Ta – Dah!

The bathroom is finished. Toilet is in. Good friend/plumber Dennis fixed my outside faucet on the patio, too. He got out of work early so he did all this in the afternoon. Didn’t end up staying for dinner after all, but perhaps next time, when he comes back to hook up the cabana bathroom and my outdoor faucet on that end of the yard.

We did get some time to chat, of course, and he is going to try to find a weekend when he can bring his kids down to camp. He is a single dad with visitation of his two younger children on 2 weekends, and one older son on 2 weekends, but the older son is not interested in camping, so he needs to pick a time when he has just the little ones. I think they would have a really good time at our campground. It is a really kid and pet friendly place.

Bernie decided that we wouldn’t go to camp this weekend after all. I guess that was a good decision because he still isn’t home from work, so he is now going on 11 hours today or so. Overtime is crazy this time of year, when everyone is on vacation. I guess a lot of the mailmen took off this week so they could be off over fathers’ day weekend, too. So bernie gets more hours, which will mean more money, but will also mean one tired Bernie.

Hopefully we will be able to get the bamboo grove finished tomorrow. Work got postponed on that while we finished the front yard, and we still have to add about 2 wheelbarrowloads of soil, plant 2 plants, and cover it all with mulch. The two plants that are still in pots will do much better in the ground, because the pots dry out so quickly. And it will be good to just see it done! The bamboo plants that are already in the ground are making new shoots like crazy and we are getting a kick out of how quickly they grow. they can put on 6 or 8 inches in height in one day when I irrigate them or if it rains.

Rain has been very scarce here, and it has been very hot. The kind of heat and humidity that produces a lot of surprise thunderstorms, but they seem to be surprising everyone all around us, but missing our area. So I have been running my sprinkler continuously again today, moving it from place to place in the yard. With our well water, the pressure is low, so we can only have one sprinkler going at a time. That makes it a bit difficult to cover all the various plantings in differnt parts of our yard, which is just under an acre total.

I have been working some more on setting up my new computer. Today I installed the new graphics program - PSP 8 – that I got for Christmas. With the problems I was having on my old computer, I didn’t bother installing it until now. It is a bit of a bother trying to work with the small monitor I am using temporarily, I am sure I will enjoy this more when I get my new monitor. But it is a lot different for working with photos than my old Corel Photo House was, so it will take some getting used to.

I will probably install the Corel Suite on here anyway, because I like to use WordPerfect, and Photo House comes along with it. I haven’t even checked out the word processor that came with this computer, I think it only has a trial version of MS Word, so I will need to install WordPerfect anyway. So much to figure out with this new machine! I haven’t even gotten my scanner hooked up yet — I need to do that before I start working on my auction listings for my new batch of books.

I guess it is a good thing I have all this sit-down stuff to take care of here at the computer, not to mention the paperwork and bill-paying I have once again gotten behind on. I pushed myself beyond my limit on outdoor projects, and I am now paying for that with achy joints, so I guess it is time to take a nice long hiatus, and work on some of this office stuff. Between going out and moving the sprinkler around the yard, that is!

So here are the first photos I have ready of the floor project. Hopefully they came out okay:

Bathroom before: original black vinyl tiles from 1950 when the house was built — worn through, peeling up at the edges, and with water damage to the subfloor.

Bathroom during: this is one of those rare times when I get to stand back and watch a contractor do the work, instead of having to do it myself! Here, he is laying a thin sheet of plywood on top of the orignal (but patched) subfloor.

Bathroom after: looks nice, but not very functional with the toilet still sitting in the bathtub (you can’t see the tub, it is on the right side in an alcove)

All done! This will be so much easier to keep clean now!! The floor is sheet vinyl, in a pebbled pattern of mixed shades of grey. Looks really nice with the grey wall tiles (which are plastic, and eventually I hope to upgrade to ceramic, but fine for now) That is my computer chair in the front corner — the bathroom is very convenient to my work space

More pictures coming soon — when I get the hang of this new software!

Slowly getting things back in order…

jhksquonk left this comment: “The new arrangement would give a surrealist vibe to the place wouldn’t it? How are you cooking if the stove isn’t hooked up? Guess that means you are eating out? And why haven’t the electrician & plumber called back? How weird. They better get with the program. Hope you get some rest soon.”

Well, surrealist is pretty normal for this place. We really wouldn’t know how to act if it wasn’t a bit askew in one way or another.

