1 Happy birthday to your dad!

Sounds like a productive day you had at casa de Rocket :-)

2 Have you started cursing the thermostat yet?

I'm no Luddite, but I really really really miss the simple mercury-switch Honeywell thermostat from our old house. Simply push a little lever until the system starts. We have a new Honeywell with numerous programs and modes, but no ability to do that one simple little function. I don't want to use my brain to turn on the A/C or heat.

Digital-everything is not always good. Give me a proper analog interface every now and then to keep me happy. I must be getting old.

3 LOL John, the unit I installed was removed from a brand new home by my neighbor (an A/C guy) at the request of the new homeowner who wanted it replaced with an old-fashioned mercury switch model.

This is the second new thermostat I've put in. The first was not long after we moved in, probably 15 years ago. It was getting fussy, but worked reliably for all that time.

I got a complete demo and explanation for how everything on the new one works. Not that it matters much, I'm thinking we'll be very stingy with the heat this winter because of fuel costs. That's ok though, that's what sweaters, blankets and cuddling are for.

4 I've managed to save up roughly $54202 in my bank account, but I'm not sure if I should buy a house or not. Do you think the market is stable or do you think that home prices will decrease by a lot?

5 I've managed to save up roughly $83788 in my bank account, but I'm not sure if I should buy a house or not. Do you think the market is stable or do you think that home prices will decrease by a lot?