The 31st of July-Goodbye House

It would be really wonderful if I could start this off by saying that my house is empty.  Alas, that is not the case.  It is SO close to it though.  I managed to get up on time today and make it to my first job before 8 AM (it was about an hour and 40 minutes away).  I finished all 3 jobs early enough to work for a bit at the house before my chiropractor appointment.   The refrigerator is out.  So much is out and the dumpster is close to full.  My daughter, son in law, and 2 of their friends worked there most of the day without me.  Such great people.

Before we left my daughter and I did a little take on a ritual where we burned sage to cleanse the house and release unwanted negative energy.   This was really just me trying to say goodbye to the place.  I recorded it in chunks.  Here is the first chunk...

Tonight and tomorrow I need to pack up for vacation.  I also need to get the oil changed in my car and fix the tire or get new ones, depending on the condition.   I will be getting the last few things out of the house and taking care of the lease.  If I am real lucky there will be a check in  the mail too.  After all I have to do is done, I will head to Tom's house (my passenger for the trip) and pack his stuff up and sleep for a bit before hitting the road.  That is the plan... there are only 24 hours in a day though.

Helper's & lots of junk.

I took this picture trying to get the moon.

It is hiding above the middle tree section.

Turning around is a different sky.  

One that brought rain to add to the cleansing.

Someone is supposed to be getting all the metal tomorrow.

What a MESS!

So many memories.  My family moved in there in 1973 I think?  I was in 3rd grade.  How about a couple happy memories for today.  Birthday parties and Christmases.  Learning to drive.  Getting ready for the Senior dance and graduation.  Running all around the neighborhood when my niece was born-I was so happy I wanted to burst.  Getting ready for my First Communion.  Having friends over and Camp Fire Girl meetings.  Playing pool in the cellar and horseshoes in the yard.  Listening to records.  Running home from the bus stop, changing into my swim suit and running barefoot on what was a dirt road down to the pond and jumping in for a swim on hot days.  Year Round school.  

Moving out when I was 19.  Visiting over the years. Watching my children with my parents.  Moving back in after my parents had passed away and starting over in 2004.  Homeschooling the kids.  Getting Hunter as a puppy.  Replacing the shingles on the roof.  Camping in the backyard.  Picking strawberries and rhubarb.  The roses and morning glories.  The stonewall.  All the love and support from families and friends with all the packing-Thank You.  

& Thank you, house.  

July 30th--Vlog

Vlog

And a link to go back in time to the day Gideon spoke of in today's Vlog.

It was a work and drive the car kind of day for me.  My road & sky pictures from tonight were taken in the lovely state of Connecticut.

My happy for today is that I found my Matchbox Twenty CD to listen to in the car.  I did a bunch of driving and that has some good songs to drive to.  Here is the hidden track.

July 29th--short

It has been an exhausting day.  More moving stuff out of my house to get rid of it.  Such a waste.  Too much stuff is getting recycled or trashed instead of used by someone new.  There is a wood stove sitting in my driveway waiting for a metal recycle person to come and get it on Monday.  Some tools that are just a little rusty, and some a lot rusty.  Some that I didn't think worked, but do.  Ah well.  It is what it is.

Rather than be super boring, I will cut this real short and sleep.

Somewhere in this jungle an animal (Chipmunk, I think) was making lots of noise.

I think this hat was my dad's.

Today I am very thankful for friends who came by to help out and this is my happy for today.  Sleep time for me.  :) 

The 28th of July-Vlog

This morning I spent way to much time trying to talk politics with someone without getting political.  It was hard work.  I got a few more things in storage and dealt with work issues.

Vlog.

This evening I got to pick Gideon up from Vacation Bible School.  It was nice to see some of the people from their church that I hadn't seen in a while.  Fun to hear the Gideon stories while he ran around.  These things are today's happy.

