Keeper of Odd Hours

From my facebook notes...from: Sunday, September 20, 2009 at 11:15pm Interesting day...Steam cleaned kitchen floor. (I really like my steam cleaner). Cleared off my dinning table (I can see some of it now!) it had two sewing machines, a laptop, boxes and bags of stuff. Then I heard this gut wrenching puppy screaming. Zhen Zhen was stung by a wasp. Her paw swelled up and she slept. I kept her in one of my favorite travel crates on top of Pepe's crate and checked on her every 10-15 mins. She is fine now. Later in the afternoon, Micheal and his mom came over to pick up Li Mei puppy. I said here is Layah the mommy dog and Simba the dad...Simba??? Where is Simba??? Simba is my shadow!!! Heart is pounding, stomach is starting to get into knots. Deep breaths don't panic just keep looking for him. Rachel goes to the garage, Lynette goes to the back yard, Michael goes out the front door, me I'm checking the bed rooms then I go out front...Still no Simba! I'm calling him and...

My flight from Ottawa was good!! But I do think that hot pink suite case is jinxed! First it was lost for a few days (delayed in Nebraska) on my way to Ottawa...but it did arrive in great shape..on the flight to Great Falls..it was crushed!! It is dented & one of the candle holders I bought in Canada was broke. My trip to Ottawa was too short. I miss my grandson so much! What a joyful little one he is! Mike and Alysa are doing an awesome job in raising him! I miss him so much. I took a little bit of video (Alysa took the pics). The Bio Dome was awesome! (Alysa, Mike, Virgil, Helen and myself did the tourist thing) Virgil loved it all! I had so much fun just watching him enjoy himself! Afterwards we went shopping till we dropped! Virgil is a pro at shopping! He loves it! We went to the underground shopping center in Quebec, (several connected). That was a feet hurting experience! So much to see and all the walking, above ground and below! I got to meet Mikes parents. Very nice peopl...

I'm tired (late night visiting with my Grandson Virgil - Alysa and Mike were there too!) Man I could just watch Virgil all night but we needed to get some sleep. (the fair access thing is off after midnight my time for 3 hours). I need to put some bushes in the ground! Supposed to be up on the 80's today so I better get this old tired body moving. (I had Trader Joes wheat things for breakfast, yummy. Can you tell I shopped at Trader Joes? LOL Yummy! Okay..ending now so I can get outside and do some gardening! I will be taking photos! ttfn

Yep I had to have one! (one for now). From My Home Life From My Home Life

From My Home Life From My Home Life From My Home Life From My Home Life

A semi before photos of the front of the house. From My Home Life From My Home Life From My Home Life Part of the back yard, again a semi before photo. From My Home Life A not done after photo of where the dog house used to be. From My Home Life Not done yet... after photos of the front. From My Home Life Roses and Hydrangeas in place but not planted yet... maybe this Wed since I have two days off! From My Home Life From My Home Life The LP gas tank cleard of the pretty vine! I didn't get a before photo..so again this is a semi before. From My Home Life

Today was a very busy day! (I will get to the sales people in a bit). Besides being my day off... (bty..I have brownies in the oven...2nd batch..the first one was with my desert cup pan and the 2nd is with the round mold pop pan! for brownie pops) I had a repairman come out and look at my refrigerator, he said it is the fan and looks like the compressor has not been damaged. He will order a new fan (he had a lot of fans and parts but not for mine of course!) So he gets to come back next week. He left his cool temperature taker here! Instant temp! I did get the refrigerator cleaned out (never really had the chance when we first moved in!) While waiting for my friend Julia to show up I notice some guys going door to door...hmm, what are they selling? What is that? Someone knocking on my door? Yep it's one of the door to door dudes! I'm a sucker. I said sure and when can you start? They started right then! They took a weed eater to my back and front yard (the younger one had the ...

Yeah! I have Wed off! So much to do! and not is this order! Drop Yaris off for bumper and light repairs from it's little crunch Pick up rental car (or have them meet me at the body shop) Take the Aztec in for oil change and brake check (they are squeeking) Give dogs baths (3 of them need it - at least two are hairless!) Do laundry Balance check book if the above is okay then go food shopping if not okay then it's mustgos Watch Criminal Minds Shampoo carpet with new shampooer Clean up back yard...scoop and dump Put first square garden box together Get compost and seeds (if one of the above is okay) Measure blankets for batting amounts WOW...I'm tired already!

