GOING TO THE DOGS

Yesterday Paros's turned 7 and the day before that is was the 11th in Greece so his birthday has been celebrated for 2 days now...going on the third. I am hoping to have a few of his pals out next weekend and we grill chicken for them, steaks for us and P since we are expecting rain this weekend. I had paperwork to do on Wednesday so suffering the horrors of scanning, resizing, and emailing (before I heard of an awesome software program that makes this easy), I kicked off early from duties on Wednesday and we just hung together off and on Facebook, walkabouts, treats, and LOTS of love! Of course I am still singing "99 bottles of beer on FB wall" so hopefully the ear worms will go :/

And had a nice visit with a neighbor since last post where I saw a bunny in her back yard. We just were a swingin' lol with all the 13 year cicadas still making all their ritual noise, lightning bugs, and just that feel of country living that makes this place soooo desirable! No horns, no sirens, no people...just owls, woodpeckers, whippoorwills, and occasional dog.

Then the doc said my liver was worse than last year and fussed with me about not going 2 hours away to the specialist. It hit me after my visit with him why he didn't think it was far...he probably doesn't realize all the office an hour away does is discuss things. There is no equipment  there and barely any seating past the few metal folding chairs in the wait room :/ Still have never met the man so I am going but be damned if I will allow them to touch me :P

So bed rest again...on the sun lounger in the gardens, sit at computer, sit on mower, game in den or bedroom lol. Just didn't get very physical so had a great niece come visit for a week to keep me company :) I showed her how to cut, wet, form, paint masks, bought her some canvas and acrylic art kit, played Minecraft (but put her on adventure Kinect for some exercise), took her shopping, and then to her first fair (other than 6 flags). It's been 5 years since she has come out to stay with me by herself and from when I got the pics of her and Jim by the oak tree we started cleaning and clearing. Or taken the photos of her and Bayou when I first bought Bayou for her (mom didn't want at the time so he became Jim's little buddy). Most of the dogs in the family are all the same age so they kind of grew up together. My daughter's dog Sadie and Puppy, sister's dog Buck, Bayou and Paros (and Annabelle 3 years later), etc.

As for the kitchen and house remodel...I have had that on hold to add breaker boxes to my estimates and with the visits and doc stuff :P I do notice a pattern of when the water is bad though. Seems to be

before May...and sometimes in the winter around November. My doctor also told me the health department will test my water for free so this will save us a bit of money. I've been testing it with home test kits for $25 found at Home Depot or Lowe's. Still have all the wood flooring in my foyer because I am hoping to put in a reverse osmosis system a friend and doc has been telling me about but that is where I had contractor come in...may as well do the windows and cabinetry before putting that in, then floors last :/ I am past "Oh Jesus" onto "Oh My God" and destest using His name in times of ...well....Omg lol :D I try and use "Ohhh dear, brother, boy or WTH, Oh my gosh" :l

Well...I'm hoping this will go quicker than with just us doing it and can upgrade the engineered floor for solid hardwood. Stopped pulling tile up in kitchen and forgot I was scraping ceiling from the bathroom we just tiled, and my craft room. I had to stop when the grandkids came to live and picked up the bathroom when we did the tile. I have only 3 rooms and the balcony left to floor and the entire upstairs will be done and not to mention we are still a bit behind burning the trees we downed this year. Don't have many more diseased or crooked trees left to go and wanting to get in 2 pecans, a magnolia, another peach and pear, and walnut tree. Also still clearing the old drive and there are tons of blackberry, raspberry, and grapevines growing all along side of it. Want to get that cleared enough to trim and spray a few I want to keep :)

Before this year starts looking like last year...with the missed paid for vacations, watching plants grow, and hanging with family...I do want to squeeze in some more updating around here and replace my NordicTrack and pay the last $300 on the Christmas vacation (along with some on the Europe one) while I am home bound. I didn't get the house sprayed since I've been gone lots but now is a good time to get them out here before we start ripping up all the downstairs flooring. Or getting the contractor to do his thing. Whatever we do, we are in for one long, hot summer. We will emerge from "Going to the Dogs" to "Pet Friendly" (and human with the osmosis lol). So once everyone figures out what they are going to do or not do...we can come in with what we already have going on ;)



And Happy Birthday to my 3 grandsons and Paros. Annabelle is also in the clear so this summer will bring a spay. Regardless of her weight :l

 

