3695 Begone, ye winter blahs!

Thursday, February 7, 2013

You're worth only the bail amount people will pay for you.

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I am going to do this to my stairs:

Or maybe a little less colorful, like this:

See royaldesignstudio.com for inspiration.

I haven't yet settled on the color scheme, but I am leaning toward jewel tone gloss colors on black.  Or maybe on cream, since the walls are tan. 

I've bought some stencils, five different Moroccan tile patterns, more geometric than the ones shown here. (Search for "(moroccan,geometric) stencil" on eBay; yes include the parentheses, not the quotation marks.  You can find the stencils in online retail stores, too, with a better selection depending on what you're looking for, but you also pay more.  Like two to three times more.  My cheap is showing here.)

(I've got my eye out for a beat-up chest of drawers that needs painting.  Can you see the drawers decorated like this?)

They recommend that you cut 1/4 inch  plywood to size, paint, then apply the strips to the risers with finishing nails or small screws or glue.   I plan to use theatrical canvas, sized, painted, and applied like wallpaper, because it will be easier to cut, and leave more room on the tread.
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3517 Filthy floors

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Stories are simple sequences of events, plots are about causes,
motivation ..., what stories mean. ...life is all stories, and fiction is all plots.....
-- Peter Ho Davies --

---------------------------------------------------

Well, I am only a little stiff today. A little bit of pain down the left hip and thigh. I put the brace on anyway, just to make sure. So far, so good.

--------------------------------

My floors are gross. I haven't swept or vacuumed in ages, and there are crushed leaves, dirt, and cat hair everywhere. I passionately hate vacuuming. The weight. The dragging and controlling of the cord. I purposely rejected carpeting in the new house so it would be easier to keep the floors and stairs clean, but, uh, I hate sweeping, too. The bits escaping, the dust flying, the trying to corral it all. The moving of things in the way.

I bought two vacuum cleaners for this house so I wouldn't have to carry any up and down stairs. But the flipping things are heavy to use. I prefer canisters, because the weight stays on the floor and the head is light, but good canisters are next to impossible to find these days. So I got bagless uprights. I hate them. Being short, I hold the handle lower than most people, which puts the entire weight of the mechanism on my arm, and then moving it out and back strains my lower back. Hate, hate, hate!

So I got the Roombas, one for each floor. But there are a lot of table and chair legs the Roomba can't get between, and the floor is cluttered with cat and toddler toys that I have to pick up first, plus the cat's food tray, and curtains that touch the floor, and shoes under the bed with shoelaces that the Roombas like to eat, and, and, and, and it's a LOT of work for not such a great job (Roomba's exhaust tends to blow dirt, especially cat hair, sideways onto tracks it's already cleaned). I haven't turned them loose in months.

Sigh.

I hate it all.

I looked at the floors today and thought, "I've GOT to do something, now!"

So, I bought (online) a rechargeable vacuum stick. It's lightweight, no cord. We used to call them electric brooms. It's a Eureka, so it should be adequate. With its ten inch wide head it should be easy to maneuver around stuff. No bag.

I don't know how long it will take to get here, but nothing will be done with the floors until it arrives.

Temporary reprieve.
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3497 Shock

Monday, March 26, 2012

Denis Johnson, "The Small Boy's Unit", Harper's, Oct. 2000, on the meaning of "everything is arranged" in Africa: Everything is arranged doesn't mean you should expect to get anywhere or accomplish anything. In fact for sanity's sake these two ideas have to be banished. Everything is arranged means that all is complete, the great plan of the universe is unfolding before our eyes.
So eat, drink, sleep. Everything is arranged.

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I have widgets on my laptop desktop that show the outside temperature at both houses, and although all winter it's been 8-15 degrees warmer at the new NJ house, for the past two weeks it's been 5-10 degrees warmer at the old NY house, 140 miles north. In fact, Thursday of last week it was in the 70s. Weird.

I'm now at the old house upriver.

When I left NJ this afternoon to drive up, I was wearing a pink sweatshirt-like hoody over a silk/cotton turtleneck, and I forgot to grab a jacket to take along for just in case. I remembered it when I was on the road, but shrugged and figured I wouldn't need it.

Yeah, sure.

They are predicting 22 degrees F here overnight tonight, and it won't be much warmer tomorrow. Luckily there are a few ratty old coats and jackets in the hall closet. If they're not too full of moths and mice, I guess I'll have to find one for tomorrow.
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3434 Roast and freeze.

Friday, December 30, 2011

A year from now you will wish you had started today.
-- Karen Lamb --

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I don't understand the heat in this house. Because it's a slab, the downstairs floors are cold. Because of poor design, many of the heat vents are in the ceiling. Because I'm short, mostly I live in the cold part. That much I understand.

What I don't understand is why even though the thermostat is steady, the house is very warm, too warm, in the morning even before the sun is fully up, and then it's cold in the evening. And when I say cold, I mean a scarf around my neck and a jacket on. That's ridiculous.

Maybe it's me, something about my metabolism, not the house, but I've never had this problem before, and I don't have the problem in the old house! I'm always comfortable there.

Something's screwy.

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It's worse tonight because "Narnia" is on TV. I've tried to watch it many times before and never made it past the first 40 minutes. I'm determined to make it all the way through this evening, but it's all SNOW! and ICE! and those kids aren't very warmly dressed! That ice queen/witch is wearing short sleeves!

