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Post by danny15 on Oct 1, 2023 16:32:35 GMT -5
Here it is, Sunday evening, and I haven't done anything I planned. That's ok. I went to an open house. It was a big downsize from here but very charming. It's in the town where DD2 lives, she wants DD1 and I closer to her. This area is made up of neighborhoods that are old school ~ sidewalks, picket fences, front and side porches. The trees are mature and were planned not to outgrow their spaces and overwhelm anything which is really nice to see. So many time trees and bushes are planted with no thought as to how they will look in 10 - 20 years.
It was on a corner lot and with the trees had a surprising amount of privacy. Nothing like what I have here, but charming. With all the talk about books I kept thinking this is a neighborhood that the Bobbsey Twins could have lived in. The biggest drawback is that in keeping with an older neighborhood look, all the houses have detached garages that back onto alleys. As an older person I really want an attached garage. But those are on the newer homes like DD2 lives in ~ the giant open plan ones.
I put the brand-new coin sorter in the truck for donation. I was waiting to find the cleaning kit that went with it but figured just get this out. I didn't go to donation this morning. Which meant that DD1 had a change of heart about the giant stuffed Rudolph with the blinking red nose. She is keeping that and the other reindeer will go by his lonesome. Oh dear, that makes me want to keep him too. I have this not good thing where I feel like stuffed animals have feelings, friends, families. We mostly bought them in pairs. But someone will love him all by himself. They may not have had room for two big reindeer anyway.
This week will be crazy busy with work people here. It will be stressful but trying to take things easy.
I hope everyone is having a beautiful fall day!!!
p.s. Diane, I love reading about what you are reading and all the nature happenings in your yard!
p.p.s. When I was on a country road today I stopped for a giant owl who was just sitting in the middle on the road. It was a little scary because they can do serious damage with their beaks and talons but I wanted to see if I could scare him a bit onto the side of the road, then call the wildlife center here to maybe rescue him. He hopped off then tried to fly into a tree. Got onto a low branch so I figured he will be fine. Out of immediate danger. Sometimes they swoop in front of cars here in pursuit of some little prey. Maybe he got bumped and needs time to recover.
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Post by desposito on Oct 1, 2023 17:45:27 GMT -5
Oh dear, talk about going down rabbit holes. I saw the Monterrey Bay Aquarium mentioned at the back of the book I just finished and totally forgot that I used to always look at their webcams. They have a page on their website under Animals/Deep Sea that has beautiful photos of all kinds of deep sea creatures. I will need to limit my time looking at webcams.
I'm getting tired, I will look forward to bedtime tonight. One more list before dinner.
Next:
10 minutes PEEPing Put laundry away Change upstairs calendars to October Delete 50 emails
Diane
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Post by desposito on Oct 1, 2023 17:50:07 GMT -5
Danny, I anthropomorphize all the time. I too would be thinking--but wait, won't the reindeer want to stay together? Many times I've had to remind myself the "reindeer" is inert cloth, thread, and stuffing, and doesn't have feelings.
I so envy you guys that have so much wildlife around, I love, love, love owls! I can't imagine seeing one in the wild.
Diane
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Post by reve on Oct 1, 2023 18:56:06 GMT -5
Oh friends, stuffed animals are my one true kryptonite. I have hundreds, and will always have hundreds because I'm not willing and definitely not able to part with any. I think our best bet there is reducing how many come into the house (difficult in itself!) and better storage solutions (we added a corner hammock to the spare room about six months ago that I still need to put some on).
Done: Achieved dining table zero Wiped down kitchen worktops Stacked and ran dishwasher Sorted through big box of cables Spent some time clearing in boyfriend's study Moved food from his room to the Snack Drawers Filled a bag of rubbish Filled a box of recycling Cleared a bag of carrier bags Went through and sorted the mug cupboard to get rid of a few. Want to buy some means of stacking the ones I'm keeping Trimmed remaining good flowers and condensed the rest for recycling Bleached toilet Achieved coffee table zero Wiped down coffee table Done some plotting and contacting of people who can give advice with regards to The Bathroom Situation - some of you may remember the saga from about a month ago. It's got a lot more complicated this week, but Plans B and C are underway. Clean toilet Clean bathroom surfaces Set out clothes for tomorrow
So The Bathroom Situation! The company we booked it through seems to have declared bankruptcy as a means to a quick buy out. Which means all jobs, stock and intellectual property is safe, but existing orders will not be honoured. I can claim my deposit back from my credit card company, I have an installer lined up who can do things for cheaper when he has the space in his schedule....but I still have gaping holes where my bathroom was. Oy vey....!
