Hades Holiday Handbasket Rides

Things seemed to go to hell in a handbasket this week.  When it rains, it pours. Or if it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all (- gloom, despair and agony on me).  Take your pick or use your own to describe bad news and hemorrhaging money.  Hang on, it's gonna be another long one.

On Wednesday afternoon I got vaccinated; the flu, covid and pneumonia shots.  Flu and covid in the left shoulder and pneumonia in the right.  As expected the next day, I had T. Rex arms due to my shoulders hurting so much and I generally felt like hell with joint pain, a cloudy head and a general feeling of sick and tired.  This happens every year now with the covid shot, but I've had covid like 4 times now and it's worth one day of sickness to possibly not get or get shut down by covid again.

So Thursday was spent at home on a sick day, putting off things that needed to be done.  One of those things was scheduling my car to get into the shop for an oil change, replace the shocks, and most likely new brakes.  An expensive list this time, but it needs to be done.  Then my wife got home Thursday afternoon and told me that on the way home her check engine light went on.  She had parked in the driveway and it had been raining all day, so when she left her van she noticed quite the rainbow underneath, indicating a leak of some sort, so she got back in and pulled it onto the street.  I was still feeling too sick to go out and look things over so I just called the service center right away and got it booked in for Monday morning, but we still had to get to then.

Early Friday morning I got up extra early to take her to work, but we had to have her car off the street for street cleaning that day.  I pulled my car out then watched as she pulled her van in.  There was a large spot of leakage on the road where she was parked and a robust trail left as she pulled in to the driveway.  This really can't be good, and meant we should have it towed to the shop rather than try to drive it.

I still had time after dropping her off before I had to go to work, so I went back home to do a few things.  It was then I hear a weird hum for a bit when I was in the kitchen.  I thought it was maybe the refrigerator, but when I smelled something I had to check the furnace.  I checked the thermostat and the furnace should have been running, but wasn't.  So I reset everything and made it so the furnace should kick in again, then went downstairs to observe.  The furnace started, I heard the gas ignite, then everything shut down.  I did that twice with the same result, so I cut power to it all and went to work.  Coincidentally, the coming night was to be our first below freezing.

When I got to work I texted my wife about it, discussed with some friends there, and decided it was in my best interest to have it looked at as soon as possible rather than wait to look at it again when I got home.  I called a local company that I had known of and had a good feeling about but had not researched because had no time, and thankfully they could be out after I got home that afternoon.

Our furnace is from 1985, and our air conditioner is of similar age.  The service man was an older gentleman who had been doing this for 45 years, he said.  He knew exactly what he was looking at and did not like it.  First, the blower fan was going out, which explains the squeaks we've heard from it off and on recently and why it wouldn't run when it got too warm, which apparently happened that morning.  He also pointed out where exhaust had been leaking into the house and why.  And why our nearby CO detectors did not go off - apparently they don't go off until it's almost too late and these smaller amounts of exhaust weren't enough set it off.  We always knew we would need a new furnace at some point, and it seems we had now reached that point.  When we bought the house in 2009 it had a 1 year warranty so we were hoping both the furnace and central air would die within that time, but they lasted 17 more years, until now.  No, nothing really seems wrong with the central air except it's age, but it behooves us to replace it at the same time as the furnace.

The service man left us with two portable heaters that have actually come in handy, and we had one already so despite it getting below freezing overnight we've warmed the house with them and the sun today, though the outside temperature only got into the 50's ºF.  On Monday there will be someone out from that service company to discuss our options, and prices, to replace both the furnace and central air.  Hopefully we can get a reasonable price and have them both replaced very quickly.

At least we found out now, before got really cold in proper Wisconsin winter.

Still, some major financial hits for us in a short period of time.  We will still owe a significant amount for the roof, more later.  We'll have to pay for towing and an unknown amount to repair my wife's van.  A new furnace, installed and with new A/C is going to be huge.  And known to be significant, expensive repairs still needed to my car.  

On Sunday, my wife will use my car to get to work and back so I will be stuck at home unless I walk somewhere for lunch, which is still possible.  Then I have a scheduled day off on Monday that I took off originally because I had the time off to take and the Packers play on Sunday night.  Since then, coincidentally, my wife also has her first back shot scheduled on Monday morning, so I'll be taking her like she's taken me for the same thing about a half a dozen times or so.  She's hoping we can go out to lunch after, but she hasn't had one of these before so we'll see how she feels at that time.  Later Monday afternoon the guy will be coming to discuss our furnace options, too.

Right now, I'm waiting for a call from the towing company saying their on their way to come get the van to the shop.  I told them it just has to be by Monday morning, but they will likely come get it yet tonight.  Probably during an important part of the Badger game this evening, with my luck.  After the van is finished I will set a date with them for my car to go in for its needed repairs, and I'll need a loaner for the 2-3 days they have my car then.

Edit: They called a few minutes after posting this.  You can see the trail of what he confirmed to be transmission fluid, leaking significantly.  Really nice guy, though.  A fellow Badger fan, and that game kicked off only a few minutes later.

At least we had a very productive day so far.  We spent a few hours this morning doing needed yard work and fall cleanup outside.  I spent all that time, among other things, picking up nuts, breaking up sticks for the firepit and mowing the leaves into the lawn.  The gardens got some cleanup, as did the sunflowers, and the gnomes and garden decorations were cleaned up and put away.  I thought I'd write about this more since we did it all this morning, but these recent events were obviously more worthy of writing about, since this is where I ended up.