As for meals, well, unfortunately this is not a good enough excuse to merit eating out.  We have the microwave, and the gas grill on the patio. In the warm months we cook on the grill as often as possible anyway so we don’t add any more heat to the inside of the house. Of course, we ran out of propane wednesday night — fortunately just when the burgers were done. Yesterday I went out and got the propane canister refilled, and we had more burgers. I think tonight will be a rerun, because I don’t feel like cooking, and Bernie has a limited repertoire. Good thing we like burgers!

The electrican and the plumber not calling back, well, that is also par. We have been having this problem with just about every contractor we are dealing with on the various projects in and around the house. I don’t know whether people are just too busy or what, but it is fairly normal around here for homeowners to have to make repeated calls before they can get any work done.

We have a lot of friends who are tradesmen, and naturally prefer to use their services. Bobby, our electrician, is an old friend of Bernie’s. We think he must be on vacation this week or something, that happened once before when we needed him for something and he didn’t call back. We are really in no hurry for the stove. I am taking my time getting the rest of the kitchen thoroughly cleaned, scrubbing down all the cabinets and stuff, and replacing some of the old plastic tiles on the wall behind the stove where they had fallen down over the years, so this has given me some time to do that without being rushed. As tired and sore as I am from all the yardwork, I am really happy to be able to take on a more leisurely pace now.

The toilet, well, that is a different situation. Our other bathroom is in the far end of the basement, and I am really tired of running up and down the stairs all night and day, with my overly active bladder. Fortunately Dennis, one of my dearest old friends and also our plumber, stopped by yesterday to asess the situation and is coming back today to get the bathroom and my outdoor faucets fixed. No more carrying water around from the other side of the house in watering cans to the patio plants!

The toilet looked to me like a really grave situation, because the flange at the top of the drain pipe that the toilet bolts onto was broken off on one side. I thought that meant having to replace the drain pipe, which would probably mean a huge project, as everything else that involved hooking something into the old pipes here has been, but once again Dennis has saved the day. He says that there are some sort of attachment things made specifically for this problem, and won’t be a major job at all.

Furthermore, he said that hooking up the outside toilet in the cabana using a hose, like our water in the trailer, is going to be a really easy job, too. And I will be getting an outside faucet over on that end of the yard as part of the bargain! That will make things much easier when working outdoors, not having to track dirt and mud through the house to go the the bathroom inside, and not having to haul hoses all the way across the back yard to water my plants there. Of course it will only be a summertime hookup, just like the trailer it will have to be disconnected and winterized in fall, but that is no problem, we would only use it in the summer anyway. He even said that if the old toilet that is in there doesn’t work, or leaks, or whatever, he has a couple of functional used ones stored among all his junk at his house (he is also a packrat — saving everything just in case…)

So things are looking up. Dennis is also planning on staying for some burgers tonight for dinner, so we can have some more time to chat and catch up. Seems that the older we get the less frequently we see our friends, so these visits are quite rare and precious.

Bernie really likes Dennis, too. He is one of those rare cases where a “my” friend became an “our” friend when we became a couple. …Funny how that works… I have also only really embraced a few of Bernie’s friends that way, considering them my friends as well. But we have the sort of relationship where we can still each have our own friends, with no problem, as we go our separate ways frequently. That is one of the beautiful things about our marriage. We have a great trust for each other and a great tolerance of each other’s individuality. It makes up quite a bit for some of the facets of the relationship that are somewhat lacking. It’s all about trade-offs and compromise, I guess. Took us both a long time to realize that. As you can see from our wedding picture that sometimes appears on the banner at the top of this page, we were both quite “mature” when we got married (31 and 41 years old — and of course, I am the younger one, for anyone who may dare to question that!) 

About that much-needed rest, I am taking it slow and easy, getting the kitchen cleaned and putting things back in place. I think I will wait until next week to tackle the painting of the two walls in the dining room side of the kitchen, and take the curtains down and wash them then, too. I think we may be headed to camp on Saturday afternoon after Bernie gets done work, so I don’t want to start any new projects now.

We really could use a bit of a break. It won’t be that much of a relaxing trip if we do go to camp, because when we were theere on Memorial Day weekend, we discovered our refrigerator stopped working, and we were also out of propane for the stove and water heater. The propane tank has an old style fitting which is now illegal, so we need to get a new tank or an adaptor or something. The fridge may be repairable, but we are not sure. Looks like a trip to an RV place may be on the agenda.

