A new year is here, er, well almost… 

Before we get to the info, here is my favorite trivia question of all time.  Christmas and New Year's Day always fall on the same day of the week, right.  Christmas on a Friday?  New Year's will be on the following Friday.  

When was the last year Christmas and New Year's day weren't on the same day of the week?  Answer coming up...

The important thing is that you still have time to make some New Year's resolutions for your home.

So everybody, repeat after me:

 - I promise to change my furnace filter once a month, or at least once a quarter.

 - I promise to call my favorite heating and air company and purchase a yearly maintenance contract which will keep my furnace and a/c running more efficiently.

 - I promise to have my insulation inspected to make sure that I have enough to effectively hold in all that good heat and cool air.

 - I will take a serious look at my old, crappy water heater before it gives up the ghost and fills my basement with old, crappy water.  While I am at it I will look at a high efficiency unit, or perhaps even a tankless water heater.

 - I will take an hour out of my busy year to have my garage door inspected and have general maintenance preformed on it.  I know, it's just your old garage door, but it is the largest moving thing on your home and it needs some tlc too.

 - I will have my septic system cleaned out if it's been more than 3 years since I last had that done.  I will also have my ducts sucked if it's been 5-7 years since I've had that done.

 - I will take a moment and stand out at the curb and look back at my house.  I do this to see if my siding needs replacing or painting, I have missing shingles, or if the swing set I dismantled back in '97 is still sitting in pieces alongside the garage.  In short, I will paint, shingle, and clean up my yard.

 - I will make sure my termite letter is up to date and if it's been more than 5 years I will have my house re-treated for those flying pests.

 - I will wash and seal my deck sometime between the Masters and Memorial Day.  If my deck is wearing out I will seriously look into building a new, maintenance free deck.

 - I will make sure my crawlspace has plastic on the ground and insulation in the floor joists above.  I realize that this is a 2-3 hour chore that if stretched out correctly can take all day and leave you in enough good graces to allow you to play golf for the next month.

Ok - here is the answer to "When was the last year that Christmas Day and New Year's Day didn't fall on the same day... "   2015 or 2016 or 2001 for that matter.  Actually - Chrismas and New Year's never ever fall on the same day in a year, the year always changes in between them.  Need a referrence?  Look at your handy calendar in your checkbook.

Thank you.