Pages

Monday, December 28, 2015

Welcome, 2016! So long, old year.

What else is new at your house?

84 comments:

kathy a. said...

Trying to get back to the grindstone for Albatross #2, but not a huge success so far. Oh, well.

Christmas leftovers turned to beef + veg soup last night. Today, making lasagne -- because we sent the leftover holiday lasagne home with son and gf. And it's cold, so we need warm cheezy comfort food, no?

Speaking of cold, one of the cats is spending nearly all her time on one heater vent or another! The other opted for snuggling my feet last night. :)

The War on Ants continues. We won the Battle of Christmas, but they're persistent.

In the yikes dept., daughter's birthday is in early January, and not a single clue what to get her. (This is partly a curse of a birthday anytime near Christmas -- we always used to have her parties a couple weeks after the day itself so it didn't just get absorbed with the other events.)

kathy a. said...

Sincere W about political campaign emails: I've gotten several lately that report my "record" of giving, clearly meant to shame me into coughing up the cash immediately. Boy, do I ever hate that approach.

Liz Miller said...

Kathy, here are some gift ideas!
Does she like games? is fun. As is Dixit. Or what about Sushi Go! or Karma?

Does she like mysteries? Old TV shows? The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes was a series from PBS in the '70's. Based on stories written by Doyle's contemporaries.

Does she like Mallomars? They're hard to find sometimes.

Is she interested in having a FitBit? I loved my Zip and I'm really adoring my new Charge.

Liz Miller said...

That first link should say "Fluxx in all its forms is fun". And the link goes to Fluxx.

Here's the link to Dixit

Sue said...

My FIL has a birthday in early Jan as well. All of our good ideas for gifts go into Christmas. So, I hear ya.

W: I was required to attend the closing of a church in our area (same denomination as mine) on Sunday afternoon. I had a small part early in the service, as did my FIL - his tribute was the best part of the afternoon. After that, it was just a painful, agonizing, sad, long goodbye. I left quietly during the offering which happened 2 hours and 10 minutes into the proceedings. They still had to do the communion liturgy and serving, then the official business/liturgy of closure - easily another hour.

I felt a bit guilty leaving, but I wasn't alone. I ran into friends in the parking lot looking dazed and confused, just shaking their heads. One said, "What was that???"

Seriously, in our denomination, going past an hour is close to sacrilege. For this occasion, anyone (even me) would have forgiven an hour and a half. But three hours??? So unfortunate.

AW: Day off today! All day! No calls or emails! WooHoo!

kathy a. said...

Ack! 2+ hours of anything is too much!

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Those are good present ideas, Liz! My mom's birthday is on the 3rd,and I also need to figure something out for her.

Three hours, Sue? That is outrageously long. I can't fathom how hard it would be to be looking at the dissolution of one's community, but that is too much.

You guys, I'm moving really soon. We haven't done ANYTHING yet. And I'm already dealing with behavioural problems from E as the result of Christmas upheaval: how is she going to handle moving in the midst of it?

kathy a. said...

((( QWP ))) Oh, sister! Everybody's gonna be on edge for this next bit. Just start, and try to leave time for the things that need doing -- and also for sanity breaks!

Have you got boxes? That's a start! Figure out which things E can help pack -- like her own things, unbreakable and not sharp kitchen things. But also line up a lot of videos she can watch, or similar distractions! Get the popular snacks ready. Think of backup people to entertain her during the most urgent part, the move itself.

You aren't moving far, right? So things like bedding and clothing can go in big garbage sacks, quick and easy. Have you thought of people to bribe to help, and what bribe will be sufficient? (Pizza and beer was the traditional moving bribe 20 years ago, in my neighborhood.) If there is overlap between when you can move in and when you have to move out, you might move a bunch in carloads, leaving only the stuff that is large and/or urgently needed for the truck.

xoxo

esperanza said...

Joining in on the birthday whine (Mini's is Jan 25), and the children and Christmas upheaval behavioral issues whine (Sweet cannot go to sleep, and that's very unusual).