If the fridge can’t be fixed we will not get another RV-specific one, they cost way too much. Instead we will take out the old one, and cut away part of the lower cabinetry underneath it, and just get a small (10 cu. ft.) house-style refrigerator  to fit in the space. That is the way that most of our neighbors at camp who have had refrigerator problems have solved them. Either that or put a full-sized home refrigerator outside the trailer in the screenhouse on the deck. We don’t indulge in massive consumption of beer like most of our camp neighbors, so we have no need for the large fridge. Besdie that, we haven’t got a deck or a screenhouse. One of these days I will cart my tools down to camp and build a deck, but not now…

Well, even if it is not entirely a pleasure trip, a couple of days at camp woud be a nice change of scenery. I just checked the weather and it is supposed to get a bit cooler over the next few days, that will be really good. Right now it isn’t fit for (wo)man or beast out there! So this (wo)man and her beasties are just laying low, hanging out in the house, and contemplating another day of scrubbing cabinets between nice long breaks.

I hope you all have a good weekend, whatever you have planned. I have been reading a lot of your sites, but haven’t had much time for commenting. So if you thought you saw someone walking by, it was just me, in lurk mode….

well, our house is back to normal

…

• 
  
  The dog crate is out of the living room (we crated them to keep them from under the floor contractors’ feet)

• 
  
  The rug in the living room is lifted on one corner and draped over a chair to allow air circulation to dry the mysterious wet spot (spilled water from the pets’ bowl? spilled pepsi from Bernie’s glass? dog or cat pee? — who knows??? at least it was a small spot, and the rug is going to the cleaners’ soon anyway)

• 
  
  The kitchen chairs are standing all over the living room, because some seams in the floor are still drying, and because I want to slap on a quick coat of paint on 2 walls before putting the kitchen back together.

• 
  
  The kitchen trash can and various other items are sitting in strange places to prevent us from walking on the floor seams before they dry.

• 
  
  The door to the basement only opens about a foot and a half, because I have to take it back off and shave off some of the bottom to make up for the thickness of the new floor.

• 
  
  There is a stove sitting in the living room.

• 
  
  There is a toilet sitting in the bathtub.

• 
  
  We haven’t heard from the electrician or the plumber.

…

Yup, things are back to normal at our house.

But we have new floors in the bathroom and the kitchen and they look gorgeous!

So nothing else really matters.

I am sooo tired, the last few weeks have been rough on me, trying to get everything ready for the last two days’ events.

Wake me in about 3 days, okay?

Just a quickie –

(okay maybe not that short, but I really do have to run soon…)

I survived hosting Bernie’s union executive board meeting last night.

After I got the yard and patio looking really nice, the lawn mowed, all the outdoor furniture set up and everything — we decided it was going to be too hot and humid to have the meting outdoors. So I had to spend the day yesterday cleaning house like a banshee and setting up the living room to accomodate about 8-12 extra people.

All this on top of having our kitchen torn up in preparation for installing the new stove and floors!

The new stove came sunday, but we discovered the old one was directly wired (not up to modern day building codes) so we have to get the electrician to install the new one, wire an outlet and so on. I also have to get him to replace the outlet I have my computer connected to — it doesn’t have a grounded outlet, and I think that may have contributed to the problems I had with the old computer.

The old vinyl tile floors in our bathroom and kitchen are going to be torn out today, some subfloor repairs done, and new vinyl sheet flooring installed. I still have to empty the refrigerator and move the litter box out of the bathroom, and fortunately Bernie took the day off, so he will be able to take the toilet out of the bathroom (saving $100 by doing it ourselves)

So I guess we have quite a day ahead of us! The floor guy said it may become more than a full day job — they may have to finish up for a few hours tomorrow. Knowing the cans of worms that get opened every time we start a project in this old house, I fully expect it to be a 2 day job! Then we have to get the electrician in and probably the plumber (to reinstall the old toilet, or if I can convince Bernie, to install a new one, and hook the old one up in the cabana outside)

Oh yeah, I didn’t mention that I also faux finished the hallway to look like marble. Took me 3 days, once I finally started painting, because it was 5 coats (different colors and techniques) with drying times in between. But it looks gorgeous — I think I really nailed the marble look. And it didn’t cost me a cent, because it was all leftover paint from other rooms! I just finished it yesterday afternoon, in between cleaning the rest of the house. I still have to paint the baseboards, then it will be time to hang the pictures for the “family gallery”.

Anyway, the meeting went well. I was instructed in no uncertain terms by my dear husband that “this is a meeting, not a party” and “during the meeting you will be invisible” so I was pretty much off the hook for all but the most basic hostessing chores. My job was before and after — set-up and clean-up. The union president’s wife, also an ex-postal employee and ex-union member like myself, came along at Bernie’s invite, so she and I (and Pearl) had a nice visit while the meeting was in session. I took her on the grand tour, indoors and out, and she was very impressed at all that I have been doing.

