One of our tenants reported the bottom of their shower dropped about an inch while showering. Fortunately they have a full bath they can use since I was not able to get to it until Monday. It is a 32 inch square shower with 4 inch tile on the three sides. Unfortunately, the installer of the shower did not use sheet rock or hardiboard, and the side tiles were not still adhered to the sides. They were mostly held together with the grout. So, I had to do a complete demolition down to the studs. It took 2 1/2 days to get the plumber to come out and disconnect the drain so I could work on the floor. Under the shower pan they had used particle board; a previous leak had softened it to the point that it finally collapsed. Due to the delays with the plumber and lots of rain, I was not able to get the floor joists reinforced until Saturday. Next step is get the plumber to connect the drain and then I can sheetrock and tile.
I won't bore you with the tenant that left a leaky water cooler on the kitchen floor and soaked the peel and stick vinyl tiles loose and damaged the underlayment...you are probably already suffering from TMI!
December was one of the rainiest in past history; over 4 inches. And January is competing for top honors as well. While it has rained three days this past week, it has been slow and gentle and we have a total of almost 3.5 inches for the month. This makes for really soggy ground. For the third time in the past six weeks, we have not received the wintry mix of snow or ice that was originally forecasted. But the temperature has been just above freezing. Knowing the weather would be turning rainy, I spent a couple of afternoons cutting up the downed tree and hauling it to the wood pile for splitting. I was also able to move all the brush to a burn pile and burn it. Time to schedule another wood splitting party!
Memorable events of the week for Sandy include seeing the chiropractor for adjustments (she is way out of shape); visit to the wound healing center ('we really don't need to see you every two weeks' - so we will go every three in the future); having another infusion and visit with the doctor who scheduled her for another PET scan on Monday (Clifford said, 'regardless of what the scan may show, you are doing better'). She had her best day of the past couple months on Friday. She had more energy and zest. By Saturday, a lot of that was gone, but she is still showing signs of greater energy.
My weekly excitement was waking up with a sore molar on Wednesday. I texted Adam about my symptoms and was told to schedule an immediate appointment with my dentist. It could be a tooth in need of a root canal. I was able to see the dentist that afternoon; fortunately no root canal needed. I have an 'open end' between two molars that allows food particles to collect and put pressure on the gum. The best way to solve that issue is a crown; I am scheduled for that next month. Once the problem was identified, I recalled several recent past experiences with food getting stuck between those teeth. Now I have the tool to keep it cleaned out until the crown.
Highlight of the week was the baptism of Craig; he has been attending church sporadically with his member wife for a couple of years, but only recently has he really applied himself in studying and reading. The sister missionaries were valiant in their efforts to teach him and he was prepared to enter the waters of baptism on Saturday.
Sad notes of the week: we visited a couple from church that are both veterans; he is blind and was moved to the ICU due to pneumonia. He passed away on Friday at age 85. We also learned that good friends Tanya and Scott lost their daughter this week.
Sunday, January 13, 2019
Sunday, January 6, 2019
2019 Is Upon Us Already!
What does a mature married couple do on New Year's Eve when they are home alone? Not much. No late night celebration, wild partying or even special treat making. And we didn't do anything special for New Years either.
I spent a couple mornings early in the week working on rental repairs identified last month when we did the home inspections. The afternoons were spent in raking up the wet leaves along the fence line and dumping them in the burn pile for later cooking.
Andy's family arrived about noon on Wednesday and stayed until Friday about noon. It was great to have a break from our otherwise mundane routine and a very productive visit. Kera and Andy organized the game closet (thank you!). Andy and Aaron assisted at one of the rent houses with an electrical problem, which due to Andy's expertise we think we resolved. We found a bare wire shorting in the kitchen ceiling light fixture. Aaron, Katie and Kera prepared two delicious evening meals for us. Aaron, Katie and I were able to haul previously cut branches to the burn pile and get most of it burned. Thursday evening Andy and I went to cut up a tree top that had fallen onto the neighbor's yard. Aaron threw the cut branches over the fence into our side while we cut it up. We tried notching the tree and pulling it over with the tractor, but the tree top was hung up on another tree. The damaged tree was on one side of the fence and the one holding it in place was one foot away on the other side of the fence. We did not have time to get any further that day on this project. And it rained Friday morning, so nothing more was done.
However, on Saturday, I was able to cut both trees at fence height and pull them over with the tractor. Now for the fun of cutting and splitting the wood. Not to mention hauling the branches to a burn pile.
Since it was raining Friday morning, a lot of game playing was engaged in. We had spent the previous two evenings playing games, making fudge (which did not last 24 hours) and having a good time.
Saturday we met with the sister missionaries to plan a meeting we had later that day with a part member family. Both meetings went well. The husband had previously agreed to be baptized and they are mainly reviewing the principles he has already been taught.
Church was great, again. This was our first Sunday with the two hour block time for meetings and it flowed smoothly; the meetings even ended on time! We are trying to use the extra time for personal and couple study.Hopefully we can be productive.
