Pot Bellied Stove / Water Cooler
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Good Morning. I received an email from Sue last night...
Hello from the hospital!
I'm doing great! My surgery took about two hours. I took three steps and am sitting up in a chair. I had a wonderful yummy dinner. I am really feeling great. It could be [is] the drugs talking. But I am truly doing so well, I'm wondering why I worried so much.
Thank you again for the positive thought energy and prayers. Keep them coming. I have a long recovery ahead of me, but am feeling really good about being on the other side of the surgery.
Love & Hugs my friend,
~S
This is wonderful news, I knew she'd be a good candidate for the surgery, she has a great positive attitude.
John had a fit yesterday because some the letters have rubbed off of this keyboard and he can't remember what letters should be where, so he can't "touch type". I have a fine point Magic Marker that's metallic color and I'm wondering if I can fill in the missing parts or if I'll just make the situation worse. I could always buy a new keyboard, but that change may also be worse for John. All I need to do is add to a few letters, turn the E back into E and not look like an F, make the R not look like a P, fix the O so it is a complete circle, touch up the H and the N and the T. I'll think on that this morning while I sip my coffee.
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Good morning everyone, we have had beautiful weather this week. The first few days were quite cool but still crisp and clear, then yesterday and today are in the low 70's. So nice! I took the tablecloths I "decluttered" to my bible study and several ladies took some and were happy to have them. Made me happy.
This evening we are getting together for dinner with a couple, Jackie and Ken, that we really like but don't see often enough because they are very busy. Just before Christmas they spent 3 weeks at a villa in the wine country of Tuscany so we are very much looking forward to seeing their pics and hearing all about their vacation so I can live vicariously thru them.
Sheryl, glad you and Norma felt like princesses (you are!).
You look so cute together. Really enjoyed the pics of everything and everyone. I agree that they had an amazing turnout. Also surprising that she had so many relatives come out from PA. They probably wanted to escape the weather! The water heater story is pretty crazy! I didn't realize that you are in a mobile home. I would imagine things would be a peculiar size. Items cost more when they are an odd size also. So glad that you decided to meet your friends at a restaurant instead of not seeing them. Hope John decided to go with you. My heart really goes out to you with John. I will pray Ephesians 3:14-21 for you. I think you should try to re-do the letters on the keyboard first (maybe even find a white paint pen at Michael's or even a "white out" pen or something). If that doesn't work I don't think keyboards have changed much and you would probably be fine with a new one. You just have to make sure what type of "end" you get to plug onto the PC, whether it is USB or whatever (round or oblong) - as if I know what I am talking about! You mentioned a while back about writing out some scripture. The verse I mentioned above would be a good one. Then you can insert your name or someone else and pray the verse specifically for them.
Anew, the new emersion blender sounds amazing. I bet you use it a lot. My friend Teri did pay for the phone up front and doesn't want the money back if she doesn't keep it. I called her after her phone was fixed and she agreed to think about it and see if she can handle it next time I see her. So that is good news. I know what you mean about being stuck with the costs though. I have had that happen to me in the past many times. Did you buy the frame for the full bed new? You were really smart not to take any chances on the water - it doesn't matter that the city said you were safe. There is way too much of that not being able to drink the water going on in parts of the US these days. That is NOT good! I am so happy to hear that you have been getting some good sleep. The book you are putting together of recipes, shopping lists, and meal plans sounds great. It is a lot of set up work but well worth it when you are done. Interesting that you like word. I really like the excel program. It seems more easily manipulated to me and I like being able to print out the grid lines so everything is sectioned off but it all depends on what you are used to.
Marcie, the "brain teaser" was interesting. My husband said immediately that it was the way they worded the problem and that you had to subtract not add. He went to great lengths to explain it to me. Hope you are enjoying the nice change in the weather as much as I am.
Debora, good job decluttering the stuff you brought to Lori. Sounds like you got rid of stuff taking up a lot of room. I bet that felt good. Sorry to hear about the gum disease. I know dental stuff is not cheap but they say that a lot of chronic illnesses stem from gum disease so it is worth it to get a handle on it. Many of my friends have electric toothbrushes and they say it really helps. Hope you do OK with the deep cleaning and get it all under control without too much pain and cost.
Well, hubby wants to go declutter something in the garage - maybe fertilizers and pesticide type stuff. I'd better get going if I have any hope of sitting outside and enjoying this beautiful day at all. Have a wonderful day!0 -
Hi, the days always zoom by. I did load up my car with stuff for Lori. I took the three riding toys by the daycare and unloaded the rest at home. I got her dishes caught up, folded some laundry, matched a few socks, got some pizza for them, took some and headed home. Lori didn't get off work till 6:15 so have pizza ready was great for eating and getting to church by 7. Pastor was gone so one of the church board members lead the meeting and brought out some interesting things on Elijah.
