Sunday, June 18, 2006

Now You're All Going To Be Sorry, Part One

We all knew there would surely be some negative repercussions to my getting a camera phone, and here's your gentle introduction to the hell that will surely follow.

I wrote some months ago about our Louisville crash pad, and it's time we were all formally introduced.



This is the alleyway that leads behind the main house (on the left) to the old garage "Carriage House" in the back. Notice that nobody ever seems to clean the alleyways here, the leaves and grass and sticks and garbage and so on having accumulated for a century or more. But it gives the place an old-world kind of charm. And I love the brick streets.



Here's the dump itself, with my new (tiny) car alongside as a scale indicator. Notice the lovingly-cultivated trees growing out of the gutters above. Classy. Moving right along, we'll head inside.



This is as much of the place as can be captured on camera. I tried to snap the bedrooms upstairs, but they're too small to show any detail. This is one end to the other. Notice the lovely decor: plastic lawn chair for playing Halo on the dust-covered X-box and third-hand TV; walls covered with aircraft teaching diagrams; Nordic-Track brand clothes drying rack; high-class folding table and chairs (with my 64 oz. glutton-master Diet Coke mug perched atop).



Same room looking the other way. One of my roommates in characteristic pose. Note second folded Nordic Track brand clothes drying rack behind him.



The nerve center of our culinary adventure. The stove is brand new, the owner having decided the old one was responsible for months of pungent gas smells and beyond redemption. Nice to have a new appliance to pile unused pans atop. We should all pause here to express our thanks that the phone camera is only 1.3 megapixel, as greater detail would reveal that this kitchen has not been cleaned thoroughly in five years. Five.



Lastly, here is one of the 50 park entrances, the one closest to the crash pad. Note the lush greenery. We walk here most every day. I wanted a picture of my beloved Qdoba for this post, but I keep forgetting I have a camera with me.

Ah well, we have to have something to look forward to!

8 comments:

Lizzie said...

What a cozy little crashpad! btw, if the Nordic Track drying rack breaks, exercise bikes work well too.

mmmm... Qdoba. I love that place.

Lucy said...

Qdoba is coming to Winston! My husband almost wept for joy when he found out.

How many roomies share the crash pad? My friend E. is a JFK based flight attendant (but lives here). She shares a crash pad with like 15 other FAs.

Joshua said...

Sadly, I think your crash pad is bigger than my apartment.

In other news, I finally got on a streetbike. You can read the disaster that was my first ride on my site, but it got better, and I actually feel like I can ride one. Carly's dad has an 82 virago he will give me. I thought 750 would be too big for me just starting out, but when I found out it was a "girls bike" I had to "man up"

wstachour said...

It's sad that I eat at Qdoba every single day that I'm here, sometimes more than once. Today, driving home, I even made a detour off the interstate in Milwaukee to eat at a Qdoba THERE. What's wrong with me?

The crashpad houses five of us. We were four--all from the same new-hire class--for the first four years, but as our schedules have improved we spend a bit less time here each month, and one of the guys' buddies (the guy in the couch in the photo) got hired a year ago and we took him in too. This is my fourth or fifth crash pad (though my only one at this company), and this one is nicer than most. I once shared a one-bedroom apartment near O'Hare with 15 other pilots and flight attendants. Talk about a code violation!

Lastly, the Virago is a perfectly respectable motorcycle, and if in good mechanical condition should make a great first ride! Photos, please! (I'll check your blog; maybe they're there.)

Dzesika said...

Ooh Qdoba ...

The British cannot do the Big Burrito. I do not understand this.

wstachour said...

This is not the first hit I've ecountered about British culinary tastes. Personally, I'm all about delegation: let someone suited to the job do the duties!

Joshua said...

So is a 250 too small for me? I cannot decide: the price and weight are right for a first bike, and I can afford a whole lot newer bike, but I am just not sure if I will outgrow one too quickly???

wstachour said...

Yeah, a 250 is definitely too small. You'll not only very quickly outgrow it, but it might even be too small right from the start. I'd say different if you were a young teen, but as an adult I'm convinced you can handle a larger bike--say, 500-750 range. Even a 500 is likely to be outgrown if you intend to ride it on the road. It will certainly do the task, but two-up will be taxing and you will likely soon get to where you could handle a bit more power.

Use your experience with that Virago as a guide. It's a 750, but not a high-powered one. It seems heavy at first, but you'd soon learn the ropes. I'm not particularly a cruiser guy, but I'd still recommend that Virago as a good first choice.