One important item on Sandy's bucket list was to take an Alaskan Cruise. With a lot of research and input from family members she was able to identify the best option and book a cruise for us, our children, and their spouses.
I spent a couple mornings early in the week working on rental repairs identified last month when we did the home inspections. The afternoons were spent in raking up the wet leaves along the fence line and dumping them in the burn pile for later cooking.
Andy's family arrived about noon on Wednesday and stayed until Friday about noon. It was great to have a break from our otherwise mundane routine and a very productive visit. Kera and Andy organized the game closet (thank you!). Andy and Aaron assisted at one of the rent houses with an electrical problem, which due to Andy's expertise we think we resolved. We found a bare wire shorting in the kitchen ceiling light fixture. Aaron, Katie and Kera prepared two delicious evening meals for us. Aaron, Katie and I were able to haul previously cut branches to the burn pile and get most of it burned. Thursday evening Andy and I went to cut up a tree top that had fallen onto the neighbor's yard. Aaron threw the cut branches over the fence into our side while we cut it up. We tried notching the tree and pulling it over with the tractor, but the tree top was hung up on another tree. The damaged tree was on one side of the fence and the one holding it in place was one foot away on the other side of the fence. We did not have time to get any further that day on this project. And it rained Friday morning, so nothing more was done.
However, on Saturday, I was able to cut both trees at fence height and pull them over with the tractor. Now for the fun of cutting and splitting the wood. Not to mention hauling the branches to a burn pile.
Since it was raining Friday morning, a lot of game playing was engaged in. We had spent the previous two evenings playing games, making fudge (which did not last 24 hours) and having a good time.
Saturday we met with the sister missionaries to plan a meeting we had later that day with a part member family. Both meetings went well. The husband had previously agreed to be baptized and they are mainly reviewing the principles he has already been taught.
Church was great, again. This was our first Sunday with the two hour block time for meetings and it flowed smoothly; the meetings even ended on time! We are trying to use the extra time for personal and couple study.Hopefully we can be productive.
One important item on Sandy's bucket list was to take an Alaskan Cruise. With a lot of research and input from family members she was able to identify the best option and book a cruise for us, our children, and their spouses.
Sunday, December 30, 2018
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year to Family and Friends!
We spent Christmas Eve at Miranda's fixing the plumbing repair of the previous Saturday and then patching holes in the wall and installing baseboard. There might have been some last minute shopping, but nothing serious. When we knew that we would be traveling/visiting family the two weeks prior to Christmas there was serious incentive to shop and wrap early. That evening I made cinnamon rolls; it is tradition!
The children did not appear until 630 Christmas morning, which we appreciated. They might have been a little confused though. The tree had been in the family room when they went to bed, but during the night had been moved to the family room, along with all the presents. I told the boys that the Grinch had come to steal their Christmas, but we prevented him from taking it too far. After breakfast began the fun of opening presents. The children had a great time opening gifts, enjoying what others had received and playing with some items. They became very engrossed putting their lego sets together.
Love these pajamas of Miranda:
Miranda fixed a scrumptious dinner of turkey, ham, veggies and several pies which had to wait a couple of hours to be eaten because we didn't have room to enjoy them right after dinner. I do love her pecan pie!
Sandy and I drove home on Wednesday; enroute we visited Jonathan and family briefly to pick up one of their butchered lambs to deliver to the local Chinese healer Sandy visits. After 20 days, it was good to be home again. Our house sitter did a great job in our absence. It took a couple of hours to unpack and get things organized. I spent several hours on Friday and Saturday on the mower beating the leaves into submission. In places where they were thicker, like along the fence line, I raked them onto a tarp, hauled them to the burn pile and set them ablaze. I managed to get most of the yard done. This has been an interesting year for leaves. Normally they take a couple of months to all fall from the trees (mostly oak) and some years they linger into the next spring. This year they were 90% gone by early December.
Today marked the end of an era; this was the last Sunday of the three hour meeting block for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which has been the norm for about 40 years. Next Sunday the Church will implement the two hour meeting block, providing us more Sunday time to strengthen our homes in gospel oriented study. This truly is an exciting time to be alive!
When my 45 year old Westminster chiming clock of emotional value to me was officially pronounced dead, brother Steve thoughtfully presented me with this Regulator clock which has a Westminster chime. Compared to the grandfather clock chime, this is more delicate.
Off to GG's
On Sunday afternoon (9 Dec), Tom, Miranda and Sandy started the drive to California. We got well through Oklahoma before stopping. Alas, that next morning Tom dropped his phone... from just a short distance... and it konked out. Sad day. On Monday as we traveled we stopped at a Sprint store to see if they could do anything. They couldn't, but sent us to another store close by. The phone wouldn't turn on at all. The guy said he could check it out... but most likely it was toast and the data could not be retrieved. That night we ordered another phone from Swappa.com.
Tuesday was not such a long driving day and we arrived at Grandma Marion's house before 5 pm. It helped that we gained two hours on the drive out. Cynthia and Jim came over with dinner. It was LOVELY to see them!
