Tomorrow morning Brad and I board a plane for Lexington, Kentucky (via an Atlanta connection) and I find myself having a very hard time going to bed because of the finality of this flight. We are headed there for my son Jeff's final football game of his college career, so it's an extremely bittersweet trip. Often I have opined about how great it would be to have a free Autumn weekend to do as I please or how I wasn't thrilled about yet one more flight, but when push comes to shove, I realize what a big moment this is in my life ..... and his.
For the past 9 years - starting with his Freshman year in High School - at least one day of my Fall weekends has been planned around a football game. It started out as JV games on Friday nights (or maybe even Thursday afternoons if memory serves me correctly). He never played until 9th grade, so this was a new experience. I can actually remember his Junior year when he became a starter, and how I was amazed that he could catch the ball when he played Tight End and hit so hard when he was playing Defensive End. Where did this kid come from?! His Dad and I were sure he was destined for the stage when he was younger, but I don't think either of us dreamt that he would chose the stage of a football field. And then by his Senior year when he started getting interest from some of those schools interested in "not quite big enough for Division 1 but you're a good student" players, it never occurred to me that this would go beyond four years.
Butler chose him and he chose Butler and I have to say that it's been a wonderful fit. I do literally remember driving away from the Freshman dorms his first year there and feeling like the worst mother on the planet for leaving her son on a sweltering August day in an un-airconditioned dorm as he was ready to start 2-a-days........ But we both survived. And I think in perhaps many ways, he thrived. Jeff found his niche and ran with it. And I could not be prouder. He graduates in December as a 5th year Senior, choosing to stay and play the one more season of eligibility he had. He already has a job offer - a blessing in these times. They are lucky to have him. He will be staying in Indianapolis... with Michelle, his girlfriend of three years, whom we love as well, and all of the friends he has made over the years. There are so many proud moments that I am not sure I can recount them all, but I know one was last year when he received the award for "The Butler Way" at the end of the year banquet. In the scheme of life, those are the ones that matter.
So one more Friday I will board an early morning flight, with my #52 jersey packed in my luggage. I will wake on Saturday morning and slip it on and wonder if perhaps the people on the other side of the stadium will see it glow when I wear it with pride as my son takes the field. I will cheer. I will smile. More than likely I will cry. But mostly I will be filled with such love and pride. I am so proud of the young man he has become. I told him that once in a text message a few months back........ he replied that he had much more "becoming to do". I am not sure what I have done so right in my life that I have been blessed with the two sons that I have, but I treasure them and how they have enriched my life.
Here's to health..... may you get through this last game unscathed.
Here's to hope.... for a Butler victory and your bright future.
Here's to joy ... what you have given me the last 22 years.
Here's to love... words cannot express how much I love you and how proud I am to be your mother.
Thanks for the memories Jeff. It's been amazing!
So the song I have chosen today is a classic....... "It's a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong. It truly is a wonderful world........
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
That's the way that the world goes round ........
Well now, it's almost downright embarrassing to admit that it's been almost a MONTH since I last wrote! Not sure what exactly happened there, but honestly, I take it as a good sign since it must mean that the house wasn't always one my mind 24/7.
Just to make life more interesting, I took a misstep off a sidewalk in Raleigh, NC - where I was headed last time I wrote. We were going to dinner and it was dark and there was a cut out I didn't see. Pop goes the ankle! Long story short, had it x-rayed the following Monday and it wasn't broken but have to admit this is one of the worst sprained ankles I may have ever had. It's been four weeks and honestly, it still hurts, is still a tiny bit swollen and I haven't been able to run for 4 weeks. When I put on the wrong shoe, it reminds just exactly where it still is tender on that outside edge. Enough already! I hobbled around for a good week, took 9 days to be able to have the swelling go down enough to fit it in a shoe, but now it's pretty much business as usual.
Since that weekend in Raleigh, the Bulldogs have had two games back in Indy and an actual bye last weekend so we got to stay home! It was great! We leave tomorrow for Jeff's last home game of his career at the Butler Bowl........ Senior Day, where the seniors get recognized and Brad and I get to walk out through the tunnel and onto the field with him. It truly will be bittersweet. It's been an amazing ride and I am so proud of him. And to make it even more special, my other son, Matt is going to join us as well so we will ALL get to be there! Should be a great weekend. The two remaining games after that are in Jacksonville, FL (it will be tough, but I will go!) and Morehead, Kentucky for the grand finale and Jeff's last college football game ever. I am thinking it might be a good idea to put a pack of Kleenex in that camera bag about now!
As for the house, we're definitely getting there. I feel like life has actually calmed down enough that I am actually able to start doing the little things that really make you feel settled and like it's your own. Still working on things like hanging pictures but I make more progress each day. It has been beautiful fall weather so I have tried to do some things outdoors as well, before winter comes for keeps. (It did get to 32 degrees last night so it's not too far away!). I have finally been able to make head way on clearing things out of the greenhouse that just got thrown in there to be stored when we moved in - figured I have to make room for things I have to put inside soon like patio furniture!
My electricians have been here three times and we are mostly done, though still waiting on a down rod for a ceiling fan they are going to install. I haven't gotten the bill yet, but I keep telling myself it will be worth it in the end. We figured out a few of those mystery switches, gave up on a few more but they tested them and reassured me that they were dead and not using any power. I had them disconnect a few things I want to get rid of and they added some things like can lights in the office and another box for an extra fixture in a couple of hallways (I hooked the new lights up myself today!). All in all no horrible surprises or startling discoveries, which is fine by me. There are a few things I am going to submit to the Home Warranty company (they left them unfixed) and see if they will cover.
Then today we decided it was time to shut down the pond pump for the winter. Just for kicks, I went to the Westar meter and timed a complete revolution, Then I went and shut down the pump and went back and time the revolution of the wheel again. OH .... MY..... GOSH!!!!! I think I may have found a source of major energy usage and I am thinking a new pond pump might be in order in the spring! I kid you not, the single revolution of that wheel was three times faster when it was running. I think over the course of a 24 hour period that is MAJOR energy usage!!! Now granted we are having to fire up the furnace in the house occasionally in the mornings now, but I almost can't wait for the next electric bill!!
So there is hope! And we are getting ready for winter. I must admit that I have been pleasantly surprised so far and the house actually seems to be fairly well insulated. I have typically only had to run the heaters for a few hours on really cool mornings (Brad thinks I am nuts but 55 degrees inside my house is just a bit nippy when I wake up - though I LOVE sleeping when it's cold). I still have a bunch of sealing up to do - caulking around windows where it's come out over the years, patch a few holes. I got the chimneys swept to make sure we wouldn't die if we had a fire. We've also decided that we're pretty sure we are going to convert them to gas logs since it's just so much cleaner and easier and we would use it more. Luckily they are already plumbed with gas starters, so I hope to go tomorrow and order the logs sets since I have spent this week shopping around.
Next week I have a guy coming to do some repairs on my very old doors and windows that are having some issues, but I think after that, that I don't have too many more contractors scheduled that I can think of! Hooray - maybe I can get even ,more of my things done! Which is good since we are hosting Thanksgiving at our house for all of Brad's family. Both boys and their girlfriends are coming and we will have somewhere in the neighborhood of 20-25 people here for the meal! I don't have to do all of the cooking but needless to say, there are things I really need to get in order before that day! Nothing like a looming deadline to light a fire under you, huh?!
In the course of a month so much happens, but I don't want to bore you! I got to spend a few days with my Mom during bye week from football, so that was nice. She's doing well. I also decided to take a class at an art gallery in Old Town so for the last four Wednesdays I have spent a few hours each afternoon learning how to make glass tile! It's a class on fusing glass and I have had a ball. So much so that I just signed up for four more weeks! I'll try to take some pictures and post them soon.
So on that note, I will sign off and hope that I haven't put you to sleep without tales of hidden crawlspaces and strange discoveries. It was probably a lot more fun to read my blog when I had my finger in the dike each day, huh?!
It's hard to believe that a year ago I was on my big road trip - seems like a lifetime ago. Actually, one year ago today I was in Pittsburg at my Mom's and went out to dinner with several old high school friends! From that day to this has been an incredibly journey with lots of ups and downs, but I just continue to hold on for for the ride Decided to post a song tonight that just sort of sums up life sometimes. It's called "That's The Way That The World Goes Round" by John Prine. Hope you all have a great weekend and I'll try to write again before another month goes by!
Just to make life more interesting, I took a misstep off a sidewalk in Raleigh, NC - where I was headed last time I wrote. We were going to dinner and it was dark and there was a cut out I didn't see. Pop goes the ankle! Long story short, had it x-rayed the following Monday and it wasn't broken but have to admit this is one of the worst sprained ankles I may have ever had. It's been four weeks and honestly, it still hurts, is still a tiny bit swollen and I haven't been able to run for 4 weeks. When I put on the wrong shoe, it reminds just exactly where it still is tender on that outside edge. Enough already! I hobbled around for a good week, took 9 days to be able to have the swelling go down enough to fit it in a shoe, but now it's pretty much business as usual.
Since that weekend in Raleigh, the Bulldogs have had two games back in Indy and an actual bye last weekend so we got to stay home! It was great! We leave tomorrow for Jeff's last home game of his career at the Butler Bowl........ Senior Day, where the seniors get recognized and Brad and I get to walk out through the tunnel and onto the field with him. It truly will be bittersweet. It's been an amazing ride and I am so proud of him. And to make it even more special, my other son, Matt is going to join us as well so we will ALL get to be there! Should be a great weekend. The two remaining games after that are in Jacksonville, FL (it will be tough, but I will go!) and Morehead, Kentucky for the grand finale and Jeff's last college football game ever. I am thinking it might be a good idea to put a pack of Kleenex in that camera bag about now!
As for the house, we're definitely getting there. I feel like life has actually calmed down enough that I am actually able to start doing the little things that really make you feel settled and like it's your own. Still working on things like hanging pictures but I make more progress each day. It has been beautiful fall weather so I have tried to do some things outdoors as well, before winter comes for keeps. (It did get to 32 degrees last night so it's not too far away!). I have finally been able to make head way on clearing things out of the greenhouse that just got thrown in there to be stored when we moved in - figured I have to make room for things I have to put inside soon like patio furniture!
My electricians have been here three times and we are mostly done, though still waiting on a down rod for a ceiling fan they are going to install. I haven't gotten the bill yet, but I keep telling myself it will be worth it in the end. We figured out a few of those mystery switches, gave up on a few more but they tested them and reassured me that they were dead and not using any power. I had them disconnect a few things I want to get rid of and they added some things like can lights in the office and another box for an extra fixture in a couple of hallways (I hooked the new lights up myself today!). All in all no horrible surprises or startling discoveries, which is fine by me. There are a few things I am going to submit to the Home Warranty company (they left them unfixed) and see if they will cover.
Then today we decided it was time to shut down the pond pump for the winter. Just for kicks, I went to the Westar meter and timed a complete revolution, Then I went and shut down the pump and went back and time the revolution of the wheel again. OH .... MY..... GOSH!!!!! I think I may have found a source of major energy usage and I am thinking a new pond pump might be in order in the spring! I kid you not, the single revolution of that wheel was three times faster when it was running. I think over the course of a 24 hour period that is MAJOR energy usage!!! Now granted we are having to fire up the furnace in the house occasionally in the mornings now, but I almost can't wait for the next electric bill!!
So there is hope! And we are getting ready for winter. I must admit that I have been pleasantly surprised so far and the house actually seems to be fairly well insulated. I have typically only had to run the heaters for a few hours on really cool mornings (Brad thinks I am nuts but 55 degrees inside my house is just a bit nippy when I wake up - though I LOVE sleeping when it's cold). I still have a bunch of sealing up to do - caulking around windows where it's come out over the years, patch a few holes. I got the chimneys swept to make sure we wouldn't die if we had a fire. We've also decided that we're pretty sure we are going to convert them to gas logs since it's just so much cleaner and easier and we would use it more. Luckily they are already plumbed with gas starters, so I hope to go tomorrow and order the logs sets since I have spent this week shopping around.
Next week I have a guy coming to do some repairs on my very old doors and windows that are having some issues, but I think after that, that I don't have too many more contractors scheduled that I can think of! Hooray - maybe I can get even ,more of my things done! Which is good since we are hosting Thanksgiving at our house for all of Brad's family. Both boys and their girlfriends are coming and we will have somewhere in the neighborhood of 20-25 people here for the meal! I don't have to do all of the cooking but needless to say, there are things I really need to get in order before that day! Nothing like a looming deadline to light a fire under you, huh?!
In the course of a month so much happens, but I don't want to bore you! I got to spend a few days with my Mom during bye week from football, so that was nice. She's doing well. I also decided to take a class at an art gallery in Old Town so for the last four Wednesdays I have spent a few hours each afternoon learning how to make glass tile! It's a class on fusing glass and I have had a ball. So much so that I just signed up for four more weeks! I'll try to take some pictures and post them soon.
So on that note, I will sign off and hope that I haven't put you to sleep without tales of hidden crawlspaces and strange discoveries. It was probably a lot more fun to read my blog when I had my finger in the dike each day, huh?!
It's hard to believe that a year ago I was on my big road trip - seems like a lifetime ago. Actually, one year ago today I was in Pittsburg at my Mom's and went out to dinner with several old high school friends! From that day to this has been an incredibly journey with lots of ups and downs, but I just continue to hold on for for the ride Decided to post a song tonight that just sort of sums up life sometimes. It's called "That's The Way That The World Goes Round" by John Prine. Hope you all have a great weekend and I'll try to write again before another month goes by!
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
..... Goin' to Carolina .....
Well, the world keeps spinning and I keep blogging. The furious pace of autumn when you have a son who plays college football is upon us but as tired as I am, I couldn't be happier. The Bulldogs are off to a 3-2 start and had a great win last weekend - an upset over the Dayton Flyers capped off with an interception and a field goal to win the game! Doesn't get much better than that! Jeff had another great game, so forgive me if my pride is showing heartily this week. This weekend Brad and I are off to North Carolina in search of watching win number four! Go Dawgs!
I know a few of you have asked what's up with the electrical situation at the house and sorry it's taken me so long to let you know. There is hope!!! I know last I wrote, I spoke of being apprehensive about the electrician, but after meeting him I feel much better. He is simply a rather laid back guy and perhaps that works well with me in this situation since it's the one I tend to get the most uptight about. Perhaps he is the yin to my yang on this situation. Once he got to the house and we talked a bit, he basically told me he wanted to start with my meter and my breaker boxes. Checked out the meter and it all looked fine to him (that's kind of what I figured too). Then we moved inside and he took the covers of the two breaker panels that I have. To me it looked pretty much like chaos with wires everywhere, but he said it didn't look too bad to him. He was really good at explaining to me what he was doing as he went along (sometimes I wonder if they can all tell that I want to know or if they just think of me as the crazy hovering homeowner!). He basically checked all of the connections ..... where all of the "hot wires" came into each circuit breaker and also where each neutral wire connected. Seems like all of the hot wires were in pretty good shape, BUT tons of the neutral wires were very loose!! He tightened everything up and told me that that alone might help me quite a bit.
