What did you do today?

[highup]

My plane's bigger than your plane.

 

[zannej]

CJ, a friend of my brother wanted some dental work and found it would be cheaper to buy a round trip ticket to Japan and get his teeth fixed there than to get it done in the US. Mexico may be an option at this point with how much stuff costs here.

I took out trash and changed hvac filters yesterday. Today I went for curbside pickup at walmart and got a bunch of tablecloths for my friends' wedding. On sale for 97cents each. Got him some pipes form the hardware store for a shower project and helped him find the right handheld showerhead that he'll need to get. Instead of getting a diverter he's going to get a handheld that shuts off completely with a switch on it. Bc the diverter I linked to him a few months back has doubled in price now and he'd still have to get a valve. So, it's cheaper to get the handheld, the mount, and the drop ell without the diverter.

Another friend I haven't seen in years is coming back into town for the wedding. He's flying in from Michigan so I'll make some sauteed mushrooms for him. Need to find what day he's coming in though.

 

[C.J.]

CJ, a friend of my brother wanted some dental work and found it would be cheaper to buy a round trip ticket to Japan and get his teeth fixed there than to get it done in the US. Mexico may be an option at this point with how much stuff costs here

Luckily my situation isn’t that bad but if I needed a lot of work I’d sure as heck consider going to Mexico. Hell, I still might. It’s closer to me than Vegas is (5 hour drive). Surprisingly a lot of dental work is somewhat affordable here because they know you can hop in your car for a day trip and get what you need done for half price.

 

[zannej]

Hopefully you can get it sorted out, CJ. They charge up the wazoo for dental (and everything medical) here. Got in the medical bills from Mom's hospital stay and they charged her 3x for the same ambulance but billed it as if it was 3 seperate ones. Her insurance paid it though.

Couldn't find one of my cats last night so I started looking for him this morning. I found him but he didn't want to come out so I brought out a can of food. But I always try to make sure my oldest cat is around to get the canned food so I went outside to call him. Looked like a nice day out and the dogs were running around so I went for a walk. Went into the side field where we used to plant watermelons and looked around. Then went to the barnyard because that's where Boo normally hangs out. I saw that the cows' waterer was low. The hose to it broke and I hadn't replaced it yet. I turned the trough upsidedown to dump all the leaves and twigs out-- it really stunk bc the stuff was rotting. I'd previously purchased a hose splitter thing with individual shutoffs so I could have 2 hoses on the same hose bib. put it on, tested it, turned off the left side. Found the new hose I bought, tried to put it on but it kept slipping off. Took the splitter off and attached the hose to it more easily. Put it back on. Ended up getting water spraying on myself when the hose wasn't on tight and shot off (that was before I took the splitter off again). Rinsed the trough out with the hose. Attached the hose to the filler- it leaked at first so I had to tighten it. Now water is going full blast to fill it up. I'll need to be more proactive about cleaning the leaves and stuff out in the future. It's under a pecan tree so there were old pecans in it too.

Grabbed my gorilla cart and hauled some trash to the burn pile. Love that thing-- the wheels on it go over everything with ease. Then Boo came around to see me. Brought him inside and gave him some canned food. Four of the cats regularly eat canned food-- the oldest ones. Well, Ginger is one of the older ones but she isn't as interested in the canned food. Her brother, Rupert has no teeth so the canned food is easier for him to eat than dried food. Boo, Itsy, Mew, and Rupert get the canned food. Mew is younger than Ginger but he loves the canned food and asks for it in an adorable way.

Friend said he might be trying to paint at his house today but that he's tired. I told him if he tapes stuff off to let me know and I'll paint for him. He can relax.

 

[C.J.]

Hopefully you can get it sorted out, CJ. They charge up the wazoo for dental (and everything medical) here. Got in the medical bills from Mom's hospital stay and they charged her 3x for the same ambulance but billed it as if it was 3 seperate ones. Her insurance paid it though.