I got a lot of compliments on my landscaping, and even a suggestion to Bernie that he “increase my pay because I was doing such a good job”

And the dogs survived what could have been a dog’s worst nightmare — a whole room full of mailmen! Dolly worked the room in her own inimitable style, going from lap to lap collecting all the love she could possibly absorb. Pearl even behaved herself, relatively speaking. She barked her head off when the first people came, but then I put her in a nifty sling pouch I just bought, and carried her around with me. That was fine, until she got a bit hot and I had to sit down and hold her on my lap for a while. We spent some time out in the yard, and she even stayed on the floor at my feet while I was in a different room from the meeting. Pretty darned good for a dog that would have been piddling all over the floor (and me) at the sight of just one visitor two years ago when she first joined our family.

This was by far the largest gathering we have had in the house since we have owned it. At Christmas we had a little party with six guests. Last night I think there were 10. I actually didn’t count, and a couple came late.

I am glad it is over. I was using this date as a deadline for getting a lot of things done, and for beginning so new stuff after the floors are done. I got most of what I wanted accomplished by my deadlines, and the rest I will be able to finish up by the weekend, I think. Then it will be on to the next batch of projects! And back to work on eBay, too. I hope to devote more hours to business, and now that I have the new computer, it should be more efficient.

Speaking of the new computer – I still have to install a bunch of software, including my photo program, and the PSP I got for Christmas (and never installed ont he old machine) Once I get that done, I will be able to post some photos of the latest progress around the old homestead.

Well, like I said earlier, I really have to run!

Have a good day, and if you have a minute to spare, go and wish acebathound a happy birthday. But don’t tell him I sent you — that will really mess with his mind, having a bunch of strangers come in and leave birthday messages.

Technology.

Is it really designed to make our lives easier?

My computer died the other day. It had been threatening for quite a while. doing funky things at odd times. The monitor was on its way out. The CD-Rom bit the dust about 3 weeks ago. My keyboard was shot — the O stuck and the spacebar skipped.

It was about time.

When it happened, it was late at night and I was just about to start on a new Xanga entry. The monitor went dark, so I thought it was just playing its usual games, so I turned it off and on, to no avail. Then I rebooted the computer, which made all its usual noises, and still nothing on the screen. Fortunately I had an old 15″ monitor, from the second computer I owned (this was my third) so I hailed that up from the basement and plugged it in. The monitor worked, but the computer didn’t. It started up but when it got to windows it turned to gibberish. And reinstalling windows was out of the question (broken CD-Rom, remember?)

So I figured the monitor and the computer both happened to die at the same time. Perhaps they had some sort of electronic suicide pact.

So out I went the next day, shopping for computers. Damn! And I really hoped my next investment was going to be in a laptop, but replacing the desktop with a much better new machine seemed more logical for what I do on it. Laptop will have to wait, until I can pay off the new desktop.

Anyway, I found one that was perfect at Best Buy, more than I expected to spend, but that was okay. However, it was out of stock. So I picked out another one with less features but nearly $200 cheaper. I couldn’t buy it then, because I had spoken to Bernie about opening a store charge and taking advantage of their “no interest” policy for however many months they offered it. That would halp a bit with making it more affordable on my limited funds, but he needed to get the account in his name, because thanks to the store I used to have being a business failure, my credit rating is shit. We needed to get a new stove, had planned to do that this weekend (because the kitchen floor is getting done on Wednesday) so I was hoping for them along the way too, and found what I wanted at Best Buy.

I had gone to a few places, but not to Circuit City, when I decided to call it a day and go home. Yesterday Bernie had off, since he is a nonessential federal government employee (mailman) so we went out to buy my new computer. But first I wanted to check at Circuit City just in case I found something better there. I saw the exact same computer I had planned on buying at Best Buy for the exact same price. And a couple of other potential choices, which I was waiting to ask a salesman for more info on, when I spied, on the lower shelf, two “open box” computers, at radically reduced prices – and one of them was the machine of my dreams, the same one that was out of stock at Best Buy.

Woo hoo! I got the one I wanted, and a battery backup/voltage regulator/surge supressor thingie for just about what I was planning on spending on the lesser model!

My nephew the computer geek (acebathound on Xanga) buys reconditioned and open box stuff all the time, so I knew it was not a bad choice. It has the same warranty as an unopened one. Like he said, it probably was returned by someone who couldn’t afford it and changed their mind. Circuit City has a 14 day return policy, and they do a complete check on everything that comes back, so it was virtually as good as new.

