Finally

The roofer called a couple days ago.  Says he will start on Saturday.  Was surprised he would work Saturday.  Hope the weather holds since he will be removing all the decking that has rotted also.  Might be hard to protect what's left since it is all downhill from the rest of the roof on the house.  Will just be glad to finally get this behind me.

Happy Trails

Motivated

I woke up Thursday motivated to get things done at Mom and Dad's new digs.  When we left Tuesday things were moved in and mostly in place but quite a bit of disarray also since things weren't fitting quite like Mom had expected.  I was ready to go pretty early and caught Kim off guard.  I just knew how frazzled Mom would be looking at the mess and not really being able to get much done without help.  She more than likely felt overwhelmed.  They stayed gone most of the day Wednesday and that is probably why.

We hadn't been able to get hold of them for various reasons.  They only have their cell phones, which they have trouble operating at times.  They will get landlines but not until the 23rd.  

We showed up early and caught them there and jumped into organizing and clearing things away.  I got their spare bedroom/office squared away.  Both computers up and running but still need internet connection.  Got furniture relocated and various lamps and things up and running, just quite a bit of stuff done that makes it more livable without tripping over misplaced furniture and boxes.  Emptied quite a few boxes also and got those and a couple items of furniture that will make a return to the old house and be disposed of in the future. 

Still much more to do, hanging all the pictures/paintings etc. and getting the remaining items squared away.  Some of that will change again after Mom determines things should be changed after living there a while.  At least now it looks manageable and should ease Mom's mind now.

Feel much better that their situation is easier and I think we got a ton done.

One of the things that happened on moving day I didn't mention just added to the stress.  I went to pick up a couple burgers for Kim and I for lunch in her car.  I never go through the drive through, it seems something always gets messed up with the orders.  But today, it was empty and I decided it was convenient.  I followed another car into the lot and then into the drive through line.  For some reason the jack wagon decided to back up, with out looking.  Yeah, he did.  I was to close to take evasive action just honked the horn but too late.  Smacked the bumper pretty good.  Now I have to deal with his insurance and get her bumper straightened or at least realigned.  It's not bad, almost unnoticeable but still an irritant added to an already stressful time.  It could be worse I reckon.

Shifting gears....here are the wallets I recently completed that Kim wanted for her visits to the resorts.  Little to no tooling this time to keep the cost/price down.

Sorry I missed the Veteran's Days posting.  Just know that I hold all Veterans in the highest regard for the sacrifices you made for our country.  I thank God for men and women like you.

Happy Trails

Moving Day

There has been a lot going on and my thoughts are a jumbled mess so this may not make a lot of sense but I needed to get this down.

It was decided that it would be most preferred if I waited until Tuesday before the movers come to take down my parents computer.  So I had an unplanned time to work on the wallets.  I managed to get near finished.  I can't get back to finishing until after the move. 

Kim was going over anyway as planned Monday.  She has been a tremendous help to my Mom.  Not only for the labor she provides but feedback and ideas Mom respects and a sounding board for other issues.  As she went to leave, a dead battery greeted her in her car.  We just replaced it in March of '14.  Kim wasn't sure if she may have left a dome light on when she was searching for something the night before. 

I jerked it out and put it in my truck for her.  She had a lot of errands to run before and after her time at Mom's plus we would need her car also.  She took it to the dealer that replaced it previously.  They checked it out and told her it was bad.  I assumed there would be an adjustment charge for the time we used it.  The gave her a new battery at no charge.  Sweet!  That's never happened before.  She said she complained that this would be the third battery in five years and that was just too much.  They agreed.  Not sure if that is why she got it at no charge but it works for me.

Tuesday was hard.  It took longer to load and move than to unload.  There is sooo much stuff over there.  It just boggles my mind, it's intimidating.  The movers showed up early while my Mom and Dad were at the doctor getting results of tests.  On top of everything that is going on there was somewhat bad news at the doctor's.  Surgery in the future for my Dad.  The way he responds to surgery it's a good thing they are now moved where help is readily available.  

Turns out there isn't enough room for all the furniture Mom wants to take after all.  Some things will have to be moved back to be sold/disposed of.  Not sure how this will affect Mom, but she will get over it eventually.  She is very resilient.

It was a trying day.  Will go back again today to install the computer and get it hooked to the internet, hook up their TV's that are much smarter than me, they have soooo many wires on that stuff.  There is still so many things over there at the old house.  Most will have to be sold now that we see exactly how things fit.  All the little knick knacks and decorations for every season and holiday.......oh my.  You have no idea and I can't begin to describe how much there is still to deal with.

We are still alive but quite worn.

Happy Trails

I See a Light

I was informed that Tuesday my Mom has scheduled the movers to come.  I assume they will finally be staying at the apartment they have been planning to move into.  Earlier than I expected but grateful it will mostly be over.  The will need to have an estate sale to dispose of the remainder. 

The stress of all this has caused quite a bit of tension between Mom and Dad.  Not at all unexpected unfortunately.  It may even get worse before it gets better.  It's hard to live with my Dad is all I'll say.

I will head over today and take down their computer and bring it home with me.  I will take it over and set it up once they get all the furniture moved in.  I expect I might be scarce around these parts for the next few days.  The end of this never ending saga is in sight.

Y'all try to behave while I'm gone.

Happy Trails

I Hate Plumbing

Yes, I do.  What I do may not really be considered Plumbing truthfully.  It generally takes me longer to fix a small problem than what I would expect as normal.  We have two baths.  The one nearest my office was the boys bathroom when they were home.  I have had to replace the sink faucets in there twice.  I went the budget route and have had to pay the price of doing more plumbing in there than I ever would have guessed.  It also included replacing the supply lines to both faucets at least that twice if not more.  It turns out we have unusually high water pressure and the lines leaked occasionally.