Trust me, I know. There’s a reason I never went to see a doctor in the South. I made an appointment to get my teeth cleaned when I lived in SC. After they poked around in my mouth for a few they told me I needed every filling in my mouth replaced as well as a few other things. They gave me a price and several payment options they offered but never did clean my teeth. I told them to stuff it and walked out. I travel often enough that I can wait until I’m somewhere else where the level of competence is a bit higher than what I am able to get in the Carolinas. Just like flying first class, going to the dentist in Scottsdale does not suck. It only cost me $125 to have my teeth cleaned here so it’s cheaper as well!

 

[Floorist]

Trust me, I know. There’s a reason I never went to see a doctor in the South. I made an appointment to get my teeth cleaned when I lived in SC. After they poked around in my mouth for a few they told me I needed every filling in my mouth replaced as well as a few other things. They gave me a price and several payment options they offered but never did clean my teeth. I told them to stuff it and walked out. I travel often enough that I can wait until I’m somewhere else where the level of competence is a bit higher than what I am able to get in the Carolinas. Just like flying first class, going to the dentist in Scottsdale does not suck. It only cost me $125 to have my teeth cleaned here so it’s cheaper as well!

We have to drive our son 70 miles one way to get a dentist who will take his insurance.

 

[zannej]

I'd be mad if I paid for a tooth cleaning and they didn't actually do it. As it is, I have to take a large dose of antibiotics an hour before having my teeth cleaned.

Friend didn't have a chance to get the paint so no painting yet. That may come Thursday when I help him with building a shelf system. I'll bring over my portable table saw and haul some lumber for him.

Took Mom to the doctor and she has walking pneumonia. Picked up some RXs and went over to friend's house so he could transfer her old SSDs to the new computer. The M2 slot one was toast though. He was able to retrieve data from her 2.5" SSD though. I brought some dust screens over and he put them over every opening that was large enough for a roach to get in. I ordered some silicone covers for the ports. Any un-used port will temporarily get covered in electrical tape though. I need to set it up but my back wasn't cooperating. I cooked dinner but Mom conked out instead of eating. Will have to reheat it when she wakes up.

 

[zannej]

Took out my bathroom trash, swapped out trash bags from mom's bathroom with some stronger ones and am using the old ones in my bathroom instead since I have a smaller trash can.

Called the pharmacy and got an automated thing that told me her meds won't be ready until wednesday after 4pm, not good enough, she needs them asap. Will have to call when they reopen from lunch break.

Set up mom's new pc. Had to replace the HDMI cable bc it wasn't working. Also cleaned off the other cables and sealed that sucker up with electrical tape and dust screens.

 

[C.J.]

Went to the Asian supermarket today. Picked up a 1/2 gallon jar of kimchi. Mmmm so good. Then I went to Fry’s and picked up a few more things. Got some avocados, Tillamook cheese and some Old Trapper beef jerky.

I’m so happy to be able to get Tillamook cheese again. They had it in NC for awhile but then someone ordered a bunch of the red blocks (sharp cheddar) instead of the orange blocks (medium cheddar). Nobody buys the red blocks so then I wasn’t able to get my cheese anymore because they weren’t going to order any more because the red blocks weren’t selling. I suppose I coulda gone to Publix but I woulda had to work some overtime for that shopping trip so I never went, I just suffered until I traveled.

The old man is watching the Fox trap (Fox news), I gotta go find something to do because I can’t handle listing to this kinda drivel. One segment is all about capitalism and how it’s so great then they follow up with some guy that went to McDonald’s and bought 2 large fries and a shake for $17 and he felt ripped off. Got some news for ya, bud, that’s also capitalism. Luckily not too many of the old peeps here talk politics. I imagine there would be a few walkers thrown around if they did.

 

[Tile Tom]

Went to the Asian supermarket today. Picked up a 1/2 gallon jar of kimchi. Mmmm so good. Then I went to Fry’s and picked up a few more things. Got some avocados, Tillamook cheese and some Old Trapper beef jerky.

I’m so happy to be able to get Tillamook cheese again. They had it in NC for awhile but then someone ordered a bunch of the red blocks (sharp cheddar) instead of the orange blocks (medium cheddar). Nobody buys the red blocks so then I wasn’t able to get my cheese anymore because they weren’t going to order any more because the red blocks weren’t selling. I suppose I coulda gone to Publix but I woulda had to work some overtime for that shopping trip so I never went, I just suffered until I traveled.

