Back and Settled

I'm going to have to do several catch-up posts. It's been way too long since I've posted anything! We just got back from a two week vacation in Utah, only to discover our internet still wasn't working here at the house.
The day before we left, we had Charter come and get us set up, but when they left, there was a long cord draped across our lawn from the back of the house to the telephone pole in the opposite corner behind us. Like, in the grass. We called them up to ask how we were supposed to mow our lawn, or keep kids off it, or function at all with their "hi-tech" setup, and they agreed to come back and bury it for us while we were gone. I wasn't impressed with that solution at all, but I figured it was better than nothing.

Right side of the backyard. The big tree on the right is near the edge of our property, and beyond that you can see a sliver of the neighbor's yard and the 4 acres of common ground. 

We got back to no internet, and called to figure out what the problem was. I figured it must have had something to do with the burial of the cord. Another long conversation later, and me unplugging and plugging the modem and router in to no avail, we had to wait two more days for someone to come look at it. I waited for the entire time window they gave me, and no one came. I called. They said someone was coming. Nope. An hour later, I called, and they said my appointment had been cancelled because they had the wrong number and couldn't reach me. (?!??!?)

Left side of the back yard. You can see the end of the driveway where you turn into the back-facing garage here. 

So I waited around all morning again today. Finally someone came (who seemed a little more competent, thankfully!), and he threw his hands up in the air at the mess he had to fix. The guy spent hours redoing everything, this time, configuring it along the same path as the main electric from the roofline to the back corner of our lot. And it works! Hallelujah, it works.
Anyways, sorry for the vent. I haven't been neglecting this blog entirely of my own choosing. Now, back to business.