Well, that was a lot.  I had a New Roof II update to share as well, and I could but I will now wait a few days on that.  Perhaps I'll have a meaningful response from them by then that I can share, as well.  And the Brewers swept the Dodgers and are going to the World Series!  I'm sure I'll have something to say about that later, too.

But for now, some tough, expensive weeks to come.  No doubt I'll have more to say about it all later.

Hope your weekend and week is better and cheaper than ours, all.  Cheers!

October This-And-Thats

I know this is a busy few days of posting for me, so scroll down and see if you missed anything after this post.  There was a night out posted on Saturday and a new Latest Listening Pleasure posted yesterday.  This post will be on Monday and a New Roof II post is imminent, probably later this week.  I guess I felt like writing and just had a few things I wanted to get out.

Anyway, I've had a few other random thoughts and pictures that I've wanted to share and document here, so once again it's time to start typing and see where we end up:

Heat - We had the heat on for the first time this season Friday night.  Just for a few hours as the upcoming weekend temperatures were to be warm and wonderful.  It's been a balancing act with not having the heat on.  The house gets cooler at nights but rebounds with the sun during the day and by opening the porch, which collects heat in the sun to share with the house. 

Cats - With last week getting as cool as it was, the cats warming pad was brought out.  They certainly know exactly what it is and absolutely love laying on it.  Thankfully, it has a timer so we don't cook them, but they lay on it even when it's not on.  Gosh help us if they ever learn how to turn it on themselves.

Nuts - It has been a banner year for the neighbor's walnut trees.  One of the heaviest years I've seen for nuts falling into the yard.  I usually go out with the grabber to pick them up and toss them into the corner behind the lilac, and I don't remember ever having to use the rake before but I have twice now so far this year.  Pull them into piles then scoop them into a bucket and dump in the corner.  They will break down and the critters will be in there all fall and winter for the nuts, so the bulk will go down but I may still have to get rid of some material in the spring.  By that I mean shovel that stuff into buckets to take to the dump, at least to get down to the bottom of the fence again.

Sunflower Seeds - The seeds I harvested recently are completely different than the seeds that were planted.  This just confirms the hybrid theory.  Mammoth Grey Stripe seeds are bigger, white and with a few black/grey stripes.  These, as you can see, are smaller and pretty black though you can see some of the stripes in places.  Next year I think I'll go 50/50, seeds from that first sunflower (that are getting older yet) and these black seeds from the multi-bud hybrid that I got this year.  I will have to pay attention to the one-bud sunflowers next year to harvest the Mammoth or at least Mammoth-dominant seeds.

Sunflower Buds - The sunflower plants are way past their prime, yet they continue to pump the last of their energy into lots of buds.  These late buds are very dark green and may not even fully open, but the plants will continue to try until the weather ends their efforts and the cleanup commences.

Halloween - The Halloween decorations have come out.  We've had some pumpkins and mums on the front stoop for a couple weeks now.  The day we put the mums out we saw on doorbell camera what appeared to be a homeless person steal one.  My wife replaced it the next day and we've had no other issues except for nibbling from squirrels.  I was reminded of something I bought for the front corner windows on sale after last Halloween, so there will be something new there this year.  I've still been searching for window coverings similar to that old mummy, but I never imagined it would be so hard to replace.

Sports - The small-market Brewers had the best record in baseball again this year, won their divisional round and are now facing the big-money Dodgers again in the National League Championship Series for the right to go to the World Series.  It's been a fun summer to watch the Brewers again, though my wife has seen me less.  Yesterday the underdog Packers pounded the Bears 31-7.  The Bears won the last two matchups last year and were obnoxious about it, so that felt good.  The Packers have now beaten the Bears 110 times in this oldest rivalry in the NFL.  The Badgers football team had a bye week, but have been winning since the season-opening loss to Notre Dame at Lambeau Field.  Bucks preseason basketball has started, though it's a rebuilding year after trading Giannis.  And Badger Hockey is starting and basketball will be soon, men's and women's for both.  Even the Badger volleyball team has been hot this year.  It's all fun but I'm really, really hoping the Brewers win their first World Series this year.  Go Brewers!

Weather - After a week that culminated in us turning on the heat for a bit on Friday evening, it has been a beautiful, summer-like weekend.  We went out for dinner on Saturday night (out in public two nights out in a row!) and Sunday was beautiful though I spent it indoors but with windows open all day.  A double batch of flatbread made, the Packers game, a nap, then the Brewers game last night.  Today may be our last summer-like day with temperatures up to the mid-80s ºF, with the high 30 degrees lower by the end of the week.  I have nagging thoughts of fall cleanup that needs to be done, but it's still a little early for most things.  At least no gutter cleaning this year.

That seems to be what I can think of for now.  The seasons go faster every year, except for winter.  Winter drags on every year, whether it's a harsh one or not.  I hear a lot of talk about El Nino this year, but no matter.  Cold or mild, snowy or not, we just have to deal with it.

Have a good week, everyone.  Thank you for reading my ramblings.

Dreary Day & NRII Part 12

Today is absolutely dreary out again, overcast and rainy all day.  My wife woke up sick yesterday morning and wound up coming home early from work.  I've been super fatigued all week and wound up calling in sick today.  My wife has more symptoms and I only have that feeling of malaise, though I've been doing all the supplements this week to ward off any sickness.  Normally, when I have a virus I can 'taste' it.  Most don't quite understand that, I don't think, but apart from the feeling I have I do not have that.  Hopefully it doesn't get to that and I can get back to normal sooner than later.

