Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #91 – Visitors Again & Getting Ready for Christmas

 

Monday, November 27th, 2017…...  This morning we got going early. I was tired but got up and moving and felt fine after a bit.  We left for breakfast at Kevin’s and then headed to the Sam Fit fitness center to check it out.  Part of our insurance package allows us to use any/all of the participating fitness centers here in town.  Lydia had seen Sam Fit in the same building as Good Samaritan Urgent Care. This place is NICE! Even though they use a key card to get in, we managed entry and met their staff leader, who gave us a quick tour.  We had seen the other fitness centers in town and this was by far the best so we will be back this week to sign up.  I sure miss going to the Boeing Fitness Center back in SoCal so I’ll be glad to get into this place. We left there and went over to Penny’s so I could put in her new control box for her garage door opener. I also installed some tie backs for her bath curtains.  Bill & Debbie came back by on their way home to stay the night with Penny.  We visited and then left for home.  Once there, I started getting down all of our Christmas decorations.  We have to decide what to use and what else we need to buy.  Walt left us three lighted snowflakes he used in the upper windows in the entryway.  I tested them and two worked fine.  One has half the bulbs out.  We put up the new (to us) Christmas tree.  Penny was getting rid of it and it’s pre-lit so we thought we’d sell ours and buy hers.  It was a smart move – no lights to hang and easier to put up!  Lydia went to work and got the tree decorated 

and then it was time for dinner. The rest can wait until tomorrow.  We fixed tacos and then cleaned up and went to Walmart.  Lydia says I’m not allowed up on this roof to put up lights.  I did not argue!  So, we bought a couple of the star showers advertised on tv. When we got home I set one of them up, and we found we were not at all happy with the projected look we were getting.  Tomorrow we will return them and look for something else.  We did find new lighted snowflakes that will go up tomorrow as well.     

Tuesday, November 28th, 2017…...  First thing this morning I took the star showers back to Walmart. Later, we went over to get Penny, Debbie, and Bill to go to Elmer’s in Albany for breakfast.  They had never had German pancakes so we couldn’t resist taking them there. We had a nice time visiting with them before they headed back south to home.  They are now thinking seriously about moving up here. On the way home, we stopped at Costco for a few things.  I found they had new laser star showers for the yard so I bought those.  We returned home and continued getting our Christmas stuff put together.  I had found a third star shower we used for our motorhome so I set out all three and that worked well.  We worked on the rest of the house throughout the day/night but still didn’t get it all done.  We ate a Costco roasted chicken which we made quesadillas out of.  Yummy.  Lydia had been on her feet too long today so we rested and later called it a night.   

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #90 – More Stuff For the Shop & a Lazy Sunday

 

Saturday, November 25th, 2017…...  I got up early today. I had plans.  I walked Quincy and showered and left for town.  I stopped and got coffee and drove over to Habitat for Humanity.  I wanted to be there early to try to buy the island I was looking at a few days ago. Today cabinets are 50% off, and it was still there, so I bought it and only had to pay $32.50.  It was super heavy, made from plywood, and I had to have help loading it, but hey, I got it!  I stopped on the way home and had a breakfast burrito from a local taqueria in Albany.  Once back home, I managed to get to the drawers and doors and get them removed, making it a lot lighter to unload.  Penny feels better today and came outside with Lydia and together we all got it slid off the truck.  Right now it’s sitting upright on a big dolly on the cement slab in the front shop. I think I’m going to build up the bottom so it sits higher for me and now’s the time to do that.  Just not today.  That done, I moved the truck and came in to rest and watch tv for a while. The girls sat around and planned their day.  I don’t think they plan on doing a lot but I don’t know.  Penny felt better this afternoon and went out and walked Quincy and then, after a bit, they went home.  We spent the rest of the day just lounging around.  We each fixed a late lunch so we really didn’t feel like dinner.  We finished the night with a bit of tv and went to bed.  