Miranda, Deborah and Sandy drove to the beach Wednesday morning and joined Cynthia and Jim for a walk on the beach; good time was had by all.
Later that day, Steve and Kathy and Sue and Steve arrived and Sally came down from Downey. It was a wonderful mini-sibling's reunion. Deborah and Andy also arrived. We went through the house discussing what was important for each person to have. Some things had been "dibbsed" years ago... and were no longer important. Other things rose to the top. What I loved most is that there was no arguing or squabbling. People were quick to defer to someone who wanted it more.
Thursday we left about 9:30 for the hour drive to Riverside Memorial Cemetery, a military cemetery where dad was interred and mom would be as well. We were allowed only a short 20 minute ceremony, but it was sweet and moving. They did military honors of taps and flag folding, as mom had been an Army nurse in World War II. Then Jim offered a Presbyterian service intermixed with the grandchildren offering memories of GG (Great Grandma Marion). They were touching. Finally we sang "All Through the Night." When we were little, after we were in bed, Mom would go to the piano and play and sing this lullaby.
Afterwards we had lunch catered by Olive Garden at a room in Cynthia's building. It was fun to chat with all the cousins and nieces and nephews.
Then, they came back to Marion's house and chose the things that were meaningful or interesting to them from Mom's house. It was pretty chaotic! Both Thursday and Friday afternoons. Again, there was no quarreling or arguing, everyone acquiesced to the passion of another. However, there was some disadvantage to Tom and I staying there. We almost lost our suitcase, our coats, the grounding mat and the diffuser... among other things... to eager gatherers. We ended up putting our name on our things. Tom even tagged me! Mom's clothes were put out on racks and many of them also found happy homes. We did suffer some collateral damage; one grandchild took the silverware on Thursday (we had to go out and buy plastic so we could eat); another took the dining room table and chairs on Friday (fortunately there was a card table and we borrowed chairs).
Cynthia stayed away those days. While she was happy to have things go to people who wanted them and get the house emptied out, seeing Mom's beloved treasures and familiar clothes walk out the door was very distressing. Sue and I packed up all the clothes after Friday, so Cynthia would not have to do it.
Friday was the memorial service. Tom took Deborah, Miranda, Andy and Jonathan to the temple to do the 7am session so we could be back in time for the service.
We set up a display table of Mom memorabilia and the grandchildren practiced singing "All is Well." Mom had chosen a number of favorite scriptures and poems or stories she wanted read at the memorial service. Sue and Steve played an introductory song with alphorns and organ.
The pastor read a number of the scriptures. Each of the siblings took time to read a story or poem. Sally and her family reminisced about Mom as did Steve. It was a lovely service. Jim was the final speaker. As he stepped up to speak, he lost his balance and fell back to the ground. Fortunately he was bruised, but okay, and like a trooper, sat and read his part from the pew.
We had a reception after the service and met many of Mom's friends, her caretakers, accountant, Aunt Ruth and cousins Janet and Sherrill, and others who came to say farewell. And after that, sandwiches and fruit for the family. Jonathan flew in Thursday night so he could be there for the service. A few other additional great-grands arrived Friday as well. They, too, took some of Grandma's treasures. Some were leaving on Friday so they packed up all the dining room set-- table, chairs, buffet, china cabinet. Measuring spoons, silverware, toys, pots and pans, book shelves, clothing and costume jewelry all disappeared. One sibling thought the two folding chairs Cynthia brought over were fair game... and they disappeared. We had a card table and a few chairs available for nine of us for dinner.
Saturday Cynthia spent with family, Tom and I went to the temple, Tom had used Jonathan and Andy power to pack the car with a desk (for Miranda), book shelf, decorated stool, nesting tables, lamps and other treasures we were taking home, so Steve kindly drove our kids to the airport when they departed. Steve and Kathy then spent the afternoon with their kids and Kathy's side of the family. Sue and I packed up clothes. Many items were claimed. That was good. Cynthia will have much less to clean out. All in all, it was kind of a slower, recuperative day for us.
Sunday we went to a local ward for Sacrament. They had a lovely Christmas program with beautiful music. Most of us headed over to the Presbyterian church after sacrament to support Cynthia and Jim. They also had a beautiful musical performance. We had leftovers from Thursday and Friday for lunch. Then Sally and Steve came down and we had a reading of the will and disseminated the good quality jewelry. I had long admired and desired a woven gold necklace. Mom had designated it for Sally, but bless her heart, she let me have it. (If I die first, it goes to Sally.) That's the kind of love and sharing the siblings have done. I have worn it every day since that day. One necklace designated to Kathy, Mom had already given to me. I will send it to her as she'd really like it.
This really has been a wonderful week. It's been a time to remember our remarkable mom and how much she was loved by everyone who knew her. She made an impact on people she barely met and those who knew her well. She was a peace maker and always had kind words for everyone. She was quick to forgive. One of her caretakers threw out all her watercolor paintings. She was so upset. Yet she forgave the caretaker and moved on. How delighted she must have been when we discovered envelopes full of her art work and every great grandchild was able to claim a GG original to take home with them if they wanted (all 65 or so of them.)