As I left the storage unit I got some sky pictures.  On my way to pick up Gideon the sun was setting.  I kept watching for the colors to change and they did.  'Red sky at night' is what I was waiting for.  Hopefully this means good weather to finish clearing out the house tomorrow.  :)

July 27th-Thursday

When I am driving I tend to think of things that I might want to blog about.  It is a time that I tend to reflect on things.  Okay, if I am listening to a good book, maybe not so much reflection, but I haven't been listening to a book since I finished my last one.  Any how, tonight as I drove home there was a lovely sky to watch.  For almost 70 miles north-ish from my last job I watched the sky change.  I took a few pictures before I left, but none along the way (safety first!) or after I got home.  If this isn't the first of my blogs that you have seen, you probably have noticed that I like looking at the sky.  Tonight my drive encompassed the majority of the time it takes the sun to set.  There was rain earlier in the day and the clouds were breaking up when I left work.  The sky just kept getting larger as the clouds rose and thinned themselves.  There was an artist at work constantly making small changes to the color and shape of the sky.  One minute the sun would be reflecting off the bottom of a cloud turning it a light orange/yellow, then things would take on a darker, gray hue.  There were layers and holes.  Grays, yellows and blue all competing for attention.  The waxing moon was bright, observing the changes.  If I could paint, this is a night I would have liked to do so.

These two pictures were taken from about the same spot--

but looking in different directions.

Earlier in the day I went to a family lunch with my father's side of the family.  There were only 6 of us today.  It was a better dynamic in a way, less people so easier to talk to everyone a little and hear conversations.  Always good to see family that I don't get to see often.  This is my happy for today.  One of the things that I thought about was whether it would be possible for other sides of my family to do something similar on a regular basis... Hmm...

July 26th--Vlog

Gideon wanted to say "Sangbuster" after his goodnight.  I stopped recording too soon.  

Some moon shots

The moon was much prettier and clearer than my camera captured.  

While enjoying a veggie breakfast wrap at a coffee shop with a friend today we discussed the paraeducator position.  It sounds interesting.  It will be a new and exciting opportunity for me if I am offered the job.  I could possibly keep my current job too, but in a more limited capacity that is less stressful on my arm.  After sitting and talking for over an hour we both were stiff and not moving well.  I suggested next time we take a walk while we talk.  Hopefully we will get to visit again soon.

For today my happy is that I went through some things and threw them away.  Downsizing is feeling better every time I do it, even the smallest amount.  Today it was clothes that needed repair.  If I haven't fixed them in the last 5 years, it isn't going to happen and they are gone.  Yay!  

July the twenty-fifth. Long and late.

Approx. 1:30 PM

I am sitting in what used to be my living room in what was my home but will soon have other's residing in it.  It will remain mine only on paper and memory.  I am going through the boxes that originally held fruit or some other food item and I can not put into the storage unit.  There is a box full of Family Circle and  Woman's Day magazines from the 1970's.  I am ready to recycle these when I decide, for grins and giggles, to see if there is a market for dusty old magazines.  I am horrified that there is.  Okay, they probably don't want the dusty old ones, but old ones in good condition.  I know that there is a market for some National Geographic ones.  I have boxes of those to go through in storage already.  Now I just want to recycle these and I am second guessing this decision because money.  A magazine that cost 25 cents to buy could supposedly sell for around $12.00.  Not a bunch of money, but a HUGE mark up.  Is it worth my time to try to sell?  Doubt it.

Later

Any Mary Tyler Moore fans out there want a magazine?  I loved the actress and what she stood for, but not enough to hold onto the magazine for the rest of my life.

Then there is this tin can:

The note says: 

Save me long enough and you will see

A nice big diamond I will be

Simply split me in two 

And Presto-jewelry for both of you

After ten long years

Hats off to you

The books say it's tin

Will this can do?

Happy Anniversary

I may save this to give to my daughter and her husband in 3 years...  It is possible my mother wrote the poem, I can't be sure of that.  The handwriting is most likely hers though.  

