Song of the day: “Marry you” by Bruno Mars. I know, very unlike me, what with my views on that particular institution, but what the hey, it’s cheery and lord knows I need some cheery at the moment.
Like I explained yesterday, some stuff is going to change around here on the blog. I don’t have the time to do an every other day blog anymore, so instead I’ve decided to try a Monday, Wednesday, Friday sequence for a while. If that is still too much, depending on all the work that needs to be done, I will bring that down to two a week even. Sacrifices have to be made, I’m sorry to say.
I have discovered that there is nothing quite as depressing as being in a hospital practically every day of the week. It doesn’t help that for the most part we’ve been getting nothing but bad news. Don’t worry, I’ve asked Sally, and she has no problems with me talking about her toils. Well, let’s get to it then.
First off, we finally got to talk to her treating doctor. Not good. We got to see her photos and it’s bad. There’s a mass the size of something between a golf ball and a tennis ball in her right lung, and this has metastasized to her brain, causing lesions, which is what’s to blame for her distractedness, lack of coordination and whatnot. According to him if we hadn’t brought her in when we did, and she hadn’t gotten on the steroids that she’s been getting for more than a week now, she probably wouldn’t have made it. A daunting thought, that.
But anyway, he showed us several MRIs, some of a healthy brain, and the others of Sally. Not good. Basically the right side of her brain is distorted with lesions and growths, which is nothing, if not incredibly scary to see.
He spoke about what to do next, and how they were unable to get a proper sample from the biopsy they did last week. Apparently the mass is too far away from her bronchia for them to scrape of any of the affected cells. They had hoped that they would get a hint from the first attempt but that was a no go. They’re going to have to go in again and try it differently…which is better than the other option where they’d have to cut her open in order to get a sample. Very dangerous, he says…to which I say: Duh.
Be as that may, the doc is a nice fellow, thoughtful, informative and clear, which is something Sally needs right now. He spoke to us about possible options once they figure out her treatment, but on the most part, what I can understand of it, he’s not expecting to see her make it through a year. Yikes. I have not told her this opinion yet, it is hard enough for her to keep her head clear with the not knowing part…but she’ll have to know at some point, I guess. I asked her if she wanted to know if the news was bad (once they know, that is) and she does, so I better rehearse that a bit in the near future. I mean seriously, how do you tell someone you’ve known for more than twenty years that they’re going to die??? Seriously, a hint would be awesome.
As to the options (again, what I understood. Doctors confuse me, they are never really, really clear in their answers) I was a little startled to hear him talk in terms of months, rather than years, when he started talking about chemo and radio. I mean, I always figured that they got better at that sort of thing, but if things are the way he suspects (that’s what he wants the good test results for) chemo would give her, maybe three to four months extra. I mean seriously, isn’t that just postponing the inevitable with a lot of misery? Gawd. How am I going to tell her that?
But I’m going to wait with the actual explanations until the test results get in. Her next biopsy will be on Friday, which was a relief to hear considering that’s when the cabin should arrive. So, best case scenario, she will be allowed to go home sometime next week, which is when we should have the new cabin as good as ready (foundation is done)…I hope. There are other things to arrange as well, including someone who comes for a few hours a day to help out. Since we’ll have two people who can’t take care of themselves now, and we (they neither) can’t afford to have a full time carer for both of them, so we’ll have to see how that goes. Considering they are both unable to take care of themselves, social care should be supplied to them according to the law, so…let’s keep our fingers crossed.
Now the nasty bit of news…I know, that was more than enough, but what the hey, let’s go all out…last night she got a doctor in her room telling her that she needed a colonoscopy, so they gave her some really nasty medication with strong diuretic effects, and had her drink three liters of water in two hours. Oh, my, gawd. She was on the toilet till six in the morning, didn’t sleep a wink, and then they told her that the colonoscopy was cancelled and that she would be rescheduled for another day…which was what had her in tears when we arrived this morning. Worse thing is, when the doctor arrived almost an hour later than planned, it turned out that there had been a mistake and that she wasn’t supposed to get a colonoscopy, but that it had been meant for a different patient. Made me want to do some serious damage. Jeez. Sally almost burst into tears over it, while the doctor kept apologizing, and saying that a mistake like that hadn’t happened in nine years and that it wouldn’t happen again because he’d ripped the ones responsible a new one…well, he didn’t use those words, but that’s what we liked to imagine. Hah. Jeez! That’s what happens when you treat folks like a number.
Okay, enough about the depressing stuff. Let’s get to the normal life things, for as far as that’s possible.
Big brother had to pick up grandpa again, seeing as his moped gave the spirit again, so we finally gave up and decided to retire the katana and head on down to our insurance agent (on our way to Sally) to transfer the insurance to the Keeway Milan. Got a good deal for it, too. Heck, the price was half the old one, which was a bit of news I could live with very well, thank you very much. It did take almost fifty minutes to arrange (making us a little late for Sally) but then it was done. Yay.
Day before yesterday, I had a busy morning. Since we weren’t sure whether Sally would be coming home that day, I headed down after chores such as laundry, to clean up her apartment a little. There was garbage all over the floor (I hadn’t been in there for a while), laundry everywhere, and once I was done, I had to carry along three bags. Still, it looked better in there.
Then it was off to the igloo to do some final cleaning, to hang the last painting, check the lamps and to put a mug, glass and some tea in there. Now all she needs is a microwave to heat water, some sheets and then our visitor (arriving tomorrow) is all set for the next week or so.