Aaaaaagggghhh! I'm freeeeeezing!
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3423 Muse

Thursday, December 22, 2011

The last time Republicans cared about my life, I was a fetus.

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There's a jewelry store near Albany named "Castiglione". How would you pronounce that? I'd pronounce it the Italian way, with five syllables. They pronounce it "Cast'line". Strange.

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The mice are running riot in the old house. There's mouse poop everywhere. Loads of it. I hate to do it (I love and admire mice), but I'm going to have to visit the hardware store and spread some poison before I leave this evening.

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I'm debating what to do about winterizing. I think I'll just turn off the pump, release pressure in the pipes to allow for expansion, empty the toilet tanks, and pour antifreeze in the toilets and drains. That way when I visit, I can just turn the pump back on and have water. And if we do lose electricity (and therefore heat) for a long period and a pipe does freeze, the damage would at least be limited to any remaining water standing in pipes.

I'm not going to drain the pressure tank or hot water heater. I don't think that even in the worst case they'd freeze enough to blow out.

We lose power here frequently, but usually just a quick bounce. Every time I visit, even when it's every week, all the clocks and timers are blinking. We must have lost power for a significant period recently, because stuff in the freezer had thawed and refrozen. The popsicles were the first clue.

Hint: If you ever leave your house for a while and want to be able to verify that stuff in your freezer is ok when you return, put a bag or a covered bowl of ice cubes in the freezer before you leave. If you come back to water or a solid block, you had a serious problem. If the cubes are still cubes, you're fine. If they're a bit fused but still distinguishable as cubes, most thicker items will still be ok.
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3421 Determined

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Actually, I never said that.
-- God --

----------------------------------------------------

The folks across the street got a puppy for Christmas 2010. One of those tiny fluffy smooch-nosed yappers. The first few months, the kids played with it in the yard, and the girl walked it on a leash every day.

It's a year later, and since the beginning of summer, nobody walks it any more. A few times a day it's clipped onto a chain in the front yard for a few minutes to do its duty. Lately it's more than a few minutes. Like they forget it. I feel sorry for the poor thing. It sits on the front stoop in freezing wind and cries.

I hate when people lose interest in a beastie.

--------------------------------

I plan to go upriver today. I HAVE to go! It's been in the teens and twenties up there, and I absolutely have to turn off the water and winterize the old house. I also need to turn in the NY plates at the DMV, stop by the auto insurance agent and get the insurance switched to NJ, so I can get the cars inspected next week, and stop by my attorney in Saugerties to pick up some papers.

I've been very frustrated because every time I've planned to go lately, something happens to stop me.

Imagine how I felt when I heard that a small plane had crashed on route 287 this morning. Yeah, ok, I figure the consequences were worse for the folks IN the plane, but damn!, does Fate have to go THAT far to try to stop me?

287 is my favorite route north in late afternoon because there's much less traffic than on the parkway, mostly just big trucks, which are not allowed on the parkway, and although it makes the trip 15 minutes longer, it's much more relaxing. Ok, 287 is awkward to get on north of the crash, so ok, I can take the parkway, but traffic normally on 287 will be diverted to the parkway! So it's going to be even worse than usual.

Agh.

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Breaking news - details on the plane crash - three adults, two children, and a dog. No survivors. Four days before Christmas. Sheesh. And they must have been nice people - taking their dog with them.
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3413 Swimming to Australia

Monday, December 5, 2011

It's impossible to learn what you think you already know.

--------------------------------------------------

I think I was depressed for the past month or two. It happens occasionally. I never recognize it until it's passing. Not a clinical depression, if you know what I mean - a situational depression. I didn't want to go anywhere or do anything. Even the grocery store. Didn't want to get dressed. When I ran out of stuff I'd stand at the pantry and wonder what I could eat instead. I haven't yet stowed away any of the latest load of clothing and trinkets I'd brought back from the old house.

I finally recognized it a day or two ago, when I noticed I'd been living almost exclusively in the internet. Reading long articles that don't really matter. Looking stuff up that has no meaning. Following Wikipedia links into the hinterlands. It really hit home when I realized my internet shopping was out of control. I do that when I'm unhappy - I buy myself gifts. They have to arrive in the mail, like a surprise, to be a gift.

The slide all started the first week in October, when Hercules was in Ireland, and Daughter's back went out, and I had to rush back from the old house to care for her. I took over the Nugget for a few days, and then when Daughter was able to lift Nugget again, my back went out from lifting Nugget, and being older, mine took longer to get happy again.

Then Daughter got that cold that was going around, the one with the sore throat and copious nasal and sinus congestion, and general raggedness. Nugget was sick, too. So for several days I had Nugget during the day so Daughter could nap, because Nugget was worse at night, so Daughter had been sleeping on the floor in Nugget's room and up and down with her all night.

Nugget and Daughter got better, but then I came down with the snots. It's bad only maybe two days, but my sinuses are scarred from an epic infection in the early '80s, and the sinus reaction goes on and on for weeks after a cold. No infection, just irritation that produces glop that requires horrendous snorts to clear when it thickens and catches on the soft palate, and it constantly sloughs down the back of my throat and makes me cough. And nobody can cough like I can. My coughs wrack my body. Every cough produces a mouthful of glop.

