2021 is a wrap.

 Stayed home until I traveled to Phoenix for my nephew

Lost my nephew and my dear Aunt in February

Lost my mind in March

Lost - well sold- our home in April

Cleared out house in May

Lost- well moved- our state in June

Homeless in Motel Six in July and August

Joined our kid’s families for my Mom’s 91st in July 

Moved into our house in August

Lost twenty pounds

Journeyed back East in late September

Worked on the dirt (yard) through October

Son in law lost his step father in law

Pulled off Thanksgiving with Mom in November

Back East for Christmas. 

Snowed in ( and choosing quarantine ) for New Years. 

GLAD to be home! 

Tada

 Six weeks in Motel Six

Countless trips to Lowe’s 

Watching gas rise from 2.95 to 3.89 out our window ( gas station was our view)

Listening to every language possible as vans of people would disengorge last in the evenings and pile into the three rooms at the end of the hall- only to be stuffed back in with a different driver at 5 am.

Taking doggies to “day care” so they would not get run over by a construction vehicle. Then their joyful play when I picked them up early. ( Sleeping upside down in front of the hotel air conditioner).

Allergy meds for the smoke from the California fires.

Living with little internet and no real chairs. 

Picking countless finishes and trying hard not to step on too many toes.

Three deficiencies on final inspection

Switching around fire alarms for CO2 alarms

And we are IN!

Pictures will be on this post when we have enough band width!

Living homeless

 To say this has been an adventure is an understatement.

We closed on our Delaware house in April. We then lived there until the 20th of June.

We brought an UHaul and a pick up truck thinking we would soon move into our new home.

But the pandemic had other plans.

Between supply shortages, labor shortages and hot weather. We landed up here.

I stopped in the drivers license office to get a new one.

Nope.

I do not have an address! 

Come back in 30 days and they could issue a homeless license.

Interesting.

And so we moved in. 

We both said it reminded us of our dorms when we were freshmen ( but with the scary opposite sex in the room—- and two dogs). 

We unpacked our own shampoos and foods. Really the dogs dominate the foods. 

I checked out the laundry mat. We learned the local grocery had some great quick foods.

The dogs first lived in a house by Rover.com. Now they go, daily, to a vet office doggie daycare. 

Thank God for doggie day care,! 

Please take this stuff---please???!!!

 Getting rid of things can be a bummer.

There is a huge shortage of canning jars in my area. You would not know that by the way I have been begging people on Craigslist to take several dozen off my hands. Nope!

Then there is the leaf collector. Yes, I know it is the wrong season, but PLEASE take it. It is free!

The silly government has an issue with old mattresses, so they make it hard to get rid of them. We have two we are not taking. They are six years old and have been slept on about twice a year! Please just take them. "You can always take them to the dump" Really? I spend hundreds of hours recycling, reusing, using up and you want me to take a perfectly great mattress to the dump? 

This would be the year that my flowers have gone wild around our house. My gardenia bush put out about 1000 flowers in a single week. The new people are thinking of pulling it out. I hope they offer it up to someone---but then people just don't take things....

Then there is my silly 13 lbs dog. You would think we are punishing her by feeding her. She really expects to be hand fed (I wonder who started that up?) Just take the food!

Off to another day of getting rid of stuff. Wish me luck!

Progress on the home front.

 Three weeks before we pack up for the last time!

The last two weeks have been about the things I really care about in our new house.

The inside was painted this week! Colorsnap helped me a lot 

Repose Grey- most of the house

Lupine Island

Gray Screen Master

All the paint samples were given away last week.Yipppppeee. 

Next up is the master bath. I got lots of push back, but the bath is made for old people. 

Entrance is 36 inches.  Wheel in- zero entrance- shower with a large bench to dry off on (or shower on if need be). Right now there is not a tub. It is plumbed, but I am thinking there may never be a tub in there.  This is the current choice of everyone but me---and I am the only one who takes a tub. Pretty sure I'll spend the $1500 on a trip somewhere instead. Let the next person put in their dream tub!

The real push back was modern grab bars. The reality is that you don't need a grab bar until you are on the floor the first time....so get them before you need them. Learned that with my dad. If he had them in his house I doubt he would have been placed in a home so soon.... 