In easy-to-understand terms, the way I understand it is that when the connection is loose, it creates heat, which uses more energy. Over time, that becomes a huge fire hazard as with the heat also comes the risk of an electrical arc which can cause the wire to short or burn out. If you were to look in your own circuit breaker panel and see a lot of white wires that have become dark, that is not a good thing. If anyone out there reading this has a better way of explaining this to me, please do so - or correct me if I am wrong! Overall, my wires looked okay at this point, but I am hoping that perhaps the tightening up he did will be one more step in helping to make this house at least a bit more energy efficient. And safer. Peace of mind is definitely worth it!
He and I walked through the house discussing all of the issues I had written down ( imagine a full sheet of lined notebook paper!) ..... switches that didn't seem to turn anything on, a couple of lights I can't seem to be able to turn on, fireplace blowers that don't blow, and of course, my crazy, crazy back yard. Complete with way too many junction boxes in really weird places, GFCI outlets that don't work, yard lights that hang down in shame and who knows what else. We both agreed this would be a very good place to start looking for issues as we are both sure there are many!
What I liked about Tom - the electrician - is that he made suggestions and gave me options. Never a "you've got to do this" but rather "we could do this or that". He's a busy guy and I am an impatient woman, but I think we'll get this worked out. The plan for now is that I will make a priority list and next week he will come and start on a few things. Then from there, we will keep attacking the list until maybe, just maybe, we feel like we have resolution.
But I must admit to feeling better. I feel like there is hope and that it's maybe not as bad as I had feared. (Then again, he hasn't actually been in my attic yet!)
So since I was feeling pretty good about all of that, I decided to have a window and glass guy come to the house. I have several windows that are foggy and obviously the seal between the panes of glass has been broken. A few windows in need of repair - non-functioning hardware and in other cases, a few BB holes! - and a few sliding glass doors that require Herculean effort to slide open and closed. Didn't necessarily like what he had to say as he felt like a lot of them might need to be replaced but on the plus side, he is going to see if he can get someone from Pella to come out and look at them since they have had a history of having problems with some of these and he had another customer who got hers fixed for free! I like free, so once again, I will test my patience and sit politely and wait to hear back from him.
Let's see...... what else ..... I finally got the fence stained yesterday. Decided to go ahead and buy an airless sprayer as the plan is to paint my own house exterior next spring (can you say masochist?!?!) and it definitely helped speed up the process and was a great way to practice my technique! And that nasty old neglected pole next to the driveway that had one held a basketball hoop? Well, it's now officially a shiny metal flag pole that is currently waving a Butler Bulldog flag! When life gives you lemon, make lemonade!
Of course the antics with the dogs just keep on coming. George has decided that it's pretty fun to actually go out into the middle of the pool - on top of the mesh pool cover!! I have these horrible visions of him falling through, but so far it's good to know that it's held his weight. We started up with a new vet this week and apparently George has been packing on a few! He's gained some weight! Time to cut the food back a bit. A friend brought her son over tonight to play with the dogs and get his dog fix. It was great from my perspective since he threw the ball for an hour. The only downside was later when we came in: Madison decided she was really thirsty so drank and drank and drank from the water bowl (visual image: Madison now always lays down to drink, with the bowl between her outstretched front paws). It was all good until about a half hour later when most of that water and a few other tidbits came up while she was laying at my feet as I watched TV. Good times!
So that's my life this week. All in all pretty good in the scheme of things. Whenever I get overwhelmed thinking of everything there is to do here at the house, I try to step back and realize that I have really only been here 4 months and realistically, things are better already. I have always been my own worst enemy and my own worst critic, so I will try to keep the doubter quiet. Baby steps ......
The song I picked for today is "Going to Carolina" by James Taylor. Always a good song and it seemed fitting seeing as Friday morning, I will indeed be going to Carolina! Have a great week!
I know a few of you have asked what's up with the electrical situation at the house and sorry it's taken me so long to let you know. There is hope!!! I know last I wrote, I spoke of being apprehensive about the electrician, but after meeting him I feel much better. He is simply a rather laid back guy and perhaps that works well with me in this situation since it's the one I tend to get the most uptight about. Perhaps he is the yin to my yang on this situation. Once he got to the house and we talked a bit, he basically told me he wanted to start with my meter and my breaker boxes. Checked out the meter and it all looked fine to him (that's kind of what I figured too). Then we moved inside and he took the covers of the two breaker panels that I have. To me it looked pretty much like chaos with wires everywhere, but he said it didn't look too bad to him. He was really good at explaining to me what he was doing as he went along (sometimes I wonder if they can all tell that I want to know or if they just think of me as the crazy hovering homeowner!). He basically checked all of the connections ..... where all of the "hot wires" came into each circuit breaker and also where each neutral wire connected. Seems like all of the hot wires were in pretty good shape, BUT tons of the neutral wires were very loose!! He tightened everything up and told me that that alone might help me quite a bit.
In easy-to-understand terms, the way I understand it is that when the connection is loose, it creates heat, which uses more energy. Over time, that becomes a huge fire hazard as with the heat also comes the risk of an electrical arc which can cause the wire to short or burn out. If you were to look in your own circuit breaker panel and see a lot of white wires that have become dark, that is not a good thing. If anyone out there reading this has a better way of explaining this to me, please do so - or correct me if I am wrong! Overall, my wires looked okay at this point, but I am hoping that perhaps the tightening up he did will be one more step in helping to make this house at least a bit more energy efficient. And safer. Peace of mind is definitely worth it!
He and I walked through the house discussing all of the issues I had written down ( imagine a full sheet of lined notebook paper!) ..... switches that didn't seem to turn anything on, a couple of lights I can't seem to be able to turn on, fireplace blowers that don't blow, and of course, my crazy, crazy back yard. Complete with way too many junction boxes in really weird places, GFCI outlets that don't work, yard lights that hang down in shame and who knows what else. We both agreed this would be a very good place to start looking for issues as we are both sure there are many!
What I liked about Tom - the electrician - is that he made suggestions and gave me options. Never a "you've got to do this" but rather "we could do this or that". He's a busy guy and I am an impatient woman, but I think we'll get this worked out. The plan for now is that I will make a priority list and next week he will come and start on a few things. Then from there, we will keep attacking the list until maybe, just maybe, we feel like we have resolution.
But I must admit to feeling better. I feel like there is hope and that it's maybe not as bad as I had feared. (Then again, he hasn't actually been in my attic yet!)
So since I was feeling pretty good about all of that, I decided to have a window and glass guy come to the house. I have several windows that are foggy and obviously the seal between the panes of glass has been broken. A few windows in need of repair - non-functioning hardware and in other cases, a few BB holes! - and a few sliding glass doors that require Herculean effort to slide open and closed. Didn't necessarily like what he had to say as he felt like a lot of them might need to be replaced but on the plus side, he is going to see if he can get someone from Pella to come out and look at them since they have had a history of having problems with some of these and he had another customer who got hers fixed for free! I like free, so once again, I will test my patience and sit politely and wait to hear back from him.
Let's see...... what else ..... I finally got the fence stained yesterday. Decided to go ahead and buy an airless sprayer as the plan is to paint my own house exterior next spring (can you say masochist?!?!) and it definitely helped speed up the process and was a great way to practice my technique! And that nasty old neglected pole next to the driveway that had one held a basketball hoop? Well, it's now officially a shiny metal flag pole that is currently waving a Butler Bulldog flag! When life gives you lemon, make lemonade!
Of course the antics with the dogs just keep on coming. George has decided that it's pretty fun to actually go out into the middle of the pool - on top of the mesh pool cover!! I have these horrible visions of him falling through, but so far it's good to know that it's held his weight. We started up with a new vet this week and apparently George has been packing on a few! He's gained some weight! Time to cut the food back a bit. A friend brought her son over tonight to play with the dogs and get his dog fix. It was great from my perspective since he threw the ball for an hour. The only downside was later when we came in: Madison decided she was really thirsty so drank and drank and drank from the water bowl (visual image: Madison now always lays down to drink, with the bowl between her outstretched front paws). It was all good until about a half hour later when most of that water and a few other tidbits came up while she was laying at my feet as I watched TV. Good times!
So that's my life this week. All in all pretty good in the scheme of things. Whenever I get overwhelmed thinking of everything there is to do here at the house, I try to step back and realize that I have really only been here 4 months and realistically, things are better already. I have always been my own worst enemy and my own worst critic, so I will try to keep the doubter quiet. Baby steps ......
The song I picked for today is "Going to Carolina" by James Taylor. Always a good song and it seemed fitting seeing as Friday morning, I will indeed be going to Carolina! Have a great week!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
.....These Days ......
I guess if I were to sum up the last week and a half, I would have to say it's been relatively calm! Relative is always the key word in my life these days, but I will settle for days where the house or the world doesn't feel like it's falling in around me!
Today Brad and I officially got our Kansas drivers licenses. And man was it painful! Not so much the fact that I had to tell them my actual weight, but the wait to get up to the counter just to share that awful secret took almost three and a half hours! I never thought anyone could make the California DMV look efficient! I love you Kansas, but man oh man, you need to make some changes to your licensing process! Very inept and horrible use of employee time and manpower. But it's done! So I now officially have KU alumni tags on my truck (sporting a Jayhawk as I drive down the road!) and a Kansas drivers license. Guess there is no denying I am back now!
I'm starting to do all of those things you do when you move: found a dentist that I actually really like, found a hairdresser that I love the way she cuts my hair and so today I decided it was time to call and make a doctors appointment with a woman that came highly recommended. She must be good - I can't get in until December!! Geez! Guess I had better try to stay healthy until then! So what does that leave ..... a mechanic (will get my truck serviced next week)....guess I could really use a massage, so will look around for that! Oh, and my cleaning lady starts tomorrow! Woo hoo!!! Is it possible that perhaps my house might actually smell like something other than DOG for a few days at least!
On the home front, I had my second visit from Westar Energy and I must say that as much as I hate feeling like I am funding every dependent of an employee to get a college education, I have been very happy with the folks they have sent out. Dan the Man came out last week and basically replaced the meter that was on there with a new one and said they had to take it in for testing because they couldn't really do that in the field. I am supposed to be informed of what they find.... nothing yet.... but judging from the speed with which my little dial still spins, I am guessing that any issues are on my end and not theirs. Either way, it will be good to know.
Tomorrow afternoon I have an electrician coming. Talked to him on the phone and he says he can trouble shoot the house. I am having guarded optimism though, since the first time he was supposed to call me back he didn't so I called him and then he called me back yesterday to say he had all of the information except the time we had agreed to meet! I have another option in my back pocket in case I am not impressed with this guy! It's time to get this electrical party started! (sorry for the horrible humor but I couldn't resist!)
For now, I have put the pots and pans back over what appears the opening to the Underground Railroad in my kitchen. Figured there is not much I can do at the moment and it might be good to wait and see what happens in the winter - figure out whether it's just a source for an Arctic blast or if it is part of the HVAC air return system. Sprayed about half a gallon of degreaser, added some shelf paper and I am at least buying myself some time.
The pool is closed for the season! Never thought I would be so happy to say that! We came home from Milwaukee and the pool company had actually gotten to it early! AND it turns out our realtor swears that the pool is supposed to be covered on the Home Warranty, so she is looking into it, since - come on, we all know it - there will be problems when we start it up next spring/summer!
Butler football is in full swing. The Bulldogs are off to a 2-2 start, but mostly this season, I approach every game with my own prayer of "please don't let Jeff get hurt!". He has been so lucky to this point that I just want him to get through this season unscathed. He had a great game on Saturday with 6 tackles - one for a 5 yard loss - and a fumble recovery! Such fun to see him out there!!
This last weekend Brad and I turned the game into a road trip adventure and drove. We stayed Friday night in Evansville, Indiana and went to an Allison Krauss concert. She has been my favorite artist for a very long time and this concert did nothing to change that standing. She is amazing and so her band! Then woke up Saturday morning and drove to Indy for the game, left Indy about 4 p.m. and spent the night in the St. Louis area before getting home to Wichita about 2 p.m. Not bad, but not something we want to do every weekend! It's always nice to have Brad captive in the car and to myself from time to time!
So due to the crazy Fall schedule, there is less going on at the house and things are more along the lines of "getting by". I am always determined to organize and clean - and yet I find myself outside finishing the demo of the old hot tub, moving wood chips from my huge pile into some flower beds, cleaning the pond and pulling weeds. I am beginning to think the only way I am going to ever get to the "inside the house" list is when the weather turns. Oh well. Not like anything is going anywhere!
But I will leave you with two great stories...... One I have been meaning to share for some time but there has been too much else to write about, so I forget or figure you have all stopped reading by now. For those of you that have hung on, you're going to like this!
The joy of moving and having to change your cell phone number is that, like the house, it seems to have it's own history. Mine is not that exciting - seems like most of the inadvertent calls and texts I get relate to some catering company that specializes in fried chicken and catfish! But Brad's number has been a source of great amusement for us! He started getting computer generated calls within the first few weeks we had our new numbers - all of them from some high school! We knew something was up when he was told to report for football practice! As he himself said, any high school football team that needs him is in for a very long season! He got several calls about football and while we kept saying that he needed to call and try to get the number taken off the list, we wondered if he kept it going if maybe we would find out that he was elected Homecoming King or something!!! He got calls for Band practice, for Booster club meetings, for registration..... apparently he is a very vital part of this high school! If only we knew where it was! But alas, I think he did finally call them and ask them to take his number off of their automatic dial, so that's over. Sigh ...........
And story number two does relate to the house. While I haven't found any more bowling balls or trap doors or anything like that, I did learn a little history about the owners who had the house before the folks we bought it from. A neighbor I just met informed me that he was a dentist .... who apparently grew pot in the greenhouse!!! He was out of town at some point and had someone that was staying here. Apparently they were not privy to the information of the crop in the greenhouse and came home one evening to find a door was ajar so they called the police! Ooops! Surprise!! As this neighbor so politely put it ......." he had to move"! One of my friends made the comment when I found the little space below the kitchen that maybe that is where they hid the drugs. I think she may be on to something!
So once again, I do so wish that these walls could talk! What a book they could write! It also explains to me perhaps why the house has taken so long to feel settled. It's had a pretty tumultuous past! I am nursing it back to health but it's quite obvious that I am going to have to be patient. Maybe another blessing is in order!
The song I am posting today is an Allison Krauss song from her new album Paper Airplanes, called "These Days". It just is one that really resonates with me - she sings about a road less traveled and about not being able to be something you're not, or knowing where you belong, which is what I have felt a lot this summer. It's getting easier and better, but I'm not going to lie ----- it obviously hasn't been easy. But at least these days I feel like I am waking up with hope for a good day ahead! That's enough for me for now.
Today Brad and I officially got our Kansas drivers licenses. And man was it painful! Not so much the fact that I had to tell them my actual weight, but the wait to get up to the counter just to share that awful secret took almost three and a half hours! I never thought anyone could make the California DMV look efficient! I love you Kansas, but man oh man, you need to make some changes to your licensing process! Very inept and horrible use of employee time and manpower. But it's done! So I now officially have KU alumni tags on my truck (sporting a Jayhawk as I drive down the road!) and a Kansas drivers license. Guess there is no denying I am back now!
