Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #22 – Saying Goodbye and Getting our Taxes Going

 

Monday, February 12th, 2018…...  Nothing going on today for the RV garage.  The weather is nice today but we expect rain off and on the rest of the week so I don’t know what is planned as this time. Meanwhile, we planned out our day. I called and made an appointment to have our taxes done. Yuuck! Since we retired, we’ve always had to pay each year.  I’ve always done my own taxes but with the sale of the house, and capital gains, plus having to file two returns, I’m looking for help this time. I’m sure we’ll owe again this year.  Just hope we can afford Hawaii in June! Later, we went over to see the girls before they had to leave for the airport.  Their flight was leaving from Portland (to Vegas) so they had to leave early to get there and get gas and turn in the rental car before check-in.  It was nice to have them come visit my sister, given she is going through chemo right now. They made her days after treatment nicer just by being there.

                                           Danette, Merrilyn, Penny and Diane

Once we got home, we finished up the day watching Olympics and taking care of Quincy.

Tuesday, February 13th, 2018……  Having Quincy here with us is working out.  I had been getting up and dressing and then taking her out for her morning walk and then showering and getting ready for the day. Today I got up before dawn and showered then took her out.  No big difference either way. We went off this morning to our tax advisor meeting.  After looking our paperwork over, she said it looks like we will be able to avoid capital gains for our transaction.  That’s really great to hear!  So, it’s now looking like we just have to work through the regular tax filing, which, for us for the past several years, has been on the paying side rather than the receiving side.  I expect it to be the same this year especially knowing that Oregon has higher state tax liability than Calif.  This year we have to file in both states, so having an advisor is better than me trying to do it myself. We’ll know next week or so. Later, we came back to relax a bit then have lunch. It’s still a little cold outside even though the sun is shining brightly today!   So, I didn’t have any projects planned.  I’m still hoping to be able to add another concrete pad closer to the house for extra rv parking, although I may end up either doing blacktop or compacted crushed stone.  Either way, I need to take out the walkway flagstone pavers so that’s on my to-do list. I also have a bunch of logs piled up toward the back of the property.  Walt told us he cut down a big tree out there many years ago and I’m guessing these logs were just piled up and left there.  He also dumped some pallets out there so those will be hauled out and the area cleaned up.  I’ll leave some logs to be used for seating along with a bench or two (once I find them) to go around a fire pit of some kind. Might be nice to use as a gathering area when friends show up and the weather is nice enough to be out. Both of these projects are on hold for now because I can’t get any vehicles out on the soppy grass without tearing it up.  I might try a wheelbarrow for the flagstones.

Later, Lydia went to Walmart to get a few things for dinner tonight.  We’re planning on driving in to Albany tomorrow to go to Costco for more shopping but this will do for tonight.     

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #21 – Touring Oregon and Olympics and Nascar!

 

Saturday, February 10th, 2018…...  No work on the rv garage site today. Not sure of the date yet for the concrete pour.  The weather is nice and sunny, with a few clouds.  Temps are down though – into the low 50s.  We ate breakfast and then got a text from sis asking if we wanted to go to breakfast and then to the Farmer’s Market.  She found that the one in Corvallis doesn’t close for the season – but rather just moves indoors.  So they ended up eating at home and we picked them up and headed out to the Linn Benton Fairgrounds in Corvallis.  Of course we didn’t see any tomatoes or such, but they had squash, all kinds of greens, and some potatoes.  We bought some giant carrots.  Penny, and the girls spent more time shopping than we did but it was still fun for all.  Afterwards, we toured Corvallis and then drove to Albany to Loafers Bar & Grill for lunch.  Turns out it was linner because we filled up on burgers and hoagies and all the trimmings. We brought leftovers back to Penny’s and then we drove out to Sweet Home and then on to Foster Lake.  On the way back, we stopped at A&W for root beer floats. Thanks Penny! Once back at her place, we visited for a while and then headed home for the evening.

Sunday, February 11th, 2018……  Today, being Sunday, was a lounge around day for us.  Penny and the girls didn’t do much either. She is feeling ok but after yesterday’s adventure, her knee is swollen and she can’t put weight on it. So, everyone stayed around our houses and watched tv and rested.  I am watching the Olympics and enjoy it very much although some of the events don’t interest me at that much.  I’m not into figure skating or curling although I do appreciate the talent that these competitors have. When we visited the Olympic training center in Colorado Springs in 2016 we saw how much training these folks put in to be the best the US can provide! Watching the games feels special because we got that inside look into their dedication and training. While the United States sends a large delegation to the winter games, we seem to struggle against the Nordic countries and do not do as well as in the summer games. But it’s still fun to watch as they only compete every four years.  On another note, for me, I am happy because Nascar is back for the 2018 season!  The cars got on the track at Daytona for practice and then qualifying and then ran a no-points warm-up race today.  There are five points races coming up in the next week. I’m happy!       