Sunday, November 26th, 2017…...  It was raining this morning so we stayed in.  Lydia made sausage and scrambled eggs and we sat around the house and ate and watched the skies. Good thing we stayed in because later in the morning it REALLY came down!  The wind was blowing so hard the rain was sideways!  Good thing was that it only lasted about six minutes.  Then it stopped completely and the winds died down too.  The rest of the day was just light drizzles.  It is supposed to be clear tomorrow.  Again, we ate lunch later in the afternoon so neither of us wanted a heavy dinner.  So we fixed what each of us wanted.  Lydia made herself nachos and I had cheese and crackers. I spent the day watching football games and fell asleep.  Those who know me well enough know I don’t usually take naps during the day.  Sure enough, when it came time for bed, I couldn’t sleep.  I got up and watched tv until midnight before trying it again. It still took some time to fall asleep.  Bet I’m tired tomorrow!

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #89 – Turkey Day! And Black Friday

 

Thursday, November 23rd, 2017…...  Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! I got up early and found the weather was pretty nice.  The last couple of days we had rain showers off and on but it was actually warmer than normal.  This morning it was 54º at 6:30am! I gave Quincy a nice walk and then wiped her feet and brought her in and fed her her breakfast. Lydia had taken out the (really small chicken size) turkey she had bought and it was thawed out already.  We were not scheduling dinner until we heard how Penny was doing.  But she got all of it ready to go into the oven when we knew.  No worries. She was doing well and came over early and we spent the day watching parades and football. I got Quincy walking duties and it was drizzling every time I took her out! Dinner was turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, sweet potatoes, rolls and pumpkin pie.  The girls even cleaned up.  Except dog duty, it was a lazy day for me!    

Black Friday, November 24th, 2017…...  Neither one of us is a black Friday shopper so we kind of hung around the house today.  Penny spent the night so I got up and walked Quincy and then came in and took a shower and had breakfast. The girls hung around the house and Penny hung around the bathroom.  She is still not feeling quite right.  The medicine has left her queasy, but not sick. Everything is passing right on through! She did eat some solid food so we’ll see what happens.  She went back home to get her mail and pick up a few things.  She will stay here at least another night.  I worked on some stuff in my shop.  I have decided to cover most of the west and north walls with pegboard so I worked on one of the panels and got it installed.  That was in between rest breaks watching some of the college football games.  It’s rival week across the country so each team is playing their rival and has something to prove.  The big thing up here right now is the Civil War game.  That’s the BIG game between Oregon and Oregon State.  University of Oregon campus is in Eugene and Oregon State is in Corvallis, about 30 miles away so folks up here pick their team and are adamant supporters of that team. You’re either a Ducks fan or a Beavers fan!  Neither team is going to a bowl game but Oregon has a way better team most years.  But OSU comes to play each time so we’ll see. They play tomorrow afternoon.

Dinner tonight was turkey tetrazzini.  Lydia keeps some turkey for sandwiches but cuts up some for this dish.  I know I’m weird but I actually like it more than the original Thanksgiving dinner!  Yesterday we had pumpkin pie, today she made an apple pie. Later, after another walk with Quincy, we rested and watched our taped shows.            

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #88 – Some Assembly Required and a Doctor’s Appointment

 

Tuesday, November 21st, 2017…...  We both slept in this morning (7:30am). Didn’t go over to Penny’s.  Bill and Debbie are staying with my sister so she didn’t need too much from me today.  After Bill walked Quincy they went out to breakfast and toured the city a bit.  The plan was to go over there at 3:00pm and take them to Sweet Home and a tour of that area before going to Skyline for dinner. So, while Lydia went in to get her nails done, I ate a quick lunch then went in to finished up the assembly of the fireplace cabinet. It went together pretty easily and looks good. 

Next up is a bigger tv for that room. I watched tv for a while then it was time to go get them.  We took off and showed them the sights in Sweet Home, including Foster Lake.  I crossed the dam and found a patrol car sitting in the lot at the T in the road.  I made a u-turn and went all the way around him!  I think he thought I was crazy but he didn’t follow me so that was good! We went over to Skyline and Penny treated us all to dinner. Thanks Sis! We drove back home and visited with them for a while and then went home and waited to watch the finale of DWTS. I had made my predictions for the last six dancers and I only missed on Drew and Victoria, who I had reversed.  Otherwise, I got them all in order. We were happy to see Jordan win the mirror ball.  Also glad to see Lindsay get her first win as well.     