Evening

That is how part of my day went.  Soon I realized that I was not in a throwing out mood and stopped looking at as many things.  Just into boxes stuff went.  Soon the house will be empty.  When it is, my daughter is talking about having some kind of goodbye ritual at the house.  She bought sage to burn.  I listened to a podcast a while back about things like this, I am going to look for it and refresh my memory.  Part of the day was spent chatting with my brother.  When I got back to my daughter's it was shower time and laundry.  Tomorrow is a work day.

One thing that I found today is a picture of me when I was little.  I posted it on Facebook and it was suggested that they can see Gideon in me.  

Me

Gideon trying to pose like that pic.

My daughter also trying to do that pose.

My son from when he was little too.

The next morning

It seems I again fell asleep before writing my happy for the day and posting.  <sigh>

While going through boxes yesterday I found out some new things about my mother.  I always knew she liked John Deere tractors and I attributed that to growing up on a farm.  It turns out while in 4-H she took Tractor Maintenance.  So I guess she knew her way around a tractor better than I thought.  I also found a recruitment package for the Navy!  I had no idea that my mother ever considered entering the service.  Apparently she thought about being part of the WAVES.  If she mentioned this when I thought about joining the Army it is completely lost in my memories.  Today my happy is learning new and wonderful things about my mom.  I love you and miss you every day, Mom.  

Monday, July the 24th --Vlog

Links we mentioned in the Vlog:

Smurf

Justin Timberlake singing and the Trolls dancing

The Clip from the Troll movie with the "Can't Stop the Feeling" song

It was a rainy day today.  I met a friend around brunch time and we had a really nice visit.  We discussed the overuse syndrome in my hand/wrist/arm and she suggested to me that I try to get a job at her school as a paraeducator.  She has suggested this to me in the past and I have always stayed with my 'comfortable' present job.  Sometimes it is easier to stay with what one knows rather than to deal with the fears and anxiety that can be involved in changing paths.  I feel like a fickle teenager who can't decide what they want to do when they grow up.  Instead I am a fickle 52 year old who can't figure it out.  Will becoming a paraeducator get in the way of my hiking the AT?  Yes.  It will become less possible to do in one stretch that could take up to 6 months.  It would be very feasible to do it in two or more chunks when considering that I could have my summers off.  I could use long weekends and breaks to do more local parts of the trail.  I am not sure how to explain that this is a different experience and not necessarily the one I am looking for.  Doing the trail in pieces, the term for that is a section hiker or someone who flip flops, is like training to me.  The experience of taking 6 months to test myself is a huge part of it.  I am not a young person who has an entire lifetime ahead to do this.  All this said and out there... having a career path and thus doing the trail in 2 parts over 2 summer breaks is still a huge challenge.  There is nothing that says that I will only do this once.  And I may not even get the job!!

Although I am not a young person, I still have the rest of my life to look forward to.  There are so many things that can happen in a little amount of time and my entire life can turn on a dime.  It has and does quite often.  Different things present themselves and changes occur.

Getting out with a friend is my happy for today.   That and getting to Vlog with Gideon again.

The 23rd of July

The weather today was a tad cooler, mid 70's I think.  It made for a nice walk out for breakfast this morning and it wasn't completely unbearable moving boxes around today.  I must say that I will be glad when this moving out of the house thing is finished.  And even more pleased when the storage units are empty.

↓ This church is being converted into apartments.  ↓

There are statues and stained glass windows that keep being removed.

I hope that these parts are finding nice homes.

↓  Waiting for breakfast.  ↓

↓This was on a trunk that we pulled out of the attic today.↓

The other day I thought we had cleared out the attic, I was wrong.

↓ This, from my parent's long ago party, was also in the attic.  ↓

The writing seems to be on a painters canvas.

The rest is getting recycled.

The man who will be moving into my place has a friend who does plumbing who will be doing the last little bit to get the water working at my house.  I wanted to finish it, but I am kind of done and ready to move on.

