Pot Bellied Stove / Water Cooler
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A quick Good Morning...John went to bed early last night, so when I got up at 5, he got up early with me, so my routine is changed a bit. More basketball today, so he'll be occupied for part of the day. I'll try to come back later to chat longer.0
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Hi everyone, I took a vacation day yesterday and Dan and I hiked up to Black Mountain summit 2 1/2 miles each way. It was pretty steep but we did OK and it was a gorgeous panoramic view at the top. My pastor suggested to the congregation that we take the hike if we are able so we can pray over San Diego for blessings and revival. After our hike we drove to check out 2 convention areas that are giving notary exams so I can choose the best location for my seminar and test in a couple of months so I can renew my notary commission. We stopped at a Sonic on the way home. We have never eaten there so we wanted to check it out. It was pretty good! We came home and watched the rain then also went out for pizza for dinner at a new pizza place we wanted to check out. In my decluttering I found some old diaries that I wrote while I was in high school. So crazy to read what my thoughts and activities were back then! I did a bunch more decluttering of stuff in boxes in my closet today and took 8 bags of stuff to my church's resale shop. Then Dan and I went to our monthly free concert. It was funny because no one had told the artist that he only had to play for an hour and he played for an hour and a half before someone finally told him. I got an Olive Garden gift card for my birthday so we stopped there afterward and had a free dinner.
Anew, MAJOR BUMMER about the bed bugs!!! I've heard that they are difficult to get rid of. I hope I never have to find out for myself. Hopefully you've nipped it in the bud. Very nice that you are no longer "showering with the previous owners of the house".
So happy to hear that your coffee bar came out so well! I guess I should specify that Dan did the actual cobweb removal. We have a special tool but he did all the reaching while I supervised and pointed them out. 
Sheryl, Dan and I also LOVED the ending to Downton Abbey! Right down to everyone singing Auld Lang Syne at the end. I loved it so much I could not bring myself to delete the episode yet. They will be greatly missed! So good to hear that lunch with Carol went well. Sad about her grandchildren but at that age it won't be long before they probably wouldn't be hanging out with granny much anyway. Good to hear that Cary didn't forget about you. Hope he is better soon and back to fighting your cause. Did you get your hay?
Marcie, hope your birthday was wonderful. Did you go to Sizzler? Actually there are 2 different answers to your riddle. I thought of 0 + 4 = 4 but didn't say anything to Dan and when he came over to look at it he came up with 5 + 4 = 9. Thanks for the fun brain teaser! Interesting that you gave up on Mercy St. I don't feel so bad now that Dan didn't want to watch it. I'm trying to convince him to watch Call the Midwife since everyone says it is so good.
Well, it's time to go hang out with hubby and watch some shows. Have a great rest of your weekend all!0 -
Good late evening everyone, today has been a very busy and hopefully successful day. I got the overnight shipment yesterday so we tackled it all today. We tore apart our bedroom and found 4 more adult live bugs and one teeny tiny baby one. This is after the really good vacuuming we did the other day, those suckers can hide. There are only bed bugs infesting the bed support board closest to the headboard and our mattress and box spring. We decided to throw away all the support boards and just put new ones in when we are ready to put the bed back together. We tore off the bottom cover from the box spring and found nothing in there to our relief, so we treated it with the chemical dust the lady told me to use on it. We vacuumed everything down again and treated the rest of the room including all the furniture, walls and baseboards. We sprayed the dust all around and under the big door ship picture above the headboard and behind my big vanity mirror.
We should be good to go in there for one week until eggs hatch that we missed, but I will be looking in there tomorrow night and every night after looking to see if I can find anything crawling around. I think we really dodged the bullet on this one because there wasn't anything in our electronics, or in our lamps or even on the walls. Just the bed frame slats and bed. I should get the mattress covers and pillow covers delivered sometime this week so we will be ready to encase everything in a couple of weeks. The hot machine should come sometime next week too and I will use that to cook everything that can't go in the washer and dryer, including the lamps and electronics.
It has been nice to sleep without being bit, not one bite while using the guest bed and there is nothing in the living room so I am pretty positive we got really lucky. I am healing so I am very happy about that, and I praise the fact that I get eaten by bugs now, because if I wasn't so sensitive to bugs I don't think we would have caught this. Do you know they say that the people in the house that are not showing signs of being bit (hubby) ARE being bit? They just have no reaction to it. Scary, no wonder people have such a huge problem when they don't know it's happening.
We will have to treat all the furniture, doorways and baseboards in the living room tomorrow and I'll have to lock the kitty up in the bathroom again while it all dries. Oh well, she'll get over it and it's safe for pets once it is dry, they can't smell it so they don't go looking for it. I'll need to mop the floors tonight so she doesn't walk on any dry powder that might have missed the baseboards.
If anyone does anything, I would recommend that heater for using on luggage after any trips to help safeguard yourselves against bedbugs. The things are horrible.
Isyvanek, your hike and concert sounds great, I sure do miss my San Diego. It's good teamwork when hubby will help out, lol.
Well, I need to get going, I am exhausted so I might try to get some sleep early tonight. I need to pull the kitty out of the bathroom and love on her for a little while before I put her back in and get to doing some mopping.
Goodnight all.
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Good Morning, weird thing...MFP wouldn't let me log on for about an hour. Kept saying my password was invalid. I usually stay logged in all the time, but for some reason, when I opened the site, I was not logged in and it wouldn't let me until all of a sudden, now, everything is OK. These electronics are really getting the better of me.
I came on yesterday and played the 5-letter word and then John was up and I never got back here to this post. I guess that was the same for Saturday too, once John gets up, I get busy with him.
My answer to the brain teaser was changing it to 5+4=9. Interesting, I never thought to make that 6 a zero.
I watched the first 1/2 hour of the first episode and recorded all the rest of Mercy Street. I'll watch it someday. I have more dvd's to record season two when it comes out and will probably watch a marathon of it someday. I also recorded season three of Mr. Selfridge, but will need to purchase seasons 1 & 2, if and when I want to watch those. Nancy raves about Call the Midwife, but I haven't started watching that one yet. I think that show is going into Season five now.
We did get a load of hay on Friday morning. It sprinkled as we were driving up the road and then stopped, we got loaded while dry but it started raining when we got home. I'm so glad we went early.
Years ago, John bought quite a few AC Delco batteries for the vehicles, they were high quality and have lasted for years and years, but now, are failing. Naturally, we can't find those particular batteries retail anymore. After Friday morning's trip to get hay and charging up the battery, the little green light came back on. So now, John is hooking up all the old batteries to chargers again to see if we can resurrect the old batteries. Another project that will keep him busy.
I am jealous of all your clean homes. I need to get busy. My house has so many cobwebs, I'm ready for Halloween all year long. I bought couple more of the rigid wands for the shop vac so I can reach the ceiling, now I need to get that job done.
Anew, glad your rash is healing. My sister never did find bites on her body, but she had specks of blood on her sheets every morning, that's how she discovered those pesky little bugs. It took her a long time to eradicate them, but she's certain she is bug free now, but as I said before, she continues to spray to keep them away.
I need to go to the post office today to send something certified/return receipt. I think I'll go close to noon and stop by a "taco truck" in the produce store parking lot to buy "super chicken burritos" for lunch. Our neighbors came over for a visit over the weekend and raved about these burritos. Full of chicken and veggies and really, really good. A client came into Gayla's H&R Block office last week with a burrito and so several others went over and brought back lunch for the office. Then, Jack went up and he liked them too. It will be a good, easy lunch for today and they said it's so big, it will be dinner as well.
Two of my Blue Apron meals this past week were very weird as I was preparing them. I didn't know if John would like them or not, but the more they cooked, the better they smelled and by the time they hit the table, they tasted fantastic. So yummy. I am still so impressed with Blue Apron and enjoy the variety.
I guess that's it for now, I better get going.
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Saturday went as planned. The bridal shower was very nice. They decorated with dresses worn in weddings and shared the history. Julie and I kept Katie's girls with us during the program since she was the MC and we helped a bit with clean-up so everyone could get done. Babysitting went well. I ended up having Paige too as she had fallen asleep and waking her to go with Jim was to no avail. I found out she didn't wake up until 7 on Sunday morning so she was worn out. Maggie went to sleep for a couple of hours so I did the dishes, made pumpkin muffins and folded some of the laundry. Thomas and I got to our house at midnight (1 with springing forward). I got him to church on time but was glad I could come home and sleep another hour and a half.