 Our closest is also large. There were many questions about built in shelves or more rods....the reality is that we want to be able to access the room and move around in it long after we are 90. That means space. We don't have hardly any clothes....but we need to be able to get to them without a hassle. They just don't "get" space. 

The guest room has been roughed in for the Murphy bed.  Yes, that was hard to understand as well...but I did get a 9'x7' hole instead of a closet in there. Again, if someone wants something different in ten or twenty years--go for it. This house will be functional for us!

Excitement looms. 

Now we just have to jump through a ton of hoops and get in!

Eat it up, use it up, give it away!

 One month left!

How is that possible?

The house in Idaho will not be done, but the truck is ordered and we are finishing packing.

On "Facebook Marketplace" today: 

4 doz canning jars, mostly full of goodies, various sizes...$10

Rolling compost bin...$40

Large loveseat ...$1 (You pick up and haul-that baby is heavy!)

Tomato cages...$5 (won't use them this year 😞 )

All of the kid bikes and most of the baby toys are gone.

Pile for Homeless Shelter:

Various cleaners

Several sets of sheets and towels

Different salad dressings

Huge bag of baking soda

Huge bottle of apple cider vinegar

What we need to eat from the freezer:

5 lbs of burger

5 lbs of chicken

Various veggies

Some blueberries and strawberries from the garden

Butter!!!

Dave's bread

What is in waiting?

Both of the mattresses left (we took the good ones already)

A couch and love seat, several rugs and a side chair (Habitat)

Another purge of clothing (Local Thrift store)

Another purge of the gardening tools (I'll probably sell those)

Sell in May and go away!

 This whole economy thing is wild, isn't it? 

So many complaints that things were horrid under the last leadership--and now? 

I have to fess up. We made tons of money between 08 and 12 and just got out. Well, not completely, but enough to help me sleep. Yes, we missed this run up. My friend reported a 20% rise in her portfolio. We built a house instead. My tummy could not do it any more. 

We are well aware that corrections correct themselves. But once we decided that our need for growth was translated to ulcers, we just were done. We just could not find a good company that did not use the slave labor of China to make their money.  My obsession went to the poor (the actual poor) of the world and how my need for more and more impacted them. Sorry, not buying into that.

The up side is that he does have a pension and mine begins in a few years. Good old government pensions. If they dry up, we have a paid for house, a well and solar generators :)

So, in the past we HAVE sold in May, with our broker (who retired a wealthy woman in Alexandria VA) we took a few months off the market every year and enjoyed our profits. Now we just live life daily and enjoy not having ulcers. 

The move is on. A bit more then a month to a new and different life.

 A 28 foot, terribly high, Penske International Truck was in our driveway.

Our son came over last weekend to help bring things up from the basement. Our son in law came over today to help haul things on to the truck. I hung out with the dogs and brought water to the thirsty.

We have toooo much stuff. We just do. Most of the boxes seemed to be either stereo equipment or pantry. Why do we still have five center speakers??? Remember, I am the one with too much stuff....hummmm. None of our living room furniture is going. That does make me nervous since living room furniture is difficult to get. Should I include a couch, just in case?

Ramps, dollies, book cases, mattresses secured, the truck is off. Scott is in Nebraska and on his way to Little America Wyoming (a favorite place to stay on the long haul). I am still packing here, but it is the tough stuff to fit in anywhere. I have about five dozen canning jars full of fruits and veggies from my garden this year. 

We had some last minute disagreements between the cabinet maker and our builders. Which is more important- more storage or pretty trim. The storage won. 

The flooring goes in this week. Hopefully the septic will as well. I feel like we are just skirting the rising costs of everything.

The pessimist in me, I am really nervous about that pipeline hack. Let’s get our move over with! But first we have:

Daughter’s college graduation,

DisneyWorld

Two grands’ birthday 

Flight camp

Father’s Day

My husband’s 71 st birthday

And the African American History Museum

These six weeks will fly. 

Living in a house that you have already sold

 This, my dears, is a wild market.

We sold our house in two days.  We had 30 showings and turned away many more. The best offers, of the seven, were in cash. 

