Gonna be a hot one!

Yesterday was errand day. I did miss the window for walking, and it didn’t cool down enough to walk last night. I’m thinking I am going to have to change my schedule around some. I don’t like to get dressed without having a shower, so I may have to change that to showering at night and just getting up and walking before I do anything else, including computer time. So I might be writing later in the day, at least for the summer. I don't like walking when it is over 80 degrees.

I had another screwed up night last night so I missed this morning’s walking window as well. I really need to get that figured out. We hit 102 yesterday and it is supposed to be warmer today. It was already 90 degrees at 8 AM. I’m trying to adapt. 

I didn’t do much other than errands yesterday. Got my laundry done, went to the post office and DG. Then stopped at Sal’s. Picked up a few things there. Came back, had lunch and took a nap. The heat makes me want to sleep during the day. Too bad I can’t make that work for me at night. I also read a book. 

It is going to be an indoor day today. I have stuff I want to do outside, but it will be too warm and I have a bunch of stuff I need to do indoors anyway that I have been putting off while I could still work outside. At some point I need to get to Parker and get a new AZ drivers license. But will probably wait until next week when it is a bit cooler. I would hate to break down in temps like this. I do carry water everywhere I go. And I should start keeping a gallon in the car. Warm water is better than no water.

Hoping to get a little more done on my basket today. It is still too quiet in the house. I turned on the TV for a little while during the day yesterday, but I hate daytime TV. There wasn’t anything to watch. Maybe I will get a movie going while I work on the basket today. I have a bunch of apples that need to be cooked and should clean out the fridge. Plus a bunch of piddly little things. Vacuum, wash the floor, etc.

Found this lying beside the shed this morning...

Rabbit?

Well, that is about all I have this morning. I haven’t made anything in days, and it is too hot to work outside, but I have something in mind for the side of the shed, and can’t wait until it is cooler so I can try it. 

Time for breakfast and to get myself moving. 

Last of the mortar

Getting a late start this morning. It is going to be a hot one. We hit 99 yesterday, and it was already 94 by 10:30 when I wrapped up the last of the outdoor mortar projects. I did the last side of the shed, lets see the critters dig under now…and then I made a “hearth” for the chiminea. I really could have used more mortar pieces, but is good enough for now. I will keep my eyes open for some free chunky fill. It looks pretty good if I do say so myself. It looks like it is up against the fence, but it is actually a couple of feet away from it. Further than the one in IP was from the cedar fence. Should be good. I always keep the hose handy when I burn anything anyway.

That pretty much wrapped up my day. I settled in to read for a little while, but decided to take a nap. Moved indoors in front of my little swamp cooler and slept most of the afternoon. I woke up once after an hour or so, but couldn’t get myself to wake up so I gave up and went back to sleep. Then I finished my book, had a cold dinner and watched some TV. I really needed the sleep. I was up at 1 for a couple of hours, but went back to sleep around 3:30 and slept until 6. 

I did the big block walk yesterday, a little over a mile and a quarter, and got my trumpet vine cuttings. I’m getting such a late start this morning that I won’t be walking far. It is also chore day, laundry, garbage, post office, DG, and Salvation Army. The earlier the better. Then I will get all the sun shades and tire covers back on the car. I wish I didn’t have to do that, but it is just way too hot to leave it undressed. I really have to figure something out about that. Not sure if Ralph is coming to work on the patio today or not. Might be too hot.

One of today’s projects, if it isn’t too hot, is to disassemble KC’s crate and recycle it into wall racks in the shed. I am going to use the tray as a potting tray. It fits perfectly on the outside work bench. The shed has pegboard, but I hate pegboard, the hooks always fall out when you take something down. There is one wall that needs a rack of some sort and the crate will be perfect.

I saw one of the feral cats in the yard this morning at the bird feeder. The birds didn’t seem to even notice it even tho the cat was in the wide open. These birds aren’t that smart. I guess there aren’t a lot of natural preditors in these parks. Must be why there are so many of them. 

Well, it is after 8 already. By the time I get showered and dressed it will be too late to walk very far. Maybe around the little block. It will be better than nothing. 

Wrap up two projects, add three more...

I checked off several more projects off my list yesterday, and added several new ones. Isn’t that the way it goes? I got the solar panel up on the shed roof, and did it and the solar chandelier without putting any holes in the roof or a trip to the hardware store. If I wasn’t going to mount the panel with bolts, I needed something to keep it from blowing away in the wind. I ended up using the rack that I put on the back of the car to carry the scooter. The thing weighs about a hundred pounds, and won’t go anywhere. I also lashed it to the shed guy wires both front and back. It should be good. The chandelier has a concrete paver holding it in place. We’ll see how long that works. That is also attached to the shed guy wire.

I had a hell of a job getting the scooter rack on the roof, it took me a while because it is really heavy and I was lifting it over my head. I didn’t think I was going to be able to do it, but I managed. Once I got that done, I raked out the pea gravel in the back of the shed and recycled some more of the wall mortar pieces, raked the gravel back over and moved the steel shelf to the back of the shed. My recycling baskets are on one of the shelves and miscellaneous stuff on the others. The patio looks so much better without that shelf, plus I needed it’s space to be able to walk around that outside corner once the shade cloth goes up. 

I was just cleaning up my mess when Pam and Ralph arrived. He brought sand and got the brick laid out in place. All we need now is fresh mortar and the bricks to be mortared in, and that project will be done. 

While I was cleaning up stuff on the patio, I decided to toss the bulbs that Leslie had given me a while back. They weren’t doing anything. I wasn’t hopeful when I planted them, but when I pulled them out of the soil, some of them had started roots! So I bummed a pot off Vicki so I wouldn’t have to go buy one, and repotted them in a real pot and set them out. Will be interesting to see what they finally do. My willow seeds haven’t done anything yet. I’m thinking they aren’t going to. So I need to go get a couple of cuttings. I still want the trumpet vine cuttings too. We’ll see how ambitious I am at walk time this morning. I can get at least one of them.