Church was good and the fellowship meal was very fun. Our hostess gave us a tour of her home - very nice but that's sure something I would never do. Having my home that way is a dream. Came home and had a quiet evening and I finally got some steps in.
Tonight is 4-H so I'll work on getting ready for it and I told DH he should mix up the fruitcake he wants to make so we can get that done and he has a project to do. We got a little bit of rain yesterday so that was nice.
Sheryl, you didn't make it back so you must have gotten busy. Should be plenty of basketball during March madness. Hope John will watch a bunch of it and give you a break.
Isabella, how fun to go on a hike together. What a neat suggestion to pray there and then other activities filled your day. I didn't know you had to take an exam to be a notary. Glad you enjoyed Sonic. My husband doesn't like to eat in the car so we don't go there a lot but it's a fun place. The old diaries sound interesting. Are you still keeping them? Yay on the decluttering. You are doing a great job. Seems like your concerts are more than once a month - just shows how quickly time goes.
Interesting on your solutions to the puzzle - mine was 8-4=4. So there was more than one. Yes, Call the Midwife is good. Do watch it.
Anew, you have been really busy but so good to be on top of the situation and good to hear that you are healing.
Sheryl, glad MFP finally let you one. We can get along without you. Yay on getting the hay. No clean house here. Cobwebs aren't bad right now cause there aren't a lot of spiders around but there is plenty of dirt and dust and stuff to work around. The burritos sound yummy. Glad Blue Apron continues to work out well.
My 4-H calendar is ready to run off. Ralph is mixing up his fruit cakes (ended up mixing some hog feed this morning) so the day is moving along.
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Good morning everyone.
I took yesterday off, so today is my Monday.
After work on Friday, Dad and I decided to go out for Italian at Roma's Restaurant for my birthday dinner instead of Sizzler. He had his usual pesto chicken sandwich and I had my usual Spaghetti Aglio E Olio. He managed to make two meals out of his sandwich and I made three meals out of my spaghetti.
Boy have we gotten the rain since last Friday. Steady rain with the occasional downpour. We even had to let water out of the pool a couple times over the weekend. The roof gutters overflowed during the downpours, so they need to be cleaned out again. Dad will call the gutter guy this week. The storm has passed on now and we're having a pretty sunny day today.
Saturday morning I went out for breakfast at my favorite hole-in-the-wall breakfast place. Just had oatmeal and an English muffin, but it's always nice chatting with the waitresses there. It had been a few weeks since I was there. They make a point of getting to know their customers (who are mostly retired folks). Dad thinks they are too expensive and has his own hole-in-the-wall place he goes to most mornings.
My poor Cisco is going to get poked and prodded today. Dad's taking him in this morning for his annual checkup and vaccinations. He'll also have them cut his nails while he's there. I am not a good pet nail cutter!
On the riddle, we are only allowed to move the match sticks around to make the equation work (not remove or add match sticks or change the plus to a minus). The correct answer is 0 + 4 = 4. Isabella, 5 + 4 = 9 wouldn't work because you would have to remove a match stick from the 6 to make it a 5 and you would have to add a match stick to the 4 to make it a 9. Debora, 8 - 4 = 4 wouldn't work because you would have to add a match stick to the 0 to make it an 8 and you can't change + to -.
Isabella, the hiking was a great idea. I've never been to Sonic, but there stuff always looks good on the commercials. I'm not even sure if there's one around here. A Chick-Fil-A recently opened near us. I want to check them out one of these days. Did you like the new pizza place?
Debora, that was a neat idea for the bridal shower decorations! You got home last on Saturday! I just watched the first two Mercy Streets.
Sheryl, how was the huge burrito? With everyone raving about it, I'll bet it was yummy!
Anew, glad to hear you are healing up from those bites! I get itchy just thinking about bedbugs! Poor kitty, but you do what you gotta do to keep your fur baby safe.0 -
Good morning everyone, well it was morning when I started this but never finished it, lol. I need to give a huge apology to everyone for my very bad language when I first discovered the bed bugs. Sorry for such bad language.
The other sprays arrived yesterday so we saturated the mattress and box spring, treated the entire room with the sprays and tonight we will put the encasements on the mattress and box spring. We will have to brave it and sleep in the room tonight, I don't want to do that because we put double sided tape at the doorway of our bedroom at 2:00 am this morning and at 10:00 am it was full of little tiny baby nymphs that got stuck on it. This tells me we are extremely infested if we have done all that treatment and those nymphs were able to survive it, oh my gosh we are in for the long haul. They also could have been eggs that hatched after the treatment and the nymphs tried to escape the room. I double stripped (inside and outside the room) the door now and put strips at every other doorway in the house, lol.
Terminix came by today to do their yearly termite inspection and when I told him we had bed bugs he got all freaked out, lol. He said he doesn't do bed bugs, he does termite inspections, lol. He also told me the cost is $400 per room and that is all he knows about it, he also asked if I called them. I told him no, I can't afford to pay for three or four treatments to get rid of this stuff so he asked what I was using. He told me all the areas to treat and I told him we had treated all of those areas and then some. We have covered that entire room in the walls and outside the walls, lol. I named everything we are using and he shook his head like he knew the products. I have been reading online that Terminix does not guarantee to get rid of the problem and only come back once within the first 30 days. He doesn't know the ins and outs of it, he just said he is scared to death of taking them home with him. If you buy the encasements for the beds and pillows they say 90 days. I don't know, I didn't call them because I knew I wasn't going to be paying them money for zero guarantee when we can battle this ourselves.
He didn't say if the bathroom is considered a room, if they are the cost would be $3200.00 to treat our house. That would include the garage, oh my gosh I can't even imagine what it will be like to treat the garage. There is nowhere to put all those tools. If I could convince my husband to stay out of the garage for 4 months straight I could put one of those NUVAN Pro Strips in there but the garage has to be sealed and he can only go into it for four hours per day. There is no way he would go into the garage without opening the door so it would be useless to try fumigating it if he won't adhere. I am getting too much resistance from him and trying to convince him I am not a crazy nut over this. He questions and wants to take short cuts on everything. Last night I made it point blank, short cuts are not to be taken, I am not dealing with this three years from now and I will not be their food anymore either. I feel for him, I know he is extremely tired and he doesn't really understand the severity of this.
After all the spraying we have done I would have expected to have some dead bugs laying around but haven't found even one cockroach, I did find one spider dead by the kitchen sink, lol. I know one thing, if our efforts for the next 6 months do nothing for us we will pay to have the house tented and heat treated because that kills all life stages, including the eggs.
Note: update, I spoke to our regular spray guy and he said he doesn't do bedbugs either, and doesn't know much except that they freeze them out. How to freeze them out of the entire house I do not know, I think I would rather go with the heat treatment because that kills every life stage of those monsters. He will come on Saturday to spray the entire outside of the house for us.
I have been doing more laundry daily than I have ever done in my life and decided to find out how hot the dryer gets on the lower setting. I can't put everything in there on extremely high heat. The dryer is 150 degrees which is plenty hot to kill eggs on anything I put in it. I have a rack that goes inside the dryer and each day I put our shoes, hubby's belt and anything else that can't be tumbled and have worn onto the rack to kill anything (eggs) that might have been picked up. If I can keep this up I am hoping to have it at least under control within a couple of weeks. We spray the aerosols again in 7 days, so that will be easier than the first two steps. Sadly we still have other work in the house to do, there is just so much and he is still working overtime everyday. I told him to take the night off and just get sleep, he gladly did so.
Arobed-The bridal shower sounds like it was a lot of fun, so interesting to use past wedding gowns and their history. I like that idea.
Sannferris-Your home delivery dinners sound really interesting. How was your burrito, did it live up to the hype it's been getting?
Mygnsac-What a nice birthday dinner and it sounds like a huge storm came in on you. Poor Cisco, at least you aren't the bad guy, your dad is, lol.
Goodnight all, I have to get to resting.
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Good morning.
Another pretty, sunny day here today. After so many rainy days, I'm really enjoying the sunshine.
As I was driving home yesterday, over the American River Bridge, I was amazed at how full the river is now. It's been years since I've seen it like that. Yet, they still say we are in a drought. All the lawns around town, which were quite brown after last summer, are all nice and green again. Once summer hits they'll die off again as we are only allowed to water once a week this year (last year it was twice a week).
Dad said Cisco did really well at the vet's office yesterday. He wasn't nervous and didn't protest all the poking and prodding. He weighs the same as he did last year, so she was pleased he hasn't gained, but he still needs to lose a few pounds.
