It All Started Saturday Morning...............

I was all prepared to take a shower fairly early Saturday morning, but for some reason, I had no hot water.  So, I tore into that end of the closet in my bedroom, took out all my winter clothes and laid them on the bed.  Removed the stuff on the floor, took off the door and opened the bottom of the water heater and could see no gas burning nor pilot light lit.

I uttered a word that I won't print here, and called my handy-dandy service technician.  I have a service contract for all my appliances and furnace through my electric company.  The guy took my information and checked around.  "I can get a tech out on Monday."

"Monday?  Don't you have anyone working today?"

"Yes, but they are all booked all day.  We have had a lot of problems since the high winds went through the area.  A lot of pilot lights blown out on water heaters, from the down drafts."

"Okay.  Monday.  What time?"

"Anywhere between nine and four.  The tech will call you when he's on his way."

So I hung up and uttered another word.  Not the same one as before the call, but one slightly worse.

I saw John and Maisey walking by so I opened the front door and flagged him down.  Maisey gladly ran up to the porch.  She can't make the steps up anymore so John carried her.

"You told me the next time the pilot light on my water heater went out, to call you because you know to light it."

"Yep.  I do.  Let me take Maisey back home and I'll come back and get it done."

Meanwhile, I went back to the bedroom, got my long flame lighter, and my flashlight and put them down by the bottom of the water heater.  John knocked and I ran walked quickly up to the front to let him in.

He goes in the closet and lays down on his tummy.  Thank goodness he is a short man so he fits in the area. 

He opens the door where the burner is, lights the long lighter thingy, and pushes down on the red button to bring in the gas.  

Nothing.

"Oh oh," I said.  "This happened last spring when Merle tried to light the thing."

"No, no.  Let me try again.  I am having a hard time holding this door open and pushing on the gas button."

So I got into the closet, put a foot on either side of him and bent down and held the red gas button down while he tried to light it.

Nothing.

He leaned up and turned the whole thing to "Off".  Let it set for awhile and then turned it to Pilot, flicked the lighter, stuck it into the burner area and I bent over and held down the red gas button.

Nothing.

We attempted this four more times when I finally cried, "Forget it!"  My back was killing me from bending over and I was just about to fall down right, on John's back!  Not a good thing!

"What are you going to do with no hot water?"

"I've got a service guy coming sometime on Monday."

"MONDAY?  You are going to need hot water before then.  What are you going to do?"

"Well, the first thing I am going to do is yank all these clothes off my bed and throw them on the floor so I can sleep in my bed.  Then...I'm going to watch football all day and knit and crochet.  On Sunday, I will just pretend I am roughing it out in a primitive camp ground or something.  I'll be fine."

John said, "That tech that comes--be sure and watch what he does so we know next time this happens.  He'll probably just crawl in there and light it first time.  Call and let me know."

And....today when the tech finally got her at 4:00 pm. that is exactly what  he did.  Crawled in there, turned the gas on to pilot, stuck MY flame lighter into the burner, flicked the flame, pushed down on the red button and on came the pilot light.  He let it warm up for a few seconds and then turned the dial to "On" and it whoosed into full flame.

I called John and told him.  He just roared with laughter.  

I had so much I wanted to do today.  Places I had to run to.  Laundry piled high.  Dishwasher full of dirty dishes and greasy hair!  Well....in the last couple hours I've got the dishes done anyway.

==========================

Just as I was getting ready for lunch, Dar came over.  Egads and Little Fish Hooks!!!!

"I have been so busy and I can't stay long, but I had to get over here and say Hi, so you'd know I was still alive and wouldn't worry."

Then she went on to regale me with her life in the last 10 days.  Somewhere in there she mentioned that, "I've been so stressed that my Herpes have flared up and I am having a heck of a time!"

Then on and on she went some more.

An hour later when she got ready to leave, she used my bathroom!!!  The minute she walked out the door, I was back there with the jug of bleach, spray Lysol and toilet bowl cleaner.

I noticed she had not used the sink to wash her hands, but I filled it with water and bleach and tossed the hand towel in the washing machine--just in case she touched it.

