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Home ownership has brought with it more that a few repair issues, most of which (luckily) I have been able to resolve on my own. The few repair people I’ve had come out either did service I didn’t dare try (like replace the air conditioner), or couldn’t do alone (install the carpet) or that I just didn’t know enough about (who knew you had to clear a clogged drain from the roof?). I laid all the floor tile, installed a bathtub and tile surround, installed the garbage disposal - and replaced it five years later when it died, fixed leaks, patched holes and a million other little niggling things. But somehow I never get it all done, and that holds especially true with plumbing. When I moved in all of my water was supplied by well and I quickly learned how to repair the system because it had an annoying habit of going on the fritz at the least appropriate times, like when you really needed to take a shower or flush a toilet. A few years ago city water was installed (excluding irrigation) and I was able to get rid of most of the well equipment. But the new water presented a new problem ... increased pressure. Increased pressure and bad pipes. I had inadvertently purchased a home plumbed with plastic pipes that had been recalled years ago. At the time the Dow company was paying to have homes re-plumbed I was still living in apartment bliss. By the time I purchased my home it was already well beyond the class-action dates, ie ‘tough luck sister’. Oddly enough, it never has never leaked in the attic where access to it is easier (note that I didn’t say easy), rather it is has always leaked somewhere that I must rip out drywall or tile, I suspect to help me keep my drywall talents up to snuff. Lately, though, the plumbing has been rather quiet, or should I say gathering strength for an all fronts assault. One of the outside hose bibs is leaking more water out the seal than goes down the hose. A mostly easy fix, except that the last time something burst I didn’t reinstall the water shut off for the house, so to fix one I must first fix the other. Last night, while watering the roses, the fitting that the well head hose bib threads into split right down the side – waltzing waters indeed! Fixing this will require more hands (I know because we’ve done it before) and a weekend day, so I killed the system till then. And when I gave up and went inside, I discovered that the cold water line feeding the kitchen sink had joined the fray. I’m not sure what to expect when I get home tonight, though images of cats clinging to floating furniture and the dog paddling through the living room certainly come to mind. So this weekend, if you’d like to learn a little about plumbing (and cursing) feel free to drop by. I expect I’ll be offering free clinics all weekend - schnort!
-We had a fine time yesterday, though the traffic was tedious at times. We sat in the waiting room and chatted, or I read while D drew, either way we were ‘forced’ to relax and that made it all the better. The we lunched at Moe’s, had a stroll through the book store and another through Pier One before piling back into the car and heading home. We were early enough, that I finished a bag (one that actually, sold - sorta), read a few more pages in my book, and prevented the dog from popping. All in all a good day.
- I am currently reading Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey. Normally I devour books in a few days, but this one has taken nearly two weeks. It is not a difficult read, but it is also not one you can ‘gloss’ through and still hope to understand what is happening. There are several ‘houses’ to deal with, seven versions of the same religion to sort out, and most characters have three names - some as many as five when dealing with their titles. I am enjoying it, especially because it is jammed with words I am not familiar with. And I do not just mean the names, which are themselves a feat of letter arrangement (the main character is Phe`dre no De`launay, and she’s one of the easy ones). Rather, I mean terms like: limn, abjure, and bistre. Their meaning is understood easily when supported by a sentence, but I am still delighted to learn them.
- Same book, but different topic. Since this one is taking me a while to read it is gathering more damage than I usually inflict ... normally I’m hard pressed to even break the spine on a paper back. This one is having a much rougher go of it. A leaking 2 gallon water jug in the back seat of the truck swelled it to twice its original size. And though I hated that uneven thickness, I could live with it and continue reading. Two days ago, though, a well aimed cat nailed it with a hairball - a really wet hairball, which not only increased the swelling but pushed it beyond being anything I wanted to handle. I was going to see if I could pick it up at the library, but a quick computer search proved that there were none to be had. The day before we drove to Tampa, D stopped at a book store and bought me a new one, and part three (he thought it was part two), and a magazine that I like (can I get an ‘awwwww’). While in Tampa, he realized he had failed to get part two and took me to a book store after lunch to pick one up (can I get another ‘awwww). Sometimes he’s a total GUY and sometimes he’s very sweet!
-When I returned to work today I found that the mailman and UPS driver had both brought me packages. No gifties, but rather things I had ordered but didn’t yet expect quite so soon, and one I had all but given up on....the rose bush, which I will plant tonight where it will hopefully vine with morning glories and sweet peas that are already peeking up through the mulch. It makes me grin just thinking about it.