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Post by danny15 on Oct 1, 2023 19:14:09 GMT -5
Yes desposito anthropomorphize is the word I was thinking of. I've done that since I was a little child.
The owl was a barred owl. We also have great-horned owls, coopers hawks, red tailed hawks, herons (which always remind me of pterodactyls when they glide overhead) and turkey vultures that can have a wingspan of 6 feet. They are especially beautiful when you see 7 or 8 gliding in circles on high thermal currents. Not quite as pretty when 15 are clustered on a deer carcass but still I like them. I have great pics. Occasionally I see a bald eagle which is especially thrilling! They are coming back. The hawks generally stake out a tall light pole along the freeway, same pole so I am assuming the same hawk. Further along there will be another. So cool. They couldn't care less about all the people driving below.
Although the owls are supposed to be nocturnal I see a fair amount during the day. I did get dive bombed one night and that was a real shock. He almost slammed into the windshield of my car. I was in the car with my ex when he hit an owl swooping out of a field with a mouse.
I am truly blessed to have so much wildlife around!
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Post by desposito on Oct 1, 2023 19:15:37 GMT -5
The company we booked it through seems to have declared bankruptcy
Oh no reve! At least you will get your money back, but what an inconvenience!
I'm getting ready to go downstairs a little early--the dog went out so late I'm counting on her not wanting to go out at 8, and if I push her out, she won't do anything. I think I'll have to wait til she wants to go, which might be the middle of the night, but if I can get sleep before and after it'll be okay.
Good night everyone, see you tomorrow in the weekday thread!
Diane
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Post by desposito on Oct 1, 2023 19:24:58 GMT -5
Danny, we have a couple of kinds of hawks here, there's a small one that is the most common, I think I've seen the larger kind just once. Of course, I kind of hate to see them when they're stalking my bird feeder, but I understand they have to eat too. A friend of mine saw an eagle one time out in a suburb north of here, I would just be amazed if I saw a bird that large.
Although, speaking of owls, I do think I saw a snowy owl once very briefly--in the city. It was very early morning and I had recently started dog walking and I took the dogs to a park and saw what I at first thought was a gull flying and landing in a tree. It was out of the corner of my eye, and it looked larger than a gull--the wings were not skinny--then I thought--wait, do gulls even land in trees? The trees were full of leaves so I couldn't see it, so I quickly walked the dogs over to the bottom of the tree and kept looking up, and it finally flew out across the street. As it flew over me I made a point to look at the head, because the bird ID information I always read said to notice the head and beak to help ID it. Well, I didn't really see a head from underneath, and definitely no beak! It flew away very quickly and all the way home I'm thinking, what bird is large, white, and has a blunt head and no protruding beak--the only thing I could think of what a snowy owl but thought that was ridiculous in the busy city.
And later, when looking up snowy owls I found a neighborhood forum with a post from someone who showed a photo, far away and blurry, of a snowy owl and they said it was in their neighborhood recently! So I do think that's what I saw. But it was only one time, and I didn't see it very clearly. It was still exciting to see something that I had never seen before, and will probably never see again.
Diane
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Post by danny15 on Oct 1, 2023 19:31:15 GMT -5
reve stuffed animals!!!!!! Yes, we have hundreds too and they are extremely difficult to part with. phoenixcat is another who has many beloved stuffed animals. One Christmas my father talked me into parting with several large black trash bags of stuffed animals that he could use for Santa with the Marines' Toys for Tots program. It was hard but I knew the kids would love them. I sleep with very, very soft lambs and teddy bears. Besides the emotional comfort they are good for propping up my arms and legs in different sleeping positions.
Oh your poor bathroom and poor you!!!! I hope that situation resolves very soon with as little aggravation as possible.
Ok time for me to quit playing around. Tomorrow I have the plumber coming back for the broken UV light tube for the water treatment system and another furnace company for a second opinion. Tuesday the handyman comes for I don't know how many days, Wednesday and Thursday the regular furnace guy is supposed to maybe change a fan blower on one of the furnaces. That is the company that is frequently a no-show. The following week is a ton of masonry work and more fence repairs. I need to get good rest and good nutrition to hold up for all of that without getting too stressed.
Good night everyone.
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Post by desposito on Oct 1, 2023 19:31:23 GMT -5
Oh, and speaking of exciting bird sightings, a few times I've seen wild Quaker parrots since moving to this house! There are wild populations of them around, and two years in a row they showed up in the alley nearby. I have to tell Danny all these stories since she hasn't been posting here for very long--I'm sure the people who have been here for years have heard all my animal stories that I tell over and over again!
