Surprise Birthday Outing, Plus Weekly Update

Well, the day was so much fun. I’m sharing with you a simple way that I planned a day for my Husband’s birthday. I included things that he liked to do, and things we enjoyed doing together. We managed to fill the day. He had to choose between “door number 1 through 5” for some of the places and so even I did not know where all we would be going. I had made the possible selections based on things I knew he liked but he had to pick a door number first. In some cases the decision was solid – like the donut stop where he used to get kolaches sometimes on the way to work, the library to each pick a book, and Houston’s the butcher shop where I had ordered his birthday gift for us to pick up. You can watch the video HERE to see how the day went.

Other Updates

My day went well yesterday after I gave up my To Do List. I’m allowing myself to glance at it, although like a normal person would, and I’m not using it as a script anymore, and I’m not sitting and prioritizing it by order. Honestly, I think doing that, was wasting my brain away. I can feel that my memory muscle strengthened a lot yesterday by just trying to exercise my brain to decide what needed to be done between all the options and I think that is what I missed the most about being off of work, is just looking around and getting to go through the brain mechanics all day long of what to do next. I missed that and I have it back. I even started deleting things off the list, like cleaning. Why have it on the list? Just clean it if it looks dirty.

In a way it feels wrong to “go backwards” – because I had my life so organized. But, yet – it feels freeing. And I think I will enjoy my days more by getting to choose minute by minute to do things instead of setting my whole day and then forcing myself to go through a pre-set ritual of sorts.

The plumber came yesterday and of course they “saw to” our needs. lol. They looked at it and determined they didn’t have the parts (nor the time) for a 4 to 5 hour project so they are coming back after the holiday weekend, on Tuesday to do this major plumbing job.

We thought it was the dishwasher, then determined the pipe was stopped up that caused the dishwasher to leak, and then George thought he fixed the pipe but what he did was plunge air into the pipe and caused it to blow the pipe wide open (we think) – the pipes are all where we cannot see them. So the ceiling will have to be sawed into downstairs (again) messing up the repair we just did last year when we had a similar problem before.

Honestly, I’m about finished with this house. I mean I love the house and it’s been great for us, but my stars, the issues we have had with plumbing has been the greatest things. Literally water was pouring down the walls of the garage the first day we drove into the garage. And after 17 years of being here, we are STILL dealing with plumbing issues. It’s always something. And it rotates between the washer and kitchen sink. Once the pipes were replaced in the bathroom areas, those quit leaking, but it’s like it (the stop up and the leak) roams from one place to the other. You get one fixed and the other goes awry.

So we are no longer going to have Labor Day at our house. I canceled with Mom. We were going to have burgers but we can’t use the kitchen sink until after all this is fixed again. And will it be fixed really? I mean why wasn’t it fixed last time? Are we patching again and going to have to continue to have the basement ceiling repaired time and time again? It never leaks again until the ceiling is fixed. The universe waits for that. lol

We are going to the store today to get sandwiches and breakfast stuff that is quick and also paper plates. We are doing Chinese takeout tonight and we get enough for two days when we do that. No one wants to wash dishes in the bathroom. That’s just gross. But we will have to do a few things. I have a tote that we can fill with the sudsy water. But we are trying to switch to paper and plastic until this is resolved.

So since we are not really celebrating Labor Day officially, I can decorate that day for fall. I cancelled with Mom because we just don’t have a sanitary way of cooking a big meal, with the lack of being able to use the sink. I was going to decorate Tuesday but now I’ll get to do it Monday and then they will be here working on Tuesday. My sister has surgery on Wednesday. And then after that I probably need to start my search for shoes, a clutch, and my jewelry for wearing with the dress I bought.

Major Happenings for the Past Week

*The plumbing.

*We fixed a pork roast in the oven that was out of this world using a sage, thyme, and rosemary rub paste. Oh, my gosh.

*I changed my dentist. I found another one that I can try. The current one – the best way I can describe it is his hands are huge, forceful, and not gentle when working in your mouth. The work is slow, and I have to hold my mouth open longer which gives me lock jaw. When I said to ‘hang on’ b/c of the locked jaw and pain, he said “sorry now is not a good time to stop” – I think it was because he was setting the filling and it hardens, but that made me panic in that moment. I managed to wince through the pain, and he didn’t know I was panicking. And then every time I go for a cleaning – there are always two more problems to fix so I figured out their “game”. Their camera hurts when they take picture of your mouth. I go away with cuts and my mouth is sore for a long time. I’m just over it so I switched. It was just too many accumulating issues. And I’ve never had such a bad experience across the 62 years. I don’t want to hurt his feelings or make anyone feel bad and I want to make sure it’s not MEEEEEE. But I don’t think it’s me. I’ve never had so many uncomfortable visits to a dentist. So I’m switching. And we will see if it changes. I moved my cleanings to the new one and cancelled the next cleaning with the old one. I loved the old hygienist, but I can’t take the dentist anymore.

*We went to see Lucas Leon, a friend’s son who is breaking into the local music business. He has a really good voice and doing well with his instruments. I think he has a real future. It was fun to go see him at an American Legion in Nashville. Although I had to push through wanting to sit in the recliner in my jammies, b/c you know, you enjoy that at 62. lol

*We are picking where to go for anniversary dinner. Balls in my court to drop one from the list. But I’m not doing a to do list anymore, so I keep forgetting to cross one off, lol.

*Mom has her cleaning woman set up to come next Tuesday. I met the woman at Mom’s the other day. Hopefully Mom will not cancel her. I’m so used to her cancelling things that it wouldn’t surprise me.

*Mom DID cancel her assisted living appointment – or she had me cancel anyway. She called me Wed to see when the assisted living appt was, then told Lowe’s to come measure her door at that time. I told her Lowe’s was only going to measure for her door and she was not required to be there for that one. They told her they just measure from the outside, but she said “no they said they were going to install it”. I knew she was wrong. But I cancelled her assisted living appointment, figuring that since she had called to see when the appointment was, that she was trying to get out of it. Because she knew she was scheduling the appointment with Lowe’s the same day as assisted living tour.

*Since I prayed for this appointment and Mom cancelled it, I’m just not interested in helping her in this matter. I need to be met with some help and respect in these things. I’m trying to help her, but she doesn’t seem to need or appreciate it so I’m kinda just going to let the chips fall while they may. You know I’m a planner right? I like to be prepared, get names on a list, be set up for success, plan my future. But if they people you are trying to help don’t give a rats rear about what happens to themselves, then it’s kind of hard to try to make things better for them you know.

*So nursing home it is – or wherever is open at the time of need. I was hoping to see if we could get on the list and get her at a cheaper place so she could stay longer there because once the money runs out I guess she’d have to go to state run facility.

*Anyway, I’ve decided I’m not going to fight the universe. I can’t fix things for people that don’t want to look out for themselves. I don’t have to do that for work anymore and I don’t have to do that for anyone any more.

*God can let me know if He wants me to do something and when it’s time and we’ll do it then and the chips will fall where they may. I’m through trying to plan, make a path, be responsible.

After all, I DID just give up my To Do list yesterday. So yippee, I’m free and also can do what I want!

Alright, have a good day everyone. I’m off to go finish promoting the vlog. I’ve been enjoying my computer time this morning, and yesterday morning. It’s very UN-Caging!

If you need the video link you can watch it HERE.