There are just too many people and not enough square feet here. And the weather outside is so cold and wet and yucky. Maybe tomorrow we can get outside and run off some energy. Big Niece's boyfriend arrived today, and he has livened things up a bit. He's really good with little kids AND he offered to wash dishes, so I think he's a keeper.

esperanza said...

Oh, and Sue, that's so difficult, in any case, but to have the service so drawn out and painful. Ugh. I think it was perfectly fine to excuse yourself.

kathy a. said...

Esperanza, if you ever grow tired of Big Niece's BF, send him on over. Yep, he's a keeper! Hope y'all get outdoors tomorrow.

Sue said...

Entertaining kidlets AND offering to do dishes - yep, a keeper.

(((QWP))) kathy a has made some great suggestions about the move. So much of moving is triage - Can it wait? Is it urgent? Does anyone remember what this thing is?

One step at a time is all you can do. We're here rooting you on!

esperanza, I hope your bad weather is improving. :(

My whine about the service feels really uncaring. I do understand that this little church community is suffering a great loss. I just think yesterday wasn't the time for the wake. It should have been a simple celebration, communion, business of closing...then the hours of music and memory-sharing could have nicely happened in the church hall where everyone could be more comfortable and drink tea/coffee.

Anyway, it's done.

Liz Miller said...

I don't think it seems uncaring, because of the way they did it, people left in the middle.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Sue, I very much agree. It should have been the funeral instead of the wake. It doesn't sound like you're uncaring at all.

W: I spent part of the evening feeling melancholy about E's behaviour. Honestly, she did much better today than she had all week. But the bad parts were so angry, and she said really awful things. And at bedtime she was really rough with me. I don't handle stuff like this well: I've worked so hard to foster gentleness (and I'm such a pacifist). I keep having to remind myself that she is normally compassionate, but I've been really discouraged by some of the things she's said and done this week.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

(As a clarification, since I'm sleepy: I'm saying the she was responding with a violent temper. Not me.)

kathy a. said...

Sue, you did not sound uncaring at all. Just sad that it ended up being so long and dire, without the chance for all the good memories to happen informally. xoxo

QWP -- Some times are just trying with small kids (and teenagers). It is horrifying when your sweet little person gets all angry and mean! What calms her down? It might be music and hugs, or a story and cuddle -- and if the traditional favorite doesn't work this time, don't give up on the tradition. Also, I believe in passing off the child who is angry with you to the other parent; and he in turn can pass the child back, when she gets angry with him. xoxo

Queen of West Procrastination said...

W: our car started acting up on Christmas morning. I didn't want to drive it, based on its behaviour; Mr. Q insisted that it would be fine to drive across the city. We ended up leaving it at the in-laws' house and borrowing one of their cars (and having the car towed to the shop). We just got the estimate: it would have been a cheap fix (spark plugs) if we hadn't driven it, but the engine coil got burnt out.

AW: birthday and Christmas money will cover the cost.
W: that money was supposed to go toward nice things for my new house, and now it's covering the cost of "we said we would be there an hour ago" stubbornness.

Still. This is the first time in my life where this kind of repair bill doesn't cause me a panic attack. We're going to be okay. But I'm disappointed.

(And then, when Mr. Q and I were stressing about the bad car news, E acted up badly, and ended up hitting me.)

Sue said...

((((QWP)))) So much love to you. xoxoxoxo

kathy a. said...

((( QWP ))) Eek. Car trouble wasn't what you needed right now! Glad the repairs won't cause total financial panic. Hitting is no good, though!

My husband's wonderful aunt called last night, and it was kind of disconcerting. We had talked to her on Christmas, so we knew she wasn't feeling well that day. But last night, she wanted a phone number for my SIL because she wanted to invite her to the southern part of the state for a visit. SIL has a severe early onset dementia, and is in a care home, and is incontinent, and her speech is unintelligible, and she doesn't understand things, and any changes in her routine are extremely disruptive and cause agitation. The fabulous aunt has heard about the declines for many years now, but it seemed like she forgot. Pretty sad and weird development.

I adore this aunt. My beloved will call his cousin to try to learn more. She is in her 80's now, and has had health problems the last few years, but this seems like a real change.

