Pepco

Still not sure if I want to blog about this terrible ordeal.  We are supposed to forget about bad experiences and only remember good ones, right?  But I feel so frustrated, I think I might need to document this, so I can remember for the rest of my life that Pepco sucks!!

The story started in December 2008.  Couple of weeks after we moved into our new house, I called Pepco to "transfer" service from builder to us.  The lady on the phone took my information and said all set.  January came, and I get no bill.  I called again, this time, the guy told me, ok, services transferred now, it wasn't done before.  Fine,  I have electricity, I am not too worried.  February came, still no bill.  I call again.  Their record has our address in Gaithersburg, that's why we didn't get any bill.  So, I told them to change to Rockville.  Even though same zip code, still, different city.  March came, still no bill, I call yet again.  Got my customer ID, and decided to just pay online.  Imagine my shock when I saw the bill for $1200.   This must have been a mistake!  How on earth do 2 people use that much electricity in 2 months?  I also checked with other friends, thinking maybe it's possible for a single house to consume that much electricity.  Everyone I talked to confirmed the abnormality of this bill.  So, I call Pepco yet again.

First step, filed an investigation request with Pepco, to investigate this monster bill.  I should have known requesting a company to investigate their own billing is never worth the time or effort.   Of course I got a reply saying everything is right, we used that much electricity in 57 days.  Not liking that response, we contacted our builder to check if they made any payment to Pepco, for electricity used during construction.  They told us no, they have not made any payments.  So at this point, we and the builder are in agreement that the $1200 bill should be for the period from construction (July 08) to February 09.  We thought it's pretty simple and clear and straight forward.  Well, we thought wrong!  Not only is Pepco insisting that meter was installed in December, and not earlier, they are saying we used all that electricity in 2 months.  Stupid!

So, second step, filing a complaint with the State of Maryland Public Service Commission.  Online form was simple, couple of clicks and a short paragraph.  We got a confirmation that our complaint was under review.  In May, we got a similar response from Pepco, and that we have to provide additional information to the Commission for the complaint to be further reviewed.  So, I spent a good 4 hours to write a 2 page dissertation.  Trying to be factual and not let my frustration show in words.  Found the Official Energy Statistics online, and mailed the whole project in.  3 weeks later (yesterday), I get a response from the Commission.  Pepco is not changing their statement.  Nothing they can do.  Case closed, unless I send a written request to the Assistant Director of the Commission.

I think I almost cried after reading the letter.  How in the world do Pepco explain the fact that we had electricity BEFORE the supposed meter installation date in December?  And how is it possible for a 2 person household to use that much electricity?  Is no one else seeing the absurdity of the claim Pepco is making?!   At this point, $1200 is no longer the issue.  It's the principle.  I refuse to accept that we miraculously had power without a meter, and that we plugged something into every outlet and had everything on for 57 days.  So, what do I do?  I write yet another letter to the Commission.

So, in summary, this is a long battle, and a very emotional one for some reason.  I think I still take things too personally.  For the Commission to side with Pepco is like saying we are wrong.  And I know we are not!  So, if all else fails, our backup plans are 1.buy solar panels and completely cut off Pepco, 2. make Pepco payments at $1/month, or 3. egg their office.  But as I am reminded, I am no longer in high school, and egging public buildings is not very "adult like".  

This is the kind of random stuff that happens in my life......  What can I say.........

Dear God Letter

Recently, I’ve had the urge to write a letter.  It goes something like this:

Yo, God?!  You up there?  It’s me here.  Got to tell you something.  Not real happy with you recently.  I know I should feel “blessed” with everything I have: my loving husband, wonderful job, beautiful house, good health, great family and friends, etc etc.  I also know I shouldn’t complain, because you love us, and everything we experience, good or bad, is for our own good.  Because you love us.  So, I’ll accept the fact that even though you’ve given me pretty good health, but you decided to block one of my fallopian tubes, and some other medical conditions, making it nearly impossible for us to conceive.  I accept these "defects", and see them as a challenge.  So, we try our humanly ways to correct these “imperfections.”  But after 4 years, yes, that’s right, 4 years, we are still getting no where.  Just when I thought, this is it, everything should be good this time, you fail me again.  So, I have decided to declare war on you.  I am going to keep trying, even if there’s no end in sight.  I am going to keep going at it my way, and we’ll see who wins at the end.

P.S.  I know I am just a little tiny earthling, so please, PLEASE, if you see it fit, please bless me with the privilege of motherhood.  I promise to do the best I can, and make you proud.  Thank you.

Weight Gain!

After our first trip to Vancouver in October 2007, Wei has always wanted to go back.  Why?  Because he loves to eat.  I've never considered ourselves to be "foodies," maybe just "foodie-wanna-bes."  So, when President Obama's inauguration gave me a 4 day weekend, I added 3 more days, and went on our second eating trip to Vancouver.  