Today’s project(s) is to finish using up the mortar pieces. I still have one side of the shed that needs to be done, and I have decided that I will make a base for the chiminea with the rest of it. I’m going to put a half circle by the far side fence a little ways up from the bird feeders and put the chiminea there. I have to say, the yard is looking pretty good. Once the patio extension is done, I will need to get a couple of pavers and put in a low step on the front end. If I know me, I will be using the roll up section as the door way, and a step will be required at the end. I’m saving all the indoor projects for when it is too hot to work outside. 

My hip isn’t happy this morning. A little worse than yesterday, but surprisingly, my back seems to be ok. I really do need to walk tho. And I need to get the scooter out and take a ride, but I have been so busy with other things. Soon I won’t be able to go outside for any length of time, it will just be too hot. 

No jewelry creations yesterday. So much for my goal of making something 5 days a week. But I will try again when the big projects are finished and I can slow down a little. I am considering what I am going to make next. Maybe my copper sun for the shed. 

Well, I need to get moving. It will warm up fast this morning and I have to walk today. 

Every day is busy

My back hurts this morning, in the same place where I had that pulled muscle when I left VT. I guess I’m not walking enough. Walking has been hit or miss for the last couple of weeks. I either have something going on, or I miss the walkable temp window. This morning it is coffee at the club house. But at least I will walk up there and back. I would have walked to the restaurant on Saturday, but it was supposed to rain and was gusting winds. 

It has been a while since I have used my scanner. I wanted to scan the two booklets that Pam left with me, so I needed to set up this computer to scan. I had to use a cord, it wouldn’t do it wirelessly. But I got that running and scanned both booklets. That took a while, they were about 50 pages each. I also got a little more done on my basket. It is very slow going. I am about half way around the first side so it should start looking like a basket soon. I’m going to ask Pam about putting my dragonflies in resin. See what she would charge me if she is willing to do it for me. One is from Belfast and the other is from Magnolia Beach.

I took one of the three stick in the ground brass candle holders and turned it into a holder for my sun dial. The other two hold solar lights by the gate. I think I have had the sun dial since Cumberland. One of the few things that has made it thru the years. I also put the rain gauge on it, but may move that since the sun dial is above it and will block some of the rain. Thinking I will drill a hole in the dead wood and stick it in there, out in the open where it will be more effective.

Yesterday I laid the brick out in the pattern that I want up on the edge of the patio. I hope Ralph carries that thru for me. He isn’t a pro and I don’t expect perfection, so we will see how he does. He is coming back this morning to prep for the sand, and then it will be time to start mortaring them in. I will be happy when that phase of the patio project is done. I’m also hoping it isn’t going to cost me an arm and a leg. I am happy that I decided to take out the wall. I wasn’t one hundred percent sure I wanted to. Wasn’t sure what it would do to the landscape. But it has opened things up a lot and I will end up with a larger patio. And the section outside the shade cloth will be useable instead of unusable space.

I took one of my wrought iron plant hooks and put it in the vise and put a quarter turn on one of the hooks so it will lie flat on the shed roof, now I just need to figure out how to attach it, and I will have a hanger for the older solar chandelier. I’m thinking two u-bolts... It will hang over the bench without obstructing the opening and closing of the door.  Maybe I will just tie it to the shed tie downs so I won't have to put extra holes in the roof. I also looked at the solar panel and am trying to figure out how to attach that to the roof. I would like that to be removable because if I get another rig, I am going to want to use it when I travel. But I also need it to be secure enough to withstand the wind that we have here. I don't need it to turn into a kite. Will be nice to have that up and out of the way tho. Right now it is sitting on a stand in the middle of the yard and the black cables run into the shed. I will have to re-run the cable too so that it comes in from the top instead of the bottom. A project for this week. Like I need another… :)

At some point I want to redo the solar fountain. Get a larger basin for it so it will hold more water and dig that into the ground and then add a waterfall of some sort. I have the glass globes from the chandelier I took down in the kitchen and would like to work a couple of those in somehow. Still trying to figure that out. Copper pipe maybe.

Could I have crammed any more into the day?

Wow, what a day yesterday! I got started on the little section in front of the shed, raked up the pea gravel and relocated it to the left of the shed walk way where I kept turning my ankle. Nice to have that fixed. Once I got all the gravel out of that spot (or all that I could get), I moved about a third of the mortar pieces, all that wasn’t in boxes, and then took the hammer and broke them up into smaller pieces. Wedged a few under the edge of the shed and filled in the spot. Then I raked up more pea gravel and covered the mortar pieces with that. The storage bench is now in that spot and looks pretty good. Just about the time I was finishing that up, Pam and Ralph arrived. 

While Ralph was removing the final layer of brick, Pam got me started on a pine needle basket. I had been wanting to learn how to do that and was on my list of things to do for the summer. I was going to just take her class, but she isn’t having one until fall. I got a pretty good start on it yesterday. I worked on it last night while I watched TV until I lost the light. This morning I ordered an Ikea floor lamp so I can work on stuff like that in my chair. I would have continued, but couldn’t see what I was doing. I want to do some more on it today.

It is very slow work. What little you see there is about two hours, but I am just a beginner too.

After Pam and Ralph left, I had lunch and then proceeded to clean up the mess from the wall. Moved both boxes of mortar pieces, which was a challenge because they were quite heavy, and the few pieces of brick that were left over. Ralph had laid out the brick to see how far it would go. We can get five rows which will give me a little over two more feet on the patio, the full length. Nice. I have to rake out the pea gravel so it can be reused when the brick work is done. By the time I finished cleanup, it was time to go get my Bountiful Basket, and then meet some of the ladies at the Mtn Quail Cafe for an early dinner. I don’t think I could have squeezed much more into the day. 

