Slow going

The basement is a priority compared to my upstairs bathroom. I am still washing wall paper paste off the walls in the bathroom. Tedious job.

Downstairs, they have Clorox'f the floor and added the first coat of primer in preparation for the new carpet.

The smells have slayed me. I have taken a migraine pill and it has kept the fumes from ripping my head apart (just barely). The smells still make me woozy, especially after I come in from taking the dogs outside.

It was a Chinese food fest last night and I don't want to see Chinese food for at least a year or so. Tonight it looks like sloppy Jo's and french fries. That should change the smell factor in the house. Oh, yeah!

Independence

I grabbed this shot at the end of June outside a Bob Evans near Cleveland. The wind was howling and a storm was coming fast. It rained while we were inside and sunny when we came out. The flag was drooped and lifeless when we returned to our car. I was glad I got this shot when it was windy.

My Independence day was quiet. My town set off fireworks last night. I waited until about two minutes before ten and under the cover of darkness snuck outside, grabbed my lawn chair and quickly made my way to the far side of my house and yard (away from my neighbors). Don't get me wrong, I love my neighbors - I just wanted to be by myself and I was afraid if they saw me, they would invite me over and you know I would have had to go sit with them. And the three year old boy. I have been avoiding them lately - just not in a social mood. I wanted to be independent. LOL!

The trees are either very tall or the fireworks are not reaching as high as they used to. Half of the display I did not see. It just looked like heat lightning behind the tree line. When they started, the dogs in the neighborhood began barking and they never stopped through the entire 23 minutes. My dogs remained silent (in the house) the entire time. They got special treats when I went back inside.

Some one's car alarm went off at the beginning, but either they stopped it or it just quit on it's own. My street was packed with cars parked while their occupants walked up and over the hill to view the display.

I sat in my lawn chair and watched the latecomers. It is kind of sad, really. The ones who are late. They are desperately trying to find a parking space, some even risking it and parking close to the fire hydrant. Then they drag their crying kids quickly through the dark streets with the fireworks booming and illuminating the sky like some eerie B-rated horror movie. If the kids aren't traumatized I would be surprised.

As I sat there, I was reminded of my previous 4th holidays when I would have the big party for the family at my house. It was fun but a lot of work. I don't miss it. At all. (I now do Labor day at the park). I always had them come to my house because they could watch the fireworks from my lawn, but really - the trees have grown too high. I guess after ten  years - they tend to do that. I can do without all the work and the expense, too. I always overdid it - that is my custom. It is genetic. And the alcohol. I don't miss the fact that things can always get edgy when there is alcohol around.

And the weed. I have some family members who smoke weed. It doesn't bother me - they are discreet and smoke in the garage so they don't let the children see or smell. The smell comes out anyway. I can remember one time sitting in a group and chatting with family and I said "Whew. I smell a skunk."  My next sentence was "Where is Jock, Susan and Larry?"  (Not their real names). After a two second pause we all looked at each other and just busted out laughing. Because I smelled the skunk (a lot of times weed smells like skunk) and they are the three that smoke it and that is exactly what they were doing.

I enjoy the quiet times because I have had so many crazy and loud times. There will be more loud and crazy. It is just nice to sit and relax and not have to converse. With anyone. I got to see my beautiful pink fireworks. They are my favorite. Not the red ones, but the pink ones.

I thank the military and the US for my independence and to spend it the way I want to. That is freedom. We have the choice. Some paid dearly for this privilege we are enjoying and I am so grateful to them.

The Monster in the Basement

My daughter may be traumatized. I left her to deal with the monster. Well, at the time I did not know it was a monster. I called the plumber. He asked me a lot of questions over the phone. Mostly, was I certain the smell was coming from the sump pump. That morning I had cleared all around the area to ensure he could get access to everything and I told him, "Actually, the smell almost got better over by the sump pump."

He knew. My daughter said he knew when he walked into the house. He looked for the sewer drain. He knew.

My daughter said "Mom, it was like a monster waiting for us in the basement."

Oh, dear. Photo above is not my daughter or my basement. It is from google images. I just wanted to capture the suspense and fear.

What is your worst fear? Mold? Snakes? Bugs.

How about a backed up sewer drain? The plumber said "We don't do that."  He gave me the name of a company that does. 

I sighed. Way over on the other side of the basement where nobody goes anymore is a bar. It was beautiful with a plush magenta carpet and dark paneling. We used it the first two years we lived here. Mostly we set up computers on it and the kids used it. 

Deep in a dark corner under the bar is the drain. The drain that backed up. The place where nobody goes or has been in almost two years. No need to go there. The supplies under the bar were old coloring books and computer supplies. Junk, really. That is where the monster grew.

How long had the monster been growing? I am not sure, but I only noticed the sump pump running over and over this past week-end and the shower drain and the upstairs toilet.

So, in between the plumber and before the sewer drain guy got there my daughter was having her breakdown with me. She was yelling at me over the phone that this should be covered under our insurance and blah, blah, blah. Well, she had been standing in sewer water saturated carpet and looking at our sh!t. The girl was about to go off the deep end. Months ago, she told me she NEVER wants to change a baby diaper or have children or be around children. I cannot imagine what this monster mess did to her. I made a remark about something that this is the real world and this was probably not covered. I am probably to blame for some kind of neglect.

