True to form, nothing is simple for the Beast. He tries so hard to be careful but something always seems to get screwed up for him. He went and bought the 4x4 to replace the rotted post and also a length of 2x4 for the rail sections. The 4x4 he measured from the one he had removed since it was rotted inside. He showed me the section he had removed and gouged out a huge section (to make sure there were no termites involved). The inside of the post was very wet, which made that easy to do. The banister rail was the same way. He was a little concerned about carpenter ants but I guess they only like dead, dry wood.
I helped get the post set in place (while holding the level to make sure it was kept straight). That wasn't easy since he kept knocking into it while laying on the sidewalk, trying to drill the screws into place. I kept having to check the front and side section and knocking it into place. After the second screw, it required tension to make sure it was straight.
After that, it was making the proper angle cuts for the top and bottom rail and that is where he really had his problems. First of all, they weren't EXACTLY 45 degree angles. Second of all, the first section (for the bottom), he actually cut totally wrong. It should have been cut like this: \_______\ and he cut it like this /_____\. You get the idea, I hope. The good thing was that he measured the new piece of wood wrong so he was able to re-cut it and it almost fit snugly. He ended up having to caulk a bit of it that attached to the front post but you could tell the guys that originally built the porch did a bit of that, too. I know because I peeled off some of it.
When he ran up to Lowe's to buy another 2x4, they were closed (they close early on Sunday and he forgot). So, the rebuilding will continue tomorrow. I will have to help more once he has to put the struts that run between the top and bottom rails. He won't be able to manage that alone.
When he was busy after I helped with the front post, I got busy pulling down this vine that had taken possession of the tree in front of our living room window. Not only the tree but it had also started attaching itself to the house and the front porch around our door. It almost covered my gnome but hadn't attached itself, thankfully. It's a cheerful *Welcome* gnome that was a housewarming gift from the Beast's aunt. She had one that I had always liked so she got us one, too.
I had to yank, pull and even use the big pruning sheers to get most of that off the tree. Then the Beast tells me that he's going to remove that tree, too. In a way, I don't blame him. It blocks the light badly (even without the vines) and I don't think the roots do any good under the house. It's going to really change the looks of our house when that one goes. I hope he takes out the three bushes in front of the tree, too. We'll be able to get at our hose more easily and I would rather plant tulips and crocus there so it looks nice at the first hint of Spring. I don't want anything that grows tall in that area. I still have hopes of extending our front porch one day and it will make it much easier to do the less we have in that area.
I was amazed at what a difference pulling the vine down made. I actually thought it was just the tree itself with lots of leaves. But, while I was waiting for the Beast to get ready to put up the front post, I took a good look at it because of it attaching to the house. I started pulling at it and some of it slipped off easily. Others were more firmly attached with loads of those little tendrils they throw out to grab onto a surface. That's when I had to grab the pruning sheers. I was amazed at how large a pile I ended up with. I even started pulling some weeds that were growing among the bushes and then started doing the same in my flower box out front. It needs to be done anyway since most of the flowers are now dead and gone. The Beast loves mostly annuals.
He will run out at the first breath of Spring and actually plant the flowers in the box without consulting me about what I might want to do. He yanked out my rose bush this year even. I could have killed him over that. It had the prettiest yellow roses. But it was still young and would only produce about six to eight roses so he figured it wasn't doing well. I had only had it two years and it was a small one when I got it...not the ones you buy that are about two feet tall to begin with.
We had a pretty lily plant and the Beast just didn't believe me that it was a perennial plant. He got impatient for it to flower (the flowers are beautiful orange ones) even though I showed him the pods that would open. When he wants flowers, he wants them NOW. Right after the pods opened, he yanked that out, too. I can't win with him.
I'm dreading when we have to weed the garden planters. I checked them (visually) yesterday and a lot of the weeds are two feet tall or more. It's going to be a nightmare. I don't think our mulcher even has enough room for all we will have from that. He's talking about emptying the dirt from them and starting all over again in the spring next year. I could see doing that except for the work it implies THIS year....LOL! The strawberries have multiplied again and I seriously need to thin them out A LOT so they produce more berries next year. The Beast tried to fight me over that (again) but I told him if they didn't produce more, then I would let them go wild again. It only takes a year for that to happen. He wasn't happy about the idea but he stopped arguing with me. That's a battle won, believe it or not.
The Beast is leaving on Wednesday for Florida to visit with his cousin and, even though Baron will be here with me, I'm rather looking forward to the time without him. I may see if my sister, Cee, wants to go out to lunch one day. Either that or we can buy the stuff to make some shrimp alfredo here and just relax with a glass of wine or something. I think we deserve it. I'd invite Diane over for a *girl's get-together* but not sure how Dennis would feel about that since he's still not speaking to the Beast. I hate that shit with men. They always think whatever THEY are feeling, WE should feel, too. Dennis is dead wrong in this case but he'll have to learn that for himself.
Time to get this posted. Please, please be safe tomorrow if you are going to a barbeque or any gathering where there will be drinking. Remember, the police are out in droves during this holiday in particular to try to avoid the high holiday death toll. Don't become a statistic.
Love you all. ***Hugs***
Sunday, September 6, 2015
Railing Woes!
We've had a railing on the front porch (the one you grab when going up the stairs) that's been loose for a while. Today the Beast decided he was going to tighten it up. He drilled a hole for the long screw to secure the upper part into the upright one that is lodged into the cement of the sidewalk. Lo and behold! The screw dropped INTO the post! He couldn't believe it.
When he dug the screwdriver into the securing post, he found it was rotted out. We figured that the builder hadn't used treated wood but, since the railings had been painted a couple times, the splits didn't seem like an issue. But it looks like the rain managed to get inside it and did a real job on it. Now he's going to have to tear it out and replace it. Even the top rail (the one you grab onto) is rotted out. It may not be totally rotted but it sure is where it was attached to the post. *Sigh* Well, it gives the Beast something to do with his time. He always feels he has to do one *job* every day or he's going to stop living or something.
He'll probably start on that on Monday, if he doesn't tomorrow. With him, you never know. He may start when he gets home from church (after lunch, of course!). I'll decide what I am going to make in the morning.
I just woke up about an hour ago from a nap that I started around 7pm. It's like that is really the best sleep I get all day. My tummy is full then and I just zone out while watching TV. The Beast doesn't wake me when he goes to bed (he knows better!) and it gives me a chance to cruise through my FB page to see the new posts and then do my blog.