I'm starting to do all of those things you do when you move: found a dentist that I actually really like, found a hairdresser that I love the way she cuts my hair and so today I decided it was time to call and make a doctors appointment with a woman that came highly recommended. She must be good - I can't get in until December!! Geez! Guess I had better try to stay healthy until then! So what does that leave ..... a mechanic (will get my truck serviced next week)....guess I could really use a massage, so will look around for that! Oh, and my cleaning lady starts tomorrow! Woo hoo!!! Is it possible that perhaps my house might actually smell like something other than DOG for a few days at least!
On the home front, I had my second visit from Westar Energy and I must say that as much as I hate feeling like I am funding every dependent of an employee to get a college education, I have been very happy with the folks they have sent out. Dan the Man came out last week and basically replaced the meter that was on there with a new one and said they had to take it in for testing because they couldn't really do that in the field. I am supposed to be informed of what they find.... nothing yet.... but judging from the speed with which my little dial still spins, I am guessing that any issues are on my end and not theirs. Either way, it will be good to know.
Tomorrow afternoon I have an electrician coming. Talked to him on the phone and he says he can trouble shoot the house. I am having guarded optimism though, since the first time he was supposed to call me back he didn't so I called him and then he called me back yesterday to say he had all of the information except the time we had agreed to meet! I have another option in my back pocket in case I am not impressed with this guy! It's time to get this electrical party started! (sorry for the horrible humor but I couldn't resist!)
For now, I have put the pots and pans back over what appears the opening to the Underground Railroad in my kitchen. Figured there is not much I can do at the moment and it might be good to wait and see what happens in the winter - figure out whether it's just a source for an Arctic blast or if it is part of the HVAC air return system. Sprayed about half a gallon of degreaser, added some shelf paper and I am at least buying myself some time.
The pool is closed for the season! Never thought I would be so happy to say that! We came home from Milwaukee and the pool company had actually gotten to it early! AND it turns out our realtor swears that the pool is supposed to be covered on the Home Warranty, so she is looking into it, since - come on, we all know it - there will be problems when we start it up next spring/summer!
Butler football is in full swing. The Bulldogs are off to a 2-2 start, but mostly this season, I approach every game with my own prayer of "please don't let Jeff get hurt!". He has been so lucky to this point that I just want him to get through this season unscathed. He had a great game on Saturday with 6 tackles - one for a 5 yard loss - and a fumble recovery! Such fun to see him out there!!
This last weekend Brad and I turned the game into a road trip adventure and drove. We stayed Friday night in Evansville, Indiana and went to an Allison Krauss concert. She has been my favorite artist for a very long time and this concert did nothing to change that standing. She is amazing and so her band! Then woke up Saturday morning and drove to Indy for the game, left Indy about 4 p.m. and spent the night in the St. Louis area before getting home to Wichita about 2 p.m. Not bad, but not something we want to do every weekend! It's always nice to have Brad captive in the car and to myself from time to time!
So due to the crazy Fall schedule, there is less going on at the house and things are more along the lines of "getting by". I am always determined to organize and clean - and yet I find myself outside finishing the demo of the old hot tub, moving wood chips from my huge pile into some flower beds, cleaning the pond and pulling weeds. I am beginning to think the only way I am going to ever get to the "inside the house" list is when the weather turns. Oh well. Not like anything is going anywhere!
But I will leave you with two great stories...... One I have been meaning to share for some time but there has been too much else to write about, so I forget or figure you have all stopped reading by now. For those of you that have hung on, you're going to like this!
The joy of moving and having to change your cell phone number is that, like the house, it seems to have it's own history. Mine is not that exciting - seems like most of the inadvertent calls and texts I get relate to some catering company that specializes in fried chicken and catfish! But Brad's number has been a source of great amusement for us! He started getting computer generated calls within the first few weeks we had our new numbers - all of them from some high school! We knew something was up when he was told to report for football practice! As he himself said, any high school football team that needs him is in for a very long season! He got several calls about football and while we kept saying that he needed to call and try to get the number taken off the list, we wondered if he kept it going if maybe we would find out that he was elected Homecoming King or something!!! He got calls for Band practice, for Booster club meetings, for registration..... apparently he is a very vital part of this high school! If only we knew where it was! But alas, I think he did finally call them and ask them to take his number off of their automatic dial, so that's over. Sigh ...........
And story number two does relate to the house. While I haven't found any more bowling balls or trap doors or anything like that, I did learn a little history about the owners who had the house before the folks we bought it from. A neighbor I just met informed me that he was a dentist .... who apparently grew pot in the greenhouse!!! He was out of town at some point and had someone that was staying here. Apparently they were not privy to the information of the crop in the greenhouse and came home one evening to find a door was ajar so they called the police! Ooops! Surprise!! As this neighbor so politely put it ......." he had to move"! One of my friends made the comment when I found the little space below the kitchen that maybe that is where they hid the drugs. I think she may be on to something!
So once again, I do so wish that these walls could talk! What a book they could write! It also explains to me perhaps why the house has taken so long to feel settled. It's had a pretty tumultuous past! I am nursing it back to health but it's quite obvious that I am going to have to be patient. Maybe another blessing is in order!
The song I am posting today is an Allison Krauss song from her new album Paper Airplanes, called "These Days". It just is one that really resonates with me - she sings about a road less traveled and about not being able to be something you're not, or knowing where you belong, which is what I have felt a lot this summer. It's getting easier and better, but I'm not going to lie ----- it obviously hasn't been easy. But at least these days I feel like I am waking up with hope for a good day ahead! That's enough for me for now.
Friday, September 16, 2011
.... on the road again
Just like old times - I am blogging from the road! I am in Milwaukee, Wisconsin right now, tagging along while Brad works and I get to play! He is a visiting professor at the Medical College of Wisconsin and was chosen to give the Al McGuire Memorial Lecture at the Children's Hospital. Mr Big Pants! It was well deserved and I know he is knocking them dead! Mostly my job on this trip seems to be sleeping in, playing during the daytime and getting to go to dinner with everyone each night! THIS I could get used to!
Meanwhile, back at the house .........
It's nice to have the weather cool off and the windows open. The electric meter is still spinning wildly but we are working on it. Westar came out on Tuesday - even though they were hesitant and told me that they had no record of a second meter on my house and it probably wasn't theirs! Guess what? It was!! Sure threw them for a loop! A very nice young lady was the one who came to the house and we did some sleuthing (okay, mostly it was sleuthing I had already done, but I will let her share some credit since she did make a lot of phone calls to the bosses while she was there). Turns out that 30-40 years ago sometimes people had a meter installed just to follow consumption of one particular thing. In this case, it is my irrigation well! It only turns when the sprinklers are running. At first she told me she was going to have to put a new meter on it and register it so all I could think of was "Well S!@%#! Now my bill will be even HIGHER!" So she did but before she left she got a call back and apparently it already shows on the bill so they told her to put the old one back on. She was not qualified to work on my "big ass" meter as it was larger than she is certified for, so we had to set up an appointment for a different service person to come for that. I wanted to be there, so that is scheduled for Monday. According to her, they should be able to check everything from the meter all the way back to the transformer, so MAYBE we can either find the trouble or rule some things out! Progress!
And oddly enough, we did get the 3rd electric bill and I never thought in my life I would be happy to see that amount on on a bill, but it was actually a fair amount lower than the last one and it was hot all of August! I guess my energy Nazi ways made a difference! Now I just need to get to the point where I feel like I can turn on any light I want in my own house!
The pool is getting closed for the season next week supposedly. Hooray! It has had so many issues right now that it will be a welcome relief. Right now it's just an energy sucking, poorly functioning leaf catcher! We will deal with it in the spring .............
My nephew sent me the bill for the dumpster that sat in my driveway and carted off all of the old planter box and dirt and rock....... once again we are recording setting and filled it with a weight that I didn't think was possible! One more very large check to write! If I had known it was going to cost that much, I might have figured out a place to use it in the yard somehow! Live and learn!
And in between the chaos that is the house, I try to have a life. Went to my first Medical Alliance meeting, which is basically the wives of area docs from Wichita. HATE these things but the Dean's wife invited me as her guest, so what do you do? It was a fashion show to boot! Oh yeah, you heard me right! Yours truly went to a fashion show!! I survived and made nice and met some nice ladies, but definitely not my cup of tea!
I gave up and decided that if I waited until the house was settled to hire a cleaning lady that it would never happen so have a gal that is doing to start coming every two weeks. I think this will be a good thing but I just hope she is prepared for the mountains of dog hair!!
So now, it's time to shower and get ready to hang out with my oldest sister, who lives about a half hour from Milwaukee, Wren. She is driving up and we are going to spend the day hanging out. Should be fun. No song for today as I can't really think of the best one to do so you are on your own for music this morning!
Meanwhile, back at the house .........
It's nice to have the weather cool off and the windows open. The electric meter is still spinning wildly but we are working on it. Westar came out on Tuesday - even though they were hesitant and told me that they had no record of a second meter on my house and it probably wasn't theirs! Guess what? It was!! Sure threw them for a loop! A very nice young lady was the one who came to the house and we did some sleuthing (okay, mostly it was sleuthing I had already done, but I will let her share some credit since she did make a lot of phone calls to the bosses while she was there). Turns out that 30-40 years ago sometimes people had a meter installed just to follow consumption of one particular thing. In this case, it is my irrigation well! It only turns when the sprinklers are running. At first she told me she was going to have to put a new meter on it and register it so all I could think of was "Well S!@%#! Now my bill will be even HIGHER!" So she did but before she left she got a call back and apparently it already shows on the bill so they told her to put the old one back on. She was not qualified to work on my "big ass" meter as it was larger than she is certified for, so we had to set up an appointment for a different service person to come for that. I wanted to be there, so that is scheduled for Monday. According to her, they should be able to check everything from the meter all the way back to the transformer, so MAYBE we can either find the trouble or rule some things out! Progress!
And oddly enough, we did get the 3rd electric bill and I never thought in my life I would be happy to see that amount on on a bill, but it was actually a fair amount lower than the last one and it was hot all of August! I guess my energy Nazi ways made a difference! Now I just need to get to the point where I feel like I can turn on any light I want in my own house!
The pool is getting closed for the season next week supposedly. Hooray! It has had so many issues right now that it will be a welcome relief. Right now it's just an energy sucking, poorly functioning leaf catcher! We will deal with it in the spring .............
My nephew sent me the bill for the dumpster that sat in my driveway and carted off all of the old planter box and dirt and rock....... once again we are recording setting and filled it with a weight that I didn't think was possible! One more very large check to write! If I had known it was going to cost that much, I might have figured out a place to use it in the yard somehow! Live and learn!
And in between the chaos that is the house, I try to have a life. Went to my first Medical Alliance meeting, which is basically the wives of area docs from Wichita. HATE these things but the Dean's wife invited me as her guest, so what do you do? It was a fashion show to boot! Oh yeah, you heard me right! Yours truly went to a fashion show!! I survived and made nice and met some nice ladies, but definitely not my cup of tea!
I gave up and decided that if I waited until the house was settled to hire a cleaning lady that it would never happen so have a gal that is doing to start coming every two weeks. I think this will be a good thing but I just hope she is prepared for the mountains of dog hair!!
So now, it's time to shower and get ready to hang out with my oldest sister, who lives about a half hour from Milwaukee, Wren. She is driving up and we are going to spend the day hanging out. Should be fun. No song for today as I can't really think of the best one to do so you are on your own for music this morning!
Thursday, September 8, 2011
I know it gets redundant, but it always amazes me when I see how long I go between posts on here. For a woman who is a self professed chatter box, it amazes me that I am not writing more often. But then again, when the end of the day comes and I am tired, all I want to do is head to bed.
So let's see .... what's new since I last wrote..... It's September! And the weather seems to have finally broken from the ungodly heat. We actually set a record in Wichita this summer - 53 days over 100 degrees, which is the most since the Dust Bowl in 1936! Not exactly how I wanted to be welcomed to my new locale, but what do you do? Mostly this summer, I seem to have sweated, cried and worried. It's been kind of a crazy three months here and it's just now that I am beginning to realize just how hard they were. I was overwhelmed - plain and simple. No other words for it and no other way around it. And I'm pretty sure from a clinical perspective, I was depressed. Nothing new to me, but sort of had to "tough it out" since the health care coverage didn't kick in until this month and it's one of those things that - like so many times before in my life - I just felt like I had to muddle through. I missed my mountains and my fresh air and my routine. Felt like I had traded it in for a money pit on the surface of the sun. Suck it up and keep moving...... But now that the temperature has dropped, the A/C can be turned off and the windows can be opened, it's amazing what it has done for me! I am totally fresh air and sunlight dependent!
The house is ..... the house! There have been no major miracles in the last week and a half, no interventions by HGTV to totally rebuild my house (dear God in heaven - if there is anyone out there reading this with HGTV connections, PLEASE give them my name and number!!!!), but it's okay. For whatever reason, this is a good week! It feels like there is hope. And for today, that is enough.
Got the second electric bill - worse than the first! There are some serious issues going on here. To that end, I have called the energy company - Westar Energy - and asked them to come to the house and explain a few things to me about my meter. I have requested that they do it when I am here and little do they know that my plan is to ask them to check every connection from the transformer to the house! That will be Monday. If they do that and it all checks out, I have decided to hire an electrical company and have them troubleshoot the house. It may cost me a lot, but quite honestly, it will be worth it to figure this out and it should pay for itself in short order. So I guess that at least I feel like there is a plan! And I have come to realize that I am glad that I am a bit of a pit bull when it comes to my house and my well being! If I don't stand up and fight for myself, who will?!
Brad seems to be adjusting into his new job, which has helped me adapt to my new environment as well. You hate to admit that you are so totally dependent on someone else for your well being, but quite honestly, he is my rock and when he seems to struggle, I struggle. It's getting better day by day.
As for the house...... I got my new cook top put in! It wasn't necessarily what I wanted, but the home warranty covered most of the cost and for now, it's good enough. Not sure I will ever adjust to electric versus gas, but for now, it will do. Hence the song of the day: I have come to realize that as much as I complain and a bitch and moan, I am provided for. I may not always get what I want - but I get what I need!
The pool is limping along until we can get it closed up for the season - sometime in the last week of September. It needs a new filter and maybe a new pump. I pray it just keeps working until then! The pond is doing well but same thing - needs a new pump. The lawn is mostly green but now I have to figure out how the heck you shut down a well for the winter in the coming months. Now that it's nice weather and time to open the windows, I had to order a couple of screen doors and a few screens. No small task when they are Pella doors and windows. Or I guess I should say no small financial task. Pella knew what they were doing making their doors so specialized that you can only get their product. You don't EVEN want to know what I had to pay to have two sliding patio screen doors made! All I can say is that they had better slide like butter and last for a million years! But the fresh air invigorates me, so I pay.........
And then there is football! Jeff's senior season started last weekend! Brad and I have continued our commitment to get to every game we can. The last four seasons (re-shirt freshman through junior year), we were lucky enough to mostly have direct flights, but here, everything is a connection. But we go. And we go with a true appreciation of how lucky our son is to have this experience. He is blessed - as are we. I will try to truly enjoy each and every minute he is on the field in his last season - all the while holding my breath with my real hope being that he just gets through each game unscathed. It was a wonderful distraction from all of the chaos of my life last weekend, and I will try to look at each weekend as my own little getaway!