Like the picture a few posts ago, you can see all the plants have gone past their summer prime.  The lawn needs mowing but it's too wet and I'm too tired anyway, so it will likely get done this weekend.  The weather, wet or not, has been in the 60's ºF and that looks to continue, but the nights look to get colder, into the low 40's ºF, but thankfully not lower yet.

A couple updates on the new roof saga to share:

On Thursday, 9/24, I received text from someone at the roofing company saying that Isaac told them it was ready for a final walkthrough and asked to set up a time.  I replied that Isaac was mistaken.  I was dealing with Matt now and am still not satisfied.  I also said the communication with and apparently within their company was lacking.  The next day I received an apology, and Matt was out of office until the next Tuesday but they would check with him.  Speaking of Matt, I've still not heard from him since I emailed him on 9/22.  I've still not been up to see the overhanging shingle trimming, but will have to do that this weekend.

On a better note; yesterday, 9/30, salesman Tony copied me on an email to my insurance company with pictures they found of the old roof being removed with the ice/water barrier that was present.  I still have to reply to add the broken window that was missed on the initial claim, but that will be done soon.  Still no word from Matt since I met him on 9/1.  "Watch your email," he told me as we parted that day.  It is now a month later and I've heard nothing back.  I have no idea when or how they intend to complete the issues.  If we get to completion I will be asking for a considerable consideration on the bill, which may determine if I am satisfied or if I will be leaving an honest review on every platform possible.

Every day, still, you can hear the sound of nail guns in the background anywhere outside on this side of town.  If I had to do it all over I would have waited until spring to hire someone.  Right now, they're all looking to get in, get out, get on to the next and hope no one looks too close.  I mean, really, how could even a day laborer start the first row of shingles halfway covering the gutter?  

Stay tuned, or not, but this may continue for some time yet.  The timeline doesn't bother me so much as the shoddy workmanship, horrendous communication, and broken promises.  I was promised premium work and didn't get it.  I refuse to be taken for a sucker.

Buds to Blooms

Patriot Day, Sunflowers & More

Today is the country's 25th anniversary of 9/11, and my 59th anniversary of 9/11.  Patriot Day is a national holiday of observance, but not a federal public holiday.  I like to get this date off, but I'm not so lucky this year; I'll be at work.  (This post has been scheduled.)

The original sunflower blooms are long gone but the secondary blooms are popping up all over the place.  I've not even tried to count them, but the quality of bloom will be less and some may not get to be much more than they are now.  The tallest sunflower, in the corner of house and porch, reached 10' 7" this year.  I like trying to grow them tall, and I will save the seeds from the head I have bagged, but more and more I'm thinking I might try a different variety next year.

There is also one sunflower plant that the secondary blooms have a bit of different color to them, with the yellow.  They appear to be a different hybrid, but could be some kind of soil deficiency or who-knows-what.  I could look it up, but you know, I'm just not going to worry about that.

I have some plans coming up and some rest and relaxation scheduled.  No big project on my list, just maybe little ones and the PITA ones that I never seem to get around to doing.  I don't want to be too busy right now, anyway.

Starting today I have to relax and just enjoy my time.  I may pop in and out, here, or I may just recap at a later time.  No matter what, I hope it's an enjoyable week for all.  Cheers!

NRII Part 10 & Weekend Musings

8/31 Monday    I expected supervisor Matt around 3:30.  At 3:45 I texted him to see if he was still coming, he replied that he had me on his calendar tomorrow.  Looking back I believe he was correct and I was jumping the gun.  I had not written it down.

9/1 Tuesday    Had a good meeting with Matt.  He saw my issues and said they would be corrected.

Prior to meeting Matt I got out the ladder and did some more checking.  The rain deflector over the walk-in garage door was short and had no angle.  And, an even bigger issue, the bottom row of shingles hung over the roof edge 1 to 2.5 inches, covering much of the gutters.  Ideally this should be 3/8 to 1/2 inch, tops.

Now I wait again.  It will be some time before they can get a crew out, but I'm okay with that as long as it all gets fixed before winter.

I cleaned up the back yard yesterday morning, before the heat and humidity moved in.  Temperatures actually aren't so bad this holiday weekend.  This past week was very hot and humid, with rain here and there.  Our drought status has improved to 'abnormally dry.'

I'm not sure if I will keep seeds from these sunflowers or not.  I've had thoughts of trying a different kind of sunflower than the mammoth, something that is supposed to have multiple blooms as the hybrid mammoths I have do continue to flower but the quality of the later blooms isn't that good.  We'll see what I decide, probably in spring.

Kate and I took a walk this afternoon.  Recently there had been some sort of burn in places along the creek.  Unannounced and the wrong time of year, so I'm not sure if was on purpose or arson.  Anyway, we found some ducks today.

Today I've made baguettes and taco sauce, already enjoyed the Brewer game and later the Wisconsin Badgers open their football season at Lambeau Field against Notre Dame, and I'll be right here watching.  Tomorrow is Labor Day, so a three day weekend and short work week, and I finally have a vacation coming.  Cheers, everyone.

August This-And-Thats

I know I've lamented my waning use of the firepit each of the last few years, but it continues as I've only had the two so far this year.  The mosquitoes haven't seemed as bad this year, but that may be because I've spent less time outside with less fire pits.  Allergies have been present, but have been less severe as last year.  Again, less outside time, maybe?  We've had some good stretches of windows-open weather, but more stretches of heat and/or humidity keeping the air conditioning on.