The Princess mentioned that our front yard looks huge without the spruce and the pear tree. When I went outside this morning with Baron and was having my coffee, I have to admit, it's really true. It's amazing really. I'm thinking of projects to decorate it now. I've wanted to do something at the ends of the driveway for some time now and I could actually do the circle flower bed that I saw (and bookmarked) online.
I'm enjoying being up earlier these days and doing more. I do, however, also just love the fact that the Beast seems to have taken over the majority of the housekeeping. He just feels that Baron and the hair he sheds needs to be taken care of on a daily basis (true!) and that he is more familiar with all the crap he's bought to do that job. I've given him a hard time about all the electrical appliances he's bought (we have more stuff to take care of the wood floors than you would believe...a steamer, three different types of vacuums, special liquids, you name it!). He bought them so he uses them.
I take care of the dusting and putting things away (when I can...sometimes there's just no room for them in the cabinets or on top of them). When I say we also have a shitload of appliances, I am not kidding. Who needs three different types of blenders...and a Genie that makes liquids out of various veggies, fruits and nuts? I won't name them all but we also own three different coffee makers at last count. Right now, we are using my favorite...Bunn...but every so often, the Beast will change it for no apparent reason. *Sigh*
Time to get this posted. Love you all. Please be safe this weekend. If you are going to any kind of barbeque or get-together, please don't drink and drive. Have a designated driver. The police are always out in full force and they will get you. Be safe and be smart. ***Hugs***
HINT#1: Cayenne pepper contains a substance called capaicin, which stimulates the brain to secrete endorphins, which are peptides that help block pain signals and reduce chronic pain, such as that from arthritis and a bad back. If you suffer from pain, try sprinkling a little cayenne pepper into your food.
HINT#2: To make your clothes dry more quickly, throw a dry towel in with each load. (Strangely, this really works!)
When he dug the screwdriver into the securing post, he found it was rotted out. We figured that the builder hadn't used treated wood but, since the railings had been painted a couple times, the splits didn't seem like an issue. But it looks like the rain managed to get inside it and did a real job on it. Now he's going to have to tear it out and replace it. Even the top rail (the one you grab onto) is rotted out. It may not be totally rotted but it sure is where it was attached to the post. *Sigh* Well, it gives the Beast something to do with his time. He always feels he has to do one *job* every day or he's going to stop living or something.
He'll probably start on that on Monday, if he doesn't tomorrow. With him, you never know. He may start when he gets home from church (after lunch, of course!). I'll decide what I am going to make in the morning.
I just woke up about an hour ago from a nap that I started around 7pm. It's like that is really the best sleep I get all day. My tummy is full then and I just zone out while watching TV. The Beast doesn't wake me when he goes to bed (he knows better!) and it gives me a chance to cruise through my FB page to see the new posts and then do my blog.
The Princess mentioned that our front yard looks huge without the spruce and the pear tree. When I went outside this morning with Baron and was having my coffee, I have to admit, it's really true. It's amazing really. I'm thinking of projects to decorate it now. I've wanted to do something at the ends of the driveway for some time now and I could actually do the circle flower bed that I saw (and bookmarked) online.
I'm enjoying being up earlier these days and doing more. I do, however, also just love the fact that the Beast seems to have taken over the majority of the housekeeping. He just feels that Baron and the hair he sheds needs to be taken care of on a daily basis (true!) and that he is more familiar with all the crap he's bought to do that job. I've given him a hard time about all the electrical appliances he's bought (we have more stuff to take care of the wood floors than you would believe...a steamer, three different types of vacuums, special liquids, you name it!). He bought them so he uses them.
I take care of the dusting and putting things away (when I can...sometimes there's just no room for them in the cabinets or on top of them). When I say we also have a shitload of appliances, I am not kidding. Who needs three different types of blenders...and a Genie that makes liquids out of various veggies, fruits and nuts? I won't name them all but we also own three different coffee makers at last count. Right now, we are using my favorite...Bunn...but every so often, the Beast will change it for no apparent reason. *Sigh*
Time to get this posted. Love you all. Please be safe this weekend. If you are going to any kind of barbeque or get-together, please don't drink and drive. Have a designated driver. The police are always out in full force and they will get you. Be safe and be smart. ***Hugs***
HINT#1: Cayenne pepper contains a substance called capaicin, which stimulates the brain to secrete endorphins, which are peptides that help block pain signals and reduce chronic pain, such as that from arthritis and a bad back. If you suffer from pain, try sprinkling a little cayenne pepper into your food.
HINT#2: To make your clothes dry more quickly, throw a dry towel in with each load. (Strangely, this really works!)
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Holiday Weekend...Part 2
Sorry that the first post was not a real post. I was truly tired. I am still tired but just can't seem to get to sleep. So I gave in after a couple hours of at least resting to write this post.
Yesterday was a regular visitors day here. First, the Princess and Gunner showed up around 8am. After driving Chewlee to school, the Princess came here rather than to her empty house. I was in the kitchen, preparing my soup, when she and Gunner came in. Since I couldn't see the front door, the sound of a door opening made me think the Beast had gotten up. But, when I didn't hear Baron's click-click on the floor, I looked around the fridge and spotted her holding Gunner in the little hall between my computer room and the guest room. She laughed because she said she had just whispered to Gunner that she didn't think Grandma knew they were there.
We sat and talked after I had made some toast for Gunner and refilled his bottle with some milk. While we chatted about this and that, some of it doing with the closing on the two houses (they will be closing on their current house next week), I broke off small pieces of the toast to give to Gunner. Gunner kept walking between me, the front door to look outside and his mother. The Princess finally turned on cartoons for him after the Beast woke up and joined us. She hadn't wanted to turn the TV on until he got up.
We talked about the new house (which they most likely won't be closing on for two weeks AFTER they close on the new house due to the loan company's agent's stupidity (it's the only word that jumps to mind). She *forgot* that they needed a piece of information that would take 5-10 days to receive since it could not be faxed (IRS information). Then we talked colors that she kept changing her mind on but would have to decide on in order to take advantage of a 30% discount that will be upcoming on the paint.