That still makes my head spin. We held one house for almost six months- twelve years ago. (It resold this winter at double what we sold it for). The lookers trickled in. It was painful. That did not occur this time!

This time we were asked to do this new system. We did the bookings of the house. The agent had no idea how wild it could get. Our neighbors reported the revolving door--during a pandemic. It was CRAZY!

Here is the kicker. No one view the house who did not know that we are staying put until the end of June. And we still got way over the asking price. To be fair, this neighborhood was way undervalued when we purchased seven years ago. Our house is now at full value!

What does it feel like to live in a house that you do not own and do not, really, rent? 

Weird.

I am not as attentive to the gardens as I should be. I planted very little in the raise beds. We are careful of paint and floors, but that is a norm. We still are not using the master bath. After spending so much time to redo it, we decided that they should have the pleasure of enjoying it.

Our grandson is coming over our last week in the house for a flying camp at the Air Force base, but otherwise the house is being shunned. 

Poor house.

Rich former owners. 

The costs of moving

 There are normal costs of moving.

Deposits on utilities, fees for autos, change of address stuff.

My husband had decided that he was tired of moving our stuff.                                                                                  So we sought out a moving company.  The man came and did an estimate of moving us. Hummm. Yes, about 100 boxes- already packed, three beds (just the beds), one dresser, a desk with small file cabinet, and a dining room table with chairs. That will be about....$21,000! With the possibility of 10-25% up charge IF diesel goes to/ over $4 a gallon. 

When he picked me up off the floor, we decided to do it ourselves. A flurry of phone calls to reserve moving trucks and air tickets.  I started tonight and eliminated about five boxes already. I am determined to get down at least twenty.

Still looks like about $5,000.... but whew. Glad we are doing it soon. They are right, gas is going up FAST!

As we have said a million and one times---THIS IS IT!                                                                                                                                          Next time we move it will be with the clothes on our backs. 

OK- some of the art....we will take it out of frames and just carry it in our bags.

Woo Hoo Shots and then the rest.

 I got myJ&  shot in 15 minutes at the Delaware Rite Aide yesterday. An elderly man and his great grand daughter had arrived before me.   The elderly man was being  refused- something about his Medicare card. The grand daughter wasn't budging. My ease dropping is greatly hampered by my mask....

I ended up staying an hour.  I did not want to interfere but I felt they were going to give his shot away to the two kids who walked in and asked if there were extra shots.                                                                 The clerk finally told me that I could leave. LOL.                                                                                           I, loudly suggested that the seated man had been there long before me.  I told her that I wasn't going anywhere until this gentleman got his shot. She rolled her eyes and called his name. Sigh. Yes, I am a pain in the butt in many cases....

Let me let you guess the race of the elderly man.                                                                                        My daughter said the same thing happened to her in Maryland! It took an hour to make sure her elderly woman got her shot.  I am thinking of returning tonight to make sure the community gets their vaccines. 

This kind of cr@p happened to Native Americans in the 1970s in Flagstaff.  Come on man!Call me confused.

OTOH....My grandchildren have been out of a school building since last March.

Public schools "opened" the classes up for two days a week in Delaware and Maryland.

 One family faces a district with no guarantee that the schools will stay open even those two days. Those teachers are "sicking out" doing double duty teaching on screen and in class at the same time. The other three days a week are planning days and wiping surface days. (CDC finally admitted that wiping surfaces is unnecessary. Personally, I think using this much Clorox is really bad for the environment. And inhaling those fumes???)

For the other family?  Teachers are in a central room and will be teaching,  via screen, children sitting in a classroom with hired proctors. Okayyyyy. As a teacher of thirty years, that seems like a bit of a problem. 

IN turn, all of my school aged kiddos will remain at home. They WANT to be in school, but the learning going on is mostly a mess with teachers feeling ever bitter . 

Teachers here have been at home until 15 March.  My neighbor (a teacher of many years) stated his faculty took a vote to never return to the high school classrooms. They felt it was so much easier to teach from home. So why, exactly, do we even have high school for the underserved to begin with? 