I didn’t buy a monitor, because I wanted to be absolutely sure that mine was completely dead and it wasn’t just the computer. Well, it worked for a few minutes then died again. So here I am with this tiny old monitor, getting eyestrain. I think I am going to go back out and get the 17″ LCD monitor I have been drooling over, and be done with computer shopping until I can get my laptop. The sale ends today, so I have to do it later on when Bernie gets home from work.

I still have a lot to do to get the new computer set up the way I like it, and still need to install some software and hook up my scanner, but at least I can now take care of my eBay customers (who I am sure thought I deserted them) And visit all my Xangabuddies, too.

I have a lot of other stuff to do, as well. I need to drag myself away from my new toy and work in the yard to get it in shape for the company coming on tuesday night. I got another truckload of mulch on thursday — have to spread that, and work on the flowerbeds by the door. Still have 2 bamboo plants to put in and some soil and mulch to finish the bamboo grove, and some daylilies to plant along the fence next to it. And I am sure that since it rained thurdsday night and yesterday, the lawn will need mowing again.

And of course there is housework, too. Cleaning and laundry. And the hallway I started to paint — I have a base coat on, but need to do the faux finish part. Our new stove (yes, we bought that yesterday, too) is coming tomorrow and the kitchen and bathroom floors are going to be installed wednesday so I have to get ready for that.

Phew.

Makes me tired just thinking about it.

Well, I hope you have a wonderful weekend, whatver you are doing!

No song lyrics this weekend, instead I will leave you with something a bit more literary  a poem that was bouncing around in my head last night, from one of my favorite books. Although widely considered lighthearted children’s tales, the Alice books were actually much more – classics of social and political satire. There are some great annotated versions which explain a lot of the references, quite fascinating…

The sun was shining on the sea
Shining with all his might:
He did his very best to make
  The billows smooth and bright –
And this was odd, because it was
  The middle of the night.

The moon was shining sulkily,
  Because she thought the sun
Had got no business to be there
  After the day was done –
‘It’s very rude of him.’ she said,
  ‘To come and spoil the fun!’

The sea was wet as wet could be,
  The sands were dry as dry.
You could not see a cloud, because
  No cloud was in the sky:
No birds were flying overhead –
  There were no birds to fly.

The Walrus and the Carpenter
  Were walking close at hand:
They wept like anything to see
  Such quantities of sand:
‘If this were only cleared away,’
  They said, ‘it would be grand.’

‘If seven maids with seven mops
  Swept it for half a year,
Do you suppose,’ the Walrus said,
  ‘That they could get it clear?’
‘I doubt it,’ said the Carpenter,
  And shed a bitter tear.

‘O Oysters, come and walk with us!
  The Walrus did beseech.
‘A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
  Along the briny beach:
We cannot do with more than four,
  To give a hand to each.’

The eldest Oyster looked at him,
  But never a word he said:
The eldest Oyster winked his eye,
  And shook his heavy head –
Meaning to say he did not choose
  To leave the oyster-bed.

Out four young Oysters hurried up.
  All eager for the treat:
Their coats were brushed, their faces washed,
  Their shoes were clean and neat –
And this was odd, because, you know,
  They hadn’t any feet.

Four other Oysters followed them,
  And yet another four;
And thick and fast they came at last,
  And more, and more, and more –
All hopping through the frothy waves,
  And scrambling to the shore.

The Walrus and the Carpenter
  Walked on a mile or so,
And then they rested on a rock
  Conveniently low:
And all the little Oysters stood
  And waited in a row.

‘The time has come,’ the Walrus said,
  ‘To talk of many things:
Of shoes — and ships — and sealing wax –
  Of cabbages — and kings –
And why the sea is boiling hot –
  And whether pigs have wings.’

‘But wait a bit,’ the Oysters cried,
  ‘Before we have our chat;
For some of us are out of breath,
  And all of us are fat!’
‘No hurry!’ said the Carpenter.
  They thanked him much for that.

‘A loaf of bread,’ the Walrus said,
  ‘Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
  Are very good indeed –
Now, if you’re ready, Oysters dear,
  We can begin to feed.’

‘But not on us!’ the Oysters cried,
  Turning a little blue.
‘After such kindness, that would be
  A dismal thing to do!’
‘The night is fine,’ the Walrus said,
  ‘Do you admire the view?’

‘It was so kind of you to come!
  And you are very nice!’
The Carpenter said nothing but
  ‘Cut us another slice-
I wish you were not quite so deaf-
  I’ve had to ask you twice!’

‘It seems a shame,’ the Walrus said,
  ‘To play them such a trick.
After we’ve brought them out so far,
  And made them trot so quick!’
The Carpenter said nothing but
  ‘The butter’s spread too thick!’