She was disappointed that my soup was not even close to being ready to be eaten but I just laughed. You can't rush split pea soup so that it's done in just an hour or so. After she left to go to Walmart because Jonathan texted her about something he wanted her to get for him, I called my sister, Cee, to invite her to lunch and what was on the menu. A little later, the Beast went to buy some Italian bread and sandwich bread since we were almost out of it. He wanted to make some steak sandwiches for our dinner and that required bread. Don't be impressed by the idea of steak sandwiches. I got a bit excited until he said, *I mean Steak-um sandwiches*. I usually fry up a bit of onion to make those more tasty to me but he likes them just as they are. Ick!
So Cee shows up around noon as we planned and the soup was hot and ready. I had been tasting it as it cooked up but I was actually disappointed with it when we ate it because the baby carrots I had used in it made it taste a bit on the sweet side. I won't be lazy again. Next time I use regular carrots. They may be a bit more difficult to cut up but the taste is better for my soup. I make it the way my mom did and my family is used to that taste. My sister, Bee, told me that she had done the same thing once and she felt the same way about the taste. It was and is edible but just not as good.
After a couple hours, Cee left to do some grocery shopping on her way home. I tidied up a bit, put the already cut up but uneaten pieces of Italian bread into the bread wrapper and headed for my computer room. About an hour later, I hear someone out in the living room and...more company. This time it's Cee's daughter, Tara. I had posted on FB that I was inviting her mother over for lunch and that I was serving split pea soup. She was disappointed that her mother had already left but she really came over to have some soup. No big surprise there because Tara loves split pea soup. She found the already cut pieces of Italian bread so she grabbed one of them and buttered it while I heated her up a bowl.
We sat and visited while she ate and we joked around a bit before she headed home. I went back to my computer and played a few more rounds of my game before I took my nap (around what is most people's dinner time). The Beast had already taken his nap so he was up just watching TV. I ate when I woke up from my nap but had some more soup rather than the sandwich that the Beast had made for himself earlier.
It turns out that the Beast will not be taking Baron with him to his cousin Butch's house. Butch is so weak and has lost so much weight that Baron's little nudges that he does (and Butch knows them from previous times around Baron) when he wants to be petted, would be enough to knock him over. It's all due to the chemotherapy or the radiation (not sure which he is getting right now) treatment in an attempt to slow down the progress of his cancer. I gather that he wasn't given a whole lot of hope on that but Butch wanted to go ahead and try.
So it will be me and Baron here and, eventually, the kids will move their RV next door. They will be in place before the Beast gets back. I just hope the placement meets with his approval. It's not like they are going to be there more than a few weeks but, with the Beast, you just never know. He can be such a PITA sometimes. (That means Pain-in-the-azz, if you don't know!).
Well, time to close. I am so damn tired right now that I think I may just fall asleep finally. Love you all. Please be careful this holiday weekend. It's always the worse for accidents and fatalities of any holiday. ***Hugs***
Yesterday was a regular visitors day here. First, the Princess and Gunner showed up around 8am. After driving Chewlee to school, the Princess came here rather than to her empty house. I was in the kitchen, preparing my soup, when she and Gunner came in. Since I couldn't see the front door, the sound of a door opening made me think the Beast had gotten up. But, when I didn't hear Baron's click-click on the floor, I looked around the fridge and spotted her holding Gunner in the little hall between my computer room and the guest room. She laughed because she said she had just whispered to Gunner that she didn't think Grandma knew they were there.
We sat and talked after I had made some toast for Gunner and refilled his bottle with some milk. While we chatted about this and that, some of it doing with the closing on the two houses (they will be closing on their current house next week), I broke off small pieces of the toast to give to Gunner. Gunner kept walking between me, the front door to look outside and his mother. The Princess finally turned on cartoons for him after the Beast woke up and joined us. She hadn't wanted to turn the TV on until he got up.
We talked about the new house (which they most likely won't be closing on for two weeks AFTER they close on the new house due to the loan company's agent's stupidity (it's the only word that jumps to mind). She *forgot* that they needed a piece of information that would take 5-10 days to receive since it could not be faxed (IRS information). Then we talked colors that she kept changing her mind on but would have to decide on in order to take advantage of a 30% discount that will be upcoming on the paint.
She was disappointed that my soup was not even close to being ready to be eaten but I just laughed. You can't rush split pea soup so that it's done in just an hour or so. After she left to go to Walmart because Jonathan texted her about something he wanted her to get for him, I called my sister, Cee, to invite her to lunch and what was on the menu. A little later, the Beast went to buy some Italian bread and sandwich bread since we were almost out of it. He wanted to make some steak sandwiches for our dinner and that required bread. Don't be impressed by the idea of steak sandwiches. I got a bit excited until he said, *I mean Steak-um sandwiches*. I usually fry up a bit of onion to make those more tasty to me but he likes them just as they are. Ick!
So Cee shows up around noon as we planned and the soup was hot and ready. I had been tasting it as it cooked up but I was actually disappointed with it when we ate it because the baby carrots I had used in it made it taste a bit on the sweet side. I won't be lazy again. Next time I use regular carrots. They may be a bit more difficult to cut up but the taste is better for my soup. I make it the way my mom did and my family is used to that taste. My sister, Bee, told me that she had done the same thing once and she felt the same way about the taste. It was and is edible but just not as good.
After a couple hours, Cee left to do some grocery shopping on her way home. I tidied up a bit, put the already cut up but uneaten pieces of Italian bread into the bread wrapper and headed for my computer room. About an hour later, I hear someone out in the living room and...more company. This time it's Cee's daughter, Tara. I had posted on FB that I was inviting her mother over for lunch and that I was serving split pea soup. She was disappointed that her mother had already left but she really came over to have some soup. No big surprise there because Tara loves split pea soup. She found the already cut pieces of Italian bread so she grabbed one of them and buttered it while I heated her up a bowl.
We sat and visited while she ate and we joked around a bit before she headed home. I went back to my computer and played a few more rounds of my game before I took my nap (around what is most people's dinner time). The Beast had already taken his nap so he was up just watching TV. I ate when I woke up from my nap but had some more soup rather than the sandwich that the Beast had made for himself earlier.