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #20 – Doggie Duty and More Visitors

Thursday, February 8th, 2018…...  This morning I had doggie duty.  My sister had a chemo treatment and brought Quince over early.  Penny headed out and Quincy and I finished her walk and brought her in and fed her breakfast.  Then I took off to get my breakfast.  Shortly after I returned, the McCravens arrived here and got to work on the pad. Before the end of the day, they got everything done up to the point of calling in for the inspection ok to pour the concrete.  I’m told the inspector is due out here sometime tomorrow morning. Of course, we’re dealing in ‘Oregon time’ so we’ll see.   Lydia did another round of weeding although she has run into an area that was apparently missed by the weedkiller sprayed last year so she didn’t make too much progress. Meanwhile I took Quincy out to the back of the property and spent some time re-staking a post so I could tie back the large leaf maple tree that Walt had planted there two years ago.  He staked it because it was leaning and then the last wind we had broke the string.  So I roped it and it’s good to go now. 

End of Day 9……

Friday, February 9th, 2018……  Today there was no action on the job site.  The inspector came about 3:00pm and signed off on everything with no issues.  Tim & Dana got here just before he did so they just did a little cleanup and we talked for a while until the guy pulled up. After he was done, they left to get more supplies for the next phase after concrete.  They said we are on the schedule but they don’t have an exact date due to the fact that when the weather is nice the concrete companies are working on the backed-up jobs in order.  Sometime next week is when they are expecting them to show up. Meanwhile, we spent the day working around the house.  I put some more robe hooks up in the master closet and then picked up a bit in the motorhome. We also did a final sort of all of the items we had put aside for donation to Goodwill.  My sister came by and took a few items before we loaded them in the truck and I dropped them off. Later, she came back with her good friends from SoCal - Diane, Merrilyn, and Danette - who came up to visit for a few days. We gave them a tour and visited for awhile before they left to go back to Penny’s home and get some rest from their trip. We went out and picked up some fast food and came back and watched the opening Olympic ceremonies and settled in for the evening. 

End of Day 10.....

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #19 – Rebar, Yard Work, and Surgery Update

Tuesday, February 6th, 2018…...  This morning we woke up to a cooler but beautiful day.  It’s been in the 60’s during the day and that’s good for the garage work.  Today we got a gravel delivery and they got the back half of the garage packed and rebar laid down there.  The next load of rock comes tomorrow morning and I think they will have all of the rebar done then.

End of Day 7……

Meanwhile, Lydia worked pulling weeds in one of the front yard flower beds, this one closest to the driveway.  I got the job of picking up after her but we got ‘er done! While she was doing that, I took the tv out of the guest room and installed it in my shop.  It’s the right size and fits right into the space I made in the corner of the shop and it’s the oldest big screen tv we have so I won’t worry too much if something happens to it. We’ll get a new one for the guest room soon.  Lydia likes her new Hisense tv so we’ll likely go with one of those, only in a smaller size for that room. After her gardening work, I told her I’d take her out to dinner – her choice.  She chose Chinese food and we both had wanted for some time to go into Albany to Ping’s, a place we’d been by several times and always had cars out in front – so tonight was the night!  There are two places in Lebanon that we’ve been to that are ok.  I liked this better than both of them!  I’ve always been partial to Panda Express down in SoCal and it turns out there is one up here (in Albany) that we’re also going to try some time.     

Wednesday, February 7th, 2018……  We slept in a bit.  Penny came over later to walk Quincy and let us know about her consult with her surgeon.  The date will be in March sometime but is not yet set 100%.  He told her that things are looking good and that she is doing all the right things and the surgery should be on track.  Lydia waited until the afternoon when the weather warmed up a bit to go out and do round two on the flower bed.  The team was here and the rest of the gravel was delivered so they got the pad a little closer to the concrete pour.

End of Day 8……

I helped with the flower bed cleanup and we rested for a while.  Lydia made dinner tonight and we watched some taped shows while we ate. Later, we watched The Amazing Race.  I always tape these shows and we have the timing down so we know when we can start to watch them and be able to fast forward through the commercials and still finish up about the time the broadcast ends. 

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #18 – Watching the Eagles Soar and the Work Go Slowly

Sunday, February 4th, 2018…...  Today is Super Bowl Sunday.  Our plans are simple. Penny is coming over and we are having some snacks and then a light dinner for before and during the big game. I am not a Patriots fan so I’m rooting for the Eagles. I didn’t have much faith because New England is such a powerhouse and Philly is ending a season with a lot of injuries and backup players.  BUT, I’ll be darned – the Eagles pulled it out. Yeah! It was a really great game.  Some NE fans will be questioning some of Philly’s touchdown rulings but, hey that’s the way it works. Sometimes you are on the winning side sometimes on the losing. Turns out we only snacked during the game.  So, Lydia will save the steak burritos for tomorrow night.