I am almost ready to upload the pages for Shasta Kennel Club's website (it's already there but I needed to bring it up to-date somewhat.) I will post the url here, twitter and facebook when it's up. I am hoping to get feed back as to which pc's, browsers etc can view it. This is my first attemp at CSS style sheets!! Rember this is a rough draft! I will fine tune it as I learn more! ttfn

Yep that is correct! My son was putting the 5 gal water jug onto the cooler this morning, it slipped and guess what!!?? it burst open! Water everywhere! The carpet the kitchen floor drenched! We used dog beds, kitchen, bath and rag towels and mop! The carpet is STILL drying. So glad it is a nice day today! My worry is the floor boards under the carpet. And no...there was no getting mad, just a lot of "get more towels!!!" and laughter when I grabbed the dog beds that were near by! No time to get mad, had to get the water cleaned up! Sliver lining...the kitchen floor was mopped!

The sun is shining today! It's been spring like weather for the past week! Very nice! Rain is in the forcast YEAH! We need the rain and snow in the mountains. I had two days off in a row! WOW! Mini vacation! I spent too much money yesterday on supplies for my square foot garden (didn't even get the mulch/compost or seeds!). I just need to get motivated to put it together after I pick a spot! Oh OH oh, I bought a gardenia bush along with the other stuff...too cute! I want to buy some nice pots for the patio and the front porch for strawberrys and flowers. This weather always gets me thinking of gardens! But then reality hits...no funds. One step at a time! Waiting to get my tax return back, buying an airline ticket to Canada!! I need to see my grandson! I will take photos of my garden being built and then others as it grows or not. I want to plant carrots, corn, mellon (the water type), squash and strawberrys. Right now I am messing around with css web pages. I am revamping Shas...

Layah was released today from the vet hospital this afternoon. She is on a special diet, and has to be fed 1 tsp every 1/2 hour for 24 hours around the clock..that was started this late morning. Then she can move up to 1 tbs every hour for 24 hours, then slowly increase her food and increase the time fed and then start adding kibble. After getting her home, I put her in the backyard, she did her thing then ran around like a crazy dog! I let Sierra out to greet her and then Simba. Brought Layah back in and fed her the 1 tsp of food. Now she is sleeping beside me, exhausted. On another topic... I made stew today, it's still cooking in the slow cooker...yummmm...smells good! I also tried to contact the insurance co for the yaris...it was hit while parked at the local college last week. Well off to surf the net...then going to try to watch Eagle Eye again.

Another night w/o my little doggy. She is still on IV's. The vet said they will test her again in the morning and see how she is doing. If okay, then they will take her off the IV's and introduce some bland foods and watch her. I will visit her after I take my son back to school after his DDS appointment. Maybe I can bring her home. Not looking forward to the vet bill! Right now I have Simba at my feet, Pepe on the couch with me, Sierra by the woodstove (not lit), Disco in the kitchen (she is muddy). Two kids (human) are sleeping and one is returning a video she rented (due before midnight).

Awesome sound tonight...the sound of water running down the hill/mountains! WOW I have not heard that sound since a visit in Hawaii! The stars are so pretty here. No street lights! The air clean from the hard rains. Not too cold out! Just right! And I shared this with??? My dogs! I don't have a life outside my children, dogs and work.

I am missing my little naked dog, Layah. She gets to come home Monday. She kept vomiting and wouldn't stop. I was up with her all night. Then had to be at work (after getting home from work around 10:45 pm) by 9:30 am. I was tired all day! Couldn't remember my phone number or my works number! Lynette took her to the vets for me. Thank you so very much!! Layah had a pancreatic attack from the food I finally got them on..meat, veggies and fruits. Pepe my newest started to vomit also but only 2 times. I am thinking of cooking the dog food like I used to do...kids remember the good smells? *

Pepe is doing good. He is 'shy' but we are working on that. I took him out to Petco and signed him up for a class (I know the instructor from dog training club). While at Petco, I heard, "A grey hound!", "Chinese Crested", and poor dog he was shaved. ...Answer: none of the above. I hung out at Petco for about 30 mins just hanging back from the registars so Pepe could see the people from a distance. I praised him every time he attempeted to sniff a person. Next stop was Petsmart. Didn't stay long there...too much going on at the time, very busy. Humm..I hope Petco is doing okay. Not that I care much for it but I don't like to see people out of work. Anyway..Pepe's class starts Next week. I will let ya know how it goes. TTFN