Was a bit under the weather myself that day. In particular after we got home from the hospital and the DIY store where we bought a toilet to install in Sally’s cabin, some groceries and then headed home in high ninety temps. Definitely needed a dip in the pool after that.
There were two cooking sessions since the last blog. Stir fry noodles with lots of sambal and baked eggs. It made up most of yesterday’s meal too. Since I was cooking anyway, some cleaning got done too, making things look a lot better down there. Need to clean more, though, in particular since we’ll have visitor visiting. And I’ve got to clean my cabin, which at the moment resembles a friggin’ pigsty. Arrrgh.
Thank gawd for the yard, which is a blessing in days like these. I did two watering sessions and they really calmed me down. In particular yesterday when my day hadn’t been going all that well, and I needed to get my head on straight. Of course it didn’t help I had to go out a second time afterward (wanted a jog really bad, but there just wasn’t time) to get electrical supplies for Sally’s cabin, including one more pot of varnish.
Also had to take Sitabah to the vet. She’s been suffering from a cough I don’t like and I had her checked out. Now she’s on an anti-inflammatory, and if the problem persists until Saturday, I will have to go back for a second shot, along with an x-ray of her chest. The vet didn’t like the sound of her lungs all that much. As if she’s not using all of them.
Got home late last night, and found that a bucket of paint had topped over in the car port, meaning dogs had spread it everywhere, including over my chairs and my floor…meaning I had to scrub it all with paint remover. *sigh*
As for writing. Considering my limited time at the moment, along with my exhaustion at the end of the evening, I’m not getting more than a couple of pages a day done. Have reached 81K word count now, though, so it’s a good thing the story is slowly coming to the end. I’m writing about an oracle at the moment, and I’m wondering what the heck you’d ask of an oracle? I mean, something other than the thing you went to the oracle for, because I can’t just have my heroine ask one question and then have her leave again. There has to be some dialogue for crying out loud.
The dogs…well, they’re there, and despite the fact that at the moment I wouldn’t mind some peace and quiet, they are also a comfort when you’re a bit down. Hah.
Well, that’s it. Gotta go. Seeya on Friday, I hope.
Showing posts with label moped. Show all posts
Showing posts with label moped. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Friday, December 23, 2011
Another wall, however small
Song of the day: “Never no more” by Patsy Cline again. Yep, this one’s a keeper apparently. Hah.
Let’s see if I can speed this one up a little, because I had a friggin’ long day and I am seriously contemplating an early night…again. Oh right, I forgot I had one last night as well. Okay, never mind then, I’ll probably be late. Hah. I might not be entirely coherent either. You see there was a sale of Fondue, so that just made up for my supper and it was absolutely delicious. *hiccup* It doesn’t help that I haven’t gotten around to sipping anything more alcoholic than a cherry bonbon, so seriously, the wine went straight to my head.
Good news on the interview/guest blog with C.S. Marks. If all goes well I’ll be on the receiving end around New Years. Yay! With a little luck we’ll either end the year with it, or call in the new one, let’s wait and see.
Okay, on to business as usual.
Yesterday:
It was a windy day, but not cold thankfully. The plus side of all the wind, though, is the laundry that dries incredibly fast. Seriously, by the time I get there in the morning, everything is dry as can be, which not usual for winter at all. But anyway, the green soap experiment is still going well. I kinda like the lemony scent to the clean stuff, and the fact that we could reuse the water for the yard is definitely weighing heavily in the equation.
Finished the first one of Jack Vance’s “Demon Princes” and was pleasantly entertained. Personally I truly enjoy the way he plays with words, and the way I hear some old English teacher in my head when I read it (like there’s a narrator) but I also fear that in this day and age, the way books are written now, he would not have been published. There is an old fashioned courtesy to it, an unpretentiousness and a patience that you rarely come across with new writer.
I think I will have to do a review once I’m done with the whole series.
Oh, oh, before I forget: Grandpa’s moped arrived. Yay! Big brother and I went to town to fetch it tonight, and it looks so cute…though grandpa obviously needs to get used to it. He doesn’t like change all that much. Hah. Good thing about the moped is that it’s small enough to fit in the back of the Land Rover…which was a total pain in the behind with the old one. Not this one, though. It weighs barely a 140 pounds and we got it in without any trouble.
Of course grandpa is not going to use it yet, first he’s going to ride the old Katana to death, and then start on the new one.
But I’m getting ahead of myself, darn it. Where was I? Right, yesterday:
The sun was out so I had to open the greenhouse and raised seedbed up to prevent funguses from going rampant. Did a half-hearted search for bugs, but then headed up because grandpa had already made me a batch of cement to start with the wall…after helping out tenant who needed to change and head on down to my terrace where she could enjoy the sunshine and a book. :-)
Which reminds me, she finished mine “Trust Me” said the Spy, her first English book ever, and she said she really, really enjoyed, despite the fact that she had to check every fifth word or so in her trusty dictionary. I for one, gotta commend her for making it through the book at all. If I had to check so many words, I’d have given up already. Hah.
But anyway, grandpa had made cement, so it was time to start on the wall for the moped parking spot. The trick about building a straight wall of natural rock, is not to think about it too much. Usually the first instinct of where and how to place a rock is the right one, and if you start thinking it won’t work. So I didn’t think, I just started putting up whichever rock I came across and ended up with a rather peculiar selection of jagged peaks. Now, if I had started thinking at that point (I will post pictures in the near futures, just not now, I’m too tipsy and too sleepy) I might have worried about which to fit on top of those, but for the first four or five layers there wasn’t a single problem. It was then that I decided to go for a cake shaped dist with tilted sides which really put me to the test in finding (without thinking) one to match the tilt. But I managed, and by the end of the day three fourths of the wall was standing.