‘I weep for you,’the Walrus said:
  ‘I deeply sympathize.’
With sobs and tears he sorted out
  Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
  Before his streaming eyes.

‘O Oysters,’ said the Carpenter,
  ‘You’ve had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?’
  But answer came there none –
And this was scarcely odd, because
  They’d eaten every one.

– Lewis Carroll from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1872

Yes, I am still here.

It has been another busy week. Just 11 days to go before Bernie’s union exec. board meeting is going to be here. I am trying to get the yard and patio in shape, because he hopes to have it outdoors, with a BBQ. I am also trying to get the living room in shape in case it rains. And the whole place in shape, because, well, I just want it to look nice for company.

Of course the new floors are scheduled to be installed the day after the meeting. Isn’t that the way those things always work out?

The bamboo grove is nearly done. still have to put a little more soil in one end, plant 2 plants, and finish mulching it. Then I will plant the 6 daylilies I have started in pots along the fence next to the bamboo grove, set up a bench, and that corner of the back yard will be done. I want to get a couple of solar lights for the bamboo grove, and a nice buddha, too, but that’s not work, that’s shopping  I have my eye on a couple that I like, I just have to find out if Bernie is going to pay for them. I want a birdbath for the front yard, too…

I have reserved the Mantis Tiller at the corner hardware store for rental tomorrow and sunday, to work on the grading of the back yard. I have taken the sod and some excess soil off the high spots on another big section, and now I have to till the exposed soil so I can rake it smooth and hopefully get the grade to slope away from the house.

Because of the ground settling, and because of the lousy job my dad and his buddy did filling in the swimming pool about 15 years ago, the back yard was sloping toward the house in most places, which was probably contribting to the water in the basement. And then in other places there are just really rough spots, holes and bumps, and lots of rocky soil with weeds trying to grow on it. Not really an actual lawn in the back yard. So I am working in sections to fix the grade, till the soil, smooth out the rough spots, and plant real grass (instead of weeds) This is the second section, and the second time this year for renting the tiller. Wrestling that thing is a major workout. Hopefully Bernie will be able to help on sunday. I don’t know how much I will actually get done tomorrow because it is supposed to rain.

If it rains tomorrow, I still have a project indoors to work on (of course) The hall leading to my bedroom is all prepped and ready to paint. I am going to use several different colors of leftover paint and do a color-wash finish there. Most of it will be covered up eventually anyway, because the hall is going to be a “family gallery” lined with framed pictures of Bernie’s and my families. I have quite a collection of old pictures I have been gathering up and putting all in one closet in the one remaining room I have yet to work on (the Red Room) including the only known pictures of my great grandparents from Hungary. I want to get them all into frames and just cover the walls of the hall with them. We don’t really have any family photos on display anywhere else in the house, it isn’t something that Bernie and I really do, but we both like the idea of a special place for all of them together.

Another truckload of mulch arrived yesterday, and I have been working like crazy to get it spread. This makes 4 truckloads — 34 cubic yards total — and it looks like it still isn’t going to be enough to cover all the areas we are mulching. So I probably will have one more load after this. And by then, I sure hope that some of these saggy muscles in my flabby upper arms look a little more toned!

Other than work, work, work, there isn’t much new at all. Decided to take a week off from having eBay auctions listed, so I didn’t relist anything when my auctions ended on Wednesday night. I will start them up again next Tuesday. Meanwhile, I can get caught up on my paperwork some (I hope) and maybe even write up some auction listings for the new book titles I have just gotten in last week.

Got an email announcement of a concert just booked for August 4 at the historic Keswick theatre, one of my favorite venues. Boz Scaggs, one of our favorite artists, and from what we could see from his website, this is the only east coast venue on his upcoming tour. So Bernie went into work and found out he could get the day off after the  show (the concert is on a wednesday night, and he gets up at 5 AM for work) So I ordered tickets online, and got the confirmation today. Woo Hoo! Now I have tickets for 4 concerts this summer. But this one is the one that Bernie is equally excited about, one of the rare instances where our musical tastes overlap.

A challenge for you (yes, you):

As I was working in the yard, my mind was wandering (as it usually does) and I started thinking about favorite animals, and wondering what our choices of favorite animals say about us. I wonder if anyone has done studies about that. I am sure they have.

Anyway, I have 2 favorite animals. The critters that are my favirites are rather unusual choices (surely that doesn’t surprise you)

One is known for giving birth to identical quadruplets, and the other has a brain smaller than its eyeball. One runs very fast, and the other get hit by cars a lot. I have met, and petted both of them, but have never had either for a pet (not sure if I would want to) Neither of them are native to where I live.