My Daughter and Dad have been visiting since Friday, with their 3 dogs! My new home is small and now very very crowded but lots of love here! Eight dogs, two cats and 6 humans! The weather was nice till today. Rain and we need it! The wood stove is so nice! TTFN

Yep that is correct! A new dog in my home! His name is Pepe. I will post photos somewhere (web page hosting hunting). Pepe is a Peruvian Inca Orchid, 9 months old. www. peruvianincaorchid .com/ www. peruvianincaorchidrescue .org I will post more on this wonderful dog later! Oh, I have satellite Internet now! Sooo much better than dial up! So far I was able to watch a movie from netflix and type this out..it's a little "jumpy" but it's better than dial up! TTFN

I really hate dial up! Looking into some options! Will post later about what is available here. I need to go and eat dinner! TTFN

February 1, 2009 A Sunday... Super Bowl day...we can't get ch 24. So instead we emptied out more boxes!! YEAH! So much fun! Sal did more weed eating in the back yard (mental note: get a gas weeder with stronger string). Lyn's doggie...the white fluffy one decided to "roll" in the fresh cut green stuff! Sierra is getting ready for St. Patty's day! I also bought Sal a late birthday gift, a hand held game starts with a d. For Lynette I plan on taking her to "The Spa" and get her makeup done etc. But we have to both have the same day off and when the store is open! Today Rachel was in charge of breaking down the boxes and doing dishes (most are from the boxes).

January 25, 2009 - Sunday Today we added more empty boxes and junk/trash to the pile that is growing on the back patio! (mental note to call Fosters Hauling regarding the junk). Yeah! more empty boxes! Cleared a spot in the dining area for the new table. Neighbors saw us struggling with the heavy table and asked if we needed some help! Sure do!! Their son helped. He and Sal are the same age and seemed to have similar interests (games). I also got to meet one of their dogs! A Katrina surviver! Such a cute dog! She just made her self at home in the house! (our dogs were in the back yard!). I got some info on a nice walking trail and where to take the dogs at the lake. Well the kids love the table. They don't want to eat on it! said it's too nice! But we did! Lyn and I are both thinking the same thing! Using lap tops while in town during our lunch breaks and or when we are in town! LOL so we can get our high speed fix. What an addiction we have! We do see a sign on a church on...

January 25, 2009 (Sunday 2:30 am) It's been a week since we moved in! Today (Sat) Rachel and her beau went to the high school freshman dance. Semi-formal. I took photos and will "try" to post them after I edit their size etc. Rachel and Sal have it made....the school bus stop is on the corner and that is one house away or they can use the other corner (but have to cross the street) and it's a couple houses away. The drive to and fro is a nice drive, for me it's relaxing. I just make sure I make a potty stop before I leave work! Had a cord of wood delivered today! 2/3 of it has been stacked before it started to rain then hail! I love the wood stove! Dries clothes fast! LOL I bought a dinning table today. It is still in my car, raining too much to take it out. Need to clear a spot on the kitchen for it! Will do that when the sun comes up. I will take photos of it! It's different! Random techno thoughts... I really don't like going backwards with technology....

January 15, 2009 Happy 21st Birthday Lynette! Happy 18th Birthday Sal! *********************************** I still have internet...dial up will be next week along with new phone number. I have not been to the house since the carpets were cleaned, but the kids and friends have while moving "stuff". I got to work this morning just fine, but I just could not handle not being here helping. Glad I asked to leave early and was ok'ed by my boss. Right after I left work I went to the title co. and signed some papers to have the money from the house I sold wired into my checking. THEN...I stopped by JL's office and from there got things rolling. Many phone calls, faxes, emails etc. and the underwriters got all they needed! It was a go! YEAH!! Stopped off and got some in n' out burgers! hungry! Went to old house and helped clean and made phone calls to utility co. etc. Went to Wally World and bought shelf liner and made some keys for the new house! Stopped by my bank to ha...