It turns out that the Beast will not be taking Baron with him to his cousin Butch's house. Butch is so weak and has lost so much weight that Baron's little nudges that he does (and Butch knows them from previous times around Baron) when he wants to be petted, would be enough to knock him over. It's all due to the chemotherapy or the radiation (not sure which he is getting right now) treatment in an attempt to slow down the progress of his cancer. I gather that he wasn't given a whole lot of hope on that but Butch wanted to go ahead and try.
So it will be me and Baron here and, eventually, the kids will move their RV next door. They will be in place before the Beast gets back. I just hope the placement meets with his approval. It's not like they are going to be there more than a few weeks but, with the Beast, you just never know. He can be such a PITA sometimes. (That means Pain-in-the-azz, if you don't know!).
Well, time to close. I am so damn tired right now that I think I may just fall asleep finally. Love you all. Please be careful this holiday weekend. It's always the worse for accidents and fatalities of any holiday. ***Hugs***
Have A Great Labor Day Weekend!
I hope you have something good planned for at least one of the three days of this holiday. Right now, I am too tired to write my blog so I will write it after I wake up later. Love you all. Be happy. ***Hugs***
Thursday, September 3, 2015
Don't You Just Hate It???
Don't you just hate it when your reader glasses (the OTC kind) are suddenly not strong enough for you to see what you could just a few days ago? I'm not sure if my glasses got switched with the Beast since we both have the same frame types but his glasses are not the same strength as mine. Because of the problem with the retina of my left eye, mine are stronger (2.75) and he uses a 2.0. Doesn't sound like much, does it? However, I haven't heard him complaining about his glasses so I'm just not sure.
He's been having a problem when he gets tired with not being able to see out of his right eye. I think it's because of an elevated blood pressure but that's just a guess. It passes for him if he sits down and reclines for a while. It's that rest period that makes me think that is what is causing it. I told him he needs to check with the doctor but he knows the doctor will just refer him to the eye doctor and he really doesn't like the last one he used. I think I need to make another appointment with our regular eye doctor even if it means making a trip up to Huntsville. I can try to make an appointment on the same day with my retina doctor and let him check on my eye to see if anything has changed. I think it has but it could just be because I am tired so much lately.
I need to call my sister, Cee, tomorrow and see if she is going to be home. I'm feeling rather housebound since I haven't been anywhere for a while. Or maybe I will go over to the Princess' house to visit for a bit since she (still) lives closeby. I need to remind the Princess that she has my platters and needs to return them before she packs them away. I've lost a few things to her from her borrowing them or when I bring something over to her house.
Maybe I should just make some split pea soup and invite Cee over here instead. She stays in a lot and it's a change to come here instead. Hmm. I have to give that some thought. Maybe I will chop the veggies up tonight since I have to be up to put the maps on the Beast's Garmin. I doubt I will disturb the Beast or Baron. With the snoring I can hear, I think he's very sound asleep....LOL.
He talked with his cousin, Bevie, today. She called him about going to his cousin Butch's house with her. But he told her about his decision to leave for Butch's house a few days before her and just meet up with her there when she comes down. That met with her approval and the Beast will stay a couple days while she is there before he comes home. I approve whether he takes Baron with him or not. Just so he gets to spend some time with his cousin.
So, he's going to leave here on the 10th and won't be home until around the 15th or 16th. I'll have all that time without him so it will be a little mini-vacation for me. It will seem strange if Baron goes with him since that hasn't happened for a long time. I may end up with the kids moving onto our lot next door while he's gone but that's okay, too. They don't have any idea when they will close on the house they are living in yet.
Once they do find out, it will be a rush to empty the house of the remaining furniture and then it will be time for them to move into their trailer. That will be a bit of a chore but it's much roomier than our RV was. It will be different for them and probably not too bad as long as it's not for too long. They will be so glad to close on the new house even though they will probably feel lost in it since it's so much bigger than their old house.
I was telling my gf, Marilyn, about their new house and she was just blown away about it's size, the amount of land it comes with and the price of it. That house would end up being about double or more in her area. With the amount of land it has, she says it would probably cost almost $500K. I'm pretty sure she's right and the kids will be able to live in that house for many years. I doubt they will outgrow it. The Princess is planning on having one more child but not any time soon. There's lots she wants to get done on this house before she will be ready to decide when.
Today was another not-too-busy day. All I have done is wash some clothes and I haven't even thrown them in the dryer yet. LOL! But that's only because I threw them in to wash late. Since I have to stay up for a while longer tonight to do the map download, I have time to dry the clothes AND fold and put them away. There's only a couple things I have to hang up so it will be a breeze. I will probably go ahead and cut up the veggies for the soup. I may make the Beast go and buy some Italian bread for us to eat with it and some more crackers for anyone that wants that instead.
Time to get this posted. My clothes are now drying and I'm going to cut up the veggies for my soup for tomorrow. I've been craving some split pea soup and the Beast bought some ham for soups the other day. There's enough for him to make his bean soup in a couple days, too. Boy, is this house going to be full of *passed gas*...ROFLMAO! Nice name for farts, isn't it?
Love you all. May your day be full of acts of kindness. Be good and please be safe. ***Hugs***
He's been having a problem when he gets tired with not being able to see out of his right eye. I think it's because of an elevated blood pressure but that's just a guess. It passes for him if he sits down and reclines for a while. It's that rest period that makes me think that is what is causing it. I told him he needs to check with the doctor but he knows the doctor will just refer him to the eye doctor and he really doesn't like the last one he used. I think I need to make another appointment with our regular eye doctor even if it means making a trip up to Huntsville. I can try to make an appointment on the same day with my retina doctor and let him check on my eye to see if anything has changed. I think it has but it could just be because I am tired so much lately.
I need to call my sister, Cee, tomorrow and see if she is going to be home. I'm feeling rather housebound since I haven't been anywhere for a while. Or maybe I will go over to the Princess' house to visit for a bit since she (still) lives closeby. I need to remind the Princess that she has my platters and needs to return them before she packs them away. I've lost a few things to her from her borrowing them or when I bring something over to her house.
Maybe I should just make some split pea soup and invite Cee over here instead. She stays in a lot and it's a change to come here instead. Hmm. I have to give that some thought. Maybe I will chop the veggies up tonight since I have to be up to put the maps on the Beast's Garmin. I doubt I will disturb the Beast or Baron. With the snoring I can hear, I think he's very sound asleep....LOL.