Summer was at its peak when I mentioned it here, and a week after that it showed.  That's not saying there's not some good summer left, just that I recognized the peak.  Atwoodfest has normally been when I've accepted the season is waning.  It certainly doesn't mean that summer is over, but it's time to just appreciate the warmer weather while we still have it.

We attended Eken Park Fest yesterday for an hour or two.  A nice, nearby neighborhood festival, but small, and it actually snuck up on us.  When we realized it was this weekend we chose in the spur of the moment to go there to find lunch.  We chose a local Mexican restauranteur, and it was very good.  That morning we had gone to a pottery place where you can choose from premade pottery to paint/glaze yourself.  You pay, they fire it, then call you in about a week to pick it up.  It can get expensive so we started small to try it out.  Kate wanted to get a bear as a gift for a friend and they only had a small teddy bear one that will have a magnet on the back.  I did a small gnome in some common colors.  I had visited once before with a group of clients for work, and it was interesting enough I told my wife about it, and so we wanted to try it ourselves.  I hope they turn out well and we like it enough to get more adventurous the next time.

Roofing supplies were delivered on Monday, off to the side of the driveway in back.  The roof was done eventually on Tuesday, due to morning rain.  They got started about 11:30 in the morning and wound up leaving at 7:00 that evening with all roofing and cleanup finished.  Gutters were completed two and three days later.  Currently they still need to pick up the pallet with leftover supplies, add a water deflector above the walk-in garage door, and clean up the line of caulk above the porch where it meets the house.  More later as there is more to come.

The sunflowers took some damage from the roof and gutter replacement, but came out of it pretty good overall.  Some leaves snapped at most, from what I've seen.  The tall sunflower on the left has about 10 flowers currently, though tough to see in this picture, and more buds coming.  These multiple flowers generally get smaller and smaller as they bloom.  And the one in the corner has several blooms as well, but also has reached 10 feet and 2 inches as of today.

I like the idea of pure mammoth seeds that grow tall and have a large flower, but only the one.  But the unknown cross-pollination with the multiple flowers is more enjoyable, and for a longer time.  I must get the seeds of the first flower of at least one of the two I mentioned last paragraph, preferably the taller one but I'll try for both.

I've been making a different recipe of baguette recently, and I'm really liking the crumb.  I think I left this last batch in the oven a bit long, but the quest for the perfect baguette is a never-ending process, after all.  I made pizza dough this morning.  I'd been wanting larger portions so today I made the same amount of dough that I used to make for four crusts into just three.  Thicker than thin crust with 50/50 00/AP flour should be a good combination, I think.  Anyway this baguette made as crostini was absolutely fabulous.

I had some vague ideas when I started to write this, but it was mostly stream of consciousness.  Basically one of my this-and-thats posts, unformatted as such.  Oh well, good enough for me.  Go Brewers!

Rain 1, Sunflower 0

My heart skipped a beat this morning as I checked if anything happened overnight on the security camera.

The large sunflower (pictured last post) had fallen during the night, a little after 1 a.m.  It rained more often than not for the last day, and we needed it terribly, but the conditions just put it down.  It was only about seven in the morning but I immediately went out and wound up putting in three stakes to stabilize it.  The little one next to it came up with it but the cage that is still around it was enough support for that.

And after raining all day we just got a bit of sun so here it is now.  I think it's going to make it.  

That flower I was planning on bagging so I can collect the seeds, and it has at least 10 more buds on it to come yet.  The one on the right also has multiple buds coming.  I'm thankful for the sunflowers I have, but it has been a brutal year for them, overall.

Scorched Sunflowers & Follow-Ups

From what I noticed this afternoon we got up to 98ºF (37ºC), with a feels-like temperature of 114ºF (46ºC).  Definitely the hottest day of the year so far, but thankfully we should just be regular-hot the rest of the week.

The sunflower on the outside of the back steps was the first to bloom, but the petals are rather deformed.  This is the second one to bloom, and is a bit more picturesque.  That first one has no other blooms starting off the stem, while this one has them coming in all the way down.  I'm not sure why some of my mammoth sunflowers have multiple blooms and others don't.  Perhaps one is male and the other is female, I'm not sure.  The first batch planted are definitely the strongest, though, while the second plantings are much smaller plants yet still growing buds.

Our air quality is back to normal levels, though there is still smoke out there so if the winds shift the right way we may get smoky again.  I think I heard something like the smoke would affect us about one day a year until 2020, and has averaged about 8 days a year since.  That would explain why it seems like more now - because it is.

The protests continue with base camp at the intersection where it happened and nearby streets shut down.  The city has been working with them, providing port-o-potties and trash collection while working with the protesters to keep up services and driveway access for the unfortunate residents in the area.  One of which is a friend, who is not enjoying the extra traffic and hassle.  I'm not sure how long it will continue but would surely calm down if they announced criminal charges against the police officer.  Seems to be the right thing to do, but no rant on this today.

The neighbors have added some interesting lights to their house.  It was red, white and blue earlier this month for the holiday, and was like this the other night.  Thankfully we only have two windows on that side so it doesn't really affect us at all. I find it to be an interesting choice, what do you think?

And, finally, I'm feeling much better and practically back to normal after my fall a couple weeks ago.  When you're young you can bounce, and I haven't been young in a long time.  It would behoove me to avoid any more falls in the future, I think. 