As for now ......I've actually given myself permission to take a day off here and there! I haven't really done that for the first three months and it's time. There is so much to do, but I have learned that I have to do that as well. Whatever is waiting for me to get done will be there tomorrow. I am trying to be the tortoise rather than the hare! And while there are so many times I feel like what I have done is not enough - there are other times when I realize we have done a lot.
I am going to add some pictures for you ... finally! I have a few more "afters" that I need to take, but you can see at least some of the things that I have been talking about.
But I can't leave you without telling you about today's wacky discovery. In order for the new cook top to be put in, I cleared out all of the cabinets below it. This morning I figured it was time to put it all back, so as I opened up the cabinet doors, I looked inside and realized that there was something odd about the floor of the cabinet below the cook top. It seemed like there was a piece that had been "cut out" and then put back in. Recognizing it as a door to a space below, I pried it up. Imagine my surprise when I saw - about two feet below - dirt! It appears that at least half of the kitchen has this odd crawl space under it. Totally uninsulated, dirt floor, empty space! My guess is that it's going to be awfully cold in that area come winter unless I do something!! I have no idea what the rationale for this is!!!! I am not sure I will ever completely understand this house!!!
So it's off to bed for me. Catching a flight to Indianapolis tomorrow for another game - go Bulldogs!!! Today is also my oldest son, Matt's, birthday. 26 years ago I became a mom. It truly is the best thing that ever happened to me and in the midst of all of the chaos that is my life right now, those are the things that I try to remember.
So it's like the song says ........ you can't always get what you want..........but if you try sometimes .... you might find ..... you get what you need.....
So let's see .... what's new since I last wrote..... It's September! And the weather seems to have finally broken from the ungodly heat. We actually set a record in Wichita this summer - 53 days over 100 degrees, which is the most since the Dust Bowl in 1936! Not exactly how I wanted to be welcomed to my new locale, but what do you do? Mostly this summer, I seem to have sweated, cried and worried. It's been kind of a crazy three months here and it's just now that I am beginning to realize just how hard they were. I was overwhelmed - plain and simple. No other words for it and no other way around it. And I'm pretty sure from a clinical perspective, I was depressed. Nothing new to me, but sort of had to "tough it out" since the health care coverage didn't kick in until this month and it's one of those things that - like so many times before in my life - I just felt like I had to muddle through. I missed my mountains and my fresh air and my routine. Felt like I had traded it in for a money pit on the surface of the sun. Suck it up and keep moving...... But now that the temperature has dropped, the A/C can be turned off and the windows can be opened, it's amazing what it has done for me! I am totally fresh air and sunlight dependent!
The house is ..... the house! There have been no major miracles in the last week and a half, no interventions by HGTV to totally rebuild my house (dear God in heaven - if there is anyone out there reading this with HGTV connections, PLEASE give them my name and number!!!!), but it's okay. For whatever reason, this is a good week! It feels like there is hope. And for today, that is enough.
Got the second electric bill - worse than the first! There are some serious issues going on here. To that end, I have called the energy company - Westar Energy - and asked them to come to the house and explain a few things to me about my meter. I have requested that they do it when I am here and little do they know that my plan is to ask them to check every connection from the transformer to the house! That will be Monday. If they do that and it all checks out, I have decided to hire an electrical company and have them troubleshoot the house. It may cost me a lot, but quite honestly, it will be worth it to figure this out and it should pay for itself in short order. So I guess that at least I feel like there is a plan! And I have come to realize that I am glad that I am a bit of a pit bull when it comes to my house and my well being! If I don't stand up and fight for myself, who will?!
Brad seems to be adjusting into his new job, which has helped me adapt to my new environment as well. You hate to admit that you are so totally dependent on someone else for your well being, but quite honestly, he is my rock and when he seems to struggle, I struggle. It's getting better day by day.
As for the house...... I got my new cook top put in! It wasn't necessarily what I wanted, but the home warranty covered most of the cost and for now, it's good enough. Not sure I will ever adjust to electric versus gas, but for now, it will do. Hence the song of the day: I have come to realize that as much as I complain and a bitch and moan, I am provided for. I may not always get what I want - but I get what I need!
The pool is limping along until we can get it closed up for the season - sometime in the last week of September. It needs a new filter and maybe a new pump. I pray it just keeps working until then! The pond is doing well but same thing - needs a new pump. The lawn is mostly green but now I have to figure out how the heck you shut down a well for the winter in the coming months. Now that it's nice weather and time to open the windows, I had to order a couple of screen doors and a few screens. No small task when they are Pella doors and windows. Or I guess I should say no small financial task. Pella knew what they were doing making their doors so specialized that you can only get their product. You don't EVEN want to know what I had to pay to have two sliding patio screen doors made! All I can say is that they had better slide like butter and last for a million years! But the fresh air invigorates me, so I pay.........
And then there is football! Jeff's senior season started last weekend! Brad and I have continued our commitment to get to every game we can. The last four seasons (re-shirt freshman through junior year), we were lucky enough to mostly have direct flights, but here, everything is a connection. But we go. And we go with a true appreciation of how lucky our son is to have this experience. He is blessed - as are we. I will try to truly enjoy each and every minute he is on the field in his last season - all the while holding my breath with my real hope being that he just gets through each game unscathed. It was a wonderful distraction from all of the chaos of my life last weekend, and I will try to look at each weekend as my own little getaway!
As for now ......I've actually given myself permission to take a day off here and there! I haven't really done that for the first three months and it's time. There is so much to do, but I have learned that I have to do that as well. Whatever is waiting for me to get done will be there tomorrow. I am trying to be the tortoise rather than the hare! And while there are so many times I feel like what I have done is not enough - there are other times when I realize we have done a lot.
I am going to add some pictures for you ... finally! I have a few more "afters" that I need to take, but you can see at least some of the things that I have been talking about.
But I can't leave you without telling you about today's wacky discovery. In order for the new cook top to be put in, I cleared out all of the cabinets below it. This morning I figured it was time to put it all back, so as I opened up the cabinet doors, I looked inside and realized that there was something odd about the floor of the cabinet below the cook top. It seemed like there was a piece that had been "cut out" and then put back in. Recognizing it as a door to a space below, I pried it up. Imagine my surprise when I saw - about two feet below - dirt! It appears that at least half of the kitchen has this odd crawl space under it. Totally uninsulated, dirt floor, empty space! My guess is that it's going to be awfully cold in that area come winter unless I do something!! I have no idea what the rationale for this is!!!! I am not sure I will ever completely understand this house!!!
So it's off to bed for me. Catching a flight to Indianapolis tomorrow for another game - go Bulldogs!!! Today is also my oldest son, Matt's, birthday. 26 years ago I became a mom. It truly is the best thing that ever happened to me and in the midst of all of the chaos that is my life right now, those are the things that I try to remember.
So it's like the song says ........ you can't always get what you want..........but if you try sometimes .... you might find ..... you get what you need.....
Monday, August 29, 2011
And then there was music!
Okay, first things first. Many thanks to my son Jeff who has now added a music widget to my blog so that I can pick songs for you guys to listen to if you choose, like I did on my other blog last Fall. I will do the same as I did there and will pick a "current" song but will also accumulate them on another player further down the page. Can't guarantee I will pick a new song each time I write, but then again since I have been writing every week to week and a half, maybe I will! More on the first song choice later ........
So let's see .... on the home front. All things considered, there has been less activity in the "falling apart" department than previous weeks, so I am taking that as a good sign that most of the major surprises have been found. Or at least identified in some vague way that gives me a direction to head. Last we spoke, the hot water dispenser handle had come off in my hand. Well, now there is a brand new one in the kitchen and it didn't cost me a dime! You have to love the internet! Here I went online looking for a part that might be broken, and when I can't really figure it out and call them, they help me discover that it's under warranty!
The horrible, nasty, scary, disgusting non-working trash compactor? Gone! In it's place is a new one provided by the home warranty company! I have never had a trash compactor before and must admit that I'm kind of liking it! Quite literally, Brad and I had one bag of trash for an entire week once it all got smushed down! True to form for the house, when the technician pulled out the old one, inexplicably the wires had been spliced and it looked like a third grader had done it! It was horrible!
AND today, the new cook top got delivered! We opted to go with another electric one, even though I really wanted gas. With the can of worms that this house is, the thought of trying to run a gas line right now was more than I wanted to contemplate. I spent just a little bit out of pocked to go with a solid surface one rather than the coil one they were offering me. So even if we remodel and change to gas down the road, it has only cost me $268 for a brand new 45 inch Jenn Air cook top! I think it will be money well spent!
On the air conditioner front, well, that has been resolved at least for now. After two visits by a nice young man from Budget Heating & Air (who I will always request now when I have HVAC issues for home warranty work!), two new capacitors and a new fan motor, the house is cool once again. According to him, the capacitors were the wrong size and the whole unit wasn't even grounded! AND the fan was rotating the wrong way so it was just blowing warm air and over heating the compressor! $500 worth of parts and all I had to do was write a $60 check!
I am beginning to feel like I should just wear my checkbook on a chain around my neck so it's always handy and have a bunch of pre-printed checks for $60 made up!!
I got the energy audit results back and it was much like I expected. Lots of recommendations of things like adding insulation, perhaps changing out some windows, getting new A/C units and one new heater, but also some things that I didn't know that could perhaps save me money in the short term while I address the other issues that I can't address right now. It is amazing to me the report I got, the time they spent at my house and the details of their evaluation! Quite literally it was a 20 page report, complete with some graphs to show the savings I would have if I made some upgrades and some photos of things in my house that need to be addressed! In a nutshell - I have huge air infiltration issues. By doing something called a blower door test, they determined that 64% of the air in my house is being exchanged with outside air every hour!! That equates to a 25" square opening in a wall, year round!! The national target rate of air exchange is 35%. If it's a measure of how my house is breathing, I think mine is pretty much hyperventilating!!! Do they make house sized paper bags that we can breath into?! The great part was that they addressed the major areas where they thought the leaks were and many of them I can address quickly and on my own. Others .... well, we'll get there.......
What was really nice was how helpful they were during the time they were here and how they seem to be willing to spend some more time with me helping me understand it all. They have created a computer model of my house and if I have work done and send them details, they can map it out as to savings over time. What's really interesting is that the main guy is actually starting a new job with Weststar Energy today in the Energy Efficiency department and he said he is going to keep an eye on my consumption and nominate us to be one of the first in Wichita to have a Smart Meter put in when they get here. So all in all a good experience.
So with things somewhat in hand, I decided it was time for a day off! Last Friday my friend Kathy and I went out to the Bartlett Arboretum in Belle Plaine, KS. It's owned and run by a friend of hers who she used to teach with when they were both teachers at a local school. That woman would be none other than Robin Macy, the woman I went to see in concert a few weeks back at Wichita State University. She was one of the original Dixie Chicks and sort of decided to leave the band at one point before they "went all Hollywood" - or at least that is my understanding. The Arboretum is 18 acres of land and was in total disrepair when Robin bought it 14 years ago. She completely rebuilt the tiny house on the property and has added a few more buildings, but it is all done with such charm and uniqueness that it just draws you in! The trees are amazing (hence "arboretum") and the flower beds and vegetation look great -especially considering we are in the midst of a drought. She has added a stage and has weddings and other events and concerts there and there are plans for a tallgrass prairie soon as well. It just has a good feel to it when you are there. It was really fun to meet Robin and she was gracious enough to invite us into her home and show us pictures and just spend time talking. She just struck me as a really down to earth woman who is doing the work she wants to be doing and does it with conviction. Quite inspirational. Here is a link to her website: http://www.bartlettarboretum.com/
So the song of the day - the first song I am posting on this blog - is one of hers. It's called "Simplify". I really liked it when I heard it at the concert and it just really resonated in me. The message of it is so true - that we all just need to simplify our lives. I get so busy sweating every little detail and get some absorbed/obsessed with the house and all the turmoil around it, that sometimes I forget to step back, take a breath and really look at the simple things that bring me joy and that are easy to overlook in the every day. Things like the people in our lives, the experiences we get to have or just a sunny day.
So thanks for taking me Kathy! And thanks for spending time with me Robin! Doubly blessed on one day!
No crazy discoveries to report this time - no more bowling balls or dog bed insulation! And that is just fine by me. I did find a new use for an unlikely tool though! Everyone has a car jack laying around, right? Well, yours truly has actually never had to use one to change a tire, but today I used it to jack up one corner of our bed at a time so that I could add new legs I made for it!!! (That sucker is heavy and I didn't want to wait for Brad to get home and make him help me!) The movers were not too careful and the bun feet that had been it's legs before were unable to be attached back to it. So I created some new legs and after two and a half months in the house, FINALLY our bed is up off the floor! Now I just hope it doesn't come crashing down tonight!
More to share but you are probably all asleep by now! Sorry this got long!
So let's see .... on the home front. All things considered, there has been less activity in the "falling apart" department than previous weeks, so I am taking that as a good sign that most of the major surprises have been found. Or at least identified in some vague way that gives me a direction to head. Last we spoke, the hot water dispenser handle had come off in my hand. Well, now there is a brand new one in the kitchen and it didn't cost me a dime! You have to love the internet! Here I went online looking for a part that might be broken, and when I can't really figure it out and call them, they help me discover that it's under warranty!
The horrible, nasty, scary, disgusting non-working trash compactor? Gone! In it's place is a new one provided by the home warranty company! I have never had a trash compactor before and must admit that I'm kind of liking it! Quite literally, Brad and I had one bag of trash for an entire week once it all got smushed down! True to form for the house, when the technician pulled out the old one, inexplicably the wires had been spliced and it looked like a third grader had done it! It was horrible!
AND today, the new cook top got delivered! We opted to go with another electric one, even though I really wanted gas. With the can of worms that this house is, the thought of trying to run a gas line right now was more than I wanted to contemplate. I spent just a little bit out of pocked to go with a solid surface one rather than the coil one they were offering me. So even if we remodel and change to gas down the road, it has only cost me $268 for a brand new 45 inch Jenn Air cook top! I think it will be money well spent!
On the air conditioner front, well, that has been resolved at least for now. After two visits by a nice young man from Budget Heating & Air (who I will always request now when I have HVAC issues for home warranty work!), two new capacitors and a new fan motor, the house is cool once again. According to him, the capacitors were the wrong size and the whole unit wasn't even grounded! AND the fan was rotating the wrong way so it was just blowing warm air and over heating the compressor! $500 worth of parts and all I had to do was write a $60 check!
I am beginning to feel like I should just wear my checkbook on a chain around my neck so it's always handy and have a bunch of pre-printed checks for $60 made up!!
