Wednesday, November 30, 2016

November's End

Yes, I am still alive!
This month has both flown by, as well as dragged on- if that is possible. I was surprised to see Thanksgiving items marked down at the grocery store... Ii was an effort to remember that yes, indeed, we are past Thanksgiving.
It was just Tom and I and the twins for the meal here. I prepared as if there were still a double fist of us to feed... but made a smaller turkey, and fewer pies. Mom and Ralph had dinner with Robbie, Dad, and Kathie, but came up the next day... bringing us more pies! (As well as a bedroom suite that Dad and Kathie have been holding for me for a number of years now.)

The house is starting to come together. I got the kitchen painted, a pegboard hung to store my cast iron on, a couple of shallow shelves above the pegboard to help alleviate the clutter on top of the fridge. We got bright LED lights in most of the darker spots that already had lights. (Still need my budding electrician to install some lights in the really dark places!)

I got a few pictures and art hung on the walls. Despite following the exact instructions on the 3M Command (R) strips, several items have fallen. One frame broke into bits... :( I will be having to decide exactly where things will live and use a few discrete nails to hang items up. The walls are already full of hundreds of holes from the previous owner's 30+ years of incessant over decorating.

The internet here really stinks... our "hotspot" is a mildly tepid spot on its best day. We have applied for and paid the installation fee for the fiber optic internet to be installed- they say it will be between February and June.

Tommy graduates CFNI December 9th!

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Howdy, Friends

We are completely out of the Magnolia House! Keys turned in, utilities off. Those weirdo owners of the Magnolia house declined to even meet us for a final walk through. Had us drop the keys off!
However, it looks as good as it could possibly look- certainly a sight better than when we got it.
   The boxes of stuff remain to be unloaded here. I have been trying to do SOME every day... but failed miserably today to empty even one. Today, I ran errands and bought groceries. I hope I am not coming down with the miseries- Tom has been sick. I grumped at him when he repeatedly sneezed all over the kitchen, without even TRYING to cover his face. Yesterday, I didn't leave the property at all, and got the bedroom at least to a point one can walk in and feel able to sleep. Piles of "stuff" everywhere is just NOT relaxing. I admit, I will need to re-arrange the closet at a later date... but the stuff is out of sight!
  So far, our Thanksgiving plans look like this:
1) We are NOT going ANYWHERE
2) Tom mentioned deer hunting
3) Sam mentioned we should order a goose from Fresh Market.
4) Tom mentioned we need to invite Connor and Alana over for a few days.
5) My Mom and Ralph may come up the weekend/ day after Thanksgiving

As to accomplishing  any of the above:
1) a) In order to not go anywhere, I need to make no advance preparations
2) a) Deer corn has been set out
2) b) Mention made of needing a deer license. This will require:
2) b) 1) Getting Oklahoma driver's license
2) b) 2) Hunters ed. class for Dan and Sam
2) c) Sighting in of firearms
2) d) Clearing of firing lanes
3) No one has called Fresh Market at this point
4) I have not contacted Jennifer for requesting Connor and Alana to visit

I did pick up a few little Thanksgiving type items. Pickles, olives, a cheater bag of stuffing, some fresh sweet potatoes, pie crusts. So far, all the turkeys I have seen are more than I want to pay per pound. I guess I can say a temporary goodbye to a diet... I got little Andes creme de menthe chips to bake into some cookies!
I hope to get some pictures taken of the new place, and then be able to upload them! The little "hot spot" isn't so hot for internet. It uses data like crazy, So I am resigned to much less online time for a few months. (I am writing this offline, and will attempt to connect to publish!)

Thank you all for your prayers.

A sad note: Grand daughter Nickole's other Grammy, Lynn Harris, passed away last week. Services are still pending. Until she got sick, Lynn kept me posted on Nickole's antics.


 

Wednesday, November 2, 2016

It' done! We are Home owners!

Not that we are quite done moving yet. One snag after another. We did close on the 10th, with great reluctance and much pushing from the realtors. The sellers were not out yet. They cleared the house, and had the well house (with locking storage and electricity) almost cleared by the time we did the "final walk through". They were going to need extra time to clear the outbuildings. We said we could give them a few days.
They were down to a few piles in the yard when we left Monday night, as far as stuff from the house went. We went back to the leased house after cleaning on the new place. Tuesday, Tom decided to go ahead and take the day off and MOVE! He rented a UHaul, something I had not wanted to do. Too much, too fast! The Uhaul was loaded with the big stuff, including the deep freezer and the refrigerator. To load a full freezer, it has to be emptied out. then moved to the truck. then refilled. then transported. And emptied, then moved from the truck. Then re-filled.
So we get the Uhaul to the new place. Those piles of stuff they had left in the yard? Now piled into the well house. They had promised to return "Wednesday or Thursday" for the rest of their stuff. Our options were to take the stuff we needed to put into the well house back to the leased house and unload the Uhaul there, or make do at the new place. I ended up with Tom's mechanics tool box in my front room, the air compressor in the bedroom... the freezer and fridge on extension cords on the covered front porch.
The sellers were no shows on Wednesday and Thursday. Late Thursday evening, we got a relayed call: They called their realtor, who called our realtor, who called us... they would be here bright and early the next morning (Friday the 14th.) We had planned to leave for Ohio Friday morning, but Tom was uncomfortable in leaving the place unattended. We waited. Tom grew more and more fretful. A text from DIL Paula helped... reminding us these people had so much stuff of their own to move, our stuff should not be endangered. About 2pm, with the sellers once again not showing up as promised, we headed to Ohio.
Vacation there is a post unto itself. Hopefully soon!
We got a call from Sam about 5:45 PM. He had just arrived at the new house after work, to let the dog out. The sellers showed up right behind him. They dropped off a Uhaul and left again. They returned Saturday morning... and instead of clearing out any of the THREE outdoor storage areas, they filled the Uhaul with yard stuff. Promising again to return before the week was out, they left us with locked storage units we couldn't use. We returned on the 23rd. They still had not been back.
They finally showed up on the 28th. They didn't bring a Uhaul, but a flatbed trailer. After every centimeter was full... they left the rest to us. (Last minute tearing a built in shelf off the outside wall of the shed!!!) We had three loads (so far) for the dump, and two to a thrift store. We have another of thrift stuff and another of trash/ hazardous chemical waste still to dispose of. But they are out, and we can finish moving in.
We have a "hotspot" prepaid device for internet. Very spotty service. The satellite internet had a 2 year contract- and the electric company will be offering fiber optic services in about 5 months. They start construction in our neighborhood on Jan. 12, and expect services within 120 days.... at half the price of satellite for twice the data limits.
My root canal hasn't quite happened. The odontist took off the temporary crown, cleaned out the cavity, and worried over the massive dormant infection of the bone around the root. She told me to TAKE the antibiotics which the dentist had issued to use "if needed". She disinfected the tooth, packed it with more antibiotic stuff, and re-set my appointment for the 15th of November. I have a couple more days of antibiotics left.
I will post more when I have some time. This move is really sapping my energy!