Of course that meant that today I had to work on it again, but this time there was only half a foot or so to go, and I need only two wheelbarrows of cement, rather than yesterday’s five. We sure are going through our supply or rocks fast. It will be nice to see the old gate wall again after all this time, while it was hidden behind the piles. Hah.
Where was I? Oh, right. After the masonry, big brother and I went out for another batch of sand, taking Knight II along so we could take him on a short walk afterwards. Good thing too, because the big lug spent most of the day in the back of the car, which is his favorite spot because it gives him such a good vantage point of the carport.
Once I got home it was time to cook a quick supper, and then off to the edit. Didn’t get a lot done, but enough at least. Three pages at least, and let’s face it, the first edit is always a massive pain in the behind. The story’s still new then, more a road of discovery than anything else, it’s edit number two, plus the paper edit when stuff really starts to get together. I did discover that during the next edit we’re going to have to remove more than a thousand words, which is going to be massively interesting.
Like I said before I had an early night, so that basically brings us to today, doesn’t it?
Let’s see…laundry, of course, followed by tackling the mirrors in the house, taking the small grill oven up to the carport so we could clean and fix it (the on off switch broke down). Also middle sister’s sewing machine was acting up, so we worked on that during the day as well, and since he was busy in the carport anyway, big brother decided to work on the house computer as well to see if he could speed it up a little with some extra memory gadgets that I don’t know the name of.
The greenhouse and raised seedbed had to be opened again (yes I remembered to close them last night, yay) and then it was up to have breakfast and help tenant again because caregiver was at her other job. She was in a cheery mood today (tenant) and I let her walk most of the way while I took the car out to the old paddock and started to unload since Grandpa and big brother were down by the carport to catch her. So nice that she can do simple stuff like that on her own now.
The car unloaded and having spent the majority of the afternoon finishing the wall for the moped, (no wind today, it was actually a worm day with temps in the high sixties) the end of the day was spent cleaning the grill oven and carrying it back into the house. Next there was the greenhouse, which had to be checked for bugs and such. We’re going to have to transplant cabbage kinds again tomorrow. They’re getting to be too big for the multipots.
Then there was the trip to town to pick up the moped (got the call this morning) followed by some groceries, and picking up the biodegradable oil for the chainsaw, along with the new blade for the circle saw. And finally around nine in the evening we were back home where we could eat fondue, write this friggin’ blog and then go to bed early, because, let’s face it, the edit is NOT going to work tonight.
No mater, though. Another early night will allow for a workout tomorrow morning (weather permitting) Yay!
Heading out and signing off…gawd, this fondue is potent.
Oh darn it. I still gotta go fetch Amri from up on the mountain. Bye.
Let’s see if I can speed this one up a little, because I had a friggin’ long day and I am seriously contemplating an early night…again. Oh right, I forgot I had one last night as well. Okay, never mind then, I’ll probably be late. Hah. I might not be entirely coherent either. You see there was a sale of Fondue, so that just made up for my supper and it was absolutely delicious. *hiccup* It doesn’t help that I haven’t gotten around to sipping anything more alcoholic than a cherry bonbon, so seriously, the wine went straight to my head.
Good news on the interview/guest blog with C.S. Marks. If all goes well I’ll be on the receiving end around New Years. Yay! With a little luck we’ll either end the year with it, or call in the new one, let’s wait and see.
Okay, on to business as usual.
Yesterday:
It was a windy day, but not cold thankfully. The plus side of all the wind, though, is the laundry that dries incredibly fast. Seriously, by the time I get there in the morning, everything is dry as can be, which not usual for winter at all. But anyway, the green soap experiment is still going well. I kinda like the lemony scent to the clean stuff, and the fact that we could reuse the water for the yard is definitely weighing heavily in the equation.
Finished the first one of Jack Vance’s “Demon Princes” and was pleasantly entertained. Personally I truly enjoy the way he plays with words, and the way I hear some old English teacher in my head when I read it (like there’s a narrator) but I also fear that in this day and age, the way books are written now, he would not have been published. There is an old fashioned courtesy to it, an unpretentiousness and a patience that you rarely come across with new writer.
I think I will have to do a review once I’m done with the whole series.
Oh, oh, before I forget: Grandpa’s moped arrived. Yay! Big brother and I went to town to fetch it tonight, and it looks so cute…though grandpa obviously needs to get used to it. He doesn’t like change all that much. Hah. Good thing about the moped is that it’s small enough to fit in the back of the Land Rover…which was a total pain in the behind with the old one. Not this one, though. It weighs barely a 140 pounds and we got it in without any trouble.
Of course grandpa is not going to use it yet, first he’s going to ride the old Katana to death, and then start on the new one.
But I’m getting ahead of myself, darn it. Where was I? Right, yesterday:
The sun was out so I had to open the greenhouse and raised seedbed up to prevent funguses from going rampant. Did a half-hearted search for bugs, but then headed up because grandpa had already made me a batch of cement to start with the wall…after helping out tenant who needed to change and head on down to my terrace where she could enjoy the sunshine and a book. :-)
Which reminds me, she finished mine “Trust Me” said the Spy, her first English book ever, and she said she really, really enjoyed, despite the fact that she had to check every fifth word or so in her trusty dictionary. I for one, gotta commend her for making it through the book at all. If I had to check so many words, I’d have given up already. Hah.
