Brain dead today from an upper respiratory infection.
Here are 13 things to be happy about, from the book, 14,000 things to be happy about, by Barbara Ann Kipfer
1. Climbing to a lookout point that offers a sweeping panorama of the countryside.
2. Garden benches.
3. An early evening under the covers.
4. Having the newspaper delivered. (These days I'm happy we have a newspaper at all.)
5. Mamma Mia! (Song? Movie? Either works.)
6. Archeological sites.
7. Trying on something that is too big. (Been a while since I managed that one.)
8. Daisy Hill Puppy Farm, where Snoopy was born. (I don't approve of puppy mills, however.)
9. A ring around the moon.
10. Perfect timing.
11. Getting an early start. (I would have settled for getting out of bed on time this morning, I think.)
12. Heinz 57 ketchup. (Yep. It's got to be Heinz.)
13. Amazon's Alexa. (I don't know if that's in the book, but Alexa makes me happy. So there.)
----------------------------
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 590th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.
Thursday, February 07, 2019
Wednesday, February 06, 2019
I'm No Fun Anymore
Not that I ever really was the most exciting person in the room, mind you. I've always been a bit of a Debbie Downer.
Smart, though, and sarcastic. Frequently witty and often silly. Serious, studious, and stubborn, maybe. But fun?
Not an adjective people use to describe me. Nor is it a word I use to describe myself.
My idea of "fun" is a good hour with a video game or a book. Or sitting at a political meeting watching politicians make fools of themselves.
Slap happy stuff, that.
I also have a propensity toward depression and that creates a glass-half-full outlook that doesn't lend itself to happy thinking. Expect the worst and be glad if you don't get it, that's my motto.
And yet . . . I make my friends laugh. I don't make an effort at it, I'm just myself with them, and they find me hilarious. Anyone who knows me well finds me amusing, quick with a comeback, sometimes even able to remember a joke.
I can make the most mundane incident of the day sound like the funniest thing to happen to somebody ever. I make fun of myself a great deal, too.
Other people are off limits. I don't make fun of other folks, because I know how that can hurt if you hit a wrong button. I have lots of buttons and some people are very good at hitting them. Those people, I suspect, think I am never fun.
Those people don't know me very well because they've never taken the time to know me. I don't fit into their idea of who I should be, and so they don't accept me for who I actually am. All they know how to do is hit my buttons and/or be critical.
Their loss.
Because while I might not make a living as a stand-up comic, I'm actually not a bad person to know. Took me 55 years to figure that out, but hey, better late than never.
Smart, though, and sarcastic. Frequently witty and often silly. Serious, studious, and stubborn, maybe. But fun?
Not an adjective people use to describe me. Nor is it a word I use to describe myself.
My idea of "fun" is a good hour with a video game or a book. Or sitting at a political meeting watching politicians make fools of themselves.
Slap happy stuff, that.
I also have a propensity toward depression and that creates a glass-half-full outlook that doesn't lend itself to happy thinking. Expect the worst and be glad if you don't get it, that's my motto.
And yet . . . I make my friends laugh. I don't make an effort at it, I'm just myself with them, and they find me hilarious. Anyone who knows me well finds me amusing, quick with a comeback, sometimes even able to remember a joke.
I can make the most mundane incident of the day sound like the funniest thing to happen to somebody ever. I make fun of myself a great deal, too.
Other people are off limits. I don't make fun of other folks, because I know how that can hurt if you hit a wrong button. I have lots of buttons and some people are very good at hitting them. Those people, I suspect, think I am never fun.
Those people don't know me very well because they've never taken the time to know me. I don't fit into their idea of who I should be, and so they don't accept me for who I actually am. All they know how to do is hit my buttons and/or be critical.
Their loss.
Because while I might not make a living as a stand-up comic, I'm actually not a bad person to know. Took me 55 years to figure that out, but hey, better late than never.
Sunday, February 03, 2019
Sunday Stealing
Sunday Stealing
Part 2 of something. Surely I did Part 1, but I can't find it link back to.
16) What is your favorite wild animal?
A. I consider the deer to be my spirit animal and totem.
17) Name 3 of your favorite childhood shows:
A. Isis, Bugs Bunny, and Batman. (I was also partial to Dark Shadows though I wasn't supposed to be watching it.)
18) If you could live as a character in a movie, who would it be?
A. I would be an elf extra in Lord of the Rings.
19) Favorite vegetable?
A. Oh hell, I don't know. Potato?
20) Favorite fruit?
A. Sigh. Um. Fruit. Fruit. Watermelon.
21) If you had a dragon what would you name it?
A. Antigone.
22) What do you put on hotdogs?
A. Catsup and relish. No onions, no chili, nothing else.
23) Do you play online games?
A. Yes.
24) What's your favorite way to get inspired?
A. Take a walk or read a book.
25) Do you have a middle name?
A. Yes.
26) If you had to order from a kid's menu, what would you get?
A. A junior cheeseburger.
27) Do you speak any other languages?
A. Yo hablo muy poco Española.
28) Do you use Twitter?
A. I have an account but I don't use it much.
29) Do you go onto YouTube?
A. Sometimes. I like to watch videos of guitar players.
Check out this version of Nancy Wilson and Heart playing Crazy on You. That chick can play that guitar. Probably the most underrated female guitar player ever. And she does it in high heels.
30) Do you play Angry Birds?
A. No, I never have.
__________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.
Part 2 of something. Surely I did Part 1, but I can't find it link back to.
16) What is your favorite wild animal?
A. I consider the deer to be my spirit animal and totem.
17) Name 3 of your favorite childhood shows:
A. Isis, Bugs Bunny, and Batman. (I was also partial to Dark Shadows though I wasn't supposed to be watching it.)
18) If you could live as a character in a movie, who would it be?
A. I would be an elf extra in Lord of the Rings.
19) Favorite vegetable?
A. Oh hell, I don't know. Potato?
20) Favorite fruit?
A. Sigh. Um. Fruit. Fruit. Watermelon.
21) If you had a dragon what would you name it?
A. Antigone.
22) What do you put on hotdogs?
A. Catsup and relish. No onions, no chili, nothing else.
23) Do you play online games?
A. Yes.
24) What's your favorite way to get inspired?
A. Take a walk or read a book.
25) Do you have a middle name?
A. Yes.
26) If you had to order from a kid's menu, what would you get?
A. A junior cheeseburger.
27) Do you speak any other languages?
A. Yo hablo muy poco Española.
28) Do you use Twitter?
A. I have an account but I don't use it much.
29) Do you go onto YouTube?