Wednesday, November 22nd, 2017…...  Today I was busy.  So was Lydia, who had to go to her new dermatologist for some spots to be frozen off.  No worries, they said only one was of any concern and if it doesn’t clear up, they will test it. She has a follow up appointment but not until 2018.  Meanwhile, I took off and made the rounds at the Habitat for Humanity stores in Corvallis and Albany.  I found a couple of table saws I was interested in but didn’t ask about prices.  I did find a workbench out in their yard on my way out.  It’s nothing fancy, but I have plenty of space and it was only $13.25 so I bought it!

I went to Lowe’s and bought a few items for the house and headed home. Later, Penny called and asked if I wanted to come over and walk Quincy or bring her back for a walk at our place then a sleepover. That way, she could sleep in tomorrow and then come over and the dog would be there already. I went and got Quincy and by the time I got home, Lydia had spaghetti and meatballs and hot bread just about ready.  The perfect meal for the long day! Quincy got a few bites of the meatballs (minus the sauce) and then I cleaned up the kitchen and went in to work on my bills (yuck!).  We watched tv and then called it a night.    

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #87 – Dinner Guests for Us and Visitors for Penny

Sunday, November 19th, 2017…...  First thing this morning I got a text from my sister asking if I could come over and walk Quincy.  She wasn’t up to it as the drugs were working out of her system.   I met up with her and Quincy near the Santiam River, just around the corner from her house.  

She took my car home and me and the Quincydog finished up the walk.  I made sure they were doing ok and then headed home.  We had planned to go to Albany and get that entertainment center today but we got lazy and postponed it till tomorrow and decided to stick around the rest of the day.  I watched the last Nascar race of the season. I was rooting for Truex Jr to win the championship and he did! We spent the rest of the day just hanging and also picking up the house a bit before our guests arrived.  Penny called and said she was going to pass on coming over so she could rest some more. Lydia did go out to the store to get beans for dinner. Aimee and Jason came over around four and after a tour of our home, we sat and talked a bit and then had dinner.  It was a really good meal and a fun evening. After they left, we cleaned up and put leftovers away to get to Penny tomorrow. We watched tv until we got sleepy and then headed off to bed.    

Monday, November 20th, 2017…...   This morning we took off to Albany and first went to Home Depot and bought and loaded up the fireplace/entertainment center in the car. Then we headed over to Elmer’s for breakfast (german pancakes). Then we went to Costco but since they don’t open until 10:00am we went down the street to Kohl’s where Lydia bought a new purse. We finished up at Costco and then went home.  Penny was doing a little better but still not back to normal.  She said she was going shopping but Lydia wanted her to wait for her just in case she needed any help.  So, after we got home and unloaded the car, Lydia got all of our yesterday bbq leftovers together and took them to Penny.  Actually, they met up at Safeway.  Penny’s childhood friend, Debbie, and her husband Bill, were coming today to visit and stay a few days on their way to Vancouver for Thanksgiving with their family.  They made it to her house and rested while Lydia came home.  After a bit, Penny brought them they by our place for a visit.  Then after a tour they went back and then rested and then heated up the ribs and mac and cheese and bread for their meal.  Tomorrow was left up in the air, but, depending on how Penny is feeling, I think we will go get them tomorrow and give them the 25ȼ tour around the area here.        

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #86 – Jobs for my Sister and Baking at the House

 

Friday, November 17th, 2017…...  Sis slept well last night and she says she feels fine.  She even took Quincy out for her walk this morning. We took her out to breakfast at Shirley May’s and afterward she returned home to drop off Quincy and put away her stuff.  Then I met her at Walmart where she bought a new tv.  I brought it home for her and we started in.  The tv in her bedroom went to her guest room.  The tv in the living room went into her bedroom.  I had to modify a mounting bracket kit so we could mount it on her existing wall mount.  Then the new tv went into the living room.  I did a few other jobs for her while I was there and then left to let her rest and returned home to get Lydia so we could go to the grocery store.  We are having our realtor, Aimee, and her husband Jason, over for dinner on Sunday and we needed a few things.  That done, we stopped at Taco Bell for dinner and came back and unloaded the groceries and then ate dinner.  Then it was a night of relaxation for both of us.  I watched the first of the Nascar season finales.  This one was the truck series. She caught up on Scorpion shows. 