Can you guess what my favorite critters are???

Extra points for anyone who has any ideas what this choice of favorites says about me (okay you armchair shrinks — I am leaving it wide open here, take your best shot)

Have a nice weekend, everyone!

I borrowed this from Sean808080:

Name Acronym Generator
From Go-Quiz.com

Pretty darned accurate if you ask me! Don’t know about that delicate part but I am definitely unusual…

In the USA, Monday is

Memorial Day…

A time to remember those men and women who have given the ultimate sacrifice for their country. If you are so inclined, and have a little time to spare, scroll down on this page and click on the link over <===== there on the left hand sidebar, in the section on “my other webpages” to see the Memorial tribute pages I made a few years ago for my Dad’s comrades from World War II. He survived a little-known piece of WWII Naval history in the English Channel, before the D-Day invasion. The link will lead to pages that have more links within them, just scroll down, keep clicking and see where you go…

Have a great Memorial Day Weekend, whatever you are doing.

Remember to wear your sunscreen, don’t drink and drive and all that good stuff…

From Go-Quiz.com

Thanks, Morgane, for the link. This warning label suits me just fine today.

Taking it Easy.

Yep, not an easy thing for me to do most of the time, but today, it is precisely what I am doing. I have been pushing myself far too much lately, and physically, I just hit the near-breaking point. With temperatures in the upper 80′s and heat indexes more like August than May, physical labor outdoors can kick the crap out of you really fast.

And in my usual unbridled enthusiasm for home beautification projects, I asked a bit more from my joints and muscles than they were ready to give. When my knee started giving way and hyperextending at odd moments (with stabbing pain for punctuation) on Saturday, I figured it was a warning from my body that I had better let my muscles and stuff have a little resting time between workouts.

But Bernie was off from work yesterday, and finally willing to work out in theyard with me,so I just took some more ibuprofen for the inflammation and kept on going. After I was done, I soaked in a hot bath for a while, and took some ore ibuprofen at bedtime.

Then I found out he was going in today for overtime on his second day of his “weekend” so I decided to take the day off and stay off my feet. The heat and humidity are quite oppressive today, that hazy, hot humid feeling that is just begging for a thunderstorm to clear the air. But since I was still thinking I might go outside and work a little on the bamboo grove project later on, I didn’t turn the airconditioners on. Once I turn the air on it is nearly impossible for me to make the transition to outdoors. But here I am, still inside, staying off my aching feet/legs/knees…

I did get up for a while to clean up the kitchen, do the dishes and scrub the sink. I have been working so much outdoors, that the inside chores have been getting overlooked. I gathered up the laundry, but it hasn’t gotten any further than the middle of the living room floor. All those trips up down the basement stairs to the laundry room, well, I will get to that later, too.

And after dinner, I have to go out and water all the plants thoroughly, because they are surely sufferring fromt he heat, too. Of course as soon as I am done watering, that is when we will most likely finally get rain…

Anyway, it feels good to take it easy. The weather is supposed to cool off a bit tomorrow and even more toward the end of the week. The yard work will still be there waiting for me.

I went out a little while ago and took some pictures, an update of the backyard projects. I will post them soon. Bernie just came home from work so I guess I will go see what’s on his mind tonight. And figure out what’s for dinner, too.

Hope your Monday was as quiet and uneventful as mine!

Ok, here are the pictures of the latest progress on the outdoor project:

Potted Plants on the Patio

The old patio may not get removed/replaced soon, but at least it has some potted plants to spruce it up a bit.

There are more potted flowers over on the other side of the house, too. You can also see another of my pending projects in these photos — scraping and painting that trim on the house, and the cellar door!

these two tomato plants (one grape, one cherry) are the extent of my veggie garden this year

The Baby Plant “Nursery”

Starter pots of daylily and ornamental grasses — waiting to grow a bit before getting planted in the ground.

Bamboo Grove Update

My baby bamboo plants are on their way from Oregon today. Hopefully the grove will be ready when they arrive. I am now installing the rhizome barrier made of patio blocks standing on end, It will be lined with strips of vinyl to keep the runners from spreading through the cracks between the blocks.

After the rhizome barrier is installed, I need to sift the rocks out of the clay soil I removed from the hole and fill it about a third of the way back up with clay soil. The remainder will be filled with a mixture of clay soil, peatmoss, humus and composted manure (the good shit *LOL*) Then all I have to do is put the plants in, water, mulch, and water, water, water….

Look how my raspberry plants have grown!

A couple of short weeks ago they were just bare sticks. Now they have lots of leaves and the beginning of some branches.

