Happy (belated) Birthday, Luna!

Luna's 7th birthday was on Friday, September 16!  She's the first dog that I've actually known the exact birthday of.  Since we had such a busy weekend we didn't actually get to celebrate it until Sunday, but I don't think Luna cared.  We took her to her favorite store, Paddywack, to get her some puppy pizza and a birthday cookie.  The cookie was free since it was her birthday!  As you can see in this picture, Luna was more than a little excited to get it!

Corgi Fun Day 2011

Luna enjoying a picnic lunch.

Today we took Luna to Corgi Fun Day at McCollum Park which is only a short drive from our home.  It was a beautiful day to mingle with some fellow corgi owners and lovers and we got to see a lot of old friends that we've made through the Meetup group.  As soon as we got there Luna started flirting with a boy corgi puppy!  It really was too bad that there was no off leash area because the two of them could have played for hours!  She also got to see her boyfriend, Milo, but by then she was too interested in the hot dogs that were cooking for lunch.  Matt finally got to meet Luna's sister (same litter) Shadow and her family.  I didn't get any pictures of her this time, but they are almost identical.  Luna's coat is a little rougher and Shadow is a little thicker around the middle, but they have the same face!  In true Luna fashion, she snapped at her when she got too close.  She had been doing so good up until that point.  Oh well, I guess we can chalk it up to sibling rivalry, but truth be told Luna is just a bitch.

Luna and I playing musical "hoops."  As you can see she was very into it.  

Before we left we played musical hoops (hula hoops instead of chairs) and we won 3rd place!  We even got a  3rd place ribbon.   They only had 2 pieces of agility equipment there:  Weave poles and a single jump.  I was SHOCKED when she ran up to the weave poles and started going in and out of them like a pro!  Sure, she skipped a few, but we haven't practiced agility in over 2 years so I was baffled that she would remember what to do at all especially since I didn't prompt her to do anything.  What a smart girl!  After seeing her take to them so quickly I was half tempted to sign her up for classes since there is a new club in Lynnwood, but I just don't think I have the time or energy right now which saddens me because she could really use the mental stimulation.     Oh well, it is something to keep in mind.

After we left we took Luna to Paddywack so she could pick out a bone.  Her birthday is in a few short weeks so we'll take her back to get a puppy pizza and maybe a birthday cookie.  Yes, they really sell such things there.

Once we got home, Luna immediately wanted to snuggle and fall asleep in my lap.  She's such a spoiled girl lately!  Next weekend, Matt and I are taking her to the 20th annual PAWSwalk to help raise money for the low-kill shelter where we adopted Fidel (RIP) and Vlad.

I was so proud of Luna when she remembered how to use the weave poles!

Shattered Stove

One day our stove exploded.

OK, so it didn't really "explode", but something crazy happened to it and the glass door shattered into a million pieces.

It was a Sunday night and I was getting ready to start another work week (ugh) when all of a sudden we heard the sound of glass breaking coming from the kitchen.  My first thought was that Joey had launched another plate off the kitchen counter or that the cats had gotten into something, but when we ran into the kitchen we stood watching in horror as the entire glass door of our stove slowly shattered onto the floor.  There were big chunks and little pieces all of over our small kitchen floor.  

Here's the picture I snapped right after it happened:

Notice how Luna's food and water bowls are right there?  So glad she wasn't eating dinner when this happened!

After we got all the glass cleaned up, it is surprisingly heavy by the way, I started Googling "shattered GE stove" to make sense of what just happened.  We hadn't been using it when it broke.  In fact, I hadn't cooked anything in it for a few weeks.  

What I found surprised me:  This is a fairly common problem!  I couldn't find an explanation for it, but it sounds like it is some kind of defect with self-cleaning ranges.  

I eventually called GE's Service Line and was given the prices for how much it would cost to send a tech out on a service call ($79.98) and how much we'd pay in labor per hour if we decided to fix it ($39.98), but I wasn't told how much the parts would cost and if all together it would cost more than the stove is worth.  Although it came with our condo when we bought it my best guess is it was around $400.  

Frustrated that it seemed OK that my stove could spontaneously explode for no reason I Googled this problem again and stumbled on a gold mine of information at a website called "The Consumerist."   The article talks about how a son helps his parents get their GE stove fixed after it shatters into a million pieces like ours by tweeting GE on Twitter!  Genius, I tell you.  Simply, genius.  I followed his advice and tweeted this:  The glass door of our 4 year old GE range spontaneously shattered! Scary - dogs dishes right by stove. Does GE have a Twitter account?   

Easy enough, right?

That same night I got this response:  GE_Appliances

@sabby12s Oh no, that's so scary! Pls email the details to xxxxxx@ge.com & we'll see how we can help. >Megan

Hey, I can do that.

So I sent the listed email address this note:  

Hello,

Megan from GE-Appliances on Twitter gave me this email address to send more information about our 4 year old GE Range.  I've attached a picture of the damage.  Thankfully, nobody was in the kitchen at the time, but what we find perplexing is that we hadn't used it in at least 2 weeks so it wasn't hot either.  After calling the GE service line to get price quotes on how much it costs to repair it we are not sure if it is worth it to fix the door or buy a new range.  I didn't get enough information from the operator to make a decision. 

The model # of our range is JBP70B0K3BB and the serial # is RL253512Q. 

I'd appreciate any help with this matter.

Thank you!

Notice how I didn't ask for anything for free because all I wanted was help trying to figure out whether my range is worth repairing or if I should just go buy a new one?  Pretty incredible considering I got this as a response just 2 hours after I sent it:

Hello Sabrina,

Thank you for reaching out to us at GE.  I'm sorry to hear that the glass in your oven door shattered but so thankful that no one was injured. I can certainly understand your concern and will be happy to assist you.

Although your range is outside the warranty, this is an unusual occurrence and not what we expect from our products.  Therefore, I would like to offer to cover the total cost (parts, labor, and home call) to repair your range. 

I have documented your information and this offer in case file number 12130147. If you would like to accept this offer, please reply to this e-mail with your complete address, phone number for service contact, and the days that are best for you to have a scheduled service call.  With this information, I will be happy to make the arrangements for you.

I look forward to hearing back from you.

Sincerely,

Michelle

Social Media Solutions

GE Appliances

Holy schnikes!  My stove is getting fixed - for FREE!

OK, kids what did I learn from this?  2 things.  1.  The internet is a wonderful thing and 2. GE has the best customer service I have every dealt with.

I'll keep you posted on how the repairs go!