As Sally called people to tell them of GG's passing, almost every one had a Marion story to tell. Her stock broker had sent flowers one time when she was in the hospital. She painted the arrangement and sent it to Ed as a thank you. He had the painting framed and hung it in his office. She was so active in her church serving as she was capable-- from being a deacon and on the session to later in life, writing notes to those who no longer could come to church. She was generous with her money giving to many, many charities-- like 50 or 60-- and always had a tender heart for people in need. She put one Kenyan girl though years of schooling. Someone said to her, your kindness will help a thousand people. And surely as the Kenyan girl benefits from her education, generations to follow will be blessed.
Sometimes it was a sad time for us as we'd think of something we'd like to do with Mom... and then remember that it will no longer happen. But it was hard to be sad for Mom. I knew she was delighted to have passed. She fought the good fight. She never gave up, always working to keep up her energy and balance even going to the gym with her personal trainer. But she was tired. I'm convinced that when she woke up on the other side she said, "Yahoo! I made it. I finished the race!" and she was delighted to greet Walter and other family members who had passed on ahead. The poem I read was called, "I'm Free." Basically it said, don't be sad for me, I'm free. God called me home and I'm happy to be there. So don't be sad. Enjoy the great memories and be good to others. When I first read it, I cried, thinking about how I missed Mom. Then I realized I had to read it as if I were Mom. She would mean the words and be confident and happy. I was able to read it at the memorial without crying.
We enjoyed the great legacy of love Mom and Dad passed on to us. If you were family, you were loved. There was nothing more important than the loving relations between family members. You don't hold grudges. You allow for differences of opinion-- religion, liberal, conservative, etc-- and disagree without being disagreeable. It is a cherished legacy. We are so blessed!
Tuesday was not such a long driving day and we arrived at Grandma Marion's house before 5 pm. It helped that we gained two hours on the drive out. Cynthia and Jim came over with dinner. It was LOVELY to see them!
Miranda, Deborah and Sandy drove to the beach Wednesday morning and joined Cynthia and Jim for a walk on the beach; good time was had by all.
Later that day, Steve and Kathy and Sue and Steve arrived and Sally came down from Downey. It was a wonderful mini-sibling's reunion. Deborah and Andy also arrived. We went through the house discussing what was important for each person to have. Some things had been "dibbsed" years ago... and were no longer important. Other things rose to the top. What I loved most is that there was no arguing or squabbling. People were quick to defer to someone who wanted it more.
Thursday we left about 9:30 for the hour drive to Riverside Memorial Cemetery, a military cemetery where dad was interred and mom would be as well. We were allowed only a short 20 minute ceremony, but it was sweet and moving. They did military honors of taps and flag folding, as mom had been an Army nurse in World War II. Then Jim offered a Presbyterian service intermixed with the grandchildren offering memories of GG (Great Grandma Marion). They were touching. Finally we sang "All Through the Night." When we were little, after we were in bed, Mom would go to the piano and play and sing this lullaby.
Afterwards we had lunch catered by Olive Garden at a room in Cynthia's building. It was fun to chat with all the cousins and nieces and nephews.
Then, they came back to Marion's house and chose the things that were meaningful or interesting to them from Mom's house. It was pretty chaotic! Both Thursday and Friday afternoons. Again, there was no quarreling or arguing, everyone acquiesced to the passion of another. However, there was some disadvantage to Tom and I staying there. We almost lost our suitcase, our coats, the grounding mat and the diffuser... among other things... to eager gatherers. We ended up putting our name on our things. Tom even tagged me! Mom's clothes were put out on racks and many of them also found happy homes. We did suffer some collateral damage; one grandchild took the silverware on Thursday (we had to go out and buy plastic so we could eat); another took the dining room table and chairs on Friday (fortunately there was a card table and we borrowed chairs).
Cynthia stayed away those days. While she was happy to have things go to people who wanted them and get the house emptied out, seeing Mom's beloved treasures and familiar clothes walk out the door was very distressing. Sue and I packed up all the clothes after Friday, so Cynthia would not have to do it.
Friday was the memorial service. Tom took Deborah, Miranda, Andy and Jonathan to the temple to do the 7am session so we could be back in time for the service.
We set up a display table of Mom memorabilia and the grandchildren practiced singing "All is Well." Mom had chosen a number of favorite scriptures and poems or stories she wanted read at the memorial service. Sue and Steve played an introductory song with alphorns and organ.
The pastor read a number of the scriptures. Each of the siblings took time to read a story or poem. Sally and her family reminisced about Mom as did Steve. It was a lovely service. Jim was the final speaker. As he stepped up to speak, he lost his balance and fell back to the ground. Fortunately he was bruised, but okay, and like a trooper, sat and read his part from the pew.