Thursday was a lot of going. I took Ava to speech and then went by a 4-Her's house and took care of some little things. The afternoon was Willing Workers. Our speaker was sick but she had given her notes to her sister-in-law and she did great at sharing. We mainly worked on Wordless book bracelets again. Then I had 4-H Council in the evening. That meeting ended up being only 15 minutes long but I had an hour before that to meet with Julie and discuss wedding stuff. It was good making sure we were on the same page. Ralph went to a Conservation Dinner in the evening so we both had supper taken care of.
Friday morning was my regular run to town. I made it home by noon. In the afternoon, I got the house straightened up and sliced olives and cut up an onion for Sunday. Today Ralph went to the DAV book sale - got 4 boxes - think he said about 130 books. When he got home, I left to get Julie and we went to a fitting for her wedding dress. She'll be a pretty bride - more bling that I like but it suits her. We got done and headed back to meet Matthew and they went to a birthday party for a two year old - the daughter of the girl Matthew dated before Julie. They managed to keep their friendship which is good.
Tomorrow is Sunday and Lori and Alan's will both be here. I'm having Mexican haystacks which someone said is kind of like the stuff they have at Chipotle's. I wasn't going to use avacados but the fruit/vegetable guy pointed out that they were $.47 each. We'll just cut them up when we get home from church while the rice is cooking.
Monday is 4-H so you know what I'll be doing that day. I'm trying to work on a couple of things for the new families today so will have a bit less to do but I'm procrastinating well. Oh yeah, I scrubbed on one wall of the back shower today. Need to work on it more often but so it goes.
Marcie, we're having your weather now - low in 30s and up to almost 50. Really nice days. We'll see how long it lasts. Logan's Roadhouse is a interesting place to go. I have a hard time putting my peanut shells on the floor too. I think your dad enjoyed doing it.
Anew, glad the sleeping continues to go well. Yes, tornadoes are unexpected but I guess it's all in what you are used too. I've seen them but have never had one get too close. Your coffee bar sounds really fancy. It's coming together nicely. Hope the water situation is resolved soon.
Sheryl, you see the challenges coming with John and sound ready to face them. Sorry the friends couldn't stop but glad you're were going to eat with them on the way back. Did John go? Blue Apron is sure working well for you. Love hearing what you make.
Glad to hear Sue's surgery went well. Can't keep a good woman down. About the only person I know who had big problems is my friend who had hers done in Africa. But infections happen everywhere.
What a wonderful elegant meal you had at the wedding. What fun memories.
Oh my, what a water heater story. Hope you don't have to replace one again even if this one does fit.
Hope Norma and Simon have a good superbowl party with your mom. Good moods make everyone feel better.
That's a great idea to fix the letters on the keyboard. I might try that with mine. The m and n are the two worst and it's not fun. Did the haircut and beard trip happen? We need to get a haircut done here too.
Marcie, did you keep Cisco out of your room? I did not watch Grease. We weren't home but had two other shows I was taping. Lori asked if I would tape it. I've never seen Grease so it didn't pull me.
Isabella, I hope the garage decluttering went well and you have a nice evening with your friends.
We've eaten, so need to do those dishes so ready for tomorrow. Want to look at wedding invites online too. I learned they aren't having them designed (I'm sure what I was willing to pay nixed that) but need to get something done soon. I checked more books on wedding planning. Julie and Matthew have done a lot but guess I better make sure nothing gets missed. They said they are both going to concentrate on their houses the next two months - try to declutter and Julie needs to pack things up so I might get to help her some too.
Will pop back in when it works out.
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Good morning ladies, we had a really nice time last night with our friends. We went to a Thai restaurant. They insisted on paying since my birthday is 10 days away. That was really nice. Their pictures from Italy were absolutely amazing! They had a really special time there and it was so nice to share in the memories. They took a lot of the pictures with their cell phones. I can't believe the quality of pictures a cell phone can take now! Plus they have amazing equipment at home - TV, etc. - (Ken is quite the tech savvy guy) that really brought the pictures alive. We also shared a nice bottle of wine. Got home around 11pm, watched a quick half hour comedy "Fresh off the Boat" to unwind and went to bed.
Debora, Decluttering the garage went well. I got rid of most of my stuff in there. Only kept a few Christmas ornaments. Now the rest is up to Dan to go thru at his leisure and decide what he wants to keep - mostly tools and screws and stuff - you know, man stuff.