In addition to the exam and vaccinations, the vet also cut his nails and expressed Cicso's anal glands. He had them expressed six weeks ago (we get it done once every two months), but they were already full again. She thinks he needs more fiber to slow that down and recommended we give him a couple tbs of pureed pumpkin each day. Of course he wouldn't just eat the pumpkin like any normal dog would. I had to mix it with a little of my dinner to get him to eat it. Will have to figure that out.
My cat Simon goes to another vet, but I'm thinking about switching over to Cisco's vet. Their prices a more reasonable. The one I currently go to is more of an emergency pet hospital, with about 10 vets on the payroll, so the customers tend to incur more cost. Lately Simon has been drinking more water and begging for food all the time, but not gaining weight. He even lost a little last week. Dad ran it by Cisco's vet and she thinks maybe it could have something to do with his Thyroid. Our first thought was cancer because that's how Casey acted when he was sick with cancer. I'm going to make an appointment and take him into see Cisco's vet.
Dad has a hurt hand right now. It's red and swollen below his knuckles and hurting. And, of course it's his right hand. He hit it on something a couple days ago, but didn't think much of it at the time. Just watched it to make sure there was no bleeding since he's on blood thinner. He's icing it and expects it will take a week or so to heal up.
Xfinity (our cable company) sent us a new remote control yesterday. Each household gets one for free and Dad didn't want it. This remote control has a voice command feature. You just push the voice button and say what you are looking for. E.g., saying "NBC" takes you to that station, saying "Lifetime" takes you to that station, saying "Walton's Mountain" takes you to that show if it's on or gives you a list of upcoming episodes, saying "Kids Movies" gives you a list of movies available, saying "Basketball" takes you to the game or gives you a list of games that are on, etc. Pretty neato. About all Dad ever watches anymore are his pre-recorded news shows, so he has no use for this remote.
I have a two-hour training session this morning on "Privacy." Staff must attend this meeting once a year. It identifies what constitutes personal information (staff and customer info) that must be protected and how to handle such info. I've attending this meeting for years now and have it down pat, but we are still required to attend each year. Just like the "Prevention of Sexual Harassment in the Work Place" training sessions we must attend every other year. I have that one pretty much memorized by now too.
We'll be having a St. Patrick's Day potluck tomorrow. We've been asked to wear green (I usually don't pay attention to that, but I think I will wear green tomorrow) and to bring "green" food to the potluck. I anticipate lots of green dye being used (Lynn Matova would probably cringe). I'm going to go natural and bring in Green Beans Almondine. I've never made it, but I looked it up yesterday and it looks simple to make. I'll bet someone brings in deviled eggs where the filling has been died green. I need to stop by the grocery store after work to pick up the whole green beans, slivered almonds, and a lemon.
Anew, bug guys afraid of bedbugs. Ha! I guess I can see their point, especially when they have to visit other customers houses. No need to apologize for the language. This must be so incredibly frustrating for you and hubby. Hopefully these treatments work and you don't have to ultimately tent the house.
Back to work. Have a lovely day everyone.0 -
Mygnac-you might like this, I don't know how close to you it is but you might want to take a hike. I wonder how much water is covering things again though since the rains began.
insuremekevin.com/american-river-salmon-falls-bridge-to-bridge-hike/
Here is another one, wow it's amazing what a drought brings out. I have never heard of any of this until seeking on the internet, lol.
californiapioneer.org/destinations/mormon-island0 -
Good afternoon, it's a beautiful day today (at least outside) but inside it's not so beautiful. I slept in my room for the first time last night and was bit all over my right arm. Ugh! Everything has been treated, either by chemical or heat and the mattress and box springs have been encased, the pillows have been encased. I hope I can get through this without going absolutely bonkers first. So, back into the dryer goes the blanket and sheets. This time I am going to heat them 1.5 hours instead of 1 hour and see how it goes.
The thing I just realized is our bed frame has those decorative silver brads all over it and we didn't spray those. I just finished spraying the entire top of the bed frame with Bedlam Plus because it never occurred to me to spray those metal brads, but maybe there are eggs on those. I don't know, they say I will still be bit until all the eggs hatch and the nymphs are all destroyed. I have oil moats around all bed legs and the supports for the box spring and mattress. There is no way they can climb into my bed from the floor. I did find something I am really interested in getting so I am going to talk to hubby tonight when he gets home. This thing draws them out and takes them in with no escape possible. It mimics a human sleeping. It's not cheap but if I can use this in other rooms while we are sleeping I think we can get this thing under control and keep it that way a whole lot faster.
biosensory.com/products/#1440700303046-04f818ab-5cd8
https://youtube.com/watch?v=D_X90AxlPSc
Everyone have a great day today, I will.
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Hello all, I've been enjoying this week without so much going. Last night we picked up Lori's car and took it in and she and the kids came to McDonald's with us. Nice time. Tonight I have Bible Study and tomorrow breakfast with a friend. The Moody Band gave an excellent performance on Tuesday night. And 4-H went okay. It was parent's night so the parents ran the meeting. One parent showed us how she put the icing on the freshly made cinnamon rolls and then shared them with us. And the kids worked on centerpieces for the Manor. So it's been a good week so far. I ordered some purple shirts earlier in the week (for the wedding) and they came today so we can see if they fit on Sunday. One of my favorite blouses went out in the elbow - very sad when I saw it. Decided I'll wear the dress from my friend for the wedding. She's willing to have it shortened a bit. It is a pretty dress - I can put up with 3/4 length sleeves for an afternoon so that's one more thing out of the way. I ordered circles of tulle and am getting some wheat to make wheat bags for people to throw. If it all gets here, we may work on them Sunday. It's just a little over a month away now.
Had an email from Granny. She's dating someone and Trish and Mike are planning to move to Florida this summer. She's really enjoying the place she is living.
Marcie, glad you and your dad went out and you had a fun breakfast out too. Thanks for explaining the matchsticks deal. Guess we all made up our own rules.
Enjoy the rain. The green has got to be nice to see. We're needing some again. It will be time to plant corn before too long. Yay on Cisco being so well behaved for the vet. Good idea to check them out with Simon - good but cost less is nice and all in one place is nice too. Ouch on your dad's hand. What a fun remote. Yuck on the required meetings but you do what you have to do. How was the potluck at work.
John must be keeping Sheryl busy since she hasn't popped in for a couple of days.
Better make sure I have things ready to go.
Anew, not happy at all that you got fresh bites last night. I can't believe all the work you are having to do. It truly is a battle.
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Good Morning. Yes, have been busy. Need to go to the post office again. The information that I sent certified seems to have gotten lost in Portland. I've been following the tracking and what I sent previously has reached it's destination, but what I sent last Monday has not departed Portland yet. I called and the lady said it doesn't show on the tracking until it arrives to it's next destination, but I have proof otherwise, all the other tracking info shows when it leaves a destination too. I'll take a duplicate letter and send it again. I'm so glad I sent it Certified, it should be easier to prove and to get my money back. The burritos last Monday were good but different than what I expected. I thought my neighbors said it was full of meat and veggies, but the only veggie was lettuce, it had rice and beans in it, that made it so big. Very tasty though. But, not super healthy.
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Good morning.
Our pretty weather continues. No more rain predicted until Monday. It's been so nice these last few days that we've been able to open all the windows in the afternoon and turn the whole house fan on. It feels good airing out the house.
The St. Patrick's Day potluck turned turned out really good, and no green dye all over the place like I thought. The only dyed thing I saw were some rice krispy treats that were dyed green. We had corned beef and cabbage, roasted brussel sprouts, broccoli slaw, roasted carrots and potatoes, rigatoni with pesto, green beans almondine (my contribution, and a big hit), various types of bread, doughnuts (in the morning), cup cakes, cookies, and a super-yummy lime sherbet punch. I had some of the punch, but passed on the other desserts as they were just yucky store-bought things that weren't worth the calories. We had so much food I was able to take a plate home for Dad for his dinner.
There are lots of leftovers from the potluck, so they'll be heating everything up for round two today. I'm passing on it though. The special at the Grille in the office is one of my favorites, so I'm having that instead. It's a guacamole swiss veggie burger with lettuce, onions and tomato. They make a really good veggie burger. Their regular beef burgers are so greasy they just about liquefy the bun. Yuck!
Yesterday we looked down in the water well of our coffee maker and it was disgusting! Apparently it's been a long time since I last cleaned it. We ran some white vinegar through it last night and it's clean again. I have to remember to do that on a regular basis. They say it should be done once every month or two. I think its been about year or so since I last ran some vinegar through it.