I get it, people were scared. Half of the states are back at school 4-5 days a week. They are beginning to look for kids who slipped through the cracks. People who have kids in school just don't get it that the ghettos are still out of school....along with the workers for our federal government. Ironic that the districts that have been looked at as failure in the West will soon lead the nation because they put kids in seats. 

OTOH- 

There are now 20,000 children under the age of 18 (self reported) in convention centers and now military bases waiting for foster homes. Have you seen the pictures of kids in mylar blankets?  Sigh. There was a call last week from HHS  that if every state would take 1,000 children the border could get cleared up.                                                                                            And do what with them? They cannot go to school in the Mid Atlantic. Do we really want to be complicit to separating kids-AGAIN? How in the world did this happen? Where are the parents? I just don't understand.

Children are our future.  

I guess I don't have four hands---so I will end there. 

And it just keeps growing!

Spoke to the developer of our new housing area.

She is a very low paced farmer daughter.  I was asking about a part of the road that needed to be paved. Her answer was: "What was supposed to sell out in 4 years has sold out in 18 months. We have opened a new field for development. Your road will be paved when we pave that one. " That field, split into .6 acre plots, is flying off the market- unpaved!

When the development opened the buyers were, pretty much, local builders for themselves.               During the pandemic a flood  of people ran from the lovely states of Northern California & Western Oregon and Washington and bought up anything in their path. This will be interesting. 

We  hope to enjoy libertarian lifestyle as long as we can. Maybe it is WAY too cold in Central Idaho for people who want to change the politics to move there. It is a desert...a COLD desert. Don't come if you don't want to be free. Some people don't even understand what a libertarian is.....those first three in the Bill of Rights---freedom.  You won't have to wear the "I got my vaccine" yellow star in order for me to talk to you! 

Anyway..... 

Our house is on cruise. The dry walling begins tomorrow (the same day I get my J&J vaccine). I'll be going out to pick final touches. You know, the easy stuff,  towel racks and faucets. Fortunately we already ordered our Fridge- since they are on back order now until who knows when.... We understand that the materials to build our house have gone up about 200% at this point. Dodged that one. Whew. I guess if we have to survive with a mini fridge, oh well. China will get us stuff sooner or later. Chip who?

I settled on the island color (a huge issue here) Glass Sapphire. It doesn't show here- but it has loads of purple in it. 

OK- so it will probably bring down the resell of the house. I. Don't. Care. At. All. The house is totally out of character for the area anyway. It only has three bedrooms instead of six or seven. Open center instead of formal rooms. Completely handicap friendly. One floor. We plan on being there a long time and I want to smile every time I use the island, and the bathroom and the laundry.....Blue. Period. OK- white Oak floors. 

My husband got to choose the outside color. It is Nautical and Grey. The siding will go every which way. I don't get it, but he is happy. Stamped concrete for the walkway. Slate has just gone ballistic. 

I'll  be shopping for my pantry while there. I want a basic pantry done to ease the sticker shock. Our regular shopping list has gone up about $5 a week for the last four weeks....yow! Not looking forward to July shopping in a new $$ environment.                                                                                                        No couch for a very long time. Yes, I understand. Global market and all of that. 

And on that thought, I was going to rent a car in Phoenix for my mother's birthday in July. $550 for a week! Wow, those people coming over the boarder must be doing drive aways.... I am used to the normal taxes (double the price quoted for the taxes). I cannot wait to see the gas prices!!!! We are up almost a dollar from the beginning of the year. I was going to rent a U Haul to go home...OW! Maybe it should be called, "you build it, you drive it". 

On the good side, I look forward to a great green rebate for our next truck. Not sure how an electric truck will be better for the environment, but I am up for anything at this point. Heavy metals that cannot be recycled, no problem. New truck 2022 here we come. I'm a Elon share holder.  We are looking for solar panels to overheat the atmosphere on our house. Idaho does not demand that the solar goes through their grid. Love it.....

 I know that I am very blessed. I am looking forward to filling out LOADS of paperwork for people who want to be legal citizens. I have purpose. I am moving forward.  I cannot wait to swish the land of "white calling whites names unless they are rich and live in a gated community" off my Tevas. 

And so, with that, I'll out my libertarian thoughts back under my mask.

What in the heck is going on?

 There seems to be a seismic shift happening.

