Chromilo Amin

It was my sister-in-law's birthday a few days ago and we decided that it would be fun to go recreational kayaking out at Deep Cove in Panorama Park, North Vancouver. We rented a single-person and a two-person kayak from Deep Cove Canoe and Kayak Centre for $38 each for 2 hours. We paddled through the tranquil sea waters staying close to the inland so that we don't get in the way of any motor boat traffic. We tried to find the waterfalls but turned around thinking we didn't have time (that's too bad). We briefly saw a lone freckled seal close to the moored boats before it went underwater and disappeared from view. Rumor has it that she has pups around the wharf area. My sister-in-law said she enjoyed paddling around that day and I must say she was very brave for doing this, especially since she doesn't swim. She and her husband enjoyed it so much that they said they'll go out and buy a two-person kayak soon. You...

We were planning to go to California to Legoland and Disneyland but decided that we will do that when my youngest is a little older. We kept it local instead and just got back from a fun-filled vacation to the Vancouver Island and Seattle. We found that it was better to save on hotel fees and spend those savings on attractions and of course on shopping instead. Ferry Ride to Vancouver Island We took the Spirit of British Columbia ferry ride to Swartz Bay from the Tsawwassen Terminal for $82 one way. This included two adults and two kids in a sedan. The trip was 2 hours long and scenery was spectacular. Chinatown in Victoria We parked in Chinatown and had some dim sum at Dynasty Victoria Restaurant. It was decent but a little expensive costing us about $60 for lunch. We used up our 2 hour meter parking by walking around the area. We found hidden shops in between tight walkways between tall brick buildings. Royal BC Museum Our target destin...

I noticed that water wasn't draining properly through one of the downsprouts serving the gutter from the top-most part of the roof, about 20 feet high. One can tell that the downsprout was clogged because rain water would fill the gutter and spill over a corner of the roof. I had to get up there and remove the debris but it was so high up and am scared of heights. I called around and received a few quotes. My sister said that she paid $100 to have her gutters at home cleaned but she might have said that she used a Groupon discount. Wife had someone come to the house and say it would cost us $300 to clean all our gutters. I decided to do it myself. My neighbor Martin has a ladder that extends to 20 feet that he lets everyone in our culdesac borrow as needed. However, it wouldn't be long enough to climb on top of the roof (and I wouldn't even if it was long enough). I decided to get one of those gutter hoses that extend to limitless heights and spray super high velocity w...

We went to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle-Washington this past weekend and I thought it was a great weekend destination. Kids loved it because the little guy kept screaming at the top of his voice each time we went to see a new species; and my wife and I had a good workout because we went over the zoo grounds twice. The zoo is open until 6pm on the weekends so we made sure to come in early to have time to see all the attractions. To do this, we decided to stay overnight at nearby La Quinta hotel in Everett which is about 30 minutes away north of the zoo and then be able to easily get to the zoo the next morning. This hotel is also only 25 minutes south of the Premium Outlets and/or Walmart in Tulalip so that one could go shopping during the day before checking in at the hotel. There is a $6 discount for the Woodland Park Zoo from the hotel brochures counter so this is another incentive for staying overnight. The entrance fee was around $18 for adults and $12 for chi...

This is a continuation from my previous post titled "Product Review:  My Vitapur Water Dispenser Has Started Leaking" linked here  http://www.chromiloamin.com/2012/01/produce-review-my-vitapur-water.html .  I have since moved the unit to the garage to avoid damages due to  flooding mishaps and believe I have narrowed it down to a defective  water bottle. I have two 18L water bottles that I prefill to save me a trip to the  water depot whenever one is depleted. I noticed that one of the two  causes a slow but steady internal leak. I won't use that from now on  and will see if that finally puts an end to the madness. The user  manuals indicate that the water bottle could be the source of the  problem but just like maps, I never pay attention to either of them. That'll teach me.

Now that the weather is getting nicer, it's time to bring out the charcoal barbeque grill and head out to the beach. That's what we did a few weekends ago and trekked to the local beach for some roasted pork chops and eggplant. These two are a great mix when served with white vinegar, chopped garlic, and hot chili. And last week, we had some roasted marshmallows until late while sitting around this fire pit. There was endless amount of firewood which made it easy to lounge about doing nothing but stuff our faces with roasted treats. Kids enjoyed it too by the way. SD47D624BC5P

We received the little guy's ice skating report card last week after completing the Preliminary set. His report card shows tasks completed and not completed which include these four incomplete items below: - Walk under hoops - Walk and pickup toys - Follow a circuit drawn on ice - Get up alone His teacher Trina puts in these nice comments on the report: "Awesome effort. You have done so well this set. Every day you are getting stronger and faster at standing up and taking some marching steps. Keep working hard. I enjoy teaching you and am proud of you. Very well done." I'm also really happy with his progress. He starts on the Preliminary Advanced set of lessons this week, so let's get it on!