I don't have many errands to run this weekend, so I'll probably be a homebody. I do need to get my car washed, but that's about it. I'll probably just clean house. It needs it desperately.
I filed my Federal and State tax returns in January and received by Fed refund a few weeks after that. I still haven't received my State refund so I went online to check the status. Looks like I won't receive that refund until the end of this month. Leave it to CA to drag their heals!
Sheryl, I agree. Just lettuce doesn't count as lots of veggies. Hopefully you'll have no more problems sending that information!
Debora, I'm glad to hear you are having a good week! Sorry to hear about your favorite blouse wearing out. Time sure is flying. That wedding is just around the corner. Wheat bags is a neat idea. Granny is dating someone?! Reading that just made my day! I was really hoping she would enjoy living at the new place. I'll bet she's really going to miss Trish and Mike when they move.
Anew, I'm sorry you got bites again and all that work you have to do to battle this! Those are some resilient little buggers.
Anew, thanks for the links. The American River is about 10 miles from home, but we don't go down there too often. There is a bike trail around it that Dad used to use, but his doctor won't let him ride anymore. I don't like the area. To many homeless camps and too much crime. Also, the river has a very swift undercurrent and swimmers drown in it every year. I do like to walk, but I'm not a hiker.
Better close. I hope you all have a nice evening and weekend.0 -
Howdy. Breakfast was nice. Went to a little place that just started serving breakfast so we got the last two pieces of quiche and the last two peach scones along with tea. It was good and we visited for well over an hour. Maybe we'll do it again sometime. From there I did my errands and got home around one. I drove in interesting weather. It started out at 41 and drizzly, then more rain and got down as far as 34. Some snowflakes were in the air for awhile and then it stopped and now the sun is poking out and it's up to 43. Being colder means our furnace is running which is okay except we are getting close to being out of propane. When they filled it the last time, they realized there was a leak but it can only be fixed when the tank is empty. And if it runs out on the weekend, we'll use a couple of electric heaters to heat the house and heat water as needed. I'm hope it lasts till Monday but who knows.
I got home and got everything carried in and put away and then had lunch. Ralph had gone to a funeral and ate at the meal after it. I've worked on my list - not done a lot but didn't figure I would. I keep working on the afghan cause I'm getting close to finishing the counted cross stitch part. Then I'll have to get the part out that tells how to put the panels together. So it's coming along faster than I thought it would.
Tomorrow morning is the bridal shower for Julie and then I'll work on getting stuff ready for Sunday.
Sheryl, sorry the burrito was not what you were thinking. But now you know. Glad you set your stuff certified and hopefully, it doesn't take too long to get it all taken care of.
Marcie, glad the potluck was good. I would have enjoyed it and it's always nice when they like what you brought. Nice that vinegar is a quick fix for a yucky coffee maker. Time at home is pretty nice - you can clean and have time to relax too I hope.
Nice to have part of your refund back. We always have to pay but according to Dave Ramsey, that means we had use of the money all year. Our tax person hasn't finished them yet but no hurry when you pay.
Yes, this new place is such a blessing for Granny.
Guess I'll go get started on our salads and fix the pizza. Oh, a long time ago Ralph mentioned wanting a carrot/raisin salad. I finally made one yesterday - it was simple to do and we both liked it so I'll make that again. It's one that's good to make ahead so the raisins will plump up.
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Good Morning. The trip to the post office was revealing...she checked her computer and it showed the same as mine, received in Portland last Monday at 11:35 pm and nothing after that. But, she said that it doesn't mean it still hasn't gone through, just missed in the scan, don't put in a claim yet. So, I realized that the tracking is not so reliable. I still mailed the duplicate information and then, late yesterday, checked the tracking on the old one again and it was in it's destination city, but not delivered yet. So, I guess I didn't need to send the duplicate, but still glad that I did. Also glad that I don't have to mess with trying to put in a claim, of course, I wouldn't have to put in a claim even if it were lost, just kiss that $7.00 goodbye.
John came and got me in a panic yesterday afternoon, he said one of the llamas was hung up in the chain link fence. I ran out there and also a neighbor came running, she had heard the commotion. It was Mochadot, (pictured in my profile pic), she's our youngest and had apparently laid down near the fence and either stretched out or was nudged or something, we'll really never know, but got her legs under the chain link and then thrashed about trying to get up. It took all three of us, with all our might to get her legs back under on the right side of the fence and roll her over so she would be totally free of the fence. She was worn out, but fortunately, unharmed. When we freed her, she immediately got to her feet and walked normally. No limp or apparent injury. Within an hour, she was grazing, so all is well. It will probably never happen again, but now John wants to redo the fence. Not sure how.
Had several days of gorgeous weather and started to try to fill in some very muddy spots. I have a pile of barkdust that's been sitting in my garden area for about 3 years. I got it just before I got sick to spread in front, but now, it's been there so long that I'm sure the center has begun to decompose, so I decided to use it for mud control instead of weed control. Did a little work on Thursday, but still too wet to get the bark into the muddy spots. I thought I'd try again today, since it was dry all day yesterday, but I hear rain this morning. I'll see how the day progresses.
I think I'm ready to go back to bed already. ha ha ha
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Happy Saturday everyone. I've been up since 5 am. Very unusal for me on a Saturday.
I've already got most of the laundry done. Just two more loads to finish it off. I need to wash Dad's sheets, but he's taking a nap, so that will have to wait till he gets up.
I got a letter in the mail yesterday that tells me I have to report for jury duty in a month. Ugh. It's been a couple years since my last time, so I guess it's time again. I'm not looking foward to it. I just can't stand all the hurring up and waiting part of that process. Seems like you spend most of the time sitting on the benches in the hallway waiting for the process to begin. Ugh again!
Here's some pretty pictures of our flowering bushes. It looks like Spring has sprung. All the trees have greened up and the flowers are blooming. Cisco approves.
Sheryl, sorry to hear about Mochadot's ordeal. Glad to hear she's no worse for the wear though.
Debora, carrot salad sounds good, and I love plump raisins. Your weather sounds like it goes up and down. Hope the propane lasts.
Have a nice day everyone.0 -
Good morning all,
I survived the time change and had a pretty good week all in all. Dan had one of the sprinkler heads on our slope moved at the "difficult" neighbor's request as a show of good faith. We are hoping we can lead by example but I have my doubts that it will work. We got association approval and Dan scheduled the fence replacement so we'll see how it all plays out. Mr. difficult sent us a letter accusing us of leaving his side gate open (can you believe it?! - it couldn't possibly have been his 10yr old son!) and said due to concerns that his puppy will get out (which he lets run loose anyway) and concerns of home invasion(!) he plans to put a lock on that fence. This would prohibit us from having access to the east side of our home and is against CC&R and HOA rules. We are not sure what to do with that yet but will probably advise the HOA of his plan.
Sheryl, the taco truck sounded so good. Too bad it was just average. It's funny what some people consider "full of veggies". Could it be that they were made different on various days? Probably not. It is so cool that the blue apron continues to work out so well. It is really interesting how things can sound and look so weird at first and be so good when cooked. I love that you are being so adventurous and that it is working for you! Very happy to hear that Mochadot was OK after her ordeal. Hopefully John will forget about the fence but I bet it was pretty traumatic for him (and you) too.
Debora, the wedding dress decoration at the bridal shower sounds like a neat idea. We came across my wedding dress in our decluttering so I decided to try to find a place that takes used wedding dresses to pass it on to. Did you say that Ralph makes his own fruit cakes? When are you going to give me his recipe? It is so wonderful to hear that Granny is seeing someone!!! That new apt was just what she needed. Thank you Lord!
Anew, I am so very sorry to hear that you are having to go thru so much with the bed bugs. I can't even imagine! I would have them for the rest of my life because there is no way I could be as diligent as you. You certainly don't have to apologize for your "bad language". I would have been doing a LOT more severe cursing than that! Sailors would be blushing! I totally get that your hubby doesn't get it and just wants to be done but he'll be thankful some day for your persistence. I have an acquaintance who had bed bugs and she said she took a natural approach and used diatomaceous earth to rid her home of them. I haven't talked to her since then so I don't know how successful she was but this might be something worth adding to your arsenal. I've heard good things about it for getting rid of other types of bugs outdoors. Pet friendly, etc. Let me know what you think if you google it.