He just laid it out straight, but it is going to have a pattern.

My dinner wasn’t very good. I got a burger and fries. It was a pre packaged burger with a crappy flavor and I didn’t even finish it. I did like the fries tho. I have eaten there twice and haven’t been impressed either time. Will have to try their breakfast at some point and hope that it is better. So it cost me $15 for a burger and fries, including the tip. Since when does a burger and fries cost $15? So far, the Grubsteak burger has been the best, and it had a lot more fries with it.

We had had a special weather alert a couple of days ago for last night, then it disappeared. I guess it showed back up late yesterday and I missed it. All hell broke loose starting with gusty winds in the afternoon, and then a thunderstorm around 8. I was sound asleep and was woken up at 10 by round two. It was pretty intense. That is only the second time it has rained since I moved in. I didn’t get my rain gauge out, so I don’t know how much we got. At one point, before the first round of rain, I felt the whole building shudder with the wind. It was a bit scary. We get a lot of wind out here, but not like that.

My Bountiful Basket consisted of corn on the cob, acorn squash, broccoli, cukes, romain, onions, bananas, a melon, mangoes, apples and potatoes. I was disappointed there were no tomatoes, so I will have to go buy some.

About the only thing I have to do today is move the brick and rake away the gravel to be reused. I would like to get the solar panel moved and figure out how to hang the chandelier on the shed. I guess I am going to have to get a wall mounted plant hanger for that. Which will have to wait until the hardware store is open tomorrow. I just took down the giant thermometer that is unusable because the clear plastic has yellowed and you can’t see thru it anymore. It was ugly anyway. I would love to get a metal sun to put in it’s place. Even better, I will make one out of copper. :) Hmmmm…..Gonna have to think about that. 

Well, it is time to get some breakfast and get this day started. This will be the last cool day, so I want to get the physical work done today if I can. Supposed to be in the 100’s by Wednesday or Thursday.

The wall is gone

Yesterday didn’t turn out as expected. No walk, no creating. After I got showered and dressed I went to town and did my errands. I had a couple of packages and a certified letter at the post office, had to go to the hardware store, and went to a continuous yard sale I had been seeing postings for. Had to be back by 11 because Pam and Ralph were coming over and Ralph was going to take a stab at removing the wall. 

I got a stool for $3 at the yard sale, a couple of books and a tile soap dish. Not sure where the soap dish is going to end up, but it was free, as were the books. The stool I had originally gotten for the workshop is now at the outside work bench, so I needed another for the shop.  I got back and got all the stuff put away and took pictures of the patio and outdoors before I moved stuff off and away from the wall. Ralph started on the wall and the bricks came out fairly easily. The mortar let go with a few taps and a chisel and actually came off the brick smoothly. There were a few that needed to be cleaned up, but that didn’t take long either. He had the short wall down in about a half hour. I watched what he was doing and after he left, I finished the rest of the wall myself. I took it all the way down to the bottom layer and will let him do that today. I’m going to break up and recycle the mortar pieces around the bottom of the shed. There are bunny holes that need to be filled and am hoping it will keep them and other critters from going underneath.

This morning I need to rake the pea gravel away from the patio and from in front of the shed for reuse. I’m hoping the physical activity will compensate for not walking. It looks a lot different without the wall. I want the new brick edging to look like it was designed that way. Will have to lay a few out, see how far we can go with it, and see what it will look like. I did get photos, but haven’t downloaded them from the camera yet. 

Once I get the new fill in by the shed, I am going to move the storage bench to in front of the shed and put my mexican cat and geraniums on that. One of the solar chandeliers will hang over that, just have to figure out how I am going to do that so I can still open the shed door. I am also going to move the solar panel to the shed roof and get it out of the middle of the yard. Not sure if that will be today or not. I am going to lash it down to the shed guy wires instead of putting holes in the shed roof. Should be fairly easy…key word being “should”. As for the bench, I will find something I don’t use a lot to store in in since it isn’t quite big enough for the bird seed, it’s intended purpose. Freeing up a little bit of space in the shed will be a bonus. I'm still having a hard time finding things I need. Unpacking as I need them, if I can find them.

As much as I miss Kali Cat and wish she were here, there are definite pluses to being pet free. I don’t have to vacuum daily, and I don’t have to feed her before my eyes are even open at 3:30 in the morning, fewer trips to the dumpster, and my dinner is just that - my dinner. 

Vicki brought me some beef stew last night and that is what I had for dinner. The timing was great, after bending over and moving bricks for a couple of hours, I did not feel like cooking. It was also very good. 

I picked up some copper pipe at the hardware store yesterday. I want to try and make a wider bangle. Will be trying to solder with copper solder instead of soft solder. But it won’t be today. I am so glad I got my rolling mill. It has reduced hammering considerably.Now I only have to hammer for a little bit of shaping and texture. My shoulder is very happy about that.

I got my ceiling fan ordered for the bedroom finally. Not sure when I will actually get to Yuma to do some shopping. I will be needing the fan very soon. I use the one in the living room almost constantly.

I have a nice big blister on the base of my right index finger from using Jake’s framing hammer yesterday. I guess I should use a different hammer today so I don’t irritate the blister too much.  It was sore last night, but this morning it has raised. The work wasn’t too hard, but was done in a bent over position. My shoulder isn’t bad surprisingly. I expected it to be worse and my hands to be numb. I’ll probably fix that today with breaking up the mortar pieces. There is a lot of mortar, so I am going to have to try to recycle as much as possible because I don’t know how or where to get rid of it. I can put a few pieces in the dumpster, but not three large boxes of it. 