I am not sure how I feel about it, but here are my observations.

The housing market has turned to cash. Even the builders want cash. We are building and selling at the same time. In the past you could reasonably get a loan for a house. You could also put building supplies on credit or, even, buy over time. 

I think SO many middle income (80-150k) 30 somethings have been held up in their houses for so long that they have just stockpiled cash. And not a little cash. You hear it on Dave Ramsey. "I am 28 and am making 130K a year. We are going to get married. Together we will make 240k. We haven't been out of the apartment for a year- both working from home. What should we do with our left over cash?" OR "We just sold our family home for 1m in a Philly suburb. Where do you think we should go next? Do you think we should save to 3m to be comfortable?" Really? And the anxiety on their voices is palatable. 

 Never, have I ever. Those who were employed during this pandemic have built up a stash. Those boomers in the market have doubled and tripled their gains. What is enough? And what happened to credit?

And now that group is looking for a great house.They cannot travel-so a house with an office, backyard and space for a movie room is perfection!  It is crazy out there. Cash is king and flying out of the market and savings accounts into real estate. 

The other side is the building trades.  Refrigerators are three or four months backlogged. The normal "put in your new heater and 90 days same as cash" is gone. It is not uncommon to be charged 3% to use a credit card on building supplies at this point. Cash. Crazy. We have resorted to transferring money through Venmo or other such apps, because the post office is often unreliable (five weeks to get a check across country these days). 

Are you seeing your groceries rise like I am? I know gas is up, why is that? No tariffs are out there driving up the price? Supply and demand? I know our state put on a bit of a tax---but that was not like this rise. Is this a haves and have nots situation?

Less stuff, more experiences, but there is no place to go unless you score a shot. And who IS scoring shots? Will there be a pushback to those who start to travel because they are connected or old enough to get a shot? Hummmm- why do they get to live while everyone else gets locked down?

What is going on with solar panels? They used to be reasonable with cash back from taxes- now they are same priced, with no real rebate, and still flying off the shelves. Are we THAT worried that the entire nation will be in a "TexasWinter"?  Will it become the haves who can afford electricity vs the have nots who cannot afford expensive solar stuff?

No, I am not a great writer.  I am just putting my experiences and thoughts out there. To me there is a shift going on. I am not sure where it will go, but it is moving. 

And why is our border wide open. Who, in their right mind, thinks it is good to brain drain an entire area so kids can languish in foster care....in a white nationalist state? But that is another topic for another day. 

Yes, it is a seller's market!

 We don't want to move until the end of June

The listing was going to be in late April/ early May.

I heard an ad on Dave Ramsey for their brokers and gave in

Called an amazing agent in town- Andrew Bryan

He said, "Crazy market. Here are the comps. Ask to rent back until July."

We were skeptical, but prepped the house for pictures.

Remember, we have been doing one box packed, one thrown nd one given away since Jan 1.

 I bought flowers and vacuumed. Made the beds. Cleaned off surfaces. The Photographer---oh Lala!

The house went live on Thursday. 

We had almost 30 showings on Friday and Saturday.

We signed papers today to close on tax day. We can stay, for free, until June 30.

Suddenly we love the governors of New Jersey and New York....

Our heads are spinning!

That Idaho house better be ready by the end of June!

Passings

Passings

Grand children grow older and taller. They need you less, but want the contact. This type of passing gives move space for each to develop an individuality that is so important in life. My oldest grandson is in his teens now, and is over six feet tall. He does school at home, like the rest of my school aged grands, but his heart is with his friends. 

Mothers grow elderly and more frail. They need you more and want more contact. This type of passing takes more space for dependency to grow and develop, so important in life. My mother is 90 and clear minded, but her body fails her more every day. She moves to a care house tomorrow.

Aunts fall and become dependent, but fierce. Contact is important, but on the side since they have their own family to care for. It is a passing for memories. Favorite Aunts are integral in the fabric of our souls. My MiMi is 92 and broke her hip in California. Recovery is not going well. 

Homes become houses again. This type of passing becomes problematic because being unstable is time consuming and, at times, heart wrenching. It demands loads of time and interface with people who are busy while you have been settled. Our house goes on the market today.