I got the energy audit results back and it was much like I expected. Lots of recommendations of things like adding insulation, perhaps changing out some windows, getting new A/C units and one new heater, but also some things that I didn't know that could perhaps save me money in the short term while I address the other issues that I can't address right now. It is amazing to me the report I got, the time they spent at my house and the details of their evaluation! Quite literally it was a 20 page report, complete with some graphs to show the savings I would have if I made some upgrades and some photos of things in my house that need to be addressed! In a nutshell - I have huge air infiltration issues. By doing something called a blower door test, they determined that 64% of the air in my house is being exchanged with outside air every hour!! That equates to a 25" square opening in a wall, year round!! The national target rate of air exchange is 35%. If it's a measure of how my house is breathing, I think mine is pretty much hyperventilating!!! Do they make house sized paper bags that we can breath into?! The great part was that they addressed the major areas where they thought the leaks were and many of them I can address quickly and on my own. Others .... well, we'll get there.......
What was really nice was how helpful they were during the time they were here and how they seem to be willing to spend some more time with me helping me understand it all. They have created a computer model of my house and if I have work done and send them details, they can map it out as to savings over time. What's really interesting is that the main guy is actually starting a new job with Weststar Energy today in the Energy Efficiency department and he said he is going to keep an eye on my consumption and nominate us to be one of the first in Wichita to have a Smart Meter put in when they get here. So all in all a good experience.
So with things somewhat in hand, I decided it was time for a day off! Last Friday my friend Kathy and I went out to the Bartlett Arboretum in Belle Plaine, KS. It's owned and run by a friend of hers who she used to teach with when they were both teachers at a local school. That woman would be none other than Robin Macy, the woman I went to see in concert a few weeks back at Wichita State University. She was one of the original Dixie Chicks and sort of decided to leave the band at one point before they "went all Hollywood" - or at least that is my understanding. The Arboretum is 18 acres of land and was in total disrepair when Robin bought it 14 years ago. She completely rebuilt the tiny house on the property and has added a few more buildings, but it is all done with such charm and uniqueness that it just draws you in! The trees are amazing (hence "arboretum") and the flower beds and vegetation look great -especially considering we are in the midst of a drought. She has added a stage and has weddings and other events and concerts there and there are plans for a tallgrass prairie soon as well. It just has a good feel to it when you are there. It was really fun to meet Robin and she was gracious enough to invite us into her home and show us pictures and just spend time talking. She just struck me as a really down to earth woman who is doing the work she wants to be doing and does it with conviction. Quite inspirational. Here is a link to her website: http://www.bartlettarboretum.com/
So the song of the day - the first song I am posting on this blog - is one of hers. It's called "Simplify". I really liked it when I heard it at the concert and it just really resonated in me. The message of it is so true - that we all just need to simplify our lives. I get so busy sweating every little detail and get some absorbed/obsessed with the house and all the turmoil around it, that sometimes I forget to step back, take a breath and really look at the simple things that bring me joy and that are easy to overlook in the every day. Things like the people in our lives, the experiences we get to have or just a sunny day.
So thanks for taking me Kathy! And thanks for spending time with me Robin! Doubly blessed on one day!
No crazy discoveries to report this time - no more bowling balls or dog bed insulation! And that is just fine by me. I did find a new use for an unlikely tool though! Everyone has a car jack laying around, right? Well, yours truly has actually never had to use one to change a tire, but today I used it to jack up one corner of our bed at a time so that I could add new legs I made for it!!! (That sucker is heavy and I didn't want to wait for Brad to get home and make him help me!) The movers were not too careful and the bun feet that had been it's legs before were unable to be attached back to it. So I created some new legs and after two and a half months in the house, FINALLY our bed is up off the floor! Now I just hope it doesn't come crashing down tonight!
More to share but you are probably all asleep by now! Sorry this got long!
Friday, August 19, 2011
How do I score this frame?!
So I know I told you about the Foamy Elmo Soap and the dog bed they used as insulation in the attic at one spot, but I think I can top that now! Anyone feel like bowling?!
There are bushes outside of the kitchen window, between the house and the patio leading up to the pool. They are green, but other than that, they don't really do much for me. Mostly they just grow and are starting to get high enough that I can't see the pool when I am sitting at the counter. So the choice then boils down to trimming them down so I can have smaller, still nondescript bushes, or taking them out. So of course in my "go big or go home" motto, I decide it's time for them to go. There are a million things I can see there next year - an herb garden, a flower garden, maybe even nice, tidy cuter bushes that stay small. But step one is to get them out and I will figure out what to plant next spring.
So armed with an electric hedge trimmer, some pruning shears, a small chain saw, a shovel, a rake and a pair of gloves, I get to work. Decided that if I take them out low and more intact that they will be easier to cart off than if I have a million small pieces. (Had my first trip to the local landfill yesterday!!!) So I am working, working, working....... stop to drink a Gatorade .... work some more, and suddenly, there is an unidentified strange blue object just barely visible next to the base of a bush. In this house I have learned to expect the unexpected but this one is strange. Heck for all I know it's an unexploded bomb! (maybe that wouldn't be so bad and we'll just start over!). So after clearing away around it, I grab the shovel and gently get underneath it. No ticking sound ...... no explosions ...... I get it out only to discover it's a bowling ball! Are you kidding me?! Just how on earth does a bowling ball get into the middle of a huge area of bushes. Oh yeah - they had a whole flock of boys who lived here, that's how! I sent a text to a friend with the comment that I wished these walls could talk, but she answered back that it probably wouldn't be rated G! I told her that my guess is right about now it's actually breathing a sigh of relief!
So yes, we will add a bowling ball to the list of continuing oddities about the house! It's blue, kind of lightweight and judging from the finger holes, belonged to someone small. There's even an "extra" hole so either the owner had an odd hand, something went horribly wrong or one of the boys grabbed it out of a dumpster. Any of those three are possible! I cleaned it up and I will be keeping the ball. No, not to bowl with but as a conversation piece! I think it should fit nicely on one of those gazing ball stands!
So let's see, ..... what else. I got back from Mom's in time to get a call that they wanted to come over and reconnect my broken duct in the attic! Hooray! So it's hooked back up now and they added a relay switch to the fan that was running 24/7 so that it SHOULD now only run when the heater is on. I am officially done with trying to cool down Wichita singlehandedly! It's not like I was doing a very good job of it anyway. The new compressor got put in the freezer side of the fridge. Hooray! My roofers finally came over and took out the old non-working attic fans and put in two new ones the electrician had left. He comes Monday to hook them up. Hooray! The trash compactor got delivered and I am just waiting for the technician to come take out the old nasty one that scares me in a really horrible way and put the new one in. Hooray!
It was actually nice for several days, so I was able to get out in the yard and do some yard work! It's definitely good for the soul to get dirt under your fingernails! Pulled tons of weeds, cleaned up some flower beds. Hopefully this weekend I can get some mulch added to some of them and the place can at least look a little better! I am not going to plant anything, just perk it up.
So everything is looking up, right?! Well, not so fast! This morning as I am getting some hot water from the instant hot water dispenser, the handle comes off in my hand and I can't shut off the scalding hot water! Luckily there was an easily accessible shut off valve under the sink. After a little detective work on my part and a phone call to the company, turns out the unit is new (Feb. 2011) and still under warranty. They gave me a number to call and no more than an hour later a service man was at the door. Looks like I will add "hot water dispenser" to my list of new stuff!
Still feeling good, I go outside to check the progress of the installation of my new garage doors. I must admit, they are beautiful and it is money well spent on this! Went with a steel door that looks like wood, so you get the look and no maintenance! Love, love, love how it turned out! But wait, what is that awful sound around the side of the house?! Yup ..... it's the air conditioner. It sounds hideous and is so loud that if I were to try to carry on a conversation I am not sure I could! I go inside, it's a bit warmer than I expected in the house but not awful so watch it for a few hours. Sure enough..... it's not cooling well. At 6 p.m. it was 105 degrees outside and 84 inside the house. "Hello?..... Home warranty?......... I need someone to come look at my air conditioner!!! Again!" Hopefully I won't have to wait TOO long.
So I spent today finishing cleaning up the aforementioned bowling ball flower bed. Hey, if it's warm in the house I might as well be warm outside and get something done! All deep roots and minor stumps are gone, years of decaying leaves are bagged and all that awaits is whatever I chose to do to it next spring. It will give me something to plan this winter when I am in the house - probably freezing and dressed in layers because the heater won't work!
And on that note, I will close for tonight. The other major event for the week was an energy audit that I had done on Tuesday. Three super nice young men spent a couple of hours at my house going over the whole place and checking out all kinds of things like insulation, energy usage, outside construction, etc. While I don't have the full report yet, it should be very enlightening. Probably in a very scary sort of way, but enlightening. I will save that for another day to try to explain to you. First I will have to figure it out myself!
So happy weekend everyone! Here's to cooler temperatures, no surprises and time spent with those you love!
There are bushes outside of the kitchen window, between the house and the patio leading up to the pool. They are green, but other than that, they don't really do much for me. Mostly they just grow and are starting to get high enough that I can't see the pool when I am sitting at the counter. So the choice then boils down to trimming them down so I can have smaller, still nondescript bushes, or taking them out. So of course in my "go big or go home" motto, I decide it's time for them to go. There are a million things I can see there next year - an herb garden, a flower garden, maybe even nice, tidy cuter bushes that stay small. But step one is to get them out and I will figure out what to plant next spring.
So armed with an electric hedge trimmer, some pruning shears, a small chain saw, a shovel, a rake and a pair of gloves, I get to work. Decided that if I take them out low and more intact that they will be easier to cart off than if I have a million small pieces. (Had my first trip to the local landfill yesterday!!!) So I am working, working, working....... stop to drink a Gatorade .... work some more, and suddenly, there is an unidentified strange blue object just barely visible next to the base of a bush. In this house I have learned to expect the unexpected but this one is strange. Heck for all I know it's an unexploded bomb! (maybe that wouldn't be so bad and we'll just start over!). So after clearing away around it, I grab the shovel and gently get underneath it. No ticking sound ...... no explosions ...... I get it out only to discover it's a bowling ball! Are you kidding me?! Just how on earth does a bowling ball get into the middle of a huge area of bushes. Oh yeah - they had a whole flock of boys who lived here, that's how! I sent a text to a friend with the comment that I wished these walls could talk, but she answered back that it probably wouldn't be rated G! I told her that my guess is right about now it's actually breathing a sigh of relief!
So yes, we will add a bowling ball to the list of continuing oddities about the house! It's blue, kind of lightweight and judging from the finger holes, belonged to someone small. There's even an "extra" hole so either the owner had an odd hand, something went horribly wrong or one of the boys grabbed it out of a dumpster. Any of those three are possible! I cleaned it up and I will be keeping the ball. No, not to bowl with but as a conversation piece! I think it should fit nicely on one of those gazing ball stands!
So let's see, ..... what else. I got back from Mom's in time to get a call that they wanted to come over and reconnect my broken duct in the attic! Hooray! So it's hooked back up now and they added a relay switch to the fan that was running 24/7 so that it SHOULD now only run when the heater is on. I am officially done with trying to cool down Wichita singlehandedly! It's not like I was doing a very good job of it anyway. The new compressor got put in the freezer side of the fridge. Hooray! My roofers finally came over and took out the old non-working attic fans and put in two new ones the electrician had left. He comes Monday to hook them up. Hooray! The trash compactor got delivered and I am just waiting for the technician to come take out the old nasty one that scares me in a really horrible way and put the new one in. Hooray!
It was actually nice for several days, so I was able to get out in the yard and do some yard work! It's definitely good for the soul to get dirt under your fingernails! Pulled tons of weeds, cleaned up some flower beds. Hopefully this weekend I can get some mulch added to some of them and the place can at least look a little better! I am not going to plant anything, just perk it up.
So everything is looking up, right?! Well, not so fast! This morning as I am getting some hot water from the instant hot water dispenser, the handle comes off in my hand and I can't shut off the scalding hot water! Luckily there was an easily accessible shut off valve under the sink. After a little detective work on my part and a phone call to the company, turns out the unit is new (Feb. 2011) and still under warranty. They gave me a number to call and no more than an hour later a service man was at the door. Looks like I will add "hot water dispenser" to my list of new stuff!
Still feeling good, I go outside to check the progress of the installation of my new garage doors. I must admit, they are beautiful and it is money well spent on this! Went with a steel door that looks like wood, so you get the look and no maintenance! Love, love, love how it turned out! But wait, what is that awful sound around the side of the house?! Yup ..... it's the air conditioner. It sounds hideous and is so loud that if I were to try to carry on a conversation I am not sure I could! I go inside, it's a bit warmer than I expected in the house but not awful so watch it for a few hours. Sure enough..... it's not cooling well. At 6 p.m. it was 105 degrees outside and 84 inside the house. "Hello?..... Home warranty?......... I need someone to come look at my air conditioner!!! Again!" Hopefully I won't have to wait TOO long.
So I spent today finishing cleaning up the aforementioned bowling ball flower bed. Hey, if it's warm in the house I might as well be warm outside and get something done! All deep roots and minor stumps are gone, years of decaying leaves are bagged and all that awaits is whatever I chose to do to it next spring. It will give me something to plan this winter when I am in the house - probably freezing and dressed in layers because the heater won't work!
And on that note, I will close for tonight. The other major event for the week was an energy audit that I had done on Tuesday. Three super nice young men spent a couple of hours at my house going over the whole place and checking out all kinds of things like insulation, energy usage, outside construction, etc. While I don't have the full report yet, it should be very enlightening. Probably in a very scary sort of way, but enlightening. I will save that for another day to try to explain to you. First I will have to figure it out myself!
So happy weekend everyone! Here's to cooler temperatures, no surprises and time spent with those you love!
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Flowers, Lipstick and A Fan Motor
It's been another intersting week and again I wish I had written more often, but I rarely stop in the middle of the day - so by the time the day draws to an end, I am beat. Had a great visit with Matt and we actually had a fun day on Friday - no maintenance work, no alarms shrieking and nothing broken that I can recall!! Hooray! We hit a few antique malls and I took him to Freddy's for his first steakburger and a frozen custard. Had the in-laws over for dinner (mother, father, sister, nephew, etc.) and Matt and I had smoked some tasty ribs and brisket. This is the kind of stuff I came back to get to be able to do! Last Friday was a good day!
Matt left on Sunday and I headed to my mom's house in Pittsburg, KS after I dropped him at the airport. There was a part of me that was glad to get away and another part of me that feared I was leaving Brad with some sort of disaster waiting to happen while I was gone. So far so good from what I can tell and any disasters that happened were small or my amazing husband has fixed them on his own! Then again, I feel like these days I create most of the disasters, so maybe by having me gone and not starting projects, there is less to go wrong!
It's been a nice time with my mom in one way, but also sobering in another. I am writing this while she is fast asleep in the room next to me and secretly hoping that she won't log on and read this until I am gone tomorrow morning. I want to be genuine and honest on this blog, but I also know that she reads it........
My mother is getting old........ that is the hard reality of the last few weeks. I love the fact that she can be 88 and not consider herself "an old lady" - and now I know where I get it since I sure as hell don't feel like some damn 50 year old woman! Last time I looked I was about 30! But reality is sinking in and I feel like this most recent fall has forced our hand. Sight is diminishing, balance is shakier and things that used to be simple are no longer so. It's a tough pill to swallow - just as hard as any medication that can be prescribed because while you have no option but to "take it", there is no benefit reaped other than reality sinking in.