A. Sometimes. I like to watch videos of guitar players.
Check out this version of Nancy Wilson and Heart playing Crazy on You. That chick can play that guitar. Probably the most underrated female guitar player ever. And she does it in high heels.
30) Do you play Angry Birds?
A. No, I never have.
__________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.
Saturday, February 02, 2019
Saturday 9: Backfield
Saturday 9: Backfield in Motion (1969)
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
1) This week's Saturday 9 has a football theme because there's a big game Sunday. Will you be watching?
A. No, I don't think so.
2) The Super Bowl is the second-largest day for food consumption in the US, second only to Thanksgiving. What's on your menu this weekend?
A. Nothing special, I'm afraid. I'm ill so maybe chicken soup.
3) Super Bowl Sunday is the #1 day for consuming guacamole. When did you most recently eat something with avocado in it?
A. I have no idea.
4) The Pro Football Hall of Fame is in Canton, OH. Have you ever visited Canton, or any other city in Ohio?
A. No, I have not.
5) This song mentions different moves that football players -- and, it seems, girlfriends -- can make that will result in penalties. What's the last rule you broke? What were the consequences?
A. If only I weren't such a good girl, I could have a great answer to this. But I am a good girl. The only time I've ever had a traffic violation was around 1993, when a car stopped in front of me and I rear-ended it. Anything else goes back to when I was a teenager, and that doesn't really count after all these years.
6) In 1969, the year this song was popular, the Colts lost to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III. The game is famous because of all the hype leading up to it, including Joe Namath "guaranteeing" his underdog Jets would win. Tell us about a time when you felt like an underdog.
A. Speed of lightning, roar of thunder! Fighting all who steal and plunder! Underdog! Underdog! Underdog! Ok, now that's out of the way. The last time I felt like an underdog would have been at Christmas.
7) This week's featured duo, Mel and Tim, are cousins from Mississippi. Tell us about one of your cousins.
A. My husband's cousin lives across the street from us (which is really like, a 1/2 mile away). He is a captain in the fire department but on a different shift than my husband. He's a very nice fellow who offers to help my husband on the farm and is good about checking on my mother-in-law occasionally, too.
8) The song is about a man who catches his girl cheating and he just won't put up with it. In romance, do you find it easy to forgive and forget?
A. I've been married for 35 years. You don't do that without forgiving and forgetting.
9) Random question: You've collected a box of gently-used items to donate to a second hand store. What would it be most likely to contain: clothes, housewares, or books/video/music?
A. Clothes.
___________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
1) This week's Saturday 9 has a football theme because there's a big game Sunday. Will you be watching?
A. No, I don't think so.
2) The Super Bowl is the second-largest day for food consumption in the US, second only to Thanksgiving. What's on your menu this weekend?
A. Nothing special, I'm afraid. I'm ill so maybe chicken soup.
3) Super Bowl Sunday is the #1 day for consuming guacamole. When did you most recently eat something with avocado in it?
A. I have no idea.
4) The Pro Football Hall of Fame is in Canton, OH. Have you ever visited Canton, or any other city in Ohio?
A. No, I have not.
5) This song mentions different moves that football players -- and, it seems, girlfriends -- can make that will result in penalties. What's the last rule you broke? What were the consequences?
A. If only I weren't such a good girl, I could have a great answer to this. But I am a good girl. The only time I've ever had a traffic violation was around 1993, when a car stopped in front of me and I rear-ended it. Anything else goes back to when I was a teenager, and that doesn't really count after all these years.
6) In 1969, the year this song was popular, the Colts lost to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III. The game is famous because of all the hype leading up to it, including Joe Namath "guaranteeing" his underdog Jets would win. Tell us about a time when you felt like an underdog.
A. Speed of lightning, roar of thunder! Fighting all who steal and plunder! Underdog! Underdog! Underdog! Ok, now that's out of the way. The last time I felt like an underdog would have been at Christmas.
7) This week's featured duo, Mel and Tim, are cousins from Mississippi. Tell us about one of your cousins.
A. My husband's cousin lives across the street from us (which is really like, a 1/2 mile away). He is a captain in the fire department but on a different shift than my husband. He's a very nice fellow who offers to help my husband on the farm and is good about checking on my mother-in-law occasionally, too.
8) The song is about a man who catches his girl cheating and he just won't put up with it. In romance, do you find it easy to forgive and forget?
A. I've been married for 35 years. You don't do that without forgiving and forgetting.
9) Random question: You've collected a box of gently-used items to donate to a second hand store. What would it be most likely to contain: clothes, housewares, or books/video/music?
A. Clothes.
___________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.
Friday, February 01, 2019
Farewell, Uncle
Yesterday evening I learned the horrifying news that my uncle, his wife, and my cousin died in a house fire at their home in Ogden, Kansas.
This is an old photo taken when my mother passed away in 2000. That may have been the last time I saw Uncle Butch. He is the one on the far right. I don't recall seeing him at my grandmother's funeral in 2007. I suspect this is the only picture of the four brothers as adults in existence. They weren't much on get-togethers.
I don't know that I ever met Uncle Butch's wife. His son, whom we called Buddy, had a rare disease that required a lot of treatment. He was never able to work and lived with his father and stepmother. I hadn't seen Buddy in years.
Uncle Butch served in the U.S. Army and retired from service. I am not sure why he chose to live in Kansas. I think he ran a video store there until video went out of style; then I am not sure what he did. He was about 70 years old.
According to news reports, the fire started in the wee hours of the morning, around 3:40 a.m., and rescue efforts were hampered by 5 degree temperatures.
Four people perished in the fire. I do not know who the fourth person was; I have been told two things - that it was a renter and that it was a homeless person my uncle had let into his home because of the low temperatures. I don't know which is correct. I do know it was not my other cousin, Uncle Butch's daughter.
Fire and/or smoke inhalation is a bad way to go. My uncle had Parkinson's disease so he may not have been able to get out regardless. If smoke overtook everyone as they were sleeping, perhaps they had painless deaths. I shall hope so, anyway.
There is a story about the fire here and another here. If there is an obituary I will post it; I think at the moment there is confusion over the funeral and who will be taking care of what, since Uncle Butch's daughter is, unfortunately, incarcerated on drug trafficking charges. I doubt she will be much help.
Updated:
Here are the obituaries from the funeral home:
Roger Duane Harris, Sr, died on January 31 at his home in Ogden, Ks. Roger was born in Roanoke, Virginia and is preceded in death by his parents, Claude and Melba Harris, and his older sister, Glenda Bruffey. He retired from the Army with honors after 20 years of service, including time in Vietnam, making his home in Ogden. Roger is survived by his daughter, Anita Jo Albino, sister Carolyn Hunt, and brothers Melvin Lee Harris, Claude Harris, Jr., and Gerald Thomas Harris as well as many loving friends in the Ft Riley and Ogden area.