Oh, and the new roof should be happening very soon, but I don't have a date yet.  Have a great week, everyone!

Project Updates & Sunflowers

I started this morning with grand plans of repainting all of the garage trim, then I remembered how much I hate painting.  I wound up just painting the lower parts of the trim and doing touch-up where needed.  If it doesn't blend well then I'll repaint all the rest tomorrow as the paint is still good but the rim has rusted out so this will be the last use of this quart, this weekend.  I know I get no style points for my paint job, but function over form for this project.

Meanwhile, I chose a contractor for roofing the house, porch and garage.  We will keep the gutters we have on the house as there's only one small dent on one side, but will replace the downspout that got all beat up.  Last time we did the roof we did not do the porch as we thought we'd be replacing it.  Well, that hasn't happened so we will have a new roof put on that and have the gutters replaced, and all gutters will get a gutter guard so I will no longer have to climb a ladder around the house twice a year to clean them out.  We considered putting gutters on the garage and getting a rain barrel by the garden.  It's still something I dream of doing, but not at this time to keep costs down.  The process of choosing a contractor was harder than it should have been, but that was mostly on the contractors I talked to (or got ghosted by).  The work is planned for sometime in a two week window starting later this month, I should know more soon.

If you remember, as part of our 2024 street reconstruction project included a footbridge across the creek.  That part of the project was stalled due to permitting issues, we were told, but construction is expected to begin this fall and be completed in 2027.  This unnecessary expenditure comes as the city is asking all departments to slash their budgets, still broke though we residents inexplicably voted to let them raise our property taxes to above state-mandated levels a couple years ago.  Egad, what a waste.  We can't wait for these city elections to oust everyone in office right now.

Still peak summer here, with the yard and gardens so alive.  The cone flowers have gotten really tall in the stump area, so no pots on the stump were actually needed this year.  Day lilies that Kate planted a few years ago are bursting with blooms, and other flowers come and go.

If you peek over the fence on the left you'll see the neighbor is getting a new fence to match ours installed today.

The sunflowers have had a hard go of it this year.  Out of 54 planted we have 15 left, so almost 3/4 of them have been lost.  I'll post the rundown after the break, otherwise have a great weekend!

Happy 4th of July - 250th

Happy holiday everyone, or happy Saturday if more appropriate.  Kate's working today so I had a lazy start to the morning before tackling a project outside.  It was muggy, buggy, and the threat of rain was everywhere though it held off until we got a shower this afternoon.

Over the years the lower part of the garage walk-in door frame has rotted, leaving gaps.  I made a temporary fix a year or two ago, but it was bad enough now to need something more permanent.  I'd considered just getting a new pre-hung door, but came up with a plan that should last for longer and save that few hundred bucks.

Previously I had chipped out all the rotten wood that I could, but then leaned a wood panel over it for the last week or so, waiting for the heat to break.  My first thought was to fill it in with chunks of wood using screws and construction adhesive, but my eventual plan of boxing it all in was much easier.  

I started with a thin strip to fill in the trim and make a 90 degree angle, then covered the inside frame and outside with two more pieces of plywood, using the construction adhesive to seal all around.  A few years ago I replaced the rotten wood in the threshold, so that got another layer slathered on as well.  Hopefully tomorrow I can get some paint on it and it will be hardly noticeable.

After that, lunch and a nap.  The Brewers play late tonight so if I want to stay up the nap was needed.  I think we'll be staying in tonight so I was hoping for a fire, but the mugginess, mossies and threat of a scattered shower or storm will likely keep me in.  So no big holiday plans here, I'm just enjoying a three day weekend while also feeling for my wife who has to work every day of it.

Have a great weekend, everyone.  Cheers!

Summer Solstice 2026

Flowers, Weeds & Contractors

First I planted 30 sunflowers around the yard.  Critters destroyed many so I started a box of 24 more, two of which didn't grow.  I planted 10 more around the yard and reseeded the two that did not grow.  Then, rather than take the rest to work (see earlier post) I hurriedly planted all of them around the yard and in the garden.  That's 54 seedlings planted around the yard this spring.

Of those 54 I currently have only 20 still alive, 12 of which appear straight and strong for their size while another 8 are broken, twisted and smaller.  Only one remains in front by the bird feeder with most of the rest around the back door.

It's been a brutal spring for my sunflowers.

And our lawn.  I mowed this morning right before taking these pictures, and was reminded that we have one kind of weed in the front yard that my weedkiller does not affect, and another kind of weed in the back lawn that is also unaffected.  I'm going to have to do some research on what exactly they are and how to get rid of them.

Elsewhere in the yard things are looking real good, good enough for me to want to share pictures, I guess.  Alium are going to seed as tiger lilies bloom, the hostas are huge and full along the back fence, and the stump area is thriving with wildflowers planted each of the last two years, now coming back on their own.

As for a hail/contractor update, I'm going to start again by researching three more companies to call on Monday to get quotes.  We've discussed it, and we will only get the roof and gutters done.  Residing the house I feel will open up an expensive can of worms.  We can live with a few dents on mostly the west side of the house.  The window and maybe some screens I should be able to get fixed rather cheaply.

Well, it's been a relatively productive day here so far.  Kate has to work tomorrow so what she says goes today, but will likely be lunch out followed with me watching the Brewer game this afternoon.  For dinner we plan on grilling out brats.  Another new-to-us brand as we continue our search for a new brand of bratwurst that we like.  Then later tonight I'm hoping I still have the energy to have a fire.  I'll feel guilty if I don't, as tomorrow is the solstice but expected to be rather damp out.  Wish me luck.