Saturday, November 18th, 2017…...  Saturdays are usually lazy days for us.  Today was no exception. We straightened up around the house and relaxed. They said no rain today and they were right.  But the sun never really came out at all so my grass never got a chance to dry out so I could mow.  Rain is on the calendar for the next couple of days so we’ll see….

Lydia fixed a noodle casserole for dinner.  I like these meals because they are great for leftovers.  She is also making an apple cake which she started tonight after dinner. But that is for tomorrow. Tomorrow, for our guests, she is making bbq ribs, crock pot mac and cheese, and hot buttered sourdough bread.  Penny is bringing baked beans.  Aimee and Jason are bringing salad. Even though I just ate, I’m getting hungry again thinking about tomorrow! 

I watched the second Nascar race.  Dale Earnhardt Jr. who owns Jr. Motorsports won his first owners championship in the Xfinity Series race. His cars took all three top positions in the championships.  Cool! Tomorrow is his last race as a driver when he retires from the Cup series. We finished up the evening watching tv and falling asleep. I woke up long enough to get this posted.

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #85 – Dodging the Sprinkles and 1st Round of Chemo

 

Wednesday, November 15th, 2017…...  Today was supposed to be wet again. I wanted to go out and get a sheet of pegboard for another wall in my shop, but I couldn’t find a break in the weather.  So, we stayed around the house and goofed around.  Lydia didn’t get anything out for dinner and I offered to take her out but she decided to fix breakfast for dinner – so we had omelets!  Very tasty!  We watched the taped Survivor episode together and then split back to our own tvs and programs. 

Thursday, November 16th, 2017…...  This morning started out pretty early. Lydia was taking Penny to Salem for her first round of chemo.  The appointment was at 8:15 so they left here around 7:15. I have Quincy for the day.  I walked her in between the on and off sprinkles and then dried off her feet and fed her her breakfast. Then I took off to Jack in the Box and 7-11 to get my breakfast.  I came back and ate and then took off to Economy (Ace) Hardware to pick up a sheet of pegboard and some 2x2’s.   I managed to get them back without too much water on them.  I stored them away in the shop and headed out again.  We are looking for a tv stand for Lydia’s craft room.  We also need another tv for in there.  The one in there now will move to the guest bedroom.  We decided that one with a fireplace would be perfect for that room and for Lydia when she’s in there working on her crafts! I went to Home Depot and Lowe’s in Albany where we had seen them. Home Depot has the one we want but I want her there to make sure we get the right model.  I got back and walked the Quinzinator again.  This time we went out to check our creek.  There is a bit of water in it now since we’ve had some constant days of rain.  It’s only inches deep but it looks cool! 

Back to Penny - I knew that they were still in process giving her the chemo.  They administer a dose (into the port that they had previously installed) and she has to wait an hour or more before the next dose.  They did four so, it would be a long day!  She will come back here and spend the night as they said she shouldn’t be alone and most likely will be nauseous.  So we will be there for her if/when she needs us. Update – they texted later that everything was going well and she was feeling good.  They were done and would be heading home soon.  Another update -  I fixed myself dinner and let them know.  They decided to come home and fix grilled cheese sandwiches which Lydia got together pretty quickly.  The rest of the night was uneventful.  We watched tv for a while and Penny took her meds and went to bed.  It was a long day and a lot of stuff going on! We’ll see how she does tonight.  

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #84 – Haircuts and Labs

 

Monday, November 13th, 2017…...  It was windy last night and we could hear some heavy rain but this morning it started out dry. Today was the start of a rainy forecast.  It was sunny for a while but very windy and then the skies clouded up and we got slight showers.  Lydia left for a doctor’s appointment and then lunch with my sister.  I stayed home and worked a bit in my shop. I made it back to the house before it started sprinkling.  I fixed myself some lunch. Lydia got home a few minutes later and missed most of the rain. We spent the rest of the day around the house.  We had leftover stew and biscuits for dinner and settled in to watch DWTS. Tonight is the semifinals. One more week after this.