I got a somewhat decent night’s sleep last night. I went to bed around 9ish, woke up at 11:30, was up for a while. Went back to bed around 1:30 and slept until 5. That is the best night I have had in a while. I’ll take it. Maybe I’m starting a new trend. I hope so. I didn’t cut off my fluids at 7, it is just too dry here and I was thirsty. But will try again tonight. 

I have decided to save some money and just use mixed bird seed. I had been buying black oil, but when I went to feed the birds yesterday, the sunflower seed container was full of ants. Not going to deal with that. The birds empty both feeders equally as fast, so they don’t seem to care. The mourning doves here are the equivalent of blue jays in VT. They will eat anything and go for the big stuff first. The cat food is the first thing to disappear, then the bunny food. They seem to be eating the cheap cat food just as fast as the expensive stuff I had left from KC. I can probably find even less expensive food at a bigger store. Small price to pay for entertainment.

Well, I guess I should get myself moving. I don’t know what time Pam and Ralph are coming over and it is already after 7. I need to get showered and dressed and do my morning chores. 

I guess we aren’t getting the severe weather that had been predicted the alert has been taken down and there is no rain in the forecast for today. I am going to leave the house open today as it is only supposed to hit 80. Next week it is predicted to be over 100. Will have to find something indoors to do then. My portable swamp cooler seems to be working to keep the humidity near normal indoors. Don’t know if it is helping with the AC or not, but moisture is a definite plus. 

Plenty to do

Another late start this morning and another bad night last night. Not sure what is going on, but I am running on about four hours sleep and have been for days. I sleep for an hour, have to go to the bathroom, sleep for another hour or so, then the bathroom again, and by then I’m done. Can’t get back to sleep. I guess I am going to have to have a water cutoff in the evening and see if that helps. Doesn’t help that I am also hungry in the middle of the night. I don’t usually do anything about that, just try to deal with it. But this all makes for very long days, especially if I can’t nap which I haven’t been able to do most days. 

Lets see…..yesterday I walked after J&S came to confirm the installation requirements for the shade cloth on the patio. I had someone else come look at the wall and I guess I am going to do it myself. It won’t be as nice, but will cost a lot less. I made two pieces yesterday to compensate for the day before when I didn’t make any. I potted up the annual seeds that I got, and a few other piddly things done. After lunch I tried to nap, but failed. So I read.

The patio shade cloth enclosure will be installed two weeks from yesterday. I need to have the wall down and reconfigured by then. Or at least the short wall. I’m shooting for the whole thing and am planning on starting the demo work later today. It is supposed to be cool for a couple of days, perfect for that kind of work. I want to get some pictures before I start tho. And I need to make my piece for the day before I start on the wall. In the interest of time, I am going to do a bead piece instead of copper. Will work some more copper next week. I have to go to the hardware store and get bird seed, and I want to get a couple of feet of bigger copper pipe to play with next week. I want to make some wider bracelets.

I am going to have to figure out new places to hang the solar chandeliers and how to hang the triangle sun shade. I want to keep them all, but the new enclosure will prevent me from hanging them where they are. They will all need to be on the outside of the enclosure. The sail cloth will be easy enough, but am not sure about the chandeliers since they need to be away from the wall. More things to figure out. 

Well, I guess I need to get moving. I have to go to the post office today, I have several packages there and hopefully the title to my place. Got a phone call the other day and they were going to send it out certified mail from Parker, so it should be there. No idea why it took so long, almost three months. For a car you get it the same day as registration. 

Stars and Stripes Necklace

https://squareup.com/market/critters-and-creations/stars-and-stripes-ne


SOLD!

Lapis Fish Necklace and Earrings

https://squareup.com/market/critters-and-creations/lapis-fish-necklace-earrings-se

SOLD!

Mother's Day is coming!

Mother's Day is coming! Don't forget you can buy directly from our website... 
https://squareup.com/market/critters-and-creations
New items being added regularly.

Recycled Copper Bracelet

Check out Recycled Copper Bracelet BR45 on http://mkt.com/critters-and-creations/recycled-copper-bracelet-br

SOLD!

Rustic Locket

http://mkt.com/critters-and-creations/rustic-locket-ne

A very long night

Was a really long night as I was up most of it. If I could manage NOT to fall asleep in front of the TV, I might have a better chance of sleeping at night. But I don’t think that is going to happen any time soon. Up at 10:30, again at 12:30, and then finally at 2:30. I kept trying to go back to sleep, but if I got any, it was that light dreaming sleep where you get up feeling more tired than you did when you lay down. I don’t think I will ever catch up. The only time I slept well at all in the last 20 years is when I took Benadryl every night, and that blew my blood pressure off the scale. 

Got an early (sort of) walk yesterday morning. I actually left the park and did one of my around the block walks, almost a mile and a half. I gathered some yellow trumpet vine seed while I was out and about, and I am going to try to get a cutting the next time. My desert willow seeds haven’t done anything yet, but it has only been about a week. I have high hopes.

Got out to the shed and pressed another quarter and finished up the rustic quarter locket. I soldered a bird charm on the front of this one. Torch soldering is much faster and much easier, I’m liking it. I think I am going to have to invest in a jewelry torch instead of using the big plumbing torch I have. After I finished that, I dug out my shells and some white jade beads and started the ankle bracelet. Just waiting on the measurements to finish it up. I don’t know how well the shells will hold up, but it is worth a try. I did that work on the patio work bench where it was a bit cooler and had a breeze.

Vicki was headed to Blythe to the vet with her little dog and asked me if I wanted to ride along. So I did. We stopped at Smart and Final and I picked up the things on my grocery list, got to stop at Dollar Tree. The Dollar Tree here is huge! I want to go back when I have more time to look around. So I have my first foray out of town under my belt and I didn’t even have to drive. I didn’t buy anything in the way of fruit and veggies because I ordered a Bountiful Basket this week. Was going to buy some tomatoes, but got distracted by something and didn’t get any. Took me forever to find the rice cakes, but I finally did. I don’t know if they moved them or if I just remember wrong. Should be able to go right to them next time.