Apparently Dolly is watching to see when raspberries are actually going to appear on these little sticks.

Well, it really looks like it is going to rain any minute, and they have posted severe storm warnings. I made sure nothing light was loose outdoors to blow away, and I hope Mother Nature does my watering for me.

I borrowed a few quizzes from LynnAnne

Figured I’d add them here at the top of the post I wrote earlier today, just in case you are as bored as I am tonight (nothing but reruns on TV):

Lagunculae leydianae non accedunt. “Batteries not included.” You are harmless, and maybe a little boring, but
you know how the world works. You don’t get
mad, you get a better lawyer.

Which Weird Latin Phrase Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

hmm….
 

Morpheus

?? Which Of The Greek Gods Are You ??
brought to you by Quizilla

Hey, that’s pretty cool!

You’re an Etch-a-Sketch!! You’re the creative,
artsy type who doesn’t need to actually utilize
a single muscle group in order to have fun.
Doesn’t matter though, you’re still cool.

What childhood toy from the 80s are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Alright! I loooove Etch-A-Sketch!

Meanwhile, inside the house…

It wasn’t exactly what I wanted.

Okay, it wasn’t anything near what I wanted.

But it is proof that I am not too stubborn to compromise.

Instead of spending $900 on the gorgeous traditional brown leather barrister style sofa I wanted, which Bernie said we couldn’t afford right now, we went to KMart (or Big K, or whatever they are calling it nowadays) and bought this oak finish mission-style futon for $150.

the new futon

The “deal” is that we spend less on this piece, and put the money toward our new bathroom and kitchen flooring (which I am ordering today)

Then when we do get the money to get a sofa, the futon will go on the breezeway, or the futon will go in front of the window and the daybed will go back on the breezeway where it came from. I will probably have the breezeway finished by then.

the breezeway (actually half of it)

 YIKES!!! – actually, the breezeway looks even worse now, this picture was taken quite a while ago. The breezeway is one of two rooms we are using as “staging areas” as we work on the rest of the place. Everything that is going somewhere else gets put here temporarily. Meaning sometimes temporarily for a couple of years.

But back to the futon…

I put the 2 big floor pillows on it temporarily, but I intend to make some slightly smaller pillows for it later, when I re-cover my rocking chair, and make a cover for the daybed.

It really looks rather nice there, and at least I no longer have a big empty space in the living room. The style goes well with my grandfather’s Morris rocking chair, too.

the south corner of the living room, at Christmastime*

*This is an old photo, (obviously) – a few things have changed since then, but you can see Grandpop’s Chair (now my usual spot) and the ottoman I made, which still needs the wood trim and stain.

So the living room still needs a bit of tweaking, but the major stuff is done

the north corner of the living room today

Now we need to bring the big heavy wood slab coffee table up from the basement – not a chore I am looking forward to, but I can’t wait to see it in the living room.

I don’t like the video rack where it is, I plan on putting it back in the hall after the hall is painted, I think I will put my big red conga drum in that corner (the one from my profile pic) Hopefully we wil be able to replace the old computer chair with an upholstered chair of some sort eventually, as well as Bernie’s chair, which you can see part of on the left side of the picture. It is an old colonial style wooden framed chair I refinished when I was in high school, and has cushions covered in fake fur (fun in the 1970′s but now I keep it covered with a Mexican blanket to avoid embarrasment!) I want to put that chair out in the breezeway and get two matching chairs of some sort (I like the new microfiber fabrics that look/feel like suede, in a khaki color, would prefer a traditional style, not contemporary) 

The new curtains for the window are sitting on the chair in the corner, and the rod is standing in the corner of my kitchen. I think that is going to be a chore for the weekend when I can get Bernie to help me get them level and all that fun stuff. We have a gorgeous handmade patch quilt from Guatemala, made of bright handwoven indigenous fabrics, that I plan on hanging on the wall behind the futon, too. It will pick up the red and other bright colors from the Tibetan banner that hangs over the mantle, and bring some warmth to this side of the room. Maybe we can get that hung this weekend as well.

I also have to make two more, lower, ottomans (ottomen?) to replace the plastic storage box and laundry basket the dogs use as steps onto the daybed. Then it will be time to get the old sewing machine out and recover my chair, the daybed, all 3 ottomans (ottomen?) – including the one I made for my chair this winter, and make some coordinating pillows. Gotta figure out the rug situation as well.  There has to be a way to hide that bad spot in the floor!

I think with a bit of luck, and some rainy days to keep me out of the yard, I should be able to get this room in ice shape in time for the meeting we are having here in mid June.