Sue said...

(((kathy a)))) So sorry to hear this.

esperanza said...

((kathy a & family)) ((QWP))

My brother's car is in the shop today, he is leaving the country for two weeks this afternoon, leaving (unavoidably) his wife to deal with a 20 year old, her boyfriend, a 7 year old, and a 9 month old and a broken down car. It's my dad's mechanic, so he will handle most of the car part, but ugh.

We will go outside today, weather or no weather. It's really probably fine, just colder than my preference, or our jackets, will tolerate for long.

Liz Miller said...

2015, don't let the door hit you on the way out. And take extraneous expensive car trouble with you.

(((QWP))) (((Kathy A))) (((Esperanza)))

Kathy, Auntie should get checked for a UTI. Very common for confusion to occur with those in senior women.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

It would be very good for Aunt to get a full physical, with this confusion. (Speaking from family experience, while it sometimes is indeed dementia, sometimes - - as Liz pointed out - - it's a symptom of something physical that is a bit wonky.)

W/AW: the mechanic found the underlying problem that caused this, and they won't charge us for extra labour (but it's going to be another $200 for a part replacement). This car had better behave itself for a long time after this: between the break line replacement a few months ago, and now this, I'm worried that the car is starting to cost more than it is worth.

Another potential (small) expense: our lender had an outdated schedule A on its website, which caused a delay with land titles, which might delay closing by a day, which might incur one day's worth of penalty. My lawyer is dealing with it, and I'm about to notify my mortgage broker, to try to avoid this extra expense. It wouldn't be much money, and I don't think it would delay our possession date, but it's the principal of the thing. (Dear lender: this is your mistake! Fix it! Don't just say, "Yeah, I put in a complaint about it.") (Apparently my lawyer's assistant got so annoyed with that nonresponse that she sort of hung up on the person from the bank.)

kathy a. said...

Happy trails, Esperanza!

Oy, QWP. Here's to a fast resolution of a small [but super-annoying] problem. Yay about getting the Q-mobile fixed!

Thanks, Liz -- UTI's can cause confusion. I offered to call the daughter, but husband wants to. Maybe after that I can follow up with the UTI tip, because I sincerely doubt he'll want to mention that. (Or maybe the doctor is already on top of it.)

Queen of West Procrastination said...

AW: it sounds like my lawyer and my mortgage broker have ironed out the annoying issue, and even if the technical closing happens a day late, it won't affect our possession date or our closing costs at all. (As I reassured Mr. Q, when I told him about the new complication: we don't need to worry about advocating for ourselves with this, since we've literally hired an advocate to deal with this stuff.)

kathy a. said...

Victory for the Q family!

Well, my beloved's aunt called again, looking for SIL's phone number -- this time I got the call. She seemed to know who I am, who my husband is, asked about the kids - but thought SIL was in city at the far end of the state. (She told my husband last night she thought SIL was in college there!) She seemed to follow as I explained where SIL is, that she's in bad shape, that she's in a good facility where they are taking good care of her -- but my impression is that this was all news to her. (It's not.) She ended up kind of confused about who she meant to call, so I suggested she talk to her daughter, maybe she could help straighten it out. Yes, sweetie will talk to his cousin tonight...

Queen of West Procrastination said...

(((kathy))) Oh, that's heart wrenching.

AW: a nap made all the difference with E. We had a lovely afternoon. AND we get the keys for our house in a little more than thirteen hours!!

kathy a. said...

Yay, naps!! Hooray for the keys!!

My aunt-in-law has called 2 more times, asking for SIL's number and thinking she is in college in San Diego. The last time, it began with "hi, it's me again!" and then the same request. She seems stunned every time I explain that SIL is in care, not doing well. (That's 3 times in 2 hours...)

esperanza said...

Glad to hear of improvements, QWP.

AW: My brother's car got repaired for $65!!! So that is good. That part of the family is headed home in the morning.

We will probably go home in the afternoon, as Mini's legs are COVERED in spots. She had two spots of impetigo on Christmas Eve, which I treated with the antibiotic ointment we had from the last time and they went away. I think these new spots are the same thing, but the sheer number and quick escalation is concerning me. Thankfully, she has not been the one who is smitten with Baby Cousin.

esperanza said...