No nap yesterday. Came back and got stuff put away. I cooked my burger so I won’t have to cook for a couple of meals. Had a big salad with blue cheese and burger. Was good. Watermelon for dessert. Of course I was hungry by midnight, that was part of my sleep issue. I think the other part is that I had a crying jag set off again. My neighbor Be a lost her remaining son yesterday. Both of them to cancer. I had to go over and see her, and that set me off. She is all alone now. Husbands and sons all gone. :( No other family.

I picked up a package of paper lunch bags at the dollar store for my seed saving. They store better in paper than plastic. Also easier to organize.

This morning I added my two new pieces to my shopping cart. Not sure what I am going to make today, maybe another lapis flower set. I still have the red coral I bought before xmas too. Maybe something in red, white and blue. Gotta start selling stuff.

Oh, I picked up a summer job. It pays pennies, but it is a start. I will be riding the park every morning, or walking it depending upon the temps, and monitoring the watering system to make sure all the park trees are getting their water. Like I said, it doesn’t pay much, but maybe it will work into something else at some point. But that also means I won’t be able to go anywhere. So that forces the Ody decision. Not going to bother to register her. If I go anywhere, I can car camp for short periods of time. I have just about everything I need for that and the car is big enough. 

This morning before I head out to the work shop I need to go to the post office, DG and Salvation Army. Sal’s summer hours are Mon - Wed, 8 to 1. So if I want to go, it has to be this morning. Hoping DG still has that other bird feeder, would like to get that changed. Gonna have to buy more seed since the doves are going thru it so fast. I still haven’t put out the seed block. 

Well, I guess that is it for this morning. It is not supposed to be as warm today, but  we have some humidity and it is already hazy. So if I am going to walk, I need to do it soon. Tomorrow morning the J&S Covers guy will be here to remeasure and get that going. And I am not feeling my best this morning. Stomach is kind of funky. But I will be fine.  Just need to get moving. Plus my back is hurting this morning. 

I made a bracelet

Got the estimate for enclosing the patio….$2500. OUCH! But I think I am going to go ahead and do it. I have absolutely NO outdoor privacy, and I really hate that. I have people walking by and driving by all day, and each and every one of them has to wave or say hello. Which is fine, but there are days I don't feel like being sociable, and half the time I'm in my jammies. :(  But to lower the cost some, I am going to have to change two of the panels from rollups to permanent installation. It is probably better that way anyway. I’m thinking about removing that low wall and recycling the bricks into a patio border. I have to keep stepping over the wall and from what I can see, it serves no purpose except ornamentation. Although, if I pay someone, it won’t have saved me the money for the two less roll up panels. Maybe I can do it myself. I can at least demo it myself, if not recycling the bricks. I will live with it a while longer and maybe make that a winter project. So, privacy or floors? I can’t do both. I have floors, so I think I am going to go for privacy…it will create a whole extra room.

Anyway, I actually got out into the shed yesterday and made something. I made a bracelet out of a piece of copper that I kept when I changed the kitchen sink faucet. I still have one piece and will probably make another. I got to use my rolling mill, my vise, and I soldered with propane for the first time. I also pressed a quarter with the rolling mill. It was an experiment. And used my dapping set to make a dome. I’m thinking I will finish it off as a rustic locket like I made with the nickels before. I still have a few tools I haven’t tried yet, but I will get to them as I get going. The shed is still a mess, but I organized and moved some stuff around as I was working. It was HOT in the shed. I don’t know how much I will be able to work in the summer. I guess we will have to wait and see.

This is the bracelet I made and the materials that I made it from…

The solar power ran my grinder and tumbler just fine. :) I also had a fan running. While I had all my soldering stuff out, I soldered two more of my rings together. The one with the stones was constantly spinning, so now that it is soldered to the band, should spin a lot less. I had been wanting to do that for a while.

Spent the afternoon reading. When it hits 98 or so, it is time to stop. We hit 99 if not higher. I didn’t look to see.

There seems to be a few less mourning doves around. They really like the dry cat food I have been putting out so maybe I will continue to buy some cheap stuff just for them. They go for that before they go for the bunny pellets. I do need to get back to DG and get that other feeder if they still have it tho. They empty the new one in less than an hour.

Thinking about heading to Yuma tomorrow. It is time I got out of here for a day. I have been stuck here since I moved in and I no longer have to be here for Kali Cat. It is still very strange without her. I miss her. I wish she hadn’t gotten sick, she would still be here. Although if she hadn’t gotten sick, I probably wouldn’t have bought this place. We’ll never know. 

As I see other units in the park, I am still very happy with mine. It feels so much larger and open that the others I have been in. My living room is larger too. So I am still happy with it. If I could just get the shed organized. It is hard having the shed serve two purposes - storage shed and work shop, but maybe I will get that figured out at some point.

I want to make something again this morning. I am going to try to make something five mornings a week and start pushing my stuff online. Mother’s Day is coming and maybe I can sell some stuff. Would be nice to make enough money to buy food or pay the electric bill. At least my power tools won’t be adding to that. Not sure what I will make this morning, will figure it out when I get out there. Supposed to be cooler today by about 10 degrees.

A very quiet Sunday

Well, I didn’t do much yesterday. Got showered and dressed, piddled around changing the light bulbs in the outside lights, finally got the silverware drawer somewhat organized and a couple other little things done. Then I parked my butt in the chair on the patio and read all day. It was Sunday after all. Didn’t see or talk to anyone all day. Once again, too warm for a scooter ride. The high yesterday was 99 degrees and it hit it fairly early.

I did get a nap in the afternoon tho as I am still not sleeping all that well. I fall asleep in front of the TV for an hour or two, then I go to bed and sleep a couple of hours, and then am up the rest of the day. Needless to say, by noon time I am pretty much done moving around for the day.