Roger Duane Harris, Jr, died on January 31 at his home in Ogden, KS. Roger was born in Roanoke, Virginia and is survived by his mother, Dottie Prince and sister Anita Jo Albino as well as several aunts and uncles. Roger, often known as Buddy to friends and family, perished on the same day as his father, Roger Harris, Sr. He will be fondly remembered by many friends in the Ogden area, including special friends Angie Reffner, her children Melissa, John, Steven, Shyllyn, and Jennifer, Angie’s grand-children Krystyne, Viktor, and Emerie, special friends Harvey and Michelle Naffei, and countless other children he has watched grow up over the years. A memorial service will be held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Ogden, KS on Thursday, February 7, 2019 at 10:30 am with a luncheon to follow.
Rae Elaine LaPorte Harris, 72, died on January 31 in a fire at her home in Ogden, KS. Rae Elaine was born July 5, 1946, in Utica, NY, and was preceded in death by her father, Raymond LaPorte, and her brother, John LaPorte. Rae Elaine graduated from Indian River High School in Philadelphia, NY, and attended SUNY Oswego. After college she became the secretary to the fashion editor of Family Circle magazine in NYC. She then worked as a secretary at Fort Drum, NY, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, MD, and Fort Riley, KS. She changed careers again to become a cross-country tractor-trailer driver, and then she started her own video rental business in Ogden. She loved to sing and was a member of the Junction City Troubadours. Rae Elaine is survived by her step-daughter Anita Jo Albino of Ogden, KS, her mother Mary Jean LaPorte and sister Linda LaPorte Gross, both of Simpsonville, SC, her brother Dan LaPorte of Sabillasville, MD, and her nephews Michael Gross of Carson, CA, and Steven Gross and Raymond James Gross of Simpsonville, SC. Rae Elaine was a friend to everyone she met and will be missed by all.
A memorial service will be held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Ogden, Ks on Thursday, February 7, 2019, at 10:30 am with a luncheon to follow.
Memorial contributions may be made to the St. Patrick's Catholic Church or to the Riley County Firefighters Association in care of the Yorgensen-Meloan-Londeen Funeral Home 1616 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, Kansas 66502.
This is an old photo taken when my mother passed away in 2000. That may have been the last time I saw Uncle Butch. He is the one on the far right. I don't recall seeing him at my grandmother's funeral in 2007. I suspect this is the only picture of the four brothers as adults in existence. They weren't much on get-togethers.
I don't know that I ever met Uncle Butch's wife. His son, whom we called Buddy, had a rare disease that required a lot of treatment. He was never able to work and lived with his father and stepmother. I hadn't seen Buddy in years.
Uncle Butch served in the U.S. Army and retired from service. I am not sure why he chose to live in Kansas. I think he ran a video store there until video went out of style; then I am not sure what he did. He was about 70 years old.
According to news reports, the fire started in the wee hours of the morning, around 3:40 a.m., and rescue efforts were hampered by 5 degree temperatures.
Four people perished in the fire. I do not know who the fourth person was; I have been told two things - that it was a renter and that it was a homeless person my uncle had let into his home because of the low temperatures. I don't know which is correct. I do know it was not my other cousin, Uncle Butch's daughter.
Fire and/or smoke inhalation is a bad way to go. My uncle had Parkinson's disease so he may not have been able to get out regardless. If smoke overtook everyone as they were sleeping, perhaps they had painless deaths. I shall hope so, anyway.
There is a story about the fire here and another here. If there is an obituary I will post it; I think at the moment there is confusion over the funeral and who will be taking care of what, since Uncle Butch's daughter is, unfortunately, incarcerated on drug trafficking charges. I doubt she will be much help.
Updated:
Here are the obituaries from the funeral home:
Roger Duane Harris, Sr, died on January 31 at his home in Ogden, Ks. Roger was born in Roanoke, Virginia and is preceded in death by his parents, Claude and Melba Harris, and his older sister, Glenda Bruffey. He retired from the Army with honors after 20 years of service, including time in Vietnam, making his home in Ogden. Roger is survived by his daughter, Anita Jo Albino, sister Carolyn Hunt, and brothers Melvin Lee Harris, Claude Harris, Jr., and Gerald Thomas Harris as well as many loving friends in the Ft Riley and Ogden area.
Roger Duane Harris, Jr, died on January 31 at his home in Ogden, KS. Roger was born in Roanoke, Virginia and is survived by his mother, Dottie Prince and sister Anita Jo Albino as well as several aunts and uncles. Roger, often known as Buddy to friends and family, perished on the same day as his father, Roger Harris, Sr. He will be fondly remembered by many friends in the Ogden area, including special friends Angie Reffner, her children Melissa, John, Steven, Shyllyn, and Jennifer, Angie’s grand-children Krystyne, Viktor, and Emerie, special friends Harvey and Michelle Naffei, and countless other children he has watched grow up over the years. A memorial service will be held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Ogden, KS on Thursday, February 7, 2019 at 10:30 am with a luncheon to follow.
Rae Elaine LaPorte Harris, 72, died on January 31 in a fire at her home in Ogden, KS. Rae Elaine was born July 5, 1946, in Utica, NY, and was preceded in death by her father, Raymond LaPorte, and her brother, John LaPorte. Rae Elaine graduated from Indian River High School in Philadelphia, NY, and attended SUNY Oswego. After college she became the secretary to the fashion editor of Family Circle magazine in NYC. She then worked as a secretary at Fort Drum, NY, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, MD, and Fort Riley, KS. She changed careers again to become a cross-country tractor-trailer driver, and then she started her own video rental business in Ogden. She loved to sing and was a member of the Junction City Troubadours. Rae Elaine is survived by her step-daughter Anita Jo Albino of Ogden, KS, her mother Mary Jean LaPorte and sister Linda LaPorte Gross, both of Simpsonville, SC, her brother Dan LaPorte of Sabillasville, MD, and her nephews Michael Gross of Carson, CA, and Steven Gross and Raymond James Gross of Simpsonville, SC. Rae Elaine was a friend to everyone she met and will be missed by all.
A memorial service will be held at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Ogden, Ks on Thursday, February 7, 2019, at 10:30 am with a luncheon to follow.
Memorial contributions may be made to the St. Patrick's Catholic Church or to the Riley County Firefighters Association in care of the Yorgensen-Meloan-Londeen Funeral Home 1616 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, Kansas 66502.