The old man is watching the Fox trap (Fox news), I gotta go find something to do because I can’t handle listing to this kinda drivel. One segment is all about capitalism and how it’s so great then they follow up with some guy that went to McDonald’s and bought 2 large fries and a shake for $17 and he felt ripped off. Got some news for ya, bud, that’s also capitalism. Luckily not too many of the old peeps here talk politics. I imagine there would be a few walkers thrown around if they did.

Start bringing up politics to stir the pot up for some action??

 

[C.J.]

Start bringing up politics to stir the pot up for some action??

You can’t imagine the kind of shit that goes through my head. I’ve already renamed the restaurant to ‘Shaking Forks’ cus I see so many of them. Yeah I know, I’m goin to hell. lol. I had one gal walker on up to me the other day and tell me she really liked my facial hair. She said it maybe 3 times while staring at me. Mmm hmm. I’ve fantasized about hooking up with a single mother so I could spend someone else’s child support but a SS check is different. Then another old gal rolled her wheelchair up to my dad and swore he was her son and how could he come down to the restaurant to eat and didn’t bother to come see her.

I make shit up just to F with my dad. There’s one old lady that has a candy dish outside her door. I told my dad it’s a trap. She’s gonna kidnap you and sell your walker. I kept calling her the Black Widow and now my dad does too. Then there’s another old lady that has a basket outside her door. I tell the old man it’s full of snakes and she’s in cahoots with the black widow. I think messin with the old man is much more fun. It’s payback for when I was 5 and I swallowed an apple seed. The old man told me I was gonna have an apple tree growing in my stomach.

Staying here is like watching paint dry but damn if some of the shit I see isn’t just funny. The old man has good and bad days. On one of his bad days I kept hearing the phone beep. I asked my wife who the hell is he trying to call. I went out to the LR to see what was up and he was pointing the cordless phone at the TV and thought he was channel surfing.

Then this morning at breakfast one old broad grabbed the wrong walker by mistake. You shoulda seen the confusion when the other old gal, who’s walker it was, couldn’t find her walker.

I need to make a movie!!

 

[MSLI]

OMG, that’s hilarious and that’s where we are heading …… When is Dad expected to bust out ? And I’m assuming you’re allowed to stay with him free of charge.

 

[zannej]

My mother has had some senior moments and last night I was on the verge of a nosebleed from my bp going so high trying to deal with her. That woman will not listen. I can give her directions/instructions and she has to do the opposite or just argue. I was trying to get her to login to some sites where I managed to retrieve the passwords and she kept getting confused about which sites and arguing with me. Then she was mad that her bluetooth wasn't detecting her headphones. I asked my friend bc I dont' use bluetooth and know jack all about it. He told me they had to be put in pairing mode. She argued that she didn't have to do that with her old computer (which is wrong, she did because I remember her being mad that she was having trouble with it) and she shouldn't have to do it with the new computer. She absolutely refused to do it and kept arguing. I explained that it was necessary but she refused saying she shouldn't have to. I ended up going into the room and trying to get her to click on the icon to pull up bluetooth management. "More to the left. No, not right. LEFT LEFT!" she moved her mouse everywhere but left. I finally had to grab it and move it and open it. Then I held the button on her headset (I googled how to do it) until the light flashed and it was detected. Then she just stared at it while complaining nothing was there. I said "Look, it's THERE! Click it!" and she just stared at it. Got her to move her cursor over it but she wouldn't click. I was like "JFC just click the damn thing! CLICK IT! CLIIIICK!!!" and she wouldn't click so I had to lean over and click it for her. Then she's all "Why are you yelling?" and I'm like "Because you won't LISTEN!" Then she wouldn't put on the set that was paired, she was trying a different one that wasn't paired and was arguing with me and I was feeling dizzy from having to lean over her to mess with stuff on the computer and UGH. I ate half a tub of chocolate chip cookie dough afterward.

But she now has at least one headset paired so she can listen to music. Not sure if she has to do pairing every time now or if it will detect automatically. At least she can watch her videos now and hopefully won't be screeching at me about how useless the computer is bc she couldn't listen and she's mad that I taped over the port to plug in speakers/headphone to keep roaches out. It's electrical tape. It comes off easy.