But anyway, grandpa had made cement, so it was time to start on the wall for the moped parking spot. The trick about building a straight wall of natural rock, is not to think about it too much. Usually the first instinct of where and how to place a rock is the right one, and if you start thinking it won’t work. So I didn’t think, I just started putting up whichever rock I came across and ended up with a rather peculiar selection of jagged peaks. Now, if I had started thinking at that point (I will post pictures in the near futures, just not now, I’m too tipsy and too sleepy) I might have worried about which to fit on top of those, but for the first four or five layers there wasn’t a single problem. It was then that I decided to go for a cake shaped dist with tilted sides which really put me to the test in finding (without thinking) one to match the tilt. But I managed, and by the end of the day three fourths of the wall was standing.
Of course that meant that today I had to work on it again, but this time there was only half a foot or so to go, and I need only two wheelbarrows of cement, rather than yesterday’s five. We sure are going through our supply or rocks fast. It will be nice to see the old gate wall again after all this time, while it was hidden behind the piles. Hah.
Where was I? Oh, right. After the masonry, big brother and I went out for another batch of sand, taking Knight II along so we could take him on a short walk afterwards. Good thing too, because the big lug spent most of the day in the back of the car, which is his favorite spot because it gives him such a good vantage point of the carport.
Once I got home it was time to cook a quick supper, and then off to the edit. Didn’t get a lot done, but enough at least. Three pages at least, and let’s face it, the first edit is always a massive pain in the behind. The story’s still new then, more a road of discovery than anything else, it’s edit number two, plus the paper edit when stuff really starts to get together. I did discover that during the next edit we’re going to have to remove more than a thousand words, which is going to be massively interesting.
Like I said before I had an early night, so that basically brings us to today, doesn’t it?
Let’s see…laundry, of course, followed by tackling the mirrors in the house, taking the small grill oven up to the carport so we could clean and fix it (the on off switch broke down). Also middle sister’s sewing machine was acting up, so we worked on that during the day as well, and since he was busy in the carport anyway, big brother decided to work on the house computer as well to see if he could speed it up a little with some extra memory gadgets that I don’t know the name of.
The greenhouse and raised seedbed had to be opened again (yes I remembered to close them last night, yay) and then it was up to have breakfast and help tenant again because caregiver was at her other job. She was in a cheery mood today (tenant) and I let her walk most of the way while I took the car out to the old paddock and started to unload since Grandpa and big brother were down by the carport to catch her. So nice that she can do simple stuff like that on her own now.
The car unloaded and having spent the majority of the afternoon finishing the wall for the moped, (no wind today, it was actually a worm day with temps in the high sixties) the end of the day was spent cleaning the grill oven and carrying it back into the house. Next there was the greenhouse, which had to be checked for bugs and such. We’re going to have to transplant cabbage kinds again tomorrow. They’re getting to be too big for the multipots.
Then there was the trip to town to pick up the moped (got the call this morning) followed by some groceries, and picking up the biodegradable oil for the chainsaw, along with the new blade for the circle saw. And finally around nine in the evening we were back home where we could eat fondue, write this friggin’ blog and then go to bed early, because, let’s face it, the edit is NOT going to work tonight.
No mater, though. Another early night will allow for a workout tomorrow morning (weather permitting) Yay!
Heading out and signing off…gawd, this fondue is potent.
Oh darn it. I still gotta go fetch Amri from up on the mountain. Bye.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Blowin' up a storm
Song of the day: “Never no more” by Patsy Cline again. Though admittedly this one wasn’t stuck in my head, I just put it there to counteract another one that was really bugging me yesterday. Hah.
First order of the day (yesterday) was taking Thorgal to the vet. Poor fellas neck was swollen even more, and they were going to have to put him under to treat him. Since we were out anyway, and had dropped grandpa off to pick up his moped, we did some quick groceries (bread and milk) and went over to the construction company to get another batch of cement. Loaded up and headed for home where big brother and grandpa unloaded.
Turns out that beside the busted knee (which is almost over and done with btw) I did something with my shoulders (I’m guessing the jackhammer. The new one is heavier than I’m used to) that has been more than a little uncomfortable. There are points where I can barely raise my arms, and there’s the resonating sensation from my shoulder blades that resonates straight into my skull. Very unpleasant, obviously. Hah.
But anyway, it was business as usual, and since the sun was shining rather beautifully, I decided to wash the Land Rover.
First I gotta tell ya about the wind, though. The day started out completely still. Not even a whisper of wind and I was up by the gate when I suddenly heard a distant roar. It was rather weird, really, this rumbling sort of sound, like when you’re close to the ocean and the waves are particularly high.
I looked out over the sloping hills to the west, pinpointing the sound to be coming from that side, and stared for the longest time into the distance. Nothing. Not a tree was moving, and yet the sound was getting worse, coming closer even.
And that’s when I saw it, the row of trees at the top of the first, most distant ridge began to sway like mad, and then the row in front, and in front of that, rumbling steadily closer, making a stretching meadow of knee-high grass undulate impressively. It skipped across the opening, set the eucalypti in the narrow valley below us to a mad sway and then it tumbled over us, setting my hair to dance, while the trees and plants around me took up a cheering dance. Rather awesome, actually.
Reminded me of one of my books, that’s a fact. Had never experienced the wind quite like that before, but it was beautiful to witness that way.