House Hospital, All my house, The bold and the houseless? January 14, 2009 Well I have to be out of the house (the one I sold) tomorrow (I work from 5 am to 2:30 pm). I have some people lined up to help move while I'm at work. My daughter will be here to supervise. I will be renting the house I am trying to buy. The seller of the house is not happy. I don't blame him. I paid my mortgage for January so I don't have the money the seller wants for months rent! A month's rent but I get some of it back when escrow closes (counts by days). I need to come up with some money! Going to look for one of those checks the credit cards send all the time! I think I can do that. My ex came through, he asked his bank to fax a letter to the underwriters stating the monies came from his account. Last I checked they haven't faxed it yet. keeping fingers crossed. TTFN

Tuesday January 13, 2009 evening... My kids packed up the kitchen (all the sundries, pots, bowls etc). Now they are working on my dog books etc. Back to work in the morning after 4 days of packing and wasting my time! I could have been working and getting paid! But, I did get to spend some time with my daughter Vanessa, she drove up to help us "move" and to leave her car so Lynette can use it for a bit. She leaves on Friday. I'm numb. I'm going to veg out playing some Pogo.com then climb into bed with my little doggy and read a bit and listen to the radio. Hoping to get some sleep. I hope to have more info when I get off work. TTFN

Tuesday evening January 13, 2009 I picked up more boxes. File boxes from one of my son's friends who recently moved. The smaller size will help with moving. Since so far it looks like we will be moving two times this year. I do not want to ever move again! I was also thinking of sending a note to our President Elect Obama, to let him know what is happening. It's not just me having to jump through so many hoops trying to take the high road and do things right with down sizing and living within my means. TTFN

Tuesday January 13, 2009 Can I scream yet? nah..not yet. But my head sure hurts now! Government loans = pain in the .... Not only does my ex have to provide 12 months (not the old customary 3 months worth, that changed Jan. 1, 2009) of canceled child support checks, he now has to provide 3 months of his private banking statements to "prove" the money was from him and sent to me for child support. You see the checks were written on Corp Checks by the Corp bank. So his name is not on the checks just mine. Oh oh oh...before that, they (the underwriters) wanted me to provide the canceled checks..I told them I do not have access to that since I didn't write the checks! duh! JL is still trying to get the buyers to let me stay a few more days in this house. Also, trying to talk the seller of the other house into letting me rent till we get this all straightened out! Other wise I will be renting a rental house for $1350 a month plus $250 per dog deposit fees besides the normal...

Tuesday January 13, 2009 Now...where do I start for an update of todays news on The House? First I get a call from my real estate agent (who I will call JL ). (I was hoping he was going to say the loan docs were in and lets sign them) but...He said in short... I need to talk to the loan dude (who I will call KS) . KS said that my loan docs are in the works but USDA is back logged. USDA is usually very quick in getting the paper work back, but they are now saying maybe by Friday...well it's a holiday so even if they come in Friday the house won't close till the following week! KS also said that his lending firm said my loan is very good and they have no problem with it at all. Now the problem is: my house is sold and the family who bought it want to close escrow early Wed. morning and start moving in! humm..the last time JL tried to get an extension of time they gave 2 hours not two days! JL is also working on a rental for me in the mean time. If I have to rent another house du...

Monday January 12, 2009 The link below is a short and shaky video clip my daughter took of the new house while we waited for the carpet cleaners to get there. They came an hour late! Cost me $394.00! due to the cig smoke damage. The walls are dingy (have a caramel color to them that wipes off) that need to be cleaned. I am down sizing and don't know if all mine and my kids things and furniture will fit! We already sold off a lot of things! Even the dining room table was sold! I will be hitting the consignment shops soon for a table! Also no microwave (mine was built in). Also no cell phone reception, and dial up internet unless I go satellite (which I might do till Clear Wire comes up that way). I want to post photos and maybe more video as the house turns into a home to document it's progress. On my days off (good weather) I will be outside fixing the garden, trying to bring it back to life and removing the climbing plants!! On the not so nice weather days, inside decorating a...

My house sold. I signed the papers yesterday (Jan. 12, 2009) and escrow closes Wed! But my loan docs are still not here! argh!!! I will post on the new house in a bit! TTFN

This is a reprint from another blog...this is going to be my main one for now. The pictures in this post are of my house I sold. September 2008 First the reason why I am selling in a "buyers" market. In less than a year the child support I receive will drop almost in 1/2, right now that money pays for the mortgage and one or two utility bills. My meager paycheck goes for credit cards, food and my car payment. How did this happen? in a small nut shell. I was a stay at home mom for 20+ years. Raised 6 children. I have been divorced for about 6 years now. Sell this house for a fair market price and take what I get from it and use as a down payment on a smaller home with a little left over (after paying the relator's fees etc). I will have 3 years of child support left. I can save most of that for the up and coming needs of my children or pay off more debt. And maybe save up for a trip to Canada to see my Grandson!! I so want to meet him! I will continue more later...I have s...