Song of the day: “After all” by Michael Bublé and Bryan Adams. Cute little song, and since I first heard it on the radio it’s been going through my head. I like it. Very BA, which had me think, “Hey, why the heck is Michael Bublé singing like Bryan Adams.” *snort*
So, here we are again. Like walking into a bar you used to frequent in the past but haven’t been for a long time. Familiar faces all around, everyone knows what you like and don’t like, and, well, it’s good to be there again. Same here. Have nothing extravagant to tell at the moment, just the aftermath of several months of stress and hauling behinds.
An update.
On the most part we’re done with the heavy stuff. Everything that had to be taken down is gone, and all that is left is…well, garbage. So much still to haul off, but that is our problem, and not at all city hall’s business. ThereLife goes on, though, which is as it should be. No sense on lingering of could haves and would haves, right? is the rubble down by the old pool apartment that has to be shoved together and covered. With a bit of land fill we should be able to make a terrace there, or something, in the future. There are the leftovers of what used to be the greenhouse that we need to haul off and store, but as of this week the biggest job that was left, grandpa’s roof, was removed. Was harder than anticipated, actually, we all got a little choked up there. I wonder what that is, that choking up bit. I’ve known it was going to happen for a while, have accepted it in a way of “well, f**k it!” and yet there you go: Choking up.
I gotta figure that one out. It’s counterproductive to care about things that you can’t change, and this I can most definitely not change.
But anyway, we tackled the roof for about three to four days, mostly because big Brother and I had a lot of working hours (sorry I’m not writing about work. It takes up a lot of my hours these days but I haven’t got permission to talk about it yet, and I don’t think I would get it if I asked for it. Hah), and what with hauling debris away, getting supplies, going to the garage (I’ll get to that later, by the way) and doing such tedious things as sleeping and eating, we’ve been having to slot in half an hour here, an hour there to get the chore done.
First there were the corrugated plates, which were the hardest. The first four big brother unscrewed and then laboriously shoved to the edge where grandpa and I could grab them. They were friggin’ pain in the behinds, I tell ya. More than three feet wide, twenty-five feet long and barely manageable, size-wise. We were bumbling about like a bunch of drunk construction workers trying to get the darn things wedged behind the new firewood storage. There I was balancing on a steep incline, cacti behind my bum, big metal roofs in front and then sliding on rock. I did some serious swearing, no worries. Considering I can swear in four…well, five languages, it is a good thing I decided a long time ago to keep this blog semi-PG, because otherwise you’re ears would turn all red now. Hah.
Be that as it may, since the plating was too heavy for grandpa regardless, big brother had to get off the roof and come help getting the things in place. They’re now neatly wedged between the shed and rock wall. Yay.
The next shift were the remainder of the plating. This involved grandpa on the roof, because he barely weighs more than a sack of flour and me catching the shorter plating being slid off toward me. I could just imagine what social services would say about that “poor old man” working on the roof…just as I could imagine what grandpa would do for implying that he wouldn’t be able to do it. *snort* These days he’s downright insulted when I suggest I do something in his stead because it might be too much for him. Hah. I know he can do a lot, but sometimes I like to tease him a little. But seriously, from the look of him, no one would guess he’s just a couple of years short of eighty. Whatever he’s doing to keep fit and “young” I’m gonna do the same. I wanna be doing DIY, climbing trees and buildings at eighty, too.
The third evening involved the old black plating of the roof, which were a lot easier. Big brother was punching them up from the nails that held them in place and shoved them down, and I hauled them off to a big pile that we’re going to have to bring to the local land fill soon.
There’s still some stuff that we have to try to store somewhere, but those are details that we’ll have to see to in the next few weeks.
Our temporary kitchen, located on the porch of the house right slabdab in the middle of grandpa’s and my respective sleeping corner, worked out well. I made pictures, but I’ll post them some other day. Same goes for my new bedroom…if a corner can be called such. There’s a bed and about two feet of walking space on the side and bottom. The rest is just filled with what is left of my stuff. I can’t even put my books there…which I shouldn’t think about, because it makes me sad. Grrr. I hate being in a cramped space, it reminds me of the years in the big trailer. *sigh* Gotta look at the positive side: Less cleaning, which is definitely a plus, right?
Doggies. They’re adjusting, though Knight II is a pest at the moment. What with me being away so much he’s not getting enough exercise nor enough attention. His new thing is to grab my wrist and chew on it when I come home, which is painful, not to mention unstoppable. Poor darling. His foot had a bad infection again last week, due to him licking all the skin off again, but luckily regular cleaning stopped that again. It looked almost good yesterday.