Marcie, Glad you had a nice b-day dinner. Our new pizza place was decent. Not amazing. My co-worker and I went to a new pizza place (it's a chain) called Pizza Rev. We really liked it! It is like a subway for pizza. You choose your crust, then your toppings, then they put it in the fire oven and voila. Hubby and I had the leftovers for dinner and he really enjoyed it too. We will definitely go there again. I've had Chic-Fil-A and really like it. I get the spicy chicken sandwich. They use real chicken breast and their coleslaw is really good too. Let me know if you try it. I think it is a really good idea to take Simon to the same vet as Cisco. Let us know what they say. I had to take training at work this week too - we had to take our yearly Ethics training and certification. They try to make it somewhat interesting by giving you little vignettes and asking you to decide if it was against the ethics policy and what you should do about it or do differently. I feel really good that I chose THE correct answer for your puzzle. As far as the 5 + 4 = 9, hubby said it doesn't say where to move the stick.
Well, gotta go - I'm on my way to the farmer's market then to Trader Joe's. I'm taking the day off from decluttering. I'll try to stop in later or tomorrow.0 -
Marcie, looks like we posted at the same time. Thanks for sharing the pretty picture of your Azaleas. They are stunning. We never had much luck with pink azaleas (they died both times we planted them). Maybe because the ones we planted were dwarfs?? We have a red bush and 2 white ones. The white ones are going crazy.0
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Good Morning. Marcie, your azaleas are gorgeous. My Mom tried and tried to have azaleas in Pasadena when I was growing up and finally gave up. Never a nice bloom. It wasn't until I moved up here that I learned that they need colder temps during they're dormant period to set their blooms. Pasadena is just too moderate during the winter. The plants up here are beautiful, but short lived, blooms appear in April/May and are gone by June.
Yesterday's weather cooperated and John and I got a lot done outside. But, rain now in the forecast for the week.
I had plantains for the first time yesterday. I made the Cuban Sandwiches with Kale and Plantain salad. The sandwiches were good, but I can't eat much kale due to the warfarin I'm taking, so I ate mostly plantains. I thought they were bland.
Isabella, so sorry you have to deal with such a difficult neighbor. Locking you out of your own side of your house is unreasonable. I hope it gets resolved easily and no repercussions from that guy, some neighbors just don't get it. At least you have the CC&Rs and HOA to back you, if they do come through and back you up. I have the CC&Rs for this development behind us, but no one is coming through for me. Sure wish it were still a dairy pasture, it was so nice back then.
I got my food recommendations from my neighbor mixed up. I asked and they said the super burrito has beans and rice and it's another sandwich, at another place, that's loaded with veggies. But, that's in Portland and I don't think I want to drive over there. They also recommended a gyro at a little place in Battle Ground, just up the road. They go out all the time and are constantly telling us what new places they've found. Talk about adventurous. One place, called The Puffin, has great seafood and is a café on a houseboat on the Columbia River. They said that the food and the view are fantastic. I want to go there when it gets a little warmer, although, they said there are big heaters and you don't feel the cold, even in winter.
Norma heard from Simon and he now has walking pneumonia. He has one more appointment scheduled with the surgeon to remove the stent they put in his kidney. She doesn't know if he's able to drive himself down, but I said that's not her worry, he has adult children who can do that for him and be with him and can take him home right away. I know that he didn't come down this weekend because she is at the car races. Her church sponsors an annual fund raiser for the youth group at this big auto race and Norma volunteers. She gets to see the races without having to buy the ticket, plus, do her bit for the church youth group. She looks forward to this every year and knew that Simon would not be able to handle this activity, so she told him not to come. I know she's having a blast and she needs the distraction from both Simon and Mom.
Ha ha ha, I just got up to refill my mug and I can really feel my thigh muscles. A little bit of work and I feel tight muscles. Boy, am I losing it. I used to work all day, every day and feel great, well, I guess that's why, keeping so active. That shoveling barkdust and moving the wheelbarrow really worked my legs. Gotta get back into shape.
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Good Morning. Rained all day yesterday with afternoon thunderstorms. I got back to checking IHC inventory to try to get a better idea of the value of John's inventory. I really MUST start selling some of this stuff, but need the value to know how much to ask for it. One of the guys in Eastern Oregon called again and I have nothing new to tell him. I'm trying to get John to talk to him because I just don't know what goes on what vehicle. I need part numbers to complete the deal, maybe John can figure out what this guy wants. But, getting John to talk on the phone is so difficult. I think I'll have to dial and just place the phone in his hand.
Another one of my Mom's friends died. Her reaction is so strange. She said "what am I suppose to do about it". I said she can't do anything except thank his daughter for letting her know and offer condolences. Jeanie went out of her way to locate my Mom (called friends in Pasadena to get Mom's new address and phone number) and call her and give her the information. How thoughtful. Jeanie's parents and my parents were very close friends for years and now Mom is the only one left. I think Mom is just so scared as her peers pass on and she's left alone. But, still, she should appreciate everybody's concern and courtesy.
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Good morning everyone, it's a beautiful day today and again not inside. More bites daily, boy I sure hope this stops soon. I think I am going to change the bed daily with new sheets and blanket. I have the bed isolated like an island and I am still getting bit, I believe they are hatching on the bed frame and I may just tell hubby we are buying a new bed frame and getting rid of ours. It might be a pretty bed but there are lots of crevices for the eggs to harbor in and those nymphs can hatch out and eat me alive. We can always build a new headboard later, he did treat those studs on the bed frame the first time we treated so my treatment was in vain, lol. We already replaced the support boards before we put the bed back together. I found out his last business trip was January 18th, not February 18th as I had misunderstood, and we believe this is when he brought them home, because the hotel he stayed at has reports of bedbugs seen there.
He still doesn't get it, he doesn't understand that they are everywhere. We went to Walmart night before last and bought more paper towels, the great value brand and when he opened the pack and set one on the towel holder it had a bed bug inside the folds of the next one. So, have we brought them home from the store previously? Could be so, make sure you check everything you bring into your house from anywhere, including new furniture because they hitch a ride on everything. Our country is being overrun and so is the rest of the world.
Today I get my drivers license renewed, that should be fun (don't smile, they want a mug shot, lol). I told him I didn't want to go the one nearby because the last time I was there she treated me like I was a criminal or something. He shook his head like I was crazy and it made me a bit angry. Like I am reading into it something that isn't there. The woman looked at my license, looked back at me and kept asking me all kinds of questions, she repeated this for at least 5 minutes before she would even give me the paperwork I needed to get it completed, she treated me like I was a criminal. I was there to change my address and this was three years ago when we moved in here, she really upset me and left me feeling horrible about myself and of course my picture looks like I am upset, because I was. This morning he told me he found reviews that are basically saying the same thing I said last night. That's all the apology I will ever get from him, I hate that, he won't apologize for anything. Maybe I should stop apologizing when I realize I need to do so, maybe he will get the off put feelings it causes. We are fighting constantly regarding the bugs and all the work that is needed. He keeps getting made about everything we have to do, and I told him yelling at me won't make it go away, it's nobody's fault, we just have to get through this nightmare. Aye aye aye. Well, have to go get him, he locked his keys in the truck. Sheesh!
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Happy Monday everyone.
We were supposed to get some rain today, but so far it's just cloudy.
Yesterday I made a pot of red beans for our pot-of-something this week. That was my first time cooking red beans and they took forever to cook! Even after soaking them overnight. It was over three hours before I finally called them cooked. Their still a little hard, but their edible.
I watched the movie Terms of Endearment yesterday afternoon. I think it's been about 20 or so years since I last watched that movie. I don't know why, but I always cry when Shirley MacLaine yells at the nurses in the hospital to "GIVE MY DAUGHTER THE SHOT"!
Dad asked me to stop adding tomatoes or tomato-based sauces to my beans. Apparently tomatoes are upsetting his stomach lately. That's too bad, because I like how the beans taste when cooked with tomato. Oh well. I'm certainly not going to make a separate pot of beans for just me.
Yeah, the pink azaleas must really like the weather around here because they are all over the place right now. I see the pink everywhere, but rarely see white azaleas around. The daffodils should be blooming soon too. We have some white daffodils plants on both sides of the front porch.
Anew, I'm sorry you and hubby are clashing over the bedbug ordeal. I'm glad though that you can come here to vent.
Isabella, your neighbor sounds like a real gem (not!). I just don't get people who act like that. I'll definitely be checking out Chic-Fil-A soon. I'll pass on the spicy chicken sandwich though. Spicy and me don't get along. Ha!