Faux Fire Pit

It's very nice to live in a neighborhood with full grown trees.  We don't have as many nearby as we did years ago, but there are still enough large trees and many new ones planted.

With trees comes stick shedding, further encouraged by our tumultuous weather this spring.  Since we got settled into this house I've welcomed all sticks, branches, and - sometimes reluctantly - many large to very large limbs as free firewood.  If it fell on my property then I take it as my responsibility to take care of it.  And when neighbor Dave was still around I gladly helped him and took care of the big things so he didn't have to.  Leaving them on the curb for the city to pick up wasn't acceptable to me, and disposing of sticks has never been an issue.  (I feel the same about fall leaves.)

So far this year I've only had the one fire pit, on the spring equinox.  I've had chances since, weekend nights where I've been too tired or else weather conditions weren't right.  But that's it, just the one, short fire so far this year.

Anyway, more sticks have accumulated this spring (since the spring equinox fire).  I already have two five-gallon buckets full of kindling and another of quick-burning sunflower stalks from last year.  I don't need any more fire starter material.   I just kept tossing sticks into the firepit, even stomping them down to fit more, but it was time to make room.

I made a drink, got out the lawn chair, and prepared with the fire screen and poker.  (There is at least one fire extinguisher inside the garage door.)  I used the garden torch to set it alight in a few places.  I thought I might have to keep using it, but once it got started it went up pretty quickly, as you can see here.

I did clean out the fire pit after that last fire, so I'm not worried about too many ashes or anything.  But I'm glad I had that fire screen handy once it got going.  When I first put it on it was sitting just above the fire pit on the pile of sticks, settling down quickly as they burned.  It didn't take long for it to burn down, and about 20 or 30 minutes later I started putting things away and came in to continue watching the Brewer game.  Not a true fire pit night, but now it's ready for the next time.

Next weekend Sunday is the summer solstice, so I intend to have a fire to commemorate the occasion, as I do.  Sunday evening is not ideal fire pit time for me, so maybe Friday or Saturday to compensate, but weather will likely be a deciding factor.

Sunflower Cat Contractors

I've not done an official count or inventory of sunflowers yet.  I feel it's still too early to tell what may come of these.  There are two different plantings, about 17 days apart.  Many of the first were destroyed early, thus the second planting.  While almost all are still around since the time of the second planting, they are still small and there are a few broken and many twisted yet.  Sunflowers are pretty hardy, when allowed to grow, so even broken or twisted may mature to the best of their ability.  I'll take stock of all soon enough.  This post is mainly to get the bad taste of the last post out of my mouth. 

A productive weekend here, mostly.  I still have some relatively bigger projects on my list that I want to get done soon, but all in due time.  This week, I was impressed by the first contractor's pitch, but it was also a bit over the top so I'm a little hesitant.  The second I sent on his way as this kid did not project the confidence or knowledge that I wanted to hear, so I was nice but didn't want to waste his time or mine.  The third seemed confident and level-headed.  I really hope I like what he comes back with.  I expect to make a decision by the end of the week, and it may also include new siding everywhere.

The cats are enjoying the windows and porch being open today, and I'm going to go enjoy the Brewer game now.

Happy Sunday and have a great week, everyone!

Sunflower Update & RANT

I originally planted 30 sunflower seedlings around the yard.  This batch was 12 days from seeding to planting, though they could have been planted on day 11, maybe 10.   Then the critters got many, so I seeded 24 more in cardboard tubes.  I figured I would fill in around the yard with half and take the other half to work for the clients to enjoy.  On Sunday, after only 8 days (but the nights had been warmer) I planted 10 seedlings around the yard, reseeded two that did not come up, and had 12 others to take to work.

Seeding to seedling came sooner than I expected for this batch.  I was busy on Monday at work, but I would have time Tuesday morning to take some of our early-arriving clients out to plant before classes started, so I pushed it 2 days longer than the seedlings would have preferred.  They were all more than as tall as the tube already and flopping over, but I felt they were still viable.

Then this morning came.  Well, someone called in sick so I had to cover their job coaching duties that morning, and I had my own duties that afternoon.  My boss said I was the only one that could, though I am well aware there was at least one other that could have if they wanted.  I told her about the sunflowers and how they had to get in the ground that day, and it fell on deaf ears.

This was personal to me.  I had planned this all spring (and they knew that), used my own time and resources, and looked forward to sharing these with the clients all summer.

Never again.  Never again will I donate any extra time or resources for this job.

I like the work we do, I personally like most of the people I work with - including management, and of course the clients are (mostly) great.  But this truly may be the most poorly managed place I ever worked.

I don't talk about my work much here.  It's mostly like any other place, with cliques and favoritism and gossip.  Whiners, slackers and assholes are everywhere.  (If I had to put myself in one of those categories it would be the latter.)  I was hoping to ride this out, but I feel I should find something else soon.  The only real hesitation to resigning is health insurance for me and my wife.  Even a one month gap could cost us several hundreds to a thousand dollars to remain insured, and it would more likely be 2-3 months that we would have to cover.  Healthcare in America is tied to full time employment, is rapidly declining, and the insurance system that supports it is rigged only to make money.  (As I write this I requested prescription renewals a week ago Friday.  I received a response on Tuesday to allow 48 to 72 hours.  Here it is a week after that and I've not heard anything yet.)