The last set of cheap faucets I put in there had issues with the handles that urn the water on.  They would get stuck and then the plastic knob would break when you tried to turn them.  Did I say they were cheap?  I replaced the knobs and fixed the stickiness.  Or so I thought.  We rarely use that bath but guests would.  So the faucet knobs didn't get used regularly and the hard water played havoc.  They got sticky again very soon and the new knobs also broke on one of them.  We actually turned the water off to that one around the time I had surgery so I didn't get around to fixing it. 

The idea was we would replace both with high quality this time.  But the expense of those things, sheesh.  With all the other expenses we had been incurring along with the need to fix the leaky roof it was put off.  Until Friday.  I had found some we wanted at Home Depot on sale.  Kim was anxious to get them done before Thanksgiving when family would be over most likely. 

The cabinets under those sinks are a catch-all.  So they are loaded up with various items like cleansers and old plumbing parts.  So you have to unload all that too.  The most frustrating thing was a leak I couldn't seem to get to stop once I thought I was finished.  I tightened and tightened worrying about getting it to tight (stipped). What was leaking was from a spot I didn't even touch in this process.  How does that happen?  Did I tell you I hate plumbing?

I started working on replacing them and couldn't find my plumbers putty and Teflon tape.  I know I had some but they were making a great effort of avoiding my detecting their hiding place.  Another trip to Home Depot.  Got home and promptly stepped in water puddle in the wash room.  Right beside the water heater we had replaced right after my surgery.  GRRRRR.  It wasn't there 45 minutes ago when I left. 

It turns out it was the water filter on the back of the refrigerator.  A pin hole leak developed in that short time.  Got all those things done and fixed.  Haven't put everything back like it was as I wait to see if there are any leaks.  There were a couple minor ones so far that just needed a little tightening.

I really hate plumbing.

Happy Trails

Friday 11/15

I am supposed to head over to Mom's to load up a few things to take to their new apartment.  Mom has moved into a higher gear now that they have furniture in place.  However, there is still much to pack a move and it goes pretty slow as Mom has her way and method of doing this.  It isn't always the best of easiest but it's what works for her.  She still thinks she has plenty of time to make the move.  She knows she doesn't have to be out for 7 weeks so that is her target goal.  Really.  That's a higher gear for her.  Although she did mention calling the movers to get the rest of her furniture.  Once that happens they will actually be living at the new apartment.  I am guessing it will happen next week of the following.  She sees the money she is paying for that place and not living there and taking advantage of the things they are paying for i.e. food, cleaning etc. is motivation to get moved sooner.

Kim has a craft class she enrolled in today and won't be able to come with me.  She is a great buffer between me and Mom when I get frustrated with her 'method.'  I will need to be extra vigilant about my approach.

The leather wallets I am working on may not be finished for Kim to take with her Saturday.  Have run into a couple issues.  The interiors I use came without the holes punched this time.  No idea why.  I don't really need them, it just makes it easier, I can punch my own holes.  I also got ahead of myself on a one step but have been able to work around that but it slowed me down significantly.  These things happen when you let your skills sit idle to long. 

We are getting more rain this weekend.  Could be more flooding on top of what we have had the last two weekends.  It won't take much the way the soil is saturated now.  It started a light rain last night.  And the patio roof leaked.  Less rain by far than before and it leaks and one when we had over 8 inches.  I don't get it.  I did make contact with my roofer and the bad weather had delayed him and he says he should be here next week....if the weather holds.  I am guessing it will be an additional week now.

Finally.  My primary care doctor blood results for my diabetes check up were better than I expected.  Well within the 'good' range.  This was a surprise from the numbers I was getting at home compared to last time.  I never really know what to expect anymore.  Now to work on getting them even better.

Happy Trails

Forgot

Yes, I actually forgot that I should post something for Monday.  Just got busy with various things.  Nothing worth mentioning.  It's kinda like when folks ask you, 'what you been up to?'  and you can't really tell them.  But you know you have been doing something.  That's how it's been.

We did get Kim's computer back from repair.  The OS had a fatal crash.  It seems to be working fine although Win 10 is back on it.  We had provided a Win 7 disk to reinstall.  Not sure why it's 10 since he told Kim we could now upgrade to 10.  I think it was an auto download and install by Windows Update and he just didn't realize it.  The good thing is there are no more of the junk programs that you get when you buy a computer.  I did reinstall the programs she uses for her business.  It seems to run much better now without all the crap.  I just hope that since it's 10 we don't have another catastrophic failure.  Luckily she had a backup for her business and was easily reinstalled.  Sad how much we depend on these machines now.

Went over to Mom's to load up some rugs she wants placed in the new 'apartment.'  They have new furniture being delivered Tuesday, so she wanted the rugs down already.  It was my first look at the place.  It is an apartment type complex that they are moving into.  It looks much better than I expected.  And it should with what it costs them per month.  I have been running questions through my mind about this move that have vexed me some.  There are multiple answers.  Since she seems to have a handle on her emotions now, I posed the main question to her,  was she surrendering?  She didn't quite understand me, so I rephrased that to 'giving up.'  She assured me she was not and elaborated more than I expected.  I was satisfied with the answer.  She does not at all have a sense of resignation but a more optimistic outlook.  A huge relief.

Will be working on some new wallets Kim wants to have on hand for the upcoming gift season.  They get done rather quickly since I plan less to no tooling on them in order to lower the cost/price with the idea they will sell faster.  It's a tough market to judge.

Posting may be light to sporadic this week, my brain is elsewhere and I am avoiding the politics scene a great extent.  No, my head won't be in the sand.

Happy Trails