In the last part of the attic, beyond the cobwebs, we also found some old pictures.  Some of them are extremely old and I am not sure who they are, at all.  I am looking forward to going through them after vacation and will post some pictures when that happens.  Old pictures are today's happy.

Saturday, the 22nd of July

Another even night without Gideon.  The last few times it was because I worked late.  Tonight it is because his mom is off doing a sewing weekend with friends and he gets to have his dad to himself.  I'm okay with this.  It meant that I took a walk tonight after getting back from work and therefore made my step goal.  The streets were fairly busy tonight, probably because it is Saturday.  There were a few people with dogs out as well.  

A few weeks ago while walking at night I came around a corner and thought there was someone standing there.  It turned out to be a statue.  Ever since then that corner and statue have been kind of weirding me out.  So tonight I took his picture:

With a flash

 Without a flash

Two nights ago I sat down on that bench.  It is getting better, but still kind of a thing I need to work on.  There is a guy that tends to sit on the same wall down the street every night.  Sometimes I see people with him, usually he is alone.  I wonder if he is homeless but haven't the courage to just talk to him.  Sometimes he says hi and I return his greeting.  I generally at least nod his way.

Before work this morning I got to babysit Gideon.  We played Polytopia.  This game that had me so seemingly addicted to it earlier this year?  Well I almost forgot how to play it!  Gideon chose a new tribe to play that didn't exist, as far as I know, a few months ago.  We had to end in the middle to go meet his mom so I could go to work.  It was fun, maybe we will finish it tomorrow.  I won't be downloading it onto my phone again though.  😛

My happy for today is a song that always has me dancing in the aisles when I hear it while working.   I may have shared it in the past.  So turn up your speakers and stand up to dance to Ex's and Oh's!

Peace!

The 21st of July-Friday

The power nap I was hoping for last night happened a little later than I wanted and lasted about 2 hours.  I arrived home a little before dawn, about an hour before I originally had wanted to get up, then went back to sleep for a few hours.  I only had one job to do today and that job would take about 1.5-2 hours.  The thing is, the job was almost 4 hours away.  I did not try to make my step count today, tomorrow I will try for some extra.  

While driving I did a bit of daydreaming about what I might want to do after the hike for work.  For years I have thought off and on about having like a coffee shop - but no coffee, yuck - that has games, books and puzzles and such for people to come in and use, with food.  I can't quite figure how to make it profitable.  I don't need to be rich, but food and a roof over my head is a good thing.  Inevitably somewhere in the thoughts of this establishment I think of how tied down it would make me and decide that it isn't a good idea.  Maybe after I am in the woods for 6 months I will be okay that?   

Other things that occupied my time were having conversations with my kids-hands free is great, and I finished listening to an audio book, Nano, by Robin Cook.  Here is a review of the book.  It turns out that the main characters of Nano were in one of his previous books, Death Benefit.  I sort of figured that out a little bit into the book.  It seemed well enough as a stand alone--until the end, but having not read the previous book, who knows?  Now I have another book to find and listen to.  Well, 2 books, the one before and the one that came out next.  Having been disappointed by accidentally getting books that are parts of series in the past, I usually research to avoid this problem.  I got this as a loan from a friend and I don't think he realized it when he gave it to me.

Pictures from the car... 

Driving north on the highway to my work location I spot southbound a boot.   There was no time, or safe way at that point to grab my phone for a picture. Some research shows that it came from LL Bean.  Pretty cool publicity and my happy for today.

 

So I fell asleep writing this again and finished it up in the morning.  I write better when awake (ya think?) and will endeavor to do so more often.  

Peace.

The 20th of July

It has been a very long day for me working.  It used to be the norm that I put in over 10  or 12 hours a day.  My body isn't as used to it as it was.  My arm with overuse syndrome is feeling the use.   Tomorrow will be mostly driving and I will try to rest it.

And so again I sit here falling asleep as I write this.  Unfortunately,  I still have to drive home.   Home is about an hour and a half away.  It is time for a power nap.

Last time I was at this place  I took a photo of this tree.  It is pretty.