Waiting for her to get up so we can go to Alexandria. Need to get some stuff from Samsclub and I need to wheel her through some stores to look at stuff to wear for friend's wedding coming up Saturday bc she rejected the clothes I got for her.

 

[MSLI]

Then she's all "Why are you yelling?" and I'm like "Because you won't LISTEN!" Then she wouldn't put on the set that was paired, she was trying a different one that wasn't paired and was arguing with me and I was feeling dizzy from having to lean over her to mess with stuff on the computer and UGH. I ate half a tub of chocolate chip cookie dough afterward.

Thank God for cookie dough self medicating ……When Mom had dementia, me and My brothers and sister would take one day off per week to be with her. I swear after each day being with her, my IQ would drop from the stress struggling to communicate with her
I didn’t have anger management skills back then, so I was still expecting to control an uncomfortable situation. Hey Z ! Try to surrender control and see what happens. Best of luck, Mom is lucky to have you, and maybe surrendering could activate skills and feelings of luck to have her as she is.

 

[Floorist]

 

[C.J.]

When Mom had dementia, me and My brothers and sister would take one day off per week to be with her. I swear after each day being with her, my IQ would drop from the stress struggling to communicate with her

The old man has Dementia. It’s to the point that he can’t be left alone, but not to the point of him needing someone to wipe his ass.

It’s crazy to watch and see it first hand. If you were to talk to him about business, he’s still sharp as a tack but ask him what time, day, year it is and he’ll just stare at you. Then he’s got a brain injury on top of that. That’s messing with his balance, ability to make it to the bathroom in time and stuff like that.

Aim for the bushes!

 

[Floorist]

The old man has Dementia. It’s to the point that he can’t be left alone, but not to the point of him needing someone to wipe his ass.

It’s crazy to watch and see it first hand. If you were to talk to him about business, he’s still sharp as a tack but ask him what time, day, year it is and he’ll just stare at you. Then he’s got a brain injury on top of that. That’s messing with his balance, ability to make it to the bathroom in time and stuff like that.

Aim for the bushes!

My late MIL would talk to me on the phone for hours, and tell the same stories over and over. She was like a second mother to me. My mother passed when I was 39.

 

[zannej]

My mother did have some brain damage from the ketoacidosis and its frustrating for her because she struggles to focus and remember things. She has a harder time understanding things. However, the issue with her arguing and refusing to follow directions has been going my entire life. She doesn't have good listening skills.

Yesterday I took her to the mall and pushed her around in her wheelchair. Carpet is harder to push the chair on. My left bicep hated me-- even though it has healed quite a bit from the electrocution, it is still a bit weaker and gets sore more easily. Went all over that stupid mall. A lot of places were closed. Had a hard time finding shoes for her because she has hammertoes. Most shoes hurt her feet. Went into a shop that looked like it might have some stuff and asked and the lady said they didn't carry wide shoes but to try Cato and gave directions to it. So we made our way there. I had to stop for breathers a couple of times-- especially after I went up a ramp. Almost lost the wheelchair on the way down that ramp later-- couldn't keep up with it. LOL. They didn't have any decent shoes but Mom found a blazer that fit her and was on clearance for $13.99. Then we went into Burlington-- which was a long shot-- and searched. The 8-1/2 rack was full of 7s, 9s, 7-1/2s" 8s and just about anything but 8-1/2s. Finally found a pair that fit her and had her see how they felt while she wheeled herself around in the chair (while I was checking out other size racks to see if there were any errant 8-1/2s). She then briefly walked on the shoes and decided the liked them. She was worried they would fall off but I reminded her that I have bands that go under the shoe and over the foot to hold them on. They match almost perfectly with her shoes.