Sheryl, that's sad about your Mom's friend and she not knowing how to react. That was nice of the daughter taking the time to locate your Mom. Poor Simon just can't catch a break! I've never cooked plantains before. Hopefully John will be able to talk to that man. Good luck with the inventory taking!
Have a nice day everyone. 0 -
Hello, it's about 2:12 am and I am wide awake, afraid to go to bed and got bit just sitting here at the computer. This is the worst nightmare I have ever encountered in my life, I hope it doesn't last long. We just ordered some activeguard bed liners for both beds in the hopes they will help to kill the stray bedbugs, especially the nymphs we can't see. I got bit up after napping in the afternoon, so bed taken apart again, new bedding and I used masking tape to pick up anything I could on the mattress pad and sides of mattress bedding before putting the new sheets on it tonight before my husband went to bed. Nothing the naked eye could see was on the tape.
I think I told you all I put containers at the foot posts of the bed with olive oil in the outer one, right? I think so, I don't know there has been so much info here. Anyway, we caught one bed bug in each of the foot of the bed legs in the oil. One of the bed bugs was in the inner dry container and couldn't get out, so that one came from the bed. The other came from the carpet when it got stuck in the outer one with the oil in it. We went back to the store and bought some plastic containers of different sizes to make what they call interceptors, using the plastic container with a light coating of talcum powder in them and masking tape on the outside to make it easy for them to crawl into. They can't get back out because the powder makes it slippery on the smooth plastic. We put talcum powder in the smaller inside container the legs are actually sitting in so anything that comes out of the bed can't crawl back up into the bed and eat me again.
I hope these help, the ones with the oil were too easy to hit and spill the oil. Thank goodness I don't care if the carpet gets ruined but I don't want the spilled olive oil to get rancid either, lol. I think hubby is finally getting some kind of understanding, I made him read about the bugs and he came in tonight and told me he thinks we got off easy with all the links I have sent him. He can see how bad they can get and said every time he reads or thinks about the bugs he itches all over. I told him at least it's all in his head, and he isn't truly suffering the consequences like I am. I hope he stops getting mad about stuff and just works on getting the job done.
We still have more to do, today was planned for more work but he took the day off so he could get his truck inspected and registered, that's where he locked the keys in the truck, at the registration office and it took him about 3 hours of the morning. I took his extra truck key to him in the next town over and we met back at the house to bring my truck home. I think I mentioned the squeal my truck is making? After many inspections, replacing pulleys and finally not knowing what it was he discovered the fan belt started coming off the other night. It was wrapped around the fan blade so he replaced the belt, then discovered the squeal is my A/C compressor. That will be about $400 to fix and means everything has to come out, be evacuated and refilled. Aye Aye Aye, it never seems to end here, I am stressed. Driving out to get him 10 miles each way with the truck squealing like that scared me to death. I thought I was going to be on the side of the road. I asked him if he had already done that repair (I thought he had) and he said yes about 4 years ago. He said I don't drive it often and he said that is the problem, I don't use it enough. I guess I will have to have an excuse to go somewhere to make sure the truck is driven at least twice per week to make sure it gets used.
From the house we went to the DPS office(more info below on that) went to the store to buy the stuff for the interceptos and had lunch at Firehouse subs. I had the mama's chicken sandwich which was ok, I prefer the turkey and cranberry sandwich but at least I ventured for something else, lol. I usually don't stray when I find something I like and we've eaten there three times now (amazingly it's fast food, lol), I needed to try something different this time.
After lunch we went to the grocery store, came home, made the interceptor traps for the bed and took a nap. So, the day was pretty much gone when I woke up at 8:00 tonight(last night). More work tomorrow(today), I need to make the rest of the furniture leg interceptors, clear out the cabinet below the kitchen sink so it can be treated tomorrow and start working on the craft room. Eventually the whole house will be treated, but we will have to start all over for the second treatment this weekend. Methodical, go through the house day by day until these things are gone. I am exhausted.
On a positive note I found those reviews about our local DPS office for driver licenses and found they are from before I went in 2012 and through December last year. I didn't want to go there but if I don't use that one I have to go to big town 30 miles away. I got up the courage and went to my dreaded local office. When I walked in the door the lady there smiled at me, said hi, welcome and what can I do for you. Wow, what a relief, someone who can treat me with some respect. I didn't see the lady that treated me so bad, and I got my paperwork filled out. She asked the questions she needed to complete her job, told me to smile if I wanted and took my picture. I thanked her for being so welcoming and making me feel at ease, I told her about the last time I had been there and she apologized to me. Whew, maybe that witch got fired, I sure hope so. Someone on the reviews requested the DPS bring in a private secret shopper to find out how the lady was treating people. Maybe they did that, or maybe they just did their own investigation. Either way, it couldn't have gone better today.
I have to come back tomorrow and address everyone else here. Sorry, too much info and I am tired. Thanks for listening, it's nice to know I can ramble on, lol.
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Good Morning. Oh, Anew, I'm so sorry that you have to deal with this terrible bug problem. Sounds like an awful epidemic in your home. You are sure diligent, of course, you have to be or you'll get eaten alive. I was shocked and dumbfounded to hear that you had them in a roll of paper towels from the store. Yikes, scary to know the general public is at so much risk. I hope your solutions work out for you, AND SOON!!!
Yay that that bad lady is gone from the DPS. So happy that your experience went so much better this time around.
Every morning we have a little feisty squabble right outside the kitchen window. The two female geese are now laying eggs. They each lay every other day and fortunately, each lay alternate days since they both want to use the same nest. But, there's always a commotion as one of them gets settled in while the other one yells at her and then waddles away. The next morning, the same episode goes on, only with role reversals. So funny to watch. Enjoying the eggs.
Speaking of fast food...Granny had told me that Sonic has the best tasting chili dogs, only they are loaded with sodium. I still haven't tried them yet, I haven't found a Sonic around here. I also can't find a Chic-Fil-A here locally either. We are inundated with Golden Corral tv commercials and I finally looked on the internet and again, found nothing locally. There's one in Spokane, clear on the other side of the state. Why do they advertise so much here when there is no place to go? Oh well, John and I decided we are no longer going to go to buffets anyway, we over eat and John doesn't like to carry his own food across the room. He's sure that he will drop something.
Simon drove himself down to his doctor's appointment, which was yesterday, so I'll find out how it went when I talk to Norma today. She did tell me that Simon's daughter is now in the hospital with pneumonia. What is going on with this family??????
Jackson had a T-ball game last night and they had planned to go and then have a family dinner after. I think I'll check Beth's Facebook page, I'm sure she posted photos. Norma said that at the "opening ceremonies" of T-ball last week, Jackson had a helmet that was too big and he looked like a bobble-head. Too cute. Norma said that Hudson is 9 pounds now, just about doubled in weight since his birth. I'll bet he changes daily.
Well, I started this post over an hour ago and keep getting called away. I better just hit the reply button and go refill my mug.0 -
Good morning, I got a few hours sleep (a couple more bites but not as bad as yesterday afternoon) and it's beautiful weather with the shining beautifully. Hubby got up for work as usual this morning and I was in bed at 4:15. I woke up to him standing next to me in the bedroom smiling and giggling, I thought it was at least 5:00 pm and freaked out. I knew I was tired but I didn't expect to sleep all day. It wasn't at all what I thought, he told me it was 8:00 am and that everyone had to go home because that very bad storm we had come through here on Friday night took out half of their computers. He said the guys in the shop can work, but everything in the main offices are down and he took another vacation day. So, another day off and he already started emptying the cabinet beneath the sink.
I told him his household work jeans were in the wash and he said he was ok, he had some he could wear. He also told me he put his work clothes he just took off onto the dryer rack and put our clothes that were on the rack in the dryer in their correct containers. I just woke up and found the jeans in the wash were put in the dryer. I guess he is learning our new protocol and that is a step in the right direction. I will make sure to thank him for the helpful acts to help fight these monsters. I can hear him outside mowing the grass.
Arobed53-Breakfast sounds good and I hope you made it through the weekend to get the leak fixed and fill up with propane. Great news about Granny, I'm glad she is moving forward.
Sannferris-It's good to hear Mochadot is ok, this must have been unnerving to say the least and glad you got the post office issue worked out.