Monday, February 5th, 2018……  Today was day 6 on the jobsite.  At the end of the day, more of the footing walls and monolithic slab pour were readied. 

They will be getting more rock for the base and then the rebar can go in.  It’s tough for us to watch.  But it’s necessary because this is the slow and steady work they need to do to make sure the foundation is exactly correct. We can only watch and wait….

Penny and Lydia decided to cook up yesterday’s planned burritos tonight for dinner.  It was an easy night for me!  Lydia cooked, I ate, Penny cleaned up! We watched tv for a while and sis went home and we stayed up for a while before calling it a night.

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #17 – TV Works and More Form-Setting

 

Friday, February 2nd, 2018…...  We didn’t wait for Tim & Dana to show up this morning.  We had a slight time crunch.  We took off to go to Walmart in Albany to get that tv.  We then stopped at Shirley May’s for breakfast before heading home.  We needed to get back before 10:00am so Penny and Lydia could head off to a quilt show in Albany. We had enough time for Lydia to help me carry in the tv. I was able to get the hookups done in a few minutes. But guess what?  This one wasn’t working either!  I tried everything (or so I thought – read on) – still no sound.  I had sound on the smart tv apps like Netflix, Vudu, Amazon, You Tube, etc. Just nothing from the Directv box.  So before calling Hisense, I called Directv. We went through a few steps, most of which I had tried already, but then she asked me if I refreshed the receiver.  Duuuhhh!  That was my problem, both for this tv and the one we returned yesterday!  It works great now and we’re happy.  I then took off to Albany again, this time to get rock salt from Home Depot.  I also decided to take three of the seven bags of plastic bottles I have saved for recycle.  Walmart has a couple of recycling machines outside their store here in Lebanon but I don’t like that they are always busy. I had been to one in Albany that I liked better so I went there.  Even though you have to put one item in at a time, I got through the three bags pretty quickly. I ended up with $42.30!  Plus, I still have four bags left!  I got home and got the rock salt bags put away and was out talking with Tim & Dana when Lydia got back from the quilt show.  She went in and checked out her room. She sure likes her new tv!  So, now we have one more to buy for the guest room.  I will take the old one we have in there now and put it in my shop. Meanwhile, the McCravens got a lot done today. The worksite looks better and better as they get going.  This is a shot at the end of Day 5…..

Saturday, February 3rd, 2018……  Tim told me yesterday they are working today.  But Dana said they had things to do Saturday, one of which was an archery club banquet.  Guess who won!  So, nothing today. We spent the day (ok, only a few minutes) working around the house.  We’re working on a wedding wall.  We already have two frames with photos of Randy and Maryanne. Lydia went to Walgreens to print the last photo (from her cell phone) from Jeff and Krista’s recent wedding.  She mounted several pictures in two frames and I hung those four and that was about it for the day.  I did spend some time searching through my home papers.  I’m missing a receipt from the kitchen remodel we did last year in Calif.  I need all of our home improvement receipts/totals for taxes when we get ready to do those in the next few weeks. I have everything ready except for that one receipt.  I’m sure it’s around somewhere….

Lydia met Penny at the local Safeway to get things for our Super Bowl snacks and for dinner. We had a quiet night just watching our taped tv shows.

Oregon Living 2018 – Blog #16 – Work Goes On and a New TV

 

Wednesday, January 31st, 2018…...  We got up early expecting the crew to show up early too since the weather was really nice.  They work ‘Oregon Time’ so it was 3:00pm before they got here.  Turns out Tim spent a lot of time prefabbing the forms in his shop both yesterday and today. But when they did get here, they used their transom and got the grade shot and made sure everything would be level and then they got that first form set. This was Day 3.

Not sure yet when the rest of it will be worked on.  We left before that to head to Coburg Pizza for dinner.  Both sis and I had scratchers plus she had her birthday coupon good for a free pizza. My scratcher got us a free dessert pizza so we had a nice meal.    

Thursday, February 1st, 2018……  Day 4.  This morning we got up early again, expecting them back early too. They got here about 9:30 (not too bad) and got going.  The pictures don’t show it, but I think it was a productive day.  The rest of the forms on the trailer should go in tomorrow.

While they were working, we decided to go get Lydia a new tv for her craft room.  I had been researching them and knew the ones I didn’t want.  I liked the reviews on the Hisense 4k Smart tv and the 55” was on sale at Walmart ($378.) so we went and got one.  We got it all hooked up but discovered that I couldn’t get the sound working.  I ended up calling their customer support line and we worked it through the steps and only got the dvd player to work through its own cords.  Still no sound from the Directv box.  He wanted to set up a house call to sort it out but that would be next week.  He said we could always take it back so we did that.  The local Walmart only had this one in stock so we got our money back and will go tomorrow to the Albany Walmart to see if they have any.  Fun stuff!