Not much planned for today. Church of course then the usual grocery shopping. I plan to make lasagna for Valentine's day since I didn't get a chance to make it for Christmas. I will probably buy most of the stuff this week and buy the meats next week. I will look forward to getting home so I can sit in the sun and read for a while. It was really nice yesterday. Have a wonderful day and a blessed week everyone!0 -
Good Morning. I went to get the metallic ink marker and can't find them. I found the empty package that has space for two markers, but the pens are not there in the desk drawer. I'll look around a little more, but the easiest thing will be to buy a new one. These are many years old anyway and may be dried up, or possibly thrown away and I don't remember, but why is the package still sitting in the drawer? Talk about needing to declutter!!!!!!
Lunch and visit yesterday was terrific. John did not go with me, he talked about going Friday night and I thought he would, but Saturday morning he "bailed". Actually, we talked a lot about him and that would not have happened if he were sitting there. They are dealing with the same dementia situation, they have Marilyn's mom living with them and Millie is much more advanced in the disease. I can learn a lot from them, even though everybody's different, there still are a lot of similarities. They hadn't been able to get away for years, but recently called upon hospice which has been a God sent. Millie is not at the end of her life, but hospice now has so many different services that help immensely for caregivers. They shared with me some things that I'm sure I will be facing in the future with John. With these friends, as well as Nancy, we are all dealing with many of the same problems and sharing with each other really helps. They said that they were told NOT to give too much advance notice of a visit or event. It's the anticipation that aggravates and next time, I'll just have them come over and act like it's a spur of the moment visit. However, it's hard for them to get away, so we will not be able to visit for a very long time.
Carol and I are getting together for lunch a week from Wednesday and I'm already looking forward to it. Talk about planning ahead. I want to call Billie and Kit too and plan to see them this month. I told them I'd call after my CA weekend.
I did not watch Grease either. (I was in CA, but even if home, I doubt I would have watched). I have not seen the movie all the way through. I had caught the end of the movie years ago on tv and was super disappointed that she changed instead of the boy changing for her. So, that turned me off from watching the whole thing. Oops, spoiler alert, I hope I didn't just ruin it for somebody else. Except for Debora's comment, I assume everyone else has seen it. Sorry Debora.
We are to have dry weather all this week, give the rain water time to absorb into the ground. We are so saturated, but I need to give them several more days to dredge that ditch before I call the environmental agency again. Maybe, with good weather, they'll get to the job.
Time to refill my mug
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Good morning everyone, the sun is shining and it's 62 degrees outside. It looks like another beautiful day here to enjoy. I've been doing good on sleeping until last night, I had a hard time staying in bed but I just kept going back and was able to get a few hours sleep. We have no update on the water situation as of yet, I believe they are waiting on new test results. I had my hair cut on Friday and love it, this gal is doing a great job on my hair and hubby likes it too. That's a good sign when hubby says, "wow, your hair looks great!"
The little coffee bar is coming along, hubby has the whole carcass built and now we are deciding the height of the slide out shelves to allow for a deep drawer.
It sounds like a lot of de-cluttering is happening around here, I have done some in the guest room/office and hubby has done a lot there. He has scanned and saved about 2000 documents and shredded the paper ones. That takes away boxes of important papers, we still have many more to scan but it will be nice to have the boxes cleared.
Have a great day everyone, I'll try to come back later today.
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Good Morning. Wow, I slept in this morning, just got up 1/2 hour ago, and fell asleep earlier last night, however, did not sleep all through the night, kept waking up and throwing off the blankets to cool down, then pulling the blankets back up and fall asleep again. Happened more often than usual, almost every hour. Weird, I'll be tired today, but have no plans, so can take a nap if I need to.
Mom sounded good yesterday, I called at 2pm and Norma and Simon hadn't arrived yet. I'm sure they enjoyed the game together. John watched the game, but, like I said, I went on to bed early.
Just not much to say this morning, I'll make a fresh pot of coffee and try to check back later.0 -
Good morning.
I'm so glad the Super Bowl is done. Now maybe they can stop the football talk on the radio stations I listen to. I watched maybe a minute or so of the game yesterday, then switched over to the Puppy Bowl on the Animal Channel. Watched that for about 10 minutes and then called it day on Bowls. I was surprised Dad didn't watch much of the Super Bowl. He only stuck with it for about 10 minutes. He used to be an avid football watcher, but as he's aged he watches less and less of it.
The weather the last few days has been just gorgeous. We even got up to 70 degrees yesterday. Dad took advantage and opened all the windows in the house and turned on the whole house fan to air out the house. Felt so good.
Dad had another Group On Coupon for Logan's Roadhouse, so we went there again on Saturday. We went for lunch this time and both had the french dip and fries. He paid for the coupon, so I paid for the meal. I got the better deal! The total came to $28 and after using the $25 coupon, the bill came to $3 and I left a $5 tip. So I only paid $8.
Stopped at Buba's Car Wash on Saturday, and boy was place busy. Everybody was taking advantage of the mild weather and getting their cars washed. If my car wasn't so dirty I would have passed on it, but it was really in need of a washing.