Thursday, January 31, 2019
Thursday Thirteen
1. Today is the last day of the month of this new year. So now this is an old year, and we're heading down the stretch toward its end. Christmas is just 10 months and 25 days away (or something like that).
2. My sinuses and ears are bothering me; I'm off to the doctor. To be an old woman, I certainly get a lot of ear infections. I thought those were for kids!
3. Maybe since I'm like a kid in many ways, I should eat Trix. (Trix are for kids!)
4. Instead, I eat yogurt, or eggs, or sometimes a Luna bar for breakfast. I don't eat cereal because I don't drink milk. I probably shouldn't eat the yogurt, either, but it doesn't seem to bother me and I really want a healthy internal flora in my gut.
5. Leaky gut syndrome is not something I think a lot of physicians acknowledge, but I'm pretty sure have it, and have most of my life.
6. Other things I've had all of my life include allergies, a propensity toward the glass is half-empty view of life, and the notion that I am reincarnated.
7. The reincarnation thing goes back as far as my words, because when I first started to speak I began telling my mother how I lived in a big ol' castle and was killed and buried in Scotland. My mother was so horrified she made me stop telling the story. I don't remember it but she told me about it later.
8. Out
9. of
10. time
11. off
12. to
13. doctor
2. My sinuses and ears are bothering me; I'm off to the doctor. To be an old woman, I certainly get a lot of ear infections. I thought those were for kids!
3. Maybe since I'm like a kid in many ways, I should eat Trix. (Trix are for kids!)
4. Instead, I eat yogurt, or eggs, or sometimes a Luna bar for breakfast. I don't eat cereal because I don't drink milk. I probably shouldn't eat the yogurt, either, but it doesn't seem to bother me and I really want a healthy internal flora in my gut.
5. Leaky gut syndrome is not something I think a lot of physicians acknowledge, but I'm pretty sure have it, and have most of my life.
6. Other things I've had all of my life include allergies, a propensity toward the glass is half-empty view of life, and the notion that I am reincarnated.
7. The reincarnation thing goes back as far as my words, because when I first started to speak I began telling my mother how I lived in a big ol' castle and was killed and buried in Scotland. My mother was so horrified she made me stop telling the story. I don't remember it but she told me about it later.
8. Out
9. of
10. time
11. off
12. to
13. doctor
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
End in Sight
I'm sitting here with my home in total disarray. The bedroom is in the living room and parts of the living room are everywhere.
This is home renovation at its finest. Even here in my office, my most sacred space, I have piles of items around me, things that belong elsewhere. No free space has been spared of a drawer or box.
My house hasn't been this wrecked in years. I guess the last time would have been 2005, when we put down the carpet we are now ridding ourselves of in favor of hardwood flooring.
I have been trying to work on our taxes but it is very hard to think with all of this going on. This morning I went through dresser drawers in the living room, filling a nice big box for donations and another with trash. I threw away every pair of panty hose I own. I have no plans to ever put on a pair again. I always hated those things.
Anyway, the work continues. I'm still here. I know I am privileged to be able to do this, to update my home a bit. We're trying to make it easy for the next 20 years, because we both plan to die here. So we've put handrails in the showers, we're making the floor care easier, and I'm tossing out items whilst we are in the midst of this.
All is good. Just very, very tiring.
 |
| The bedroom is getting new flooring today. |
 |
| Bedroom drawers in the living room. |
 |
| Parts of the living room in the kitchen. |
This is home renovation at its finest. Even here in my office, my most sacred space, I have piles of items around me, things that belong elsewhere. No free space has been spared of a drawer or box.
 |
| Stuff in my office. Yikes! |
My house hasn't been this wrecked in years. I guess the last time would have been 2005, when we put down the carpet we are now ridding ourselves of in favor of hardwood flooring.
I have been trying to work on our taxes but it is very hard to think with all of this going on. This morning I went through dresser drawers in the living room, filling a nice big box for donations and another with trash. I threw away every pair of panty hose I own. I have no plans to ever put on a pair again. I always hated those things.
Anyway, the work continues. I'm still here. I know I am privileged to be able to do this, to update my home a bit. We're trying to make it easy for the next 20 years, because we both plan to die here. So we've put handrails in the showers, we're making the floor care easier, and I'm tossing out items whilst we are in the midst of this.
All is good. Just very, very tiring.
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
Flooring Update
The tile has been redone and is much better. It's smooth! My husband can push his chair back under the table without it getting hung up. He is happy.
They started tearing up the carpet in the living room and installing the engineered hardwood flooring yesterday.
Here are some photos:
It will look nice when it is done but it sure is a pain in the ass to do it. Whew.
They started tearing up the carpet in the living room and installing the engineered hardwood flooring yesterday.
Here are some photos:
 |
| Replaced tile. Notice the carpet on the lower right. |
 |
| Tile against the carpet. |
 |
| Ta da! Hardwood flooring! |
 |
| Hardwood flooring against the tile. |
 |
| Close up of tile against the hardwood. |
Monday, January 28, 2019
Remembering Challenger
Thirty-three years ago today, the space shuttle, Challenger, blasted off from its dock in Florida at Cape Canaveral.
Seventy-three seconds into its voyage, it exploded. All seven people on board died.
When this happened, I was 23 years old. I was driving down Interstate 581 on my way to my part-time job after taking a class at Virginia Western Community College. Since I was an avid fan of the space program, I always watched the launches and I remember being upset that I was missing this launch of Challenger, which was taking the first teacher into space. Since I couldn't see it on TV, I listened to the radio report of the event.
I nearly wrecked the car when I heard the horror in the radio announcer's voice as he cried, "It's breaking up, it's breaking up! Oh my God!"
I began crying, sobbing hard even as I trudged into the office. No one there was aware of the tragedy and I had to beg the attorney to turn on a TV so I could see news footage. I was appalled that no one else at my workplace seemed to share my horror and dismay, but I remember it as well as I do any other national tragedy.
This was the 25th mission for a space shuttle and I fear that by this time it had become "routine" in the minds of the public. We flew into space - big deal. We had stopped expecting catastrophe.
Nothing is routine about a space flight, though. It was, and still is, a big deal. I consider our efforts to take humanity off of earth and into the stars our greatest achievement and our loftiest of goals.
The two minutes of CNN footage of the shuttle blowing up is here; the news media missed the explosion and took too long to realize that something terrible had happened. I have hindsight on my side: I know when I see the smoke what exactly has happened. As the NASA spokesperson says, "obviously there was a major malfunction."
Whatever shrugs the space program had received up to this point disappeared quickly. This disaster was hard on the nation because Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher in space, was on board. Millions of children were watching when Challenger suddenly burst into a ball of smoke and flame.