BTW...AT&T was down yesterday and cyber security alert levels were high. Even though I need to finish my taxes off this month...I often think how some ID thieves do others taxes only to find the IRS swooping down into their bank and emptying it  lmao :D Surprise!! some of us has to pay them :P

 

Life Lock and Identity Guard are worth the purchase ;)

 



OVER THE EDGE

It has been a rough and emotional past 2 weeks of chaos around here. FINALLY got a general contractor to do some structural changes for the kitchen remodel and while I have got his attention...asked if he could squeeze more work like the garage and cutting through brick for a door on the side to allow access to a kennel run so the dogs won't get muddy during the rains. I plan to put their grooming table, tub, and cages in there instead of upstairs in my art room. Don't think he understood how I just wanted the 2 kitchen windows replaced with one resized higher up off the floor to allow cabinetry to come under it though. He mentioned putting 3 3' windows across the wall :/ The 2 longer ones would be nicer but then again...I'm not a structural engineer.

But the designer I'm working with from Cabinets.com and I have come up with a more custom plan that allows for a window bench! I would be able to sit there by my cookbooks, stove, and play with the dogs. The Shih Tzu cage would be in the island like in the photo in the last post along with a dog door built in the wall for the Afghans so she gets it and her company does custom cabinets so although I may have to pay a little more to decrease size of cabinets...there are choices as well for pull out spice cabinets, big drawers, appliance garage, and things like that to keep things in order. Everything will be in it's place if I have to show it and kitchens sell :) It's all in God's hands so only time will tell.



Love knows no breed or color

So what made it tough was during estimates, measurements, clearing out and preparing for tear down is when Jim let the dogs out. He forgot Annabelle was in heat. I ran out the door screaming obscenities when I saw Paros going to town and Jim behind me to help separate them. I seen her tail was down so I am hoping that nothing happened because I just cannot handle a pile of them around here nor is Annabelle good stock not to mention neither has started little on finished confirmation. It's why I don't have female dogs. I am not a breeder but like to buy from them because puppies are practically free from genetic deficiencies. I was also a part of the AKC parenthood association and DETEST backyard breeding. I was depressed but even more so when Paros is squeaking Bayou's squeak toys. He hasn't done that in years since he went through that depression over the neighbors dog being in heat. It's why I bought Annabelle so he'd have someone to run with but he underweight issue (and I was on top of it with the Satin or Fat balls) has kept me from putting her through surgery for a spay. About at this point I have been on the verge of telling God that he lied when he said he would never give us more than we could handle. And with our luck...if we get a little Shih Tzu from England we already call "Lady B" ...for Lady Brit lol...she will probably love and pal around with Paros while the backyard puppy mills Annabelle and Bayou still google eye for one another like this old photo here. I'm sure we won't pass the adoption phase if Belle is pregnant (potential free puppies to good homes...not registering this litter so no papers!). And if we do...Bayou's balls are going IMMEDIATELY before the new puppy hits 6 months old. I can't rely on poor Jim to remember everything going on around here. He is always away or I have him soooo busy helping me here. He calls my 'honey do' lists "BOOKS". With Volumes :l

Yet it is right when I want to say I had more than I can handle...it's then I remember God breaks us
down in order to bring us back up and spin us into another direction; making us stronger to handle more difficult situations. Hopefully to fulfill our unforeseen purposes. Then when 2 deaths occurred close to home on the same day I am reminded of how insignificant my silly dilemma's and burdens are. They can be resolved but death brings about a finality in this life. Not that I don't believe in the after life because I do. It was like an epiphany when I was in Physics learning about Einstein's Conservation of Energy laws on how energy can neither be created nor destroyed...just transformed. Like the liquid state of water into vapor/gas or solid ice. So are our souls or energy. It's why I never could make contact or latch onto my feet to crawl back up into my body during that incident I had undergoing a C-section over 3 decades ago.

Well I have known Todd since I was 14 and he was my friend. He and my daughter are the only 2 people whom I've taught how to play guitar and he is a sweet compassionate soul. I wish I could let his wife know how in God's eyes...she is his first and only wife and soul mate and he is waiting for her. And to be more completely over the edge....we connected for a moment. I got a brief vision of him and how exuberantly ecstatic he is. Such a fleeting brush. Maybe we all experience this but from IANDS.org...it seems to be more common with us.

burned, cut, scraped :/ Hellooo hand?

Life is a gift and we go on. I am beating my head against the wall trying to figure cabinetry stains that will go with the floors and backsplash. I'm already wanting to take the floors back. The contractor pointed out they were Lumber Liquidator flooring and that even engineered hardwoods have the toxic glue in them :l Omg. So now we are testing and the floors upstairs are the laminate. Is this where all these dizzy spells came from? Then when AT&T had me running back and forth this house checking and troubleshooting connections I'd get dizzy and fall down stairs? Or fall off the table when I tucked my head down from the ceiling fan got dizzy and fell off the table shattering my arm when they had me pull up phone lines? I'll have to mention this to the doctor but I am just now catching up to the 2-3 yrs under the doctor who was actually a nurse's care :/  They only let you hit them with one thing at a time. Even when I hurt my back falling off the table. They said arm first. Or down the stairs busting my head open and injuring my neck. Got the neck done, got the arm done, got the BP, done, skin done (nerves and stress with my "I'm sensitive to everything" because my parents made everyone wash in Phisohex the first 3 months I was born not building up an immunity to common bacteria)....just lower back and dizzy...then I'm caught up! Damn that nurse!! I still think they should have suspended her for at least 2 years for that!

So whoever's fault it was....AT&T shouldn't have had me troubleshooting and paying for services of theirs that didn't work for 4 yrs., I wouldn't still be playing 'catch up' with my doctor if the nurse hadn't deceptively 'played doctor' with me (to keep me there and get money to fix their worse than 3rd world hospital that doesn't do surgery nor had a practicing doctor at the time?), and now we have to do air tests on the flooring already installed and the one Jim just brought in (unloaded over 1 ton in 15 minutes) :/ And of course to add to my stupid stuff....the nerve/disc damage has been really bad lately so my right and left sides just don't work together. It also took me 5 hours on mother's day to cut just the front part of the yard. Last year I could do it under 3 :/

For now I am also still catching up on last years travel, family, home, and reno photos set to my music CD's so when I am listening to music...I can glance over and see my photos and videos. Seems I haven't been in my art programs much lately though. I am just reminded that I am blessed to have my pals, Jim, grandchildren, and children here. If I didn't have anything to do and everything was straightened out...I'd probably go over the edge anyway just for something to do. I just pray for comfort and strength for my cousin and long ago friend's wife and their children during their time of separation from their loved ones.

 

They will be reunited one day when they are called home too. We all will be called. It's what we do or try to do while we are waiting.
 

 

God keep us all till then.

 

 

OPERATIONAL HAZARDS

Having to do this in a quick, fast hurry in case Home Depot needs to come in and look at how I want the cabinetry done here. From Elmwood fine cabinets but need a designer to help and all we have out here in the woods lol Home Depot an hour away :/ Don't know if they can order from them but instead of the mesh...I want the scrolled iron work like in my foyer tables and other accents in the house. This way...if we sell...the cabinets do not have to be a 'Shih Tzu' holding nest but a place for cookbooks, modems, wine, or whatever else the new owners would like.

As for the Afghans door...we will need that custom done too. The house is a wreck with all the furniture piled up into the den and pallets of flooring we can't lay until they get off their butts and just give me prices for and order the cabinets. And the hold up on that is resizing one kitchen window that requires a structural engineer (who is an hour away and just threw general contractor numbers at me...who must be farming because no call back there either :/). I know southerners are slow but really!

Well lots to blog about personally but will hold for later while not so busy. Having to run 2 hours up the road in hopes that designer at THAT home depot can get the lead out and get this underway! Have to hit up neurosurgeon again...get a second opinion...but I think I get it about the nerve damage now...calcium deposit or damaged disc is pinching nerve while the other is pinching spinal cord. I forget which is what because the side of my head, hearing, shoulder, neck, arm, and hand are sooo damaged...some days I just can't get out of bed :((( My doc says to jump on the one and only surgeon wanting to try this nerve block instead of surgery but I just keep having flashbacks of when they put that plate in my wrist to reattach my hand how he told the anesthesiologist to do a block. Same thing? Did Bonham from U2 who can't use his 2 fingers and play the guitar or Morgan Freeman whose hand injury leaving him to where he can't fly have nerve blocks too?!? Lol..omg. Just more issues and research but if that is the case...I don't want to 'try' another nerve block. I think the last one caused this damage and made everything 10 times worse :((( No wonder I can't open the door, drive, hold something!

 

Outta here to roll on with the day while I'm having an operable one! :D