Dad went to pull down the blinds in his bedroom last night and they came crashing down. They must have come unhinged. He'll work on getting them reinstalled today. Hopefully they aren't broken. He doesn't remember them falling down though. Thought maybe I did it! Nope, wasn't me. I told him to blame the dog.
Just as I was leaving for work this morning Simon, my cat, decided to get sick and throw up his breakfast. Cleaning up throw up is such a special way to start the day! Ugh.
The commute to work this morning was slower than normal. The usual slow downs on the freeway, but the surface streets were bad too for some reason. I hit every light on red and had to sit through 2-3 light cycles at most of them. Ugh again!
Back to work. Have a lovely day everyone.
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What an absolutely gorgeous day and I'm staying inside, what's wrong with me!!!!
John and I both are exceptionally tired today, I'm not sure why but we both have been sitting in our big comfy chairs and napping. John is actually asleep again right now.
We always have a beautiful week in February every year and I think this is our week. I remember when I did yard work for others, I'd always prune roses in February and then hope that we didn't have a late frost in March. But, when I didn't do that job in February, I'd get so busy mowing in the Spring that the roses would get way out of hand by the time I had time to prune them back and sometimes would have to cut off blooms.
Isabella, thank you for that scripture passage. I read it yesterday and then again, plus, wrote it out this morning. I will reread it often and take it to heart. And, read and write more passages.
Time to get back to taxes, got the partnership done and almost done with my individual 1040. The biggest one is John's, I always leave that til last.
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Good morning everyone, it's a gorgeous day out today at around 70 degrees and sunny. Our city updated the water situation and say it is "Safe' to drink for everyone now. Whew, that was a scary few days even when you don't drink the water normally. I saw the doctor yesterday to get a new referral for my Rheumatology appointments and stopped in at hobby lobby to take a look around. I found a food safe, thick walled glass container to make mayo and my immersion blender fits inside perfectly. It's really like a candy jar with a lid except there isn't a seal and it's very thick walled. Tonight we're having leek and potato soup so I get to try out the new immersion blender on it, I sure miss having this soup. I did use it to whip up some light and fluffy scrambled eggs using the mixer attachment on Sunday and the texture was great.
Hubby told me a package was coming but I couldn't open it and said it's for valentines day. Hmm, I never open his packages and he didn't say we were doing anything for valentines this year, we usually just get each other a card and I either cook something nice or we go out somewhere. I guess I need to shop now except I don't know what to get the man who has everything he needs, lol. I did buy him a choice ribeye steak to grill for him, I know that will make him very happy. Finally, I need to get the guest/office room toward better completion because our Arizona friends are coming for a four day visit in March. I can't wait to see them again and this time to host them here, I sure hope they like my food, they can be quite picky on what they eat, lol. I know they liked the leek and potato soup with a tuna stuffed tomato I made for lunch last time they were here, so I am going to repeat that one but it was only a lunch meal, haha.
Sannferris-I'm happy your lunch went well and the surprise John element sounds great, I hope it works for you on other things too. Maybe just wake up and say let's go out today.
Mygnsac-I don't care for the super bowl and I did watch a few minutes of kitten bowl but just went on about my day instead. Sounds like you had a bad start to your day, I hope you have some improvement.
Have a great day everyone!
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Hello all.
Looks like we are all having beautiful weather right now. Here's our forecast through Saturday. Lot's of pretty weather to look forward to (minus the fog tomorrow morning!).
I've been drinking like a fish today. Probably too much sodium yesterday. I'm watching it more closely today. I did get a cup of the soup of the day at the Grille downstairs (tomato bisque), but only ate half, so not too bad on the sodium.
Dad and Cisco took advantage of the nice weather yesterday and went to the dog park. I think October was the last time they went. Cisco had fun smelling all the smells out there. The small dog park where they go has a weight limit of 20 pounds for the dogs allowed in. Dad weighed Cisco yesterday morning and he's up to 20.4 pounds. Luckily they don't have a scale at the dog park! That dog needs to go on a diet and lose about 5 pounds. We've stopped giving him people food, but he still sneaks the cat food when we aren't looking!
Anew, that's great that your friends are coming next month. Do you have a lot more to do on the spare bedroom? I was born in Arizona, but we move to CA in 1969 when I was four years old. Leek and potato soup with a tuna stuffed tomato sounds super yummy! Hmmm, I wonder what hubby got you?! What a nice surprise.
Sheryl, same here about February. There always a nice weather week before it turns back into winter. I hope you and John are feeling more peppy today. Still, it's nice to curl up in a comfy chair and just chill.
Bye, and have nice evening everyone.
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Good Morning.
I wouldn't mind some potato/leek soup and a tuna stuffed tomato, sounds delicious! The perfect lunch.