-My friend Rox has opened her online store, and, bless her, she invited me to include my bags there as well. I am hopeful that a few will sell, and add to the money we are accumulating for the ‘Long Drive’ in July. If you received a gift tote and have an envious friend you might invite them to take a peek ... oh, and you can look at the knitting too - har! Seriously, though, she is very talented, and this is a wonderful way to pick up a handmade item for yourself or as a gift at very reasonable prices.
It would probably be easier to list what didn’t get done than to say what did! I definitely made up for last weeks sloth three-fold. Every room of the house is clean, there was a divine dinner of Irish Beef Stew, garlic mashed potatoes and biscuits. And a late birthday cake for my dad (German chocolate with toasted pecan and coconut caramel). The lanai garden is pleasant again, and fifteen more bags of mulch are down. I even found the floor of the crap craft room ... and its been missing for months. All in all it was very productive, though sometime late Sunday afternoon I ran out of steam and just stalled, when I should have been bag making. Four bags (all gifties) are underway but none near completion, and I have plans for a new feature at Dragonfly Designs - called a Stash Buster (sorry knitters, this is for that fabric stash), but it is still just a plan. If the road to hell is paved with good intentions my path shall be three feet thick and free of potholes - har. Tomorrow, I’m off. D and I are driving to Tampa to get the oil changed in the Mini (Tampa is the closest dealership). It’s a little boring sitting in the dealership, but a nice day nonetheless and I am looking forward to it. We had thought to tarry in Sarasota on the way back, but we failed to make plans for the dog and will need to hurry home to let her out lest she pop. So, I’ll probably see you all Wednesday ... don’t do anything too exciting, I’d hate to miss out!
This is not a good day to talk to me, it might not even be a good day to look at me. Today I am in my ‘biting mood’, basically and over the top version of PMS, that I thought I had licked years ago ... but, nope, today its back and I’m as likely to burst into tears as I am to come out swinging. I took Sarafem* for a long time because an OBGYN diagnosed it as PMDD and at the time it helped, but it also made me terribly forgetful and I couldn’t tolerate that. Besides, since it’s not every month it’s not all that likely that I have anything of the sort – just a pill happy OBGYN. Nonetheless, I’d steer clear if I were you because today I BITE!
*Prozak, with a fancy new name.
The weather folks have been talking all week about a chance of rain today and tomorrow. It has been ‘dim’ all day but no rain. Twenty minutes ago there was a huge crack of thunder and the sky opened up - I literally couldn’t see across the parking lot. Some people here at work and already complaining about the grey day we’ve had, but I honestly couldn’t care less. Sure, getting home will take forever, and mucking through the parking lot at the grocery store will be a pain. But sweet Jesus, its RAINING, and I just couldn’t be happier!
One of my monthly goals was to reduce the fabric stash (and clean out my crap craft room). I honestly haven’t touched a thing ... the task may be too daunting! Unless there is a miracle burst of interest between now and the end of the month I may encounter my first ‘F’. On the other hand, I was inspired Saturday to tackle the master bathroom cabinets. It took two hours, and filled two trash bags. Oddly this exercise may have shed some light on the real reason I haven’t done anything in the craft room yet. I hoard things. I buy stuff because I’m dying to have it and then tuck it away for safe keeping ... where it molders ‘till I loose interest and toss it or suddenly find it and have no recollection of ever having had it. Case in point, I tossed three curling irons ... I haven’t used a curling iron in at least four years, possibly longer. Hair picks - nine, yes nine. I’ve had a perm off and on forever, but not since I got my hair cut short – maybe six years. Banana clips, oh yes, how I loved my banana clips - four of ‘em. And even a ‘Topsy Tail’ - don’t ask. Six or seven partially used bottles of nail polish remover and partial bags of cotton balls. It seems I get a wild hair to paint my nails and go buy all new stuff-go figure. I even found several new, and relatively expensive Origins items, one of which I planted firmly on the bathroom counter and have used every morning since ... the others I tossed. My friends have always teased that I’d be that little old lady with a house full of cats, but it seems I’m destined to have a house full of stuff as well…
If you guessed that I’d never accomplish all I set out to do this weekend, you’d be right. Basically nothing went as planned on Saturday, and I spent Sunday hung-over relaxing on the couch. There were a few accomplishments but zero sewing, so if you are waiting for a tote, or a prize you’ll be waiting a bit longer - sorry. Indeed, nothing of note will be done tonight either as I will be trotting down to the airport to pick up my Mom who has been in Missouri (near K.C.) this week visiting my grandparents. Her flight comes in at about 11pm ... and if you know me, you know that’s about two hours past my bedtime, which really only means that not much will get done tomorrow night either.