Mygnsac, what a beautiful pink display of flowers. It is so pretty to see spring come forward. We don't get much of that here, it's mostly flatland and lots of wild grasses. I can't grow much because the caterpillers get on everything to devour them, and they are poisonous to touch so I just wind up pulling up most of everything. Sorry your dad is dealing with the acidic food issue, I can't drink coffee because it tears my stomach up. After we got the coffee bar done and set into place I decided to try a couple cups and wound up back at the place I didn't want to be, in the bathroom. So, no more coffee for me, just tea is all I can drink. Hubby is sure enjoying his coffee though and I sure don't mind keeping it all put together for him. I am just sorry our friends can't come over and enjoy it too, they were looking forward to it.
Isyvanek-Sorry you have to deal with Mr. Difficult, it's too bad people can't just get along. Seems my neighbors daughter has a new boyfriend and he is talking to us. Maybe he is our ticket to getting them to understand I am not the bad guy, I just don't want all the things they were doing to us to continue on. I haven't had to call the police in a while so I am hoping they finally got the message.
Our arsenal is quite extensive, we have Fenstar (retreat in 1 week), Cimexa Dust (DE with a lasting chemical to kill, no re-treating, it will stay there for years). Steri-Fab, a knock down product with no residual safe for people and pets when used properly. It will knock them down and is safe for mattresses and is used in hospitals. Then there is the Bedlam Plus also safe for people and pets, it's also a knockdown but it has a residual that is good for 14 days. The double sided carpet tape at each doorway is replaced when it gets too dirty. We have bed and pillow encasements, and homemade interceptors for all the furniture with tons of desire to kill every single one of these monsters. Each item does a specific thing and all are safe for animals if you use it correctly. Some of the bugs are resistant to one chemical and others are resistant to another chemical, so you take a four part approach to get rid of them. Hopefully we can get this under control fast. I do have food grade DE I use in the garden, but I wanted something with a two punch instead of just one.
I don't particularly care for chemicals but I will throw everything that I can for this job because bed bugs are extremely difficult to get rid of. DE is actually not as safe as people think it is, it's quite abrasive and when breathed in it cuts the lungs, and it coats them. So pets that get it in their noses are not very safe. The Cimex is to put into the walls behind electrical outlets and behind picture frames and anywhere else you won't be disturbing it, like the bottom of the box spring before you encase it. You can put it on the carpet under the bed if your animals don't go under there, but you don't want to put it on your wood floors because the air movement will continually kick it up. You also don't want it on your mattress because you will breathe it in each time the bedding is changed.
Sannferris-I hope you can get that inventory done with some ease, I know it will be a push to get John on board though. Glad your mom was sought out to let her know about her friend. Maybe she feels helpless not being able to help things when someone dies. You gave me a much needed laugh when I read about the geese. Can't help but love the general sense that all animals are alike no matter that we all are so different, lol. I can just see one waddling away after yelling, hahaha.
Sonic does have a great chili dog and it sure is loaded with salt, so I don't order them anymore because my feet and hands swell. That is the only fast food I would get around here, a foot long chili dog about every 6 months. It's like having two chili dogs instead of one, lol. I find Sonic food to be very greasy and not any better than a hamburger joint so I just don't go anymore, it also gives me heartburn. Golden Corral is nothing to enjoy either, honestly, it is just a lot of canned and frozen food put out for self serve so you aren't missing anything, I promise. However, I am not one to care for fast food anyway so I could be biased, lol.
Bed bugs are everywhere, here is a dot gov link to read up on. There is so much info on the internet from universities and many other government places. You have to be careful about what you read and how you go about doing things. There are a lot of blogs saying do this and do that, but really, they are not following any kind of known protocol to get rid of them. Some of what they tell people to do is downright dangerous.
https://epa.gov/bedbugs/protecting-yourself-bed-bugs-public-places
Well, I am going to get moving on my day, I'll try to check back in later. Have a great day everyone.0 -
Good morning.
It's a pretty sunny morning. Looks like the rain has passed on. We didn't get much of it yesterday. Just drizzled in the afternoon. It was super windy though.
Yesterday dad bought a dog hammock to use in the back of his car when he takes Cisco somewhere. It attaches to the head rests and keeps him from laying directly on the seat. He wasn't concerned about this with his last two cars, but I guess the new car is different. He sure is enjoying his Forrester. He keeps discovering new features on it. That thing is fully loaded.
Dad is still dealing with the hurt right hand, but the swelling has gone way down. It's still red and kind of hurting, so I keep checking on it. It always worries me when he gets hurt. You just never know when you are on blood thinners. He thinks it will heal up over the next week or two.
One of my co-workers got in a car accident on Sunday. He was driving through Napa and had to swerve to avoid a three-car pile up. He wound up driving into the center guard rail and totaled his car, and his neck is frozen up now. Luckily no one was seriously hurt. His doctor has him staying home while his neck heals.
I had a biscuit and gravy for breakfast this morning and it sure hit the spot! I'm sure it's loaded with way to much sodium though, but it's OK to have once in awhile.
I just noticed that I can no longer use the editing features above (bold, italics, bullets, photo, etc.). When they deployed my new PC at work they gave me a newer version of Firefox, and apparently it's not compatible with those features. It works OK if I use the new versions of Internet Explorer or Chrome though. Weird. I guess I should report the issue to MFP admin, but they have so many other issues they are trying to fix.
I STILL don't have a printer at work. It's going on three weeks now. The ITD guy who's been trying to figure out why my new PC doesn't recognize my printer hasn't been successful. I think he's to the point of having them hook up another printer. My current printer is a color printer that was purchased for me specifically a couple years ago and I hate to lose it. I often need to print documents that include color (charts, images, etc.). I'm currently using an alternate color printer that's located at the other of the floor and it's really inconvenient.
I spent a good chunk of this morning trying to figure out how to remove a password from old .doc files that were created in Word 1997-2003 using Word 2010. That version of word doesn't display the password in the section you use to add/remove passwords. I went online to see if anyone else had the issue, but didn't find anything. I wound up having to remote into my old PC (luckily ITD is keeping it running for me for awhile) and remove the password there. When I came back to my new PC, the document was correctly unprotected. Boy, if I have to do that to all of our protected .doc files, I'm not going to be happy!
Anew, that's great that you had a better experience this time at the DPS. I had to look up "DPS" to see what it stood for. Department of Public Safety. I'm just astounded by everything you are going through with those awful bed bugs. What a battle! That's great that your husband is starting to understand your concerns now. I'm like you. I mostly just stick to what I like to eat when eating out. Every now and then I try something different, but not often.
Have a nice Tuesday everyone.
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Good Morning. Yum, biscuits and gravy is a favorite of mine too. What a treat.
Yuck, trying to readjust to a new computer and the right printer is the pits. Good Luck, Marcie, I'm thinking of you as you do your best to do your work under these circumstances. As you all know, I don't like change, so I'm very sympathetic.
Also, thanks for looking up DPS, I didn't know what it stood for, but was too lazy to find out. I gathered in the context that it was like DMV or DOL (Washington has Dept of Licensing). Took me awhile to get used to that one...I'm a California girl. And, when we first moved up here, we were in Oregon for 7 years and it's DMV across the river.
Today, I have another three month check up with my oncologist. I trust that everything will go smoothly as it has the last 2-3 check-ups and maybe the span between appointments will be lengthened. He said that the next change would be to every 6 months. I don't have the CT scan each time anymore, that changed to 6 month intervals already. Still have blood work monthly though.
I talked to Norma and Simon went on home already. She liked seeing him, but also glad that he didn't stay too long. The procedure to remove the stent from his kidney went well and he's doing great in that regard. But, now, he is fighting an infection in his hand. It's all red and swollen. He thought it was a reaction to the IV from the surgery, but it didn't show up until weeks after the surgery, so it doesn't make sense that that was the cause.
Norma's family dinner Monday night went well and they had fun, only the T-ball got cancelled. Apparently, it was a practice, not a game, and they practice at the school field and the school gates were locked due to Spring Break. Jackson was devastated. There was a game scheduled for last night at the ball park, so Norma was planning on going to that and I'll hear about it later today. I hope they took photos.
We have one of our chickens that looks like she's on her last legs, John is devastated. He wants to pamper her and bring her in the house. I keep telling him that she will be very unhappy stuck in the house, let her live out her days in the backyard where she is comfortable and happy. It's a struggle to make him understand.
I'll try to get John to go with me to my doctor's appointment, otherwise, who knows what I may find when I get home...all the chickens in the house!!!!
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Good morning, the sun is shining and I can hear the birds singing. I like waking up to the birds, it let's you know the world is still spinning round and round. We might get up around the 90's today so it might be a scorcher if the humidity keeps rising.