He talked with his cousin, Bevie, today. She called him about going to his cousin Butch's house with her. But he told her about his decision to leave for Butch's house a few days before her and just meet up with her there when she comes down. That met with her approval and the Beast will stay a couple days while she is there before he comes home. I approve whether he takes Baron with him or not. Just so he gets to spend some time with his cousin.
So, he's going to leave here on the 10th and won't be home until around the 15th or 16th. I'll have all that time without him so it will be a little mini-vacation for me. It will seem strange if Baron goes with him since that hasn't happened for a long time. I may end up with the kids moving onto our lot next door while he's gone but that's okay, too. They don't have any idea when they will close on the house they are living in yet.
Once they do find out, it will be a rush to empty the house of the remaining furniture and then it will be time for them to move into their trailer. That will be a bit of a chore but it's much roomier than our RV was. It will be different for them and probably not too bad as long as it's not for too long. They will be so glad to close on the new house even though they will probably feel lost in it since it's so much bigger than their old house.
I was telling my gf, Marilyn, about their new house and she was just blown away about it's size, the amount of land it comes with and the price of it. That house would end up being about double or more in her area. With the amount of land it has, she says it would probably cost almost $500K. I'm pretty sure she's right and the kids will be able to live in that house for many years. I doubt they will outgrow it. The Princess is planning on having one more child but not any time soon. There's lots she wants to get done on this house before she will be ready to decide when.
Today was another not-too-busy day. All I have done is wash some clothes and I haven't even thrown them in the dryer yet. LOL! But that's only because I threw them in to wash late. Since I have to stay up for a while longer tonight to do the map download, I have time to dry the clothes AND fold and put them away. There's only a couple things I have to hang up so it will be a breeze. I will probably go ahead and cut up the veggies for the soup. I may make the Beast go and buy some Italian bread for us to eat with it and some more crackers for anyone that wants that instead.
Time to get this posted. My clothes are now drying and I'm going to cut up the veggies for my soup for tomorrow. I've been craving some split pea soup and the Beast bought some ham for soups the other day. There's enough for him to make his bean soup in a couple days, too. Boy, is this house going to be full of *passed gas*...ROFLMAO! Nice name for farts, isn't it?
Love you all. May your day be full of acts of kindness. Be good and please be safe. ***Hugs***
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
Somehow, It Figures!
The Beast checked and found out that our Garmins need to be updated. I guess a lot of changes have taken place since we last updated them. So *I* get elected to wait until 2AM to download the 4GB of data that it says will take 3 hours to finish. Oh boy...just what I needed on a night I had plans to go to bed early.
We have to wait because we are paying for 15GB of data from 8am until 2am..and then we have another 15GB from 2am until 8am. I know it's not really divided well but that's how Dish divides what we are paying for. Worse, we never know how FAST we will be at any time we are online. But, since we spend the majority of our time on during the day, we MUST wait until 2am to do this particular download. We need our Garmin's up-to-date for our trip to Chicago in October.
I called my gf, Marilyn, to let her know that I WAS, indeed, going to be up for the get-together of the *girls* then. She was so glad I would be able to make it this time. I keep missing when Alice, a girl I actually grew up with, makes it in from her horse ranch in Oklahoma. We were friends all the way through grammer school into high school and until we both got married. She moved away since she married a cowboy...so-to-speak. She has had three kids that are now married and have made her a grandmother.
Funny, but only a few of us girls actually had more than one child. Some never had any. Two girls married men with kids so they were step-mothers and have step-grandkids from them. Only a couple of the girls have been married more than once. My gf, Marilyn, was widowed three times before she was 40. No, she didn't kill anyone...LOL. She just married older men. Then she met Denny, her current husband, who was actually closer to her age than anyone she had ever been attracted to before. In fact, he's two or three years younger.
I kid her that, at 40 years old, she was just becoming a cougar...LOL. I hope you know what that is because I am NOT going to explain it. Ask someone. It became a joke among all of us girls after I said it.
We once were a big group. Around 30 of us that hung out together in high school. We were our own clique. No, we weren't priviliged kids. We were kids that either were from poor families, lower middle class or big families that struggled to make sure we had the basics. Most of us were rebels. Some of us had run away from bad home situations more than once. We had such similar backgrounds that it was normal for us to stick together. But we had fun. We played basketball, learned how to dance. Some of us took ballet at greatly reduced rates from a well-known studio in Chicago that wanted to enrich our lives. We even performed the Sugar Plum fairy on stage to the upper echelon of Chicago society one Christmas.
We were in a special Catholic boarding school in Chicago called Heart of Mary High School. We stayed all week and went home on the weekends. I used to have to take a bus and then a train to my house out in the suburbs. Sometimes my dad picked me up after work on Friday and brought me back on Sunday evening. Some of the kids had parents that paid tuition and boarding, depending on their finances. Since my folks had 7 kids (Marilyn's folks had 8), all they had to do was send me back with enough money to pay for some of the extras I might need. Like having my hair done every week. That kind of thing. Most of us enjoyed ourselves there. The nuns were nice and helpful with other things like teaching us to crochet or embroider. We had regular teachers for our schooling and expectations were high. I left there when I was a Senior and went to a regular high school near my home for my last year.
Some of us stayed in contact after leaving. Like me, Marilyn, Jamie, Carol and Delores. I don't remember who put together the 25th reunion we had but it ended up a big one. We had over 150 girls that came. It was such fun. After that, the bunch of us that were closest started meeting every year in late June. Sometimes we met at a restaurant and we always tipped well. Sometimes one of the girls would host it at their homes. Jamie seemed to do that the most and we all brought food or desserts along to help ease the financial burden. The past couple of years, however, we are back to meeting at a restaurant that Marilyn found that is happy to have us girls.
But the crowd has lessened. Some of them we lost to drugs, unfortunately. Two overdosed. One committed suicide. Two we lost to car accidents. Another died in a fire. We lost Delores five years ago. She came home from work, lay down for a short nap (she told her son to wake her in an hour). But, when he tried to wake her, she had passed. She was only 60 years old.
Some of the girls just live too far away to make it every year. Oregon, Washington State, California, Oklahoma...you get the idea. As they retired, they moved to places they wanted to live out their lives or because their kids lived there and they wanted to be close to them and their grandkids. I understand that.
But the core of us that really try to be there, we are as close as we were when we were young and still crazy after all these years. We laugh together. We let each other know how the others are doing that couldn't join us. A few of them will be emailing me or calling me this upcoming month. Can you tell I am looking forward to it?