I can still remember when I needed a plumber years ago. He said we need to use one ply Scott toilet tissue. I tried it. For a week or so. Really? Is this guy for real? WARNING! The squeamish need to turn away! Men - be prepared. Really? Has this guy no idea what a menstrual cycle is? You know what? Let me just leave it at that.

I went back to Charmin extra fluffy extra large roles. So, I was figuring the back up was somehow my fault. This may also be some kind of conditioning from my upbringing. Certainly it was something I did wrong.

The sewer guy game. I decided to go back home and deal with it. He told me he charges $130 an hour from when he walks in the door. I thought of the monster. Okay, I said. He was only here an hour.

He came back up from the basement and this is what his receipt says. One hour - $130. Cut tree roots to 70'.  He told me it was tree roots. That he had cleared it to the main line. I said it was probably that tree in the front that has the sidewalk pushed way up. He said "Yes. You should see if you can get the city to cut it down. The roots are only going to grow back. You have to grind the stump or they will still grow."

Since it is on the other side of the sidewalk it is a city tree. I had already been planning on fixing the sidewalk so I had documentation on that. The city will pay for half of your sidewalk if you choose one of their contractors. The roots have been an issue when mowing, too. My mower blade would hit it and stall.

He left. I got to thinking. My insurance lady is my cousin by marriage. I had this insurance for over ten years and we discovered this fact about three years ago. She is so nice. I loved her before I knew she was married to my first cousin. I had no idea my first cousin even lived around here. His Mother did not have much to do with my family when we would travel to WV to visit. So, the last name didn't even create a blip when I would hear it spoken.

I called her. YES! Tree roots backing up a sewer drain is covered! I can get my basement area fixed. She gave me the name of a company, call them and get an estimate. She said she was making a claim and that the claims office would be in touch with me.

So today I get to wade in the wet carpet and take pictures. And move things out of the way of the damaged area. The bar is going to have to come out. It is a beautiful bar, but realistically - we don't use it. We really never have. Thirty years ago I would have used it maybe. I have no use for a bar.  The panelling will probably have to come down too. So there is no mold. The carpet has to come up. This should be interesting since this magenta carpet is going to be hard to match the color and it goes all over one full side of the basement. I think it will all have to come up. I am not certain if they will pay for replacing it all. We will see. Maybe I will get something more realistic there. No carpet. Just something sensible. And especially - no magenta! Sheesh!

I still got 'em!

Moonflowers out by the patio are doing well this year. I gave sister 1944 some seeds a couple of years ago and she now has moonflowers. It must take them a year or two to germinate. Is germinate the correct word? Yep, close enough.

I have two plants out front. They did not do as well this  year and still one lonely little plant along side the west side of the house. (The original place ).  I killed those off by accident one  year and am trying to get them back over there. They were something else. 

I love their smell. At night it drafts across the lawn. Okay, is draft the correct word? No, you idiot. It's waft! I love www.dictionary.com.   LOL!

My favorite part of the festival

As you would know...my favorite time at the festival was when I got kisses from this adorable canine. And she would not stop. She was smaller than my cats. I wanted to take her home with me. Sigh.

I finally slept in this morning. I did not wake up with any pain but sometimes it comes after I move around a bit. I want to do so many things. I managed to get more flowers planted  yesterday and some shrubs cut back. I want to pull more weeds and thistles today but am also trying to balance it with rest.

This is not a bad pain. It is just annoying. Bending over is the worst. Clanging dishes brings in a close second. Dogs barking (when they hear something outside) comes in third. I know better than to clean with any harsh chemicals (smells). I will try to clean up but that means bending over.

I did not have to take any Treximet yesterday. I am taking prednisone for five days. It tastes awful! I am still swallowing my Advil. At this point my headache could be rebounds from this medication. Need to ween off of it.

One good note. I have washed everything in the house. Rugs, sheets, clothes, towels and pillows. I am caught up on that. My dishes are all caught up. If I can manage to stay home today and tomorrow I should feel much better by Monday. Right? Right!

Still growing

I have approximately five moonflower plants growing. According to past posts they are full bloom by the first week in August. The shortage of rainfall this year may delay that, I don't know.

I transplanted one from the front of the house back to the west side of my house. That is where the original twelve or so plants were when I moved in. Fingers crossed that they build back up again.

I am not entirely positive how I am keeping them going. Just pure dumb luck. This one is in the front of the house and is from seed.

It is pouring the rain outside and lightning. My dogs will not budge off the back porch. You are not supposed to shower during a thunderstorm. It has been like this for 35 minutes. I am supposed to be getting ready for work. Headaches have been horrendous this past week because of the weather.

Things that I know for certain trigger my headache (whether migraine or cluster or tension):

strong smells especially clorox or most any cleaning product (hence why I do not clean often)

and perfume/cologne

bright lights

stress

loud sudden noises (fear of balloons)

stifling heat and/or hot sun

change in air pressure due to storm activity

lack of sleep or too much sleep

sometimes onions

hormonal changes

physical exertion - sometimes walking the dogs can be a pain, especially in the heat

laughing or coughing hard

too much caffeine or  caffeine withdrawal

Anesthesia side effects

multi-vitamins

skipping meals

dehydration

too much alcohol (naturally)

There are probably more, just can't think of them right now. I think the storm may be slowing down. Nope here it comes again. Sigh.