My power nap that I am about to take is my happy for today. 

July the 19th, Wednesday-edited

Today was SO HOT I felt like I was melting most of the day.  Okay, it wasn't that bad I guess.  It is much worse in other parts of the country right now.  Eventually, I got productive enough to go to work for a little while.  My doctor released me to do some things that I hadn't been able to and I went and did some.  There was some minor aching and tingling from the overuse syndrome.  It seems to have mostly subsided at this point.  Hopefully 2 weeks is enough to build back up some of the skills I haven't been practicing.  If all goes well with this, I start doing the type of work I was doing when the overuse syndrome started.

My daughter had some friends over when I got back and so I visited with all for a bit.  It was an impromptu craft night.  After dinner Gideon and I went for a walk.  He had walked about 1.4 miles when I dropped him off and then went out again.  I was way low on step count.  When I was almost home a man asked me for directions.  Instead of trying to describe, I turned around and brought him where he needed to go.  End result is that I feel I did a kindness to a stranger and that is qualifying as my happy for today.

Close to the center of this picture is a dark plume of smoke. I don't know where.  Right after I took the shot, the plume turned white.  About 10 minutes later I went in the general direction and found no sign of anything.  

*edited-because publishing when one is really asleep, in the middle of a sentence, and letting the spell fixer choose the wrong words should not really be a thing.  😴

July the 18th

Somehow I got up early this morning and with help got the Uhaul truck empty at the storage unit and returned on time.  We then proceeded to get me to my chiropractor appointment on time and then back to my car.  While we were unpacking the truck I kept thinking how wonderful it was that I had the chiropractor appointment right after all that heavy lifting.  It is so odd how she seems to find different ways to hurt me every time and yet I feel so much better a little later on.  It is the feeling better part that keeps me going back.  All afternoon and into the evening I worked.    Yesterday the orthopedic  doctor set  up a work plan for building up my strength and all.  Today I kept on the splint but still did more things than I had been doing,  When I first started I though there would be a problem but eventually it seemed alright.  I am again, exhausted though.  It has been a lot of long days and I keep falling asleep.  Good night!                      

Oh!  My happy for today is the  beautiful sky and clouds this morning and tonight.          

Morning:

Evening:

                          

July 17th-short

Very early this morning, while walking from my car to the house, I noticed an animal getting into the neighbors trash.  I stayed on the opposite side of the street as I passed and then took this picture:

Such a cute skunk.  Glad I didn't disturb it!

I spent the day packing and moving boxes.  More wonderful helpers today.  The truck is loaded.  In the morning it will get emptied and returned.  Soon I will be finished with the moving out of stuff.  Phew.

Today my happy is NOT getting sprayed,

July 16th-still packing

It is almost midnight and I just got off the phone to extend my UHaul rental another day.  So things didn't go as well as I had hoped and there is still a bunch more to load into that truck.  Things will have to wait until tomorrow.  I am going to close things up and get some sleep.

Gideon is home sleeping and I am at my house, so no Vlog tonight.

A little earlier this evening I had a call from a friend in Texas.  She saw my Facebook post about moving and wanted to know what was going on.  We did the fill in what is going on in a nut shell thing.  It was really great to hear from her and that is my happy for today.

My Mom used to make crafty things and she made this witch.  I have been taking pictures of some of these things before I get rid of them.  😔 My life is changing and downsizing is part of it.  She made some cool things and I am finally saying goodbye to many of them.  I hope she is looking down from heaven and understands.  💙

Still can smile.

Goodnight.

July the 15th - Saturday - short

Another day of packing and sorting.  I started out arranging for a truck for tomorrow, more storage and getting a replacement part for the one we broke while trying to fix the plumbing.  We spent a little bit too much time going through some of the boxes today instead of just packing them to go.

This picture is my cousin Shirley's (1936-2013) nursing school from the mid/late 1950's. 

The woman seated and man standing on the left are my great grand parents.