Oh, kathy a, we were posting at the same time. The situation with Aunt is very worrisome! I hope someone can see in her person to assess.

kathy a. said...

Poor Mini. Here's to a quick banishment of the spots.

The fab aunt's daughter lives near her, and sees her all the time. My husband will be calling his cousin shortly -- I sent an email but couldn't find a phone number.

kathy a. said...

Well, there have been problems with the fabulous aunt for a while -- including her belief that SIL is in college in San Diego. It sounds like the cousin is on top of things. Sigh.

Liz Miller said...

Thinking of you all, Kathy.

Oh no Esperanza!!!

Yay, QWP!!

I've got Trump fans all up in my mentions on Twitt3r, because I defended a GOP elected evangelical Christian from Lebanon with an Islamic-sounding last name against their bigotry. It's not pretty. And it looks like they may have reported me to Twitter because my tweets aren't going through

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Liz, that's so infuriating. And that man seems to have the Horrible, Racist Troll vote sealed up. (I wonder what can be done with Twitt3r, to get your account back and working.)

kathy a. said...

Yikes, Liz. I have no idea why His Nastiness has any kind of following -- or why they would jump on a bandwagon of hatred toward someone because he has a foreigny-sounding name. (Maybe this is why immigrants in past years adopted more "american" names?) Hope the twitt3r gets straightened out.

Very sad about the aunt. She and my MIL were super close; and I adore her. Over a period of some years, I had a lot of work in her area, and we met fairly often for dinner when I was down there. We chatted on the phone a lot during the adventures of my SIL, and when her sister was sick. Her daughter is trying to get legal and financial things straight, and thinking of getting home help for her mom (or moving her to the daughter's house, but the aunt would probably hate that). Sigh.

kathy a. said...

Also weird: my husband is the old experienced hand at dealing with dementia and finding appropriate care -- not because of his mother, but because of the long hard path with his younger sister. Different dementia, but guess his cousin knows who to call when things advance.

Liz Miller said...

Got a new bathing suit! It fits! I haven't had a bathing suit that fits in...let's see now, at least 26 years. Probably more.

And actually, I still don't. What I have is a matching bra and panties, black with pale pink and grey polka-dots. Shhhh. It's a secret. I tested it out in the shower just now, and it works.





Liz Miller said...

To be specific, this bra and matching panties.

kathy a. said...

Liz found the holy grail! Cute, too.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

You guys, I suddenly have all the symptoms of strep throat. This month has been ridiculous.

kathy a. said...

No no no! QWP, it is tea and honey for you, something for fever, early to bed! And off to the doc if it is still there in the a.m. -- no dilly dallying before everything is closed for the weekend!

Queen of West Procrastination said...

That's the plan, Kathy! I'll call my doctor first (since she usually reserves a few spots for same-day urgent stuff), and if her office isn't open, Mr. Q's clinic takes walk ins, and is open tomorrow.

esperanza said...

Oh, QWP! Blech. If you're correct, I recommend the penicillin shot, even though it hurts like a giant fireplace. It works quickly. I hope you're feeling better soon.

Well done, Liz! (I am giggling slightly at you checking it out in the shower).

AW: Home, sweet, home. Mr. E and my dad were apparently having a Grumpy Contest. Ugh. I'm just glad to have some square feet to myself.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Well, my fever broke in the night, but my throat is still excruciating, and so I'm still going in to see me doctor this afternoon.

Esperanza, I'm glad you're home!

Sue said...

Definitely a Holy Grail bathing suit Liz!! Love it!!

(((QWP))) Dear Universe, QWP has dealt with enough and is in the process of moving. Please evict any and all nasty strep bugs immediately.

Glad you're home esperanza!

W: Picked up kitty ashes today.

AW: The staff at the vet clinic are so amazing and caring, they made a tough thing better.

kathy a. said...

QWP, hope you are better pronto!