Tuesday, November 14th, 2017…...   We decided to go out to breakfast this morning.  Lydia had labs so we went there first.  We chose Kevin’s this morning because they have a barber shop next door I wanted to try. After we ate I went there and Lydia took the car and went a block north to her quilt shop.  I had a few folks ahead of me but when I was done and started walking towards her store, she was leaving and picked me up. We were planning on meeting my sister for linner and we wanted to go try The Tangent Inn.  According to the paper, it’s a new restaurant recently opened in Tangent, which is about ten miles from us, and boasted big burgers. She got back from her doctor’s appointment but we were still full from breakfast so we had her go run her errands and then come to our house later.  She picked us up and we headed out. The place was very nice.  Since it was early, we sat in the bar area.  I had a beer and the mushroom w/swiss burger and baked beans.  Lydia had the blue cheese burger and coleslaw and Penny tried their house special, called the Tangent Burger and fries. Her burger was huge! 

That’s fried cheese on the bottom and was 8” around! We liked the place and will go back. After pigging out, we headed back home and she dropped us off.  We were in for the night and watched tv and went to bed.         

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #83 – Veterans Day Saturday and a Lazy Sunday

 

Saturday, November 11th, 2017…...  Today is Veterans Day. Please be sure to thank those served this great country!  This morning was gorgeous!  It rained during the night but when the sun came out the skies were full of white clouds! It was still a little chilly (52º) out when I went to get the paper but it is warming up now.  There are dark clouds out over the mountains way in the distance but so far, still nice here….

Lydia and Penny are heading out this morning to the Heritage Mall (in Albany) to do some shopping.  I have dog watching duty.  She and I will go out later for her walk.  Right now I’m going out to program the third Genie remote that I just got for the garage doors.  This one is for the truck…..  Ok, so that’s done now.  Each vehicle has a remote that opens any of the three garage doors.  I’m not sure yet what we’ll end up with for the rv garage when that’s built. There will be another garage door on that one too… I also worked on running a switch for the dust collector system.  It’s in the garage part of the shop and I currently have to walk out there to turn it on an off so I’m running a cord over to the work shop area on the workbench to mount a switch for convenience. Ok, so now that I have taken a couple of subfloor panels out, I can see this is bigger than I thought. I need to put some more thought into this one. I walked Quincy and then Lydia and Penny got back a bit later and Penny picked up her pooch and went home.  They ate while they were out so I fixed my taco leftovers for my dinner. We cleaned up the house a bit and settled in to watch tv before going to bed.     

Sunday, November 12th, 2017…...   Another lazy Sunday.  Lydia did do a couple of loads of wash but it was a very quiet day here on the ranch…. Early afternoon she fixed up a beef stew and got it simmering for our early dinner.  I watched races and football throughout the day and mixed in one trip out to the shop to think more about my electrical plans. Like I said, a lazy day….

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #82 – Plumbing Repair & a Well Care Visit

 

Thursday, November 9th, 2017…...  Today started out super early for me.  It started yesterday in fact.  My sister was out yesterday afternoon on the second walk of the day for Quincy and she said there was water coming out of the wellhead out in the west end of the property.  I went out and found one of the 1 ½” fittings coming out of the pump was cracked.  I got on the phone and called around and finally found a plumber who could come out this morning.  He had to go get a fitting that he didn’t have in his van but went to work and dug down to readjust the pvc pipe which was pushed off a bit by a tree root (which probably put enough pressure on the fitting to crack it).  That done, the new fitting went on and he was done.  He had to work in the rain and wind so that was tough!  Not cheap but something I didn’t feel comfortable tackling myself. But there was a tiny problem. It started when he drove his work van (his choice) out to the site.  He got stuck in the wet grass and I couldn’t pull him out with my truck.  AAA won’t go off road onto fields with their vehicles. He ended up calling his dad who has a four-wheel drive truck and he got him out. Back to the job – he had to work in the rain and wind so that was tough!  Not cheap but something I didn’t feel comfortable tackling myself.

