MetalGeek : Code, Metal and Cleverness

They don't call it NetZero for nothing

Or maybe they do call it NetZero for nothing. Because nothing is what I got from it. We're still awaiting installation of a T1 line, so internet is a 15 minute drive away. I remember dial-up being slow, but not impossible. It may be just an overworked network, or some of the crap "homepage" stuff that they cram down your throat, but the bottom line is that this just doesn't work. And it's apparently impossible to just connect via the user name and password without their crap software, so you can't tell if that's the broken part.

The cherry on top of this particular shit pie is that even though you can sign up easily online, you have to call their foreign call center and speak to someone who's not that good with English and convince them that yes, you do want to cancel their crap service and no, you don't want their free-for-one-month Norton anti-viral virus and please go away and JUST CANCEL THE DAMN THING ALREADY!

And then you have to wait another 10 minutes on hold while they actually push the button and do it.

Do. Not. Want.

Rural Internet

We will soon be moving to Maiden Rock township, in what is apparently part of Stockholm, Wisconsin. The single biggest issue so far is internet access. No DSL or cable. There is satellite available, but the signal is a little spotty and depends on the weather. But the biggest problem with it is that there's a monthly limit of 17GB (or 30GB if you want to pay $400. a month). Comcast currently says there's a 250GB cap and we haven't ever heard a peep about it, so that would be plenty. Without Netflix or wasting time on YouTube, I figure I could get by on 10GB, but I'm not the major breadwinner, and I'm not the one doing graphic design. I'm guessing we'd need 50 to 100 GB/month to make it work for us. Living out in the country means we'd have a little more desire to keep connected to friends far away, so throttling the internet umbilical cord doesn't sound like a great idea.

T1 looks to be about $600/month with either a 2 or 5 year contract. There are various radios that might work to connect to a neighbor's DSL connection. DSL comes within a mile of us, which isn't too much for these devices. But I don't know if there are any pitfalls with this idea.

If anybody has an idea, let me know or leave a comment.

SOLD

Well, it's all over but the crying. Four days, four offers. Each of them more than the asking price. We were both blown away by all the compliments and by how eager all of the hopeful buyers were.

I was surprised at myself for how bad I felt about the bidders who didn't make it. Our next project is straining our finances well past the point of what's sensible, and we approached the sale with little more than a hope that we would end up with as much cash in our pockets as possible. It didn't occur to me that we'd end up breaking somebody's heart.

I'll feel sad about leaving this place, but Maiden Rock, Wisconsin is calling our names. We've found another home; truly a once in a lifetime opportunity. It's closer to what we've dreamed of than anything I'd thought possible. Now it's up to us to make the dream come true.

House for sale (not any more) - 1391 Brompton, St. Anthony Park, St. Paul, MN

We've accepted an offer. See my next post.

Yes, it's small. But it's very very cute. Nice neighborhood. Close to just about everywhere in the Twin Cities.

After 12 years, we've done just about all we can to this little house. I made the mistake of buying Sarah Susanka's The Not So Big House about 10 Christmases ago, and one thing led to another. We've had lots of press over the years. A Sunday cover in the home section of the Star Tribune, the Parade of Homes Remodeler's Showcase, a feature in a Better Homes and Gardens book, and the Family Handyman built us a deck. Strangely enough, the architect hired for the deck project was from SALA, where Sarah Susanka was a founding partner.

It's time for a new challenge. More about that later.



more photos here

For more info, contact Wayne Groff at Edina Realty (612) 867-0915