I admire people who put their life on the line so that we might venture out into the great unknown. The space program, now defunded and derided by those who eschew knowledge and education in favor of fiscal prudence and safety, gave mankind many great innovations. It saddens me that we no longer aim for the stars. We only seem to see the dollar bills floating around at our feet. We no longer look up or to the future.
The space program fostered hopes and dreams. The work gave humanity a sense of common purpose as exploration and accomplishments took place time and time again. If we could go into space, we could do anything. Space exploration was a tremendous step forward and an example of what we could accomplish when we worked together.
It was a glorious time in our history, even when bad things such as the Challenger explosion occurred. We stood for something. We believed in science. We were civilized.
I salute all of those heroes who set off in search of something more than themselves. May we find that bravery once again in this country, which now seems to be a land of cowards, bullies, and bigots, not soul-searchers who would walk amongst the stars.
Seventy-three seconds into its voyage, it exploded. All seven people on board died.
When this happened, I was 23 years old. I was driving down Interstate 581 on my way to my part-time job after taking a class at Virginia Western Community College. Since I was an avid fan of the space program, I always watched the launches and I remember being upset that I was missing this launch of Challenger, which was taking the first teacher into space. Since I couldn't see it on TV, I listened to the radio report of the event.
I nearly wrecked the car when I heard the horror in the radio announcer's voice as he cried, "It's breaking up, it's breaking up! Oh my God!"
I began crying, sobbing hard even as I trudged into the office. No one there was aware of the tragedy and I had to beg the attorney to turn on a TV so I could see news footage. I was appalled that no one else at my workplace seemed to share my horror and dismay, but I remember it as well as I do any other national tragedy.
This was the 25th mission for a space shuttle and I fear that by this time it had become "routine" in the minds of the public. We flew into space - big deal. We had stopped expecting catastrophe.
Nothing is routine about a space flight, though. It was, and still is, a big deal. I consider our efforts to take humanity off of earth and into the stars our greatest achievement and our loftiest of goals.
The two minutes of CNN footage of the shuttle blowing up is here; the news media missed the explosion and took too long to realize that something terrible had happened. I have hindsight on my side: I know when I see the smoke what exactly has happened. As the NASA spokesperson says, "obviously there was a major malfunction."
Whatever shrugs the space program had received up to this point disappeared quickly. This disaster was hard on the nation because Christa McAuliffe, the first teacher in space, was on board. Millions of children were watching when Challenger suddenly burst into a ball of smoke and flame.
I admire people who put their life on the line so that we might venture out into the great unknown. The space program, now defunded and derided by those who eschew knowledge and education in favor of fiscal prudence and safety, gave mankind many great innovations. It saddens me that we no longer aim for the stars. We only seem to see the dollar bills floating around at our feet. We no longer look up or to the future.
The space program fostered hopes and dreams. The work gave humanity a sense of common purpose as exploration and accomplishments took place time and time again. If we could go into space, we could do anything. Space exploration was a tremendous step forward and an example of what we could accomplish when we worked together.
It was a glorious time in our history, even when bad things such as the Challenger explosion occurred. We stood for something. We believed in science. We were civilized.
I salute all of those heroes who set off in search of something more than themselves. May we find that bravery once again in this country, which now seems to be a land of cowards, bullies, and bigots, not soul-searchers who would walk amongst the stars.
Sunday, January 27, 2019
Sunday Stealing
Sunday Stealing
1. What are some small things that make your day better?
A. Hot tea, chocolate, a long hug with my husband, a check in the mail, phone calls from friends or family.
2. What shows are you into?
A. Right now I am into Supergirl and Victoria.
3. What TV channel doesn’t exist but really should?
A. A real Discovery science channel, not one that delves into swamp people or moonshiners or whatever, but offers up real science and explains it in a way that is enjoyable so that you're learning something important while being entertained.
4. Who has impressed you most with what they’ve accomplished?
A. My father. He has built up a multi-million dollar business from nothing.
5. What age do you wish you could permanently be?
A. Early 40s.
6. What TV show or movie do you refuse to watch?
A. I don't watch horror, porn, or things that show a lot of abuse or murder. So I don't watch CSI, Law & Order, or other shows like those.
7. What is something that is considered a luxury, but you don’t think you could live without?
A. My computer.
8. What’s your claim to fame?
A. I wrote for the newspaper and at one time everyone in my community knew my name. They didn't know my face, but they knew my name.
9. What’s something you like to do the old-fashioned way?
A. Talk on the phone. I prefer that to texting.
10. What’s your favorite genre of book or movie?
A. Fantasy.
11. How often do you people watch?
A. Every time I leave the house.
12. What have you only recently formed an opinion about?
A. The political savvy of Nancy Pelosi.
13. What are you interested in that most people haven’t heard of?
A. I Ching. Look it up.
14. What’s the farthest you’ve ever been from home?
A. Paris, France.
15. What is the most heartwarming thing you’ve ever seen?
A. The way my husband looks after his mother.
16. What is the most annoying question that people ask you?
A. When am I going back to work/when will I write a book/ when will I . . .
17. What could you give a 40-minute presentation on with absolutely no preparation?
A. How to write articles for newspapers and magazines.
18. If you were dictator of a small island nation, what crazy dictator stuff would you do?
A. I would give everyone free health care and education. I would have mandatory 40-hour work week (no overtime), all people would be equal regardless of gender, race, sexual preference, etc., football players would make $30,000 a year and firefighters and teachers would make $100,000 a year - there would be no pollution because of strict regulations on such things, the water would be clean, the government would probably be large because we'd need a lot of people to check the food, water, drugs, etc. for quality control. Movies would only cost $2.50 to see and popcorn would be $1.50 a bag.
19. What is something you think everyone should do at least once in their lives?
A. Travel to another country. It is eye-opening and necessary to get out of the bubble that most citizens of the U.S. live in.
__________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.
1. What are some small things that make your day better?
A. Hot tea, chocolate, a long hug with my husband, a check in the mail, phone calls from friends or family.
2. What shows are you into?
A. Right now I am into Supergirl and Victoria.
3. What TV channel doesn’t exist but really should?
A. A real Discovery science channel, not one that delves into swamp people or moonshiners or whatever, but offers up real science and explains it in a way that is enjoyable so that you're learning something important while being entertained.
4. Who has impressed you most with what they’ve accomplished?
A. My father. He has built up a multi-million dollar business from nothing.
5. What age do you wish you could permanently be?
A. Early 40s.
6. What TV show or movie do you refuse to watch?
A. I don't watch horror, porn, or things that show a lot of abuse or murder. So I don't watch CSI, Law & Order, or other shows like those.