After the plumber left, we decided to drive to Albany and run a few errands. We got back and watched the rest of the CMAs we had taped.  We had had lunch in Albany (Arby’s) so we just nuked a couple of hot dogs for dinner. We finished the night watching tv and working on the plans for tomorrow.

Friday, November 10th, 2017…...   We had one of those well patient home visits this morning. Our new medical insurance here in Oregon is with United Health Care and they have been calling us to get this set up.  They wanted to go over our meds and make sure everything was working well for us.  We each spent some time with the rep. (Emily) but she did talk more with Lydia, given her history. It went well but took over two hours!...

That done, we went about our day.  We headed out to Eugene to visit their Kohls. Lydia was looking for a particular brand of jeggings and the Albany store didn’t have any. We got what we needed and then decided to go to the show to see Murder on the Orient Express.  But when we tried to park we couldn’t find a space.  School’s out and the mall was packed! We will go back when it’s not so crowded. So we headed back home, stopping at Harbor Freight to get an item that was on sale today. We also stopped at Walmart to get stuff for tacos for dinner.  We ate early and stayed in for the evening and watched tv.     

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #81 – Penny’s Minor Surgery and Moving Joe!

 

Tuesday, November 7th, 2017…...  Today was another appointment for my sister.  We took her to her Kaiser doctor’s facility in Salem to check in at 1:00pm. She got her port installed today. They call it minor outpatient surgery but they still used anesthesia so it took several hours total. Lydia stayed with her for some of the wait before they called her back for prep, then she came out and we went off to kill some of the time.  We went to Mors, which is a furniture store up here (very similar to Living Spaces), to look at dining room tables.  We found one we really liked but we have more comparable shopping still to do. We also went up to Keizer, a small community just north of Salem to look around. Joe and Maryanne told us they have a nice Elks lodge up there with an excellent campground.  We were heading back down one of the main streets in town and we saw the lodge off on a side street.  They were right – it is a really nice rv park.  Looks like a regular campground with full hookups and room for 40+ rigs! We headed back and got back to the medical center and were walking in when Lydia got the call that Penny was just wheeled into recovery.  We met with the aides, who went over the after-surgery instructions with us.  They said she should not be home alone so we said she would be staying with us for the night.  A few minutes later, we were heading out.  She hadn’t been allowed food all day so we stopped at Applebee’s for dinner before stopping off at her place to pick up clothes for the night and next day plus Quincy and her doggie bed.  Once home, we walked the dog and settled in to relax and all of us calling it night pretty early after the long day.    

Wednesday, November 8th, 2017…...  Penny said she slept ok last night.  They have a catheter line up by her neck and the bandage bothers her when she moves her head so it was hard to find a comfortable position to sleep.  She can remove the bandage tomorrow so that will help.  I got up early and walked the dog and then showered and we took off to Sweet Home and had breakfast at Skyline.  While we were there, Tim and Dana, our new contractors, came in for breakfast.  They gave us an update - the plans are currently in work by an engineer.  We will get a copy and then they will go get permits. Still on track for a December start date. After breakfast, we came back, got the dog, and took them back to their house.  Skies are turning gray. Rain is coming again and is supposed to last several days. I did manage to get my tiki moved from laying out in front of the shop to standing up in my covered woodshed which is attached to the shop.  It won’t go into its final position until we can get funds to get the backyard turned into a patio/gazebo/bbq/spa area. Might be a while so Tiki Joe got relocated!  Lydia has been doing laundry and working on dusting and I spent some time in the shop digging out fall decorations so we kept busy today!  She fixed pork chops and rice for dinner which were very tasty and after cleanup, we watched Survivor and part of the taped CMA awards before heading off to bed.

Here are a few pictures. We have a neighbor cat who likes to patrol our yard.  He was outside this one morning and a deer happened by.  They were as close as five feet from each other and neither seemed concerned!..... 

My grapevines after pruning..... 

Our realtor’s office took family pics at their fall office party.  This one came out pretty good....