I am still consumed with my desire for new furniture throughout the house, but it occurred to me that I have the cart well ahead of the horse. First there needs to be painting and window treatments. But before that, I need to finish other unfinished projects. The guest bath is the first room that I re-did in this house, some eight years ago, and it really was never finished. I never repainted the base board, or cleaned up the caulk or completed a hand full of other little things. My sewing room / office is much the same, still needing touch up work on the trim and all the electrical outlets replaced. And finally the kitchen and laundry room that have sat half painted for about half a year now. So I am trying to redirect that head of steam for buying new furniture to be one for painting. Probably wont work - heh - but hey it’s worth a try. Anyone looking for a spring visit to Florida is welcome – but you probably better bring your paintbrush.
The last two days I have been up before 4am (once for a plumbing issue, and once due to work) and I have to say I’m dragging pretty badly now. We did manage to sell the sideboard last night, if we keep on we might actually be able to park a car in the garage - only one, mind you, but even little victories are good. I wish I could tell you what the weekend has in store, but our plans are very diaphanous right now (bah! You know I’m tired when I start slinging around words like ‘diaphanous’). We are invited to our ‘friend in the country’s’ place for gaming all weekend. D will go Saturday for sure, but I am on call (hence 4am this morning) and my cell phone generally gets very bad service out there, so I am still on the fence. I don’t game with them much anyway, but it is a lovely place to sit out under the trees, read a book and put a major dent in a bottle of wine. Most likely I’ll settle for spring cleaning and maybe a brief visit to the ‘country’ Saturday night and sewing / stash reduction on Sunday. Which, hopefully means a new entry at Dragonfly Designs, a new store at Etsy, new items at Ebay and new images for Rox come Monday. But given my exhausted state right now, I’m ready for a nap just thinking about it. Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you all - have a safe and happy weekend!
In a bid to sell the side board I checked with my cousin to see if she might be interested. She wasn’t but offered to e-mail everyone in her school (about 90 people) with information on it and its photo. Probably ten minutes after I sent her the photos she was on the phone to me with a response, and a few minutes after that with another ... and again this morning with a third. Two of the respondents are likely coming by tonight to see it in person. I’m pretty amazed. Most folks at the yard sale who looked at it commented that it was pretty but moved on quickly. It might be the ‘junk factor’ again (as Rox and Greenie) put it...or maybe just the wrong crowd. In any case, it is beginning to look like we’ll be selling it in the very near future, which puts us one step closer to replacing it with a bar. All that’s left to do is decide on which one, and as D and I’s tastes are on opposite ends of the scale, that may prove very difficult. My choices (so far) are this, this, or this.
And, no, I have no idea why there are two photos .... PEEEEEEA!
I guess I just did too much on Sunday, because when I got home last night I was content to just sit in my chair and read and watch tv (yes I always do both at the same time). My book of choice was quickly forgotten as I got sucked into a show called “14 Children and Pregnant Again” which was followed quickly by “16 Children and Moving In”. Basically the story of Jim Bob Duggar, his wife Michelle and their (now) 16 knee nibblers. You are probably familiar with them as they made the talk show rounds late last year. I found parts of their tale inspiring and parts downright disturbing, and like being unable to look away from a car wreck, I did a little web search and wound up with a plethora of information that the shows clearly didn’t have time to share. Probably my biggest question throughout both programs was ‘where is the money coming from’. Yeah, they built their own (as in with their own hands) 7000 square foot house, and yeah, they firmly believe in being ‘debt free’. The show mentioned that Jim Bob is in real-estate. And the internet supplied that he had previously been in government and ran for the senate. Still, from a three bedroom, two bath house in the first show to a 7000 sq. foot house with all new furniture, two contractors and a designer from New York ... I’m thinking that Discovery Channel and the talk show circuit must have paid mightily for the story. But I am missing the point, aren’t I? Sixteen kids! And based on the show, they are more than ready for more! Sure, the kids were responsible, hard working and well learned - but they weren’t kids, they were mini grown-ups helping raise more mini grown ups. The Duggars use a buddy system, each of the smaller kids has an older buddy to help them with things like tying shoes and not getting lost at the store. Michelle even said, straight faced into the camera, [paraphrase] “The first rule is that Mommy cannot be everyone’s buddy (all the time). When there is a new child I am its (ITS!) buddy until it is weaned and then it (IT again, people) is passed to the next child whose turn it is to have a buddy.” I won’t go off on a rant here because I can’t do it justice. But this article, though pretty abrasive, does a good job - and (I’m sorry Ms. Duggar) its pretty damn funny. To be fair, the Duggar’s also keep web sites, despite the fact that the shows claimed that there was no TV and no internet in the home, they can be found here and here. Certainly this is the right lifestyle for them, and I think they do as good a job of it as could be expected of anyone - possibly better, but isn’t pretty selfish to expect your children to raise your children because YOU want more children?
