Craziness

The Mouse, The Leak & The Plumber

My usual posting was interrupted yesterday by the plumber.

A few weeks ago I noticed a little puddle on the floor under the sink in the laundry room. I mentioned this to Jack and he said he’d reseat the pipe.

Unfortunately, this did not work. By Sunday we had a lot of water on the floor. And no bucket or anything was clearing it or holding it.

So on Monday, we called our Plumber. He has done odds and ends for us for years now, and he came along with his apprentice.

Next, I heard drilling. That is never a good sign. But I didn’t want to know until it was over.

We have under the floor heating, with rubber-type piping. This same kind of piping/hose goes to the sinks, washer, dishwasher, etc.

A little mouse had managed to squeeze through an infinitesimal hole around the drain pipe.

Then the little bugger was hungry and chewed a small hole in the pipe/hose. It is my greatest hope that this gave the rodent indigestion which led to his demise!

So, the leak is fixed and now we need to get a sheet rocker in here to repair the hole left by our plumber!

The joys of homeownership!

Just Another Quarantine Day

Ho-hum.

My week started with me going off to run errands. The usual, Post Office, Bank, Grocery Store, and Gas Station. Most cases were the usual things, and yes, I used protective gear everywhere I went. But I think it irks me when I see people blatantly ignoring the rules.

Maybe they think, who cares? Maybe they don’t care if they get the Virus? But wait, what if they are asymptomatic and they give the blasted thing to me, and then eventually Jack!

Case in point, we are supposed to wear at least a mask when in a public place. Grocery shopping is to be done by one family member. And the six feet of separation should be met at all times.

Well, the Post Office was fine. Local people and they are abiding the rules set out by our Governor. Bank, was a drive-through. Also good.

The Grocery Store, well, yes and no. I saw a young couple get out of their car, with Massachusetts plates. Neither of them had face coverings, or gloves or anything.

Now she was tall and skinny and had not dressed for this trip. Okay, I don’t mean to be snarky, but she had tight torn jeans on (I know they are the in style right now) and she had a jersey half shirt on.

Each time she reached up to get a box of something on the shelf, well, let’s just say there was nothing left to the imagination!

They both wandered around like they were the only two people in the store, and it was tough to stay away from them.

I had a shortlist and I was able to pop around the store tossing things into my cart. They had everything I needed, which was a first.

Today a woman I know named Julie was at the checkout, and before I know it she had my groceries checked out and packed and I was out of the store and into the parking lot.

Getting home, I brought in the food and supplies and wiped them down and then hit the shower, Oh that felt so nice!

Best of all, my wonderful eggplant was in and I was able to stock up.

My favorite lunch is a small garden salad and roasted eggplant! I guess you know what I will be eating all week!

The Blue Screen of Death!

On Wednesday, in the middle of an online WW Meeting, suddenly, and without warning, I got The Blue Screen of Death on my brand new laptop! It would not shut down, told me, using a sad face emoji that there was a problem, and I waited and waited until finally, it shut down.

I turned it back on. All was well. Well, sort of. I looked up The Blue Screen of Death and I was told that if possible, I should wipe the hard drive and start again, as it could be that there was a conflict with a program that had been installed.

I looked at my files and I realized that One Drive had gone berserk and downloaded files from the cloud, over and over again.

Taking charge, I backed up the files I wanted on the laptop after the wipe, and then, after crossing my fingers and holding my breath, I did a full system wipe and cleaning. The laptop was like it had been when it first arrived.

Systematically I went through the procedure of reloading it. Which included shutting off all access to One Drive!

I have just two things left to do, download a file from Dell and then install the one program that caused me a lot of grief before, Adobe Elements 2018. A favorite program, but a real bear to install!

On the bright side, I have continued to learn and relearn all sorts of computer programming tricks. Connecting via Wifi, my printers, was easy, as was getting my computer back into our home network. This is all big for me. I think it means that I am not so old that my brain is unable to retain new things.

So today I will finish up the installs and enjoy going to another online WW Meeting. I just hope that The Blue Screen of Death does not join me again!

Life of a Social Hermit

I’m feeling a tad frustrated right now. I really don’t enjoy this social distancing thing.

When I go out to the grocery store, I actually enjoy smiling at people. My grandmother told me to smile at people. After all, it might be the only smile they see all day. This has been something I have done since I was a little girl. Somehow, it doesn’t work when wearing a mask.

I’ve never been a big ‘go out to eat’ girl. That being said, I do enjoy going out for celebrations. Anniversaries, birthdays, etc. Our 32nd Anniversary, we stayed home and I cooked. That is just wrong, wrong, wrong!

I have now lost over 32 pounds! I am so excited. I’m able to wear clothes that I have not worn in almost two years! I am really starting to look like myself again. And there is no one to see! Imagine Jack’s confusion the other day when he looked out the window to the driveway and there I was taking off my coat and apron and standing there in the driveway in a tada position!