We are not ready for any big changes yet and I think this most recent fall was just a setback and not a detour, but one now gets the sense that "what I want to happen" and "what will happen" may not be the same. So these last few days with Mom I have decided that it's time for a few of those tough conversations that we all dread and no one really wants to have, but someone has to have. We have talked, we have cried and we have both realized that nothing is forever. At least I think so - I can't speak for her. It's really hard to hear her talk with excitement about her idea of buying a duplex and having either my sister or my neice live in the other side so they can watch out for her, while trying to convey to her that at age 88 and failing sight, that might be a tough move and put an incredible burden on whoever is living on the other side. The splash of reality that hit her in the face in that moment reduced me to tears. These are not moments that children ever assume they will see in their parents, and no matter what you tell yourself, you are never prepared to see it. The only way I know how to describe it is that your heart stops for a second and then it just feels like shattering glass........
Things are different now. I used to tip toe around the house while she was resting and now I can practically bang pots and slam doors and she doesn't hear me. We have reached that stage where there are about 100 Tupperware containers and 100 Tupperware lids, but none of them match up. Where you open the fridge and it's full of half eaten food saved for another meal and expired condiments or things that you really don't want to talk about before you send them down the garbage disposal. Opening the fridge or the freezer feels a little like going to Vegas ..... how lucky do you feel?!
But there are wonderful moments too. Every day when I get the mail I cringe at how many catalogs my mother gets and tell her she must be killing a forest all on her own! But I love to see her going through them and love the fact that every now and then she will treat herself to something she sees and wants. There were SO many years in her life where she didn't feel like she could buy anything for herself that it makes me happy when she does now. She always tells me how she wants to leave enough money 'when she's gone' so that each of her kids can have some and I tell her that all I need is money for a Diet Coke. If it comes down to a stained glass gazing ball for the yard or my inheritance, I am sure hoping she goes with the gazing ball!!!
And there are moments like today when I am at her financial advisor's office, filling out forms for a power of attorney so that I can have access to her financial records and I laugh at something the woman says and she grabs me by the arm and says "Oh my gosh, I SO saw your mother right there!". I want to cry and smile at the same time I guess. I take it as a compliment and can only hope I have her spirit as well.
I have looked at a few assisted living places on this visit (sorry Mom) and will tuck what I have learned away for future use if needed. I guess my theory is that it's better to be over-prepared than under-prepared. We have gotten a home care service in place to help her out once a week with cleaning and errands until she can get back to being able to do them on her own. I know more than I ever wanted to know about her finances, defrosted her deep freeze and put in plastic bins to elevate the things she has so that she doesn't have to bend down so far to reach them. I hung her diploma from her college graduation just 3 months ago, her cap and gown are now on display on her wall. In essence, I feel like I have done all that I can do for now. And I just have to hope that it's enough.
And this is what I love about my mother. She jokes that her doctor told her she would probably live to be 100. She figures he may be right since everything that keeps happening to her doesn't kill her but is just really annoying!!!!
So tomorrow I will head a few hours west, back to my own reality and my own life. I will hope for smooth sailing for both my mother and I for a while.
But of course I can't close without explaining the title I have chosen for today's blog! I actually thought of blogging the other day and came up with the title but didn't blog. It was about last Friday when I ran errands in Wichita and the three things I bought that day were flowers for myself, simply because I wanted them (sunflowers!), lipstick and a new motor for the greenhouse fan! Now before you go thinking I have REALLY changed, let me explain the lipstick! I can't remember where I learned it, but it works like a charm: if you have a door that won't latch, if you rub red lipstick on the part that goes into the catch, you can see where the lipstick hits and it will help you figure out what you need to do to fix it - or at least where the problem is!!! Not sure I know too many handymen who have lipstick in their tool kit, but I do! Not your typical shopping day for most females I am guessing, but that is pretty much how my life goes these days!
Matt left on Sunday and I headed to my mom's house in Pittsburg, KS after I dropped him at the airport. There was a part of me that was glad to get away and another part of me that feared I was leaving Brad with some sort of disaster waiting to happen while I was gone. So far so good from what I can tell and any disasters that happened were small or my amazing husband has fixed them on his own! Then again, I feel like these days I create most of the disasters, so maybe by having me gone and not starting projects, there is less to go wrong!
It's been a nice time with my mom in one way, but also sobering in another. I am writing this while she is fast asleep in the room next to me and secretly hoping that she won't log on and read this until I am gone tomorrow morning. I want to be genuine and honest on this blog, but I also know that she reads it........
My mother is getting old........ that is the hard reality of the last few weeks. I love the fact that she can be 88 and not consider herself "an old lady" - and now I know where I get it since I sure as hell don't feel like some damn 50 year old woman! Last time I looked I was about 30! But reality is sinking in and I feel like this most recent fall has forced our hand. Sight is diminishing, balance is shakier and things that used to be simple are no longer so. It's a tough pill to swallow - just as hard as any medication that can be prescribed because while you have no option but to "take it", there is no benefit reaped other than reality sinking in.
We are not ready for any big changes yet and I think this most recent fall was just a setback and not a detour, but one now gets the sense that "what I want to happen" and "what will happen" may not be the same. So these last few days with Mom I have decided that it's time for a few of those tough conversations that we all dread and no one really wants to have, but someone has to have. We have talked, we have cried and we have both realized that nothing is forever. At least I think so - I can't speak for her. It's really hard to hear her talk with excitement about her idea of buying a duplex and having either my sister or my neice live in the other side so they can watch out for her, while trying to convey to her that at age 88 and failing sight, that might be a tough move and put an incredible burden on whoever is living on the other side. The splash of reality that hit her in the face in that moment reduced me to tears. These are not moments that children ever assume they will see in their parents, and no matter what you tell yourself, you are never prepared to see it. The only way I know how to describe it is that your heart stops for a second and then it just feels like shattering glass........
Things are different now. I used to tip toe around the house while she was resting and now I can practically bang pots and slam doors and she doesn't hear me. We have reached that stage where there are about 100 Tupperware containers and 100 Tupperware lids, but none of them match up. Where you open the fridge and it's full of half eaten food saved for another meal and expired condiments or things that you really don't want to talk about before you send them down the garbage disposal. Opening the fridge or the freezer feels a little like going to Vegas ..... how lucky do you feel?!
But there are wonderful moments too. Every day when I get the mail I cringe at how many catalogs my mother gets and tell her she must be killing a forest all on her own! But I love to see her going through them and love the fact that every now and then she will treat herself to something she sees and wants. There were SO many years in her life where she didn't feel like she could buy anything for herself that it makes me happy when she does now. She always tells me how she wants to leave enough money 'when she's gone' so that each of her kids can have some and I tell her that all I need is money for a Diet Coke. If it comes down to a stained glass gazing ball for the yard or my inheritance, I am sure hoping she goes with the gazing ball!!!
And there are moments like today when I am at her financial advisor's office, filling out forms for a power of attorney so that I can have access to her financial records and I laugh at something the woman says and she grabs me by the arm and says "Oh my gosh, I SO saw your mother right there!". I want to cry and smile at the same time I guess. I take it as a compliment and can only hope I have her spirit as well.
I have looked at a few assisted living places on this visit (sorry Mom) and will tuck what I have learned away for future use if needed. I guess my theory is that it's better to be over-prepared than under-prepared. We have gotten a home care service in place to help her out once a week with cleaning and errands until she can get back to being able to do them on her own. I know more than I ever wanted to know about her finances, defrosted her deep freeze and put in plastic bins to elevate the things she has so that she doesn't have to bend down so far to reach them. I hung her diploma from her college graduation just 3 months ago, her cap and gown are now on display on her wall. In essence, I feel like I have done all that I can do for now. And I just have to hope that it's enough.
And this is what I love about my mother. She jokes that her doctor told her she would probably live to be 100. She figures he may be right since everything that keeps happening to her doesn't kill her but is just really annoying!!!!
So tomorrow I will head a few hours west, back to my own reality and my own life. I will hope for smooth sailing for both my mother and I for a while.
But of course I can't close without explaining the title I have chosen for today's blog! I actually thought of blogging the other day and came up with the title but didn't blog. It was about last Friday when I ran errands in Wichita and the three things I bought that day were flowers for myself, simply because I wanted them (sunflowers!), lipstick and a new motor for the greenhouse fan! Now before you go thinking I have REALLY changed, let me explain the lipstick! I can't remember where I learned it, but it works like a charm: if you have a door that won't latch, if you rub red lipstick on the part that goes into the catch, you can see where the lipstick hits and it will help you figure out what you need to do to fix it - or at least where the problem is!!! Not sure I know too many handymen who have lipstick in their tool kit, but I do! Not your typical shopping day for most females I am guessing, but that is pretty much how my life goes these days!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Here's to smudging!
Okay, first of all, my apologies for the pity party I invited you all to last time I wrote. I was apparently just having a really crappy day and needed to vent, but I sincerely do not think I was looking for sympathy. I personally look at my keyboard as my therapist right now, so we often have keyboard therapy sessions and you all were just privy to one! While I do like to entertain, pity parties are not my favorite event to stage so I will try to hold those to a minimum. (I am thinking about a pity basement painting party this winter but more on that later!).
Secondly, it was never my intent to throw Brad under the bus and I hope that is not how that was taken. He and I are both sort of overwhelmed with life and doing the best we can and I know that. He is the best man I have ever known - probably the best human being - and I never want to hurt him. He has put up with so much crap from me that I owe him big time and hopefully he and I can take turns being the one who needs a little lift from time to time. I am just so used to him being my anchor that it's hard when we are both treading water....... I love you Brad!
So life goes on! I am often not sure these days whether to laugh or to cry so often end up doing both - almost assuredly by the end of each day I have! One of my friends responded to something I had posted on facebook and asked me what I thought it was that I was supposed to be learning from all of this. If only I knew!!! Karma's a bitch? Patience is a virtue? Just breathe? I am still not sure......
I know it has been several days again since I posted. An update on Mom...... turns out that she did indeed appear to have a compression fracture at the T9 vertebra. They set up an appointment for her to have a procedure done this morning, much like the one she had done 10 years ago when she fractured at T11. After more xrays and tests, this fracture at T9 was determined to be old, so there is nothing they can do for it. Not sure exactly when it happened, but she can't have the procedure done. So for now we are in a holding pattern and the hope is that in a few weeks her pain will resolve. Two sisters have "shifts" before me, but I am headed there Sunday and will return to Wichita on Thursday
The house .... where to start. Like I said before, all I really would like is to string a couple of good "house days" together. Waiting ....... waiting ...... waiting ...... Today's adventure was the newly installed home security system! I say "new" but two of the three keypads were old existing keypads and the system used existing wires rather than new ones. About 8:30 this morning as I was actually feeling calm and reading the newspaper, I was about blown off my seat by the ear-splitting, nerve-jarring high pitched shriek of the house alarm! Not armed! WTF? Put in the code!. Stops. 3 seconds later - starts! Put in the code! A few seconds later ....... you get the picture. I call the company - they transfer me .... to a voicemail! I don't THINK so! Call back - they try to "talk me down". Seems to be okay. I hang up ..... 30 minutes later we repeat this scenario!
I can quite proudly tell you that I now know how to totally power down my entire house alarm thanks to Tech Support at ADT! Not something I ever thought I would need to know, but okay. They send a tech. According to him the "police" button is showing that it won't reset, so after trying everything he can, he basically decides the problem is in one keypad so he replaces it. Hallelujah and thank you Gus (the repair guy) - he tells me he's going to do it for no charge! He's a great guy and leaves me his cell phone number and tells me to call him if it goes off again.......
Fast forward about two hours........ "Hello Gus? This is Connie. It's going off again!". I have nothing but good things to say about ADT at this point. Gus comes back, gives me a third new keypad so that I now have all completely new keypads. He replaces the radio frequency thing that picks up the signals and also gives me an entire new remote! All at no charge! Gus rocks! Oh yeah - and Gus is about 25! What the heck us up with these Kansas guys names?! So far I have met Gus, Barney and Ennis!! What?!
So let's see..... what else..... came home the other day and the pond pump wasn't working. Turned out just to be a tripped circuit! Hallellujah! Big rainstorm last night and spent an hour fishing leaves out the pool this morning! Have leaf rake, will travel! Went to use the GFCI in the back yard to use some equipment. It had previously worked. Not now! Figured out which circuit breaker it was on, shut it down and put in a new one - take that stupid electrical system!! Oh yeah - remember that gas smell? Well , after a few stubborn days of short periods of digging and when I was about to call it off, I heard the tell tale clink of metal on metal (pick axe to shut down gas pipe). Unearthed it, called the plumber.... he will have to replace it rather than repair it which will involved trenching! Project on hold until later date since pool heater is not exactly required on surface of the sun!
But on the bright side, home warranty is coming through! Got a call this week that I get a new trash compactor, a new cook top, 2 new attic fans and they will cover the duct work repair that has to be done in the attic!! Woo hoo!! Still trying to figure out a few things so stay tuned! I have a feeling when I call American Home Shield now that a big red light comes on when my number pops up! "Oh #@%$?! Not HER!!!"
And on the other bright now - Matt is here for a visit! He arrived yesterday morning. The dogs are thrilled - and totally ditched Brad and I last night to sleep with Matt. (Must admit it was a good night's sleep for me!) The plan had been to do some antique/thrift store shopping with him, but instead I tossed him my car keys and my GPS and told him to have a good time as I waited for the alarm company! We did go to a concert tonight at WSU. Great concert by Robin Macy - one of the original Dixie Chicks who lives here in Wichita! It was wonderful! I am definitely in the right place to live since I love Bluegrass!!! Hopefully tomorrow he and I can have a little fun and then tomorrow night we are having the in-laws over for dinner. Smoking brisket and ribs! Matt and I are in charge!
And we did the sage smudge stick finally. It sat on the counter and I kept waiting for the time when it felt right and Brad and I had the time. Finally on Tuesday night we did it. I really, quite honestly, was not sure how to go about this, even though I had looked it all up online. I wanted to rid the negative energy from the house and feel like maybe Brad and I were getting a new start, but mostly I felt like a fool walking around the house with a smoldering sage and lavender bundle of dried herbs. Does it count when you are not sure what you believe? If you WANT this to work all the way down into your bones but you are not sure if you even believe it but feel like you will try anything? Does effort count? And just what the hell is it that I do believe in? Nothing like taking a semi-sacred ceremony to question all of these things - and then just praying that somewhere, the higher powers that be will know that your intentions are good, even if the execution is a little shaky. So Brad walked around with me and about half way through I got pretty emotional. I did so desperately want to believe in this but felt like I had no clue what I was doing.
I decided to finish up the smudge stick outside. I walked the whole perimeter of the yard, trying hard to believe. And I suddenly thought of a little boy I knew named Richard. I had been his "Auntie" in the Neonatal ICU in Salt Lake City. He was Native American. A preemie from Idaho, so I spent several hours a week with him since he parents couldn't be there. As it neared time for him to go home, there was some fear about sending him home. It's hard to bond from a distance and the parents were a little unrealistic - he was a bit of a high maintenance baby. Turns out those fears were justified and Richard didn't make it much longer. I believe his father is now serving time........