After working at the new job two days in a row (once 9 hours once 10 hours, a normal day is 3-4 hours) I discovered that if I get offered a full time position, I’m going to have to decline. Apparently this work is harder on my foot than construction, because unlike at construction where the repetitive motions allow me to adjust my walk in a way that I can keep up, while here, I am walking on burning glass after four to five hours. Most unpleasant. After my ten hour shift, I was about ready to quit. Hah. A pity, but such is life at the moment. If anyone has some miracle cure for Plantars Faciitis that doesn’t involve insoles, I’m open for suggestions. *wink*
The edit. We are in the middle of the paper edit. We’re making good progress and I am still happy with the way it reads. The new parts are in the same “voice” as the old bits, and the changes appear to be working to satisfaction. Now, if only we could finish this edit and the final read through, we could send the darn thing. If anyone reading this wants to play Beta reader, let me know. I’d love some extra input at this point.
I’ll be posting a book review soon. I was finally forced to give up on my phone and get a touch screen thing (2nd hand. Little brother gave me his old one) meaning I can now read Kindle. Decided on Teresa McCullough’s “The First Enhancer” as my first try on it and I hope to write it sometime today. Check back for that.
Had to bring the Land Rover to the garage again. This time a leak of the radiator liquid. Old cars, eh? And ours does suffer some serious abuse on a daily basis. Be that as it may, the garage noticed a small hole in a tube and they patched it to hold out until the new year when we need to have the hand brake adjusted again. It is barely functional at the moment, and that just isn’t safe. I’m going to make those guys a pie, because they have helped us so much these past few months, and despite some minor mistakes (they’re just human after all, hah) the service and personal interaction we get there, makes it worth it to me. There’s nothing I hate more than garages where they placate you with “oh we’ll just put in a new one, little lady” and pretend they don’t think you’re a moron for not knowing the inner workings of an engine. Give me old-school of, let’s see if we can patch that without spending a fortune, any day.
What else. Ooh, I get to gossip in Spanish these days. Two very nice cleaning ladies, well aware of the ongoings in the area. Fun part is, that despite the fact that we were forced to give up on our Spanish lessons (no time nor money for it at the moment) I get to practice a little. The fact that they’re nice ladies only makes it better. By the way, I gave them a taste of my pumpkin salsa mash yesterday, and I got a nice big pot of one day old, organic olive oil in return. Am going to have to experiment with some olive oil recipes.
Which reminds me, I’m planning on doing some cooking experimenting today. Yay. I’m thinking of a yogurt, mango and Golden berries (aka the cape gooseberry) pie. I should have all the ingredients. I’ll let you know how it works out. I, for one, am most curious if the taste I’m imagining in my head will be remotely like what it will be.
Also, I have big plans for cooking today. Haven’t decided what exactly, yet, but it’s gotta be something nice. I so rarely have the time to experiment these days.
Had a sick dog last week. Julia. She’s Cousin Ed’s dog. She was very listless, and after a close look I decided that she was likely to have a uterus infection. The vet wasn’t there, (bank holiday) so we had to postpone bringing her, and put her on antibiotics already. The Vet wondered why I thought it was a uterus infection, at which point I told him (he’s young, still learning the trade from our usual vet) I’d seen it before. Turns out I was right. Poor Julia’s uterus was filled with cysts that had started infecting. The whole mess had to be removed, and since she became a bit septic, she had to stay the weekend. By now she’s her old self again, luckily.
Sally is steadily declining. She doesn’t recognize Cousin Ed anymore, is basically unable to get out of bed, and on most part everyone is just preparing for when she passes on. The doctor doesn’t think it will be long now, which for her will be a blessing, I think.
Tenant is having some trouble adjusting to her new life. It is a lot more lonely for her, (here there was always someone around, even if we were busy) of course, in particular since Cousin Ed needs to make so many arrangements for Sally and their own relocating to a new place. They found a rather nice little house in a small village, and they are having fun decorating it. As soon as they are settled there, we’re going to arrange for Julia and Sammi (their dogs) to be sent over by plane, which should help tenant a bit with her loneliness. I just wish she would find herself something to do, some purpose that will make the time pass faster.
Well, it’s getting late, and there still is a lot to do. I’m going to leave it at this.
Let’s hope I have something a bit more fun and exciting to write about the next time, eh?