Nephews pass to the next life. This type of passing is marked with fear, doubt, pain and hope. Strength and courage marks this type of passing. Exhaustion as well. Brad passed away at the beginning of last month.

Life is a series of slow, slow, quick, quick. My father told me that many years ago when he taught me to Fox trot before my debutant ball. I could not comprehend slow. My life was full of fun and travel and friends and family. Quick, quick season.

But, collectively,  we have had a season and now another emerges. 

Slow, slow. Rarely going out. Rarely interfacing with other humans besides my husband. Rarely finding joy.

Now it is quick, quick.

Passings

And the war machine is up and running

 The US bombed Syria tonight.

Sigh. 

Seasons of life

 The pandemic clearly put into perspective different seasons of life for our family.

We moved to help a daughter's family while their children were little. Negotiating a new area while trying to balance a growing family brought challenges. Appointments, walks in the area, shopping. Since we had BTDT being a military family we were acutely aware of the challenges. Since we were at a good season of transition, moving to help was a good thing. The bonus prize happened when our son moved into the same area. I, especially, have loved holding babies, running with toddlers and giving tools for reading. It has been a season of pure joy. Visiting museums, seeing sites, watching dolphins---all great!

 After 75,000 miles of driving, the pandemic made it clear that the distance in miles and time made it almost impossible to be of help. Suddenly, we were the ones in need. And we have every desire to not be in need, but be of purpose. 

Transition is hard for all involved. The adult children feel the desire to connect and would like us to be close enough to connect on a monthly basis.  We are way too young to be sitting in the window waiting for a car. 

We are creatures of moving and changing. Neither my husband nor I have lived in the same place more then seven years since we were each 18. I went to three universities, taught in three schools before we were married. He also went to university before Vietnam. After that time he spent summer and fall in northern Idaho and Alaska earning money while spending winter semesters at University for nine years. After meeting, and marrying, we averaged 18 months in a place. 

But I digress

This time we are moving solely for us. A place we desire to live. Mountains, rivers and an easy drive to the coast. We both love to hike and fish. We love winter...really. I love the PCH and the sunshine when I put the top down on my convertible. We look forward to helping in a community that is growing like a weed. We want to help new people coming to be citizens. We want to be a part. 

We have no hesitation about getting on a plane to visit. The visits will be with purpose and joy. Maybe we will meet places. That would be fine as well. They know they are firmly in our hearts- and we in theirs. 

And then, maybe in ten or so years, it will be time to transition again. This time for more help, need and the purpose for them will be us. That is good as well. Every season.... 

February

 It has been a very long month.

February used to be one of my favorite months- Statehood Day for Arizona, My best friend's birthday, My sister/brother in law and nephew's birthdays, Valentines Day....Beautiful weather in Phoenix month.

Not half over? Sigh.

The end of January saw me on a plane to Phoenix.

Three masks (what is the current mandate for air travel?), Clorox wipes, water bottle, snacks, gloves, warm coat, boots, flip flops, slippers...and some clothes. Fifty people on the plane including some Airline kids traveling alone. Fascinating. 

My nephew (36) had congestive heart failure at twenty four. He survived--but has been living a very tough life since then. At first it was a life of distance, then a life of dependency. We have lived through each other's PTSD time and time again. Him for me and I for him. But this time he was dying. My sister had sprung him from the hospital and he was being cared for by Hospice at her house. 

I haven't ever watched someone  to the end. Those last few days of struggle for words. Those last bites of ice cream. Those last bits of water and lip balm.  The last few hours of struggle for breath. and after...The last few hours of waiting for the funeral home. 

The kid had a wicked sense of humor and had developed a close set of 2500 followers on Facebook that seemed to come out of no where when he was in need. I understand he was doing the same for them in the last three years. Two of them, whom I did not know, were with us- his mom, dad and uncle- listening to a wicked comedy routine and some modern country music when his last breath left him.  Peaceful?  I wouldn't mind going that way (if I couldn't go in the middle of the night). 

Two days later it was my sister's birthday. They will have the memorial on my nephew's birthday. 

