Larry has made good progress on his radio shack. Bedroom No. 3 is acting as a radio shack as well as an office of sorts. Still to come is the antenna tower that they dragged out here from California. No building permit requirements here, just put it up and make sure it doesn’t fall on someone! The radio shack includes a Yaesu FT-8900 quad band for local and repeater comms (Alinco DR-620 for backup), a Yaesu FT-450 HF rig, along with HRD and Digital Master 780 for digital comms, and a scanner (which is not much use here as all the emergency services on digital trunked systems); and of course, a handful of HTs.
Larry & Sue set up the personal weather station on a back corner of the property and it is now online. When their son, John, was visiting, he and Larry improved the guying system and then Larry added some yellow warning covers to the guy wires so he doesn’t run into them when mowing the weeds. You can follow minute-by-minute weather in their back yard with either WeatherUnderground or the PWS Monitor app. The station ID is KTXPAIGE33.
While having some recall work done on the Subaru, Larry & Sue visited the Texas State Capitol in Austin. Did you know that permit carrying is not only allowed, but encouraged at the Capitol, both on the grounds and in the Capitol itself. Well, Larry & Sue were encouraged by the State Trooper who was checking visitors at the metal detector … he demonstrated how the LTC (License To Carry) system worked with Sue’s license, swiped her card and her name and information popped up. He encouraged us to carry at all times … not like what we experienced on the left coast …
Furniture & Appliances
All of the furniture shopping is done. The master bedroom set is completely new, with a country motif appropriate for Central Texas and the home design. The living room furniture is all here now. Larry & Sue ordered a round ‘cocktail’ (coffee) table; however, the salesman ordered a rectangular table – special ordered product. When it was delivered Larry refused acceptance and sent it back. The salesman told Sue that her table had been delivered to another customer by mistake. Larry did some research regarding the product numbers that the salesman used and documented that the salesman ordered the wrong table, and lied to us about it. He told Sue that it would take 3 – 4 more months to get the correct table. She told him to refund her money. She found another store – Lazyboy – that ordered the correct table and had it in 3 weeks. Larry & Sue will never set foot in any of the Star Furniture stores again – and they encourage you to also boycott those stores. When the sales staff outright lies to customers …
The house came with a laundry room about the size of a closet, with a door to the inside and one to the garage, so space was very cramped. In fact it was so cramped that the owners installed stacking washer / dryer setup. Sue was not pleased with this setup, partly because the dryer door opened the wrong way, and the washer door hinges were broken. They had a plumber re-route the plumbing into the garage and Larry re-routed the electricity and dryer vent. Now Sue is using her nice Kenmore washer and the dryer in the garage. The previous laundry room will become a ‘mud room’.
Next, the dishwasher quit working. With a home appliance warranty in place they called for a repairman. The Sears Repairman showed up and analyzed the problem as the drain motor and ordered a new one. When it arrived he came back out to install it and discovered it was the wrong part. He researched it and discovered that the correct part is no longer made (the dishwasher is only 3 years old) or available. The warranty company cashed out Larry & Sue for partial payment on a new dishwasher. The repairman said he makes more repair calls on LG and Samsung products than any other — and those are the two brands we have throughout the house! He gave Sue a few recommendations for dishwashers that he does NOT make repair calls for. So, now a new dishwasher is in place!
Larry & Sue's Texas Adventures 
We love your updates. Thank you!
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Larry and Sue: you have a beautiful home, and this blog is very impressive. You two are natural born Texans. Welcome!
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Hi all , glade to see you simulating into Texas . Any fishing in your area? Like your posts.
Marty K6MGR
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Hi Marty, yep there’s fishing, in the Colorado River if you want rivers. There’s several lakes nearby for lake fishing. Some is catch-release and some is catch-eat!
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This is really cool! Glad you hear you all are settled and so happy in TX. Time is coming when I might be willing to “pull the trigger” on a move, too. Not too soon, though…still have the two moms and Preston’s family to consider. 😉
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Thanks Janis! We are very happy here! Our grandkids visited from San Antonio last weekend, and our son from Dallas came down this weekend and spent two days detailing my pickup as a birthday gift! We’re looking forward to seeing you guys!
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