I also did a little organizing in the bathroom. Moved the towels from inside the cupboard to the top of the cupboard, and in the process found my tube of eye moisturizer, so that will help my eyes out some. They are getting better each day. Crying for days and practically no humidity will do a number on sensitive skin.

This morning is Monday morning coffee and I have the guy coming to give me an estimate on enclosing the patio with shade cloth. I’m hoping it is affordable. A little privacy would be nice as well as some sun and wind block. After that, not sure what I will do. Maybe spend some time in the shed finally. We’ll see. Gotta start generating some income.

I can feel depression trying to creep in. With loosing Kali Cat and all the reminders of Jake, I seem to be backsliding to the place where I am asking “what’s the point?”. The sunshine is going a long way towards preventing the depression, but sometimes it just isn’t enough. I’m still looking for the cat when I come in the house, but it is more subtle than it was last week. I am not physically looking in her spots, it is more of a general look around and then I have to remind myself there is no cat. 

Other than that, all is well. I still haven’t made any plans to get out of here for any length of time. Just can’t seem to get myself jump started on that. I should go to Parker this week and get my license changed and see what it would cost me to change Ody’s registration. Not sure I can spring for that financially plus the actual cost of travel. But we’ll see.

Not much new

Was a pretty quiet day here yesterday. I did a little planting, a cactus or two and then started a couple of pots to replace KC’s kennel on the sliding door steps. The steps looked pretty freakin empty. I used the two red pots I had bought for the tomato plants, I can get more later as I need them. In those two pots I put the ice plant and two of the agave/bromeliad things Vicki gave me, so it is a good start. I do need at least one more thing to round out the pots, thinking a blooming annual of some sort. The rest of the day I read. Three books. Took pictures of the birds and bunnies. I wasn’t aware of it, but all the birds I have been calling mourning doves are actually four different kinds of doves. I saw a post online yesterday that made me look closer at mine. I had noticed some were smaller than the others, and I had picked out the collared doves, just didn’t realize there was white winged doves and another, smaller one as well.

The new bird feeder has to go, the base is big enough that the doves can land on it. I will have to go back and get the blue one just like the first one I got. I am not crazy over blue, but the birds could care less. Good thing they aren’t expensive. The base is small enough that the smaller birds don't have a problem, but the bigger birds do.

I gave away a few of the cactus and babies that Vicki gave me, so this morning I only have a few cactus paddles that I need to find a spot for. I also planted the agave shoot that I got the other day and this big section of cactus that I had. 

My eyes are starting to feel a little better. A little moisturizer goes a long way. Still not quite back to normal tho. I have pretty much stopped crying except when I talk about Kali Cat. I do still look for her in the house tho, just not as often. 

My neighbor Bea brought over a silk arrangement yesterday. It is quite pretty in a white pitcher. It is a sympathy arrangement. That was very nice of her. She’s the one that invited me to go to Mexico. 

Here are yesterday’s pics… https://plus.google.com/photos/118406578374225960662/albums/6139260778804191889

Gonna try again today to get out for a scooter ride. It was in the upper 90’s yesterday, so I didn’t go, but am feeling the need to get out of here for a little while.

A little progress

Yesterday wasn’t one of my more productive days, but I did get the bird patio done. Went back to DG and bought another bird feeder, this one smaller so the doves have a hard time landing on it. No more seed on the ground, I’m hoping if it is too difficult for them they will go away. Still haven’t put out the seed block. I want to see if I can get rid of the mourning doves first. I’m pleased with the bird patio. The birds and bunnies don’t seem to mind it and it will be much easier to clean up than the small rock that was there. I don’t know that the bunny feeder I ordered is really going to help anything, but it is worth a try. I might just give the doves an unlimited supply of pellets. The only other option is to stop feeding the critters for a week or two every so often and I really hate to do that.

Went over to Vicki’s yesterday to cut up her watermelon for her. She is still bandaged from her hand injury and you need both hands to butcher a watermelon. She was transplanting and gave me some cactus babies, agave type, and some ice plant. Now I need to find a pot to put on my sliding door step for a small garden. It looks naked without Kali Cat’s outdoor room. I have a fair amount of planting to do, the babies from Vicki and the cactus paddles that Glenn got for me the other day. The Naked Ladies lily bulbs that Leslie gave me were too far gone. They aren’t doing anything. I will have to toss them. 

I’m having a hard time with my eyes this week. Not sure if it is all the crying or the lack of humidity. Probably a combination of both. Picked up some artificial tears (like I really need more tears) and it seems to be helping. My sinuses are also unhappy with the lack of humidity. I set up the $3 humidifier I got at Sal’s last night, but it doesn’t work. It ran most of the night and the water level never changed. I had it on high and it should have been empty by now. I guess I will have to buy a new one. Might get a floor  model, I can put it where KC’s food dishes were. Close to the kitchen and easy to fill. Maybe a portable swamp cooler. That might help with the cooling bill this summer…

I am making progress. I can actually walk into the house about half the time now without physically looking for Kali Cat. And no tears unless I deliberately think about her and the fact that she is missing. Talking about her still sets me off though. It will take a while. 

I missed the cooler temp walking window yesterday, going to try and get an earlier start this morning. Do a little planting and then maybe the scooter ride I didn’t get yesterday. Other than that, not a lot on the agenda. We supposedly have cooler temps coming in for a couple of days, and I really like the days in the 70’s and lower 80’s. Once it hits the 90’s, not so much. I do love all the sunshine tho.

I did yesterday's post on my iPhone and couldn't find a way to insert the photos from the other day or even the link. So here they are for you.

Well, time to fill the feeders then get myself moving. 

Keeping busy

Kept busy yesterday working in the yard. Moved the bird bath, split the water line so the fountain gets filled every morning now. Started a bird patio around the feeders but ran out of pavers. Hoping to get the last five I need today and finish that up.