After I was all done cleaning, and spraying Lysol on door knobs and flush handle and the entire toilet (even after bleaching), I washed my hands with antibacterial soap and bleach!  Paranoid?  Perhaps, but I am not taking any chances with Herpes invading my world.

GOOD GRIEF!!!

I did have time today, while I was waiting for the service tech, to finish the man's hat I was testing (knitting) for Chris.  It had to be large enough to come down well over the ear lobes, forehead and back of the neck.  I tried it on, figuring if it fit my huge (men's size 7.5) head, it will fit any normal man's head.  It is really a nice pattern.

I had asked Pearl's daughter Marge to stop in the next time she was in this area.  She had wanted me to repair a pair of knitted slippers she had.  I couldn't, so last week I crocheted her a pair like the ones I made for me and my girls.  She loved them.

Pearl fell again, last Friday morning.  She is very bruised and her ankle is swelled up badly.  Marge was asking me for help to find an agency around here that would help with building an outside ramp for Merle and Pearl.  Both are now having a hard time getting up stairs and it isn't safe for Pearl to walk down the front steps anymore.  These two are declining so fast it is scary!!!

It Was A Day

You all, take a look at this blog post, that my "daughter from another mother" posted.  Profound and insightful.  The first time I had heard this part of her story.
http://maybenotdone.blogspot.com/2015/11/staring-into-my-soup.html#comment-form

Plus, the knitted bath mitt patterns, Chris designed and I test knitted, are up for sale.  These are quick to make.  I love mine to use in the shower and little kids love them to use in the tub, with a bar of soap or their body gel.
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/camper-bath-mitt
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When I came in this room this morning, the sun was shining brightly through the front windows.  This time of year, the angle the sun is at, causing it to be in my eyes and I can't see the monitor very well.  So, I lower my blinds and go on.  This morning, as soon as I lowered the blinds, the sun went away.  It started spitting snow and got very dark.  

I wondered. "Did I cause that to happen?  Did the sun get mad at me for shutting him out?"  So I got up and pulled the blinds up to the top of the windows.  Guess what?  Within a minute, the sun came back out.  I just had to laugh, but I take credit for it anyway.  LOL
============================
After my Soap, I decided to drive on up to Howell.  West of here (left).  As I went out to my car, John and Maisey were walking by.  Maisey stopped and came up to me.  John and I chatted a bit, it was cold and windy and I only had a fleece jacket on.  I told him he should head for home because it looked like it was going to rain.  Real dark clouds coming in.  

After I drove out, I saw he and Maisey had continued on their walk.

I no more got out of the park and onto the road when a blizzard like you'd see in January hit.  Plus it was pelting rain.  I don't think any of us motorists could see fifty feet in front of us because everyone slowed down to a crawl--like a 20 mph crawl, and at times that seemed to fast.  Kind of idling the motor and just letting the car coast along.  It stayed that way for my entire 2.5 drive.

All I could think of was John and Maisey, probably clear up to the end of our street and getting caught in it.

I was in the store for maybe all of 10 minutes and when I came out, the storm was gone and the sun was out.  The minute I got home, I called John.

"Did you and Maisey get caught in the blizzard?"

"Man...did we ever!  We were clear up to the corner when it hit.  I didn't have my ski hat on--just my baseball cap and I just about froze my ears off.  Maisey and I both had frozen snow hanging off our hair."

"I worried about that.  I could just see you trying to get home...lost in the blizzard...not being able to see...and getting turned around and lost in the woods or fall into the lake!"

"Yeah.  I was thinking I should have tied a rope to my house so I could follow it back home.  and the thing is, when we got to your house, Maisey went up your drive and sat down.  I tried to explain to her that your car was gone and you weren't home, but she wasn't going to move."

"That's because she wuvs me and she knows I wuv her!"

"That's true, but...there we were in the middle of a blinding blizzard and she wouldn't move.  I had to pick her up and carry her the rest of the way home!"

"You should have stepped inside here and warmed up and waited for the blizzard to pass.  Did you wipe her down?"

Yep.  Wiped her down and also myself.  We're still kind of cold."

"Well, take a hot shower or a nap.  Either one would be in order I think."

"I think you are right!"