The story is, my neighbor was on her porch and I was hollering with her (social distancing, you know) and took off the outer layer of clothes so she could see my shape!

At no time was I naked, just in my leggings and form-fitting top! And people, I am looking good, just no one is seeing me!

Anneliese is better. I knew that once the antibiotics kicked in she would start feeling like herself. I’ve had her outside and running around and I can see she has more spring in her step. She is also eating well, and slept through the night last night.

I was working on dinner tonight and I was taking inventory of the foods on hand. I’m happy to say I will not need to go out until mid-week next week! Yay!

Have a great day today and very soon, we will all be able to be together again.

Bears, Coyotes & Raccoons

I find it amazingly surprising that my Easter Eve and Easter morning were consumed with a little bit of fear.

You see on Saturday night my neighbor called to tell me that the bears were out. Oh, crikey I thought, my bird feeders are still out!

I struggled with the idea of how I would go and get them without being eaten by wild bears. Humor me. After being locked away, feeling paranoid about Covid-19, I just knew the bears would ultimately get me!

Jack told me to bring Lili with me. She would protect me. But wouldn’t the bears get Lili?

After a few minutes Jack, Lili and I went out to get the feeders. Lili shot right up the hill towards the bears, but when I called her back, she was a good girl and came!

I felt relieved that I had gotten the bird feeders in when all of a sudden Lili began making a terrible ruckus at the back sliding glass doors. I turned on the light and I could just make out a creature I thought at first was a Fox. Upon further reflection, I realized it was a Coyote!

That thing did not move. It stared at me as if challenging me to come and get him.

I admit that this Coyote scared me more than the bears. You see, they will grab small dogs and run off with them. Ending their days on this earth in an awful way. A Coyote will fight with a dog of similar size and Lili is just slightly larger. Coyotes are bad.

This morning, as I was outside walking my little ones and Lili, Lili and Arnie took off as there was a Raccoon near our driveway. There I was, in my pajamas, running through my yard, yelling at the dogs to come back. Eventually, they did, but Lili was covered in mud, and I had to drag out the hose and wash her off. All before my first cup of coffee!

I’m still very concerned about the Coyote and will need to leash walk the two dackels at night. For a while anyway. At least until I know he has moved on.

It’s Getting to Me

This morning Jack decided I had to go out. He needed new batteries for his blood meter for his diabetes, as the current battery was close to death.

I had planned to go out tomorrow. I planned on wearing dirty clothes to the store, using head covering, facial mask, and gloves. I was ready for that. But suddenly, having to go out today, found me having a panic attack.

Would I make it? Would I be infected? Okay. I need to do everything I had planned for tomorrow, just one day early. I was terrified.

You see one of the cases here in my small town presents like this.

“A young woman was self-isolating at home with her children. She just went to our local grocery store and back and always wore a mask and gloves. Suddenly this healthy young woman is stricken with Covid-19. Was her husband also self-isolating? Well no. he works for the State for the highway Department and went out every day, without protection. Their carelessness has caused real problems for us in my little town. Several more cases have been reported and it all stems from that one, thoughtless couple.”

The cashiers, the workers, and even the patrons such as myself, are angry. Angry at being put in this position.

When I got to the store today I was all done up in my homemade hazmat suit. A few times I felt like I was having a panic attack, and I was grateful to the mask, as it kept me breathing and not passing out.

I found myself looking at people and wondering where they had been? Did they look germy? I saw a young mother with her little baby, who sat in the front of the carriage, chewing the basket handle!

***Shriek***

I was able to get our prescriptions, food for a couple of weeks, and I stopped and got Jack his wine. I picked up our mail, which had Anneliese’s prescription and a couple of bills. I was home by 1:15, wiped everything down in the basement, brought it upstairs, and then ran into the shower.

Then I prayed. I prayed that I didn’t pick up any germs while I was out.

I made my lunch (my favorite roasted eggplant) and now I am sitting here, in the warm sunshine trying to relax. I put my pajamas on after my shower and I feel delightfully clean and comfy.

Yes, a good way to unwind.

I am a Moron

When one has copious amounts of time on their hands they begin looking for things to do. It had been some time since I updated my Ipod (which I seldom use due to using Amazon Music on my cell phone). Well, two things have changed. The first being that I have a new computer, and would need to set up the new machine with Itunes, and second, my brain does not retain what it once did, thus I recalled nothing about setting this all up.

(Greta and the laptop.)

In fact, I stumbled all around Apple’s Web Page until I locked myself out of my account.

Call me crazy, but I honestly could not recall the sequence of events I needed to go through to get Itunes to recognize my Ipod.

I tried and tried to go through their unlocking process and finally, after about an hour I looked at the screen and realized I’d been using the wrong username! Yes, call me embarrassed!

Now that I have unlocked my account, I need to figure out how to get Itunes to talk to my computer. I’ve saved that joyous learning session for tomorrow, as I am just done in from today.