Esperanza, cracking me up with Grumpy Contest, although I'm sure that wasn't a lot of fun for people in the vicinity. Hope the weekend's warm enough for some outdoors.

((( Sue )))

Queen of West Procrastination said...

(((Sue))) I'm glad that the vet clinic has been so compassionate, but oy, what a heartbreaking Christmas.

esperanza said...

Good call on the doctor, QWP. I hope it is something easily treated and your energy easily restored.

Aw, Sue. I'm glad your vet clinic is so kind, but still, it's so hard.

Today, so far: Two Baboos to the doctor (Mini has impetigo again, plus dry skin all over her entire self. Treatment for impetigo is antibiotic ointment and frequent washing, which, you might surmise, leads to dry skin, which is more susceptible to skin infections such as impetigo. You begin to see my conundrum. Sweet has a yucky cough, so more nebulizer fun, as well as the ear infection from last week which still lingers). Two Baboos to the evil W Empire (be easy on us rural folk; we have few options). Two Baboos to the bank. Two Baboos to lunch at Dairy Queen (uh, yes, bribery at work). Two Baboos to the grocery store.

W: I advise avoiding the grocery store at all costs today. So crowded.

kathy a. said...

Poor Baboos! Does the doc have suggestions about the dry skin? Would a bit of baby oil or baby lotion help? (Aveeno has a lovely skin cream for sensitive skin.)

QWP, hope you are now on the mend.

We don't do a lot in the way of NY Eve celebrations -- tonight looks to be roast chicken, maybe a movie, early to bed. Back in the day, we did a big hoopla for the kids (confetti, even!) and celebrated using a reasonable time zone, like 3 hours east of where we were. Whatever you do, hope it is a happy night, and that this new year brings joy.

xoxo

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Oh, the poor Baboos!

So, I'm on amoxacillin, and hopefully this (not strep, but nonetheless an infected throat and probably ears) will help get it out of my system.

esperanza said...

Sweet has 7 more days of amoxicillin, QWP. Hers is the disgusting tasting pink stuff though. I hope yours kicks in soon.

kathy a. said...

Do all the doses! Stopping when you feel better lets the super-bugs grow. PSA.

My friend is going to visit inlaws this weekend and they are going to a pie shop. She just reminded me that she could bring us a pie, which reminded me That's What I Forgot on Christmas -- my husband bought a frozen to-be-baked pie, which ended up hiding under something in the freezer. Not that we were short of desserts. But the tradition remains -- one item forgotten each holiday meal. ;)

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Kathy, that was the scolding I just gave Mr. Q, when I found out he missed several doses of how antibiotic eye drops! And he teaches biology and knows better! (It's the old "I feel better and kept forgetting.")

Hey, and you get a bonus pie now! Score!

Happy new year, pixies. May your 2016 be much better than this previous year. *Raises cup of peppermint tea*

esperanza said...

We are always antibiotic finishers. By the end of this one, it will be 17 days of the pink stuff. Probiotics to the rescue!

W: Mr. E just burned, badly, microwave popcorn. Because he put it in there without the rotating glass plate, which I had washed. "I didn't know it would make that much of a difference." It is stinky. Anyone know how to get scorch marks off the microwave? He tried baking soda.

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Are the scorch marks on a removable plate, or on the plastic? Because baking soda mostly removes scorch marks when mixed with very hot water.

esperanza said...

on the plastic. I have a feeling that if I tackle it with baking soda, I can make some progress. But I am fireplacing not doing it tonight.

Liz Miller said...

Aunt Flo is here for a visit just in time for my vacation on Saturday. Fortunately, I just bought period panties that are the cutest things you ever saw, when I got the "bathing suit"

Pie!! Awesome score, Kathy!!

I'm sorry about all the illness, QWP and Esperanza. And burnt popcorn is one of the top 10 worst smells in the developed world

esperanza said...

We await the review of the period panties, Liz. Sorry about Flo's crummy timing.

kathy a. said...

Aunt Flo has always had a dramatic sense of timing, no? Geesh.

Esperanza, yuck. Also vinegar might help. But meanwhile, yuck. (Some people just have to learn the hard way, no? I mean, the rotating plate is in there for a reason or two...)