<I'm afraid I have become too close to this dog.  She's on her last legs and I am going to grieve awfully hard when she dies.  Whenever she sees me, she wags her tail and starts walking my way and then stops and just looks up at me with those big brown eyes and I bend down close and she licks my nose--well.............>
==============================

I've always been a sucker for big, brown eyes.
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A year or so ago, "Isis is just the JV team."  Just this morning, "Isis is contained."  That man in the Big White House, is just about as bright as a 10 watt light bulb.
  

Just A Way of Life

Is having credit cards, just a way of life?  It seems to be that way nowadays.  Of course, since I filed for bankruptcy a year ago, I haven't had any.  Cash on the barrel head, so to speak.  Actually it has been a huge relief for me.  I am back to my old way of life by saving for whatever I wanted.

"Wanted"--that is the operative word here.  NEEDED?  Quite something else.  There comes emergencies.  Car repairs.  Dental bills.  Doctor bills.  Luckily, I have been able to pay my medical and dental bills by sending them $50.00 a month and they were happy with that.  Car repairs?  Couldn't do it.  The particular service garage I use does not offer a time payment system.  Credit card or check.

About six months ago I received a credit card offer--to rebuild my credit (which two years ago was at a FICO of 800).  Of course, with that kind of card, there is an annual fee and a huge interest rate of 22.99%.  My credit limit was $500.00.  I was accepted and used it for my first of 5 car repairs--much needed front brakes.  I would be granted a higher credit limit if I paid the minimum payment and on time.

From knowledge I got somewhere from someone--Suze Orman maybe?--it is better to make a bit higher amount than the minimum payment, earlier than the payment date.

Which I did.  The minimum payment was $35.00.  I paid $50.00 each month.  In the charges each month were the annual fee, divided by 12 and that damn high interest rate.  BUT my credit limit has now been raised to $1,500.00.

Yesterday, I received a Capitol One offer for a card with a $3,000.00 credit limit, NO annual fee, NO APR on purchases for a year.

AHA!

From knowledge I got somewhere from someone, I will do a credit card transfer and use the new card to pay off the older card and pay it off, on the new before the APR kicks in.

Then that credit car will remain in my top desk drawer.  Not to be used for anything, except an emergency.

BUT with knowledge I got somewhere from someone--never let the card be paid off entirely.  To build up my credit rating, When it gets near zero, I need to use it.  Like put $100.00 charge on it and make a payment on it every month.  Consistency in paying is the key to all of this.

I am saving monthly with cash in my Car Repairs envelope.  I figure by March,  I will be able to get BOTH #4 and 5 on the repair list done.  $1,200.00. Cash on the barrel head.

It will take years and years to get my interest rate lowered, but my FICO score is going up, near 700 now.  It was at 600, after my bankruptcy.  

I know it may sound weird, but to me, it feels good to have a card, "in case" and barring any unforeseen  "NEEDS", like a funeral, or a new roof, or a car transmission, that got me in trouble three years ago, I should be fine.  

Security.  That's all this old person really needs and with my new found part-time job and an "in case" credit card, I FEEL IT!!!!

It's been a long hard road these last, nearly, four years!

I want to thank all of you who helped me.  You fed me.  You clothed me.  You sent me stamps.  You sent me checks.  

Sounds like something Jesus said to do.  They all came in the nick of time, so to speak.  Took away some of my pride, but filled my heart with love.

I pray God continually blesses all of you for your generosity to me and now, I can pay it forward!

A $20 here, a $10 there, a ball or two of yarn to make a pair of slippers for a friend or strangers need. A few bucks in the Red Kettle.  I haven't been able to do that for the last few years.
=========================
My sister called me on her way home from her colonoscopy.  Everything is fine--a bit of scar tissue from her cesarean 39 years ago and one teeny diverticulitis pocket, that the pain is coming from.  The minute she did the "prep" all the pain went away.

So glad she is fine.  I knew she would be, but it was so thoughtful of her to call me right away.

Once Again

People in our society are going absolutely nutsy-cuckoo all over the place!

We have christians (notice small "c") boycotting Starbucks because they aren't going to use their Merry Christmas cups this year.

