The week after Christmas is one of my favorite weeks of the year. I love that the hustle and bustle of the holiday is over (even though this year there was neither a hustle nor a bustle). I love that the to-do lists are done, the food is prepared and hopefully there are leftovers, and all that’s left is to snuggle up and watch stuff on TV, maybe read some books, definitely do some knitting. I try and keep my goals for this little interlude very low. I don’t create lists or goals, I just allow each day to unfold in a natural sort of way.
This year I did have a couple of things I wanted to accomplish other than my usual daily habits. One was to sort out the floor of our bedroom closet as it had gotten quite messy over the last little while. I got this done last week with some help from Dale, mostly in the form of him standing behind me while I sat on the floor and hauled stuff out and handed it back to him. He placed it all on the bed and I went through it, clearing out some things, putting other things back where they belong, and hanging up a few odds and ends. My biggest problem is a giant bag of hand knit socks. Even though I love to knit them I just don’t wear them much anymore. They are too thick for most of my shoes and I also don’t have enough drawer space for all of them. They are still in the bag . . . ahem . . . but this weekend I plan to sort through them, keep my favorites, and offer the others up to Hannah.
The other thing I wanted to get done was to mend some jeans. I have 2 or 3 pairs where the . . . upper thigh area . . . has worn right through. I think it’s a consequence of the stretchy fabric that most jeans are made of these days because Jessica was recently complaining to me about the same problem. Unlike the closet, I didn’t get to the jeans. My plan was to spend some time with the sewing machine yesterday (a bonus day off I decided to treat mysel to) but I was sidetracked. It was a legitimate sidetrack, too.
We had to have our WiFi router replaced. It’s been iffy for ages but at the end of last week it really started crapping out a lot. I’d have to unplug it and plug it back in and sometimes we could connect again and sometimes we couldn’t. As a consequence, the Nest thermostat would go offline. Alexa would disconnect and be kind of bitchy about it, frankly. And, horror of horrors, Netflix was unavailable. I made an appointment with xFinity and the technician came out yesterday morning. He literally called our old router a dinosaur and said he hadn’t seen that model in a home for at least 6 or 7 years. He quickly replaced it and reminded me several times that I would have to update all of our devices with the new WiFi name and password.
Yep. No problem. I deal with technology all the time. I’ve got this.
Except.
Do you know how many WiFi things we have? There’s the 3 televisions, the 3 laptops, the iPad, the iPhones, the Peloton (I know, I know, I still haven’t told you about that), the 4 Alexas, and ALL of the damn WiFi plugs. 17 WiFI plugs to be exact. You see, our Christmas lights are all plugged into WiFi so that Alexa can turn them all on and all off every day. No more running through the house unscrewing bulbs every night at bedtime. It’s lovely. But they all had to be reconfigured for the new network.
It took a long time.
And that’s why I didn’t get to mend my jeans on Christmas vacation.
Finally, because every blog post needs a picture, I present this shot of my darling on Christmas morning as he was about to head next door and deliver a plate of Swedish goodies to his dad. Please to note the matching mask and flannel pants.
Stand back, girls, he’s all mine. (And I wouldn’t want it any other way!)
I bet Hannah will be delighted to get some more handknit socks! If nothing else, Carole, I would be tempted to keep them for bed socks. And technology is my nemesis. I love the results, but I don’t love the process of updating routers and modems and passwords, and, and, and… Here’s hoping your router is good for another few years. Enjoy your uninterrupted technology for a while.
I think we never appreciate technology more than when it’s not working. And we never hate it more than when we have to update it! Let’s hope that router is good for a while and you don’t have to go through all that updating again anytime soon!
From the commercials, I would have thought you could say “Alexa, change the WiFi password on everything, including yourself!” ? I love the days after Christmas too, especially this year when the holiday fell on a Friday so I didn’t have to work the next day. (The only good thing about 2020, I think!) We still had company over Christmas week, though, so our quiet time came over the long New Year’s weekend.
And computers will make us paperless, too. The misinformation about the convenience of technology are many. Doesn’t pajama-clad delivery make those treats taste better?
I thought this post was going to be about your new phone! Technology is wonderful until it isn’t. also, Dale is adorbs in that matching plaid!
I hear you on that whole technology thing…ugh. (and I am so glad that Steve deals with all of that in our house! lol)
I am going to be tackling the same closet dilemma this week and your idea of offering things to Hannah has sparked an idea for me! Thank you! 🙂
Every time we add a new device to the WiFi I shake my head and hope that they don’t all need to be updated any time soon. I did the closet clean out too.
Dale is the man! I mean who can resist a man in buffalo check! Glad you had some time to get a couple of things done. It’s just so easy to keep sitting isn’t it?
Yep. Technology is great… until it isn’t!! Hopefully, you’ll soon find the time to mend your jeans. 🙂
I feel almost Amish! We have one TV at each house, we each have a laptop and a phone, and I have one Kindle and an iPod. No Alexa or wifi plugs, which maybe means I’m missing out on things they could do for me, but it sure is simpler when it’s time to change passwords. I can live without Alexa but would hate to be without Netflix or Hulu. I bet Hannah will be thrilled with handknit socks and your jeans can wait!
wait… there is a fix for the thighs on jeans wearing out?? will be keeping an eye on the blog for THAT fix!
Yay you for getting it all worked out!! Technology is a necessary beast!! A Peloton….I’m looking forward to hearing about it. 🙂
Happy wifi to you! Oddly enough, we replaced our router last month, gave it the same name/password, and I don’t recall having to reconfigure all my devices. This was also an Xfinity router, but not so old as yours. We had it sent to us, and DH followed the instructions that came with it.
Oh, Dale! I love you! XO
We re-did our entire wifi network just before Thanksgiving. We have always had a hodgepodge set of wifi “extenders” in our house to cover the (many) ” wifi deadzones.” I finally got SICK OF IT, and we had a new wifi network designed and installed by professionals (instead of me). It is such a treat to have it all set up and working smoothly. (FOUR Alexas??????)
(I rarely wear my handknit socks. They just sit in my drawer, looking pretty.)
I’ve had an old router for years, think it was over 5 years old. We didn’t stream but it was a pain to turn it on and off to get a wifi signal. Working from home from March on I finally called Cox, was going to have them come, then worried about Covid (this was early on in it) so cancelled that. 2 months later I couldn’t take it and the guy on the phone told me I’d have no problem hooking it up and I could have someone come if I couldn’t get it to work. Luckily it was easy and has been working fine. I’m glad now that I’m doing yoga on YouTube.
I haven’t worn any of the socks I knit but it’s only about 5 pairs. I do have a hopechest full of 20 + years of knitting. I plan to go through them once as the place I like to donate to is open to receiving clothes again and a ton will go to them, mostly scarves and shawls.
Love the matching mask to pants!
I feel your pain! I went through the same thing shortly P.S. (Pre-Shutdown) last year and I was AMAZED at how many devices I have connected to wifi!
I love the matching pj pants and mask. The perfect Christmas outfit. I also love that big peace ornament on the tree. Happy New Year.