Liz Miller said...

They're called FannyPants, and so far I love them. Comfy, pretty, and up to the job. Ooh! I just saw on their website that the ones I bought are really for incontinence. But they are working well for me now. I got the Venice style, one pair in black, one pair in English Rose. They were buy one get one half off, and came with extra insert pads.

I'd also bought a pair of Thinx, but they're not comfortable, top keeps rolling down

kathy a. said...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I don't do resolutions, because they all get broken and then I feel like a miserable failure, and why even try when it's already broken, right? So instead, I have a few aspirations. One is getting more of the excess out of my house.

So far -- a large bag of clothes, a large bag of duffles/slippers/games, a shopping bag of books for the exchange, and I'm starting on more clothes that don't fit. My idea is a little at a time, so every bit is a win!

kathy a. said...

Pixies, the underwear drawer has been cleared of wrong-size/style undies! (To the trash.) (Except a couple bras with tags still on; think those can be donated since it is clear they are unused.) Apparently I did not thin the herd for quite a few years...

At some point, I'll hit the overstuffed linen closet. Our vet requests "gently used" towels (including victims of bleach enthusiasm on the part of, ahem, someone), and I'm pretty sure much of that closet contains other useful and donation-worthy items that have not seen the light of day for years. Maybe tomorrow.

Working slowly on the third bag of clothing, and a bag of decorative items that happen to belong to someone else's idea of "decorative." Previously set aside: a useful but mis-matched group of flatware. If I get very lucky, we might be able to unload some of the overload of coffee mugs we didn't choose but ended up with.

esperanza said...

You're on a roll, kathy a! I need to do the same thing.

AW: Got tons of work done today, when I went to Mr. E's office for a few hours.
W: Still 17 applications, 4 pages each, to read for Albatross #2.
W: And it's a holiday
W: And our black eyed peas weren't very good.

AW/W: Mini lost her first tooth tonight. She's growing up too fast. She's 1/2" taller than Sweet now, which is a first.

kathy a. said...

Woot for the work done, Esperanza! Sorry about the black-eyed peas, but maybe they'll be fine in a future soup? And yay, Mini -- that first tooth is a biggie!

Kids just grow at different rates, different times, and sometimes that gets a little sticky. But they are both growing into their own wonderful selves. So just hoping on behalf of all that nobody starts making a big deal about height. xoxo

Sue said...

Happy New Year pixies!!!

kathy a. said...

And also to you!

esperanza said...

The good news about the black eyed peas is that there weren't very many of them, they were eaten with delicious cornbread, and they are now gone.

kathy a. said...

AW's: All the decorative items have returned to their usual nests (except a few that went to ornament heaven on aesthetic grounds). The tree did its duty, and has gone on to serve further as mulch. Dad and Daughter have gone off for a hike with "the most beautiful girl in the whole wide world," Daddy's Dog. Aloha!

Kinda W: I've had an umbilical hernia for a while, and was encouraged to get a surgical consult last spring. But things were busy, yadda. Anyway, it's not an emergency, but it's time -- hoping to get it evaluated and scheduled soon. Anybody have thoughts about what to expect? (I have of course consulted Dr. Google, and will see my PCP next week to get the referral and etc.)

esperanza said...

I know nothing, sorry, kathy a. Sweet had a teeny tiny one when she was in the NICU, but it resolved itself.

You're way ahead of me on the Christmas cleanup. The Baboos (with great whining and moaning) and I (ditto) cleaned up their rooms and found homes for the new toys, which was my only accomplishment for the day.

kathy a. said...

OMG. My friend is bringing the pie over! She lives maybe 20 miles away [via icky freeway] and already drove a good 1.5 hours from the pie place near her in-laws.

esperanza said...

I missed this. What kind of pie?

Queen of West Procrastination said...

Umbilical hernias! E and I got matching ones (I from my pregnancy, and she because it's common in preemie girls). Hers resolved itself mostly, but is still a funny outie. I've read about the surgery, and I believe it's incredibly minor (at least the one done on babies is).