I was gone several hours yesterday. Had a quick doctor's appointment and planned to run errands and tried to get John to go with me, but he refused. So, since he was not with me, I took the opportunity to stop in at a brand new H&R Block office. It's gorgeous, it's the Premium office that services businesses and more complicated returns. I got the tour of the place and each employee raved that the highlight of the move is the large parking lot and the nice restrooms. They used to be adjacent to the downtown Main office, obviously, no parking and the restroom was a "hole in the wall" behind the cluttered storage room. But now, they are in a brand new building closer to my side of town. It was wonderful to visit with some old friends. I will be planning a visit with my old office next month. February is a very busy time for taxes, but March is almost dead, so that's the better time to get together for lunch, more preparers can be out of the office at the same time.
Fred Meyer had rib eye steaks on sale and with this gorgeous weather, I wanted to grill outside. But, I visited way too long and got home later than I expected, so I'll BBQ today. Rain shouldn't arrive back again until tomorrow night.
I think that I mentioned that our front deck is rotting away. I plan to get some estimates to rebuild it. I took measurements and photos and will do a little adjusting for the new one. Instead of steps, I'd like to have a ramp and there's plenty of room for a ramp between the deck and the driveway. And then, I'd like to have steps on the opposite end of the deck, so it's easier to get to the other side of the front yard instead of having to walk around the deck. Also, I'd like the composite (plastic) instead of wood for easier maintenance. I may completely change my mind once I start getting prices. This is a project that I know I have to have hired out, John and I can not do this one. But, it needs to be done before someone falls through the rotten wood and breaks a leg, that would be a much bigger expense.
I kept putting it off because I didn't want to spend a lot of money on this old mobile home, but, it's obvious to me now that it will be too difficult on John to remove this house and bring in a new one, so some repairs have to be made. We need a new roof too. This is a 1980 double wide, really very nice for what it is, but really showing it's age now.
Today, I get my next Blue Apron box of three meals, this week sounds a bit exotic, Lebanese lamb and Mexican spice salmon. The chicken meal sounds more ordinary. However, today I will grill the rib eyes and bake potato and steam asparagus.
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Good afternoon everyone, I just woke up, it's 12:48 pm Ugh, half the day is gone. I'm having leftover leek and potato soup for breakfast and it sure is good, it's always better next day. I was going to freeze a quart but decided I missed it so much I wasn't going to make myself wait for seconds. The immersion blender did a fantastic job on it, it's so creamy without the potatoes turned to gum like the vitamix does. I wish we could all get together, I'd make a huge pot of soup and stuff tons of tomatoes for you all, lol. Dinner today is pork chops with apples and onions and a side of broccoli, hubby likes his pork chops this way.
Isyvanek-I forgot to answer regarding the bed frame. I did not buy it new, new ones are close to $100 dollars here and they either have wheels or they don't. The one I found has rollers on it which are wider than the skinny wheels and one of them locks. I thought the rollers would be better for the laminate floor hubby put in that room. This frame also adjusts up to a queen size from full size so it could be used later on a larger bed if we wanted. Although it was used it does look brand new, even the rollers were clean and I only paid $30, win win.
Mygnsac-I have decor, a head board to build, nightstands to build and we need to figure out what to do with all the office equipment that is willy nilly throughout one side of the room. We have three printers (sounds weird) that all do something different. One is a black laser printer (it's wireless so it's on the top of the dresser) and one prints black and color but uses all the color to make the black, this is why we bought the black laser printer to save money on color ink (this one sits on the desk and the last one I have is a flatbed scanner and color printer for photos (it sits on the small rolling filing cabinet). We have a Neat Desk that sits next to the desk and the internet modem sits on top of the desk. I want to streamline it somehow to make it look more organized than to look like such a jumbled mess. Building the furniture and setting up the decor can wait. I think I am more focused on getting the office stuff organized so it looks better in there when they come. They know I'm combining rooms and that isn't a problem for them anyway, it's my worry because I think it looks so unorganized, lol.
Oh, and I wonder too what hubby got me but I don't know what to do for him, he just sprung this on me so I'm kind of out of sorts because I didn't know we had plans. Ugh! I am stumped and I have no time to order anything and have it delivered on time for Friday. I'll be honest, although I appreciate his proactive thoughts (he usually doesn't do anything proactive), I wish I had prior knowledge he was doing it. We have valentines day, both our birthdays and our wedding anniversary all within a span of two months so we had decided years ago we would do one big thing each year to celebrate all of it.
I guess he forgot.