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #80 – Hanging Around the House and Doing Yardwork/Cleaning

 

Sunday, November 5th, 2017…...  Lydia wasn’t feeling all that well yesterday (stomach issues) so we didn’t do very much.  She’s much better this morning but we decided to stay in today and relax. Plus, I guess that I still have that mentality where I do most of my errands on the weekdays when it’s less crowded out there and relax on the weekends.  It’s not crowded anywhere up here anytime but I can’t break my old ways! 

The weather is changing up here now.  We’ve noticed that the days don’t get higher than 70º and most days are cloudy now rather than sunny most of the day.  Nighttime temps have been dropping as well.  We’ve seen it in the high 20s but most mornings it’s around 40º until about noon when it warms a bit.  For those who know me all too well – yes, I am still in shorts all of the time!  But I have switched to shoes and socks rather than sandals plus I’ve purchased a few new flannel shirts to wear when I need long sleeves. I’m sure I’ll have to transition to long pants before too long.  

As I said, we hung around the house today.  I didn’t go outside at all except to go get the Sunday paper.  Lydia fixed smothered chicken for dinner and we relaxed for the night.

Monday, November 6th, 2017…...  Today was chore day.  I went out to the yard and cut back the grapevines and pulled the last of the apples from the trees.  The leaves are completely gone from the vines and with the cutting and raking I filled up my trash can for the week!   Meanwhile, Lydia decided to work on our bathroom wiping down the tub (still haven’t used it!) and the surrounding area plus the counter tops and swiffering the floor.  She came out just as I was finishing up so we could go grocery shopping.  While we were out, we decided to just go eat out.  We went to Ixtapa for Mexican food. We came home and put the groceries away and warmed up the house a bit a watched tv for a while

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #79 – Getting Prescriptions Sorted and Our First Room is Painted!

 

Friday, November 3rd, 2017…...  Since we went to bed early last night, I woke up early, and found Lydia was already up!  I asked her if she wanted to go to breakfast and she said yes.  I showered, and got ready.  Then she got ready and we left.  Kevin’s is cash/check only so we went to Walmart and got some shopping done and got some extra cash and headed for breakfast.  After we got back we both worked on our own projects. She still had a few things to sort through to get her luggage emptied and re-stored. I went out to the shop and worked on my new bench grinder table.  My 90-day mail order prescriptions (from OptumRx, our new provider) have finally been received so I sorted through them.  Lydia has been on the phone for 5-6 days back and forth with them and our doctor working on all the issues with all of her mail order rx’s. She has received most of them but a few have issues to be sorted out.  So kids, remember - dealing with drugs is no good!  I also worked a bit on the dining room.  Ok, the story can be told now – my plan while she was gone was to get the dining room painted and surprise her!  I had been working last week on the room, first taping off the wood work and painting the gray on the walls, then re-taping and painting the white on the wainscoting.  My sister came over and helped both of the days I was painting.  Thanks, sis!  I even decided not to post so I could keep it quiet. Well, the plan worked!  She saw the room when we got home the other night and really liked it!  So now, I can post and include some before  

 and after pics.

    

Saturday, November 4th, 2017…...  Since we now have the contractor pretty much set, we now need to start figuring out the process for the HOA.  We know there is no real group that meets or anything and that everyone is very laid back, but we asked our neighbors what we should expect to have to do.  They said just get the design docs to each of them to check out.  It is merely a process to ensure that we are not putting up an inferior structure or doing something so extravagant.  Like we heard our past next-door neighbors had built a paintball course for their friends.  Turns out it was a mess. They were shooting everything and everywhere and those paintballs were coming next door and across the street and hitting our houses.  Those neighbors sold to the folks there now and it’s back to normal but you never know… So, I have asked Tim to get me the paperwork before he goes to the city so we can take it around and get signed oks. I also had to call my financial guy and arrange to transfer funding.  I mentioned before they want half now and the rest at completion.  That actually works out for us - we will pull half the money in 2017 and half in 2018 - which helps out tax wise. The rest of the day we just puttered around the house and had an early dinner. I set one of my bedroom clocks back so I’d know what time it was.  Tomorrow I’ll go around and do the rest in the house. 

