Monthly Archives: September 2023

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Beam/ceiling repair project, day two…. good news is usually too good to be true.

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Our contractor started bright and early on day two but it turns out the good news from day one wasn’t all good.

No, the beam doesn’t need to be replaced but the overall support structure needs work which required a temporary load bearing wall to be built inside the plastic cave. .

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Turns out whoever built this addition back in ‘94 didn’t do a good job with the rafters.

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It’s hard to get proper pictures of the problem but things are separating and that’s not good.

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I’m no carpenter, but the fact that those tiny nails trying to grab onto the beam have been the only things holding up part of our living room roof was a little concerning.

The repair options were these:

1. Hire a structural engineer (at considerable cost) to come in and completely rip apart the entire addition roof, replace the beam and redo all the rafters and trusses.

Or….

2. Since the existing beam is solid (and has miraculously held everything in place for the past 30 years with virtually no support) have our contractor square everything, redo the rafter and truss supports, add heavy duty hangers, and make sure everything is properly secured.

Needless to say we chose door number two.

Since our contractor isn’t a structural engineer he can’t guarantee things won’t sag in another 30 years but realistically, my husband will probably be gone and I’ll be in an old folks home… so who cares?

🤣

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Work continues, in a very small space and in the pouring rain. It would be nice if the saws and power tools could be set up on the back deck but we’re having monsoon downpours right now.

It’s always something.

🥴

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Let’s play.

47 Comments

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Don’t argue.

Just play…

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Two things immediately come to mind.

First… read a book. The old fashioned bound paper variety. As much as I love my tech, I despise Kindles and their ilk. I’m a tactile reader and love nothing more than opening a newly printed book.

Second… I pay my bills by check, through the mail. No automatic withdrawals linked to my bank account, no monthly debits on my card. We’ve been hacked too many times for me to voluntarily give my info to every company we pay for services. It may be slower, but it also helps the struggling USPS… because when that goes under we’re all in trouble

How about you…

What do you still do the old fashioned way?

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Proof that we all have our limits.

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My husband is a pretty tough guy. A career Marine. A Vietnam veteran. A man who calmly wades in when everyone else is running out. A straight shooter who sees the world in black and white. He’s not an anxious or nervous person. Nothing rattles him and I can honestly say in the almost 40 years we’ve been married, I’ve only ever seen him scared once.

Until yesterday, when I saw it again.

We received a call last week asking if we wanted to take a cancellation appointment that became available for his cataract surgery. It was originally slated for December 6th, so the husband jumped at the chance to have it done sooner.

We arrived early, and the prep began. This involved endless eye drops for dilation and numbing and some very sexy head gear.

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As I stated earlier, I hope I’m never in this position. I’m eye squeamish and the mere thought of anyone getting near mine would make me bolt for the door. But my husband seemed fine… until the nurses started explaining exactly what would be transpiring in the operating room.

Was he nervous about them cutting into his eyeball? No.

But when they told him his arms would be tightly wrapped by his side and his head securely strapped down … his feet started to twitch. When they said a tent would be placed over his face and he wouldn’t be able to see anything… his blood pressure started climbing.

Scalpel to the eye? No problem.

Being restrained and not in control? Big problem.

The anesthesiologist arrived and spoke with him about the 3 sedation levels available. None, which is what he wanted. Light, and IV pushed. Seeing that his anxiety level was rising she suggested the IV.

My husband hates drugs and has never taken them. The feeling of losing control is anathema to him. But the longer he sat there thinking about it, the higher his blood pressure went and the nurses all agreed sedation would be necessary.

They gave him an IV and some type of relaxing anti anxiety drug. A sweet nurse held his hand and talked soothingly… but the minute the drug hit his system? He tried to fight it and was not a happy camper. Three nurses and the anesthesiologist tried to get him to relax, breathe deeply and let it calm him nerves… but my husband being my husband wasn’t having it. Under sedation his blood pressure rose to 179/115.

They kept asking if he was okay to proceed and he kept saying yes so they wheeled him off to surgery.

Only to return 10 minutes later saying it wasn’t going to happen.

Apparently when they got him strapped down and swaddled, no amount of drugs were enough to calm his anxiety and his doctor refused to go ahead with the surgery fearing my husband would move when he was supposed to remain perfectly still.

Back in the prep room… unwrapped , unstrapped and back in control… his blood pressure dropped to 124/75. He was embarrassed. Ashamed. And kept apologizing. The staff assured him that it happens all the time and not to be sorry. Everyone has their limits and he’d just found his.

The next step will be scheduling a hospital cataract removal where they put you completely under. No anxiety, no stress… just go to sleep and wake up to it being done.

Knocking me out would be the only way they’d ever get close to my eyes so it sounds like the perfect solution to me.