We had a reception after the service and met many of Mom's friends, her caretakers, accountant, Aunt Ruth and cousins Janet and Sherrill, and others who came to say farewell. And after that, sandwiches and fruit for the family. Jonathan flew in Thursday night so he could be there for the service. A few other additional great-grands arrived Friday as well. They, too, took some of Grandma's treasures. Some were leaving on Friday so they packed up all the dining room set-- table, chairs, buffet, china cabinet. Measuring spoons, silverware, toys, pots and pans, book shelves, clothing and costume jewelry all disappeared. One sibling thought the two folding chairs Cynthia brought over were fair game... and they disappeared. We had a card table and a few chairs available for nine of us for dinner.
Saturday Cynthia spent with family, Tom and I went to the temple, Tom had used Jonathan and Andy power to pack the car with a desk (for Miranda), book shelf, decorated stool, nesting tables, lamps and other treasures we were taking home, so Steve kindly drove our kids to the airport when they departed. Steve and Kathy then spent the afternoon with their kids and Kathy's side of the family. Sue and I packed up clothes. Many items were claimed. That was good. Cynthia will have much less to clean out. All in all, it was kind of a slower, recuperative day for us.
Sunday we went to a local ward for Sacrament. They had a lovely Christmas program with beautiful music. Most of us headed over to the Presbyterian church after sacrament to support Cynthia and Jim. They also had a beautiful musical performance. We had leftovers from Thursday and Friday for lunch. Then Sally and Steve came down and we had a reading of the will and disseminated the good quality jewelry. I had long admired and desired a woven gold necklace. Mom had designated it for Sally, but bless her heart, she let me have it. (If I die first, it goes to Sally.) That's the kind of love and sharing the siblings have done. I have worn it every day since that day. One necklace designated to Kathy, Mom had already given to me. I will send it to her as she'd really like it.
This really has been a wonderful week. It's been a time to remember our remarkable mom and how much she was loved by everyone who knew her. She made an impact on people she barely met and those who knew her well. She was a peace maker and always had kind words for everyone. She was quick to forgive. One of her caretakers threw out all her watercolor paintings. She was so upset. Yet she forgave the caretaker and moved on. How delighted she must have been when we discovered envelopes full of her art work and every great grandchild was able to claim a GG original to take home with them if they wanted (all 65 or so of them.)
As Sally called people to tell them of GG's passing, almost every one had a Marion story to tell. Her stock broker had sent flowers one time when she was in the hospital. She painted the arrangement and sent it to Ed as a thank you. He had the painting framed and hung it in his office. She was so active in her church serving as she was capable-- from being a deacon and on the session to later in life, writing notes to those who no longer could come to church. She was generous with her money giving to many, many charities-- like 50 or 60-- and always had a tender heart for people in need. She put one Kenyan girl though years of schooling. Someone said to her, your kindness will help a thousand people. And surely as the Kenyan girl benefits from her education, generations to follow will be blessed.
Sometimes it was a sad time for us as we'd think of something we'd like to do with Mom... and then remember that it will no longer happen. But it was hard to be sad for Mom. I knew she was delighted to have passed. She fought the good fight. She never gave up, always working to keep up her energy and balance even going to the gym with her personal trainer. But she was tired. I'm convinced that when she woke up on the other side she said, "Yahoo! I made it. I finished the race!" and she was delighted to greet Walter and other family members who had passed on ahead. The poem I read was called, "I'm Free." Basically it said, don't be sad for me, I'm free. God called me home and I'm happy to be there. So don't be sad. Enjoy the great memories and be good to others. When I first read it, I cried, thinking about how I missed Mom. Then I realized I had to read it as if I were Mom. She would mean the words and be confident and happy. I was able to read it at the memorial without crying.
We enjoyed the great legacy of love Mom and Dad passed on to us. If you were family, you were loved. There was nothing more important than the loving relations between family members. You don't hold grudges. You allow for differences of opinion-- religion, liberal, conservative, etc-- and disagree without being disagreeable. It is a cherished legacy. We are so blessed!
Sunday, December 23, 2018
On the Road Again
We covered a lot of ground, literally, since last week. We started off in Laguna Woods, and are now back in Broken Arrow, OK.
The downsizing of GG's belongings continued on Monday. Tom took the remainder of her clothes to a Women's Shelter and Steve went with Cynthia to the American Legion to provide new homes for wheel chairs and walkers. Tom spent time loading the van in anticipation of a Tuesday departure. That evening eight of us (less Sally and Steve) went out to eat and had a delightful time.
Tuesday Tom finished finding space for the last of our stuff and was able to leave a tunnel in the back so he could see out the rear view mirror. His brother Stephen had thoughtfully brought him a Regulator Clock which he made a comfortable travel space for. We were able to say our goodbyes to everyone and be on the road by noon. We made it to Williams, AZ to spend the night. Wednesday night we spent in Tucumcari, NM and we arrived at Miranda's Thursday evening. The trip was uneventful. We did have some strong tail winds; in fact our gas mileage increased 3 mpg for that segment of the trip.