I have cousins that live in the Chicago area that want to get together with me while I am there. They found out from a mention of it on my FB page that I was going to be there and got excited. A couple I haven't seen in about 10 years. I look at pictures of their kids that I remember when they were very young and now they are married and have kids of their own! Where in the hell has the time gone??? When did I get so damn old?
The Beast cut down two more of our fruit trees today. Unfortunately, even though they bore fruit (and a lot of it) the damn fungus in the ground rotted the fruit even before they ripened fully. I hated that it happened to the Bartlett pears. I was really hoping to can a lot of them this year but it was not to be. It made me so sad to see the trees go but the spots they were planted were just not good ones. I could almost wish for another drought here. We got the most amazing fruit because there was no excess water in the ground to allow the fungus to thrive. *Sigh* I thought the Japanese beetles were bad enough. They decimated our peaches even with loads of traps set out (and boy, did those traps get FULL!). The state told us the rainfall helped them to thrive also. You just can't win. We had such high hopes.
Time to get this posted. Love you all. Conflict cannot survive without your participation.
~Wayne Dyer~ ***Hugs***
HINT#1: Never, ever, ignore a chip in your windshield. Get it fixed right away. A chip will often eventually grow into a crack, which will raise your costs from about $100 for a chip repair to $1,000. or more for a full windshield replacement. There are even companies that will repair the chip right there in your driveway. Just do a Google search for something like *mobile windshield repair* near your home.
HINT#2: If your driveway or garage floor has bedcome an easy place to do some Rorschach testing thanks to the grease, oil and transmission fulid stains all over the place, take heart....clean concrete is only 10 minutes away. Spray any stained areas with oven cleaner, then let sit for 1- minutes. Rinse off with a hose and the stains will disappear.
We have to wait because we are paying for 15GB of data from 8am until 2am..and then we have another 15GB from 2am until 8am. I know it's not really divided well but that's how Dish divides what we are paying for. Worse, we never know how FAST we will be at any time we are online. But, since we spend the majority of our time on during the day, we MUST wait until 2am to do this particular download. We need our Garmin's up-to-date for our trip to Chicago in October.
I called my gf, Marilyn, to let her know that I WAS, indeed, going to be up for the get-together of the *girls* then. She was so glad I would be able to make it this time. I keep missing when Alice, a girl I actually grew up with, makes it in from her horse ranch in Oklahoma. We were friends all the way through grammer school into high school and until we both got married. She moved away since she married a cowboy...so-to-speak. She has had three kids that are now married and have made her a grandmother.
Funny, but only a few of us girls actually had more than one child. Some never had any. Two girls married men with kids so they were step-mothers and have step-grandkids from them. Only a couple of the girls have been married more than once. My gf, Marilyn, was widowed three times before she was 40. No, she didn't kill anyone...LOL. She just married older men. Then she met Denny, her current husband, who was actually closer to her age than anyone she had ever been attracted to before. In fact, he's two or three years younger.
I kid her that, at 40 years old, she was just becoming a cougar...LOL. I hope you know what that is because I am NOT going to explain it. Ask someone. It became a joke among all of us girls after I said it.
We once were a big group. Around 30 of us that hung out together in high school. We were our own clique. No, we weren't priviliged kids. We were kids that either were from poor families, lower middle class or big families that struggled to make sure we had the basics. Most of us were rebels. Some of us had run away from bad home situations more than once. We had such similar backgrounds that it was normal for us to stick together. But we had fun. We played basketball, learned how to dance. Some of us took ballet at greatly reduced rates from a well-known studio in Chicago that wanted to enrich our lives. We even performed the Sugar Plum fairy on stage to the upper echelon of Chicago society one Christmas.
We were in a special Catholic boarding school in Chicago called Heart of Mary High School. We stayed all week and went home on the weekends. I used to have to take a bus and then a train to my house out in the suburbs. Sometimes my dad picked me up after work on Friday and brought me back on Sunday evening. Some of the kids had parents that paid tuition and boarding, depending on their finances. Since my folks had 7 kids (Marilyn's folks had 8), all they had to do was send me back with enough money to pay for some of the extras I might need. Like having my hair done every week. That kind of thing. Most of us enjoyed ourselves there. The nuns were nice and helpful with other things like teaching us to crochet or embroider. We had regular teachers for our schooling and expectations were high. I left there when I was a Senior and went to a regular high school near my home for my last year.
Some of us stayed in contact after leaving. Like me, Marilyn, Jamie, Carol and Delores. I don't remember who put together the 25th reunion we had but it ended up a big one. We had over 150 girls that came. It was such fun. After that, the bunch of us that were closest started meeting every year in late June. Sometimes we met at a restaurant and we always tipped well. Sometimes one of the girls would host it at their homes. Jamie seemed to do that the most and we all brought food or desserts along to help ease the financial burden. The past couple of years, however, we are back to meeting at a restaurant that Marilyn found that is happy to have us girls.
But the crowd has lessened. Some of them we lost to drugs, unfortunately. Two overdosed. One committed suicide. Two we lost to car accidents. Another died in a fire. We lost Delores five years ago. She came home from work, lay down for a short nap (she told her son to wake her in an hour). But, when he tried to wake her, she had passed. She was only 60 years old.
Some of the girls just live too far away to make it every year. Oregon, Washington State, California, Oklahoma...you get the idea. As they retired, they moved to places they wanted to live out their lives or because their kids lived there and they wanted to be close to them and their grandkids. I understand that.
But the core of us that really try to be there, we are as close as we were when we were young and still crazy after all these years. We laugh together. We let each other know how the others are doing that couldn't join us. A few of them will be emailing me or calling me this upcoming month. Can you tell I am looking forward to it?
I have cousins that live in the Chicago area that want to get together with me while I am there. They found out from a mention of it on my FB page that I was going to be there and got excited. A couple I haven't seen in about 10 years. I look at pictures of their kids that I remember when they were very young and now they are married and have kids of their own! Where in the hell has the time gone??? When did I get so damn old?