My aunt and uncle's 50th wedding anniversary.

I don't remember what year that was but I think I made that cake.

It was fun going through some of the old pictures.  That and cracking weird math jokes are my happy things for today.

July 14th-short and sleepy

Today was spent packing and moving boxes and working on the plumbing.  I am unable to stay awake.  My happy for today is blueberry stuffed French toast at Red Arrow Diner.  It saved me from getting too hangry.

7-13-17... My trip to REI

The only pictures I took today were at REI.  I returned my tent after work today.  This makes me very sad.  I loved that tent, until the windows half fell out last weekend.  Good things include that it happened as I packed it up to go in a car and not into a backpack in the middle of the woods, and that the people at REI were so nice about taking it back.  It was purchased last September and I got back every thing but the dividends I earned from the purchase of the tent and that is certainly fair and reasonable.

So the 2 sleeping pads I want to research looked like the next 2 pictures:

I didn't take the time to talk to anyone at the store, this was just by first looks and touch.  Research will happen after the house is empty.  I'll be needing a different tent now too it seems... The other thing I quickly snapped a shot of is a solar panel:

This, and comparable items, I may research before I go on vacation in a few weeks.  

If the weather is dry tomorrow, I plan to put a few things on the lawn with a free sign.  More stuff left the house today and I got a few things moved around.  Tomorrow my daughter and Gideon will be here and as long as work doesn't call, I think we can be very productive.  My cousin may come by as well.

A friend came by for a quick visit today.  He showed me how to fix my faucet.  Someone took the time to take it apart a few weeks ago for me but I still don't have the kit to fix it.  If I am able to get up and out of the house early enough tomorrow that will get fixed too.  This brings me to my happy of the day which is the assistance of friends and family that I have been blessed with.  I am so grateful for all the generosity.

For the Twelfth of July

This morning I awoke to the sound of so many birds in the distance.  At first I couldn't figure out why the cacophony was so distant sounding.  Hadn't I fallen asleep at a resort with the slider door open?  Why yes, I had.  Although the view is through the slider, the woods are to the back of the unit, so alas, distant sounds.  I went back to sleep.  The next time I woke up the sound of birds were fewer and distant automobiles and such more plentiful.  I updated yesterday's blog with pictures and prepared to start my back-to-reality day.

Reality is that my hand is much improved!  I couldn't tell by how this doctor wrote out the paperwork but I think I can do a little more?  I have another appointment on Monday with the Orthopedic Doctor.

Links from the Vlog:

Clark's Trading Post

Hermanos

Poor Howard


Happy for today is the doctor telling me that I am too healthy (other than the injury) to be spending so much time seeing doctors.

Goodbye Mountains.

Hello Poor Howard

He is way behind us...

with the guitar

This is a poor picture of a group of bicyclists in the background.

Night riders.

The Eleventh of July-with too many pictures

Greetings!  It was a beautiful day for a walk.  It was also a beautiful day for a drive, so I did both.  I drove up to the mountains to visit a cousin who is visiting the area from Virginia.  We decided to drive along the Kancamagus Highway and stop to do some small hikes along side the road.  We walked up to Sabbaday Falls and then Rocky Gorge.  After that we made our way to Conway where we found an early dinner at Delaney's Hole in the Wall.  The fish & chips were delicious but that blueberry pie for dessert was scrumptious!  Maine wild blueberries with just the right sweetness and topped with ice cream and real whipped cream.  Yum!  Once our bellies were satisfied we drove toward Ossipee and stopped at the parking area by Chocorua Lake and took pictures of Mount Chocorua.  It called to me, I may end up climbing that before the winter snows arrive.  I have climbed this rocky topped beauty a few times in the past, but that was many years ago.

Today was a happy day filled with fresh air and light exercise.

Sabbaday Falls

From Rocky Gorge

Falls Pond 

Bugs

Anybody Home?

Mount Chocorua

 

Sunset Along the Kancamagus

Because there had to be a sunset.  😉