Sandy handled the trip well, but needed Friday to recuperate. Tom did 99% of the driving.
We spent the next two days relaxing and activating our new phones. That means after 12 days without my own cell phone, I am now connected again! And with the same number...except we just learned we aren't getting incoming calls. Both mom and I now have Samsung Galaxy 7s, which means we are only a few years behind. The Verizon store was near a Chick Filet so we had to stop for lunch...and Andy's frozen custard was a short walk from there, so we had to indulge there also. On Saturday, Dan and I tackled a leaky external faucet problem which taxed our plumbing abilities and our skills at not burning the house down with the torch needed to melt the solder that was next to a stud. It took more time than expected. And, there is still a very small leak; but that should be a relatively easy fix tomorrow.
Sunday, December 9, 2018
9 December 2018
Greetings from Shamrock Texas! Wait, what are we doing there? We are enroute to GG's funeral and memorial services in SoCal. But first...we need to bore you will all those mundane things we accomplished this past week. To be honest, there really isn't that much to report, but I will try to stretch things out anyway!
I spent three mornings this past week installing paneling in the two downstairs rooms for the ceiling at the rent house, finishing the trim and doing touch up painting. I told the tenant I was finished, but there is still work to be done - at a later time (much later). Fortunately other than storage, those rooms aren't used for anything else.
Sandy was busy coordinating with cancer centers in Tulsa and SoCal so she can continue with her treatments while we are on the road. A big Thanks to Cynthia and Miranda for their assistance; it appears she will be able to at least get a treatment in SoCal.
As we were preparing for our driving trip west, Miranda offered to drive out with us (and fly back home). We kept a close eye on the storm named Diego which was forecasted to bring multiple inches of rain and some ice from New Mexico to Arkansas over the weekend. Not what we wanted to have happen since that is our driving route. We had originally planned to leave home Saturday morning and drive to Broken Arrow where we would stay with Miranda's family. The original plan was then to leave on Monday AM to continue the drive. We had scheduled rental home inspections on Friday morning and did not want to cancel those so we could leave that morning. The last time they were scheduled they were canceled due to weather. But according to the weather report, if we left on Friday, we would miss the storm.
I like to take goodies to most of the tenants, so on Thursday I made multiple loaves of cranberry nut bread. Actually I five times the recipe and had just enough for everyone. And it made the kitchen smell good!
It never ceases to amaze me, but only reinforces the need to perform these walk throughs, the things tenants don't bother to tell you about. And even though they know we are coming, they don't have a list of things to report. For example: Me: Any problems, leaks, etc. Tenant: No. Me: Ah, what happened to the bathroom door knob. Tenant: oh it was sticking so we removed it. Me: wouldn't it be nice to have a replacement? Tenant: Yes.
We didn't find anything major, just several minor repairs to be made. We have been blessed with good tenants 95% of the time. It is the 5% that makes the rest look so good. One tenant needs to live in the country so he has ample room for his collection; he has one RV, three pickups, one SUV, one motorcycle and two small trailers parked in the driveway. Then there is the garage stuffed with 'stuff''. This is also the guy whose truck advertises that he is 'handyman'. Yet, his back door did not latch so they just stuck a rock against it to hold it closed. The striker plate was missing a screw so it was not aligned properly. Took me less than five minutes to resolve this issue!
I was home by 130 PM. Sandy had packed the suitcase and I was able to get things loaded into the van and we were on our way by 3 PM. We did a dinner stop at Deborah's and then continued on our way to Miranda's and were there before 9 PM. And we beat the weather. Oh, the weather never materialized! Parts around Mountain Home had some snow, but at our house, according to the neighbor, we just had a few flakes. All that worry for nothing. But leaving early gave us all day Saturday to spend with Miranda's family.
Today was the Primary Program in their ward, so we were uplifted again by the sweet children's testimonies in song and speaking. Their meetings start at 1200; we left after Sacrament so we could start our trip west, hence why we are in Shamrock. We wanted to break up the drive so it would not be too much for Sandy. She has again, done amazingly well.
Sandy started the week off slowly, but continued to gain energy and strength as the week progressed. And she is still going strong. Wednesday about 9 PM she mentioned that her ostomy bag was leaking and that it needed replacing. Now there are a couple of times it is not good to disturb me: at meal time and bed time. But I humbled myself and replaced the bag. But the humbling wasn't over. Within 30 minutes it was leaking again. So I got to replace it again, only this time you can be sure I was more alert and attentive to my efforts. That bag stayed on until Sunday morning when I replaced it again so she would have a fresh bag for the trip.
It is fun to have Miranda with us for the drive out; I appreciate her sharing the driving. It was a family sacrifice for her. First, she left Dan with the four children. He will be taking the two youngest to Kera's on Monday and friends will help care for the two school aged boys during the week. And then on Tuesday, Deborah will drive to Kera's and leave her two youngest and drive to the LR airport with Andy. Friends will assist Ian with the other four school aged children. It is a great blessing to have loving family and friends to help out when needed.