Technically, it's not Vancouver, it's the city right by the airport, called Richmond.  It is basically the China/Hong Kong-City-in-North-America.  I remember the first time, I was totally amazed by the dense Chinese population.  Imagine a 2 miles radius, with nothing but Chinese malls, shopping centers, restaurants, and businesses.  Yes, Chinese mall.  Complete with it's own indoor water fountain and daily shows with lights and music.  It was close to Lunar New Year, so the whole place was decorated with lanterns and red stuff all over.

We wasted no time in our eating fest.  Our flight landed around 7:30PM, by 9:30 we were at the hot pot place and ready to eat.  On average, we try to eat 4 times a day, with some small snacks in between.  Not counting bubble teas, fresh sugar cane juice (which Wei had a total of 4 cups in 36 hours), and other miscellaneous drinks.  For a sample of what we ate, see album at the end of entry.  

I must say, 7 whole days of eating is too much.  After 3 days, we took a much needed break and drove up to Whistler.  I know, it's a ski resort.  Yes, I hate skiing.  No, I did not ski.  Yes, I got a wonderfully relaxing massage and bath.  And YES, Wei tried snowboarding for the first time, and fell on his butt.  And NO, I did not witness such a rare occasion.  When he was booking his one day lesson for snowboarding, he ask the lady : "I am pretty good at skiing already, are we going to be on the bunny slope the whole time?"  Too much confidence.  He also decided he didn't need the helmet nor the wrist guard, because he's pretty athletic.  Well, he admitted at the end of the day, he's not as young as he thought he was.  Let's just say he was in pain for the next 2 days.

Still, our 2 days at Whistler was very nice.  I wasn't expecting much, being a non-skier at the ski resort.  However, when I took the gondola up to the top, the views were breathtaking.  Sky was clear, mountains every where you look, covered with snow on top.  And it wasn't that cold!  I even walked around a bit, on the snow/ice, while holding on to Wei for dear life, of course.

When we got back to Richmond, we were starving for good food again.  And our feast started again.  Highlights include: fresh live sea urchin sushi, Peking duck skin meal, Alaskan king crab, numbingly spicy hot pot, fresh sugar cane juice, duck from food court, oh, and beard papas!  And note to self, never order hot pot with fish soup as base.  Too fishy!

So, what did this eating trip result?  I think, I am guessing, I gained about 2 pounds.  That's pretty impressive for me, in 1 week?!  Let's see how long this keeps before I loose it all again.

Here's the link to the photos.  Be forewarned, might induce crazy food cravings.  Enjoy!

Year 2008

It's the holiday season again. Feels like we were just at the Christmas eve mass at church, catching up with old friends. I feel like time is moving super fast, and when we do glance up and look, it has come and gone. People say the older you are, the faster time goes. It seems true so far, and if it keeps up, I am not sure what it will be like when I am 60. Maybe the whole year will be gone in a blink of an eye.

Although it feels like time flew by, if I really counted, we did have every single day of the year, and we accomplished quite a lot of things.

Jan 08: Celebrated Wei's 31st birthday. 

Feb 08: Joined the PHS Wind ensemble

            and started playing the bassoon again.

            Office move to White Oak is canceled, on hold indefinitely!

Mar 08: Maternal grandmother passed away in Taiwan
Apr 08: RESTING!
May 08: Decided we should check out single houses

             found the last lot at Potomac Edge
             signed purchase contract
Jun 08:  House cleaning
             PHS COA conference in Tuscon, AZ
             Visit Grand Canyon
Jul 08: Open house!
           Dad's 60th Birthday party
Aug 08: Cousin and family from Taiwan visit
             House under contract!!
Sept 08: First deployment for Hurricane Gustav, Hanna, Ike
             Taiwan!
Oct 08: Hokkaido, Japan!
            Moving/Cleaning/Packing
            House is SOLD!
Nov 08: Move into new home!
            more moving/cleaning/unpacking
Dec 08: even more moving/cleaning/unpacking
            curtains, blinds, and rods

So you see, we really experienced and had each and every single day of the year. I might have to do this every year to remind myself that I am not going crazy, a whole year really has come and gone.

Merry Christmas!

Homeless

We are officially homeless now. Signed the papers this morning, and moved in with my parents. It's so sad to leave our first house together, it's like our baby. We saw it being built, furnished it, and had many great gatherings and memories at the house. Just when we were all done with improvements and ready to really sit back and enjoy, we had to sell it.

Let me first say, I had no idea one can accumulate so much in 4.5 years. Granted I've always suspected that I have too many clothes. But other miscellaneous junk? Like I have 10 different flower vases all in different sizes and shapes. And the number of times I've had to use a vase? Less than 5 in the whole 4.5 years. Then cables, Wei's got cables for computer, TV, speakers, Internet, phone, game consoles, enough for 5 boxes full of them. Think they multiple on its own?