But anyway, I washed the car, waxed it too, kept company by Dani who was washing her car at the same time. In the beginning it wasn’t at all unpleasant, but as the afternoon advanced (heard over the phone that we could pick Thorgal up after five) and the sun lowered from its zenith the chill increased and so did the wind.
I for one, was more than happy to finish rubbing the wax out (very Karate Kid, really: “Wax in, wax out” Hah) and heading inside to cook some dinner. Opted for red beets with rice and fresh cream cheese.
By then it was time to pick up Thorgal, and since we were out anyway, we got another batch of rocks into the back of the car. Had I known then that we’d have another donation run later that night (heard when we got back) I would have opted not to get rocks. As it was, Knight II and Thorgal really enjoyed the free run they had while we loaded up.
Had and extremely short nap once we got home. I had planned to just lay on the bed for a bit and relax my shoulder and back a bit, but ended up sleeping for about thirty minutes. Felt much better after that.
Rather than only editing, I did some writing immediately after. That scene I still need to insert needs two segues, and one of them I managed to finish last night. The edit of the night done, we headed out to town again. *sigh*
Boring, I know. Didn’t get to bed until three in the morning, so you can imagine my mood when I got up this morning. Hah. Was a little haggard for sure, but today I had “I like it” by Enrique Iglesias in my head, which was a definite improvement. Great song again.
There was the usual laundry, followed by busywork up by the carport (after breakfast naturally). I had to fix a rubber curtain. The glue wasn’t holding so I bolted the rings instead, which should work better at least. Grandpa and I hung it as soon as I was done, and yep, it’s holding. Yay.
Next there was the dismantling of a small electric wagon. Since it was broken, I basically took it apart for parts while big brother worked on grandpa’s moped, which battery wasn’t working. He fixed that problem, but while he was doing that, he drilled a hole through another important part, meaning that we were standing there beside the dismantled moped, swearing at his inattention.
Me: “Why’d you do that?”
Big brother: “I didn’t do it on purpose. I just wasn’t thinking for a moment?”
Me: “Does it still work?”
We checked, numerous times. It didn’t.
Grandpa: “What happened?”
Big brother is mumbling.
Me: “He drilled a hole through the Ducatti part?”
Grandpa: “Ducatti? What’s that?”
Me: “This thingy.”
Grandpa: “Oh darn. I think that’s the power diverter.”
Me: “The what?”
Grandpa: “Power diverter. It’s connected to the fireplug.”
Big brother (mumbling still): “I can’t believe I didn’t notice that.”
Me (exasperated and amused): “Yeah. How could you not notice? That plastic is an eighth of an inch and you drilled through about four inches of material.”
Big brother: “Dunno.”
Me: “Can we take it out?”
Big brother: “Dunno. Let’s check.”
We do manage, examine the little gizmo, stumped as to what it does.
Big brother: “Darn. We’ll have to go to the village and order a new one. This won’t be stocked.”
Me: “Not much choice.”
Big brother: “Stupid. Why didn’t I…”
Me: “Hey, you know, you could just flog yourself and get it over with. Jeez. Accidents happen.”
He mumbles some more, shakes his head, and then lets it go while he tosses the broken part on the table.
Me (the proverbial light bulb pings): “What about the Honda?”
Big brother: “What about it?”
Me: “We can’t fix it and won’t it have the same, or similar part?”
Big brother (perking up): “Probably. We can check.”
Grandpa: “I doubt it. Most engines have a different firing point.·”
Me: “Let’s check anyway. You never know.”
We check, and yes, the part was exactly the same. After we broke through the old plastic of the Honda we managed to get it out easy as you please. About half an hour later we had it in the Katana and it started on command. *phew* Major relief. The stupid moped has to hold out ‘till the new year at least until the new one arrives.
But anyway, for the next hour we put the carcass of the moped back together and then head on up to the horse paddock where the imperial waits. Since big brother treated it’s rust spots yesterday while I was washing the car, it was now dry enough for us to paint it again.
By then the sun was starting to lower on the horizon. Big brother headed down into the yard while I went to the kitchen to make dinner, partly with yesterday’s leftovers. Tenant helped out. She had a nice afternoon with caregiver who took her to the library and then out for coffee and pie.
Which wraps up the activities of the past couple of days, really. Right now I’m (dogs and big brother alike) sitting by the stove enjoying the sit down and preparing to get started on the day’s edit. Yay.
First order of the day (yesterday) was taking Thorgal to the vet. Poor fellas neck was swollen even more, and they were going to have to put him under to treat him. Since we were out anyway, and had dropped grandpa off to pick up his moped, we did some quick groceries (bread and milk) and went over to the construction company to get another batch of cement. Loaded up and headed for home where big brother and grandpa unloaded.
Turns out that beside the busted knee (which is almost over and done with btw) I did something with my shoulders (I’m guessing the jackhammer. The new one is heavier than I’m used to) that has been more than a little uncomfortable. There are points where I can barely raise my arms, and there’s the resonating sensation from my shoulder blades that resonates straight into my skull. Very unpleasant, obviously. Hah.
But anyway, it was business as usual, and since the sun was shining rather beautifully, I decided to wash the Land Rover.
First I gotta tell ya about the wind, though. The day started out completely still. Not even a whisper of wind and I was up by the gate when I suddenly heard a distant roar. It was rather weird, really, this rumbling sort of sound, like when you’re close to the ocean and the waves are particularly high.
