Picture of the Moment—The monster under the bed

27 Replies

Picture of the Moment

Long-time readers know that I don’t have children and never wanted children.

I like to jokingly say that it’s because, being the horrible juvenile delinquent that I was, any children I might have had would probably have been horrible juvenile delinquents, too.

Truly, though, it’s because I can’t imagine explaining to a toddler that there really is a monster under the bed.

Zoey the Cool Cat, the monster under the bed

Zoey the Cool Cat has never been an under-the-bed cat, but it is her preferred hiding place when strangers come over. Today, the window tinting guys came over. Instead of installing curtains and blinds on most of the windows, which seemingly get all dusty and never cleaned, Jim & I chose to put privacy tinting on the windows. The tint keeps out 57% of the heat from the sun, allowing the cooling system to work better in this 100°F+ heat wave we’re having. It also lets us see out but doesn’t let people see in. Pretty nice. And less expensive than curtains or blinds.

I'm Zoey the Cool Cat, and I approve this post

27 thoughts on “Picture of the Moment—The monster under the bed”

    1. Russel Ray Photos Post author

      15-20 years if it was installed properly and if you take care of it. If you do window tinting, make sure the installer offers a warranty against bubbles and turning weird colors; purple is the most common weird color. Mine have a 2-year warranty.

      Like

      Reply ↓
      1. acflory

        That’s not bad. Not many curtains would last that long. I had fire resistant shutters installed and they keep the temp. more even as well, but of course they make the house as dark as a cave!

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply ↓
        1. Russel Ray Photos Post author

          When my wise old grandmother died at the age of 93, I was the one who took down the curtains. I don’t think they had been washed or dusted for 20 years since she was only 5 feet tall and wasn’t really climbing up on ladders at that age. I was sick for a couple of weeks afterwards from inhaling all that nasty dust. I went home to my own house and immediately took down the curtains and put up Venetian blinds. They were better because they were easier to clean, but then vertical blinds came along. O.M.G. I was in love with those things.

          I have blackout curtains in the home office and one of the bedrooms but they really do make the rooms dark, which is why I went ahead and switched to LED lights everywhere. Initial cost is higher than incandecents and fluorescents but much cheaper to run all the time.

          Like

          Reply ↓
          1. acflory

            I have mostly venetian blinds too. Except in the family room/kitchen which both face north [our hot side]. There I had these concertina blinds installed that look as if they’re made of some kind of special paper and and run in vertical tracks. They are brilliant at keeping the heat out in summer and in, in winter. If I had the money I’d install them everywhere but they’re expensive. We have those LEDs as well and yes, they are cheaper in the long run.

            Liked by 1 person

            Reply ↓
                    1. Russel Ray Photos Post author

                      Yep. It’s because with 38 million people and very interesting weather throughout the state, we are lacking good or bad ways to generate electricity. We go through brownouts regularly. Some jurisdictions are requiring any new homes to be built with solar panel roofs, and those homes are in good demand.

                      Like

                    2. acflory

                      Ah, I see. In that case I’m rather impressed. Over here, utility companies still see solar panels as a ‘nuisance’ foisted on them by the government. We’re paid a pittance for the electricity we send to the grid but most people can’t afford enough panels to be ‘self sufficient’ so we put up with it and grumble.

                      Liked by 1 person

    1. Russel Ray Photos Post author

      I like vertical blinds, but the windows here are only 28″ wide so vertical blinds would take up a lot of room when they were pulled open, room that Zoey the Cool Cat needs in order to sit on the sill and watch the wildlife. It’s all about her highness.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply ↓

Let your words flow

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.