Where's the beef?

I made this chuck roast yesterday after reading about CheerstoHappy's version from her December 16th. post. Hers looked so good and I had a hankerin' for something rich and saucy. My meal looks a little lost in this dish (I have requested that Santa bring me a heavy duty dutch oven). It was delicious. I left the chuck roast in the crock pot on low all day. When I came home, I added onion, potatoes and carrots and moved it to this baking dish and baked it in the oven at 350 for an hour. The aroma was enough to make you swoon. I get to experience the effects of the smells because I go outside to walk the dogs and when I returned the smell hit me head on.

The down side to this is if a pet has had an accident. That smell can knock you off your feet, too.

Woke up late this morning (for me) and have a cottony feeling inside my head and feel as if I am on the verge of a headache. I am getting pain around the eyes and back on the left side of the head. The coffee is making me sick to my stomach (also a sign of an impending headache). I am so thankful for my medication. I have experienced migraines since I was twelve years old. Before that I had severe headaches. I believe this is from sleeping in my Mom's room from 8 to 11 years old. Every morning I was awoken about 4 or 5 a.m. when she lit her first cigarette. The smoke was heavy in the bedroom and just wafted over to me. I hate cigarette smoke to this day. At 12 I moved into my sisters' bedroom.

Well, I am baking today. I managed puppy chow last evening and started the peanut butter blossoms. I will finish those today. I hope to make cranberry nut bread (cannot find the recipe) and with any luck I can knock out another batch of chocolate chip or M&M cookies. Then I will start the food for tonight. We are having creamed chicken sandwiches (requested by my niece for every Christmas eve), BBQ ham sandwiches (for me), meatball appetizers, and a cheese ball/tray with meat and crackers.

I'll take pictures if I can find my camera's battery charger. Well, you should know me by now. I lose everything!

Are you trying to tell me something?

From one of the fairs at a neighboring county

I think the turkey is trying to convey a message here. And I am not certain I want to know what that message is. When I lived with my brother back in the late 80's/early 90's he had this device he used when he went turkey hunting. It looked like a four inch by four inch black chalkboard called a turkey caller slate. You scratched a wooden device over it and it made a female turkey noise. I got pretty good at imitating it and at fairs I make that noise. Folks around us think I am nuts and my family usually leave when I do this. Sometimes it gets the turkeys all honking and making noises. That is the noise I made to get the reaction out of the turkey in the photo above.

I was reminded yesterday of why I don't clean very often. I used the mold & mildew spray on my downstairs shower. The smell of bleach was so overwhelming I became sick to my stomach and wrestled with a stupid headache the rest of the day. Even walks outside didn't help me. It ruins my day. I can still smell it this morning and I have to return downstairs to finish washing clothes. Ugh.

I am always running fans in my house and the weather is nice enough to have all the doors and windows open. The smell lingers in my memory or somehow. It is nauseating.

One of the two pups have diarrhea. He starts going on the pet bathroom pad, but more times than not he finishes with it off the mat. Fun stuff. Another smell that is making me sick. Then I clean the rug and spray pet deodorizer. Another smell! It is turning into a real Funday Sunday. It will be a minor miracle if I don't end up having to swallow a migraine pill before this is all over with.

For some unknown reason one of the pups have started to urinate in the kitchen. I have solid tile in there. The first time I wasn't paying attention and I had my knock-off "Croc" shoes on and I slid halfway across the floor. I thought I was ice skating. Which I have never done before. I also thought my feet were going to go out from under me. I am very careful now (especially since most of the time I am in my bare feet) and check the floor out before I walk on it. I also put a puppy pad in there, but they will urinate and then turn the pad over onto itself trying to cover it up or something. Then it is just as slippery.

I'm probably going slowly insane here. What a nut job. They are all sleeping peacefully now. The two pups at my feet so that when I get up to get a fresh cup of coffee I have to make sure I don't step on them. The boxer over in my chair. Sable at her usual post by the back door. Cats on the back of the couch. The two that will come upstairs, that is. I did see Moose for the first time in 2 weeks yesterday. I caught a glimpse of her when I went downstairs to switch the clothes over. She looked fine. I feed them (Moose, Mr. Tibbs and Teton) and give them water. It disappears so I know they are getting to it. Casper and Jasper stay upstairs and give the boxer an "in your face" stance. They don't scare off so easily. He ignores them, now.

I watched "Push" last night. It was okay. I have some trouble following the movies a lot. I have to run closed-caption all the time now. I miss so much if I don't. I can't turn the volume up really loud because of the action scenes. They come in so loud with a boom it is an instant headache. I keep the volume to a normal level and run close caption. I am a fast reader so I can pretty much read and see the scene before it moves on. I like the main character. He played in "Cellular" and I liked that movie, too. And, Dakota Fanning. What a resume on that girl.