Social media allow kids to bully and fight and spread untrue rumors, then get a gun and going to shoot up a very small town school about 15 miles from here.  Thankfully, someone heard something and told someone.  I liked it better when, if two kids had a beef, they took it out on the play ground and beat the tar out of each other.  The teachers didn't interfere unless it got bad.  The kids got up off the ground, shook hands and went on with life.

Today on Face Book, a group of people with OCD are angry with Target for selling a cute shirt that says, "OCD  Obsessive Christmas Disorder."  I have a slight case of OCD and I'm not offended.

I was talking with a lady in line at Wal-mart this afternoon.  I was picking up a couple of Snickers bars and they had labels on them.  "Grouchy", "Loopy", "Momma Drama".  I showed her and she said, "I know someone I could give that Momma Drama one too."

I said, "Me too, but it isn't my Momma."

She said, "I'd give it to my younger daughter!"

I laughed, "Me too!!"

She had just returned from a visit with her daughter in Missouri.  Her daughter is very accomplished, has a good job and worked hard to get it.  During one conversation, this lady said something which she thought was a joke and a bit sarcastic.  Her daughter took offense and got mad.  The lady then said, "Look!  I'm sixty years old and I can say anything I want!  Can't you take a joke?"

I could see she was still troubled by the incident.  "I can't figure out why what I sad was so bad.  My God--she was raised in a family of jokers and wicked wit."

I just nodded in agreement.  It was like she was echoing my words exactly.    I said to her:

================================


Not many veterans in my immediate family.  My male ancestors were mostly farmers and were exempt from going to war.

A distant cousin, killed at the age of 16, in Missionary Ridge in TN  He is buried in the National Cemetery in Murfreesboro, TN

My mother's father, in WWI--he was a conscious objector, so he was a Chaplain, medic and bugler with the Cavalry.

My mother's oldest brother in the Navy.  
My mother's youngest brother.  He is buried in the     Great Lakes National Cemetery, just up the road in     Holly Michigan

 I finally got my new glasses today.  Not much difference than my last pair.
Can you tell which ones are the new ones?

And I went to the dentist for my four month cleaning.  No cavities, no problems.  (Gee, I haven't had a cavity for years and years.

(Lordy, I need a nose job!!!)

A Beautiful Day.

A cold, gray, rainy day.

A day of nothingness.
No phone calls.
No e-mails.
No visitors.
No crises.

I worked on printing out my genealogy book.
I crocheted for hours.
I bagged up the first batch of spaghetti sauce and froze it.

It was a lovely day!
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The blanket patterns Chris designed and I tested are up for sale, LIVE on Ravelry!!!!!
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/sources/mile-a-minute-blankets/patterns


I might add that the Twin XL is the exact size needed for beds in college dorm rooms!  You have a kid in college?  You could use the school colors.   Choose the two main colors and use a complimentary one for the lattice joining strip.  This is a quick and easy crochet pattern.  One strip at a time.  You can carry it along and work on it while waiting for an appointment, riding in the car--whenever.

You can also get the pattern book with all sizes in it.

It's A Pain In The...................Knuckle.

But first............WOW!  I feel better these last few days than I have in months!  The fog has lifted from my mind.  I have not been forgetting things.  I have not once woke up and wondered what day it was.  I have energy.  I have clear thinking.  I feel happy and bouncy and........................

Is it breakfast?  I don't really think so because even when I started that routine, my head still felt filled up with mud.

Guess what I tried.  On my own with no consultation with the doctor.  Just some Googling.  I take three difference types of prescriptions for high blood pressure.  It seems to be working, other than being dizzy and lowering my pulse too low.

I take these 3 prescriptions in the morning, along with my anti-depressant which also had "light-headiness" as a side effect.  No where does it say I have to take them all at the same time.  The prescription merely reads, "Take by mouth once a day."

I have been told to take my Statin drug at night and my blood thinner just before I go to bed.  

Sooooooooooooooooo, I decided to....take one bp pill in the morning, one at noon and one at supper. I have done this 5 days in a row and BAM!  I noticed yesterday how great I was feeling.  Not one single dizzy!  Even Pearl noticed that I didn't have to stand and wait awhile before walking.  AND, I went without breakfast yesterday.