I looked out over the sloping hills to the west, pinpointing the sound to be coming from that side, and stared for the longest time into the distance. Nothing. Not a tree was moving, and yet the sound was getting worse, coming closer even.
And that’s when I saw it, the row of trees at the top of the first, most distant ridge began to sway like mad, and then the row in front, and in front of that, rumbling steadily closer, making a stretching meadow of knee-high grass undulate impressively. It skipped across the opening, set the eucalypti in the narrow valley below us to a mad sway and then it tumbled over us, setting my hair to dance, while the trees and plants around me took up a cheering dance. Rather awesome, actually.
Reminded me of one of my books, that’s a fact. Had never experienced the wind quite like that before, but it was beautiful to witness that way.
But anyway, I washed the car, waxed it too, kept company by Dani who was washing her car at the same time. In the beginning it wasn’t at all unpleasant, but as the afternoon advanced (heard over the phone that we could pick Thorgal up after five) and the sun lowered from its zenith the chill increased and so did the wind.
I for one, was more than happy to finish rubbing the wax out (very Karate Kid, really: “Wax in, wax out” Hah) and heading inside to cook some dinner. Opted for red beets with rice and fresh cream cheese.
By then it was time to pick up Thorgal, and since we were out anyway, we got another batch of rocks into the back of the car. Had I known then that we’d have another donation run later that night (heard when we got back) I would have opted not to get rocks. As it was, Knight II and Thorgal really enjoyed the free run they had while we loaded up.
Had and extremely short nap once we got home. I had planned to just lay on the bed for a bit and relax my shoulder and back a bit, but ended up sleeping for about thirty minutes. Felt much better after that.
Rather than only editing, I did some writing immediately after. That scene I still need to insert needs two segues, and one of them I managed to finish last night. The edit of the night done, we headed out to town again. *sigh*
Boring, I know. Didn’t get to bed until three in the morning, so you can imagine my mood when I got up this morning. Hah. Was a little haggard for sure, but today I had “I like it” by Enrique Iglesias in my head, which was a definite improvement. Great song again.
There was the usual laundry, followed by busywork up by the carport (after breakfast naturally). I had to fix a rubber curtain. The glue wasn’t holding so I bolted the rings instead, which should work better at least. Grandpa and I hung it as soon as I was done, and yep, it’s holding. Yay.
Next there was the dismantling of a small electric wagon. Since it was broken, I basically took it apart for parts while big brother worked on grandpa’s moped, which battery wasn’t working. He fixed that problem, but while he was doing that, he drilled a hole through another important part, meaning that we were standing there beside the dismantled moped, swearing at his inattention.
Me: “Why’d you do that?”
Big brother: “I didn’t do it on purpose. I just wasn’t thinking for a moment?”
Me: “Does it still work?”
We checked, numerous times. It didn’t.
Grandpa: “What happened?”
Big brother is mumbling.
Me: “He drilled a hole through the Ducatti part?”
Grandpa: “Ducatti? What’s that?”
Me: “This thingy.”
Grandpa: “Oh darn. I think that’s the power diverter.”
Me: “The what?”
Grandpa: “Power diverter. It’s connected to the fireplug.”
Big brother (mumbling still): “I can’t believe I didn’t notice that.”
Me (exasperated and amused): “Yeah. How could you not notice? That plastic is an eighth of an inch and you drilled through about four inches of material.”
Big brother: “Dunno.”
Me: “Can we take it out?”
Big brother: “Dunno. Let’s check.”
We do manage, examine the little gizmo, stumped as to what it does.
Big brother: “Darn. We’ll have to go to the village and order a new one. This won’t be stocked.”
Me: “Not much choice.”
Big brother: “Stupid. Why didn’t I…”
Me: “Hey, you know, you could just flog yourself and get it over with. Jeez. Accidents happen.”
He mumbles some more, shakes his head, and then lets it go while he tosses the broken part on the table.
Me (the proverbial light bulb pings): “What about the Honda?”
Big brother: “What about it?”
Me: “We can’t fix it and won’t it have the same, or similar part?”
Big brother (perking up): “Probably. We can check.”
Grandpa: “I doubt it. Most engines have a different firing point.·”
Me: “Let’s check anyway. You never know.”
We check, and yes, the part was exactly the same. After we broke through the old plastic of the Honda we managed to get it out easy as you please. About half an hour later we had it in the Katana and it started on command. *phew* Major relief. The stupid moped has to hold out ‘till the new year at least until the new one arrives.
But anyway, for the next hour we put the carcass of the moped back together and then head on up to the horse paddock where the imperial waits. Since big brother treated it’s rust spots yesterday while I was washing the car, it was now dry enough for us to paint it again.
By then the sun was starting to lower on the horizon. Big brother headed down into the yard while I went to the kitchen to make dinner, partly with yesterday’s leftovers. Tenant helped out. She had a nice afternoon with caregiver who took her to the library and then out for coffee and pie.
Which wraps up the activities of the past couple of days, really. Right now I’m (dogs and big brother alike) sitting by the stove enjoying the sit down and preparing to get started on the day’s edit. Yay.
Friday, December 2, 2011
The hunt was on
Song of the day: “Rehab” by Amy Winehouse...which sucks, since I only know parts of the song, making it a repetition of the same bit, over and over again.
Not much fascinating stuff going on…not that there’s much of that on any other given day, but what the hey. I’m going to tell you about it anyway. Hah.