Stopped at IHOP to eat. They are way overpriced for what they serve. Samsclub after and had to lug a bunch of heavy water cases into the cart and then into the truck. Mom takes her sweet time shopping when she has a riding cart. Between the heavy stuff, the water, having to load and unload her wheelchair, and then trying to keep up with her in the store, I was exhausted. Had to sit on the floor for a few moments while she rolled around. She always does this thing where I think we're done and she suddenly wants to look at other stuff. She finally finished and I checked out and then had to load everything into the truck. Then she insisted we had to stop at TSC for hay for the cows. Went in and had to load that up. She came in with me briefly-- decided to walk though so I had to give her the keys to let herself back into the truck to sit down. I showed her the plastic horse figurines and sang a little of "all the pretty little horses". Got the hay and loaded it up. Popped in to visit our friend briefly and I had to sit on the floor since there was no room on the couch. Then back home where I had to bring in some of the stuff (was able to leave the water cases for later) and help her up the steps. Cooked for her and then racked out.

Today I got up early and loaded up my portable table saw. Dropped it on my foot a couple of times. Went to friend's house so he could use it. Took him to the hardware store for lumber. Realized he needed a brad nailer and air compressor so I went back home to grab mine. That air compressor isn't so bad to carry when your arms are not already tired, but man, my arms hated me. Helped my friend by holding wood up while he cut it, handing him boards, unloaded some of the boards form the truck, handed him tools & screws, held things in place, etc. Went to post office for mail and then to Walmart to get painting tarp, tape, and shelf brackets. Rested a little while friend built his entertainment center thing. Had to run back to the hardware store for more boards bc he made some mistakes. He taped off the walls and put tarp down and I painted the walls around the entertainment center. Sat for a bit while it dried enough for a 2nd coat. Painted. Then moved to the hallway to paint. I a little over half of it done but people kept getting in my way (his mom went through about 10x). She apologized every time. I took a break and ate. His fiance made some kind of soup. Then I did a little more painting and did some touch-ups. Was going to do a 2nd coat but it wasn't dry enough and friend called it a night. He loaded up my tools for me. I called to check on Mom and she said she needed oranges. So I popped in to Walmart to grab a bag of them and then headed home. Got my brother to unload my tablesaw for me. He wasn't happy about it, but at least he did it. He wasn't feeling well. He was sleeping in the morning when I tried to ask him help me with it.

Cooked for Mom when I got home, helped her with a login problem, helped with verifying her credit card, and then ordered H&R block software for her. I'm currently lying down resting.

My ankles were swollen and my left foot is not happy

The spot on the tip of my 2nd toe is a permanent bruise from a time I stubbed it. Going over to do more painting tomorrow.

 

[highup]

I measured up a two story home about 1/2 hour south of me. I draw to scale, so when customers come to the store to talk about rooms and materials, the shop has a copy of my layout and the customer can come in and point to individual areas or rooms and have a real conversation about each room, transitions etc.
Here's today's hell. No decent lights, 5 drywall guys walking everywhere. One of them had a 7 year old kid hanging out.... and he wanted to swat my laser when I aimed it towards a wall.
It was a longer afternoon than I'd estimated.
The upstairs is much, much more open and was easier to draw out.
TGIF

 

[zannej]

Friend didn't have enough chairs for his wedding so I brought 12 over for him. Folding chairs. At one point while he was setting them up he bumped a chair in front and it folded up and collapsed, then hit the one in front of it and did domino effect. I couldn't stick around long since I had other stuff to do. Sauteed some mushrooms for a visiting friend. Had to clean my shower (brother left it a mess), take a shower, unload a bunch of stuff from the truck and get some accessories put on Moms wheelchair. We were almost late bc she dragged ass. Ceremony was about 4min and then they had their dances. No dancing for guests-- it was a somewhat casual thing-- plus the ground was soft so everyone wearing heels had their heels sinking into the ground. Wheelchairs and walkers were getting stuck. But it was still pleasant. People had fun and everyone was happy for the couple. Especially since everyone hated their exes. LOL. Catering had stuff I was allergic to so I couldn't eat much while there. Other people loved the food though and I knew before we went there that I'd have to find something else to eat. So I ate before going and then had a sandwich when I got home.

Just sent the photos and videos I took to my friend. Was absolutely exhausted when we got home but had to help mom get her socks off and put stuff away. Then I racked the hell out. Woke up to charlie horses in both legs. Right leg was knotting on the ankle and below the knee. Lasted about 10min. Had to stand just on that leg to get it to even begin to loosen up. Waiting for Mom to get up now so I can make something for us to eat.