Took some pictures on my walk of things that are blooming in the neighborhood, gathered some desert willow seed and planted some hoping for at least one seedling in Kali Cat's memory.

Getting a little easier walking into the house. I don't look for her constantly now. I keep telling myself ther is no cat.

Still get teary at the drop of a hat, but that is an improvement.

As good as can be expected

I got out and walked yesterday. It wasn’t a full mile, but I hadn’t walked in a couple of weeks, so I didn’t push it. Took a few blossom photos. There is a tree here called an orchid tree, it has hundreds of little orchids on it and is absolutely beautiful. I may look into getting one, but am not sure where I would put it. I don’t have lots of space, and it grows quite large. It would make a nice tribute to Kali Cat. 

After I walked, I got in the car and went and did a few errands. I needed to go to the post office, so I decided to stop and get the bits I need to split the water line from the bird bath to go to the fountain, and maybe to my veggie pots if I decide to take off. They will need to be watered. I had three packages at the post office, the shade cloth for the end of the patio, the vent visors for the car and the new pop up sun shades for the car. From there, I forced myself to go to Dollar General where I bought most of KC’s supplies. Litter, pee pads, the cheap food she would eat and her tuna. I didn’t want to go, but I needed a few things and would have to go at some point anyway. I forced myself to walk the pet aisle just to get that over and done with. It wasn’t easy. Most trips to DG were for something for her. I did hit Salvation Army on the way back, but didn’t buy anything. I wasn’t really in the shopping mood, but I’m looking for a cheap stereo receiver because the house is way too quiet.

I can’t stream music from the internet because I have limited access, and Kali Cat isn’t there to hold a conversation with any more. And the house is just too damned quiet. The only living thing indoors is me. No plants, no cat, nothing. At one point I just had to call for her. I felt like I needed to do that, so I did. I guess I am trying to work it out in my head that she isn’t there. I even looked under the bed for her. Just something I had to do. I’m still crying, I knew I would. She was such a huge part of my life, my responsibility and my companion. But at least it isn't’ constant like it was Monday and Tuesday and I am starting to think about other things. 

We used to have conversations. Kali Cat loved to be talked to. Sometimes it would be in human and sometimes in cat. She would just sit there looking at me and listen to whatever I was saying and would respond with a chirp. She was such a wonderful companion. I did the best I could for her. I am so conditioned now to not leave the house for more than an hour or so because she needed me, that it is going to take a conscious effort on my part to actually go somewhere and do something. I’m thinking a day trip to Yuma might be a good place to start. Some day next week. I have people there.

I finally spent a little time indoors dealing with the several bunches of beets and greens that I got last week. I had already cooked the greens, but still had to cook the beets. Got the greens divided and into the freezer, cooked, cleaned, sliced and packaged and froze the beets. Made a lettuce salad in a large bowl for easy salad making, and cleaned out a few things and the bunnies got a treat. Then I installed the vent visors on the car. The car really needs a bath. It is covered with pollen, dust and bird poo. It is back in it’s regular parking spot. There aren’t a lot of people left to walk by. 

Glenn stopped by when I was getting back from town to see how I was. I broke down of course. He was very good about it. He said something that I hadn’t thought about, and it actually helped for a little while. He said she was being eaten alive, and that she is in a better place. I hadn’t thought about it like that, and he is right.  He brought me some cactus paddles for me to plant in the yard. Some that bloom orange and one that blooms pink. This time next year I should have blooms in the yard. I also have seed pods from the Argentine Giant Cactus that was blooming next door. I want to get those started, but need to research them first. 

I think I may have offended Vicki. She hasn’t stopped by since Kali Cat has gone. She offered to go with me, but it was something I had to do on my own. She wanted to come down Tuesday and talk, and I just wasn’t ready to talk, and she hasn’t stopped by since. She was stopping by on a daily basis. She is recovering from an injury she got from a folding chair Monday, but I have seen her out and about.  We have chatted via messenger and she invited me to ride along with her and Doreen today to Havasu. I haven’t been to Havasu yet, but it is Doreen’s trip, she has an eye appointment, and she and I haven’t really hit it off. And I don’t think I am quite ready for something like that anyway, so I won’t’ be going. I need to do things in my own time and deal with it my way. 

I did clean out the cat supply cupboard and moved the bathroom supplies down. That will give me another whole shelf for pantry, canned goods, etc. I still have a lot of organizing to be done with the cupboards. But I figure that will give me something to do when it is too hot to be outdoors. I’m still having a hard time going into the empty house. I may have to start running the TV when I am indoors. There is one classical music channel which is better than nothing. I used to listen to music all the time, but not so much the last few years. Even in the car. I never played the radio while driving Ody either. Partly to keep an ear out for KC, partly because it would eventually annoy me.

The silverware drawer is a nightmare. I need to spend a few minutes with that and get it somewhat organized. I picked up a second tray at Salvation Army a while back, but I would only think of it when I was looking for something in the drawer. Out of sight, out of mind kind of thing. It is now on my list of things to do. But not high in the priority list.

I guess it is going to take a while before I start sleeping again. I did a little better last night, but not great. I tried to take a nap in the afternoon, but the moment I sat myself in the chair, I started playing Kali Cat’s last few minutes thru my head. This is something that happens the moment I try to be still, over and over and over. It happened so fast, and I hope she knew I was with her and was some comfort to her. I couldn’t not be there, but it is still something I wish I hadn’t had to do. That is going to take me a while to process. I still have tapes of Jake and some of his last moments that play in my head on a regular basis, and it has been five plus years. Those have been all brought back by this too. Along with the similarities of being a caregiver to both of them. Not something I am anxious to do again. I’m not built for it. I hope if I ever have another relationship of any kind, that I am the one that goes first. I just don’t think I could survive another loss.