First of all, Kollosus is in heat, meaning that she’s driving Arthur bonkers. Poor Breton, doesn’t know what to do with himself, he does. I do her interests stick with Arthur, or else we’ll have half the males going bonkers around her.
Panni, one of little sister’s cocker spaniels had to be operated today. A rotten tooth and a rapidly growing tumor that appeared just last week. It worried the vet a little, so they decided to do it fast.
There’s been quite a bit of moped hunting going on. What with grandpa’s moped close to the eternal hunting fields, (so to speak, anyway) getting an affordable replacement is starting to get a necessity.
We hunted through a variety of stores looking for something that would cost us a kidney, or maybe a liver. *sigh* Grandpa of course liked the Hondas and the Piaggios, but seriously, 1400 bucks, adding IVA and whatnot to get it on the road (leading up to a whopping 1600) would cut in our budget waaaaaay too much. So yeah, seven stores and three days later, we struck gold, figuratively speaking that is, and found a nice little Keeway Milan that will do trick…I hope. It won’t be here until the New Year, since grandpa insisted on a black one, rather than the readily available white one, but what the hey. Patience is a virtue and despite the song, you don’t die from it. Hah.
Cooking: Nothing really special, just throwing stuff together at the end of the day because we were hungry and not feeling too picky.
We did finish hanging those doors in front of the little storage, and though they still have to be painted that’s about done, finally. All this needing to go out is taking soooo much time, if we manage to get one thing done during the day it’s a lot.
There is of course always getting wood, the laundry, the dogs, the edits, and well everything else, but that really doesn’t feel all the interesting to tell about at the moment. To me, what with all the going away bits, it feels like I’ve wasted a couple of days, despite the fact that they were of course necessary.
I should get some reading done, I think I can because I finally warmed up (practically sitting with my butt against the stove here, hah) a bit, and then…well, I don’t think that there will be a lot of edits done since big brother is trying to fix the program of his Mac, which has been giving fits for months now. This means that nothing is working properly at the moment, and if he does manages it, he’ll be busy the rest of the night reinstalling all his programs. *sigh*
According to him, things are looking good, though, so with a little luck we’ll be doing edits again tomorrow.
Okay, a bit of news about my upcoming interview with author C.S. Marks. As soon as I get the answers back (I’m wondering when that will be btw, I haven’t a clue) I am free to post it on the blog whenever I want, so I’m thinking before Christmas, or otherwise between Christmas and New Years…ah well, we’ll see how that goes.
Big brother just reminded me that a nice tidbit to add in today’s blog was to mention that we slayed two dragons today, but who would believe that, right? That seems so totally out of there, not to mention like space fill, so scratch that…it wasn’t filmed anyway. Hah.
Well, I’m clearly starting to get a tad giddy here, (must be the blessed heat that’s making me sleepy too) to I better quit while I’m ahead.
Not much fascinating stuff going on…not that there’s much of that on any other given day, but what the hey. I’m going to tell you about it anyway. Hah.
First of all, Kollosus is in heat, meaning that she’s driving Arthur bonkers. Poor Breton, doesn’t know what to do with himself, he does. I do her interests stick with Arthur, or else we’ll have half the males going bonkers around her.
Panni, one of little sister’s cocker spaniels had to be operated today. A rotten tooth and a rapidly growing tumor that appeared just last week. It worried the vet a little, so they decided to do it fast.
There’s been quite a bit of moped hunting going on. What with grandpa’s moped close to the eternal hunting fields, (so to speak, anyway) getting an affordable replacement is starting to get a necessity.
We hunted through a variety of stores looking for something that would cost us a kidney, or maybe a liver. *sigh* Grandpa of course liked the Hondas and the Piaggios, but seriously, 1400 bucks, adding IVA and whatnot to get it on the road (leading up to a whopping 1600) would cut in our budget waaaaaay too much. So yeah, seven stores and three days later, we struck gold, figuratively speaking that is, and found a nice little Keeway Milan that will do trick…I hope. It won’t be here until the New Year, since grandpa insisted on a black one, rather than the readily available white one, but what the hey. Patience is a virtue and despite the song, you don’t die from it. Hah.
Cooking: Nothing really special, just throwing stuff together at the end of the day because we were hungry and not feeling too picky.
We did finish hanging those doors in front of the little storage, and though they still have to be painted that’s about done, finally. All this needing to go out is taking soooo much time, if we manage to get one thing done during the day it’s a lot.
There is of course always getting wood, the laundry, the dogs, the edits, and well everything else, but that really doesn’t feel all the interesting to tell about at the moment. To me, what with all the going away bits, it feels like I’ve wasted a couple of days, despite the fact that they were of course necessary.
I should get some reading done, I think I can because I finally warmed up (practically sitting with my butt against the stove here, hah) a bit, and then…well, I don’t think that there will be a lot of edits done since big brother is trying to fix the program of his Mac, which has been giving fits for months now. This means that nothing is working properly at the moment, and if he does manages it, he’ll be busy the rest of the night reinstalling all his programs. *sigh*
According to him, things are looking good, though, so with a little luck we’ll be doing edits again tomorrow.
Okay, a bit of news about my upcoming interview with author C.S. Marks. As soon as I get the answers back (I’m wondering when that will be btw, I haven’t a clue) I am free to post it on the blog whenever I want, so I’m thinking before Christmas, or otherwise between Christmas and New Years…ah well, we’ll see how that goes.