😊

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Beam/ceiling repair project, day one… that’s what I call a mess.

28 Comments

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Work has begun on the ceiling repair/beam replacement project and yes, it’s a serious mess.

Things started slowly….

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And the dust barrier made for an interesting silhouette.

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Can’t say I’ve ever had a plastic wrapped room but if it saves me from dusting, I’m all for it.

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Inside the plastic cell, things were not as clean.

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Ceiling sections on both sides of the beam had to be removed …

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And if nothing else, it made me glad flooring replacement is next on the remodeling bucket list.

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Work for the day ended here with some good news for a change. At first glance the contractor doesn’t think the beam has been structurally damaged which means repairs would just be cosmetic. He’ll know more tomorrow when he starts ripping things apart, but the original shoddy construction did leave him puzzled.

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Numerous little pieces of plywood were nailed over the beam for no apparent reason.

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Once all that comes down he’ll do a thorough inspection to make sure everything is safe and hopefully get right to putting things back to normal.

My fingers are crossed. Not having to replace the beam will save a lot of time and money.

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As you can imagine, Lord Dudley Mountcatten was not pleased with today’s events and spent the entire afternoon under our bed.

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He did venture out at night to inspect the changes.

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And managed to wiggle his way under the plastic.

Cats.

They know no boundaries.

😉

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His Lordship is not pleased.

14 Comments

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Cats are creatures of habit and do not like change.

They pick their sleeping spots in our houses and expect they will always be there when needed.

So if a section of the living room is cleared to make room for a contractor to work and a couch that used to be in front of a prime bird watching window is moved…

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Lord Dudley Mountcatten makes his displeasure known.

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Whining, crying, mewling.

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This includes the what the hell is going on here? look. We’re getting it 24/7.

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On a side note, there’s nothing like moving furniture and a rug that have been in the same spot for 20 years to make you realize new flooring is the next project on the list.

🥴

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The next project begins.

30 Comments

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Our house is a bit disorganized at the moment. There’s a bench in front of the office closet..

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Living room coffee tables are in the den…

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And an arm chair is blocking the front door.

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Things are where they shouldn’t be because the contractor is going to start work on the beam and ceiling from Hell this week .

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Since the roof leak has finally been fixed, it’s time to get rid of this eyesore.

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To which I say…

Yay!

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And then there was a mailbox… eventually.

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As you can see, our Grand Canyon of a roadside ditch has sprouted some grass. And at the end of this section by the driveway?

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My husband was hard at work installing a new mailbox post so we could finally do away with the temporary trash can rig.

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This involved a lot of sledgehammer swinging so I stayed well out of range.

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There isn’t much real estate left in that area so placement was tricky.

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But post beats trash can any old day.

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Though the first sinking left it too high for USPS regulations…

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And more swinging was required.

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Emptying the temporary trash can was not fun as it was full of rainwater saturated dirt and growing a garden of weeds.

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But it was used as soggy backfill and will hopefully hold the post in place when it dries.

Next step? Affixing the new mailbox. Which, because it said nothing on the outside of the package, proved more difficult than it should have been.

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This box wasn’t made for a traditional wooden post and modifications were necessary.

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Wood had to be cut so my husband grabbed his not so trusty and quite ancient saw.

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The one he forgot he couldn’t switch the blades on because everything is rusted and frozen.

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Enter a saw from this century and work progressed.

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A mounting board was cut…

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And the new box was installed.

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Freshly numbered and decorated, we called it a day.

And since this was a frustrating, hot and sweaty all afternoon affair, I thought it prudent not to mention the mailbox wasn’t exactly evenly mounted.

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He did have easy access to a sledgehammer after all…

🥴

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Tails down please.

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We have stinky visitors every night.

(Pardon the picture quality, I was shooting through a window in the dark)

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Thankfully they rarely spray each other and reserve their perfume for the raccoons or fox who get too close.

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But when I flip the deck light on and see four of the little striped darlings jostling each other for access to food?

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I want to holler tails down please!

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And enjoy a scent free evening.

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News you can’t use.

26 Comments

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You can’t use it, but hopefully it will get entertaining.

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Oh those crazy Tik Tok-ers and their trends. Turns out lettuce water doesn’t help you sleep, but I bet there are tens of thousands of people drinking it anyway .

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This man worked at Burger King for over two decades without ever taking a sick day. To celebrate his commitment they gave him a coffee cup, a (single) movie ticket and some candy. When he shared the happy news online his daughter set up a Go Fund Me page with a $200 goal … it’s reached $400,000. I really hope he tells them what they can do with their Whopper.

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That’s not a question you hear every day. Further research is required…

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Yes, the ushers in a downtown Denver movie theater had to forcibly remove a man who was watching Barbie completely au natural. Hope he didn’t spill the hot cheese on his nachos.

Ouch.

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