And I found a new home for the three roosters; we have a church family that has a variety of animals and will add them to their 'farm'.
We hope Savannah has a successful birthing this week!
Greetings from Shamrock Texas! Wait, what are we doing there? We are enroute to GG's funeral and memorial services in SoCal. But first...we need to bore you will all those mundane things we accomplished this past week. To be honest, there really isn't that much to report, but I will try to stretch things out anyway!
I spent three mornings this past week installing paneling in the two downstairs rooms for the ceiling at the rent house, finishing the trim and doing touch up painting. I told the tenant I was finished, but there is still work to be done - at a later time (much later). Fortunately other than storage, those rooms aren't used for anything else.
Sandy was busy coordinating with cancer centers in Tulsa and SoCal so she can continue with her treatments while we are on the road. A big Thanks to Cynthia and Miranda for their assistance; it appears she will be able to at least get a treatment in SoCal.
As we were preparing for our driving trip west, Miranda offered to drive out with us (and fly back home). We kept a close eye on the storm named Diego which was forecasted to bring multiple inches of rain and some ice from New Mexico to Arkansas over the weekend. Not what we wanted to have happen since that is our driving route. We had originally planned to leave home Saturday morning and drive to Broken Arrow where we would stay with Miranda's family. The original plan was then to leave on Monday AM to continue the drive. We had scheduled rental home inspections on Friday morning and did not want to cancel those so we could leave that morning. The last time they were scheduled they were canceled due to weather. But according to the weather report, if we left on Friday, we would miss the storm.
I like to take goodies to most of the tenants, so on Thursday I made multiple loaves of cranberry nut bread. Actually I five times the recipe and had just enough for everyone. And it made the kitchen smell good!
It never ceases to amaze me, but only reinforces the need to perform these walk throughs, the things tenants don't bother to tell you about. And even though they know we are coming, they don't have a list of things to report. For example: Me: Any problems, leaks, etc. Tenant: No. Me: Ah, what happened to the bathroom door knob. Tenant: oh it was sticking so we removed it. Me: wouldn't it be nice to have a replacement? Tenant: Yes.
We didn't find anything major, just several minor repairs to be made. We have been blessed with good tenants 95% of the time. It is the 5% that makes the rest look so good. One tenant needs to live in the country so he has ample room for his collection; he has one RV, three pickups, one SUV, one motorcycle and two small trailers parked in the driveway. Then there is the garage stuffed with 'stuff''. This is also the guy whose truck advertises that he is 'handyman'. Yet, his back door did not latch so they just stuck a rock against it to hold it closed. The striker plate was missing a screw so it was not aligned properly. Took me less than five minutes to resolve this issue!
I was home by 130 PM. Sandy had packed the suitcase and I was able to get things loaded into the van and we were on our way by 3 PM. We did a dinner stop at Deborah's and then continued on our way to Miranda's and were there before 9 PM. And we beat the weather. Oh, the weather never materialized! Parts around Mountain Home had some snow, but at our house, according to the neighbor, we just had a few flakes. All that worry for nothing. But leaving early gave us all day Saturday to spend with Miranda's family.
Today was the Primary Program in their ward, so we were uplifted again by the sweet children's testimonies in song and speaking. Their meetings start at 1200; we left after Sacrament so we could start our trip west, hence why we are in Shamrock. We wanted to break up the drive so it would not be too much for Sandy. She has again, done amazingly well.
Sandy started the week off slowly, but continued to gain energy and strength as the week progressed. And she is still going strong. Wednesday about 9 PM she mentioned that her ostomy bag was leaking and that it needed replacing. Now there are a couple of times it is not good to disturb me: at meal time and bed time. But I humbled myself and replaced the bag. But the humbling wasn't over. Within 30 minutes it was leaking again. So I got to replace it again, only this time you can be sure I was more alert and attentive to my efforts. That bag stayed on until Sunday morning when I replaced it again so she would have a fresh bag for the trip.
It is fun to have Miranda with us for the drive out; I appreciate her sharing the driving. It was a family sacrifice for her. First, she left Dan with the four children. He will be taking the two youngest to Kera's on Monday and friends will help care for the two school aged boys during the week. And then on Tuesday, Deborah will drive to Kera's and leave her two youngest and drive to the LR airport with Andy. Friends will assist Ian with the other four school aged children. It is a great blessing to have loving family and friends to help out when needed.
And I found a new home for the three roosters; we have a church family that has a variety of animals and will add them to their 'farm'.
We hope Savannah has a successful birthing this week!
Sunday, December 2, 2018
Tis the Season to be Jolly!
Sunday 2 December 2018
It is the last month of the year, a time of joy and happiness as we prepare for the Christmas Season in earnest.