Tomorrow I will call my doc's office and see if what I am doing is all right.  You know me.  I like to try things on my own to see if they work BEFORE consulting a medical person.
====================
My Daddy swore that a copper bracelet that he made for himself, really helped with arthritis in his elbow, wrist and hands.  I always Poo-Pooed the idea.   Dar swears by magnets.  She has sox she wears with magnets in them and a magnet mattress pad and a pad for her chair.  She says it really helps with her (mild) arthritis.

Yeah right!  

Well, I decided to research a bit as the first knuckle on the index finger of my left hand is killing me.  It aches so bad and an occasional sharp pain, which hampers me greatly in my crocheting and knitting.  Sooooooooooo, I Googled and found all sorts of bracelets made of copper and RINGS!! Arthritis rings!  Under twenty bucks.

Sooooooooooooo, I ordered one.  Not only is it made of copper, with a gold plating, but it has two magnets.  We shall see.

I can bend and close my other fingers into my palm, but not my index finger.

This is as far as it goes because of the "bump" and the swelling.

 Please excuse the ugly sun spots on my hands

 I have never worn a ring on my index finger, but I see it is ALL the rage!

 and even if it doesn't help, it is so pretty.  

Looks almost like my favorite

Black Hills Gold.

Grateful. Rectified. Stupefied. Mystified.

I am so grateful I have this blog and read others blogs.  Just about the time I think I am going crazy, someone posts much the same thing on their blog, and I feel so much better!  

Like when it comes to family matters.  My (pretend) DIL told me, when she called to tell me about my son's cancer diagnosis.  "Your family is so weird!  You don't want anyone--even family members to know when you're sick.  In my family, we call each other every day.  If one of us doesn't have a bowel movement, we discuss it."

She thinks our family is weird?  Well, I don't know if I'd want our family to be that "open", but it would be nice if we knew what was going on.  As I said, "I wish I had known so I could have prayed specific prayers for Mark."  

BUT--just when I think I have the weirdest family on this earth, I read anothers' blog to find they have family much the same.  Medical tests being done without siblings knowing."Why didn't you tell us?"  "Because there's nothing to tell."

My Mark didn't tell anyone he had a prostate problem.  He was going to wait until after the tests and the surgery and then let his family know.  Of course, after the diagnosis, he got so scared, he didn't want anyone to know and feel sorry for him.
<My family has a real problem with pride!  You have noticed that I share that problem too?>

Just when I think that my Daddy was the meanest ever, I read anothers' blog that speaks of their problems with an emotionally absent Mother or a harsh Father.  Just when I get depressed because I was involved in spousal abuse, I read anothers' account of the same.

Just when I start to mourn the fact that my youngest daughter won't speak to me and sorta hates me, I read others blogs and they speak of siblings not speaking to them, or children who don't seem to care.

When Fred died and I was nutsy-cuckoo and thought I was losing my mind in the fog, I read of others going through the same thing.

As long as there is one other person who has experienced or is going through the same thing I am--for some reason, it makes me feel better.  

Misery loves company? or "Thank goodness, I'm not the only one.?"  I guess it reassures me that I am normal in my thought process and I can go on, because these other women have experienced it all and they are quite all right?  

At least as "all right" and "normal" as any human can be!
====================
My sister has a condition with Hemangioma.  She first had the problem when she lived in New York.
Hers are on her liver and cause a lot of abdominal pain.  A Hemangioma is (non-cancerous) excess collection of blood vessels that appear on the skin or internal organs.

They went away, or at least the pain did, until two months ago.  So she has had to have MRI's and ultra sounds, just to make sure something else wasn't wrong.  They could see the two scars from the original Hemangioma's, but they had not enlarged or come "back to life", so to speak.

She told me all this, before the tests and phoned me the minute she got the results.  Wonderful!  I worried less because I knew what was going on.  She didn't have to tell me and I never would have known, but I'm glad she did.  It renewed my feeling that she and I tell each other everything and it also made me feel that I am still of use and significance to her life.