Three days after my nephew passed,  my mom was transported to the hospital. They called us as the ambulance left. Of course we were not allowed to see her, or help her, or anything. At 90, She is a "do not do anything person".  She has a number of issues. The only doctor who would talk to us got on the phone, in front of her, told us  that she had to have something aspirated and had to wait the weekend, but she would be out by Monday afternoon. He promised. 

I flew home at 7 am on Sunday. Only double masked this time. No more wipes. Gloves. 50 people on the flight again...and I slept the entire flight. 

Procedure went against her wishes and became invasive. Drains. UGGG..."the good doctor" was not in the room when it happened, but was pleasantly mad as hell when he found out that they planned on keeping her for TWO weeks. Oh boy. 

He told us the only way to get her OUT of the hospital was to declare her for hospice. That wasn't a fun proposition to make to her? How do you tell someone that you think they will probably be ok, but the only way to get her out of the clutches of do gooders was to say she is going to die??? 

Then the good doctor stayed past rounds. When the doctor who demanded mom stay left for the day,  the good doctor signed her out with Hospice.... She "slipped out" in an ambulance at 8 pm!

Mom got back at her community with many rumors of a late night break out.  We were under the belief that we could arrange things and she could go back to her apartment with tons of back up in a few days....nope.

I, simply, will never go into a Continuing Care Community. 

They have her in quarantine - with three negative COVID tests. The control over her is WAY over the top. She isn't allowed to go back to her apartment until the quarantine is over---which they have determined is 14 days. It is SO frustrating. Now, she is thinking she is going to die again.... UGGG. 

I am home, knowing that I will not be at another funeral any time soon. If we can keep her sane, Mom will be feisty in no time. She might have cancer and intermittent kidneys, but she will die on her terms and not on a machine and not in a nursing care bed! No one there knows how determined My mom can be!!!

And so February goes on. 

Wasn't 2021 supposed to be better?

At least I am back to packing. Summer is coming and I am MOVING to a free state! Woo Hoo. Only seven more days of quarantine for me. 

Building up and downsizing down

 Our house is going smoothly.

The kitchen got "smaller" because I would rather have a walk in pantry then a huge bank of cabinets. Anyone else have a hard time getting stuff out of the bottom cabinets or reaching the top ones? 

This week we worked hard on our master bath

Yes, it is large.

We have no intension from ever leaving this house until we go into a granny pod.

All of our parents have spent at least a year in a wheelchair in their 80's or 90's. 

How to make a room that works?

The shower will be a zero entrance. That is more difficult then it looks...but we are figuring that out. 

The shower head is going to move to be on the vanity wall- near the corner.

Any other suggestions? What helps you the most in the bathroom?

The builders have finally agreed that this room will be tiled.... This is the color I want. They agreed- but the tile will be white and the walls will be this color. Well, maybe. 

Downsizing continues. One box packed, one given away and one tossed is still the mantra. My books are almost done. My pantry is cleaned out and organized (that was a task for sure).  The back porch is sorted, but not really started. The temperature has dropped and it is too cold "to play" without heat on the porch. 

Almost time to call Purple Heart for another pick up. 

I am ready to be West! 

So glad it is over

 

To me, in the end, it is about their future.

 

27,000 troops and walls everywhere

Don’t worry. The troops are being vetted.

Books and more books

 

When I was a child I only had three books that I could call my own.
My older sister had loads of books. It was assumed that she shared, she did not. I was a very poor reader. 

When I went into Elementary Education I was still a poor reader. It took several years to improve my reading speed and comprehension. The more I read the better I got. SURPRISE! 

Still, by missing those early years of reading I never, properly, learned to spell or understand writing rhythm (cadence). It has come over the years, but it is a slow process. My husband is much the same way. We both are highly educated. We both can read someone else's work and see it, but those qualities allude us in our daily life. 

It was after we married that I began to collect books. So many books. Hundreds of books. My classroom libraries overflowed. I insisted that students read, read, read. Math and reading. Reading and math. Hind site I insisted a bit too much for some children. But I digress. 

 My husband, patiently, moved 50 boxes of books from Flagstaff to Kansas to Delaware. Can you imagine 50 boxes? My daughter has, patiently, accepted about 15 boxes while homeschooling/ supplementing  her children. My son has taken a box or two for his children. That leaves---a lot. And so, I have been going through my books.  