The Beast cut down two more of our fruit trees today. Unfortunately, even though they bore fruit (and a lot of it) the damn fungus in the ground rotted the fruit even before they ripened fully. I hated that it happened to the Bartlett pears. I was really hoping to can a lot of them this year but it was not to be. It made me so sad to see the trees go but the spots they were planted were just not good ones. I could almost wish for another drought here. We got the most amazing fruit because there was no excess water in the ground to allow the fungus to thrive. *Sigh* I thought the Japanese beetles were bad enough. They decimated our peaches even with loads of traps set out (and boy, did those traps get FULL!). The state told us the rainfall helped them to thrive also. You just can't win. We had such high hopes.
Time to get this posted. Love you all. Conflict cannot survive without your participation.
~Wayne Dyer~ ***Hugs***
HINT#1: Never, ever, ignore a chip in your windshield. Get it fixed right away. A chip will often eventually grow into a crack, which will raise your costs from about $100 for a chip repair to $1,000. or more for a full windshield replacement. There are even companies that will repair the chip right there in your driveway. Just do a Google search for something like *mobile windshield repair* near your home.
HINT#2: If your driveway or garage floor has bedcome an easy place to do some Rorschach testing thanks to the grease, oil and transmission fulid stains all over the place, take heart....clean concrete is only 10 minutes away. Spray any stained areas with oven cleaner, then let sit for 1- minutes. Rinse off with a hose and the stains will disappear.
Ads And Commercials.....
I watch a lot of TV. Mostly documentaries, a little news (most of that local) and I see/hear a LOT of ads and commercials. Ads are not really commercials. They are more in the order of telling you some useful information and what you can do about it. For example...and the true subject of today's blog.....the ad about shingles.
I'm sure you are sick of seeing those. They always have some well-known individual that has had it and they tell you all about how painful it was and why you should talk to your doctor or your druggist about getting vaccinated against it. The most prevalent personality lately is Terry Bradshaw. He's had it and says it was painful. I'm not a well-known personality but I have to tell you. All that they tell you is true. I know. I've had it. You get it on one side of your body at a time. It can affect you from your waist up and can even affect you on your face. You can get it at any time in your life if you have had chicken pox and most of us have had it at one time or another in our lives. The vaccine against it isn't all that old.
When it showed up on me, I was puzzled because it started off as a lot of small blisters on my left side, from front to back. It got progressively worse and I finally went into the doctor to get the bad news....shingles! I know my brother had had shingles and said it was nasty and painful but he had never told me much other than that. He just said he never hoped to have them ever again! More about that later.
There isn't much that you can do once you get them except treat the symptoms. Lots of calamine lotion to try to soothe and dry out the nasty postules when they burst. I was lucky that my sister helped me by draining them out (where I couldn't reach them on my back), then putting the lotion on the areas and covering them with gauze. I did the ones on my front. I never got any on my face, neck or head, thankfully. Although I know that some people do/have. It took me about 3 weeks or so to finally be over it but it was painful if I lay down on my back or front. I spent the whole time sleeping on my right side. It would wake me up if I accidentally lay on my back. Trust me, Terry Bradshaw is 100% correct. It's very painful.
They now have a vaccine that prevents this from happening. And don't think if you've already had them that you can 't get them again. You can! You can be affected on EACH side, separately. It's well worth whatever amount of money it may cost you that your insurance does not pay to have the vaccine. Having shingles once does not make you immune to another attack. You would think it should but it doesn't. I gather it's the same reason that having chicken pox doesn't prevent it from happening. Your body doesn't recognize it as anything other than a dormant remnant of the pox. But it's something else entirely if you get stressed out. At least, that's what brought mine on at the time it hit me. At least I was able to hide mine fairly well, with the help of my sister, bless her heart. It wasn't fun for her, I know. Draining the huge postules I had was not fun and didn't get done in a hurry. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Cee. I love you for that...still.
My brother got shingles twice so I know it's possible. He was taken totally by surprise since his doctor didn't tell him that. So, even if you have had shingles, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about the vaccine so you won't have to go through it all again. It might actually be worse the second time. The ad is a real public service and needs to be taken seriously.
Commercials I can do without...LOL. And that's all I am going to say on the matter.
The Beast got a raging phone call from Dennis today that left him just blown away. Dennis was livid over the fact that he was sure that Baron was shitting on HIS lawn! Now, first of all, Baron does NOT go across the street to poop. Whether it's because he likes Dennis and Di or the fact that they have no dog and there's no good smells over there, I have no idea. But the Beast and I both have always kept Baron from crossing the street anyway so there's that. When the Beast takes Baron for a run, Baron runs into the empty lot (the Beast has made a trail through the high weeds for him) at the corner on our side of the street, to do his business. If he's let out front, which we do let him go out on occasion, he usually heads for the back of the lot (that's ours) next to us or to the next-door neighbors house on the far side by that empty lot. We watch so we know.
Dennis was raving like we have the only dog in the neighborhood, which is untrue. We also do NOT let him run around all day like many of the neighbors that have dogs let their dogs do. It's like Dennis is blind to anything else that goes on around here except for what annoys him. The dogs that wander around here are a bit on the timid side and they bolt when they hear people coming near them. I guess Dennis has never observed any of them although the Beast and I sure have.
The Beast told Dennis that it was NOT Baron since we DO watch him and know where he relieves himself. But I gather that Dennis was an unbeliever. How do I know this? When I went out to throw my computer room garbage out in the bin that is out front for collection tomorrow, what did I see but a pile of doggie doo that was thrown directly in front of OUR mailbox. It was dark when the Beast came home from his church meeting tonight and I knew he wouldn't see it. When I told him, he was incredulous. I mean, how dumb and petty can you be?
The Beast said that Dennis has this vision of how HE wants to live his life and have his neighbors be also. But, if he wanted to live his life like he was living in a rich, upscale neighborhood, he shouldn't have built his house in Alabama where most dog owners don't believe a dog should be indoors. Either that, or he should have fenced off his yard completely so no animals can enter it. And, trust me, within the year, I'll bet you he does just that! Watch and see.
I can't believe that he just didn't throw the stuff into his garbage bin (or even ours if he felt it) but, noooooo. He had to act like trailer trash and toss it in front of our mailbox. I can't believe he would threaten a 30+ year friendship over something that really and truly is trivial.