This weekend was much like any other ... busy, busy, busy. Late Sunday afternoon, after a two mile walk, yard work, shampooing the carpets, and delivering the dresser (yep, we sold it), I simply ran out of steam. I parked myself on the lanai with a book and allowed the few remaining hours of my weekend to spin out with the sunset.. And when it grew too dim to read, I laid my book aside and spent some time, eyes closed, just listening to the sounds of our neighborhood. First and foremost (sadly) was the drone of traffic, and the buzz of air conditioners. But with just a little concentration, and application of that nose filter I usually reserve for D (kidding) there was bird song and crickets, children splashing in a pool, the clatter of wind in palms and rustle of lizards in the plumbago. It is something I should do more often.
Yep, that’s me, weak. The current issue Threads magazine showed up at my house Tuesday. The editor must have read my mind because there is a nice, albeit short, article about purse hardware along with several links to purveyors of such items. I found one item in particular quite exciting; a gate-top. I’ve never seen one so I went searching for more - online of course. The article had a link to the Bag Lady, who sells new gate frames. Hers are $50 and $70 new and I wrote it off as something I’d never have. Of course, thirty seconds after ‘writing it off’ I checked on E-bay for gate tops and voila I found one reputed to be Victorian (pre 1920’s). And yeah, I totally forgot my ‘stash reduction’ vow, as well as the ‘no new stuff’ and the ‘no new projects ‘till the old ones are finished’ vows, fired up my PayPal account and waited until the last 30 seconds of the auction (yeah, I’m one of those people). And I won! Prepare yourself for the price I paid (no, I can’t afford it right now but you see how much that slowed me down). But isn’t it just the coolest thing ever! Now I’m fretting over ‘just the right fabric’ to construct the bag out of , whether to use a chain or a ribbon, and if I might be able to find a ‘purse history’ book to reconstruct what was there originally. Like I said, weak *sigh*.
It is only Wednesday, but already the week has been rather odd. I feel a little like I’m relating events for the “Truth or Fiction” game I favor, but in this case these are all true.
Monday I went to lunch with my uncle (yes Rox, the one you spoke with on the phone). While we were eating I noticed a commotion in the restaurant’s lobby. The hostess grabbed up her microphone and announced she was looking for the owner of a white SUV. You guessed it ... ours. Nope the lights weren’t on, rather a woman driving through the parking lot ran a stop sign, panicked because in doing so she pulled out in front of a large sanitation truck, punched the gas and shot her car over a median and into the drivers side of Unc’s SUV. To make a long story short, lunch took about three hours total.
Tuesday morning I headed off to work when I realized the truck was out of gas. I don’t mean low - I mean out. This was odd for two reasons. One, I distinctly remember checking the gas Monday morning, because I was towing the trailer back to work. And when I’m towing you can watch the gas needle fall. I had over a half a tank and it is 16 miles to work. And two, with the very rare exception I always fill up when I hit a quarter of a tank. So I’m either losing my mind (which really isn’t too far fetched), or someone siphoned gas out of the truck.
Last night at about 8:30 it occurred to me that I had forgotten to get the mail, so out I went and found a woman, with a large pick up truck rummaging through our garbage. Mind you, we had lots of garbage this week (garage clean out, yard sale leftovers, and general junk). When I hit the bottom of the driveway I told her she was likely wasting her time as most of it really was trash. “Well its mine”, she said, “you cant have it back. YOU threw it away!”. Righty ‘o’ chick - take all you want, I thought and went back inside (and locked the door).
So with three days left to go in this week, I’m sorta anxious to see what comes at me next. It should be interesting.
While surfing today I came across a Swedish blog, and while I can’t read a word of it the photo really says it all!
Sometimes I am amazed at what the post office accomplishes for what really is a reasonable amount of money...and other times I really don’t care much for the post office. This is one of those latter times. I have three boxes in route to their new homes, two of the three I know have arrived (or at least the post office says they have) but I haven’t heard a peep from the recipients. Mind you, I’m not knocking anyone for not firing off a speedy ‘thank-you’ email, rather I’m whining about not knowing if the boxes really made it or not, it honestly drives me crazy! I finally gave up today and e-mailed Pea to see if she’s received hers and I feel like a schmuck for doing so. She did get her package, but had not yet had a chance to drop me a note – and now I know I’m a schmuck, because I managed to make her feel badly about the whole thing - grrr. I have no clue why I fret so much over ‘en route’ packages, I’ve only had one ever go missing, and even it turned up a few months later. Schmuckity, schmuck, schmuck!
In other news please stop by Greenie’s site and wish her congratulations on her new job! And while you are doing me favors, drop in over at Chucklehut and wish cutie Zach a very, very happy 1st birthday! Oh, and Rox could probably use some encouragement as she is still fighting the unpacking and clutter of a new home.