More bedbug saga(more bites again), yesterday we got the kitchen sink taken care of and hubby took my island out to start painting to finish the job. We put the drawer with all my kitchen tools on my 48" counter that's been cleared by moving things into the coffee bar. I sure did miss the perfect height of that while having to use the regular counter to cut our salad fixings, my shoulder hurts today. He was filling screw holes (the ones that can be seen) with putty last night. We covered both of the master bedroom closets with 6 mil plastic and sealed a Nuvan strip inside. They say within 72 hours any bugs or eggs will be dead. We will be leaving those closed up until we feel for sure we are bug free in the house, this way they have no way to re-establish in them. Although there is no evidence so far that any of the closets have bedbugs. It really does seem to be our room was the infestation area under the bedskirt but they say you can't always see their hiding places. That Nuvan strip is interesting, you put it in closets, sealed plastic bags or bins with things that can't be heat treated like electronics, videos and cd's, etc. They need them to be air tight because the fumigants can't be in your sleeping areas. We noticed about 1 hour after we sealed everything up that the plastic is pulled tight against the closet door and frame. Hubby asked if that stuff removes oxygen, boy I bet it does. We also sealed the hall closet with a strip as well.
Those will come in handy for a lot of things here and I might have hubby put one in the RV just for security sake. For now, we decided we aren't going to enter the RV so we can be sure not to introduce the bugs in there. I had initially told him we could load it up with the stuff that needs treatment and let them all stay in there. He said he doesn't feel comfortable doing that and his question was, what if those strips don't work? They do work, they are proven in the field and they have no residue left on anything when you remove them from treatment with the strips. Just need a couple hours to air out before you go back into the room.
We need to work on the guest bedroom closet (low on masking tape) and I need to go through the makeshift pantry in my dining room. I need to clear everything from the shelves so hubby can get behind there real good with the spray. He already did it from underneath the front but I am not so sure he was able to get to the baseboards. He also has to dust the electrical outlets back there, this will require moving the shelving that isn't on wheels. Hmm, maybe I'll buy some wheels for them at Lowe's, lol. It would make it much easier for me to sweep under them if I could just wheel them out of the way, this is the spot we want to do a built in along the wall. All I know is when this is all said and done our house will be the cleanest it's ever been. Total organization will be really nice to have in here, I haven't had that in at least 10 years, lol. We moved so much stuff into this house that we have boxes we are still going through. This house is much smaller than our last houses, lol.
Mygnsac-My truck still has dog hair in it and our dog went to doggy heaven in 2012, that stuff gets into everything, lol. I don't blame him for wanting to keep the hair off the seat, lol. I sure hope your dads hand gets to feeling better soon and your coworker is ok. Umm, biscuits and gravy, yummy my favorite breakfast, add a chicken fried steak to that and I am in heaven. Oh, computers and printers are not my friends, lol. Sorry you are having so many problems with your new one's at work.
Well, I am going to get my day moving and try to get ahead while I can. Have a nice day everyone.
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As you can tell, another week is speeding by. The bridal shower for Julie was really nice. I had to go early to unlock the church and stay till they left so I got to help set-up and clean-up and it was fun to work with Julie's former roommates. They had muffins, yogurt and fruit to top it for the refreshments. They had a coffee bar with recipes with bridal names. The wedding is one month from today.
I got home about 2, did stuff for Sunday and Sunday came. I taught the SS lesson and turned to the wrong page - good thing the 2 year olds didn't catch on. All the kids were there for dinner but I missed out on the visiting cause I was helping Thomas with his algebra. He stayed and we took him to Bible study. Then he stayed the night and rode in with me in the morning since I was watching Maggie.
Besides watching her, I did some laundry, the dishes and made pumpkin muffins. She wouldn't eat for me but drank her milk down. When Lori got home, I went over to Derek and Lindsey's and watched their kids so got home about 6:30. Leftovers are nice at times like that.
Tuesday was Good News Club. The person bringing the cookies was late so started out with my back-up package. We finished up with Joseph and will start with Paul next week. Today Ralph and I went to get soybean meal (about 1 1/2 hours away). We didn't have to wait in line so no meal out but we with the winds we stopped twice on the way home to use the electrical tape on the mirrors. They were having some problems anyway, but the wind made it worse. Got home and put dinner on and have been plugging away on things. I took my fitbit off for awhile cause with the vibration of the semi, I ended up with steps from just riding. Tomorrow is Ava to speech and a meeting about ear-tagging in the evening.
Sheryl, I'm so glad Mochadot is okay. And now a chicken not doing well. A hard week on John which makes a hard week for you. Did he go with you today? Moving the barkdust sounds like a big job to me.
Marcie, what pretty bushes. My sister was surprised that our two nights that got below freezing didn't kill her daffodils. That would be droopy in the morning but come out of it.
Isabella, your difficult neighbor just continues to be difficult. Glad you can have the HOA to back you up but the process may not be fun. Did you get some good stuff at the Farmer's Market? Taking a day off from decluttering sounds like a good idea. You don't want to burn out. I had this idea to try and get the room I'm working in looking enough better to be able to put the wedding gifts in there until they open them. We'll see if it happens.
Sheryl, I've never had plantains either. Good way to be able to try new things. Sounds like things have slowed down for Norma and Simon - that's a good thing. Neat that she gets to watch the races without have to buy a ticket. It's hard when someone (your mom) doesn't react the way we think they should. Being the last one left is probably a funny feeling. It was so nice of the family to hunt her up.
Anew, glad renewing your license went to much better. Maybe the person who helped you the last time was having a bad day and took it out on you (even if she shouldn't). Sorry the bedbugs are causing conflict in the house. They are a huge problem. One of the people on Shark Tank had a product called Wondercide and they quoted it as very effective on bedbugs. I was curious if you ran across it in all your reading. Sorry you are still getting bitten. Yay on more progress on the kitchen island and bummer that you can't enjoy the coffee bar but I hope you keep your tea there too. Slowly, it sounds like your hubby is using some of his vacation days. Sounds like he gets a lot done when he's home.
Marcie, can you add tomatoes when you fix your beans for the day. Nice of you to make it so your dad can enjoy them too. Chick-fil-a is good in my book. That's our nice fast food place so we don't go there often. I love their waffle fries. But I like Arby's waffle fries too.
Dog hammock sounds like a good way to keep the car cleaner and Cicso in one spot too. Hope he enjoys it. Yum on the biscuits and gravy. When I was getting stuff out for Good News Club yesterday I noticed a box with some food left from a town event. I emailed the town secretary about it cause it will need to be tossed. I'm sure they were going to let it cool a bit and forgot about it. It still looked okay but I wouldn't eat it.
Bummer that it has to be so much work to get everything to work together with the computer, printer, etc. It would make everything take that much longer. That's why I hope my computer hold up a long time.
Have a good evening everybody.
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Good early am, I can't sleep because I am getting eaten alive again and it's 2:20 am as I type here. I did manage to kill one but I can't find the others that are biting so they must be the baby nymphs going to town. Our friends arrived today(yesterday afternoon) and we had dinner with them last night at our favorite mexican restaurant. We haven't had dinner together there in at least three years and it was nice to catch up in our favorite place. I am just saddened they couldn't stay here with us this time. They will be back in July so hopefully this bedbug issue will be taken care of by then. Good Friday is a holiday for hubby making it possible to have breakfast with them before they take off. They are headed to the Houston area for a few days to see family there. I'll be having that chicken fried steak with biscuits and gravy, uh huh, yummy.
Hubby worked until 6:00 last night and will probably have to do the same today since he only has the two days working this week, work piled up while he had the two days off. Tonight I put the first coat of paint on the outside of the kitchen island. Hopefully it will be back in the kitchen by the end of next week.
Sannferris-It looks like you posted at the same time I was typing my last post so I missed yours yesterday. I hope your oncology appt went well yesterday and I hope your beloved chicken doesn't suffer long. My kitty is starting to act strange, I don't know if it's because of all the treatments going on in the house but if she doesn't get back to normal I will have to take her to the vet. We lock her away in the bathroom and we ventilate the house while treating but maybe it is still getting to her. I'll keep a good eye on her in the meantime.
Arobed-It sounds like your busy week has enabled you to get a few things done. I hadn't heard about wondercide until after we started treatment. I also saw the rerun of Shark Tank on wondercide last week. I don't know if I could use it, I am allergic to cedar so I don't think I would take a chance on it here. It does look promising for those who can use it though.
Well, it looks like I am starting to close my eyes so I am going to try again. Goodnight everyone, I hope you all have a great day today.
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