Believe it or not, I have read almost every book on my shelves. There are a few, that I inherited from my Grandfather,  that are beautiful but unread. Otherwise this has been a memory lane journey. The smell, the touch, the remembering where and when I bought it. The thoughts of warmth as books became my friends. 

Books are being divided. Ten boxes of media rate books were sent out on Friday to teachers and young families. Children books, early novels, joyful books, learning books.  My Native American books went to a Navajo friend who is now a school counselor. Those were hard to part with.

Then there are the books that were just fun. Dan Silva, Dan Brown, Jane Quinn. So far about ten boxes have gone to Vietnam Veterans' store. IF the library were open, they would have gone there. 

And still there is more. Ten boxes are packed for our next house.... that should be plenty. Sigh. What to do with the rest of them?

Endless wars

 I remember how it used to be a Democrat's ideal to cut the military and get out of wars.

What happened?

There was a great New York Times article about a poor German town that will really suffer when the WWII barracks of Rose will close this year. 

Terrible Trump is pulling troops home! Amazing. 

Let me tell you about that area. It has been occupied for seventy years. The US has paid for troops to live in terrible barracks while piling up money into the local economy. It is on the old Czech border. The Wall came down in1989 (yes, that is almost thirty years ago). I remember a troop carrier running over a chicken. The US paid for the chicken, and the chicken's eggs for 10 years.                                               The Russian threat is still studied- Fulda gap. Really? The Germans have great equipment and have a national service clause for their people.... They can certainly fight an incursion. But why would the Russians DO an incursion? They are trading partners with Germany. 

We just spent 100 million on education complexes in that area for soldier's kids. Really???

How about  Iran? Yup, they are a threat to the area. The US does not need that area anymore since we are able to sustain our own fuel. Should we keep the straight of Hurmoz clear? Well, maybe, but there are certainly other countries that can patrol their own areas if they wish it.

How abut Iraq? We destroyed it- so we should rebuild it. Just like we did with Japan and Germany? Really? Do you think we are rebuilding? I know 25 year old kids who were in charge of handing out wads of hundreds so our soldiers did not get shot at.  We are not wanted in the region- except by the people who can make money off of us. (Which includes the war machines who Mae crap in our country and sell it to other countries). Live and let live. Send in the Peace Corps when they are ready to not treat their people like poop. 

How about China? That is not going to be a physical war. We, certainly, are not interested in human rights there, so what is the purpose of building up troops? It is, already, a cyber war. We do not have to have troops in Japan for that. Let Japan build up their own army and protect themselves. Out- we need OUT!

It is obvious that we care nothing about Africa. China is quickly buying raw materials and slaves, but we are ignoring all that because we have never cared about Africa. They were European colonies. 

South America told us to take a hike years ago. Smart people.

Yes, I am a Dove! I was a hawk until my husband served in Saudi---and I understood that the US troops are nearly pawns for those who have enough money to be protected by them.  At least Saudi pad for us to be there. The wealthiest people in the DC metro are defense contractors. Same with many in the EU who deal with the US. Time to cut them off!

Bring our troops home. They are good at rapid deployment. We might need some fueling stations here and there, but the money it takes to sustain them overseas is a waste. We have a few, really good, joint bases going in Poland and England. JOINT bases....Those work. 

Will the Democrats do that? Trump was a Democrat long before he was a Republican. I think this issue was his roots showing. I hope the rest of the party continues with those roots now that the ball is rolling home! Put the money into a health care system that works. 

Build up troop strength at home bases. Stay strong, but quit trying to rule the world on the backs of the military. What a concept! 

Happy New Year!

 Since we had my son's dog for his family vacation

Tomorrow is my first, official, normal (what ever that is ) new year day!

Woo HOO!

Allergies from the doggie started my cough again (my lungs have never, really, recovered)

Everyone runs if you go outside and cough ---and YES---even with a mask on. 

That means a few new books will be started and a good bit of "Your Honor" will be watched.

Or this jewel

I promise I will begin my walking again tomorrow as well!

What are you doing for this first week of this wonderful new year?