Oh, and the Beast decided today that he is going to make the trip down to Florida to spend a couple days with his cousin, Butch. But he's going to take Baron with him because of Dennis' attitude. That way, if they are gone a week and he finds a pile of crap on his lawn, he'll know it's NOT from Baron. But that means I will be here without him for probably a whole week. *Grin* It may be as little as five days but no less than that. If he drives down there non-stop, it will take him two days just to get over it. He wants to leave probably on Wednesday next week. He may stop for the night, it all depends on how he's feeling. There are plenty of motels that accept animals so that won't be a problem if he does. I told him go fishing, go shrimping...whatever keeps the two of them occupied. It will be fun for him since he hasn't fished in the ocean in forever and I know he misses it. I'm just glad he's going. For many different reasons.
Well, time to get this posted and get back to bed. The room is dark so no hints tonight. Two tomorrow, I promise.
Love you all. Be good and I wish you all a great Hump Day, as usual. ***Hugs***
I'm sure you are sick of seeing those. They always have some well-known individual that has had it and they tell you all about how painful it was and why you should talk to your doctor or your druggist about getting vaccinated against it. The most prevalent personality lately is Terry Bradshaw. He's had it and says it was painful. I'm not a well-known personality but I have to tell you. All that they tell you is true. I know. I've had it. You get it on one side of your body at a time. It can affect you from your waist up and can even affect you on your face. You can get it at any time in your life if you have had chicken pox and most of us have had it at one time or another in our lives. The vaccine against it isn't all that old.
When it showed up on me, I was puzzled because it started off as a lot of small blisters on my left side, from front to back. It got progressively worse and I finally went into the doctor to get the bad news....shingles! I know my brother had had shingles and said it was nasty and painful but he had never told me much other than that. He just said he never hoped to have them ever again! More about that later.
There isn't much that you can do once you get them except treat the symptoms. Lots of calamine lotion to try to soothe and dry out the nasty postules when they burst. I was lucky that my sister helped me by draining them out (where I couldn't reach them on my back), then putting the lotion on the areas and covering them with gauze. I did the ones on my front. I never got any on my face, neck or head, thankfully. Although I know that some people do/have. It took me about 3 weeks or so to finally be over it but it was painful if I lay down on my back or front. I spent the whole time sleeping on my right side. It would wake me up if I accidentally lay on my back. Trust me, Terry Bradshaw is 100% correct. It's very painful.
They now have a vaccine that prevents this from happening. And don't think if you've already had them that you can 't get them again. You can! You can be affected on EACH side, separately. It's well worth whatever amount of money it may cost you that your insurance does not pay to have the vaccine. Having shingles once does not make you immune to another attack. You would think it should but it doesn't. I gather it's the same reason that having chicken pox doesn't prevent it from happening. Your body doesn't recognize it as anything other than a dormant remnant of the pox. But it's something else entirely if you get stressed out. At least, that's what brought mine on at the time it hit me. At least I was able to hide mine fairly well, with the help of my sister, bless her heart. It wasn't fun for her, I know. Draining the huge postules I had was not fun and didn't get done in a hurry. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Cee. I love you for that...still.
My brother got shingles twice so I know it's possible. He was taken totally by surprise since his doctor didn't tell him that. So, even if you have had shingles, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about the vaccine so you won't have to go through it all again. It might actually be worse the second time. The ad is a real public service and needs to be taken seriously.
Commercials I can do without...LOL. And that's all I am going to say on the matter.
The Beast got a raging phone call from Dennis today that left him just blown away. Dennis was livid over the fact that he was sure that Baron was shitting on HIS lawn! Now, first of all, Baron does NOT go across the street to poop. Whether it's because he likes Dennis and Di or the fact that they have no dog and there's no good smells over there, I have no idea. But the Beast and I both have always kept Baron from crossing the street anyway so there's that. When the Beast takes Baron for a run, Baron runs into the empty lot (the Beast has made a trail through the high weeds for him) at the corner on our side of the street, to do his business. If he's let out front, which we do let him go out on occasion, he usually heads for the back of the lot (that's ours) next to us or to the next-door neighbors house on the far side by that empty lot. We watch so we know.
Dennis was raving like we have the only dog in the neighborhood, which is untrue. We also do NOT let him run around all day like many of the neighbors that have dogs let their dogs do. It's like Dennis is blind to anything else that goes on around here except for what annoys him. The dogs that wander around here are a bit on the timid side and they bolt when they hear people coming near them. I guess Dennis has never observed any of them although the Beast and I sure have.
The Beast told Dennis that it was NOT Baron since we DO watch him and know where he relieves himself. But I gather that Dennis was an unbeliever. How do I know this? When I went out to throw my computer room garbage out in the bin that is out front for collection tomorrow, what did I see but a pile of doggie doo that was thrown directly in front of OUR mailbox. It was dark when the Beast came home from his church meeting tonight and I knew he wouldn't see it. When I told him, he was incredulous. I mean, how dumb and petty can you be?
The Beast said that Dennis has this vision of how HE wants to live his life and have his neighbors be also. But, if he wanted to live his life like he was living in a rich, upscale neighborhood, he shouldn't have built his house in Alabama where most dog owners don't believe a dog should be indoors. Either that, or he should have fenced off his yard completely so no animals can enter it. And, trust me, within the year, I'll bet you he does just that! Watch and see.
I can't believe that he just didn't throw the stuff into his garbage bin (or even ours if he felt it) but, noooooo. He had to act like trailer trash and toss it in front of our mailbox. I can't believe he would threaten a 30+ year friendship over something that really and truly is trivial.
Oh, and the Beast decided today that he is going to make the trip down to Florida to spend a couple days with his cousin, Butch. But he's going to take Baron with him because of Dennis' attitude. That way, if they are gone a week and he finds a pile of crap on his lawn, he'll know it's NOT from Baron. But that means I will be here without him for probably a whole week. *Grin* It may be as little as five days but no less than that. If he drives down there non-stop, it will take him two days just to get over it. He wants to leave probably on Wednesday next week. He may stop for the night, it all depends on how he's feeling. There are plenty of motels that accept animals so that won't be a problem if he does. I told him go fishing, go shrimping...whatever keeps the two of them occupied. It will be fun for him since he hasn't fished in the ocean in forever and I know he misses it. I'm just glad he's going. For many different reasons.
Well, time to get this posted and get back to bed. The room is dark so no hints tonight. Two tomorrow, I promise.
Love you all. Be good and I wish you all a great Hump Day, as usual. ***Hugs***
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