But as I walked the yard, I felt like Richard was with me in some sense after that. Like maybe the time I had spent with him was now being repaid to me. I sat on the patio and let the herbs burn down, then buried most of them in the earth. I took a small bowl inside with me and the next day put a pinch down each drain and flushed some down the toilets. Hey, can't hurt, right?! I rubbed some on my hands and across my forehead, then rinsed the bowl, stuck it in the dishwasher, showered and started my day.
So here's to brighter days! I feel them on the horizon!
Secondly, it was never my intent to throw Brad under the bus and I hope that is not how that was taken. He and I are both sort of overwhelmed with life and doing the best we can and I know that. He is the best man I have ever known - probably the best human being - and I never want to hurt him. He has put up with so much crap from me that I owe him big time and hopefully he and I can take turns being the one who needs a little lift from time to time. I am just so used to him being my anchor that it's hard when we are both treading water....... I love you Brad!
So life goes on! I am often not sure these days whether to laugh or to cry so often end up doing both - almost assuredly by the end of each day I have! One of my friends responded to something I had posted on facebook and asked me what I thought it was that I was supposed to be learning from all of this. If only I knew!!! Karma's a bitch? Patience is a virtue? Just breathe? I am still not sure......
I know it has been several days again since I posted. An update on Mom...... turns out that she did indeed appear to have a compression fracture at the T9 vertebra. They set up an appointment for her to have a procedure done this morning, much like the one she had done 10 years ago when she fractured at T11. After more xrays and tests, this fracture at T9 was determined to be old, so there is nothing they can do for it. Not sure exactly when it happened, but she can't have the procedure done. So for now we are in a holding pattern and the hope is that in a few weeks her pain will resolve. Two sisters have "shifts" before me, but I am headed there Sunday and will return to Wichita on Thursday
The house .... where to start. Like I said before, all I really would like is to string a couple of good "house days" together. Waiting ....... waiting ...... waiting ...... Today's adventure was the newly installed home security system! I say "new" but two of the three keypads were old existing keypads and the system used existing wires rather than new ones. About 8:30 this morning as I was actually feeling calm and reading the newspaper, I was about blown off my seat by the ear-splitting, nerve-jarring high pitched shriek of the house alarm! Not armed! WTF? Put in the code!. Stops. 3 seconds later - starts! Put in the code! A few seconds later ....... you get the picture. I call the company - they transfer me .... to a voicemail! I don't THINK so! Call back - they try to "talk me down". Seems to be okay. I hang up ..... 30 minutes later we repeat this scenario!
I can quite proudly tell you that I now know how to totally power down my entire house alarm thanks to Tech Support at ADT! Not something I ever thought I would need to know, but okay. They send a tech. According to him the "police" button is showing that it won't reset, so after trying everything he can, he basically decides the problem is in one keypad so he replaces it. Hallelujah and thank you Gus (the repair guy) - he tells me he's going to do it for no charge! He's a great guy and leaves me his cell phone number and tells me to call him if it goes off again.......
Fast forward about two hours........ "Hello Gus? This is Connie. It's going off again!". I have nothing but good things to say about ADT at this point. Gus comes back, gives me a third new keypad so that I now have all completely new keypads. He replaces the radio frequency thing that picks up the signals and also gives me an entire new remote! All at no charge! Gus rocks! Oh yeah - and Gus is about 25! What the heck us up with these Kansas guys names?! So far I have met Gus, Barney and Ennis!! What?!
So let's see..... what else..... came home the other day and the pond pump wasn't working. Turned out just to be a tripped circuit! Hallellujah! Big rainstorm last night and spent an hour fishing leaves out the pool this morning! Have leaf rake, will travel! Went to use the GFCI in the back yard to use some equipment. It had previously worked. Not now! Figured out which circuit breaker it was on, shut it down and put in a new one - take that stupid electrical system!! Oh yeah - remember that gas smell? Well , after a few stubborn days of short periods of digging and when I was about to call it off, I heard the tell tale clink of metal on metal (pick axe to shut down gas pipe). Unearthed it, called the plumber.... he will have to replace it rather than repair it which will involved trenching! Project on hold until later date since pool heater is not exactly required on surface of the sun!
But on the bright side, home warranty is coming through! Got a call this week that I get a new trash compactor, a new cook top, 2 new attic fans and they will cover the duct work repair that has to be done in the attic!! Woo hoo!! Still trying to figure out a few things so stay tuned! I have a feeling when I call American Home Shield now that a big red light comes on when my number pops up! "Oh #@%$?! Not HER!!!"
And on the other bright now - Matt is here for a visit! He arrived yesterday morning. The dogs are thrilled - and totally ditched Brad and I last night to sleep with Matt. (Must admit it was a good night's sleep for me!) The plan had been to do some antique/thrift store shopping with him, but instead I tossed him my car keys and my GPS and told him to have a good time as I waited for the alarm company! We did go to a concert tonight at WSU. Great concert by Robin Macy - one of the original Dixie Chicks who lives here in Wichita! It was wonderful! I am definitely in the right place to live since I love Bluegrass!!! Hopefully tomorrow he and I can have a little fun and then tomorrow night we are having the in-laws over for dinner. Smoking brisket and ribs! Matt and I are in charge!
And we did the sage smudge stick finally. It sat on the counter and I kept waiting for the time when it felt right and Brad and I had the time. Finally on Tuesday night we did it. I really, quite honestly, was not sure how to go about this, even though I had looked it all up online. I wanted to rid the negative energy from the house and feel like maybe Brad and I were getting a new start, but mostly I felt like a fool walking around the house with a smoldering sage and lavender bundle of dried herbs. Does it count when you are not sure what you believe? If you WANT this to work all the way down into your bones but you are not sure if you even believe it but feel like you will try anything? Does effort count? And just what the hell is it that I do believe in? Nothing like taking a semi-sacred ceremony to question all of these things - and then just praying that somewhere, the higher powers that be will know that your intentions are good, even if the execution is a little shaky. So Brad walked around with me and about half way through I got pretty emotional. I did so desperately want to believe in this but felt like I had no clue what I was doing.
I decided to finish up the smudge stick outside. I walked the whole perimeter of the yard, trying hard to believe. And I suddenly thought of a little boy I knew named Richard. I had been his "Auntie" in the Neonatal ICU in Salt Lake City. He was Native American. A preemie from Idaho, so I spent several hours a week with him since he parents couldn't be there. As it neared time for him to go home, there was some fear about sending him home. It's hard to bond from a distance and the parents were a little unrealistic - he was a bit of a high maintenance baby. Turns out those fears were justified and Richard didn't make it much longer. I believe his father is now serving time........
But as I walked the yard, I felt like Richard was with me in some sense after that. Like maybe the time I had spent with him was now being repaid to me. I sat on the patio and let the herbs burn down, then buried most of them in the earth. I took a small bowl inside with me and the next day put a pinch down each drain and flushed some down the toilets. Hey, can't hurt, right?! I rubbed some on my hands and across my forehead, then rinsed the bowl, stuck it in the dishwasher, showered and started my day.
So here's to brighter days! I feel them on the horizon!
Friday, July 29, 2011
To hell in a handbasket .......
I know it has again been a long time since I wrote, but you know that old saying of "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all"? Well, if I am being honest, I haven't had much nice to say. It's been a tough few weeks ...... a tough month .......
I know I affectionately called the house a money pit early on, but it turns out that that moniker is holding on like a pit bull. I told Brad the other day that all I really hoped for these days was maybe two days in a row where everything went right. I am apparently still waiting. I have had some good days, but they don't seem to string together. It has been a tough "welcome home" to say the least.....
A lot of it centers around the house. I think both Brad and I wish we could go back in time and perhaps reconsider buying it. I suppose perhaps at some point I will stop kicking myself for it, but I am pretty sure I was the deciding factor in picking this house - just fell in love with a few of the features and it blinded me to a lot of the other things. And Brad just wanted to make me happy. Live and learn.
The advantage of writing each day would be that I could tell you each day about the antics of what went wrong on that day, but to be honest, by the end of most of the days lately, I am too worn out to want to sit and write and often I have just been ready for the day to end. At the least I should have taken notes, but I haven't, so here is what I can remember so far:
- Went into the attic to find window screens (where the previous owner said to look)
- Did find window screens, in addition to apparently their alternate trash depositing spot. Stuff everywhere!
- Found that said attic has three levels to it! First two are pretty easily accessible, with one drop down of about two and a half feet. (This was discovered when I made the step down into unknown territory and cracked the ceiling drywall below! Hooray!) Got to where there is a small opening to the third, decided I would have to go on a starvation diet to fit, so chose not to.
- But wait, what is this? Cold air in that part of the attic? That can't be good! Cold air comes from air conditioners and my attic should not be air conditioned!
- Looked all over the rest of the house for an access to the other part of the attic. None seems to exist. This means I will have to create my own! Oh joy!
- Got the electric bill for our first month in the house. I am too embarrassed to tell you how much it was, but let's just say it made me cry! Literally!!! Real tears! There are MAJOR energy issues with this house!!
- After the electric bill, the motivation to get into the attic increases. So I start taking down old acoustical ceiling tiles in the mechanical room off of the laundry room since it's the only room that is not dry walled.
- First large tile removed ...... you HAVE to be kidding me!!! A dog bed? Seriously?! They used a dog bed as attic insulation?!
- Removed more ceiling tiles - no more dog beds. Finally a space big enough for me to get into the attic if I move myself just right. It's a start, so up I go.
- Now in said attic...... dark, hot, .... Ceiling fan number three is not working. Height to move around seems to be about three to four feet at best, so spent the next hour either in a crouch or duck walking or crawling!
- Again, find three light fixtures with dead bulbs! Change bulbs but still not sure where they turn on, though am guessing they are tied in with the ones of the other side of the attic (note to self to check that). As opposed to previous occupants, I take dead light bulbs out with me when I go and don't just toss them aside.
- In search of cold air I felt from the other side, so head north on my hands and knees. Cool...... cooler.... coldest! There it is! I gigantic duct that looks to be about a foot wide totally disconnected from the hose and nicely chilling the attic! I was smart enough this time to take a camera up with me so I have proof!
- Try to follow all of the ducting to check it - cold air leaks in several places. Hooray for Home Warranty!
- Decide to check out the rest of the attic for anything I might find. Surprisingly, the rest of the stuff seems to be in order on that side, but there are wires EVERYWHERE! The house has an old intercom system and I am wondering if perhaps that is what some of them are – or perhaps an old alarm system (since we seem to have three in the house – one of which appears to be from the ‘50’s and even has a red panic button!!!)
- Down out of the attic I come. No way anyone bigger than me is fitting up there, so I expand the opening, brace a few of the joists and cut out a section of 2x4 so workers can get up there. It’s still a little tricky, but as long as they don’t weigh 300 pounds, I think we are okay. If they are 300 pounds, I don’t want them in my attic anyway!
- Wake up next morning to discover that the muscles in my thighs are on fire from having duck walked through my attic! Not a position or technique one should spend much time doing when you are 50!
Okay, so what we have at this point is a poorly-functioning, energy-sucking antique air conditioner (x 2), a old HVAC system that has a fan that won’t shut off and runs 24/7 and seems to be putting at least part of the cold air outside (imagine how hot Wichita would be if I was NOT doing this? Maybe 110 instead of just 106!), another HVAC system that has broken and leaking ducts, two out of three attic fans that don’t work, my refrigerator freezer that doesn’t get quite cold enough (all ice cream at my house is soft serve!), a cook top that has half of the burners that don’t work, a broken trash compactor, a few doors that scrape and stick, cracked ceiling drywall because of where I stepped in the attic and the sprinkler repair in the atrium that I have already done. That should be it, right?!
NOT! This morning it's cooler than normal for 7 a.m. (only 75 instead of 85!) so I decide to do a little work in the yard before it heats up. I go over to the hose bib behind the greenhouse.... only to smell natural gas! Great! Call the gas company. Long story short, I have a leak in a buried gas line in my back yard that leads to the pool heater! Not like I need the pool heater right now, but I have to find the source of the leak. Guess I will be spending tomorrow morning digging up the back yard in strategic spots!
It just seems like one thing after another and I am so tired of it! I really don't mean to have a pity party, but honestly, just when I think I have found out all of the things I am going to find something else happens! Forgive me my whining........
And it's not just the house. My 50th birthday was last Saturday ....... Brad forgot. I am usually not one for birthdays but this one was big and with everything else going on, all I really wanted was a hug and a happy birthday from him. He remembered when he asked me why I was moping around and I started crying and told him! Good times! I know we both have incredibly full plates and I have forgiven him, but it was a tough day for me.
On my birthday, my mom took a fall in her bathroom and hit her back on the counter. She ended up in Urgent Care (via my sister - thank you Mimi!) and they didn't see anything broken. She has had pain all week and ended up getting an MRI today. Won't know until Monday but they wonder if she has another compression fracture in her vertebra like he had several years back. Then I got an email from my sister this morning: mom accidentally locked herself out of the house yesterday when she went out to get something. My sister had planned to come over when she got off work, so knowing that, my mom just waited outside. Knowing it was also incredibly hot, she thought to turn on the sprinkler and basically sat for a half hour where the sprinkler hit her and kept her cool. While I applaud her resourcefulness, it's not something you want to hear. Still, ....... I am worried........ I see more and frequent trips to Pittsburg in my future......
So this weekend, I have a plan. I bought a sage smudge stick and I am going to burn it in the house. I have not done this before, but it feels like time. I need to clean the negative energy out of this house as it feels like that is all that has been around since we moved in. I am really not wacky but at this point, I feel like I need to do something! For any of you not familiar with this, the ritual of smudging can be defined as "spiritual house cleaning." In theory, the smoke attaches itself to negative energy and as the smoke clears it takes the negative energy with it, releasing it into another space where it will be regenerated into positive energy. Let's hope it works! I think Brad is a little skeptical, but like in so many other ways, he is humoring me. At the rate I am going, I will be happy if I just don't burn the house down!
There have been bright spots, don't get me wrong. Otherwise, I think I would have given up on life altogether! We went to a great beer and chocolate tasting the other night, went to our first concert at the Orpheum, had some great meals. I got some new fencing put up that looks amazing and we took a fast trip to DC where we were lucky enough to attend a dinner prepared by 5 chefs from the All Stars of America's Next Top Chef - Brad knows all of the right people and I just reap the rewards.
So I am telling myself that as long as the house doesn't explode or burn down and my marriage survives that it's all good. It's a challenge some days, but you just have to keep your chin up and keep looking to the horizon. There must be a "greater plan" but this is not exactly what I had in mind when I thought of coming home!
So I will try to write more often - though I have no idea if anyone at all is reading this! There are so many things that happen that I am sure I have left out many of them...... like my many adventures of working with the home warranty company and how somehow George has worms! But I will save those stories for another day! It's always good to keep the crowd wanting more!
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
"American Home Shield ....... please hold!"
Today is what seems like day bazillion of 100 degree heat! Brad and I walked the dogs at about 6:45 in the morning and honestly we didn't go too far before all of us were ready to get home. This heat and humidity just totally zaps all of your energy! I am honestly not sure how people who work outdoors can do it.