I know just enough about computers to be dangerous! Not really. I do pretty well, but since I got my last laptop, so many things have changed and instead of converting things back to a menu I know I have decided it is time for me to learn the new “better” systems. Forced learning. It’s maddening but necessary.

I have one little crocus that pushed through the earth today. It’s adorably cute and I have threatened Arnie that he is not to wee on it!

Our Lake has no ice left in it now and once again we have a moving, living, breathing Lake. I do so love the Lake at the beginning of Spring. So full of life.

Thankfully, I do not have to cook tonight. It is all leftovers! Yay! Not that I mind cooking, but right now it is rather intense cooking three meals a day, seven days a week.

Friday found us watching as State after State began shutting down. I think we are very close to this happening here. We’ve been told to stay home unless we need to get prescriptions or food. Basically shelter in place with no running around.

This being said, Jack and I stayed in our pajamas all day. I mean really, who is going to care if we are in our comfy clothes? Certainly, the dogs do not care.

So here we are comfy, with doggies draped all over the furniture in the house. It’s a peaceful scene, really.

I have done only cursory housework and cooking. I’m perfectly happy to keep ~~playing with~~ programming my new computer!

I also learned how to use my Bluetooth device on the laptop to listen to music!

And I have to brag about two things. The first was I had trouble getting my email accounts to work correctly. I called my local carrier. Due to the Virus, the Techs are working from home. I had the unlucky experience of getting a guy with a name like “Keanu”, who was working from his living room.

His TV was on full blast, enough so that I could hear screaming from the show. Also, his dog was barking and this added to the chaos.

Now I tried to remain calm, after all, he is a professional, right? But as I attempted to explain my problem, it became clear that he had no desire to help me. He told me to do two things and then told me to switch to a better email program. Ah, what?

I hung up feeling furious. Then I remembered what Brad told me. Sit down, and work through the problem systematically.

I compared my old computer settings to the new one. Now wouldn’t you know the problem was in the last place I looked! Ha!

The next tech type victory was learning to sign in to the online WW Classes. They are having online workshops for us because the Virus has shut all the in-person workshops down. Thursday I could not connect, but on Friday I figured it all out! Yay me!

Life goes on, and if we are all lucky, no one we know and love will contract this Virus. Please stay safe and healthy!

Maribeth

Too Many Mugs!

I decided over the weekend that it was time to clean out the coffee, tea and mug cabinet. I swear the mugs have multiplied on their own over the years. I simply do not recall having that many.

Lately, I am only using my Tervis Tumbler mugs, as they keep everything nicely hot for an extended period of time. I also wanted to place a variety of teas in the cabinet instead of leaving them on the shelf.

What I found in the cabinet was amazing. Coffee filters from previous coffee makers. Instructions from two coffee machines ago! It was mind-boggling.

True to my word, I began to wash the shelves, and then put aside mugs I have not used in years. I also pulled out any little thing that does not belong there.

The cabinet is now clean, organized and I almost cannot stand the neatness! Haha!

The 8 piece set of Pfaltzgraff mugs is packed carefully away in a labeled box and the odds and ends mugs will go to the recycling center.

I was on a hot streak now, so I opened the cabinet with all the plastic containers in it. Many are without covers now, some were never right, so I went through and moved some to save and others to send to the recycling center.

After that, I finished the laundry and noted that I was a little bit tired (at 4 PM). So, I made a lovely cup of tea and then sat down to enjoy it.

Not too much to do on this Tuesday except getting Jack to the Orthopaedist for a procedure for his Dupuytren’s Contracture. I hope that this will go well and he will get full use back in his hand.

My Sunglasses

A few weeks ago, during my daughter’s move from one house to the next, I came home from helping, in the rain and the next day, in the sun, I reached into my pocketbook for my sunglasses. They were not in my purse. I checked my tote bag. Nope, not there either!

Then I searched my car. Then I searched Jack’s car. Then I came upstairs and searched in the kitchen. I went to the lost and found at the grocery store, to the post office, and at WW.

I could not remember the last time I’d had them, and this really bothered me. We’ve had a lot of gray rainy weather, so I could have lost them anywhere!

These are not just any old pair of sunglasses. These are prescription sunglasses.

Meanwhile, I got out my old pair of sunglasses and used those. I was not happy and quite honestly, due to the fact that I was close to turning 61, I was afraid I’d developed some sort of memory problem.

Then on Saturday I got to my daughter’s and we went out to her car to go to Savannah’s play and as I got in I spotted my glasses case on the floor of her car! Of course, they must have fallen out as I either got in or out of her car. She drives a low sports car and I am always joking that I need a crane to help me get out of it.

So, the mystery of the sunglasses disappearance is over and I am once again driving with my favorite pair on my nose!

And I am so happy that I did not misplace them, but simply had them fall out of my bag! Whew! Another aging bullet dodged!