I'm making myself anti-whine first, because I'm feeling really whiny: I love our house, and it looks E is going to have an easy transition to the new house. (She loves it so much, and wants to stay there forever, and is a little mad that she has to wait a week until her bed and all the furniture is there.)

Also, the amoxicillin is clearly working, and I'm not nearly as sick as I was two days ago.

And both sides of the family came over for a big work bee today, and so much got done.

But.

W: my primary objectives didn't get done, because of annoying things (the paint these was supposed to cover in one coat is going to need a third coat; we ran out of silicone seal, and some of the caulking needs to be redone; the holes for the deadbolts are too small for the new locks, and we hadn't brought the right tools, and we'll have to wait for a couple of days to accomplish what I thought would be the easy part).

In addition to all the, the exhaustion and the fumes made my ears and sinuses flare up, and I got really dizzy for a while, and had to rest. Thankfully, my sister showed up right after that, and took over with E, and gave me Naproxen.

One more week, and I'll be living in a new place. I can't fathom what all has to happen this week, during Mr. Q's first week back at school (and one of the last weeks of the first semester).

kathy a. said...

Marionberry. And a bag of mandarin oranges and lemons from the central valley! She brought her husband, and they asked for local restaurant recommendations -- so kind of a date night?

kathy a. said...

Deadbolts first, and all the other moving stuff. Uck about the paint, but it is usually easy to slap on another coat while there is no furniture there. And SUPER uck about the fumes and flareup!

This WILL all get done! Bits at a time, sister. Anybody around to do some E time? xoxo

esperanza said...

I don't even know what a marionberry is...off to google. Fresh oranges and lemons sound delicious.

QWP, sorry you're discouraged/overwhelmed, but I'm sure it will all happen. I'm really glad that E likes the new place; that seems like a major hurdle.

I may have been an entrant in the Grumpy Contest today. Needing to find places for all the new toys stresses me out, especially when the Baboos' rooms were already disasters. It took the three of us almost 2 hours to get it all straightened up. Grumpy.

kathy a. said...

Ms. Rev. Grumpy, I'm just going to declare this a victory.

And school starts on Monday, right? You can do one more day. xoxo

esperanza said...

Tuesday.

kathy a. said...

Aaarrrggghhh! Sending chocolate. Or would sedatives be more appropriate? ;)

esperanza said...

Well, we just spent an hour outside in the sunshine, so that should help everyone, including me.

Mr. E's long saga with youth directors continues. She quit. So did her husband, who had a job that the church invented just for him. They've been in their positions less than a year. I think it's probably good riddance, but it's going to be really hard on the congregation. It's also really hard on Mr. E. A move this summer is looking more and more likely. I need some of your cleaning-out mojo, kathy a!

kathy a. said...

Oy, Esperanza! So much drama drama.... Well, you just get a trash bag, stuff the ungrateful employees in there -- no, wait! Must keep the scenarios straight.

Go to a closet or drawer, pick out what you still like, and put everything else in the bag or the wastebasket, depending on whether anybody else might possibly be able to use it. Stop when you are no longer interested. Move along to another drawer or portion of closet when you need to feel inspired!

I think Mr. E needs some PIE right now. xoxo

esperanza said...

I am in general a good cleaner-outer. The Baboos are hoarders. Mr. E just never gets around to it. Hopefully some external motivation will help. I usually get a bee in my bonnet to do some sorting around the new year anyway.

Pie sounds good. (I looked up marionberries. They look a lot like dewberries, which we have here but you probably don't. All related to blackberries).

kathy a. said...

I expect with all the rain coming in, the blackberry system underlying miles of this side of the bay will go wild. In any event, marionberries are tasty, they were cultivated at my daughter's U in Oregon, and they do not grow in my yard. I'd be nicer to their cousins except for the [rainy] times they grow their pointy branches all across the path to my front door, and then proceed to take over the universe.

Would the Baboos be into selecting some of the less-favored accumulation to give to kids who have less? xoxo

esperanza said...

I broached that subject yesterday. It was not met with enthusiasm.

kathy a. said...

Generosity tends to be one of those long-term projects....