I am eating. I wish I were one of those people that lost their appetite when they were upset, but I’m not. Not eating as well as I should be, but am eating. It will be a long time before I will be able to eat chicken or tuna tho. When all else failed, that is what I gave Kali Cat. She had chicken her last day as a special treat, and threw it up in the carrier on the way to the vet. I can still smell it. Tuna was how she got her meds until she stopped eating it, and I always, always gave her the tuna juice when I opened a can. On the plus side, if you can call it that, I have a lot fewer dishes, very little recycling, and the trash won’t have to be dealt with as often. No more cat food in the garbage, or dirty cat littler. Less vacuuming too. But I would gladly continue dealing with all of that to keep her a little longer. I thought we would have more time.

I do have a few things I can do today. I have the water lines to do, and now that i have the shade cloth for the back, I can figure out how that is going to go up. That should keep me busy for a little while. I have a whole list of things to do. Some of the things have been on there for a while, like organizing the shed. It will all get done, new things will be added to the list. 

We have had gusty winds for a couple of days, it brought in some cooler temps. I’m going to try to make the most of it. We have some huge temperature fluctuations here. It was 99 degrees on Tuesday, I don’t think we made it out of the 70’s yesterday and is in the lower 50’s right now. At least being in the park model the wind doesn’t stress me like it did in Ody. It is annoying, but definitely less stressful.

I am so very tired

I’m up in the wee hours. Managed about four hours sleep in the bed, better than the night before. I did snooze in the chair in the living room for about an hour or so yesterday morning. I am so very tired. I’m going to have to learn how to sleep again. I had started doing pretty good on the sleep front until Kali Cat got sick.

I cried again most of the day yesterday. Every time I went indoors, it hit me how empty the house is without Kali Cat. I kept looking for her in her favorite spots, listening for her to tell me it was meal time, and having our conversations.

It seems to be sinking in that she is gone. I don’t know if I am cried out, or if I am starting to adapt. Time to start thinking about what I am going to do for the next couple of months. I haven’t managed do to any creative work, or make anything in the workshop. It still needs to be organized and made useable. If I re-load Ody, I will have more space and less to organize in the shed. I am seriously considering transferring the registration to AZ and hitting the road for a few weeks. She is insured, cleaned up and pretty much ready to go. Might as well use her while I still have a few dollars left. On the plus side, I won’t have to load anything other than the absolute necessities and will be much easier to clean out when she goes to a new home. And I have a place to come back to.

Why is it when I start to appreciate what I have and start enjoying it, something happens to turn it all to crap? Jake and I were starting to make plans, wanted to spend more time together, then he got sick. Now I have a new place in a town that I am comfortable in, was happy with what I have, and I loose Kali Cat. The last living and breathing constant in my life. I just don’t get it.

I am going to try and get myself out to walk this morning and I really should go to the post office. Other than that, I am not making any plans or setting any goals. I read a book yesterday in between bouts of crying. At least while I am reading I am not crying or thinking about myself and my sorrows. I will play it by ear. Maybe get a little more sleep if I can. I am so tired.

Kali Cat, 1997 to 2015

Well, it is done. Kali Cat is gone and I have done nothing buy cry since I made the decision yesterday morning. Still crying. I was with her the whole time and she went peacefully. Unfortunately, the drive over upset her, but there wasn’t anything I could do about that. I kept talking to her and petting her and never took my hands off her until I had to leave. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. And leaving her there was more difficult than bringing her in. So similar to when I had to leave Jake.

I already miss her so very much. I hate coming in the house because she isn’t here. My constant companion and my baby girl. I didn’t get much sleep and I am so tired. I managed about four hours last night, two in front of the TV and maybe two in bed. Of course, it was my first night in bed in over a week.

I removed all things Kali Cat except her mouse that she tried to play with yesterday morning. She made an attempt just to try and please me, but just didn’t have the energy. Her mouse will be tied on to her urn when she comes home. I just can’t stand the reminders. I did the same thing when Char Lee died and when Jake died too. I also tried to clean up some of the spots on the carpet. 

Unfortunately, the photos I took of her yesterday weren’t all that good. But I have hundreds of photos taken at other times. Here are a few of my favorites..

I have many, many more photos and will add them to the FB album as I come across them. A tribute like I did for Emma and Jake.

After I took the litter box and all the pee pads and stuff to the dumpster, I parked my car lengthwise in front of my patio. I just wasn’t in the mood to have to wave to everyone that went by. It will probably stay like that for a couple of days. I spend a lot of time out there.

I should walk today, but I probably won’t. I just don’t feel like it. I’m allowed a couple of days to wallow and grieve. I just lost a huge part of my life. I didn’t do anything without considering her first, especially since she has been sick. 

As much as I would like to get the floors replaced, I can’t do it until I get Ody sold. I am considering transferring the registration to AZ since my VT registration has expired, and heading off somewhere for a week or two. If she doesn’t sell, she might as well get used. But it is too soon to make those kinds of decisions. Georgia invited me over to where she is staying in CA, I might do that for a night or two by car. That is about three hours away. But I won’t make any decisions at least until next week. When I can get used to walking into an empty house. I still look for Kali Cat in all her spots even tho my head knows she isn’t here. I put the printer in the spot where her box was because without the box, it was so empty. I even listen for her when it gets close to meal times, and I swear I have heard her cry for food. If I am outside I can pretend she is in here until I walk thru the door.

Well, I guess I should take a shower and make an attempt at being acceptable. get dressed for at least part of the day. It is going to be hot again. The thermometer said we hit 99 yesterday and it didn’t go below 70 over night, so today will most likely be even warmer.

I just don’t know what I am going to do now without Kali Cat. I am not planning on getting another cat because they don’t like to travel, and it just hurts too much when they leave. I don't know if I am done traveling or not either.

I will be OK. Eventually.