This Thursday, she is going in for a colonoscopy--just to make sure the little twinge of pain she is having in her side isn't from something bad.  I'm sure it's not, but--I'm so glad to know she shared with me.

I am the kind of person who would rather know--even if it's something really, really bad, because I can deal with it better.  Feeling a "hint" that something isn't right and going on day after day and not knowing for sure, drives me straight up the walls!
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If you remember, I had written that every time I went out to supper with Pearl and Merle, one or the other of them complained about their meal and usually got it free?  I finally decided that I wouldn't go anywhere that was more than a burger joint because, it was sort of embarrassing for me for them to return perfectly good food and I really don't enjoy listening to all their complaints all during the meal.

Pearl told me last month that they wanted to take me out and treat me to supper for all the computer work I've done for her.  I kept putting her off until she acted sort of offended and I felt bad.  She called yesterday and asked me to go to supper with them tonight.

She wanted me to pick the restaurant and I refused, so Merle picked Outback Steak House (which just happens to be one of my best favorites).  I had a gift card from there with a bit of money on it and wanted to use it--it's over four years old and I would never go there alone to use it.  Plus what I wanted to order would probably be a bit over their price range.

They picked me up and we sped (60 mph in a 50 mph zone) up to Brighton.  Their car is 20 years old and has 350,000 miles on it.  It sits very low to the ground.  I sat in the back, about 12 inches from the pavement, with a hole in the floor and a piece of heavy plastic over it, as the car bucked and rattled along.  Thank goodness it didn't take us long.

Lobster tail and steak was on special!!  My two favorite eats of all time.  I had the kid check the amount left on my card = $23.67, so I figured I could order the 9oz Filet Mignon and steamed Lobster tail, which came to $30.95 and that way they'd only have to pay seven bucks for their treat to me.

First Pearl complained that the booth was too slippery and her feet didn't touch the floor and the table was too far away from her.  I was sitting opposite them in a chair so I slid the table nearer her.

Merle complained that he couldn't read the menu and I suggested he put on his glasses, which he did.  Then he complained because it was too dark to read--he had put on his prescription sun glasses.

Then they both complained that the bread had too crunchy a crust and the butter tasted sweet.

Our meals came and mine was heavenly!  That lobster tail was gone in six bites and my Filet was so tender, I could cut it with my fork.  My baked potato had half a pound of butter on it and the salad was so fresh and crisp!

Pearl devoured her sirloin, loaded baked potato, salad, and soup, and proclaimed it delicious!  (YAY).

Merle is very slow now and I could see he was having trouble cutting apart the bar-be-cue ribs he had ordered.  He finally picked up the slab and chewed a bit on the meat on the ends.  Then he finished his potato and salad.

Pearl said, "Don't you like your ribs?  You always order them when we come here."

"Too tough to cut."

When the waitress came with the bill, Pearl told her, "He couldn't eat his ribs because they were too tough."

The waitress said, "Oh, I'm so sorry.  I'll take to the manager and try and get that taken off your bill."

She left to adjust the bill and I thought to myself, "Not again!"

"Merle, I've never had ribs.  Could I take a taste of yours?"

He slid his plate over my way.  Then I noticed--he had been trying to cut the bone and not the meat in between the bones.  

I didn't say anything, but cut me a rib and gnawed on it and it was tender as could be!

Pearl said, "Are they tough?"

I slid the plate over her way.  "Not too bad, but I don't care for the sauce."

She cut a rib off and started eating on it.  "Well Merle!?  What is wrong with you?  These are melt in your mouth tender and really good!"

Merle said, "How did you get them cut?  I couldn't even cut them."

She slid the plate back to him and quietly said, "You didn't have your glasses on and were probably cutting the bone instead of between the bones! Don't eat any of that.  Just leave the plate there or they will charge us for your meal."

We got the bill.  Pearl's was 15.99 as was Merle's.  They took his off, so the bill came to around forty-five dollars.  With my gift certificate that means the total bill came to around 15.99--covering Pearl's portion.

We rattled and bounced back home and were gone exactly seventy-five minutes and that included the drive both ways.

They don't know how to "dine out".  It's get in there, get your food, woof it down and get out.

Thanks for the treat.

Never again!