Anyway, I came home to a tangled box of seedlings that should have been in the ground days ago.  I got them all in the ground around here, someplace or another, but I'm sure not all will make it.

Yes, I could have waited another day or two and planted them at work and hoped for the best.  I  could plant another batch and try again in just over a week, too.  But no - just, no.  They knew, and that time has now passed.  My time for them may have now passed, too.  Believe me, this is not my first complaint.

Thanks for making it to the end of my rant.  I even got a good one in on healthcare there.  This weekend I'll take stock of the sunflowers and report back how many are still alive and how many I think will make it to maturity.  Thanks for listening, take care.

Spring Vacation Part II, Ring Cameras & Hail Update

Tuesday and Wednesday, days 7 and 8, I had dental appointments in the mornings.  See day 1 notes last post for all the dental details.  After the root canal on Tuesday I went home, and as I was driving down the street the neighbor's cat wandered out right in front of me, oblivious, as was her owner just on the sidewalk.  I stopped right behind the cat, waited a moment, then gave the horn a quick beep.  The cat scattered out of the roadway and I pulled into the driveway.  Next thing I know, this neighbor was coming down my driveway, flipping me off and swearing up a storm.  I started yelling back that her cat was in the damn road, but my mouth was still numb so didn't say a whole lot more other than to get the hell off my property.  This is the same neighbor that slashed my tire right after we first moved in, in 2009.  She's trash that's come into money and acts like she's the baddest bitch on the block.  We've never been friendly and we never will be.

We have dashcams in both cars now, more security for us.

I told the story to my wife and showed her the dashcam video.  My wife said that's it, we need a doorbell camera.  I spent that day and Wednesday researching and we bought a Ring doorbell and I got a Ring spotlight camera with solar panel for the back.  The doorbell camera I installed last weekend, and the later-arriving solar panel and spotlight camera were installed on the house this morning.  I must say, having the extra security feels pretty good.  Otherwise, I didn't do a whole lot on these dental days.

Thursday was day 9.  I know I took too long to write about all this; I haven't the foggiest idea what I did on Thursday.  There were many little jobs and projects that I did along the way, so I imagine a few of those and probably lunch out.

Friday, day 10, I had to go into work.  Ahead of time I had requested a certain client for a community outing, and we spent all day out and about, only going back in time for him to catch his bus.  I did not want to lose my vacation vibe yet, especially with a three day weekend after.

Kate had to work the weekend due to the holiday, so we missed my niece's high school graduation on Saturday, day 11.  Also on Saturday I planted 24 more sunflower seeds.  I'll plant 12 to fill in around the yard here and the other 12 I'm going to make some cages for and take them to work, we'll see how they fare there.  I originally planned on all 24 going to work but that seemed a bit ambitious and would take more of my own resources.  Twelve is much better than the two (of 3) I grew at work last year.  We'll have to find out if the critters out there will behave.  This new batch of seeds just popped out of the soil on Wednesday so should be ready to plant very soon.

Sunday and Monday, days 12 and 13, were mostly rest and relaxation as far as I can remember.  

A great view of the back.  The actual view extends about 25% further up and down, this pic is the size of my phone screen.

No fire pits on this vacation.  I had a couple opportunities but mostly it was too windy or I was too tired.  Last night would have been perfect too, but I was beat, and tonight is too windy again.  So far this year I've only had the one fire on the Spring equinox.  Let's hope I have another before the Summer solstice and before the mosquitoes emerge.

*          *     Hail     *         *

Also happening during this time, our auto claim for hail damage got settled.  The insurance company totaled my wife's van as the repairs would cost more than it was worth.  The settlement was for blue book value if we signed the van over to them, or the lesser trade-in value if we wanted to keep it.  Well, even used cars are much more expensive these days, so my wife opted to keep the van rather than hurriedly shop for cars and invest thousands more dollars, possibly tens of thousands.  We'll have to get the windshield replaced, but the dents will stay.  Final payment should be in our account by early next week.

The house claim has also mostly been settled.  Now I will have to fix the basement window, find someone to replace the roof and gutters, and we have to decide if we will have the window flashing replaced.  I am not planning on replacing the siding as those dents are not as noticeable and when we do replace some siding we'll do the whole house and maybe something a little different.  There also may be a few window screens to replace, and I think that's about it.  Once all is done and receipt copies uploaded, this will be done, too.  Repairs are happening rapidly all over this side of town, but I've been more patient.  All will be done long before winter.

And within the last two weeks we had our insurance premiums due for house and cars.  They did go up, but I'm not sure if the claims had anything to do with that or not.  What do you think?

Spring Vacation Part I

I took my spring vacation recently, 12 of 13 days in a row off from work.  I was unable to get last Friday off due to seniority and poor scheduling practices (in my opinion).  I had several possible projects planned for this vacation, but only got to some.  Others will still get done, hopefully before my fall vacation.

As I noted here, day 1 of my vacation, two weeks ago today, I had made a dental appointment with my dentist due to a crowned tooth starting to give me discomfort.  That resulted in a referral appointment the following Tuesday for a possible root canal.  Of course, I needed one, and they expected that so it was done that day.  Once home, and no longer numb, I called my dentist again to schedule having this old crown replaced.  They had an opening the next morning, so I took it.  I now have a temporary crown on the root-canalled tooth, due for replacing with the permanent crown a week from today.  This was probably better to do on my time off so using up less time off from work for three appointments, and I'm actually happy it went so quickly.  One more appointment to go, and for that I will only miss an hour of work at the end of the day.  Anyway, dental appointments were the main event for a couple of days the next week.