Naturally, my back went out from the coughing.

The Man has been working out of state, but would be in NJ during that time that Daughter was sick. He wanted to get together. When I mentioned the colds, he decided not, saying he catches everything that comes down the pike - which was just as well because the day he would have arrived, I was starting the sore throat and sniffling.

So, right now my back is still delicate. I can finally sit comfortably. No pain, but I feel that warning twinge every time I move. The coughing and snorting has lessened. And now I recognize how depressed I'd been.

I haven't been to the old house since early October. Winter is coming. There's so very much to do. Until I can get it on the market and actually sell it, it's costing me $1,500/month or more in taxes, utilities, and insurance. I can't go when I'm sick or when my back is out. It's so upsetting it has been causing nightmares and insomnia from a churning mind.

And I haven't seen The Man in ages.

I look at photos of me from just 12 months ago and compare them to now, and I have aged a lot. My weight is also creeping up.

Yesterday I sort of woke up a little. I actually did a few things around here.

We'll see....
.

3403 Proportion

Friday, November 25, 2011

What is perceived is not always what had been seen.

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TV news this morning is full of shopping shopping shopping. Yeah, ok, maybe there are some deals, but at what cost? Are most of those people fighting over gifts, or (as I suspect in many cases) for stuff for themselves? If gifts, can't you give something you can ordinarily afford? If for yourself, aren't there other equivalent sales throughout the year?

I don't understand.

Maybe I'm just jaded by getting great deals in live auctions and online shopping. And I never feel that I absolutely have to have exactly what I want.

-------------------------------

I read something a few days ago that resonated with me, and explained part of my unhappiness with the new house: "A house could subtly abrade your nerves if the proportions of its rooms were wrong."

Yup.

The upstairs of this house is fine. It's pleasant and comfortable. The rooms feel "right".

The downstairs is wrong. It twists me inside. The hall and living room are ok, not perfectly comfortable, but ok. The kitchen, breakfast area, and dining room are "wrong". They are all connected, wrapping around a very shallow "U" (halfway between "U" and "[") , kitchen on the right, dining room on the left, and breakfast area between them. It feels wrong. Annoying. It's like one large oddly-shaped room with differing levels of formality.

I want to put a partial wall, columns, arch, whatever, something, between the breakfast area and the dining room to separate them.

Daughter doesn't like that idea. She says it will break up the sight lines and make the whole area seem smaller.

Uh, yeah, that's sort of the point.
.

3384 A Little Relaxation

Monday, October 31, 2011

However you choose to keep score in the game of life (possessions, sexual conquests, etc.) it will impress only others who keep score the same way.

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The tire place called. Hal's hips, legs, and knees are ok (slight dent in the rim, but it'll hold), and he's got another new paw. I'll pick him up tomorrow.

--------------------------------

So far I've had 20 trick-or-treaters. I'm handing out small packs of Twizzlers (the least sugary candy I could find) and bottles of bubble stuff. I bought the Twizzlers this afternoon only because I was afraid the bubbles wouldn't arrive in time, but UPS came through and they did. The kids seem to like the bubbles, especially the older kids, which surprises me.

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The Hairless Hunk called yesterday. The old house upriver has several branches down, and none hit the house. An old previously damaged black locust at the end of the driveway broke in half. He'll clean it all up.

There's no power, therefore no heat, and there might not be for a week or more, but I'm not worried because it won't be cold enough long enough to freeze pipes. The back of the house has a lot of glass, and it faces west, and the sun isn't that low yet, so it really does warm the house.

Next trip up I'll winterize the place. That means I'll have to carry water to wash and flush, but I can do that.

--------------------------------

This video is not safe for work. Remember the Thigh-Masters? This, the Tug-Toner, is sort of along the same lines. It's funny:

[http://youtu.be/R2ewsEKVJVA]
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3382 News Flash

Saturday, October 29, 2011

I guess I'm glad I didn't go upriver to the old house as I had tentatively planned before the tax crap hit the fan. This just in:

Dutchess County Executive William R. Steinhaus, in consultation with the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office, New York State Police, Central Hudson and New York State Gas & Electric, has declared a countywide State of Emergency for the County of Dutchess effective 7pm this evening (Saturday, October 29th).

County Executive Steinhaus said, “Law enforcement, public works and utility crews are all reporting treacherous weather conditions with downed limbs and power lines. To ensure public safety and allow crews to address hazards and restore power, a State of Emergency will be in effect from 7pm this evening (Saturday, 10/29).”

The State of Emergency declaration states: “all roadways in Dutchess are closed and traffic is prohibited except for: medical and health facility personnel, law enforcement and public safety personnel, first responders, utility, maintenance and public works personnel, snow removal sanding, salting and clearing operations personnel, facility operations persons deemed necessary for plant operations by their employers and public and government personnel involved in the emergency operations.”

The state of emergency is issued pursuant to Section 24 of New York State Executive Law. It is enforceable by local, county and state law enforcement agencies.

Leaves are still on the trees. Unfortunately, the trees are no longer standing. The last time this happened was about 1995ish, snow while the trees still had leaves. Jay and I lost 23 !!!! trees on our property - the old house. I guess I'll hear tomorrow (or whenever the power comes back up) from the Hairless Hunk how many trees I've lost this time. And how much cleanup will cost.

I hope none hit the house.

.

3379 Tax Shock

Saturday, October 29, 2011

One does not reject, dislike, or avoid pleasure itself because it is pleasure,
but because those who do not know how to pursue pleasure rationally encounter
consequences that are extremely painful.
-- Section 1.10.32 of "de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum", written by Cicero in 45 BC --

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I don't pretend to understand the green quote above, but for some reason it intrigues me.

--------------------------------

Latest hitch in my gitalong: The township has suddenly become aware that there's a house on my lot, and has raised the assessment. I get quarterly coupons to pay the real estate taxes, and I have dutifully paid them, to the tune of almost $3,000 so far for the first three quarters of 2001. That sounded about right to me, so it never occurred to me that there might be a problem.

My house upriver is technically larger than this house, walk-out basement, 2.5 car garage, deck and huge windows across the back, on 1.3 acres, on a ridge with a fantastic 20-mile view. This house is smaller, on a tiny lot (probably about 1/4 acre, over half of which I can't use because of a township easement), no basement, tiny 1 car garage. The taxes upriver are a bit over $5K per year, so a bit less than $4K here seemed a bit high, but reasonable enough.

Surprise! That was just for the land. Now that they've figured out there's a house (in addition to the mail box they'd been sending the coupons to, don't know what they thought the box was attached to), they've sent me a bill for the back taxes for 2011. By 11/10 I have to come up with an additional $5,198.75!

The total tax bill for this house is almost $8,000 per year! Holy Crap! I was not expecting this. Gonna have to have a talk with the assessor, I think.
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3365 A Long Week

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

An absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

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Back in February, March, April, when the revolution in Egypt was in full swing, I mentioned in several blog posts that it looked to me like the "friendly, supportive" Egyptian army was just using the populace to achieve their own ends. Mubarak had gained control via a military coup. I figured that as soon as Mubarak was gone, all the dirty work done by the revolutionaries, the army brass would take control, and delay anything resembling an election for, oh, a few decades.

Five points to me.

--------------------------------

Daughter and I and the Nugget went upriver on Sunday, the third, and then Daughter and Nugget brought Suzy the Suzuki back down here on Monday. Suzy has four doors, easier to get the Nugget in and out than her two-door Honda, so I'm giving Suzy to Daughter.

We stayed Sunday night at a hotel in Kingston, NY, and on Monday morning, Nugget and I checked out the hotel pool. I copied these photos from Daughter's Facebook page, and I don't know why they came out different sizes.




This one cracks me up every time I look at it.

She absolutely loved the pool. "Look at me, Mommy! I'm swimming!"

--------------------------------

We returned on Monday, and I intended to go back up on Wednesday, the 5th, with the minivan and return with a load on Friday. But Wednesday something I ate didn't agree with me, and a long drive was not advisable, so I drove up early Thursday, and then spent most of Thursday afternoon on some business in Kingston. On Friday I finally got to do some sorting and packing, and I was accomplishing so much and it felt so good, I decided to stay another night and return Saturday evening.

Luckily, I packed the van on Friday night, mainly to give me more sorting space in the house.

I say "luckily" because early Saturday morning I got a tearful call from Daughter. She had thrown her back out the evening before, could barely walk, and couldn't pick the Nugget up. A neighbor was helping her out, but couldn't stay (holiday weekend, you know). So I rushed back downriver.

Saturday and Sunday I camped at Daughter's house (across the street). She's more mobile now, and Nugget, believe it or not, has learned to stand up (with help with balance) when her Mommy wants her on the lap to feed her, which makes it easier. So I go over when I get a call that Nugget needs high lifting, like to the changing table, in or out of the crib, and especially out of her truck-walker or bouncy swing. I've also been taking Daughter to her chiropractor and acupuncturist.

The van is still loaded.

Sigh.
.

3357 Been a while....

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Intelligence does not automatically convey knowledge.

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It's not like I've been especially busy, although I have managed to get a few things done. I now have a NJ driver's license, TV and internet cable, a house phone, got Hal's paws aligned, and have arranged for gutter cleaning and screening, and a few other things. I've got the pulleys, hooks, and cargo net for the attic, but since the hurricane, rope has been hard to find, so that's not finished yet.

One at a time:

NJ Driver's license

I'd been dreading going to the DMV, because I'd heard NJ DMVs are understaffed, have long lines and inefficient procedures, and everything takes a full day to accomplish. I went in one morning to find out what I'd need to get the license changed and the cars registered. There were no lines, and the people were very helpful. In and out with a list of "gets" and "to dos" in 15 minutes. Back the next day with the required documents for the driver's license.

And yes, there were some inefficiencies. Because I already have a valid NY license and no violations, I didn't have to take any tests. But I still had to fill out the forms and pay for a "temporary permit". When they took my picture, the woman asked if it was ok, "but this one is just for the temporary permit", so I said "yeah, it's ok, although I don't think of myself as having jowls". THEN she entered the data from the forms for the permanent license. I was under the impression I'd get a temp that day, and the permanent would be mailed, but then at the end she handed me the permanent, with the "temp" photo on it. Duh?

So I paid for a temp, AND for a perm, and she entered the data twice, once for the temp and then again for the perm, and I never got the temp. Uh, why not just skip the temp part entirely, and why make me pay for something you never had any intention of giving me?

I can't register the cars until I switch the insurance. I called my NY agent, and it was really simple. She said the insurance is even cheaper in NJ.

Daughter and I talked about Suzy Suzuki. Daughter has an 11-year-old Honda 2-door, and with the Nugget getting bigger, it's getting harder to get her in and out, so I'm going to give 4-door Suzy to Daughter.

Now I'm just waiting for the new insurance cards, and I can register Fred and Hal.

TV cable, WIFI cable internet, house phone

That all came as a FIOS package, for just about as much as I am currently paying for broadband internet alone. I had thought I could drop the broadband, but unfortunately there's no other way to get to the internet from the old house, so I'll have to keep it a bit longer.

The cable TV is annoying because there's just so much to choose from. I guess I'll find out what I like at some point, but in the meantime it's so overwhelming I find I don't watch at all. Which, actually, may be worth the cost.

I haven't handed out the house phone number at all, but the damn phone rings every half hour - people trying to sell me things (yeah, I got on the nat'l do-not-call list, but it'll take a while for that to take effect) and calls for the folks who used to have this number. Apparently they were deadbeats. Most of those calls are from collection companies. I recorded a message saying that "I do not answer this phone. I've had this number only since 9/2, so I'm probably not the person you're looking for, and I do not buy anything on the phone. I do check messages, so if you are certain you want to talk to me anyway, leave a message."

Nobody leaves messages, but the phone continues to ring about every half hour. There doesn't seem to be a way to turn the ringer off.

The internet connection is fantastic! I can actually watch YouTube videos right off, without waiting for them to load.

Hal's alignment

After the latest new tire application, the tire dealership told me that Hal needed alignment, but they preferred that BMW do it. It didn't seem too bad - no shimmy or pull, just a little less nimbleness in handling - and I don't drive him that much, so I didn't get around to it until this past week. The nearest BMW shop is a over a half-hour away down roads packed with shore traffic, so I waited until school started to take him in. The procedure took a half day and cost over $200, and now he's pulling to the right.

Crap.

Gutter cleaning and screening

Damn Gum tree balls. The gutters were so packed last winter that they filled with ice, and dumped ice and water down the driveway. Dangerous. In the past few rain storms, they've spilled water out about four feet before the downspouts. Annoying.

I was afraid it would cost a small fortune to get some kind of leaf and ball proof covers, but turns out it'll be less than $600 for both sides of the house roof and the porch roof. That's about half what I expected, given that two cleanings a year would come to $300/yr.

Installation is next Friday.

Attic pulleys

Attic access here is a drop-down ladder/stairs hatch in the upstairs hall. Those ladders are steep and because of the hinges they feel rickety, and I'm never comfortable on ladders anyway. So in every house I've lived in, I've installed pulleys so I don't have to carry anything up and down the ladder. One pulley in a rafter at the top and one that raises and lowers at the bottom halves the weight, too. At the bottom I use a fishnet arrangement to hold the stuff going up.

I have all the materials to do it except for the rope. I need 50 feet of clothesline-like rope, and it just doesn't exist anywhere right now. Every place sold out when the hurricane was coming. So I wait for restocking.

Family

The company SIL Hercules works for is, um, an Irish firm famous for crystal. They were bought out a while ago by a British company famous for china, especially featuring, um, a particular shade of blue. Anyway, they're consolidating and trimming, and Hercules' department is getting drastic cuts - except for Hercules. Last spring he and Daughter were invited to Ireland for a week. He thought it was to install a software system, but in actuality it was for the honchos to get a look at him, and after that trip he was offered a fantastic opportunity within the company. He recently spent a few weeks in Pa. in training, and is leaving today for five weeks in Ireland.

The two of them are pretty upset. The Nugget is about ready to get her belly off the floor and start crawling. He's afraid she'll change a lot before he gets back. Daughter bursts into tears at the drop of a "bon voyage". They're both so tense they argue about little things, like which GPS he should take. They've got a Skype-like computer arrangement, and a video camera, so it shouldn't be so very bad. After all, it's not like he's headed for Afghanistan or something.

I may be the one upset later. They don't know for sure where he'll be working after the building he's in now is closed. I just bought this freakin' house after Daughter assured me they wouldn't be moving for a very long time, if ever. I'll be very annoyed if they move away, leaving me here.

Sigh.
.

3307 Emerging Pattern

Sunday, July 17, 2011

It isn’t how you start that matters, it’s how you finish.

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From Shoebox.com: "In the latest gambit in the debt limit talks, the GOP has figured out a way to make Obama take all of the blame for keeping interest rates down, paying Social Security recipients on time, and continuing to pay soldiers. No, wait. That wouldn’t be blame, that would be credit. We’re so confused."

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Today's Sunday Morning is described as a "special edition". IT'S A RERUN! Oh come on! Special? (Yeah, I know, it's "special" because it's all about animals, and the tag is left over from the original airing, but still, I didn't know that when they piqued my interest....)

-------------------------------

I have established a pattern for upriver.

I arrive early evening. Last Thursday the drive took me 3.5 hours because there was an accident on the Garden State Parkway.

The next day I spend the whole day sorting and throwing things out, into the Hunk's trailer for him to take to the dump for me. This past trip I tossed six large black garbage bags, plus a dozen or so tape and floppy disk storage containers, and outdated programming books in there. I spent the entire day on the den. It's not a large room, it's the third bedroom, but that's the room in which, after Jay died, I found seven computers and a huge laser printer that I didn't even know existed. The room also contains every important piece of paper that ever entered the house. And no longer important paper. And never was important.

That's how cluttered that room was. Jay never ever threw anything out. Someday he might be able to use it. Unlike most hoarders, though, Jay had a mental inventory of everything, and knew exactly where it was. The only problem was that he never needed to use it.

The following day I pack whatever needs packing for this load and fill Fred. This past trip Fred's load is almost entirely paper to go to the recycle center down here. (Yeah, I could just toss the paper in the trailer, but I'll pay by the pound to dump it, and I don't want to pay for a ton of wet paper.) And a few things to go to Good Will.

There's a recycle center upriver, but they are open only one afternoon during the week and on Saturday morning, and you have to buy a sticker to get through the gate, and everything has to be strictly sorted. I didn't get the $25 sticker for this year. The recycle center down here is open every day except Sunday, it's free, and paper is paper, no sorting necessary. Free! Easy! And they take electronic thingys too, so there's also a few external drives and old monitors in Fred.

Then after loading the van I return downriver. Yesterday's trip took over three hours because I left too early and hit the Saturday shore traffic on the Garden State. Note to self - leave mid or late afternoon. Once home, I immediately unload anything that can't take heat, and then the next day, I rest. Tomorrow I get to fully unload. Usually that involves finding new homes for everything I brought down. With no chests, tables, bookcases, or anything else, that's not easy. Mostly stuff is just getting stored in boxes in a bedroom until I can get furniture down.

On the previous trip I worked on the kitchen, clearing out drawers and cabinets (that house has a huge kitchen, nine or ten large deep drawers, seventeen or more cabinet doors (all the shelves glide out), four rotating corner cabinets, a butcher block island, a huge double pantry - I loved that kitchen! This trip I had taken a container of stew. I wanted to heat half of it for dinner Thursday evening, and discovered I had nothing to spoon it out with.

-------------------------------

I probably threw out a lot of valuable stuff. Jay was all science. He loved Edmund Scientific catalogs. I found all kinds of kits, some that had never been opened. One was labeled "photographic special effects" and the box was full of camera lenses (without the plastic screw-on parts). I threw them out. There were three microscopes. I kept the one that looked least jury-rigged and still had the instruction book and threw the other two out.

Yeah, maybe someone would appreciate that stuff, and at one time I considered listing stuff on Freecycle or eBay (most of it is too esoteric for Good Will), but when I consider the amount of research and coordination that would involve, I realize I just plain don't have the time or energy, and all that crap would just end up stored here, just like it was there. It has to go, now. And once the decision is made, it must be executed immediately. No second thoughts.

I can hear Jay screaming.
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3300 Running around

Thursday, July 7, 2011

A "nine-days' wonder" is taken as a matter of course on the tenth day.
-- Robert Heinlein --

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Yesterday I mowed the back yard, babysat in the morning and a little in the afternoon while Daughter got some stuff done, and squeezed in a mammogram.

I'd always wondered what people meant when they said mammograms hurt, because they never bothered me in the least. This time, the right didn't hurt, but the left did. I wonder if it was the way she arranged me. Every other time, and on the right yesterday, the technician arranged the "fold" (you know how you get folded in half?) exactly across the nipple. Yesterday, I noticed that for both views on the left, the fold was below the nipple, so that the nipple was sort of flat against the top plate. I hope that's what made it hurt, and not something going on in there.

-------------------------------

I'm now at the old house. I didn't get on the road as soon as I'd wanted to today, but it was good enough, I guess, to get a few things done. I got up here in time to go to the radiology lab and pick up my old mammo films. I'll take them to the new place on Monday.

I went to the DMV and picked up forms to get new copies of the NY titles for my vehicles. I'm sure they're around here somewhere, but I can't find them. I'll need them to register the cars in NJ. There's a problem - NY will send the copies only to the "address of record", which is the old house. I'm having my mail forwarded, and that's working fine, BUT the post office will not forward official government mail. So they will be returned. Duh. The woman at the DMV gave me a number to call to ask how I can get them sent to my new address.

I stopped at the post office to verify that, and yeah, they won't forward them. But she said that they'll be returned with a sticker on them with my new address, so NY should then send them again to the new address.

Uh, yeah, but remember this is the DMV we're talking about. Logic and "makes sense" don't apply.

Then I got Fred the van inspected at an oil change place. The NY inspection expires the end of this month. His serpentine belt is bald, and they told me he couldn't pass inspection with that belt, and they can't fix it. Well, sort of. The mechanic offered to pass him if I gave him "a little extra". It took me a minute to understand what he was saying. I said, "Uh, no, I'd really rather do this legally." Later the manager came to me and said he "has a soft spot for the elderly and disabled" (Fred's a wheelchair van) so they'd pass him anyway, but I'd have to promise to get the belt fixed within the next ten days.

"Elderly?"

So then I went to a Dodge dealership to see if I could get it done tomorrow. They have no open time slots, but want me to call tomorrow and maybe they can squeeze him in.

Then I went to the garage that's working on Suzie (they haven't got to her yet) to get her VIN to order her new title, and to make sure they had my new phone number.

I stopped somewhere else, too, but darned if I can remember where.

Right now I'm watching "Big Bang Theory", and plan to watch "Big Brother" (shame! shame!) later. All that running around after a 2.75 hour drive has left me drained.

--------------------------------

I mentioned I'd started a Meetup dining out group. I was disappointed because it got no action for two days. I didn't realize that Meetup hadn't released it to the public yet. They released it yesterday, and I already have 22 members, and three have RSVP'd to a dinner I scheduled for July 7.

I'm afraid I might see some of the same craziness that drove me away the last time. I clearly stated I wanted to keep it local, even gave a north and south limit. So, one of the new members lives in Manhattan, and has suggested that we meet at some Manhattan restaurants. Sigh. Actually, if she wants to, I guess I could let her host it....
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3291 Home again, home again, fiddle-dee-dee

Saturday, June 25, 2011

“... the error of the artisan who boasts of twenty years experience in his craft
while in fact he has only one year of experience - twenty times.”
-- Trevanian, Shibumi --

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(I know that's supposed to be "jiggity-jig", but I'm feeling more like Scarlett these days.)

I'm back in the new house, got home around 10 pm last night. I didn't bring much back with me - all my CDs (but not yet the cabinet, so they'll be stacked along a wall for a while) and some summer clothes.

I awoke to find this today:
(The pink foil next to the broom is the pot. The black circle is a cork mat the pot had been on. The thing that looks like a ball next to the mat is a hyacinth bulb. The funny things in the back are drums.)

I don't know whether the rod fell on its own, or maybe Jasper got scared by something outside and pulled it down. I must have been tired because I swear I didn't hear a thing. The damp dirt was spread across the floor, and then tracked all over by little kitty feet. It's partially swept up in this photo.

-------------------------------

Daughter brought The Nugget over for a visit this morning, because they're going to Pa. for the weekend, and I hadn't seen Nugget since Tuesday. She's changed already! Her face was round, now it's more square. It got longer.

She's very social. Very strong eye contact. It's obvious she's trying to communicate with little hoots and kicks and arm-waving, and she shows her appreciation for your attention with the most beautiful sunny smiles.

-------------------------------

A woman I sorta almost but not quite know wrote a "complaint" for the New York Times Complaint Box, http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/20/complaint-box-i-dont-have-kids-deal-with-it/, about how annoying it is when people ask her why she doesn't have children. I like this, from one of the commenters:

... "Why, in a country so rich in diversity and differences, in a land where contrasts and distinctions are rejoiced and applauded, do child-free people still have to make excuses..." Because the sad truth is that Americans celebrate sameness not diversity, homogeneity not differences and imitation, not originality. Examples of intolerance, unwillingness to accept differences of religion, skin color, life-style, ethnicity, and speech are everywhere and increasing each day. Our self-aggrandizing celebration of diversity is just another feel-good myth together with "Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness", "Liberty and justice for all", and "Without regard for race, creed and color" that Americans toss around in a pathetic effort to convince themselves of this nation's superiority.

Pax,

Doug

Oh, yeah. Especially that last sentence.
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3289 Not a lot of headway

Friday, June 24, 2011

The question Diane Sawyer (interviewed on Oprah) would most like to ask the Pope:
What do you think Jesus would think of the way you dress?

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Yesterday I slept a bit late, shuffled a few things around in the old house, watched "The View", which I hadn't been able to watch since moving, then went into the village for lunch. When I walked into the diner I saw Vinnie in a booth, so I joined him. He said Piper would be coming. So I had lunch with Vinnie and Piper - the usual l--o--n--g lunch.

Vinnie'd had a hip replacement since I'd last seen him. Piper had just returned the day before from a two-day trip to Florida to sign the papers to have his sister (who has been trying to die in a hospital in Florida since January) taken off life support, but at the last minute her sons, who refuse to face facts, started legal proceedings to stop it, so he was very upset. Turns out that they couldn't find a lawyer who was willing to take the case for what they were willing to pay, so she would be taken off support yesterday afternoon, and Piper was angry and upset that he would not be able to be there. So there was a lot to talk about.

After lunch I went to my car guys. They are willing to work on Suzie, but suggest that I have AAA tow her in, save some money. So I'll do that today.

When I got back to the house I looked in the "cars" folder in the (HUGE!) file cabinet, and naturally, the car titles, the main task for this trip, aren't there. In fact, the folder was empty. It's supposed to have all the service records, too. I don't understand. Where are they?

So all afternoon and evening I sorted through the "to be filed" pile looking for the car titles - one of the main things to accomplish on this trip. And that's all I did for ten hours. Naturally, I had to read everything to determine whether it was to be saved or tossed (I saved all personal correspondence), shredded or not, and at the end of the evening I had cleared two square feet of floorspace in the den. Wow. Only 3,998 more square feet of floor, attic, and basement to go! At this rate it will take me only three years to get out of here.
.

3288 Finally upriver again.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

It is the great flaw of equality ... that everyone believes that
only [he] know[s] what is best for the others.
-- Alex Haley, Queen --

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I arrived at the old house early last evening, after stopping at the diner in the village for dinner. I had intended to visit Piper, but his office was closed and dark when I passed at 5:30, so I probably just missed him.

The minute I walked into the house, I got a discouragement headache. There's so much stuff here! I never know where to start. The Hunk has parked his dump trailer (it's so cool - it's a regular trailer, but it has a hydraulic lift on the front, so it dumps) in the driveway so I can fill it with stuff he'll take to the dump for me.

Today I want to visit Piper and then go to my favorite car guys and ask if they'll come get Suzie and tow her to their shop. I think a mouse has chewed into the heating system or something, because smoke billowed into the car the last time I started her, which was back in March, or maybe February - the last time I was able to get up here and get through the snow to get her door open.

A task for today is to locate the titles for the three vehicles, so I can get them registered in NJ. I haven't been diligent about filing, so that search alone could take some time.
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3279 Humid

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Computers may make it easier to write, but they don't make the writing any better.
-- Andy Rooney --

-------------------------------------------------------------

On Saturday morning I finished crocheting a blanket for Nugget. My kitchen floor is large ceramic tiles, perfect for blocking a rectangular item, so I machine washed the blanket, pulled it out after the "gentle" spin, and then laid it out on the floor. That was Saturday morning.

Tuesday morning, three DAYS later, it was still damp. I figured air wasn't getting through it, maybe? I figured the shape might be pretty well set by then, so I draped it over a stool to finish drying.

An hour later there were 8" pools of water where the four corners were dripping. DRIPPING!

Today is Wednesday. It's still damp.

Daughter opens her windows. I don't because the air out there is full of dust and pollen. I can't believe how dusty it is around here. The town is amazing about sweeping the street, and there isn't all that much traffic. I don't know where the dust comes from. So, anyway, I have the A/C on. I thought A/C pulled moisture from the air. That's what the "Conditioning" part means. Otherwise, it's just air Cooling.

This is as bad as Florida. I'm waiting for my leather stuff to start molding.

Speaking of Florida, we expect to reach 95 degrees today, and 97 tomorrow.
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3262 I am overwhelmed.

Monday, May 23, 2011

People who are easily annoyed are more annoying than the people who annoy them.

--------------------------------------------------

I am feeling very beaten down.

I spent much of Saturday on my knees with pruning shears cutting down the thicket of Japanese knotweed taking over the back yard. There was nothing there but grass when the snow melted. Now it's already four feet tall. It's next to impossible to get rid of. The websites say stuff like getting a hypodermic needle and injecting weed killer into the stems - for years! And then maybe it'll die.

Saturday night, I had a lot of blood in my urine again. Apparently any kind of physical activity causes a problem. Sunday morning the first urine was dark brownish, but it quickly went to the usual pale yellow. This morning it was brownish again, and then alternated most of today between pale yellow, and the color of pink iced tea. I'm hoping it's the useless misplaced stent tearing up my bladder, not something more nasty going on.

The urologist has had my contrast x-rays and CT scan since Monday of last week, and hadn't even LOOKED at them as of Friday! I was so angry that over the weekend I researched another urologist. I figured if the current one didn't have something to say by mid-afternoon today, I was going to make an appointment with the only other in-network urologist within 15 miles who has a local hospital affiliation.

Well, I guess he looked at them this morning, because his office called just after lunch and asked if I could come in tomorrow morning. So now I'm a little worried. First there's no rush, then there's a rush?

And, the urinary urgency is getting worse. Like, oh gee, maybe my bladder is irritated. By a useless stent. Which is in the wrong place. Thank you.

In Saturday's mail I got a letter from the IRS. They think I owe more, want their money immediately, and are assessing a penalty.

In today's mail, I got a letter from the state of NY. Apparently The Angel didn't file my business sales tax return for 2010. (I've made no sales and have filed zero-dollar returns for years now.) They want their money immediately and are assessing a penalty.

Yesterday I figured it was about time to force the builder to fix the crappy stuff, like the bedroom windows that won't open. NJ has a new-construction warranty that builders have to honor. It's one year on everything, two years on structural defects, and three years on dangerous stuff. It's supposed to start from the closing date. So I dug the booklet out of the file to find out what the process is. Surprise. The starting date on the warranty is 6/30/10, which means it expires for the non-structural stuff next month! Um...I didn't close on the house until 10/13/10. I'm getting screwed out of four months of the warranty?

Uh uh. Hell no.

I fired off an email to my attorney this morning. He said to write a certified letter to the builder reminding him that he has to change the date, and listing what I want fixed. And copy my attorney on it.

Sigh.

Then I remembered that Hal needs a state inspection by the end of the month. I haven't changed registration on the three vehicles yet because two are here and one is still at the old house, and that makes things very complicated. (Also the titles are still at the old house.) I made an appointment for Friday morning with the nearest BMW dealership in NY, one hour 35 minutes up the road.

I need to pick up copies of my records and films from the White Plains hospital. I need to actually go there, because there are some things I want that I don't know what the technical words for them might be, and back and forth by phone or mail (no email) would be a pain.

And then this evening, just a half hour ago, I discovered that Fred the van has a flat tire. I know how to change a tire, but -- funniest thing -- because of the dropped floor, when a tire goes flat on Fred, you can't get a regular jack under him to lift him. I guess I'll have to call AAA tomorrow afternoon.

There's just too much pecking at me.

On top of all this, the old house is abandoned up there, probably overrun by mice digging nests in all my upholstered antiques and mattresses and closet contents, I'm losing my possible buyer, and I'M SITTING HERE ON A STOOL WITH NO REAL FURNITURE!!!
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