Diane
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Post by danny15 on Oct 1, 2023 19:37:10 GMT -5
desposito parrots!!!!! how cool to see them in the wild!!!!! And the snowy owl must have been a beautiful sight! I never, ever get tired of animal stories!
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Post by goldenthreads on Oct 1, 2023 20:15:58 GMT -5
I have to tell Danny all these stories since she hasn't been posting here for very long--I'm sure the people who have been here for years have heard all my animal stories that I tell over and over again! It's all new to me, too. I haven't been here long and I am a faithful lurker who enjoys all your stories.
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Post by cando on Oct 1, 2023 21:11:31 GMT -5
Hello everyone. Updating: My mother went into the hospital ER on Mon. morning Sept 11th. Thursday afternoon Sept 14th. I won’t go into detail about what had happened as it was very gross. Lots of blood, but the thought was that she had a tumor, but when they went in to clean up & biopsy, it wasn’t. So surgery went well. Whew! DH & I had a trip planned to CA to help out with his Mom who is in respite at an assisted living. We were scheduled to leave early the evening my Mom was discharged. We were just about to reschedule my flight & I’d fly up separately on a later date when we found out that my mom was being discharged. So, I was able to come home from the hospital & quickly pack up. I only had 2 hrs & had to pack dirty clothes since I’d spent the entire time with my Mom at the hospital— night & day. I was so happy to be able to go with DH & especially that my Mom was okay! DH & I helped with things with his DMom to give his siblings a break. I’m so happy we were able to help. I love her & his family so much. One of the days we spent driving her to a special cancer hospital in another city & spent all day there doing tests (MRI, etc) & dr appointment. She is being followed closely & has to go at least quarterly as she is Stage 4 cancer. We did lots of other things to help. I admit to being shocked when we 1st saw her as she could hardly walk with a walker. Her condition was much worse than when I last saw her. She was a little better most the rest of our trip. I so enjoyed spending time with her! She is wonderful! She & my mom used to be best friends & wacky but very good tennis players! I’m so happy we were able to offer some relief to his family even if it was only about 12 days. Wish we could help more! Got back last Tuesday night. Back to work on Wednesday. My boss is angry with me about something I did last week & once again am worried that I could lose my job. However; I’m not as stressed about it as usual since I’m finally getting kinda used to this. Ghah! Yesterday, washed 2 loads of laundry, went grocery shopping & spent the day with my DSon, his wife & DGrandson — love them! Had so much fun. 2 yr old is so much fun!! Today, visited DMom. (Also visited her last Wednesday after work). She’s doing well. Was smiley & funny! DH went with me both times. reve sorry to hear about the bathroom saga. I’m still going thru my own bathroom saga. May have to sue our contractor since he is not the least bit interested in even coming to see the cracks in the shower walls that his company installed. Blaming it on house foundation shifting which is not true… He is not responding at all. We would like to enjoy our beautiful bathroom. They are small cracks but we are concerned that not done properly & will get worse. Cd
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Post by catcats on Oct 1, 2023 21:28:10 GMT -5
cando, I am sorry that your DMom was so sick, but glad that she is well now. Nice that you could go and help out with your DMil. I hope they both do well now. I was so exhausted last night that I was unable to go down and reboot the laundry so I rerinsed it this morning and put it to dry after I had taken the existing load from the dryer. Folded that dryer load. I don't usually do laundry on Sundays, but I just did it this time. Went to Mass and then came home and took the recycling to the curb for tomorrow. Did a few other dailies. reve, you must be disappointed about the BR. How frustrating. Hoping for good things for all. catcats
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Post by cando on Oct 2, 2023 1:41:17 GMT -5
catcats thank you I did more laundry tonight & paid 1 of moms bills. Paid her rent earlier today. Cd
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Post by danny15 on Oct 2, 2023 10:35:38 GMT -5
Dear cando you really have a LOT of things going on in your life! It is truly wonderful to read how much you love your in-laws! I am sure they are so appreciative of all that you and your DH do to help out, especially having to fly to their location. I am so sorry to hear of the very frightening troubles with your mom. How wonderful now that she is improving to be smiley and funny! And your loving relationship with your son, DIL and dearest grandson is so heart-warming! I know things may be difficult with your DD but you have so much love within the rest of your family, that must help to comfort you.
Those bummer outside-of-the-family issues!!!!!! I want to smack your boss upside the head and tell him what an amazing worker he has and he needs to be grateful for you! And the bathroom problems The last thing you need is not only the shoddy work but now trying to get the contractor to respond and fix the problems. Having to sue him adds another layer of problems and stress.
You are one of the very strong ladies here!!! I am so grateful to read your stories and so uplifted by your dedication to family! I hope you were able to have some enjoyment on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur!
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