Sannferris-Sounds like you had a great day yesterday, I was wondering what your ribeye cost there in your area? The ones I was able to get were "choice ribeye steaks" and it was $10.47 per pound and only in cryo-vac. I was lucky, I had what they call a basket Q the store emailed me for $5 off $20 meat dept purchase that brought the cost down for me. Of course hubby got a steak at least half as big larger than mine because when we go out once every three years or so for steak, he gets a big steak. I try to get the smallest one I can find on the menu and still only consume half of it. Your deck ideas sound great, lots more functional than what you have now. If you can somehow afford to use that composite wood I would encourage it because it will last for much longer than the regular wood will. I took a quick trip to Craigslist for Portland and found this ad I'll link to. Maybe you can find out what they charge for these boards, maybe they give a discount dependent on how much you buy. I wonder if the manufacturer warranty is in effect if you purchase from someone off of Craigslist and not an actual dealer of the product though.
https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/mad/5420111174.html
And then there is this comparison between regular wood decking and composite. I don't know how old this is but it sure gives some thought as to whether the composite decking is actually worth having or not. You might want to do more research on the brand that is available to you. I have always heard such good things about composite decking, I don't think I would go that route after reading this link.
landscaping.about.com/b/2006/11/14/deck-materials-wood-decks-vs-composite-decks.htm
and for less searching sake for you, here is the actual search on Craigslist, I see a lot of wood decking choices available. Of course I don't know how far these places are from you.
https://portland.craigslist.org/search/maa?is_paid=all&search_distance_type=mi&query=decking
Well, it's about 70 degrees and a beautiful sunny day so I think I will get myself moving, I hope you all have a great day today.
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Running too much. Had a committee meeting today. Went through stuff in out "closet" at church and enjoyed brunch together (each brought a part) while we planned work for future meetings. Then I took stuff to town to where it belongs, went to the thrift store, stopped at Dress Barn and a stop at Walmart. Came home, did the dishes, made some phone calls, ate supper and to church. Ralph is taking Ava to speech in the morning so I can go watch Lindsey's boys (so she only has three to take to the dentist). Alan just called to see if I would babysit in the afternoon for his 4 so he can go to an appointment with Katie and then they want to shop and eat out so I will leave for Bible study and Ralph will watch the kids for a bit (hope that goes okay). So no time write my long ones.
Anew, ribeyes are on sale here for $6.99 a lb but I'm doing pork tenderloin on Sunday. We have Date Night at church that night so that will be fun. Church board is in charge.
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Good Morning. Wow, thanks Anew, I've just changed my mind about composite. I thought the extra money would be worth it for "maintenance free", but since it's not, why pay more?? I have a lot to think about. There are two very reputable fence and deck builders here in Clark County and I've dealt with both of them for fencing materials, so I'll check with them first. I don't want to do any of this project myself, except tearing apart the old deck, so I don't think I'll buy materials off Craigslist, but thanks for the info anyway. Canby Oregon is about 50 miles south of me.
I paid $5.88 per pound for the steaks. I have already thrown away the wrapping, so I don't know for sure if that was labeled choice or not. I figured that beef is so plentiful in Texas, I am so surprised that you had to pay so much. I picture Texans eating big steaks all the time for a fraction of the cost.
Speaking of surprise gifts for Valentine's, (which John and I do not exchange gifts for holidays, so I don't have to go shopping at all), but Norma told me yesterday that Simon mentioned that he thought he should buy her a ring, since they are "somewhat going steady". She squashed that idea immediately. She said she was not ready for, nor wanted, that type of gift. She bought him a card and that's it. We'll see what he ends up doing. He is pushing this relationship along and she's trying to slow it down. She has both Friday and Monday off work, so they are going to the coast for the long weekend. And spending Valentine's Day together. Saturday, they will be with his family for his grandson's first birthday party. He apologized that it will be right in the middle of their romantic weekend...actually, she is grateful, she doesn't want this to go too far, too fast. She told him that he has gone to lots of her family functions, she's glad to go to some of his now too.
When I was out on Tuesday, I bought a new metallic marker and fixed the letters on this keyboard. Worked out great except that I no longer have a steady hand and John thinks the O looks like a Q, there's a thick spot of the marker where the tail would be. I wish I could have gotten a thinner point marker and made the O a perfect circle. Oh well, it's better than it was before.
John had a bad day yesterday, just moody and pouty all day long. Poop! I hope he wakes up in a better mood today. If he does, I'll probably ruin it by suggesting the haircut and beard trim. We never did get to that yet and he desperately needs it. I may have to force the issue today.
I'll get myself a refill in my mug and build myself up for the "confrontation".0 -
Good morning.
Weather's going to beautiful again today. Perfect walking weather. I'm may go for a long walk at lunch time today.
I met with the boss Tuesday and she tells me she's putting me on a two month project starting next Tuesday (our office is closed Monday for the holiday). We'll be farming out most of my usual duties to other analysts while I'm on that project. The good news is I get to work with my old boss (the one with Lupus who works two days a week). It's been a long time since I've had an opportunity to work with her.