Let me begin first with an update on Sandy's status. She continues to exhibit what for her has become her new normal for good health. Prior to each every two week infusion she has lab work done to confirm that she is capable of receiving the infusion. This week, the doctor stated that the lab report showed normal functioning liver and kidneys and that her red blood count was up to 11.4 (it was 10.2 a month ago). She did have some type of short term bug Tuesday evening until Thursday evening. We drove to St Louis to attend the temple on Friday, spending the night there. She did not sleep well and spent part of the morning sleeping in the car while I was at the temple. Then she slept part way home. This morning she woke up with a fever, and a leaking bag. She called her doctor who prescribed an antibiotic for the fever; after reading the warnings I have to wonder which is worse, the disease or the treatment. "WARNING: this drug may cause very bad side effects." By the time I returned home from church, she was feeling much better. Because the lab report sounds so positive, we assume this recent illness is not related to the cancer.
It was a busy week for us. I spent a couple of mornings working at the rent house (still). On Tuesday we joined the sister missionaries in teaching a part member family and then attended a family history event honoring our Hispanic heritage. We even had several tasty dishes to enjoy. Wednesday morning Sandy had her visit with the wound healing center; the wound continues to heal and appears healthy. That afternoon I had my appointment with my doctor for an annual physical. It is difficult to find a lot of joy in knowing that I am one of his healthier patients when Sandy struggles with her health issues.
Thursday morning, Sandy had her Chinese healer appointment followed by seeing the oncologist and receiving her immunotherapy infusion. The sisters joined us that evening for a dinner of breakfast burritos.
Then on Friday we drove to the temple with a single sister that just moved into the ward. She had previously lived in Arizona where she had served a mission in Louisiana as an employment specialist and also worked at the temple. We enjoyed chatting up and back. We spent the night, attended the temple in the morning and drove home, arriving about 6 pm.
Today during our third hour of meetings, the bishop had a great slide show showing the new 2 hour block meeting schedule that starts in January. It was helpful in clarifying how it will actually work and resolved a lot of people's concerns. I hope that we can follow the spirit of this inspired change.
The wind has been very active this week and the trees are bare of leaves. I worked on raking them onto a tarp and throwing them on the burn pile, but I can't seem to get caught up. This week I will attack them with greater enthusiasm and aggressiveness. The three roosters that hatched last June have come of age. The poor hens are not accustomed to such attention and I fear it is time to eliminate the three trouble makers.
Here are some pictures from Thanksgiving at Jonathan's:
Hope that all of you have a great week and have time to focus on what is of greater worth.
It is the last month of the year, a time of joy and happiness as we prepare for the Christmas Season in earnest.
Let me begin first with an update on Sandy's status. She continues to exhibit what for her has become her new normal for good health. Prior to each every two week infusion she has lab work done to confirm that she is capable of receiving the infusion. This week, the doctor stated that the lab report showed normal functioning liver and kidneys and that her red blood count was up to 11.4 (it was 10.2 a month ago). She did have some type of short term bug Tuesday evening until Thursday evening. We drove to St Louis to attend the temple on Friday, spending the night there. She did not sleep well and spent part of the morning sleeping in the car while I was at the temple. Then she slept part way home. This morning she woke up with a fever, and a leaking bag. She called her doctor who prescribed an antibiotic for the fever; after reading the warnings I have to wonder which is worse, the disease or the treatment. "WARNING: this drug may cause very bad side effects." By the time I returned home from church, she was feeling much better. Because the lab report sounds so positive, we assume this recent illness is not related to the cancer.
It was a busy week for us. I spent a couple of mornings working at the rent house (still). On Tuesday we joined the sister missionaries in teaching a part member family and then attended a family history event honoring our Hispanic heritage. We even had several tasty dishes to enjoy. Wednesday morning Sandy had her visit with the wound healing center; the wound continues to heal and appears healthy. That afternoon I had my appointment with my doctor for an annual physical. It is difficult to find a lot of joy in knowing that I am one of his healthier patients when Sandy struggles with her health issues.
Thursday morning, Sandy had her Chinese healer appointment followed by seeing the oncologist and receiving her immunotherapy infusion. The sisters joined us that evening for a dinner of breakfast burritos.
Then on Friday we drove to the temple with a single sister that just moved into the ward. She had previously lived in Arizona where she had served a mission in Louisiana as an employment specialist and also worked at the temple. We enjoyed chatting up and back. We spent the night, attended the temple in the morning and drove home, arriving about 6 pm.
Today during our third hour of meetings, the bishop had a great slide show showing the new 2 hour block meeting schedule that starts in January. It was helpful in clarifying how it will actually work and resolved a lot of people's concerns. I hope that we can follow the spirit of this inspired change.
The wind has been very active this week and the trees are bare of leaves. I worked on raking them onto a tarp and throwing them on the burn pile, but I can't seem to get caught up. This week I will attack them with greater enthusiasm and aggressiveness. The three roosters that hatched last June have come of age. The poor hens are not accustomed to such attention and I fear it is time to eliminate the three trouble makers.
Here are some pictures from Thanksgiving at Jonathan's:
Hope that all of you have a great week and have time to focus on what is of greater worth.
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