Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - September 14, 2014

Good Sunday morning to y'all! Since it is Sunday, this is my weekly off television topic reflection of the past week in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're looking for Big Brother live feeds content, you can find my latest (and the whole shebang!) right here at this link.

I know I'm late with this this morning, but I actually slept in. I'm on a staycation, having spent any vacation monies on my new refrigerator. It's the first time I've ever had a brand spanking new refrigerator in my lifetime of apartment renting. So, this thing better entertain me this week! I do plan a few small day things, maybe even the Feast of San Genaro in the city, but buying a refrigerator used up most of my discretionary cash.

September 12 marked what I call Vincent's birthday -- the day I adopted him. We met at New York City Animal Care & Control on September 12, 2009. So, this is his fifth birthday even though they thought he was around five when I adopted him. He's still my Spanish Harlem munoquito. Yes, the shelter is in Spanish Harlem ... so I can sing all kinds of songs at him. "There is a cat in Spanish Harlem ..."

A few refrigerator notes:

• They do have an equivalent of a new car smell!
• While I'll miss the side-by-side freezer space, this 18.2 is definitely big enough for me.
• I had to buy it as the old one started being sporadic. It always looked beat-up and nasty as I bought it for $200 on September 11, 2001. Yes, THAT day. I was in my car heading to my then used refrigerator connection when I heard the news on the car radio. I had never had to buy my own refrigerator for an apartment before and cash was short as I had just spent all my on hand money (or most of it) on security deposit and rent while not having my previous security deposit in my hands yet.
• I can't really complain. That was a lot of years for a cheap used refrigerator.
• Alas, the used refrigerator connection has since passed away and I was desperately searching. I needed not only the refrigerator delivered, but someone to haul away the old one.
• I checked out Craigslist, but no individual sellers want to deliver! Gah.
• So, I checked out the Sears online -- there's an outlet location roughly a half-mile down the street from me.
• For under $500 I got your basic refrigerator with both delivery and haul away of the old. Brand new, although they say it has a dent on it. 
• I can't find the dent.
• It has a humidity controlled crisper drawer and door bins large enough to hold gallon bottles. Despite some internet reviews, it's very quiet and the freezer door (top mounted freezer) does NOT open when closing the refrigerator doors. Nor are the shelves flimsy. What are they putting on them? Cases of beer?
• I was going by price and the delivery/haul away factors when I panicked about the old one dying and ordered it. Afterwards, I read reviews. Overwhelmingly, people seemed to like it. However, as always on the internet, there were some haters. 
• So far I really like it. Plus, it has a warranty anyway. I didn't buy their extended warranty. I have a couple of weeks to decide on that. I'm not rough on things -- I still have a working 8-track tape player and a microwave I bought in the late 80s. As long as it's built well, it should last me.
• From the refrigerator manual in the troubleshooting pages

Problem: My refrigerator doesn't seem to stay as cold as it should.
Cause: Opening and closing the doors too often.
Solution: Stop opening and closing the doors so often.

Heh.

Onto the photos of the week. I didn't really take a ton of photos as I only worked four days and only really walked/commuted on three days. On Thursday I had an all day meeting in Parsippany (NJ). Someone else drove. I had my camera, but you don't want to see photos of us stuck in traffic heading into NYC in the morning and traffic stuck coming out of NYC in the late afternoon. Oy!

Sunrise over Plainfield

I love seeing the sunrise as I head to the train station heading to work! This was one morning looking at it from Roosevelt Avenue in Plainfield.

Due to the night's darkness lasting longer, I got some decent shots of the Harvest Moon, the last "supermoon" of the year, as I headed to work earlier in the week. To make the images full screen, click on the diagonal arrow on the bottom right of the slideshow.

Plainfield Train Station

Another day heading into work ...

Fleeting beauty

A sunrise as seen from East Second Street in Plainfield.

Five minutes later

By the time I turned onto Church Street in my morning walk to the train station, the reds were gone.

This week's flower slideshow is a bit sad. My apologies.

Tsk, tsk

Somebody's mother is going to be really angry. This school blazer was abandoned on a bush on Berckman Street in Plainfield. School just started at the end of the prior week and already a blazer has gone missing!

Vincent checks out the new 'fridge

I do own more than a head of cabbage and a bottle of water. This was as I started transporting things from the Igloo cooler to the new refrigerator. I had left the cabbage out, so it was first in!

Vincent celebrates his "birthday"

By rolling in catnip, of course! There's nothing wrong with his eye -- I used the flash on this shot and it turned out a bit reflective as cat eyes tend to do.