7. What is something that is considered a luxury, but you don’t think you could live without?
A. My computer.
8. What’s your claim to fame?
A. I wrote for the newspaper and at one time everyone in my community knew my name. They didn't know my face, but they knew my name.
9. What’s something you like to do the old-fashioned way?
A. Talk on the phone. I prefer that to texting.
10. What’s your favorite genre of book or movie?
A. Fantasy.
11. How often do you people watch?
A. Every time I leave the house.
12. What have you only recently formed an opinion about?
A. The political savvy of Nancy Pelosi.
13. What are you interested in that most people haven’t heard of?
A. I Ching. Look it up.
14. What’s the farthest you’ve ever been from home?
A. Paris, France.
15. What is the most heartwarming thing you’ve ever seen?
A. The way my husband looks after his mother.
16. What is the most annoying question that people ask you?
A. When am I going back to work/when will I write a book/ when will I . . .
17. What could you give a 40-minute presentation on with absolutely no preparation?
A. How to write articles for newspapers and magazines.
18. If you were dictator of a small island nation, what crazy dictator stuff would you do?
A. I would give everyone free health care and education. I would have mandatory 40-hour work week (no overtime), all people would be equal regardless of gender, race, sexual preference, etc., football players would make $30,000 a year and firefighters and teachers would make $100,000 a year - there would be no pollution because of strict regulations on such things, the water would be clean, the government would probably be large because we'd need a lot of people to check the food, water, drugs, etc. for quality control. Movies would only cost $2.50 to see and popcorn would be $1.50 a bag.
19. What is something you think everyone should do at least once in their lives?
A. Travel to another country. It is eye-opening and necessary to get out of the bubble that most citizens of the U.S. live in.
__________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.
Saturday, January 26, 2019
Saturday 9: Favorite Things
Saturday 9: My Favorite Things (2018)
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
(This is a beefed up version of the Julie Andrews tune.)
1) This week's artist, Jennie Abrahamson, is very happy living in Stockholm, but she refers to Paris as "a flirt." She enjoys her time there so much she always wants to return. Is there a place you've visited that tugs at your heart and imagination, tempting you to return?
A. I'm happy where I am. No place I have visited has ever been like home. There's no place like home. There's no place like home . . . there's no place like home . . .
2) Jennie has said her music has been heavily influenced by 80s pop, which was popular in her early teen years. Are your favorite songs the ones you listened to when you were growing up?
A. My favorite songs are from the 1970s and early 1980s, with the exception of Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crowe, both of whom captured my heart in the 1990s.
3) "My Favorite Things" is from The Sound of Music. Crazy Sam's high school claim to fame was playing Sister Margaretta in the senior class production. Though not a big part, her performance lives on because relatives love embarrassing her with pictures of her in an especially unflattering nun's habit. Who took an embarrassing photo of you? What were you doing?
A. I had an embarrassing photo of me in big hair holding a fish I caught; I'm not sure who took it but it must have been in the late 1980s. I tore the photo up.
4) The lyrics celebrate "brown paper packages tied up in strings." What was in the last box you received in the mail?
A. A copy of my blog. Every four months I go to blog2print.com and have a copy of the last four months made into a softbound book. Right now all of those copies take up about 14" of shelf space. At least if my blog ever dies, I will have my words and photos. Someday someone will buy them in my estate auction, or they will find their way into a recycling bin and the paper will be shredded. Hopefully I won't be around to see either.
5) It mentions doorbells and sleighbells. What's the most recent bell or alarm that you heard?
A. Alexa woke me up this morning at 6:15 a.m.
6) This song has nice things to say about cold weather, specifically snowflakes and mittens. What do you like about winter?
A. When it is snowing, and all is quiet and still, it is as if the Universe has inhaled and is holding its breath.
7) Dog bites and bee stings are singled out as things that can leave us feeling sad. What's most recently given you the blues?
A. My house re-renovations. We had the kitchen floor redone in October, and now it's being torn up again and put back down because the first tile installers were absolutely the worst workers ever. After some back and forth with the flooring company, we finally convinced them to replace the floor. My house is wrecked. The tilers broke the glass on my 32-year-old Jenn-Air oven door, so I can't cook anything, either. I'm feeling a bit stressed.
8) In 2018, when this song was released, Roger Federer won the Australian Open. Are you good with a racket?
A. No ma'am, I am not.
9) Random question -- Your local zoo announced the hatching of three snowy owlets. All males. You won the honor of naming them. Go ahead.
A. Gandalf, Aragorn, and Frodo.
___________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
(This is a beefed up version of the Julie Andrews tune.)
1) This week's artist, Jennie Abrahamson, is very happy living in Stockholm, but she refers to Paris as "a flirt." She enjoys her time there so much she always wants to return. Is there a place you've visited that tugs at your heart and imagination, tempting you to return?
A. I'm happy where I am. No place I have visited has ever been like home. There's no place like home. There's no place like home . . . there's no place like home . . .
2) Jennie has said her music has been heavily influenced by 80s pop, which was popular in her early teen years. Are your favorite songs the ones you listened to when you were growing up?
A. My favorite songs are from the 1970s and early 1980s, with the exception of Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crowe, both of whom captured my heart in the 1990s.
3) "My Favorite Things" is from The Sound of Music. Crazy Sam's high school claim to fame was playing Sister Margaretta in the senior class production. Though not a big part, her performance lives on because relatives love embarrassing her with pictures of her in an especially unflattering nun's habit. Who took an embarrassing photo of you? What were you doing?
A. I had an embarrassing photo of me in big hair holding a fish I caught; I'm not sure who took it but it must have been in the late 1980s. I tore the photo up.
4) The lyrics celebrate "brown paper packages tied up in strings." What was in the last box you received in the mail?
A. A copy of my blog. Every four months I go to blog2print.com and have a copy of the last four months made into a softbound book. Right now all of those copies take up about 14" of shelf space. At least if my blog ever dies, I will have my words and photos. Someday someone will buy them in my estate auction, or they will find their way into a recycling bin and the paper will be shredded. Hopefully I won't be around to see either.
5) It mentions doorbells and sleighbells. What's the most recent bell or alarm that you heard?
A. Alexa woke me up this morning at 6:15 a.m.
6) This song has nice things to say about cold weather, specifically snowflakes and mittens. What do you like about winter?
A. When it is snowing, and all is quiet and still, it is as if the Universe has inhaled and is holding its breath.
7) Dog bites and bee stings are singled out as things that can leave us feeling sad. What's most recently given you the blues?