Big brother just reminded me that a nice tidbit to add in today’s blog was to mention that we slayed two dragons today, but who would believe that, right? That seems so totally out of there, not to mention like space fill, so scratch that…it wasn’t filmed anyway. Hah.
Well, I’m clearly starting to get a tad giddy here, (must be the blessed heat that’s making me sleepy too) to I better quit while I’m ahead.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Nothing special, just a day.
Song of the day: “I’m in love” by Maria Mena still. I don’t know what the heck’s going on. I think this is the first time that I’ve got one single song going ‘round and ‘round in my head, even while I’m still half asleep.
Be that as it may, let’s get to the day:
It was strange. Around 7 AM, I woke up and it was ridiculous, ludicrous since it couldn’t have been less than 24 degrees around dawn, when my body decided to wake up completely chilled. I was almost chattering my teeth for crying out loud, and stumbled to my bathroom to grab my robe. I wrapped it around me, crawled back under my sheet and didn’t even mind when Knight II draped himself over me.
I wake right on the dot, of course: the alarm went off after all. Not much chance oversleeping with that annoying bleep going off beside my head. Hah.
The morning rituals done, I head down to the house, the dogs storming back and forth around me while the Monster Boxer pounces on the tube, doing her very best to tear it from my hands.
The day is remarkably fresh today; the sun is shining brightly, but the air doesn’t feel at all hot, just pleasantly warm. The thermometer actually doesn’t go above 35, which is nothing short of a miracle this time of year. I’m thrilled.
There are chores waiting, however, and though I’m really starving, I get to them before actually heading for the kitchen. Breakfast over; the day’s edit gets worked through and works out pretty well. We added a rather enjoyable scene, giving more depth to the villain in the story. Gawd, I actually burst out laughing…loudly.
But anyways, today we’re determined to get some physical work done as well, and head out five hours after commencing the edit to continue with the pillar. More rocks need to be hauled, and cement mixed to a manageable paste. Another sixth gets added before the rocks start floating again (I’ll post some pics as soon as it’s done) and we prudently embed a hook; it is a necessary thing, especially for Knight II, who tends to snap at dogs when they come rushing past.
Next…yes the day isn’t over yet, hah…we decide to take the moped to the carport, so we can see if we can repair the dratted thing. Here we were - last year - spending more than a week repairing the thing, and then it gets hit by the car several months ago, needing another one. Drat. Luckily, it doesn’t take all that long today, just a couple of hours, and since big brother does most of it, I have the opportunity to do some other maintenance chores as well.
I’ve got two lamps that broke down during the course of the last few months, that need to be fixed, and afterwards I put up frameworks for the jasmine vines so they’ll be able to climb up to the roof of both the carport and my cabin. Afterwards, pleased with the progress of the day, I have a quick dip to wash off the dust and then head inside to have a rather late dinner.
Another short edit follows, the dogs lounging around us in the courtyard, enjoying the cool evening that, for the first time in weeks, allows for actual relaxation.
After the edit I take the dogs up and settle on my porch for the night’s session…where I find that another miracle has happened: today’s Blog is under one page. Yay.
Be that as it may, let’s get to the day:
It was strange. Around 7 AM, I woke up and it was ridiculous, ludicrous since it couldn’t have been less than 24 degrees around dawn, when my body decided to wake up completely chilled. I was almost chattering my teeth for crying out loud, and stumbled to my bathroom to grab my robe. I wrapped it around me, crawled back under my sheet and didn’t even mind when Knight II draped himself over me.
I wake right on the dot, of course: the alarm went off after all. Not much chance oversleeping with that annoying bleep going off beside my head. Hah.
The morning rituals done, I head down to the house, the dogs storming back and forth around me while the Monster Boxer pounces on the tube, doing her very best to tear it from my hands.
The day is remarkably fresh today; the sun is shining brightly, but the air doesn’t feel at all hot, just pleasantly warm. The thermometer actually doesn’t go above 35, which is nothing short of a miracle this time of year. I’m thrilled.
There are chores waiting, however, and though I’m really starving, I get to them before actually heading for the kitchen. Breakfast over; the day’s edit gets worked through and works out pretty well. We added a rather enjoyable scene, giving more depth to the villain in the story. Gawd, I actually burst out laughing…loudly.
But anyways, today we’re determined to get some physical work done as well, and head out five hours after commencing the edit to continue with the pillar. More rocks need to be hauled, and cement mixed to a manageable paste. Another sixth gets added before the rocks start floating again (I’ll post some pics as soon as it’s done) and we prudently embed a hook; it is a necessary thing, especially for Knight II, who tends to snap at dogs when they come rushing past.
Next…yes the day isn’t over yet, hah…we decide to take the moped to the carport, so we can see if we can repair the dratted thing. Here we were - last year - spending more than a week repairing the thing, and then it gets hit by the car several months ago, needing another one. Drat. Luckily, it doesn’t take all that long today, just a couple of hours, and since big brother does most of it, I have the opportunity to do some other maintenance chores as well.
I’ve got two lamps that broke down during the course of the last few months, that need to be fixed, and afterwards I put up frameworks for the jasmine vines so they’ll be able to climb up to the roof of both the carport and my cabin. Afterwards, pleased with the progress of the day, I have a quick dip to wash off the dust and then head inside to have a rather late dinner.
Another short edit follows, the dogs lounging around us in the courtyard, enjoying the cool evening that, for the first time in weeks, allows for actual relaxation.
After the edit I take the dogs up and settle on my porch for the night’s session…where I find that another miracle has happened: today’s Blog is under one page. Yay.
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