Anew, I totally get having so much office equipment. My house is packed with the stuff. You should see my Dad's office. I shudder clutter every time I go in there.
Sheryl, good luck with the deck project. Also, what a great idea to install a ramp. I read the article Anew left you. Lots of negative reviews for the composite decking, but it is a year old. Maybe they've improved the product by now, or not. Warping and molding would not be good. Sorry John was moody yesterday. Hopefully today will be a better day for him. I hope the confrontation goes well and agrees to the hair and beard trim.
Debora, busy, busy, busy as usual! What fun to have date night at church on Valentines Day!
Have a great day everyone! 0 -
Good afternoon all, it's about 72 degrees and a beautiful sunny day today, I am happy with that.
I think I have mentioned before that I couldn't get my kitchen sink cleaned no matter what I tried? It's stainless steel and it had this brown coating on it I think from years of abuse and not being properly cared for. I finally bought some green sand/clay cleaner and it cleaned a lot of it up but that sticky feeling was still on the metal and the drain ring and inside area would not come clean for the life of me. It was still quite brown on the top ring and inside the drain area was extremely brown. Well, in steps this stuff called Bio Cleaner from France. It's a clay product that activates with water, just get the sponge wet and rub onto the clay slab, add water to the surface you are cleaning and start rubbing. After more than three years of living in this house staring at a sink I didn't like touching and avoided touching with my bare hands, I am quite pleased to touch it. It's clean, all the way through with no more sticky and no more brown tint that feels like suede leather when you rub on it. That sink is polished and shiny, I told my husband yesterday that I am finally happy with my sink, lol. He was amazed too at how clean it is, the first thing he said was "wow, it didn't just clean it, it polished it!". Now I can put a clean dish in it to wait for a rinse cycle, yay!
The kicker is the bathrooms have been really hard to get clean too. I'm telling you these people did not take care of this house in the cleaning dept, the soap scum on the showers are as thick as thieves and I can't get that stuff off either. I have tried everything on these plastic showers and nothing worked, well until Bio Clean, lol. I tried an area in the worst shower which happens to be ours, and am amazed it is smooth as all get out in that area. It's actually clean and that cleaner just grabbed it and took it away with some scrubbing of course. It's going to take some time to get the entire shower clean with all my injury but I'll do it a small bit at a time each day. Eventually I will have two clean showers. I think they smoked in this house, there are yellow tinges embedded in the fake marble counter tops and sinks in each bathroom and I can't get that off. There are also some burn marks on each counter space. Even the Bio Clean won't take off the yellow tinge so I have to live with it until we tackle the bathroom remodels down the road (a very long road).
Sannferris-I'm glad I could get you that link, I had always heard so much good about composite but I knew it was expensive. Always saying maintenance free, that is what got me was all the work people have to put into it. Cleaning is one thing but all that other stuff for maintenance seems no better than a wood deck in the maintenance dept as far as I can tell. I wish I had all those wood products available to me in this area but we don't. See I am in what they call the end of the states here, I can go about 2-3 hours south and be in Mexico, but the Gulf of Mexico is only 5 miles away so there is nowhere else to go. Everything here costs more because we have to pay for the shipping from San Antonio about 125 miles north, or Houston about 4 hours East. Everyone thinks what they have here is gold, even Craigslist listings. I am thankful for a quality wood supplier about 45 miles away that delivers to us free of charge. They come to our area at least twice per week so they deliver when they are in town. We pay around $42 for a good sheet of 3/4" birch plywood, but it's usually got a nice face on it and that makes it worth it. Sorry John is having such a hard time. Would taking a photo of him after a haircut and beard trim help to show him how nice he looks the next time he needs grooming? I was just thinking a reminder of how he looks in the mirror after a haircut and beard trim. Geez, your food prices are amazing. I can't believe you bought ribeye for that price.
Mygnsac-It sounds like you will enjoy your special project, it's always nice to work with someone you enjoy being around. Haha, yeah my husband is a tech freak and we have boxes of stuff taking up space in there too. I have a few more boxes to go through so I can get them out of that room since they are sitting right next to the bed where a nightstand should be. His book collection and tech stuff is part of those boxes, he keeps saying he needs to go through them and get rid of most of it, but hasn't done that yet. He is just so busy with everything else that I try not to push things like that on him. Oh and I did find something for him for valentines day but it won't be here in time. The guy who has everything he needs doesn't really have it all, lol. While joining boards together he struggles with making it all square. I found him some squaring tools that will hold each piece of wood straight up and down and join two pieces at a 45 degree angle. These will leave his hands available to add glue and screws to put each project together. He will be extremely happy to use these when he builds the nightstands and the kitchen and bathroom cabinets we have planned. I think I will be able to help in that department too, so win win.