Day 1, after the dentist and before leaving for Mom's.  In the bucket is cat grass starting, then lettuce seeds my wife is starting in tubes, and 30 sunflower seedlings ready to plant.

Also on day 1, after the appointment, I took a trip down to see Mom.  We got a few spring things done for her and her household, but mostly relaxed and caught up.  She seems to keep busy with appointments, graduations and her social life.  And she seems happy, which is as much as I could ask for.  I returned to Madison about midday the following day, day 2.  

Later on day 2 my wife and I planted 30 sunflower seedlings around the yard in groups of two and mostly three, you can read and see more about that here.  It didn't take long for them to get noticed.  Just days later about half had been destroyed by critters despite being caged.  Whether it was a baby rabbit, ground squirrel or something else digging in to get them, they sure did a number on my seedlings this spring.  More on this later.

Friday, day 3, I had a 90 minute massage booked.  This is the third time I've gotten a professional massage on my vacation in the last couple years.  It was very nice, but I think 60 minutes is better.  All that time on my stomach getting massaged caused my sinuses to fill up and made breathing difficult.  An unwelcome distraction.  Of course, 5 minutes after getting up I was clear as a bell.  I don't remember what else happened on that day, but I likely went out to lunch and relaxed with a Brewers game that evening.

Saturday, day 4, was Plant Day around here.  My wife and I went out and got some plants for the flowerbeds and gardens.  You can read and see more about that here, if you wish.  I believe it was this weekend, with Sunday, day 5, that I paid more attention to the lawn, too.  Last year I had the lawn aerated, basically a last ditch effort to get better grass in front - it didn't help.  I pretty much gave up on the front lawn now.  Oh, I've made broad chemical efforts to maintain some decency, but I will no longer worry about fighting back the neighborhood's weeds too much.  The back yard, however, is more protected and will continue to get more care.  The latest problem is one of the groundcover wildflowers wanting to spread from the stump area.  I will need to spend some time on it again soon.  And yes, spray weeds individually.

Then on Monday, day 6, my wife and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary with a nice dinner out and some ice cream at home.  It was only a Monday and she had to work that day, so that was about all we were up for.  I do believe it was also this day I spent the morning making a double batch of yummy flatbread.

The weather was pretty wonderful for this vacation.  I did get plenty of rest, relaxation, and went out for food and drink often, but that's pretty normal for us.  I do have more to say about the week that followed, but at a later time.  Cheers for now.

Plant Day 2026

Plant day isn't as big here as it used to be, but it is still an annual occasion.  We were thinking of planting some of these red plants directly into the stump, but the stump is infested with ants so just a couple pots.  That's about all we're going to do in that area except wait and see what wildflowers return.  Already we can see we'll have cone flowers all around the stump.

We got another attractive hanging plant for the front.  This one seemed small and healthy, and will hopefully last all summer again.

More of that red plant made it into a pot out front, along with a couple other flowers picked out by my wife.  In the big pot we got a similar plant as we had there the last few years.

In the gardens, two pepper plants join the few garlic that survived the mild fall; the others rotted in the ground.  Also two tomato plants in the top right.  Same as last year, I believe, so may become monsters requiring the old ladder and bird netting later in the season.  Lettuce will eventually fill the bottom left garden, while we wait and see what we'll get for raspberries this year.

Aside from all the planting, the grill got cleaned, windows washed and back steps are now power-washed for sealing soon.  A productive day for us, overall.  Tonight we'll grill out some wieners for dinner and I'll be watching the Brewer game.  Kate has to work tomorrow, so I'll be picking more projects from my list to keep me busy.  I'll also need to make more baguette, tortillas, flatbread and taco sauce very soon.

Sunflowers Planted & Starting Vacation

We planted 30 sunflower seedlings today, 6 more than last year.  The seeds were planted 12 days ago and were already as tall as the tubes they were planted in.  In fact, they could have gone in the ground yesterday or the day before, but for time and our schedules.  Kate did the hard, low work of planting while I prepared areas and cages.  The dead sunflower from last year that was out front by the bird feeder is now gone, much to the birds' dismay.  We planted 3 new ones there, 15 in the area behind the steps by the air conditioner, 2 on the outside side of the steps, 2 in a pot by the garage, 3 by the wood rack, 2 on the back corner of the garage, and 3 by the compost bin.  All pictured after the break.

You will see two small gnomes in these pics.  One that was supposed to be by the compost sunflowers broke, and two others are not pictured in the stump area.

Yesterday was my first day of vacation this year.  I had a dentist appointment in the morning, which resulted in a referral for a possible root canal on Tuesday.  After that I trekked to Dodgeville to see Mom for a nice visit and to get a few spring chores done.  I came back about midday today and Kate and I planted sunflowers, and now I'm writing this and watching the Brewers game, a bit tape delayed for my enjoyment.  There is a night market downtown tonight that we were planning on going to, but are now having second thoughts.

Tomorrow morning I have a relaxing 90 minute massage booked.  I'll have to mow the lawn, power wash the steps to get ready to stain/seal, and take my wife's van in for a hail inspection at the body shop.  Depending on the information I get, we will decide how much work to get done.  Saturday we plan on plant shopping, so some more planting to be done yet.  Then on Sunday I may get to rest fully before considering my lengthy to-do list for the week ahead.

It's good to be busy when you have the time for it, but I'm looking forward to plenty of time with my feet up, too.

Sunflower seedlings after the break: