Where did I leave my motivation?

Here are a couple more photos of my remodeling attempt.  I can no longer take a decent photograph, I'm afraid.  The first reason is my declining eyesight.  I just can't see through a viewfinder the way I used to, and taking a picture with a smart phone isn't any easier to me.   Click on a photo to make it a little larger.

These were taken before we rehung the cabinet fronts and before the new flooring was put down.   The 2nd photo is a bit fuzzy, and catches the supervisor grabbing a quick nap.  Also I got my finger in the photo somehow.
 

 I have other photos but can't find them.  I give up on using the phone for more than making or receiving a call, and most of the time I can't even do that.

 The rain is pelting down again, but fortunately Rocky has been out several times and won't need to go again for a while.

I'm feeling pretty good and worry that I'm coming across as depressed, when I'm really not.  I do have that nagging feeling in the back of my brain that I will never get packed and moved!

Work on the kitchen

The kitchen cabinets are finally painted, and Donald laid the new floor tiles, so everything is looking good.  I still have to find places for all the things I accumulate on countertops and in drawers, which is mostly a lot of JUNK!  I'm working on that now.

Note those beautifully cleaned drawer pulls and hinges.  They were dark with dirt and tarnish before I cleaned them up!
 
I have other photos but can't upload them from my phone, nor can I upload them from those I've just taken with a point & shoot camera.  I give up!  Remember when it was a simple thing to take a photo and add it to the blog? People still do it but I sure have either forgotten how, or it's more complex than it's worth to me to figure it out.   I might have Jeanne or Donald take some and get them on my computer where I can access them.  The picture shows only a few of the many cabinets I've cleaned and painted, above and below the countertop.  

After some really nice weather we will be back to rain off and on this week.  When the weeds grow to be taller than the house, I am really going to worry.

That's all for now, but I'll be back soon.  Hope everyone has a good week.  I sure plan to enjoy mine, no matter what!

Where will it all lead!

My kitchen "touch-up" project has taken on a life of its own.  All I needed to do was to paint a few drawers and 3 cabinet fronts that I had neglected to finish several years ago.  Jeannie came over and painted it all, and as I may have mentioned I cleaned the hardware in a TSP solution.  It looked so good I had to take all the other hardware off the cabinets and clean them to match.

Jeannie put one coat of a high quality paint on the cabinets, and now I think she wants to repaint all of them.  I think she will also want to touch up the paint on the walls, which does need it in some places, but it's all going to make the countertop look so dingy I will have to replace it.  You can't replace a countertop and then put back the old faucet apparatus.

I wanted to call in two prescriptions to my pharmacy this morning, but find I don't know how to make a simple call on this damn phone!  If I hit the phone symbol on the screen it takes me to a place that I can't figure out, which includes a list of past calls made.  It's really a good thing I'm not addicted to a phone, but lord help me if my computer gives up the ghost and I have to send an SOS message to someone!

Other than that, I'm fine as can be!  My beautiful dog keeps me hopping.  We just started out for a walk but it's trying to rain and I don't want to walk in the rain. 

I can't rest for too long or I won't be able to get back to work today.  So I'll say "so long" and see you again soon.

More on the paint job!

Does anyone else find that when you start a project or chore, especially one involving cleaning, you just can't stop.  What you've cleaned makes everything else look dingy, and that's what I face.  

The hardware I cleaned in TSP turned out to be beautiful, so I began taking hardware off some of the other cabinets.  That means the cabinet doors have to sit on the kitchen floor propped up against something while the hinges and pulls are being soaked and cleaned.  This is going to take me a while - over a period of days!  I tried to take "before" and "after" photographs,  but just can't deal with the phone.  I have no clue how it works, so I guess I will just have to be satisfied to be able to make and receive a phone call, although I often have trouble with that.  I'll get Jeannie to photograph the work when she gets here this evening.

Yesterday I ordered groceries to be delivered this morning.  I often make the mistake of not completing every last screen to confirm my order.  This is so aggravating, but I was able to place the order which will be delivered between 1:30 and 2pm this afternoon.  I sure hope I haven't sent the order twice, especially since I am to get two 1-gallon bottles of vinegar for weed/grass killing!  I certainly don't need 4 bottles!

If I sit much longer I won't be able to get up, so I'd better close up the computer for now.  Have a great day!

It's been a while!

I just haven't had much to talk about.  Today it got hot and I'm afraid our beautiful cool weather is just about over for this year.

When I got this mobile home the interior was total paneling - everywhere, walls, ceilings, closet doors, and you name it - the same crappy fake paneling.  One of the first things I did was to start painting, from the bedroom, to the spare room, to the hallway, to the living room and finally to the kitchen.  (I never did get around to the bathroom).  By the time I reached the kitchen I was sick and tired of painting, especially considering the time and number of coats it took to paint over the paneling.  I am ashamed to say it, but since there are so many cabinets in the kitchen, requiring removal of all the hardware to soak the dirt out, and the painting of everything, I quit before I was finished!  I still had three doors below the sink, plus about 12 drawers to paint.  Now that I want to sell this place, I have to finish what I started all those years ago.  I just hope the newly painted drawers don't make the rest of them look dingy.

I'm wiped out after removing all the hardware and screws, and placing them in a container of TSP to soak overnight.  I'll scrub them with an old toothbrush tomorrow.  Right now my back aches worse than usual.  I also started deep cleaning the fridge, and threw out a bunch of things I haven't used in a long while.

I took Rocky out for a short walk first thing this morning and one of the nicer ladies in the park was there with her dog, so we joined them.  I didn't intend to stay long, but several others came with their dogs, and Rocky was in heaven.  An hour after we came back home Andrew came to walk him, and when he brought him back he said Rocky just couldn't walk anymore.  All the running with the dogs caught up to him.  I even noticed the few more times I tried to walk him this afternoon he was still unable to go very far.  I hope he recuperates overnight!

Regarding the painting, Jeannie said she would come over Wednesday and possibly Thursday and do the painting for me.  That's why I had to stick with the hardware removal and cleaning everything so it will be ready for her.  Rocky and I are both too tired to move right now.

That's how exciting my life as been today.  I'm too old for this!

 

End of the great weather?

It looks like the next 3 days will be in the 60's and then will rise to the 70's, which is about what I consider the upper limits of great weather!  I figured it would happen, but with frigid temps and snow/ice storms forecast for the upper midwest, I thought we might be lucky enough to get temps just a bit lower than normal. 

For some reason Rocky walked like a perfect gentleman when I took him out this morning.  He's usually eager to rock & roll first thing in the a.m.  Andrew will be taking him into the dog park shortly, and he can run to his heart's content.  And he runs like a speeding bullet - that dog is really fast!  He's fun to watch.

I think I will try again to begin packing some things from my desk for my upcoming move.  I can't put everything off any longer, and I'm worried about space in the duplex.  It has 3 bedrooms and 2 baths, but the actual storage probably won't equal what I have here.  I have said before, the older mobile homes (60's or so) had incredible storage space, especially in the kitchen.  I would need 3 modern apartments to equal the cabinets and storage in my kitchen.  I would certainly be better off to decide what I don't need anymore and not try to move it.  About two years ago I really got rid of a lot of unnecessary and unused small items, but I must have filled the space with new things!  I don't know how I managed in a 34' fifth wheel, but it actually had good storage for what it was.

I will say it now, but getting rid of most of my belongings to move into the 5th wheel was probably the biggest mistake of my life, although another person might say it was the biggest learning experience.  I love to travel but love a home to come back to as well, and dealing with a large 5th wheel by myself wasn't fun at all.

I hope everyone has a good Thursday; it's hard to believe we are almost to the middle of March.  I feel like I'm on a runaway train! 

Spring is almost here

As I've said many times, I don't mind rain or cold weather in Sacramento, but I really dislike excessive heat in summer.  Right now it is just beautiful, with trees and flowering bushes starting to bloom everywhere.  One thing that I notice on my walks around the neighborhood are the many fruit trees - tangerines, oranges, and grapefruit.  I've always wanted a tangerine tree in my yard, but I guess I won't ever have one at this point.

 The dog park is open today and I took Rocky over for a few minutes this morning and again this afternoon.  It's a shame that they didn't wait for another week of dry weather as a large patch of the ground is awful - wet and muddy - and there is no way to keep the dogs away from this large area.  

When I was walking a short while ago, a man in a truck slowed down and called to me, saying "What a beautiful dog - absolutely a gorgeous dog!"   That happens often enough but surprises me every time.

I went into my spare room this afternoon thinking I'd organize a few items from the desk and box them up for the move.  I ended up spending about 5 minutes in there and then just left the room and closed the door.  I wish I'd get a burst of energy and mental clarity, and be able to start the packing process, but so far I am paralyzed just thinking about it.

I fooled around with my computer today and was able to greatly brighten the screen and the contrast, but it seems to only applies to emails, my blog, etc., and not to web sites I visit such as news, youtube, and the like.  I really like the font I'm using on the blog, and hope no one finds it annoying.  I enlarged the font a bit, but the best part is that it leaves just a bit more space between the lines, which makes it easier for me to read.  I hope some of you out there find it easy as well.

 

Down in the dumps!

I'm really not feeling up to par, but don't want to wait too long a time between posts.  I don't know if it's my age, my mental state, or what.  It's probably a combination of a number of things.  I think I am really tired and don't  get enough uninterrupted sleep every night, plus maybe some other issues.

A few weeks ago I ordered a lot of organic seeds, and my daughter-in-law Meg and I were going to do some gardening this spring.  I still have the seeds and decided this morning to take some out of each packet and save them for my own use, and give Meg the biggest part of them.  I wanted to type out the planting and relevant instructions for each, so that I could give Meg most of the seeds in the original packets, and made up some envelopes for the ones I will keep.  To my dismay when I was going to type up the planting instructions, I can't read the darn small print on the packages!  

My eyesight is definitely worse for close up work, reading, etc.  The surgery successfully lessened the "black spot" in the center of my vision, which is common with macular degeneration, but close up vision is worse.  I hold the computer almost up to my face when reading anything on it; I have increased the print size and  it seems to apply to some applications but not all.  

Rocky being such a handfull certainly doesn't help my mood sometimes! 

The heavy rains we have been blessed with have made the grass and weeds take over everything.   I love the cool weather the rains bring, and it won't last much longer so I'll enjoy it while I can.   No amount of walking gets rid of all the energy Rocky is building up.  He needs to run, chase a ball, wrestle with other big dogs, and be a general nuisance.

I hope to be able to write a more cheerful blog next time!  

Dog pack

The pack arrived!  I haven't seen a dog pack since the late 1990's and they have changed a bit.   This one weighs more as it is a canvas-type fabric which is heavier than the nylon pack I had for Smoky.   So it's just as well I don't intend to backpack with Rocky and I will try to keep it as light as possible when I'm walking him while wearing it.

To be truthful, my opinion that it is over-engineered and not as practical as the one Smoky had.  I also think most items like this are over-engineered to impress people I guess, but if a person or a dog is going to carry a loaded pack for any distance, up hills and down, crossing streams, in wind and rain and maybe even snow, then they would need a pack without too many bells, whistles and buckles.  I don't know if anyone still does it, but when I was backpacking I met folks who were so intent on keeping their packs as light as possible, they even cut the handle off their toothbrush!  Every ounce counts, especially when you are carrying it on your back, and that applies to dogs as well.   (Note:  cutting the handle off the toothbrush was going too far, and I didn't do it!)

I haven't tried the pack on him yet - just figuring out how to secure it with all the buckles on it will take some thinking about, preferably when Rocky isn't being so nosy.  I'm sure he knows it is for him!  Right now I'm just a little bit mad at him so he can just cool his heels for a while.

Here's the weekend already!  I'm still mentally at about Wednesday!  

At the Vet

I can't say I really like the vet I take Rocky to; we spent a lot of time there and she sure talked a lot, but in the end the tests didn't show anything and I had left the specimen at home in the freezer.

I came back with 3 different kinds of medicines, one is for three large chewable tables, three times a day.  I would have thought he would like the chewable tabs but he turned his nose up at them.  I got out the tried and true peanut butter, and dipped each tablet in it.  It works!

We were there for a long time to hold a hyperactive puppy on a leash, and I was moaning about how difficult it was sometimes to walk him, especially when he sees other people and dogs.  Either the vet or the assistant suggested having him carry a pack.  That's it!  I came home and ordered a doggie backpack, into which I will put a few items, and we will go hiking around our neighborhood, for a start.   So no more of my food or treats - gotta get this big boy into shape!

I'd really like to walk over to the river, but it is probably a 2 mile walk from here (and 2 miles back), plus last year there were reports of  a mountain lion now and then.  I don't think one has ever caused trouble, and I doubt if one would take on a big dog like Rocky, but  I wouldn't care to come into close contact with one of them.

Not much else is going on here - I'm feeling kind of lethargic lately.  There certainly is a lot of work I'm avoiding right now.

 
 



 

YUK !!!

I'm taking Rocky to the vet this afternoon because he seems to have a parasite problem.  I never had a dog that had something like this once they were de-wormed at a very young age.  But I've never had a pure-bred dog before, and I am beginning to believe that a mutt is probably a much hardier animal.  Of course I shouldn't try to figure it out until we see the vet.  The dog sleeps on my bed so I am understandably concerned!

We are having strange weather today - the sun will shine brightly for a little while, then the clouds form and it gets overcast; when it rains it comes down so violently like I've never seen before.  The wind has been up since early this morning and I sure don't enjoy walking Rocky when it is blowing like this.

I'm going to be taking a long time to get used to my smart phone, and I will only ever do the basic stuff.  I don't think it's at all intuitive, but maybe that's because my intuition is from 1940 and honed throughout that decade.  Time have changed!  When the phone rings and I answer a call or a message, the screen changes before I can figure out what is going on!    I got a case for it, but it does't actually "close" .  The  phone fits into it and there is a raised lip around the screen so that the glass doesn't hit the ground if you drop it, but would land on that small lip of the case.  I probably should have gotten one that closes completely but I didn't.  My main concern is keeping it out of the jaws of The Destroyer!  He will always find what I don't want him to have, and especially the little thing I forgot to put out of his reach when I walk out of the room. 

I think it will be raining cats & dogs around the time I have to leave to go to the vet!  Donald will be here in about an hour to take us.

Long time, no see!

Nothing much has happened that I haven't written about, and I should know that things never stay the same for long.

I had an appointment with the eye surgeon this morning and felt I had to keep it as I had cancelled one about a month ago because I didn't want to leave Rocky alone.  So Donald took me to the appointment and I crated Rocky with a lot of toys and treats and hoped he would settle down.

I came home to a note taped to my side door from my neighbor, who told me my dog had barked the entire time I was gone.  I feel really bad about it and a little miffed at the same time.  I know her boyfriend (who owns the house) doesn't like dogs, although when Rocky was a small puppy he told me if I couldn't deal with the dog that he would take it off my hands.  I would never give a dog to him because I believe he has a horrible temper.

I was talking to another neighbor who told me that the guy threatened  someone at the dog park because their dog barked excessively.  I think some of the dogs do bark more than I like, but I would never complain to anyone and to threaten them would be out of the question.  (I'm sure I complained a lot to the readers of this blog, and I'm grateful for you being there and giving me an outlet to comment on the situation.)

So now I need to check out my calendar for the next three months and cancel anything that requires me to leave the dog.   I don't know if Rocky's anxiety will ease up or not, but if I never leave him he will never become able to be alone. 

The eye surgeon said that my eyes look good, but my close up vision is worse as far as I can tell as I have to hold anything in print right up in front of my eyes.   I can just forget about reading a list of ingredients on any package :-)

I'm struggling to get used to my phone but I have to learn.  I don't like it at all and I think it might have something to do with the fact that I don't need all the extras - I've never been one to make a lot of phone calls because my hearing isn't what it used to be.  As far as messaging goes, it's much easier to use the system on my computer, although I can only send them to my kids who have apple iPhones.   Donald has helped me tremendously in choosing the settings I want, and also to get rid of apps I will never use in this lifetime!  My daughter uses her phone for everything in her life, while I would never do that even if I was younger as I much prefer a computer.

I should start packing things up for my move, but don't know where to start!  I think today's situation has helped me clear my mind as this past weekend I was seriously thinking about staying where I am and buying a used car so that i could take myself where I need to go instead of having to rely on family.  I might as well forget about staying here!

Hope your days are going better than mine, although I think it's normal to have good days and not-so-good days, and we just have to roll with the punches!