Arobed-You are still so busy, I don't know how you just keep right on going. Your ribeye prices are amazing too. Yes, we produce a lot of the meat but we don't get to enjoy it. Just like fuel, we produce a lot of it but most of it is shipped everywhere else and we pay a goodly amount for what should be pennies here. We are average to most places but I do remember paying over $4 per gallon on regular fuel a couple of years ago. I think Diesel was almost $5 per gallon at that time too. Right now regular is averaging $1.54 per gallon and Diesel is averaging $1.84 per gallon. We filled my truck up last week for around $30 and I can remember it costing us around $60 when it was very high priced. Don't even get me started on filling my husbands diesel truck, aye aye aye.
Well, time to get moving the day is not getting any younger. I hope you all have a great day today!
I had to come back and ask everyone, what do you pay per pound for beef brisket? Here it's around $5 per pound raw and $11.98 per pound if you buy it pre-smoked with Mesquite. It used to be a throwaway meat, but now it's coveted by all the BBQ shops and backyard chefs. I don't buy it because we don't eat a lot of beef, I just wondered what everyone pays since our ribeye is so high in price.
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OOh, had to come back and tell you all about the sandwiches I just made for dinner. Remember that recipe from Central Market I posted called Grilled Irish Cheddar, Honey Bacon & Tomato Sandwich?
Okay so this time I made it with Kaiser rolls from the grocery bakery, I used Havarti cheese and instead of spinach I used some steamed asparagus spears on it. The cheese melted really well and was the perfect flavor for the sandwich, yummy and I'll definitely be repeating this meal again. I served it with the tomato cucumber salad with an olive oil and red wine vinegar dressing. Hubby asked for a second sandwich sans the asparagus, he didn't care for it although he likes asparagus roasted in the oven, lol.
I'll come back tomorrow.0 -
Good Morning. The saga of Norma and Simon continues...
I got quite a few phone calls from Norma yesterday, updating me on what's going on. Weekend is completely changed. Simon arrived Wednesday night so that when Norma got off early from work on Thursday, they could leave for the coast. When Norma got up Thursday morning, she had a text and a note that Simon was in the ER. He had more severe pains during the night and since he's been to the ER twice before, he knew the way and drove himself and didn't wake her. She went to work, but they texted most of the day and he was undergoing tests. Thursday afternoon, she went to the hospital to see him and he had an MRI earlier in the day and they discovered that he has kidney stones. No wonder the guy was in so much pain. Yesterday, 8 am, when she called me, they had taken Simon to have the stones laser blasted to make them smaller. After several hours, he returned to the room and the procedure had to be cancelled due to so much infection, they couldn't use the laser. They put in a catheter, but it constantly got blocked by sediment and gunk, so they did a procedure of putting the catheter directly into the kidneys through his back. I didn't even know that could be done, OUCH! Simon was in surgery for 2 hours. His weight doesn't help the situation. Now, he's on antibiotics for 2 weeks and will come back to have the catheter removed and the stones blasted, unless they end up passing on their own. Norma is ending up spending time at the hospital, again, just like with her husband. She knows everyone there on a first name basis. But, this certainly SLOWS down the relationship from having a romantic weekend. Norma considers it a blessing, at Simon's expense, pain-wise. He should be released from the hospital sometime today, now Norma has to figure out how to get him home sometime over the weekend. I think his kids should drive down from Bakersfield and take over and take care of him. (It's a 2 hour drive).
I kept forgetting to tell you that while I was in California and using Norma's computer, the "Windows 10 is available" box kept popping up, so I asked her if she considered changing over. She said that Joel, our family computer geek, said not to, "there are still too many bugs that need to be figured out and cleaned up". I believe it, I had nothing but more problems when I tried to change over.
I emailed the environmental agency guy that it's been two weeks since we spoke and nothing has been done to fix the drainage problem. I was encouraged Thursday morning because I heard heavy equipment and when I went out, I saw a backhoe and 2 big trucks, but it turns out that they are starting construction on another house, not working on the ditch. He apologized and exclaimed disappointment that the HOA hadn't gotten on it yet. He was leaving for the long weekend, but said that he'd get to it first thing Tuesday when he returns to his office. More waiting and it's forecast to rain heavy all weekend.
John was able to put off the haircut longer. I told him it HAS to get done this weekend. Today is the Day, ha ha ha, we'll see.0 -
Yay!!! John's in the shower. I got him as he got out of bed and convinced him a haircut, first thing and get it out of the way, would be the best thing to do. He looks so much better, plus, taking a shower was needed too. He has recently been slipping on his personal hygiene. I guess I'll have to "nag" him about cleanliness now, yuck!0
