own, or we take the trade-in deal from the NJ place, even though they're jerks and I think they're trying to screw us. Anyone have any experience in buying/selling pianos and want to offer advice?
Other than that, the weekend was pretty normal. My dad spent most of Saturday fixing my leaky air conditioner (ultimately in vain - I found another puddle a few hours after they went home), and then my mother decided to torture him with a trip to Mount Vernon, since she and I are ~annual pass holders~ and she wants to go once every season. Fun times.
So, how was your weekend?
There was a fire in my building! A real, actual electrical fire, not some idiot who burned their dinner like what always happened in my old building. The fire was two floors above me and several units down the hall, so I wasn't affected at all, except that we had to schlep outside in the middle of the night and the whole building smelled like burning for the next few days. It did give my parents an opportunity to meet my neighbors, even if we were all stumbling around half-asleep, wearing pajamas and carrying our pets. (My dad ran into the lady down the hall the next day, and she was all, "Hi! Met you at the fire!" lol)
It was also the first time the alarm has gone off since the new ones were installed. The reason we were given for the new alarms was that, in order to be up to code, it had to be at a certain decibel level, which, having heard it now, I believe is somewhere between "would be considered torture if done to a prisoner" and "can cause permanent damage."
The other highlight of the visit was a trip to the piano store! My parents have been talking about getting rid of our 17-year-old baby grand, because eventually they'll want to downsize and will no longer have space for it. Also, since I go home twice a year, on average, no one's really playing it. And while it is a very attractive place for the cat to sleep and for my mom to display her snowman collection at Christmas time, it really would be more useful if we could get a small piano for my condo. So we've been discussing the possibility of a trade-in, and my mom had gone to a piano store in NJ, but since I'm the one who's actually getting the piano, we also went to a store in Fairfax so I could try them out.
You guys, I am IN LOVE with the digital pianos. I had no idea! I've always been a bit of a traditionalist, and I loathe keyboards, but since I haven't been in the market for a piano for years, I didn't realize how advanced the digital pianos have gotten. The guy at the store was showing me all the stuff it can do and I was all SO COOL I WANT ONE CAN I TAKE IT HOME RIGHT NOW? Unfortunately, they weren't interested in a trade-in since they'd have to go all the way to NJ to pick it up, so we're still considering the options. Either we buy outright from the Fairfax place and try to sell our piano on our own, or we take the trade-in deal from the NJ place, even though they're jerks and I think they're trying to screw us. Anyone have any experience in buying/selling pianos and want to offer advice?
Other than that, the weekend was pretty normal. My dad spent most of Saturday fixing my leaky air conditioner (ultimately in vain - I found another puddle a few hours after they went home), and then my mother decided to torture him with a trip to Mount Vernon, since she and I are ~annual pass holders~ and she wants to go once every season. Fun times.
So, how was your weekend?
no subject
Date: May. 22nd, 2012 08:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: May. 24th, 2012 05:53 pm (UTC)I am reasonably certain there are other things one could put Christmas knickknacks on besides one's piano... :-P
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Date: May. 22nd, 2012 09:48 pm (UTC)I mowed, mowed some more, weed-ate and then did more mowing. But it was a beautiful weekend to be outside, so I didn't mind at all. And it was interrupted by the Preakness and my daughter's 30th birthday surprise dinner. Nice weekend.
no subject
Date: May. 24th, 2012 05:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: May. 24th, 2012 08:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: May. 24th, 2012 05:57 pm (UTC)I was in jersey this weekend- went up to asbury with my cousin for a concert because the headliner was bon jovi! Very fun, but I was quite exhausted afterwards. The main stage was literally on the beach, so I went home with a bit of sand in my shoes.
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Date: May. 27th, 2012 04:03 pm (UTC)Haha, I hope you waved to my parents as you passed them going in opposite directions! I'm jealous... I haven't seen Jon in quite some time.