Then it's the packing process. We started sorting through things in July, in preparation for open house. I packed away things we don't usually need, ie junk. I think I am too good at storing things with limited space. I must have packed 30 boxes of "non-essential" things before open house. Then once the house went under contract, I started to pack more and more. And things will materialize, and we would have to ask for more and more boxes. In total, I think we must have packed at least 100 boxes. We stored most of them with family and friends, but we still have furniture to pack and store. In comes the POD. We originally requested a 12 feet long unit, not sure if longer ones will fit the driveway. Ended up with a 16 feet unit, courtesy of the company. Thank goodness! We (by "we", I meant Wei and his brother), jam packed the unit end to end, floor to ceiling. And? It still didn't fit everything. Extra trips to parents house were made, and by the end, I just threw everything in boxes or bags and practiced "out of sight, out of mind".

Last night being our last night at the house, I thought maybe we can have some time to "say goodbye" to our house. We didn't finish cleaning/packing till 2 AM. Buyer were coming over at 8 AM for the final walk through. Needless to say, we were exhausted. We had a quick walk around the house, and bid it farewell this morning. At the settlement office, we handed our keys over, and it was official, the property is no longer our home. We are going to miss you 307 Oak Knoll Terrace!!

So, we are temporarily settled in with my parents. The new place should be ready in 3 weeks, can't wait!

Hokkaido Japan

We just finished our 5 days tour of Hokkaido. It's our second tour to Japan, and second tour with Signet Tour. As usual, food was wonderful, lodging was great, and hot springs hot

Hokkaido is known for its dairy products and seafood. After the milk scare in Taiwan, we went a little crazy. Had ice cream daily, fresh milk daily, and bought 10bags of soft milk candy (Hokkaido specialty) to bring back with us. Every meal was like a feast. We had all kinds of fish, scallops, crabs (grilled, steamed, stewed, fried, and raw), squid, sea urchin (there's a special type of sea urchin called, and I kid you not, "horse shit sea urchin", it actually looks like a black donut with tiny spikes).

This time, we stayed at hot spring hotels for 3 nights. And for 2 of those 3 nights, we slept on traditional tatami. In Japanese culture, hot spring equals to naked public bath. I had a hard time last year with my first Japanese hot spring experience. Basically, you stripe naked in the "locker room", and take with you a tiny hand towel to the public bath area, and shower yourself while seating down. Then you go into the hot spring "bath" all naked, with no towels to hide anything. Why do people do that? Well, in traditional Japanese homes, and in our hotel rooms, the actual shower/bath tub is tiny. One hotel we stayed at had the sink, toilet, and bath tub all in a tiny closet sized room. Not the most comfortable showering/cleansing setting. And then there's the special body scrub, hair shampoo and conditioner, lotions, etc, that's available for use at the public bath area. Wei and I both scrubbed ourselves from head to toe with the peeling gel, and have our skins feeling soft and silky. Then there are different types of hot springs. There is iron spring, salt spring, sulfur spring, dead sea spring, and some other that I couldn't understand. They all benefit different parts of our body, and supposedly promotes good health. So, we would bath once when we check into the hotel, once before bedtime, and once more before breakfast the next day. Result? I am no longer conscious of myself naked in front of strangers.

Taiwan High Lights

We finished our week long vacation in Taipei on Monday. High Lights are:

We were interviewed and broadcasted on Taiwan news! Saturday morning, we were walking around, and went into a grocery type of store by our hotel. TV crew were there interviewing people about the tainted milk products. The lady asked us if we eat "peanut milk". I took that to mean literally, peanut flavored milk. Wei was smarter than me, and understood correctly that she meant candies make of peanut milk. The whole 3 minutes, I was laughing at Wei's awkward Mandarin. I thought they'd just delete our section. Guess no one else was willing to talk to them, so they aired us. Need to find the clip and download it somehow.

Eva Air upgraded us to first class! Monday morning was our flight from Taipei to Hokkaido. Guess we were kind of early, when we checked in, the lady told us she made some arrangements to our seating. We didn't pay much attention to it, since we didn't have seat numbers before, we thought she just gave us seats together close to the front. So being assigned row 7, we boarded the plane towards the end. Wei was wondering how come our seats were H and K, they don't seem to be next to each other or even close. When we got on, we were shown to the first class section. Apparently, rows 6-9 are first class. Of course we didn't complain. Wei seems to think the lady at the checkin counter thinks he's cute, so upgraded us at no charge. In any case, it was so nice!! They fed us all the time, had "tray clothe" for meals, and food was served in real china. We had food menu and drink menu. The best part was the seat. It reclines all the way so I can sleep like in a bed! Too bad the flight was only 3 hours. I told Wei that's the only way to travel from now on.