i'd totally forgot that i was supposed to go to my 2nd aunt's place this morning to install the obihai VoIP phone. then she called me close to noontime; not to remind me (but it did), but rather to tell me that her internet was done. i am of course the IT person for my whole family, so whenever the internet isn't working, i get a phone call. i was in the bathroom at the time and i told her i'd be there in 20 minutes. i then realized i couldn't leave because i had a chicken cordon bleu baking in the oven, so i had to wait until that finished before i raced off to north cambridge via bicycle, because i thought that'd be faster, didn't have to sit around in traffic, could park it anywhere when i got there.

the problem was very obvious once i saw it in person: the comcast xfinity gateway wasn't getting any power. that was weird because the HDTV was still working, just not the gateway. at first i thought the gateway was broken, until i switched outlet, which worked. i then thought it was the power strip, but that worked fine too. finally i determined it was the outlet itself, and realized it was tied to a wall switch; my aunt must've turned it off, which turned off the power strip along with the gateway. i simply switched everything into the strip and plugged it into the non-switched outlet. i also plugged in the obihai, which started working once the 3 LED's turned solid green.

i came home and had my chicken cordon bleu for lunch, still warm in the oven. earlier i discovered that my oven actually runs 25° cooler than the dial temperature. the thermometer read 350°F only because i'd set the oven at 375°F. i'll keep that in mind the next time i bake something. if i had the money i'd replace both the oven and refrigerator. the fridge is more critical, i'd get an energy saving model.

i ordered 8 mason jar solar fairy lights monday night; they were supposed to arrive today wednesday. but a check of amazon's tracking showed that it hadn't even shipped yet. by the end of the day amazon finally sent me an email that was basically, "woops! we said it'd be guaranteed to arrive today but the shipment is running late. maybe thursday or friday, checked back on saturday if it still hasn't arrived yet." i was going to take the lights to belmont to install them, but since they weren't coming today, i decided to wait until they arrived. also my father told me he's been watering the seeded lawn spots so i didn't have to do it.

a few ebay items arrived today: buckle canvas belt ($1.89, ordered 9/8) and solderless clip-on 2-pin connectors for 5050 LED strip lights (10-pack 99¢, ordered 9/8 as well). the belt i originally ordered for the portable battery storage box, but i ordered 3 different ones to try out. this one is more of an actual belt; works fine as a belt, though it seems a little cheap. the plastic buckle (the kind that folds up and locks into place, doesn't ratchet though) also seems like it could break easily. it's not a bad design, i'd just get one with a metal buckle instead.

i had 2 slices of quiche for dinner. i didn't warm them up in the toaster oven long enough, so some parts of the pie was lukewarm instead of hot.

not a day goes by that i don't order something online. tonight i got a set of 6 42 oz. porcelain bowls, 9" diameter for $20.59 (accguan brand). they seem the closest match to an old 40 oz. temporama bowl that i use for everything (salad, noodle soup, fruits) but that my roommates have seemed to crack and it's only a matter of time before the bowl splits in half. i really don't need 6, maybe i'll split some with my parents. funny thing is i checked fakespot and they gave the items a B rating, but i asked them to rescan. i didn't check back before i bought it, and while i was closing tabs, i came across the new rating, now a solid F. so who knows what's going on. they should arrive by friday, if i don't like them i could always send them back. besides the dimensions, another thing is the weight, and that's not something they mention in the product info. my temporama bowl was really light, but i wouldn't mind a slightly heavier bowl. i also need to get a shallow bowl at some point too, 9.5" diameter, 2" depth; the one that i use just as much as the 40 oz. bowl has also cracked and will split at some point.