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #78 – Lydia’s Home and Dodgers Lose

 

Wednesday, November 1st, 2017…...  Today was set up as the return day for Lydia.  She had booked a later flight (arrival in Portland at 9:07pm) so she got rolling mid-day Florida time.  I got up and dressed and took Quincy for a long walk and then fed her and then showered.  Then I went out and got breakfast and continued on to Costco to renew my membership.  We’ve had basic membership forever and it was time to upgrade to Executive status so I took care of that in the store. I headed back toward home but stopped at a guy’s home junk business.  He’s right on Hwy 20 so he gets a lot of traffic.  He has a ton of stuff and I found a nice table that will work for my bench grinder (only $8.!) I went home and took the Quinzinator out again and then did a bit of work in the shop.  I packed up her stuff and headed back to Penny’s to drop her off and then took off toward Portland.  I had several hours to kill so I drove to the coast and then up.  It was a nice drive but I got a little rain on the coastal roads.  I made my way up to Tillamook and stopped in at the cheese factory and had a few samples.  They are in the process of building a new visitor center and they are in temporary digs until that’s done.  It looks like it will be nice when it’s done.  I had dinner there (grilled cheese and tomato soup) and then continued north.  Oh yeah, I was listening to the game on the radio as I was driving.  What a disappointment!  We were done for in the first two innings. Oh well, at least they made it to the world series!  I made it to the airport with about 45 minutes of wait time which I did in the cell phone parking lot.  She texted that she was out by the curb and I got her and her luggage in and then we made the long drive back home (11:30pm) and went to bed.      

Thursday, November 2nd, 2017…...  We wanted to sleep in a bit but Penny had a doctor’s appointment at 10:00am in Salem (36 mi.) and we took her there.  All went well.  We stopped for lunch at Firehouse Subs which was really good (it is my favorite sub shop!). Then we dropped her off back at home to rest.  We went home to rest as well. Later, we talked about dinner. We were still full from lunch so we just snacked/nibbled a bit.  Lydia caught up on some of her shows then we watched Survivor and then back to taped shows before going to bed early.

Oregon Living 2017 – Blog #77 – Baseball and Trick or Treaters

 

Monday, October 30th, 2017…...  Yesterday was cloudy – today was beautiful! If the Dodgers had won last night it would be even better.  10 innings and 25 runs.  You’d think they could hold a lead, but noooo!   So tomorrow is do or die. Anyway, I left the house since it was so nice out and ran some errands.  I stopped in at Habitat for Humanity (they are always getting new things) and found another cabinet I can use for my shop.  $13.50 – with the Monday senior day 10% discount – and I was out of there.  I brought it home and wheeled it into the shop but didn’t do anything to it yet.  I am still configuring things and changing things around.  Work in progress!  I cleaned up in the big shop and then came in to rest for the day.  Lydia called and said she and Jeff were at Bass Pro Shops!  Jeff is supposed to walk and feels good enough to go.  Krista is working and the kids are in school so Mom gets to be the chauffer! But I am getting a t-shirt from that store so it’s cool! Later, I fixed dinner and then went out to the motorhome to catch up on taped shows out there.  Quiet day.         

Tuesday, October 31st, 2017…...  This morning I went out in the cold morning to get the paper. My weather station said it was 27º!  My other thermometer showed it at 38º.  I checked the water hoses and they were flowing so I’m going with the warmer temp.  But it was still cold!  Later, when it warmed up, I decided to go out and start the motorhome to charge the batteries.  I stayed out there for a while and watched some taped shows I recorded on that receiver.  Kirk came a bit later and brought three trees that my sister was removing.  We found a good spot and he replanted them for me.  Later, Penny brought Quincy over to spend the night.  She was told that her neighborhood gets a bunch of trick or treaters and I was told won’t get but one or two.  I sat up in the living room to be close to the door but we only got one neighbor. My cul de sac has only 7 homes so it’s not productive for the kids to come here.  But they do get tons over at my sisters. She ran out of candy! My Dodgers won last night!  Series is tied so we better bring the bats tomorrow!