And speaking of outdoor workers, it was day two of my tree trimmers. I had already scheduled them to remove some dead wood from some of my many trees, when lo and behold, the previous owner forwards me a letter they had received from the city. Turns out our southwest corner trees were determined to be a traffic hazard and they need to be massively pruned so there could be a line of sight. So instead of starting with the ones I wanted to that will make my yard look better, they had to start back there, in the corner I never even see! Good times. That being said, they did some good work today and still have about a half days worth of work or so left.
I took lunch in to Brad's office and met his co-workers today too. All of them seemed very nice and I know they love having Brad there. The Med Students haven't started up yet so it was pretty quiet, but at least that will give him some time to acclimate to the new job before they arrive. It was fun to help him hang pictures in his office too!
Seems like most of the rest of the day was spent on the phone .... talking to the moving company about some claims we need to make on some damaged goods, three calls to the home warranty company with the average time waiting before I got to speak to someone being about 25 minutes, and even had to clear up an old medical insurance problem from a bill from Salt Lake City! Not much time left to do much else today besides pack.
Brad and I have a quick little getaway planned, and while it will be busy and hectic, it will be much appreciated to get away from the "job site" for a few days. We fly to Washington DC tomorrow morning and will return on Friday, so as you can see it is a short trip. It should be pretty fun though! Brad is part of a group that is working with various agencies, including the US government, to try to standardize critical care. He goes 2-3 times a year for meetings. Well, the consulting firm they work with is having their 10th Anniversary and they invited a handful of people to a dinner on Thursday night and the cooking will be done by 4 chefs from America's Next Top Chef! I must confess that I don't regularly watch the show, so I don't know much about our 4 celebrity chefs, but still know the meal will be great! When we got the invitation in the mail it came complete with an America's Next Top Chef cookbook too! Figured it was worth a plane ride to get to experience this!! Time to dust off a dress and shave the legs! Momma's dressing up!!! I am not even going to worry about what I eat that night. I just hope I don't need a seat belt extender on the flight home!
So my guy Adam will be here with the dogs. He's going to demo the old non-functional in-ground hot tub and do some electrical troubleshooting for me. It's too hot to give him too many outside tasks!
Time to hit the hay! Not sure if I will blog again until I get back from DC but I promise I will try to take some pictures of the food before I devour it and post them! I know, I know ...... I keep saying I am going to post all kinds of pictures and I haven't! I'll try!
And speaking of outdoor workers, it was day two of my tree trimmers. I had already scheduled them to remove some dead wood from some of my many trees, when lo and behold, the previous owner forwards me a letter they had received from the city. Turns out our southwest corner trees were determined to be a traffic hazard and they need to be massively pruned so there could be a line of sight. So instead of starting with the ones I wanted to that will make my yard look better, they had to start back there, in the corner I never even see! Good times. That being said, they did some good work today and still have about a half days worth of work or so left.
I took lunch in to Brad's office and met his co-workers today too. All of them seemed very nice and I know they love having Brad there. The Med Students haven't started up yet so it was pretty quiet, but at least that will give him some time to acclimate to the new job before they arrive. It was fun to help him hang pictures in his office too!
Seems like most of the rest of the day was spent on the phone .... talking to the moving company about some claims we need to make on some damaged goods, three calls to the home warranty company with the average time waiting before I got to speak to someone being about 25 minutes, and even had to clear up an old medical insurance problem from a bill from Salt Lake City! Not much time left to do much else today besides pack.
Brad and I have a quick little getaway planned, and while it will be busy and hectic, it will be much appreciated to get away from the "job site" for a few days. We fly to Washington DC tomorrow morning and will return on Friday, so as you can see it is a short trip. It should be pretty fun though! Brad is part of a group that is working with various agencies, including the US government, to try to standardize critical care. He goes 2-3 times a year for meetings. Well, the consulting firm they work with is having their 10th Anniversary and they invited a handful of people to a dinner on Thursday night and the cooking will be done by 4 chefs from America's Next Top Chef! I must confess that I don't regularly watch the show, so I don't know much about our 4 celebrity chefs, but still know the meal will be great! When we got the invitation in the mail it came complete with an America's Next Top Chef cookbook too! Figured it was worth a plane ride to get to experience this!! Time to dust off a dress and shave the legs! Momma's dressing up!!! I am not even going to worry about what I eat that night. I just hope I don't need a seat belt extender on the flight home!
So my guy Adam will be here with the dogs. He's going to demo the old non-functional in-ground hot tub and do some electrical troubleshooting for me. It's too hot to give him too many outside tasks!
Time to hit the hay! Not sure if I will blog again until I get back from DC but I promise I will try to take some pictures of the food before I devour it and post them! I know, I know ...... I keep saying I am going to post all kinds of pictures and I haven't! I'll try!
Monday, July 18, 2011
... too much of everythng....
I can't believe it has been so long since I last posted! My apologies - though it's not as if any of you were calling me and begging me to write! Ha ha! The problem with so long in between postings is that I have no idea where to start.....
My oldest sister, Wren, made a comment that this house would humble me and she is correct. Daily. If I am totally honest, there are days lately where I am rather overwhelmed by it all and I am pretty sure Brad is too. You just feel like you have to ride out the storm and hope for calmer seas on the other side.
It seems like every project I start leads to two more. Some of the thrills of the house can also become the annoyances. Like sprinkler repair - INSIDE THE HOUSE! I have mentioned the atriums before in this blog but now I can say that I have done sprinkler repairs in one! We kept noticing moisture in one spot and it seemed like the mud never dried up, so it was time to dig a little. Nothing major and easily fixable, but it seems the stones that are the walking path through it laid right on the line, so it was time to come up with an alternate plan. So of course the logical thing to do is build a little Trex walkway - INSIDE THE HOUSE! Must admit that doing these things as interior projects were a first for me! But it's done and looks great and I am glad for the improvement - even changed out the sprinkler heads for a drip system which will be much nicer. Trimmed things up and pulled all of the vines off the wall, so it's looking pretty good!
On to the other atrium.... years and years worth of vine growth had to go. Turns out there is a beautiful stone wall behind about a two feet deep wall of vines! Or at least there were vines! No more. So much dust and dead leaves that I had to wear a mask and goggles. It looks so much better! Turns out there is no watering system in there but I can still water manually and can keep live plants to a minimum perhaps. Can you say zen garden?!
Other adventures have included time spent in the attic. Which is of course what any sensible person does when you are having a record setting heat wave of over 100 degrees for days on end, right?! In my defense, I have gone up there only first thing in the mornings. The task that took me up there in the first place was that one of the attic fans was not working so I wanted to look at it and see if I could see anything. Well, turns out that attic fans don't work too well when there is a bird lodged in the blades! Ugh! I won't go into too much detail here or post the picture I took to prove to Brad what I found, but suffice it to say that he had been there a while and as badly as I wanted to leave him there and make Brad get him, I put on my big girl panties and did it myself. Turns out that was not why it wasn't working though. Hmmm So next task was to put on my electrician panties and figure out where it was located on the circuit breaker so I could turn it off and fix a loose wire I noticed. (By the way, a circuit breaker finder is a wonderful tool if anyone is interested!). Did that. Still didn't work. I will be calling someone.
So once I got up in the attic, it seemed as if it was not well lit - only one light bulb that I could see. Time to don the headlamp I used for night hiking in Utah - turns out it works great for home improvement too! Once I could see better to get around, it turns out that there are four light fixtures but the other three all had burned out light bulbs! What was it with these people?!?! Once lit, turns out that they also thought of the attic as a giant wastebasket. Old light bulbs? Just toss them aside! Car top carrier you aren't using? Throw it up there! An old TV mount? Perfect spot! I probably picked up at least 10 old light bulbs laying on top of the insulation, yards and yards of old cables that had been cut and left up there, a pair of crutches, the bag with crusty old dead bird and an assortment of other goodies. AND I could only get to half of the attic! The most scary part is all of the cables and wires that are just laying across the area and aren't protected. That will be a project for the Fall when the weather cools!
When we got the home inspection report it said that this was a "uniquely built house". Man were they right! No place is that more evident than the attic! There are elevation changes and one spot where you have to step down about two and a half feet. Unable to see where the support joists were, guess who stepped down onto a piece of drywall that is the ceiling of the atrium?! Yup, me. Got to do a little ceiling drywall repair after that. Then about the spot where there is only a narrow slit that I may or may not be able to squeeze through, I realized that there is nice cool air on the other side. That is NOT good! Means that there is an opening in the duct somewhere up there and I am cooling the attic! So next week, the plan is to come through the ceiling of the mechanical room or laundry room to get access to that area and see if I can find it! The fun never stops!!! But I have to do it - we got our electrical bill and with temperatures over 100 for days on end and no relief in sight, I can't continue to air condition the attic and get another jaw dropping bill!
So there are days that I think Brad and I sit back and wonder what on earth we have done when we bought this house! I guess it's like falling in love with the bad boys in high school - you know it's not good for you but you just have to have it! I am hoping that eventually this bad boy of a house will reform itself. I know any move takes time, but it just feels like this one has just been the perfect storm of so many things going wrong, needing attention and the oppressive heat outside has not helped at all. Perhaps it's time to refresh myself on that meditation class I took!
The good news is that the move back to Kansas still feels like a good choice. It has been fun to see family and friends more often and the people we have met here have been wonderful. Brad has started to work and the people he works with are all great. We've already been to dinner with the Dean and his wife, went to an event with several people from his office, had dinner with the in-laws and we have tickets to a concert Saturday with another co-worker. On Saturday two friends of mine from JUNIOR HIGH came over! One has a daughter who just graduated from college and will be teaching at a Wichita area high school and the other was about a half hour away at a family gathering, so we coordinated it and they all came here. One friend brought two of her daughters and the other brought her husband, son and daughter so we had a great time catching up and then went out to eat dinner. I love the fact that I can do things like that now!
I have decided that today is picture hanging day. Maybe it will help to feel a little more settled and "homey" and less like I am living in a job site! I am sure there are a million other things that I have done in the last two weeks and if I can think of any other good stories I will let you know. For now, it's time to find the hammer and some nails and get to work!
My oldest sister, Wren, made a comment that this house would humble me and she is correct. Daily. If I am totally honest, there are days lately where I am rather overwhelmed by it all and I am pretty sure Brad is too. You just feel like you have to ride out the storm and hope for calmer seas on the other side.
It seems like every project I start leads to two more. Some of the thrills of the house can also become the annoyances. Like sprinkler repair - INSIDE THE HOUSE! I have mentioned the atriums before in this blog but now I can say that I have done sprinkler repairs in one! We kept noticing moisture in one spot and it seemed like the mud never dried up, so it was time to dig a little. Nothing major and easily fixable, but it seems the stones that are the walking path through it laid right on the line, so it was time to come up with an alternate plan. So of course the logical thing to do is build a little Trex walkway - INSIDE THE HOUSE! Must admit that doing these things as interior projects were a first for me! But it's done and looks great and I am glad for the improvement - even changed out the sprinkler heads for a drip system which will be much nicer. Trimmed things up and pulled all of the vines off the wall, so it's looking pretty good!
On to the other atrium.... years and years worth of vine growth had to go. Turns out there is a beautiful stone wall behind about a two feet deep wall of vines! Or at least there were vines! No more. So much dust and dead leaves that I had to wear a mask and goggles. It looks so much better! Turns out there is no watering system in there but I can still water manually and can keep live plants to a minimum perhaps. Can you say zen garden?!
Other adventures have included time spent in the attic. Which is of course what any sensible person does when you are having a record setting heat wave of over 100 degrees for days on end, right?! In my defense, I have gone up there only first thing in the mornings. The task that took me up there in the first place was that one of the attic fans was not working so I wanted to look at it and see if I could see anything. Well, turns out that attic fans don't work too well when there is a bird lodged in the blades! Ugh! I won't go into too much detail here or post the picture I took to prove to Brad what I found, but suffice it to say that he had been there a while and as badly as I wanted to leave him there and make Brad get him, I put on my big girl panties and did it myself. Turns out that was not why it wasn't working though. Hmmm So next task was to put on my electrician panties and figure out where it was located on the circuit breaker so I could turn it off and fix a loose wire I noticed. (By the way, a circuit breaker finder is a wonderful tool if anyone is interested!). Did that. Still didn't work. I will be calling someone.
So once I got up in the attic, it seemed as if it was not well lit - only one light bulb that I could see. Time to don the headlamp I used for night hiking in Utah - turns out it works great for home improvement too! Once I could see better to get around, it turns out that there are four light fixtures but the other three all had burned out light bulbs! What was it with these people?!?! Once lit, turns out that they also thought of the attic as a giant wastebasket. Old light bulbs? Just toss them aside! Car top carrier you aren't using? Throw it up there! An old TV mount? Perfect spot! I probably picked up at least 10 old light bulbs laying on top of the insulation, yards and yards of old cables that had been cut and left up there, a pair of crutches, the bag with crusty old dead bird and an assortment of other goodies. AND I could only get to half of the attic! The most scary part is all of the cables and wires that are just laying across the area and aren't protected. That will be a project for the Fall when the weather cools!
When we got the home inspection report it said that this was a "uniquely built house". Man were they right! No place is that more evident than the attic! There are elevation changes and one spot where you have to step down about two and a half feet. Unable to see where the support joists were, guess who stepped down onto a piece of drywall that is the ceiling of the atrium?! Yup, me. Got to do a little ceiling drywall repair after that. Then about the spot where there is only a narrow slit that I may or may not be able to squeeze through, I realized that there is nice cool air on the other side. That is NOT good! Means that there is an opening in the duct somewhere up there and I am cooling the attic! So next week, the plan is to come through the ceiling of the mechanical room or laundry room to get access to that area and see if I can find it! The fun never stops!!! But I have to do it - we got our electrical bill and with temperatures over 100 for days on end and no relief in sight, I can't continue to air condition the attic and get another jaw dropping bill!
So there are days that I think Brad and I sit back and wonder what on earth we have done when we bought this house! I guess it's like falling in love with the bad boys in high school - you know it's not good for you but you just have to have it! I am hoping that eventually this bad boy of a house will reform itself. I know any move takes time, but it just feels like this one has just been the perfect storm of so many things going wrong, needing attention and the oppressive heat outside has not helped at all. Perhaps it's time to refresh myself on that meditation class I took!
The good news is that the move back to Kansas still feels like a good choice. It has been fun to see family and friends more often and the people we have met here have been wonderful. Brad has started to work and the people he works with are all great. We've already been to dinner with the Dean and his wife, went to an event with several people from his office, had dinner with the in-laws and we have tickets to a concert Saturday with another co-worker. On Saturday two friends of mine from JUNIOR HIGH came over! One has a daughter who just graduated from college and will be teaching at a Wichita area high school and the other was about a half hour away at a family gathering, so we coordinated it and they all came here. One friend brought two of her daughters and the other brought her husband, son and daughter so we had a great time catching up and then went out to eat dinner. I love the fact that I can do things like that now!
I have decided that today is picture hanging day. Maybe it will help to feel a little more settled and "homey" and less like I am living in a job site! I am sure there are a million other things that I have done in the last two weeks and if I can think of any other good stories I will let you know. For now, it's time to find the hammer and some nails and get to work!
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