A. My house re-renovations. We had the kitchen floor redone in October, and now it's being torn up again and put back down because the first tile installers were absolutely the worst workers ever. After some back and forth with the flooring company, we finally convinced them to replace the floor. My house is wrecked. The tilers broke the glass on my 32-year-old Jenn-Air oven door, so I can't cook anything, either. I'm feeling a bit stressed.
8) In 2018, when this song was released, Roger Federer won the Australian Open. Are you good with a racket?
A. No ma'am, I am not.
9) Random question -- Your local zoo announced the hatching of three snowy owlets. All males. You won the honor of naming them. Go ahead.
A. Gandalf, Aragorn, and Frodo.
___________
I encourage you to visit other participants in Saturday 9 posts and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.
Friday, January 25, 2019
Flooring Update
Here's a flooring update.
The old tile was removed in about an hour. This should have taken all day, but the initial tile was so poorly installed that if we hadn't had it taken up within a few months we would have started noticing cracks and tiles breaking.
Essentially the only thing holding the tile to the floor was the grout.
Now the new tile is down, and as best we can tell, it has no raised corners to stumble over. We could also tell it was put down with a much better quality of workmanship by a man who takes pride in his work.
Hopefully in 10 days or so my life will be restored to some semblance of normal. In the meantime, I'm trying not to stress over things. However, I'm the kind of girl who worries about everything, so of course I'm stressing over all of this.
But it is what it is.
The old tile was removed in about an hour. This should have taken all day, but the initial tile was so poorly installed that if we hadn't had it taken up within a few months we would have started noticing cracks and tiles breaking.
Essentially the only thing holding the tile to the floor was the grout.
Now the new tile is down, and as best we can tell, it has no raised corners to stumble over. We could also tell it was put down with a much better quality of workmanship by a man who takes pride in his work.
 |
| This still needs to be grouted. The area by the door with the blue specks are tiles that were installed this morning. |
 |
| After the kitchen is grouted and that is dry, then we will move all the stuff piled in the living room into the kitchen, and tear up the carpet and install hardwood flooring. |
Hopefully in 10 days or so my life will be restored to some semblance of normal. In the meantime, I'm trying not to stress over things. However, I'm the kind of girl who worries about everything, so of course I'm stressing over all of this.
But it is what it is.
Thursday, January 24, 2019
Thursday Thirteen
1. Living in a home during renovations is like suddenly moving into a tiny house, because suddenly my living space has been reduced by half.
2. Keep looking toward the end goal, my husband says. In a few weeks it will all be over.
3. I've never been able to see the end of long projects. I strongly suspect this has something to do with my inability to commit to writing a novel.
4. Writing articles has a foreseeable end, even if it's an article that takes me a month to work on. Of course, if I'm doing something like that I'm being paid for it and I have a deadline.
5. Deadlines are not bad things. I never minded deadlines when I wrote steadily for newspapers, because they forced me to do the work.
6. Organization was also important to deadlines. Deadlines kept me organized and in control.
7. School afforded me deadlines, too, and I was able to write longer pieces when I was taking writing courses. I had to turn something in, and it had to be good. I was always an "A" student and I wasn't going to screw that up.
8. However, setting deadlines for myself doesn't work, because I let them pass. No self discipline?
9. Maybe it is the lack of the carrot on the end of the stick, i.e., the paycheck or the "A" that makes self-imposed deadlines easy to bypass.
10. Lots of things have deadlines; dinner, for example. We try to eat before 6 p.m. because we both have indigestion if we eat later. Laundry has less of a deadline, although the dwindling pile of towels and underwear suggests I need to find access to a washer and dryer soon. (Mine is currently unhooked and sitting idle in the garage.)
11. The workers who are making improvements to my home have deadlines, too. Those are imposed by money, as in, the longer they stay on the job the less an hour they are making, because they are being paid by the job and not for their time. Working faster is better for them.
12. What other things have deadlines? Bills. Appointments. Bedtime is a deadline, isn't it? Projects of all sorts. What are the things that you have deadlines for?
13. Some people don't understand deadlines. I call those people politicians. ☺
----------------------------
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 588th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.
2. Keep looking toward the end goal, my husband says. In a few weeks it will all be over.
3. I've never been able to see the end of long projects. I strongly suspect this has something to do with my inability to commit to writing a novel.
4. Writing articles has a foreseeable end, even if it's an article that takes me a month to work on. Of course, if I'm doing something like that I'm being paid for it and I have a deadline.
5. Deadlines are not bad things. I never minded deadlines when I wrote steadily for newspapers, because they forced me to do the work.
6. Organization was also important to deadlines. Deadlines kept me organized and in control.
7. School afforded me deadlines, too, and I was able to write longer pieces when I was taking writing courses. I had to turn something in, and it had to be good. I was always an "A" student and I wasn't going to screw that up.
8. However, setting deadlines for myself doesn't work, because I let them pass. No self discipline?
9. Maybe it is the lack of the carrot on the end of the stick, i.e., the paycheck or the "A" that makes self-imposed deadlines easy to bypass.
10. Lots of things have deadlines; dinner, for example. We try to eat before 6 p.m. because we both have indigestion if we eat later. Laundry has less of a deadline, although the dwindling pile of towels and underwear suggests I need to find access to a washer and dryer soon. (Mine is currently unhooked and sitting idle in the garage.)
11. The workers who are making improvements to my home have deadlines, too. Those are imposed by money, as in, the longer they stay on the job the less an hour they are making, because they are being paid by the job and not for their time. Working faster is better for them.
12. What other things have deadlines? Bills. Appointments. Bedtime is a deadline, isn't it? Projects of all sorts. What are the things that you have deadlines for?
13. Some people don't understand deadlines. I call those people politicians. ☺
----------------------------
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 588th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
They Broke the Oven
As we continue with the flooring saga, I offer up the rather devastating news that somehow one of the tile men broke the glass on my oven.
My oven is a Jenn-Air, and it was expensive when we purchased it about 30 years ago. I don't know how it was broken as I wasn't here, and I don't know if there is other damage to the oven. The tile man has managed to locate the only single existing piece of glass for this oven door in the entire United States and is having it shipped here, but that doesn't relieve my anxiety about whether or not the door seals have been compromised.
A new Jenn-Air is expensive - about $3,500, actually. So I am guessing the tile man is hoping this piece of glass he's ordered really does fix things. Otherwise someone's insurance will be buying me a new stove. I have no issues with my oven so I don't know whether to hope the glass fits or not. I had no plans to replace my oven. It has worked just fine all of this time and if it isn't broke I don't replace things simply to replace them.
In the meantime, the old tile that was laid in early October came up incredibly easy, almost by hand, because the first tile-layers did such a crappy job. My husband said the only thing holding the tile down was the grout, basically. That turned out to be good because no jackhammers or other heavy equipment was necessary to get the tile out, and it mostly came up in single pieces. These will be donated to Habitat for Humanity for reuse in someone else's home, according to the tile contractor, since they are in good shape.
The other trauma that happened yesterday involved some adhesive crap that the tile people spread all over the cement. I don't know why my husband didn't stop them, because it smells and everyone has been told 100 times that I am sensitive to chemical odors and have asthma. Nevertheless, this stuff was put down.
It smells terrible and after a little while my lips started tingling and swelling, which is where I tend to react to things. We left for a while to eat dinner and go to Lowes, and it was still stinking when we returned, so we left the windows open and the furnace on (our light bill will be hideous this month) and left to spend the night at my mother-in-law's house.
We came back early this morning (around 6:15 a.m.) and have been trying to air out the house so it doesn't smell so. James is hoping that once the tile is over the stinky stuff the odor will dissipate even more. The odor isn't bothering me quite so much but I am staying back in my office with the door shut and I also have taken extra allergy medication.
This adventure living during a renovation is not for me, I have to say.
My oven is a Jenn-Air, and it was expensive when we purchased it about 30 years ago. I don't know how it was broken as I wasn't here, and I don't know if there is other damage to the oven. The tile man has managed to locate the only single existing piece of glass for this oven door in the entire United States and is having it shipped here, but that doesn't relieve my anxiety about whether or not the door seals have been compromised.
A new Jenn-Air is expensive - about $3,500, actually. So I am guessing the tile man is hoping this piece of glass he's ordered really does fix things. Otherwise someone's insurance will be buying me a new stove. I have no issues with my oven so I don't know whether to hope the glass fits or not. I had no plans to replace my oven. It has worked just fine all of this time and if it isn't broke I don't replace things simply to replace them.
In the meantime, the old tile that was laid in early October came up incredibly easy, almost by hand, because the first tile-layers did such a crappy job. My husband said the only thing holding the tile down was the grout, basically. That turned out to be good because no jackhammers or other heavy equipment was necessary to get the tile out, and it mostly came up in single pieces. These will be donated to Habitat for Humanity for reuse in someone else's home, according to the tile contractor, since they are in good shape.
The other trauma that happened yesterday involved some adhesive crap that the tile people spread all over the cement. I don't know why my husband didn't stop them, because it smells and everyone has been told 100 times that I am sensitive to chemical odors and have asthma. Nevertheless, this stuff was put down.
It smells terrible and after a little while my lips started tingling and swelling, which is where I tend to react to things. We left for a while to eat dinner and go to Lowes, and it was still stinking when we returned, so we left the windows open and the furnace on (our light bill will be hideous this month) and left to spend the night at my mother-in-law's house.
We came back early this morning (around 6:15 a.m.) and have been trying to air out the house so it doesn't smell so. James is hoping that once the tile is over the stinky stuff the odor will dissipate even more. The odor isn't bothering me quite so much but I am staying back in my office with the door shut and I also have taken extra allergy medication.
This adventure living during a renovation is not for me, I have to say.
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
The Floor Saga Continues
So now we come once again to flooring.
My parquet floors in August had to be replaced because of a dishwasher malfunction.
In early October, men came and put in tile.
It was a horrible, awful job, although initially we thought it was ok. You can't really tell until it's done, after all, because you can't walk on it and stuff is wet and you think it going to dry a different color.
However, after they were through we realized that the grout changed color halfway through, the tiles are not lined up straight, and they are not flat. You can trip over this floor without even thinking about it.
After much back and forth with the flooring company, they have agreed to replace the tile floor. This entails jackhammers and sledge hammers and other equipment that I don't even want to think about being in my home.
I am leaving as soon as they arrive, and leaving this part to my husband to supervise.
As it is, we've had to remove everything not just in the kitchen but also in the living room, because of the anticipated dust that we have been told this will create. That is also another reason for me to leave, as I have asthma.
Here is what my house looks like now:
This has been very stressful. The tile does not look bad to just look at it, but it is wavy and a nightmare to walk on. My husband was determined it was going to be made right, and so hopefully it shall be.
The new tile installer is a "certified tile installer," which is supposed to mean something. Anyway, the flooring people took this fellow's word that the job was poor. They initially brought him out to prove it was "acceptably poor" but he said it wasn't and it all needed to come up. That was when they finally agreed to pay to replace it.
I will be out all day and I'm not really well enough to be out for long periods. Fortunately I will be able to meet a friend for lunch, so that will be a nice long break.
Wish me luck, with all of it.
My parquet floors in August had to be replaced because of a dishwasher malfunction.
In early October, men came and put in tile.
It was a horrible, awful job, although initially we thought it was ok. You can't really tell until it's done, after all, because you can't walk on it and stuff is wet and you think it going to dry a different color.
However, after they were through we realized that the grout changed color halfway through, the tiles are not lined up straight, and they are not flat. You can trip over this floor without even thinking about it.
After much back and forth with the flooring company, they have agreed to replace the tile floor. This entails jackhammers and sledge hammers and other equipment that I don't even want to think about being in my home.
I am leaving as soon as they arrive, and leaving this part to my husband to supervise.
As it is, we've had to remove everything not just in the kitchen but also in the living room, because of the anticipated dust that we have been told this will create. That is also another reason for me to leave, as I have asthma.
Here is what my house looks like now:
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| We need some help with the cabinets; the tile men will have to help us move some things. |
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| Yep, my refrigerator is in my living room. |
This has been very stressful. The tile does not look bad to just look at it, but it is wavy and a nightmare to walk on. My husband was determined it was going to be made right, and so hopefully it shall be.
The new tile installer is a "certified tile installer," which is supposed to mean something. Anyway, the flooring people took this fellow's word that the job was poor. They initially brought him out to prove it was "acceptably poor" but he said it wasn't and it all needed to come up. That was when they finally agreed to pay to replace it.
I will be out all day and I'm not really well enough to be out for long periods. Fortunately I will be able to meet a friend for lunch, so that will be a nice long break.
Wish me luck, with all of it.
Monday, January 21, 2019
Lunar Eclipse of the Supermoon Wolf Moon
We set an alarm for 11 p.m. and I took these shots between 11:10 p.m. and midnight last night.
And these are photos of the Supermoon Wolf Moon setting over the mountain on Monday morning.
And these are photos of the Supermoon Wolf Moon setting over the mountain on Monday morning.
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